Chapter 1
People say everyone is special. I don’t think they had my kind of special in mind when they said that. You wouldn’t have guessed it at first sight - I was born this way, and never tell anyone. I just act as though my ability doesn’t exist. The one person I did end up telling isn’t exactly the normal kind of special either. And the only way that you could have guessed that he was different from first sight is if you were me - and that’s exactly what I did.
It was on a bus, a bus like all the others, on a day like all the others, with people like all the others, except two. Him and I were those two, and of course, as luck would have it - or maybe it was the opposite of luck - we ended up on the same row.
I didn’t give him a glance at first. That was on purpose, though it wasn’t because of anything he’d done. It was because of what I could do, and that was something I generally hated. My ability complicates things. It was just easier to keep out of it all. Unfortunately, as I would soon find out, the person next to me seemed to have a knack for dragging me into things.
“Excuse me, but do you know where the nearest inn is? I’m not sure I remember.” That was my first clue. Out of common courtesy, I looked up to answer him - and stopped.
Just above his head hung the words, “royal heritage”. Now that, that would be the other clue.
I almost dropped out of my seat. But not for the reason you might think. Not because there were words over his head. Not because I was the only one who could see them. Not because the words were what he forgot. That was normal, at least, for me. I can see what people forget, and it’s not as nice an ability as you might think. I was used to seeing “car keys” and “mail” and even “old goals”, but not this. Definitely not this.
“Sorry if I bothered you.” He filled in my awkward silence.
“No, no, it’s just - you don’t know where an inn is?”
“If I’d known I wouldn’t have asked.” He stared at me sideways.
“Yes, sorry…there’s one at the next stop I believe.” My fake calm tone clashed with all the questions I had. “Um…you look really familiar. Have we met before?” I’d remember if we had, but I’d rather that be it than the only other person he could be. He looked so familiar. “What’s your name? I’m Emery.”
He opened his mouth to respond - then closed it. “It’s…I’m sorry, I’ve gone blank for a moment.”
“You can’t remember your name? This morning, what did you do this morning?”
“Well,” he smiled sheepishly. “That I can tell you. Apparently I was clumsy and tripped, because I came to by a river with a lump on my skull. It’s not bad though, like a weird graze. That’s probably why my memory’s fuzzy.”
Sure enough, his cloak was damp with river water. The conversation puttered to a stop, and so did the bus. He stood up to get off.
“Wait!” Before I realized it, I was standing too. My skin prickled as everyone onboard turned to stare. “Just - stick around for a moment, alright?” I pressed past him down off the bus and he trailed behind.
“What is it?” He had to raise his voice to be heard over the hustle and bustle in the streets. I waited until the bus finally lurched away again. No one was paying attention to us. Yet.
“It’s…okay, this is going to seem ridiculous.” I sucked in a deep lungful of air. There was no chance…but what if? “Okay, listen. I can read your mind. Sort of.” I winced at my clumsy words. “I mean - I can see what you forgot, alright?”
He crossed his arms and leaned back. “I don’t want to buy it. Thanks anyways.”
“What?” I hissed, very aware of how many stares we were collecting.
“Nice selling point, but whatever you’re selling, I’m good.” He bobbed a nod at me and turned to go.
“What - no, no. It’s the truth!” I hissed at his back, which was quickly disappearing in the crowd. I sucked in a deep breath. “Listen, you’re a prince, okay?”
He stopped moving. Then he slowly turned around. I braced myself - but he was still grinning. “Alright, what now? You wanna sell me a crown? I’m really good, thanks though.” Saluting a goodbye, he turned to go again. Gritting my teeth, I almost let him go. But - what if? What if?
“Wait - uh, whatever-your-name-is!” I wove through the crowd a little clumsily and stumbled in front of him. Hands jammed in his pockets, he eyed me with a gleam in his eye that was now a little less amused and a little more irritated. “Listen.” I whispered. “If I was wrong, I was wrong. But just hear me out. You’re a prince. You hit your head and forgot. I can read your mind and I know.”
“Sure, I’m a prince.” He shrugged. “Happy?”
“What color is the - um - hilt of the prince’s training sword?” The question made us both do a double take. I had just said the first thing that came to my mind, something oddly specific, something only the prince would know. It was the only thing I could think of to jog his memory.
“What? How would I -” suddenly, his face fell. His eyes met mine, and there was something in them that scared me even more than it excited me. It was realization. “Oh my word. It’s brass. I’m sure of it!”
“What?” I murmured, leaning forward.
“Oh my word. I’m not just a prince. I’m the prince! Oh my word, I remember!”
“What? What do you remember?”
He stared dazedly. “Everything.”
“Be more specific!”
Snapping out of it, the prince grabbed my arm and half dragged me until we came to the edge of the village. Evening was staining the sky a deep navy. We stood there, with the village to one side and a path winding through fields to the castle at the other. Finally, the prince shattered the silence.
“I remember now. Why am I not in the castle? I remember that castle - that very castle. I remember the battles this kingdom’s been through - I remember my family…”
My stomach free fell in me. I remembered the royal family too, or more specifically, what happened to them. Our kingdom had been through a lot of battles and survived, but over the years, less and less of the royal family did. In fact, the most recent battle was just a couple of days ago, and the kingdom was still recovering. News of the battle had spread fast. The worst news usually does.
The prince’s face was lit by the pale moonlight creeping over us. “They’re dead, aren’t they? All of them. The last ones from the battle just a few days ago - right? I don’t remember the battle, not yet. I don’t remember anything since then except - I went back to the castle…to reign alone? As king? Just a few days ago? Before I hit my head?” His questions didn’t sound like questions. Or if they did, they sounded like he already knew the answer. And that he wanted me to say it was anything else.
I stared at the ground instead of his face. But I nodded. The newspapers had had a lot to say the past few days. None of it was very good. I could hear the pain in his words. It must hurt - to relive it all over again. Wait - the newspapers -
“Wouldn’t someone have noticed by now that the prince isn’t in his castle?” I jerked around to look at him. “If you hit your head sometime yesterday, wouldn’t people know?”
He was already running by the time I finished. Stumbling after him, I caught up just as he snatched up a newspaper from the nearest stand. Sliding the vendor a few coins, I peered over his shoulder. But before I could read anything, he looked up at me.
“It doesn’t say anything about a missing prince. Wait - the last living member of the royal family gives the crown away? I’m not giving away the throne!” I led him out of earshot of the vendor. “Are you sure you’d remember?”
“Of course! Everything from the battle and since is fuzzy, but I’d know if I was going to -”
I nodded quickly to get him to lower his voice. “Okay, well, how do you explain it, then?” I took the newspaper from him and read it aloud. “Jace Reddington - that’s you.” I added.
“I know, but what else does it say?” He waved a hand impatiently, staring hard into the open air.
I kept reading. “Jace Reddington has announced that he will be turning the reign over to someone else. As of tomorrow morning’s ceremony…” I paused. “The throne will legally be whichever mystery person the prince has found fit to rule.”
Jace’s hands curled into fists at his side. “Something is wrong here. I hit my head and get amnesia just days before I supposedly give my throne away? And no one has noticed I’m missing?” Then he took a step back so hard I flinched. “Look at the castle!”
I stared hard at it. “I don’t see anything unusual.”
“You wouldn’t, not unless you were royal! Look at that flag with the family crest! See how it’s wrong?”
“What?” I was getting tired of having to use that word, but with Jace, I couldn’t seem to stop.
“It’s slightly different, just a little, but if you knew, you’d notice. It’s flying from the wrong pole. That’s a deliberate sign of disrespect for the royal family - no one in the castle would do that. Not unless -” he locked eyes with me. “Unless the person who did it wasn’t supposed to be in the castle.” And with that, he took off sprinting.
“Wait! Jace - Your Highness - whatever! Wait!” I threw my hands up, shouting at the figure running away. “With all due respect, you can’t just go running off! Do you know who snuck in? Look, are you - are you sure you’re the prince? Are you positive you remember?”
Jace slowed to a halt and turned around. “Yes, I know it like I know-”
“Like you knew your own name?” I couldn’t help myself.
Now it was Jace’s turn to groan. “Don’t you get it? Someone snuck into the castle and is pretending to be me! If the passing of the crown ceremony is done, it’ll technically be legal. This can’t wait!” I could see the agony etched in his face.
“Okay…okay, fine.” I took a step back. “Good luck.”
“Goodness knows I’ll need it.” Jace’s shadowy figure nodded at me, then started to take off for the castle again. And stopped. He slowly turned around, head tilted. There was something in his eyes that looked at me differently. I didn’t like it.
“What’s wrong?” My words sounded so tiny in the open night air.
A smile grew over his face as he slowly lit up. “You can, you know,” he wiggled his hands in the air without taking his eyes off me. “Read minds, right?” He didn’t even wait for an answer. “This is perfect! C’mon, c’mon, we gotta hurry.” He started to wave me towards him, grinning.
“What? No! I mean, yes, I can, but I’m not going to help you take back your throne! Are you nuts?” For a second I flinched as I remembered who I was talking to, but the prince just shook his head, still grinning. That irritated me most.
“C’mon, you’re perfect! You can see whatever they forgot! That’s gotta come in handy.”
“No way. Look, I’ll read about it tomorrow in the newspapers, okay? Break a leg?”
He started jogging back to me. “Are you serious? If you don’t come, tomorrow morning the headlines will be something you’d really rather not read. If we don’t do this, the kingdom we wake up to tomorrow may not even be a kingdom, much less mine. And you want to stay out of it?”
“Yes! I mean, yes, but that sounds so wrong when you put it that way. I’m just not your guy, okay? I couldn’t do it if I tried.”
“Yes, Emery, you can and you will. Right?”
This is where I should’ve said no. I should have said wrong. If I had any brains, I’d say sorry, I’m out. Do you know what I said? “Right.” And with that one, reluctant word, I was off with a mostly amnesiac prince to take back his throne before dawn.
