The Sugilite Prince

My stunned face made Sugi smile yet again. It was cute how he hid his laugh behind his hand. I knew my face was red every time the prince showed a bit of interest in me and this was making me more nervous, the feeling that I don’t belong more evident. My discomfort so novel to the prince it seemed to entertain him.

Sugi leaned forward and handed me the outside fork. His eyes glittered like amethysts as he stared intently into mine. My hand shook as I took it from him and he said, “start from the outside in.”

I picked up a piece of fruit and put it in my mouth and started to chew self-consciously hoping I don’t choke and embarrass myself even more.

“Do you like it?”

“Yes, thank you,” I said trying not to meet his gaze again. It was just too nerve-racking.

“I’m glad, I really enjoy your company and I hope to have breakfast with you every day.”

“Thank you. It’s beautiful here.” He said looking around the garden.”

“It is a close second to you,” Sugi whispered the compliment.

“You are really lucky.”

“Well, I wouldn’t say that. I’m cursed. I can’t show my eyes to my family or my close friends for fear of hurting them.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean anything by it. If you don’t mind my asking, why were you cursed?”

Sugi suddenly looked melancholy and I was even more curious.

Sugi looked at me then and turned his gaze towards the woods. “It was a fine morning like this one. I was hunting for rabbits in the woods not so far from here when I noticed a slight movement. I stared intently thinking it was the prey I pursued but was surprised by how well she could blend into the woods. It was like she sprung up out of the shrubbery made by some magic there. She was lovely with bright green eyes and wore a warm vest the same shade of green as the forest and her dark skirt was wrapped around her legs to make running easier.”

My eyes grew wide at his words and I asked him, “Was she a sorceress? I’ve heard they live in the woods.”

“She noticed me and poised her bow at the ready to shoot me. Our eyes met as tiny droplets of sweat rolled down my face. The only sound I could hear was the whispering of the trees and the pounding of my heart. Thankfully, finding me an unlikely threat, she put down her bow, smiled at me and whisked away before I could speak. Intrigued I followed her. She giggled as I matched her every step. Just then she stopped and held her hand up to stop my progress. She held up her bow again and shot a rabbit. She picked it up and put it in a sack that she carried on her back. We spent the next few hours hiking and hunting but never exchanged a word.”

“The next day I couldn’t wait to do it again so I sneaked out escaping my dreaded lessons. I didn’t care if I would be punished, I had had a grand time looking for rabbits with the beautiful girl. I found her again in the same spot as the previous day. It was as if she was waiting for me. She smiled and turned away from me on the hunt again. She ran swiftly between the saplings making it difficult for me to keep up until she tripped on a root and hurt her knee. Huffing I caught up to her and offered to help.”

“She nodded and accepted my assistance wrapping her arm around my shoulders. She looked around and whispered something. I looked at her perplexed not understanding her words. She told me she spoke to the woods and they told her which direction her house was. My eyes grew wide wondering if she was a witch. Getting her to her house made me nervous. I was getting deeper and deeper into the woods and wondered if I could get myself back home. You can imagine my fear when we reached the old house nearly covered in vegetation looking more abandoned than anything.”

“You should have left right away,” I said fearing for him.

Sugi continued, “the place had an odd feeling to it almost sinister. I went into the dark structure reluctantly, but I really wanted to help her and by now thought of her as a friend. I looked around for some water to clean her wound staring at the many jars holding strange ingredients. Inside the kitchen, the woodstove was giving off an inviting warmth and a sweet piney smell filled the room, but it did not ease my fear when I saw from the corner of my eye a sightless witch suddenly move. I was terrified. The hideous old hag reached out to me with her talons.”

“′Maeve?′ The creature croaked. I didn’t know it at the time but her mother and grandmother were malevolent witches.”

“Yes, grandmother. It’s me and this is my friend,” she quickly answered.

“The old witch held up her hand to her face and muttered something. It was as if she could see me through her hand instead of her eyes. I was scared but she didn’t harm me. I told my friend that I needed to leave and she pointed me in the right direction. ‘You won’t get lost,’ she said, and I wondered how she could possibly know that.

“From then on, I kept running into her whenever I ventured out alone. She became my little shadow and hunting buddy. I used to tease her cause she was such a tomboy and little by little we became closer. She was really shy and didn’t speak much but I didn’t mind. She was so different from anyone at the palace and so pretty. I think she knew I liked her and it made her like me too. I asked her one day what she muttered under her breath and she told me it was the language of the woods. I had heard my mother speak of it before and I was intrigued but she knew so much more than me about the forest that my mother never taught me and it made me jealous. I laughed at her when she said she had a deep connection to the forest and those that dwelled there.”

“Like who?” I mocked.

“I speak to the elementals and the tree spirits. You shouldn’t tease me so cruelly. You will regret it someday,” she said.

“As time passed, I lost interest in the strange girl and she was very hurt by my inattention. She would glare at me from a distance always spying on me and my friends. Sometimes I would find her crying by herself. It made me sad but I didn’t move to comfort her. I was afraid that if I showed any interest, her obsession would start up again. But ignoring her was a mistake. It made her even angrier and she would lash out at me calling me names and telling me to leave the forest or I would die. Our fragile friendship became a childish feud that lasted a few years. I would do pranks to annoy her, destroying little offerings she made to the tree spirits. She, in turn, left me little hexes and love spells and when nothing worked she spread rumors about me. She even had my friends thinking the crazy things she said were real. She was delusional.”

“Like what did she say?” Jimon asked.

“She said I was a supernatural creature... a half-blood but was too dumb to use my powers.”

Jimon tiled his head. “Half-what?”

“Have human and half-elf. It’s true but I have no supernatural powers.”

“Oh!”

“My mother is an elf.”

“I was determined to clear the air between us so I sent her a note to meet me in the woods at dusk where we had first laid eyes on each other. She brought her bow just like on the day we met when we had been hunting. She stood completely still trying to catch me off guard. When she saw I came alone she came out of her hiding spot. In the dimming light, our eyes met and I could see the longing in hers before the hateful glare took over. As I walked towards her, I could see the apprehension in her eyes. She actually started to believe her own tales and thought I was there to hurt her. She pointed her bow at me and I stopped in my tracks. But she couldn’t do it. She couldn’t hurt me.”

“I stared at her beautiful face caught off guard. I could have just said I was sorry but my immature self said, ‘I didn’t recognize you without your scowl. You look like a girl today.’”

“With scorn in her eyes, she started shooting arrows at me but none of the arrows hit me in spite of her prowess with a bow. Our little cat and mouse game was fun. I ran around teasing her unafraid of getting hit. When she ran out of arrows she ran home as fast as you could go with the tangled underbrush and tree roots to watch out for. I followed her and finally caught up with her when she stepped into a small clearing. It was as if time stood still. She looked at me with great worry in her eyes thinking I would have her killed for her insolence but my revenge would come soon and be more painful.”

Sugi paused looking at Jimon that listened intently. He continued the story after taking a drink.

“I walked up to her as she stared at my eyes with yearning and I took her into my arms. Our hearts were pounding with excitement and fear. I finally kissed her for the first time and that day she gave herself to me and we made love. That was the culmination of what she wanted, my love but I just as easily took it away. When my passion was satiated I left her there without a word of love. That must have been the moment she gave up on me. She cast her vindictive spell and the next time someone looked into my eyes they froze and never looked at anything else again.”

After his story, I was more than a bit unnerved. I felt sorry for the girl that had given in to her worst tendency and all because she could not have the love she so pined for. I also suspected that the prince was somehow supernatural and wondered if this was even real. What if I had been lured into this dream world where I was trapped by this beautiful creature just awaiting my fate. I was afraid that if I gave in to his charms I would be gone forever much like the mysterious Maeve.

Dear readers,

I hope you enjoyed the back story between Sugi and Maeve. I thought it best to be told from Sugi’s pov and to show Jimon’s growing unease yet fascination with Sugi. I know it was a bit long. Please leave a comment if you enjoyed reading it.

Sugasluv