Talios-Chapter 59: Slimed Peak

Eihpos unable to contain her giggle, ended up in a hearty laughter, with the attention of the two at her she just couldn’t help but continue.

The mother and son duo kept thier gaze on her, wondering what had her in her bubbles, Ajab especially, his eyes growing back into their dark pair.

"My apologies Your Highnesses, I just couldn’t help it."

"Ajab, meet your aunt, my baby sister, Eihpos."

Eihpos chuckled. "With the way you wave the ’baby’ around, one might think it’s actually so."

"But it is so. You’re my baby sister, would something have changed that?"

"The gap is not even up to a full year, yet I’m a ’baby’ sister?"

The Queen nodded, fully committed to that truth. "Definitely, you have no complaints."

"Is that so?"

"Absolutely."

Her gaze on the young Prince Eihpos smiled." I’m really short for words. Seeing your Highness’s glamour in the court room the other day, I would never have thought your Highness was one to be swayed by the alore of peasantries."

The Queen snorted. "You’re one to talk." Looking at Ajab, she said. "Have I ever told you of how your aunt traded the family heirloom for a pack of snack?"

Ajab had no interest in extra curriculums but this was beginning to sound interesting.

Eihpos shock her head, her fingers swaying a bold ’no’. "You have that story mixed up. That wasn’t me."

The Queen shock her head. "It was grandfather’s sheathe, and you had it offered to that old man at the shore, for a bowl of his snacks."

"You mean ’you’ had it?" Eihpos pointed out.

"You did sister." The Queen responded, her head slowly nodding in heartfelt agreement.

Eihpos chuckled at the accusation, as she took in a deep breath. She turned to Ajab her hands in the open. "I’d like your Highness to be an undiscriminating judge of this." Ajab blinked, his messed up hair and the dark cloud over his eyes should have been enough to let anyone know he really was not cut out for much this morning, but seemed these two individuals before him really were sisters, bearing the same quality—unable to leave him be. And what made anyone think he wanted to be a part of anything that had to do with being an presiding judge over something or anything that had to do with his mother? If he knew this was going to be part of his morning today, he wouldn’t have bothered to sleep at all, vanishing from here at first light. Still since they were already at it. He could only give his undivided attention.

She continued. "Me and your mother both, were passing through the Mezaw River, between the two White Peaks, we had with us not a lot, with the only valuable we had being Grandfather’s sheathe. Now of course with your mother being the eldest she was the one it was both given to and had it’s significance more impacted on. So we got to the shore, with no other business than just passing through, your mother got hungry—"

"I was hungry?" The Queen interrupted.

"Hm. We were hungry, your mother more than I was."

"Says who?" The Queen protested. "You were clearly hungry, and I was looking out for you."

Eihpos shock her head. "You were the one with the more belle rumbling and the one wholeheartedly agitating for a belle fill."

"Because I was looking out for my baby sister, who was clearly hungry, so I had to be more proactive."

Eihpos raised a brow. "Oh really? Wonderful." She said, nodding as the Queen nodded in response too.

"So anyways, after heavy ’consideration’ of her ’baby sister’ of course..." The Queen nodded in progression of the story. "Your mother decided we had to get some things to eat." She paused, before continuing." Now it is essential to note that, they were fruits, and bread, and some other things one could get for a journey, even smoked meat laid at this man’s stall, all affordable and could at least be exchanged for the bare minimum, for someone who had her ’baby sister’ in mind, your mother decided it was best we go for the cakes instead."

The Queen nodded, not in the slightest remorseful for any reason. "My sister had to get the best."

Eihpos paused her eyes in a ’are you really serious’ as she turned to Ajab. Who didn’t for any reason show he was taking any sides, just eyes open and ears soaking everything in. Ajab wasn’t sure the peculiarity surrounding their situation, but he most likely wouldn’t make a difference choice, but definitely not for the reasons his mother claimed for hers.

Eihpos nodded. "Of course, and when it came time to pay we were in a nickel. Your mother took the cakes, and handed me some and was on her merry way."

"But you had to go and eat it. Why?"

"Here comes the jiggle." Her eyes glinted as she seemed to have blended with the air, taking enough balance to properly narrate this ordeal to the Omniscient judge, who was being to get lost. "Now how was I to know you hadn’t paid for them. Your mother had told me to take some pieces of cake, that they were mine, like anyone who got something that was theirs, I began eating mine, how was I to know she hadn’t paid for them. Worse, she didn’t know she had to pay for them."

Ajab blinked, he tried to not show it, but his eyes slipped as they turned to his mother, but not for anyother reason, than that he was equally shocked that things needed to be paid for. He wasn’t sure if this was something he had gained from this whole morning bombardment or not.

"How was I supposed to know. It said on the old man’s stall, ’pick yours’"

"That was the name of his stall."

"Well he didn’t specify"

"So your mother decided to ’pick ours’ and by the time we had turned to leave we were almost branded thieves."

"We could have easily returned his things, except a certain someone had already began eating hers, and you say I was the hungry one."

"You were the hungry one, the only reason you hadn’t started eating yours was because you were still busy stuffing them into your bag and hadn’t decided which to pounce on first. And I eating mine, was only because there was no reason not to"

"Oh. And then go on, how did this story end?" The Queen urged on.

Ajab didn’t know when he got too wrapped up with this tell, that he too was eager for how this ended.

"How else did it end, you ended up having to give the man grandfather’s sheathe as collateral, so who ended up giving up the family heirloom?"

"No no no no " the Queen protested, her head shaking the very idea off. " You were the one that suggested I give it to him"

Eihpos turned to the Queen then to Ajab her mouth agape. "What else was I to tell you, we had nothing on us except that sheathe, I on the other hand, had no idea it was supposed to be the family’s heirloom, for all I know you were carrying some unnecessary luggage, since the man’s eyes were on it, I could only suggest the best route available. How was that me giving our heirloom for snacks?"

The Queen scoffed then turned to Ajab, "Well Judge this son."

Eihpos nodded as well, fixing a more intense gaze on Ajab. "Yes Judge this."

Ehn? Ajab was stunned, he indeed knew he was being designated as some judge for the two ladies in front of him, but he had thought they were only joking around and wanted to just have someone hear their story and reminisce with thier past, how did it turn to be an actual debate needing a judge and him for that matter, as if he could even pass any judgement here.

Looking at the two ladies, their eyes gunning at him, awaiting the next thing that was going to escape his lips, he could tell they really did not have his best interest at heart. But even then, Ajab coughed.

"Ahem..." Despite what they had in front of him, something they said earlier had piqued his interest. "You two where at the White Peaks?"

The duo hadn’t expected the question, causing them to retract their daunting gazes. Eihpos nodded "At the Mezaw River, Yes."

"The one leading to the Slime Peak?" Ajab asked further.

"The very one" The Queen confirmed.

A smile tugged at Eihpos’s lips." Has the Prince heard of the Slime Peak?"

Ajab didn’t respond immediately, taking his time before nodding. "Grandfather seemed to have mentioned it, he said only death awaited at the Slime Peak."

"Oh" the Queen exclaimed" What caused Father to have mentioned the Slime Peak?" She asked her gaze with it’s intensity on Ajab.