This sound of commotion was different than the bustling of people shopping. Miss Mariana turned and looked at Aaron.
"Do you hear that noise?"
"Yes," he looked around. "But where is it coming from?"
The next moment Miss Mariana collided hard with his chest. He grasped her arms to steady her. "What happened?" He asked worriedly.
She straightened and looked behind. "Somebody pushed me."
"It's happening, there, sir," one of the boys who was carrying Miss Mariana's trunks gestured to the alley.
Aaron looked there and found a bunch of people gathered through it's other side. Another man ran to them and Aaron grasped his arm.
"What's happening there?" He asked.
The man breathed rapidly and said cheerfully. "They are going to burn a witch. I am going to call my friends to see that." He freed himself from Aaron's grasp and ran.
"A witch?" Miss Mariana frowned.
Aaron looked solemnly at the bunch of people. "Stay here," he ordered Miss Mariana and ran to cross the alley. He shouldered many people who had gathered to form a crowd and then got a view of what's happening.
There was a woman tied to a tree amid the many houses. She looked exhausted and her light-blond hair covered her face which was dangled down. It looked like she couldn't hold her head up.
"Use this." A man in the crowd gave another man a big bucket which smelled of oil. Aaron widened his eyes.
"Wait!" He stood between the two men. "What do you think you are doing?" He snarled at them.
"Get away, sir. We need to burn that witch." The man began to walk around Aaron.
Aaron grasped his arm again. "You will do no such thing," he met the man's eyes and said in a low voice.
Another man came to Aaron. "And who are you to tell that?"
Aaron closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He turned to the other man. "Burning someone and that too, in the name of being a witch is illegal in our kingdom".
One of the men chuckled. Aaron was ready to break their faces if they didn't obey him. He looked at the girl again and she was standing limp, only the ropes around her holding her.
What had happened to her?
Aaron started to go towards her and another man grabbed his shoulder.
"Stop, son. She is a witch".
Aaron looked at the elderly man and frowned. "What has she done?".
"She has the symbol on her ankle," an elderly woman said from the crowd.
"And?" Aaron eyed everyone of them. He had heard people burned anyone with that symbol and years before, he had prohibited it. Never had he himself witnessed people doing that or ever heard about it again after the law was enforced.
"Should we wait till she do something to us?" Another new man from the crowd said.
"We have children. What if she do something to them? What if she harm them?" A woman spoke.
Aaron shook his head at their thoughts. How could people of his kingdom be so cruel?
"Oh my god!" He heard Miss Mariana's voice and saw her looking at the tied witch. She started to move towards her and a woman held her hand. "Do not go. She is a witch, child."
"There is no such thing as a witch," Miss Mariana shook her head. "You cannot kill an innocent woman!"
"She is not innocent".
Aaron couldn't control himself. "She did nothing and hence she is innocent," he snarled. Without letting anyone stop him, he strode towards the tied witch. No one blocked his way again and he was grateful for that because he was ready to unleash his ferocity. No witch deserved to die like this if she was innocent.
He went at the back of the tree and began to untie the knots. Miss Mariana came to the woman too, and helped with the robes. When the ropes were undone, the woman fell down on her kness. Miss Mariana supported her upper body. When Aaron saw the woman, her clothes were muddy and torn at some places, ripped brutally at the back. Her hair loose and dirty with mud. Did they drag her? Aaron was furious.
Miss Mariana pushed the hair covering the witch's face back. Now that he could see, her eyes were fluttering and she was mouthing something.
"I am not a witch. Not a witch. Let me go." Aaron heard her low murmur and he haunched near her. She looked to be the same age as
Miss Mariana, who eyed him solemnly.
"I'll get her water," she said.
"I will get it."
"No, stay with her. They might come to her again," she gestured to the people around.
He nodded. They slowly let the woman's head rest against the tree and Miss Mariana left.
"Get away form her, you stupid man. Let us burn her!" Aaron heard a
voice and ignored it.
"She will kill us!"
"She must die!"
"We should burn him too, then," the crowd screamed.
Aaron finally stood up. "You have no right to take someone's life!" He yelled at them. They all eyed him angrily. When he saw Miss Mariana returning with a bowl and stopped by the crowd, Aaron went towards her to help her.
Before he could reach her, soneone from the crowd yelled, "Hit her!"
The next moment, people began to pick up the stones from the ground and threw them on her.
"Wait!" Aaron screamed but no one paid any attention to him. "Stop!", he said again. He could see the stones were hitting the woman and she covered her head with her hands.
Aaron rushed towards her and bent down, covering her body with his arms. The stones didn't stop.
Furiously, he stood up and removed his hat. A stone hit his head but he was unaffected.
"I am the king!" He screamed eyeing the crowd. "And I order you to stop it".
Some people stopped and when they saw him, they made other people stop as well. Miss Mariana came and sat near the woman.
"Your Majesty!" A shocked voice came from the crowd.
"Forgive us, Your Majesty. We didn't know it was you."
"She is a witch, Your Majesty."
"Enough!" Aaron yelled. "I have prohibited this practice and yet you all disobey me."
The crowd went on their knees. Fear now lurked in their eyes as now they knew he was a king. Being powerful made everything easy and Aaron, right now, found it pathetic. Behind his back, they didn't obey him and he was going to make all of them pay for it.
He smirked at them. "Now you all want forgiveness. You weren't ready to spare this lady."
An elderly woman bowed her head. "Forgive us, Your Majesty but the woman is a witch and-"
"You should have let my guards known then. Who made you all responsible for taking care of it?" He snarled.
They all bowed down. "If I ever found out anyone trying to end an innocent life under hopelessly superficial reasons, they are going to meet my wrath", Aaron announced in a voice that made him a king.
Charles came running through through the crowd. "The boys told me what happened."
"Where is Hazel?" Aaron asked him.
"Jasper came after you left with Miss Mariana. I sent both of them to the palace and was coming to you when the boys with Miss Mariana informed me about all this."
Aaron nodded. He looked at the crowd and went to them. He first went to the man who brought the bucket of oil. "Arrest him, Charles."
"Yes, Your Majesty", Charles beckoned his guards forward and they grasped the man who now cried for forgiveness.
Aaron walked to the injured woman who now sipped water Miss Mariana was giving her. Hearing his footsteps, the woman squeezed herself to Miss Mariana.
"It's alright, the king saved you", Miss Mariana told the woman carressing her arm.
The woman looked up at him with fearful eyes. Their colour were extraordinary. Turquoise.
"T-hank you, Your M- Majesty," she began to stand up and winced.
Aaron raised his hand. "Don't get up."
When he found that her body was shaking, Aaron removed his coat and covered her with it. "Where do you live?"
She raised her finger to show a small house few feet near. This area was filled with only few houses. Aaron thought it must be of the merchants who had shops in the markets. "Do you live alone?"
The woman nodded. Aaron eyed her house again. It was a pretty well-built cottage. He remembered the witches he had met few days ago who were in the bad condition. But this woman looked sufficiently stable. Even her clothes looked to have been good before they were torn, and also bodily, even if lean, she appeared healthy. Perhaps she wasn't a witch. Aaron eyed to her ankles to search for the symbol the people were speaking about, but she had her covered them with the gown now.
"He is a physician, Your Majesty," Charles brought with him a tall and elderly man. He bowed down to Aaron.
Aaron nodded at him. "Give this woman a proper treatment. We will pay you."
"Yes, Your Majesty." He asked two woman, perhaps his helpers, to take the injured girl to her home. They helped her up and she looked at Aaron. "I am g-grateful, Your Majesty. I couldn't r-repay this favour."
"You don't need to. I will station the guards out of your house for few days. No one will bother you from now".
She gave a nod with tearful eyes. She was stuttering. Aaron guessed it must be because of the fear of everything happened.
Then, the woman looked at Miss Mariana.
"T-thank you so much," she sobbed and hugged her.
Miss Mariana rubbed her back. "Take care."
The woman went back to her house with the help of the physician's helpers.
"Our carriage is accross the alley, Your Majesty," Charles said. Please wait there. I shall see to the physician."
Aaron nodded and looked at Miss Mariana. "Come."