Papyrus was hysterical. He kept shaking his head and hand in order to convey, he had nothing to do with it. “She just dropped. I wanted to tell her to stay away, I wanted to tell her to leave me alone!” Papyrus whimpered before running out of the hut.

“Go, get the chief, call everyone!” the jester told the villager who had been with him.

Soon afterwards, the entire village flocked to the crime scene. The jester had already checked the pulse. He told Ismarus to check it again. Nikolay’s wife broke down in tears, resting Elena’s head on her lap.

“What did you see when you found her like this?” Nikolay asked the jester.

“We found Papyrus sitting on his chowki and staring at Elena, lying still on the floor. He said, he wanted to tell her to stay away from him when she collapsed. He ran out immediately after that.”

When it was clear to everyone what really happened, Nikolay assembled a group of youths, and sent them out to track down Papyrus. They were to bring him, dead or alive. They were warned not to approach him alone for it would not be possible for one man to apprehend him or bring him down.

By then, Nikolay’s wife began wailing over her dead child, blaming Ismarus for all this. Some of the villagers joined her, pointing their fingers at the prince. Nikolay attempted to calm her down, gently stroking her head with his hand. Anyone could tell, he was at a loss for words.

Those who congregated, all carried torches in their hands. The light of the burning torches glimmered against their sweaty faces, giving a somber touch to the atmosphere. Hardly anyone talked, or whispered. However, their eyes said the unsaid words, and in a situation like this, they were louder than the loudest scream. Ismarus stood next to Calysto, with the jester standing right behind them.

“We should not have come here for refuge,” Calysto told herself while glancing at her son.

Ismarus could read his mother’s look. It reminded him of his childhood days. On numerous occasions, he saw that look, apparently when he had done something wrong. “This is not the outcome of a deed by a mischievous boy. At stake is our very survival,” Ismarus said to himself.

“You brought this upon yourself, Nikolay,” one of the villagers shouted at the village chief.

Annoyed by the comment, Nikolay shot back at the middle-aged man standing at the rear, “How?”

There was no response from the man. Being aware of what the man wanted to say, Nikolay continued, “Are we to turn our back to the helpless, who are being unjustly hunted by a pack of wolves? Is this what we stand for?”

The jester thought perhaps it was the right moment to intervene. He added, “Suppose you have come across a beautiful bird. Every morning you leave home to see it. If your spouse thinks, you have left him or her for the bird, is it the fault of the bird? Accusing the bird for the meanness of your spouse, what kind of attitude are we talking about? Is it right? Ask yourself when you look in the mirror.”

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Apart from that, if anyone thinks we have imposed ourselves upon you, let him come forward. We will leave this village, even if a single villager has such opinion of our stay,” Ismarus said when the jester had stopped.

Shadows of discontent fell on quite a few, but none came forward with any objections. Nikolay felt he should apologize to Ismarus and Calysto for the insolence of some of his villagers.

He stepped forward, and with a heavy heart, said to Calysto, “Your highness, on behalf of my villagers, please accept my apology. We all know, you or your son has nothing to do with this tragedy. It’s all my fault. I should have seen it coming.” He paused, and turning to face the villagers, he continued, “Let us arrange a funeral for Elena. We will also have to decide the fate of Papyrus when he is apprehended. In the meantime, I need some volunteers to carry Elena to the temple for cremation.”

In small groups, the villagers returned to their huts, while six young men stayed with Nikolay. A long day had made the jester weary. He stayed back at his hut for rest. On the other hand, on their way to their residence, neither Ismarus nor Calysto talked. At ginger steps, mother and son traversed the distance between the crime scene and their temporary lodge. Worries about the future dominated their thoughts. Once they reached the gate of the compound, Calysto could no longer suppress her thoughts.

“I am afraid we will have to move on son,” she said to Ismarus.

Ismarus nodded. He had the same feelings. The suppressed anger and frustrations among many of the villagers did not go unnoticed. A slightest spark would ignite the volcano. However, he could not blame them. In their shoes, perhaps he would have done the same. He was grateful for what they did for him and his mother. After all, at the end of the day, they were just wanderers in a foreign land. He understood, under the circumstances, their hosts could do only so much for them. Nonetheless, Ismarus could not afford to ignore the risk of traveling with assassins trailing them. They had to wait for the right moment to move on. Nikolay appeared to be a good friend. Ismarus knew, the old chief would not let the crowd blow its top, at least not while they were still around.

“We might have to stay put for a few days. Let’s see what happens. I’m pretty sure, Nikolay will be able to handle the situation for us. Ismarus paused, and then added, “I wish, I wish, I could talk to Papyrus and Elena, before all this. It’s a terrible feeling. I feel guilty.”

“Do not blame yourself son. What happened, was destined to happen. However, you have to be very cautious about those young ladies. This tragedy should serve as a great lesson to us. Always refrain from doing or saying which might give the wrong impression. Do not ever miss the opportunity to clarify where you stand. Do not let this fraternity blur the line between you and your admirers.”

The men who had been employed as guards, peeped through a pocket in the heavy wooden gate before opening a smaller entrance. Calysto hesitated. She wanted to add something to what she had already said. Ismarus waited quietly, giving her the time to organize her thoughts. Calysto stared at the burning torch in her son’s hand for a few moment. The fire of the torch made her countenance glow in the relative darkness of the surrounding. She felt, they were already late to bed. Hence, she came out with it.

“Son, I am going to give you a piece of advice. You are old enough. Therefore, I will not impose it upon you. Try to remember, good look is like the burning torch you have in your hand. It’s undoubtedly a blessing. However, like the burning torch, if it’s abused, it has the power to burn down everything. Therefore, do not tread the path of arrogance. Always keep in mind, with power comes great responsibility. Before taking a step, think about the consequence. Something of little importance to you, might mean life or death to someone else. You must be very careful, how you are perceived by those around you. They must not get the wrong impression from you.”

The message was loud and clear. In order to clarify his position, Ismarus said, “I hardly ever talked to the girl ________,”

“Shhhhhh,” Calysto put her fingers on his lips, and said, “I know.”