First Pov

We have been walking for three days.Luckily,the forest is full of fruit trees so we have plenty to eat . Water is also not a problem since we encountered a lot of streams.

The plan is to find the highway,then signal a car to stop and ask the driver to take us to Paris. Fortunately,I own a comfortable apartment in Paris so all we had to do was find a means of transportation to the city and all will be solved.

According to a map that we managed to find amongst the ruins and my calculations we have two more days of walking before we come in contact with civilization.

However,there was something that has been troubling me for days now,ever since that first night we slept in the forest. Anthony's behaviour towards Angelica has changed dramatically. Instead of being constantly irritated,offensive and miserable now he is acting kindly and gently,sometimes to an excessive degree. He was treating Angelica like a princess of a damsel and at times it was driving Angelica mad. She is used to acting strong and independent and when someone is treating her as "a drama queen with too much makeup and too little brain",as Angelica describes princesses,she is greatly offended and doesn't make any attempt to hide her discomfort or anger.But Anthony simply will not stop.

-I promise you,Anthony,if you offer me your hand one more time,I will chop it off. Do I make myself clear?

He keeps insisting on helping Angelica on every opportunity he gets. Yesterday,he wanted to carry her over a small river because he didn't want her to get wet. Needless to say,she didn't agree with his plan. On the contrary,when he bowed to lift her,she threw him inside the river with such force that he hit his head on a rock. I actually felt sorry for him and scolded Angelica afterwards. Also,we had to take a stop to treat Anthony's head wound.

-But this fallen trunk is quite big. You may slip trying to climb on it.

-And if I take your hand,we will both fall. Excellent idea. You came up with it all by yourself?

-Im strong enough to hold you.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

-You are not strong enough to protect,hold or help me. And I'm not referring only to the trunk.

That comment must have hurt Anthony deeply because he didn't move for quite a while. He withdrew his hand slowly and shily,as if he wanted to make sure it wouldn't stay at the same position forever.In the meantime,Angelica climbed over the trunk with little difficulty and she continued walking proudly without looking back. Anthony lowered his gaze,got down and followed Angelica from a safe distance.He had a look of rejection in his eyes,a rejection that was eating him up inside.And I have to stop it.

-Angelica!

She looked at me with an expectant look.

-Why don't you take the map and lead us for a while? It will take your mind off things and calm you down a bit.

-Sure,why not?

Truth be told,Angelica has never denied me anything. I couldn't tell if it was because of admiration,respect or fear because I'm the Queen.To be more precise,I was but she doesn't need to know that.Come to think of it,by not telling them that I have deceived them in a way.They feel so sure and safe believing the High Ruler of the Multiverse is their companion while in truth Im nothing more than a human with some special abilities,which I don't know for how much longer I will poccess.By the time I finished my line of thinking,Angelica had already approached me so I handed over the map and the notes and went to talk to Anthony who was still mopping a few meters back.

-Anthony,how are you doing?

-Fine

His flat response agitated me for some reason so I grabbed his arm and whispered in his ear,despite the fact that Angelica was far away from us so we were technically alone:"I don't have much time. We are bound to get lost sooner or later with Angelica leading us. I'm only going to ask you one time. What happened during the crash?

He seemed surprised by my question and for a few seconds he didn't answer,he just stared at me but he soon realised that I was serious.

-What do you mean?

-Angelica may be too self-centered to notice the small changes in other people's behaviour but I am not. It's not just the way you treat her. You look at her differently,with more respect and at times with servility. You avoid meeting her gaze except when it is absolutely necessary. You choose to distance yourself from her but not due to hate or anger but because of admiration.

He stopped walking and looked at me with eyes full of regret,like he was about to admit that he had discovered a forbidden secret.

-When we crushed,I fell on Angelica and I accidentally kissed her. She doesn't remember it,I don't even know if she realised what happened.

-You know?

He lowered his gaze once more and nodded slowly. I wasn't angry,more like distraught. I took both his hands in mine.

-Whatever happens,don't let Angelica find out that you know. If she asks why you act this way lately,find some excuse to justify it. Tell her you are in love,I don't care,as long as she doesn't find out the truth.

-But....

-Shhh.I know you have many questions but I can't answer them right now. I don't even know if I have the answers to your basic questions. If a bird could talk and asked you about why and how humans walk,you wouldn't be able to answer either.

I let go of him and ran to Angelica who was going straight towards a swamp. Anthony managed to catch up with us a few minutes later and in his eyes I saw a new kind of determination,the likes of which I had never seen before,that didn't go unnoticed even by Angelica. I don't know if I should feel afraid or relieved.

All we could do was continue moving forward.