Chapter 2

As the sun hangs low over the horizon, the group of six pushed the castle doors open one last time, heading straight for the road. No one speaks for a while, all of them thrown together without much common ground. Francine is the one to break the silence, as they come to a fork in the road. 

“Charlie, you have the map, right? Which way do we go now?” It takes a few minutes for Thomas to realize she was talking to him.

“Oh--yes. I do. However, my name is actually Thomas--Thomas Benton.” He pushes his glasses up as he speaks, holding the map with one hand. 

“Let me see that,” Francine says, grabbing it. “I can’t even find the castle; what kind of map is this?” 

Elliot stands behind her before flipping the map right-side-up. “We’re here.” 

Red creeps up her face and Francine automatically turns her embarrassment to anger. “Why’d you have to hand it to me upside down, Charlie?”

Thomas starts to speak up, but Analise beats him to it. “We go left.”

“She’s right,” Elliot says. “Maybe she should hold on to this for a while. She’s a bit more no-nonsense then the rest of you.”

“Yeah? And what does that make you? The Prince who doesn’t want to do anything he’s told?” Francine retorts, still frustrated by the whole map situation.

“Why doesn’t everyone calm down?” Thomas says, waving his arms between the two of them. Elliot smirks.

“Did you just tell a Prince to calm down?”

It’s Thomas’s turn to be embarrassed. “I-I’m so sorry,” he barely manages to get out his apology, instead opting to bow his head as low as possible. 

“He was obviously teasing. Let’s just keep moving.” Analise breaks in, starting to walk, Helen and Troy following close behind. The rest of the group watches them in silence for a few moments before they start after them.

 Two hours of walking later, Elliot stops everyone in their tracks. “We’ll stay here for the night. Troy, Thomas, you two set up the camp. Helen, you can take Francine to try and find water for one of your divination spells. Me and Analise will scout the area. Don’t stray from your partner, and we’ll meet back here when it grows dark.”