Page 110 of The Frog Prince

He took his cane and snapped the end off, turning it into a pointed stake. He raised it high and Alwin prepared himself for the end at last.

Everything seemed to happen at once then. An army of frogs and toads broke from the tree line in a cacophony of croaks, led by none other than Jurgen and Farwin.

Screams broke out, and something barreled into Alwin and the guards in the ensuing chaos, knocking them all down like dominos.

The hands holding him let him go as his captors tried to keep their feet. Alwin wasn’t so lucky. He fell to the ground, opening his eyes to see Otto standing there in his place, with frogs at his feet, heaving for breath as Henne’s cane dug into his bloody chest.

The two who had been holding him had been pushed over, Jurgen sitting on one terrified man’s chest, his throat sac inflated.

“If you dare touch him again, you’ll wish you were dead,” Otto growled into a startled Henne’s face, his own face tight with pain. Then he shouted louder. “That goes for all of you! If any of you want to touch him, you’ll have to go through me first!”

“You’d be willing to die for this monster?” Henne asked in disbelief.

Alwin watched Otto lift his head, blood running down his chin, more seeping around the wound in his chest. “Heisn’ta monster. And I’m willing to do whatever it takes to keep him safe. Even die.”

The declaration ripped through the air, pointing swords at everyone and daring them to step forward. These were people he had grown up beside, who he had treated and cared for, and now he was standing in front of them with an army of frogs at his back and choosing Alwin confidently and surely.

Alwin had never felt so loved in all his life.

The rush of it was overwhelming. Like witnessing the magnitude of the sun rising just for him. So much warmth. So bright he couldn’t stand to look for long lest he be blinded.

And then he yelled out as a wave of crippling agony overcame him. He gasped, clutching his bloodstained chest, trying to breathe.

No…he couldn’t die yet. Otto was hurt. Otto could die from a wound like that.

I offer the rest of me to heal him, he whispered to the magic still bubbling inside him.Anything you want. Just heal him,he begged as another wave of pain crashed over his head, drowning him.

Hands cupped his bruised and bloody face, Otto coming into view with more tears falling down his face. “Alwin,” he gasped, looking him all over. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

Behind them, the townspeople had started to move alongside the frogs and toads, closing in on Henne and his guards. Gisela was freed, and she threw another punch at her assailants, screaming and yelling.

It was all background noise as Alwin’s back arched in agony.

“Alwin, please.” Otto looked terrified. He ripped Alwin’s shirt open to try and assess the damage. “Is it the beating?”

Alwin managed to shake his head as he felt the magic draining away, leaving him completely at his final request.

If anything, Otto looked more frightened. “What did you bargain? To heal me, what did you offer?”

Alwin curled a hand weakly around his forearm. “E-everything.”

Otto’s face crumpled and he sobbed. “Why? Why would you do that, you stupid prince?”

“Because I couldn’t lose you all again. Especially you,” he gasped, his eyes closing. “I couldn’t.”

“Again?” Otto asked, nudging his face. “Alwin, open your eyes. What do you mean again? Alwin?!”

Alwin dragged his lids open, Otto’s beautiful face filling his vision. He wondered if he could tell him now, at the end, everything he had wanted to say but couldn’t. When he reached for the words this time, he found them free of any chains. “My name is Prince Adalwin.”

Otto’s expression of shock was the last thing he saw before he doubled over in pain, Otto’s chest absorbing his scream.

“Alwin!”

Everything was pain as the magic moved through his body, stripping him down until he felt like raw nerves and empty skin. He writhed, gasping into fabric, unable to tell where one wave ended and another began.

And then he fell limp in Otto’s lap.

A shaky hand moved over his head, like it was scared to touch. “H-how?”