Chapter Text
Tonight was the night. He'd finally do something that people would notice. They'd have a reason to be proud of him. For once. Quietly, so as to not disturb anyone, he loaded up his bag and snuck down to the stables. He chose a beautiful dark gray horse, not just because of its color, but because he knew it was the fastest one they had. “Here you go. Come on, that's it.” He coaxed it gently out of its stall, feeding it the apples he had picked up earlier. “Let's see now, horsie, what's your name?” He didn't want to light his lanterns yet, just in case it woke anyone up, so he forced himself to read it through the dark. “Ah. Iridescence. A lovely name for a lovely creature.” The horse seemed to know they weren't supposed to be here, and stayed quiet. Balancing his bag and his sword, Iridescence let him hop on, and they rode into the night. Using the moonlight as his guide, he found his way to the hidden exit he had found only days before. Now they were out. Iridescence took him down the hill out of the guards’ sight, and into the meadow. They followed an almost hidden trail, towards the nearby town. Once they got there, Prince Roman gave a sigh of relief. His journey had begun.
He rode Iridescence through the streets, looking for a good place to spend the night. Eventually he settled on an abandoned pile of hay behind a couple houses. It wasn't great, but it would do. He soon fell asleep, leaving the world behind him. Roman often had dreams of fighting beasts, winning some cute prince's heart away, going on a heroic quest, but they almost always ended in nightmares. Fighting the beast? It was unstoppable, it kept growing as he tired. Everyone wanted him to slay it, he was the prince after all, but he just couldn't do it. He wasn't strong enough. The handsome prince he fell for? They left for someone else. Someone better. That heroic quest? It almost always ended up being fake or not worth it. Now that he was actually trying to complete one, this dream worried him more than ever. The only times his dreams stayed dreams was when he wasn't doing anything special, it was just something like eating jam or painting. The calm ones.
He woke up with a start, but there wasn’t any danger. Iridescence was sleeping peacefully beside him, and the town was quiet. Warm sunlight ran over his face as it began peaking over the horizon. He’d better get moving before somebody recognized him. “Iridescence,” he whispered. “Come on, it’s time to wake up.” The horse snorted, and rose to its feet. “That’s a good horse. We need to go now.” Roman led it around, looking for a cartographer. They had plenty of maps at the palace, but none of them were where he needed to go. He figured it was because they only showed what the royals wanted to know about, but perhaps a local person might be more willing to sell maps from the stories. He stayed in the shadows, disgusted with himself for acting like a criminal, but it was what he had to do if he wanted to get anywhere. The roads were dirty, and oftentimes he had to catch himself before a chicken tripped him. Despite the clutter, the way the buildings were designed was quite orderly. Looking around, for anything, any idea of where the cartographer could be, something waved in the corner of his eye. A banner fluttered as the breeze went in and out, but just before he dismissed it and continued his search, the wind pushed it up, revealing a bold sign, labeled MAPS. Perfect. Just what he was looking for.
He left the horse tied up next to the entrance, and walked inside the shop. His first impression is that it was cluttered, but after taking a longer glance, he could see the shop was just full. Everything was tidy and hung up nicely. No one was in sight, probably because of how early it was, but he really needed a map now. “Hey- um- excuse me! Is anyone here?” Roman leaned over the counter, looking for the owner. “Hello?” He called again impatiently. “Oh, come on," he huffed under his breath. There had to be somebody here. Why else would the doors be unlocked? Well, maybe he could at least look around to see if there was a map he could use now. If there was one, and nobody came, he could just…take it. It wouldn't be stealing necessarily, he could give it back. Besides, he was a prince, so it would be okay…right? There wasn't an option for him to have a moral dilemma though, as everything displayed in the store didn't have what he needed. “Can I help you?” A disgruntled person spoke, scaring him a bit. “Yes, actually. I need a map.” The person stared at him, and then looked around. “Yes…I am a cartographer…this is where you get maps.” Roman paused. “Yeah, and I need a really specific map, so I was wondering if you had one.”
The cartographer sighed and pushed up their glasses. “I know you need a map. Otherwise you're lost or an idiot. You need to be specific and actually say what kind of map you need so I can help you.” It dawned on Roman that he didn't mention where he was going. Perhaps he was tired, or perhaps it was because he was slightly embarrassed. “Oh, well I know that. I just wanted to make sure you knew I needed a map. I'm not an idiot, either, I'm a prince.” The cartographer snorted, muttering, “Why not both?” They looked Roman up and down before drawing back. “Well, what do you need?” He crossed his arms, rather tired of this grumpy cartographer. “I need a map to the Twilight Mountains.” He expected the cartographer to shrug and dismiss him, or even laugh at him. “I see,” They said, opening the small gate that prevented Roman from coming through before. “I have one, and it's in the back. You said you were a prince?” Roman nodded, following him. “Yeah, I'm on a quest.” He was led into a cramped back room that was full of papers and books and quills. “Now keep in mind this might not be the most accurate of maps, considering the mountain range you're looking for is only heard of in stories.” They started shuffling through the papers, looking for it.
As he impatiently waited for his map, the prince realized he left his bag on Iridescence. He started backing out, to go retrieve it, when the cartographer let out a satisfied “Mm-hm.” They saw him leaving and gave an inquisitive look. “I'm going to get some money. I mean, unless you're giving it to me for free, which I wouldn't mind.” “No, of course it's not for free, but given the fact that this is the only map to the Twilight Mountains that I know of, and that you're a prince, the price is going to be high. You won't need your money.” Roman stopped, wondering where this could be going. Hopefully not in the direction he thought. “I will give you this map for the adventure you're presumably going on if you do me a favor first. A side quest, if you will.” They held the map just out of Roman's reach, which irritated him. He had to go on this quest. He had to show everybody what he could do. He needed this map. “Fine. Fine! I'll do whatever, what do you need?” They nodded, and motioned for him to follow again. This time, Roman was taken upstairs, where they must've lived.
It was a smaller space than he expected, but much tidier than the backroom. He could see there was another room, but the door was closed. “So, uh- what's this ‘favor’ you want me to do?” The cartographer sighed. “I need you to take something back to the palace where it will be safe before you go on your adventure.” Roman nodded. “Sure.” He did feel a little bit bad, because there was no way he was going back to the palace before he was done. He'd just have to keep it safe on the journey. They pulled off their glasses and rubbed their eyes. “I'll go get him,” they muttered, walking towards the closed door. Him? Was this thing Roman was supposed to take back a pet of some sort? That might be a bit trickier, but maybe it would be fun. He liked animals, and he'd have some company. The cartographer came back out, and was followed by a tired looking kid. “This is Chris,” They said, introducing him. “I, I- uh don't really feel equipped to take care of him, and he'll be safest at the palace. You can have your map once you do this.” A kid would make this more hectic than it already was. He couldn't take it to the palace, but his quest might be dangerous…still, he did need that map. “Okay, yeah, I could do that. Uh- does Chris have any uh- specific requirements?” The cartographer shrugged. “He's alright with pretty much everything, just don't let him eat raspberries.” They handed him the map and gently pushed Chris his way. Alright then. Guess I'm doing this. He took the small child and they headed out, followed by the cartographer. “Remember,” They warned, “Take him to the castle first.”
Roman hastily nodded, and gave them his most charming smile. “Yup! Kid comes first.” He loaded Chris onto a grumpy Iridescence and took a quick glance at the map. It looked like he'd have to go through some enchanted forest to get to the mountains. Cool, that shouldn't be too hard. He untied the horse, climbed on himself, and started riding out of town. More people were out and about now, starting their day. He pulled his disguise up a little more, hoping he wouldn't be noticed. It was a simple cloak and some of the cooks’ clothes, but that wasn't going to work all the time. He had to be careful. Roman looked down, seeing how his new companion was doing. Chris was fast asleep, hugging Iridescence. He smiled. Maybe this wouldn't be too bad after all. Focusing back on the map again, he realized he might have an idea of where the first would be. A few streams and meadows would be crossed, and possibly he'd go through a trading post, but it seemed like a straight shot from here. Roman realized they were a funny group to be on a quest. A prince, a child, and a horse. Wasn't the usual from what he had heard. They soon left the town behind them, heading into the unknown.