Fic Prompts: Folklore Friday

This is a snippet of my King and Coven fairytale which, hopefully, I’ll actually have time to work on this year lol.The context is that there have been a rash of strange illnesses and deaths in the settlement of Trader’s Gate, and the king has gone to investigate. The investigation is about to be interrupted.

“Rumpus! Come back!”

Chasing after the dog was a small boy, only barely dressed for the winter. He slipped on a patch of ice and went crashing to the ground. The puppy skidded to a halt and cocked its head. It dashed back to the boy with an excited yip and bounced around him before prancing back to the Shieldguards. Lucien bent down to scratch the puppy’s ears.

“Well some guard dog you are,” he scolded, “Leaving your master in the snow like that!”

The little boy picked himself up and brushed as much of the muddy slush off of his tunic as he could. “Yeah…she’s not very good at listening yet.”

Dantes hopped down from the loading dock and crouched in front of the boy. “Ah well. She’s a puppy, she’ll learn. That was quite a tumble! You all right there, son?”

“Yep!” the boy smiled up at the king. “I didn’t hit my head or anything. And I didn’t even cry!”

“Oh? You’re a tough customer, huh?” Dantes teased kindly. “Well I’m glad you’re not hurt. You shouldn’t run when it’s icy. Especially not in cloth shoes.”

“Iknow,” pouted the child, “But Matron Dora didn’t get enough donations for everybody to have boots this year.”

There was only one Almoner’s House in Trader’s Gate. As the settlement was not, officially, a city, it did not have the same funding as Ainselv. The Almoner’s House relied heavily upon donations to take care of those without homes.

“Oh?” Dantes blinked. “I’m sorry to hear that!”

The king turned back to his party and waved Birgit over. “Birgit, while I go over the report, would you visit the Almoner’s House for me? See what they need. I’m authorizing you to requisition supplies from Crown outposts if need be.”

Birgit bit her lip and glanced back at the lake. What she really wanted was to stay and hear the reports of the glowing waters. But Dantes was not one to put off welfare matters until later.

“Of course, your majesty.” Birgit wrapped her cloak more securely around her shoulders and didn’t let her disappointment show until she was out of sight.
It wasn’t the boy’s fault, of course, but Birgit rather wished he could have timed his interruption just a little later.

The boy tiptoed to look over Dantes’s shoulder at the Royal Investigation Militia and Civilian Protection Dept. They were all clustered around a table covered in the latest catch of strange fish.

“Are you here ‘cause of the monsters in the water?” he asked.

“They aren’t monsters, kid,” chided Sheriff Tan.

“Well they sure aren’t fish!” the little boy retorted. “I 'member, this is just like lasttime when everybody got sick!”

Sheriff Tan sighed. “Kid, this is an official investigation. You need to run along home now.”

“But I just had to catch Rumpus,” argued the child, “What if she falls in the lake and gets eaten?”

Lucien and Dantes exchanged glances. They hadn’t had an opportunity yet to interview the people living in Trader’s Gate or Ainselv about the alleged creature contaminating the water. While they knew that children were prone to exaggeration, it couldn’t hurt to get the boy’s perspective.

“Here,” Dantes said, “How about this: let’s get you a collar and a leash for little Rumpus, eh? That way you won’t have to worry so much about her.”

“But I don’t got any money!”

Lucien laughed. “Oh trust me, kid, that won’t be an issue.”
Privately, the captain – and even some of Dantes’s advisory council – felt that the king’s bleeding heart was going to get him into trouble someday. Sooner or later, it was likely that someone would try to take advantage of his generosity. But the king was a grown man, and he could make his own decisions, so Lucien let it be.

“Now,” the king said brightly, “We’ve been introduced to Miss Rumpus, but what about you? What’s your name, son?”

“I’m Zekiel,” said the boy. A moment later he shyly added, “Your…m- majesty?”

“Pleased to meet you, young master Zekiel!” Dantes rose and brushed slush from his knees. “You can call me Mr. Dantes if it’s easier.”

“Dan! That’s not proper respectful!” Lucien hissed to him.

“Well neither am I, according to the Queen of Tangle!” Dantes whispered back jokingly.
He held out a hand for Zekiel. “Shall we?”

Without a second thought, Zekiel slipped his hand into Dante’s. It would not have occurred to him to be wary of strangers. Trader’s Gate was so small that most everyone knew at least each other’s names. And the Royal Investigation Militia was known for being a trustworthy partner to the Civilian Protection Department. What was a king but a RIM officer with a fancier hat, anyway?

Dantes let the little boy lead him to Trader’s Gate’s main street. The king had been there several times over the years, but he let his small guide show him around as if he were visiting for the first time. Zekiel was particularly excited to show him the bakery. The baker had recently made enough money to purchase and install a large, plate-glass window. Apparently it was the talk of the town.

Or at least, it had been, before the water started glowing and people started getting sick.