March 11, 1187
"Prior!" It was late and Prior was tired, but being woken came as a relief. He'd dreamed of a river. He'd dreamed he was in the river, struggling, drowning. His father had pulled him out, but the dream hadn't let the relief settle.Only a blink, and his father had vanished.
"Prior! Wake up!"
"Papa?" Sure enough--his father stood by his bedside, dressed for the outdoors but nonetheless present. Prior slung his legs off the bed and the rest of him followed. "What's going on?"
"I'm going out." But the only light was the moon--and Prior's father didn't often care to go out if he didn't have to. "I'm sorry for waking you, but I thought I should let you know. Just in case I'm not back by morning.""Where are you going?"
His father shook his head. Maybe it was the lingering haze of sleep, but Prior found his face white as the moon outside. "I... I don't know."
That didn't make any sense. His father always knew everything. "Why are you going?"
"I'm not sure." That didn't help! "I just--I'll try to explain when I see you next. But I won't blame you if you don't understand."
If he didn't understand what? "Papa...""I'm not frightening you, am I?" His father's frown slumped lower as Prior nodded. "I'm sorry; maybe I shouldn't have woken you. See, I'm frightened too, and you make that go away. I'm sorry for using you like that."
"Papa..."
"I love you, Prior."Prior tipped his head. He knew that. His father told him that all the time. Why did this time seem different? "I love you too, Papa."
"If I'm not back in the morning, your mother will tell you, if she feels you're ready." But why wouldn't he be back in the morning? It was late, yes--but surely not almost morning already? "Stay safe, all right?"
But why--? "Papa?"
"Shh. Don't mind me. It's been a strange night." But nothing out of the ordinary had happened.
Had it? "Papa, don't go."
"Don't worry about me." His father knelt down and kissed him on the forehead, then pulled him in for a hug. "I'll see you in the morning. Just stay safe, and know that I love you. Know that I'll always love you."NEXT CHAPTER:
