Rabbit Stew

“They’re really going at it…” Valeria said, looking over her shoulder while stacking up the wood in the firepit.

“They are…” Sophia said and sat down next to her.

She watched the two men for a while without saying anything.

“There, all done… now I just need something to spark up a flame…” Valeria mumbled after finishing stacking the wood and turned towards Sophia. “Would you mind?”

Sophia pointed her finger at the wood and a small flame shot towards it, igniting the kindling at the bottom.

“That’s so cool…” Valeria said, watching the flames slowly creeping up.

“It’s just a little pocket trick…” Sophia remarked.

“Still cool… In my pocket is…” she pulled the pockets of her pants inside out, “only dirt.”

They both began to laugh.

“You’re not exactly what I picture a princess to be, to be honest,” Sophia mentioned.

“Why? Because instead of sitting in a castle with a pompous dress, munching on some sweet pastry that the best chefs in the world made, waiting to be married off to some dimwitted noble, I sit in the middle of a field with dirty pants, preparing my own meal with the rabbits I shot myself?” Valeria inquired.

“Yeah… kinda…”

“I get that a lot… I’m the failure princess after all… I never really cared for the typical princess things… my sisters can do that… While they were all confined to the castle, studying and training to be proper ladylike, I much rather snuck out and explored the city while running from the Kings guard.”

“You ran out of the castle?”

“Oh yeah… but they always caught me in the end… well he did…”

Valeria pointed at Bastian.

“You two seem close…” Sophia remarked.

“He never gave up on me… all the other personal guards and attendees I had, got fed up with my… shenanigans and tantrums I would throw… He didn’t.” Valeria explained.

“I see… so you were a real troublemaker.”

“Still am.”

Valeria gave her a cheeky smile.

“And what is the troublemaker princess really doing here?” Sophia asked.

“There were reports of kidnappings happening in the outskirts of the empire, but there were no investigations getting started. Not even when the reports piled up. Neither the military nor the Inquisition did anything about it and the crown’s own forces were too valuable to send on such trivial matters… that’s at least what I was told… So I decided to take matters in my own hand,” Valeria explained. “Well, I guess the Inquisition finally decided to launch an investigation after all, right?”

“Why are you asking me?”

“Are you not here to investigate the kidnappings?”

“No… I was sent to hunt for… a rogue mage further up north.”

“A rogue mage? I haven’t heard anything about that…”

“Well, it’s top secret I was instructed to tell no one, not even th… shit”

Sophia paused, realizing a very specific instruction she had been given, that seemed quite odd to her.

“The crown?” Valeria guessed. “Don’t worry I won’t tell anyone.”

“Thanks…” Sophia said and let out a sigh of relief.

“But in exchange for my sealed lips, you two are gonna help with the Investigation involving the kidnappings.”

“I planned to do that anyways… no way I can walk away from that in good conscious.”

Valeria looked at Sophia for a moment.

“I knew that I’d like you,” she said with a smile. “So, another question… What’s the deal with you and Kieran and what’s up with this magic that makes to able to command him?” Valeria asked further and watched her closely.

Sophia’s mind was racing for a possible explanation. She felt the gaze out of Valeria’s bright blue eyes.

“He… uhm… came in contact with an ancient magic spell while he was on a mission. I was part of the team that recovered him and as I was investigating this unknown magic, I activated it… by accident. Since then, there is this connection between us that lets me give him orders that he has to obey,” Sophia answered with a half-truth.

Valeria furrowed her brows.

“An ancient spell… no wonder I never heard about that…” she uttered, her eyes were still closely watching Sophia. “Is this spell replicable?"

“No… I don’t think so,” Sophia replied.

“Good… Let’s hope you’re right on that.”

Valeria finally lowered her gaze and began to cut up vegetables for the stew.

“Hm… we have to build something to hang the cauldron over the fire…” she mumbled after putting the pieces in.

“I can handle that,” Sophia offered and waved her hand.

The cauldron slowly rose from the ground and began levitating over the fire.

“That’s so cool!” Valeria exclaimed excitedly.

She continued slicing things for the stew. Sophia helped her and a few minutes later the meat, onions, potatoes, carrots and mushrooms were cooking in the cauldron.

“Coming back to that ancient spell… You said that he must obey your orders, right?” Valeria asked suddenly.

“Yeah, unless he wants to end up like you saw in the cell,” Sophia replied.

“Any order?”

“Yeah…?”

“So, if you tell him to stick his finger up his nose and bounce on one leg?”

“He would have to do it.”

“Interesting…”

Valeria stirred the pot for a little while.

“What if you tell him to stick something else somewhere else?” she finally asked.

“I don’t know if I can follow… what do you mean?” Sophia asked confused.

“You know… doing naughty things.”

“What? That’s… uhm…”

“Would he have to do it?”

“Uhm… yeah, he has to.”

Valeria put a finger to the side of her mouth and pondered for a moment.

“That not very morally correct…” she then said. A faint smile appeared on her face and her eyes focused again on Sophia. “But it’s kinda hot…”

“Huh?” Sophia exclaimed shocked, “No… that’s… wrong…”

“Yeah, it’s wrong on so many levels… but the fantasy of completely dominating someone… or subjugating yourself to someone if that’s more your style… don’t you find it even a bit enticing?”

“What? No… I… no…”

“The thought never crossed your mind?”

Sophia face began turning red and she opened her mouth to answer, but Bastian and Kieran arrived at that moment back at the fire.

“What are you girls chatting about?” Bastian asked looking at the two women.

“Oh, just girl stuff,” Valeria replied smiling innocently.

“Girl stuff?”

“Yeah… like how to get a man to make love to you.”

“What?!”

Bastian’s mouth opened in shock.

“That’s… not something girls should talk about! Also, it’s nothing you should worry about! You’re too young for that sort of… stuff!” he said completely flustered.

“I’m a fully grown woman!”

“You’re a little runt!”

Valeria glared at him for a moment.

“Well, since you’re clearly more experienced, you old oaf… What would a woman have to do to make you fall for her?” She asked with a cheeky grin.

“What? That’s…” he began turning bright red,” none of your business!”

Bastian then stormed off to get his sleeping roll from the wagon. Valeria chuckled as she watched him and then turned towards Kieran.

“What about you? What would you want a woman to do?” she asked.

Sophia, who finally had her facial color back under control glanced over at him.

“Hm… a compliment or words of affirmation…” Kieran answered.

“That’s enough for you?” Valeria asked, surprised.

“It may not seem much to many people, but for some… it’s more than they could ever dream of…”

“That’s… sad.”

“The world is a sad place, little princess.”

“That’s not true… you only have to focus more on the fun things… like rabbit stew that should be done any minute!”

The stew was indeed done in a few minutes, and they sat around the fire shortly after, slurping the hot meal. Sophia noticed Kieran poking around in his bowl.

“What’s up?” she asked. “I thought you liked stew…”

“Mushrooms…” Kieran mumbled.

“What?”

“I don’t like mushrooms…”

Sophia’s eyebrows went up and then she began to chuckle. She then waved her hand and the mushroom pieces from Kieran’s bowl flew from his bowl to hers.

“Want some of my potatoes?” Sophia then asked.

“Yes, please.”