It was a good day to fish. There was nothing to hear but the gentle current of the river, the wind gently blowing around us. There were frogs close by, a few of them croaking loudly. The sun was out but it wasn’t that hot as the clouds slowly passed under its light, giving us shade every once in a while. James and I had been sitting on a rock for quite some time, waiting for something to bite. The guards had their own time together, not far but close enough to keep an eye on us and to make sure of our security. The silence between us was so thick, you could pierce a sword through it and it would bleed. But for the first time in such a long time, the silence didn’t feel hostile. We were spending time together but not in the way where we needed to talk. Somewhere, we understood one another, read each other’s minds that it was better if we kept our words to ourselves. My thoughts were interrupted when James finally spoke, “I trust that you have taken care of all the needed work for to
It had been a couple of hours after lunch and all I did was look out the window and admire the view of the garden. Although there’s nothing new about the view, the undying beauty of nature was refreshing and relaxing. I should be doing other princely duties but my mother did say she preferred that I do nothing today. I decided that having some peace all to myself would be the best way to pass the time. My peace, however, was disrupted by a sudden knock on my door. “Enter,” I slowly faced the door, crossing my legs. As the door opened, my page entered and quickly bowed. “My deepest apologies, Your Highness, for disturbing you. Mallory is here, she wants to have a word with you.” I groaned as my face landed on my hand. The only time of the day where I didn’t want to be bothered by anything but Mallory managed to make it worse. I wasn’t surprised at this point because she had been doing this consistently ever since we had our agreement. “Please don’t be angry at me, Your Highness,” m
As we arrived at the stables, no one was waiting for us. I looked around once more, making sure that I’m not missing anything or anyone. “I thought you said your friend’s here,” I said, turning to her. “I hid her somewhere here. I’ll go ahead and get her,” she replied as she walked away. “This won’t take long, right?” I asked, putting my hands behind my back. She didn’t answer and began checking each empty stable. When there was no sign of someone hiding inside the stables, she went back to where she started and began knocking three times on the wooden gates. “Mallory?” a voice suddenly came from the very last stable, one where Elizabeth’s horse was being kept. Mallory rushed over to that stable. As she looked over the gate, she talked to someone I couldn't see, “What are you doing in there?” Mallory quickly opened the gate, careful not to let the horse escape. I started to hear shuffling where Mallory was. “You told me to hide,” a faint voice replied as I heard more shuffling
I rode to the shop as fast as I could. As soon as I arrived, I jumped off of Lady and ran towards Ronald. He was fixing and sorting a few things in front of the bakery. “Ronald,” I called out as I approached him. He turned around and as soon as he caught sight of me, his face changed. “Is Laura inside?” I asked. “Well, if it isn’t Laura’s wealthy suitor?” he remarked sarcastically. Clearly, he wasn’t amused to see me. “Have you seen Laura?” I repeated. “If it isn’t obvious, now is not the time to ask me questions. Especially, in regards to the whereabouts of my fellow workers,” he replied sourly, focusing on what he was doing. “I understand that your hands are full right now. And I don’t want to waste your time. But if you can tell me where Laura is, I’ll be on my way,” I answered. “I’m quite busy right now,” he said, extremely annoyed. “I know but–” I was interrupted when he threw a piece of wood to the ground. He then faced me, seething with anger. “I’m not the keeper of my
After a bit of riding, I finally arrived at the hills. I immediately started my search for Laura. And after a bit of time, I finally found her. She was on top of a hill, under a tree. Leo peacefully grazed grass right in front of her. I slowly made my way towards her. And when I arrived behind her, I got off of Lady and walked up to her. She didn’t say anything or moved a muscle. She kept her eyes out to the big, open field before us. I already sat down beside her but she continued to act as if I wasn’t there. Her cheeks were damp, clear evidence that she had been crying. Her eyes were puffy and she quietly sniffled in an attempt to hide it from me. “Laura,” I spoke with caution after a deep breath. She turned her head to the side, wiping her face. “What are you doing here?” she asked. I cleared my throat as I readjusted my posture. “I figured that you headed here after that… disastrous scene in our stables,” I replied as she turned back to the side. “Mallory may be looking for
I groaned as I heard a voice that I didn’t want to hear for the rest of the night. “What is it that you want, Mallory?” I asked as I approached Lady. “How can you end our relationship like that?!” she ranted as she walked up to me. She continued, “We had a deal, Robert. And now, all of a sudden, you ended it for no reason?!” I sighed before I turned to face her. “It’s for your own good, Mallory.” “I don’t care what you think is good for me!” she threw her hands in the air, like a child who was upset because she didn’t get her way. She grabbed hold of my arms and added, “All I want is you.” Removing her hands, I replied, “I don’t want you the same way that you want me. From the very beginning, the relationship that we had was doomed to harm us. She shook her head as I explained away, clearly not wanting to accept my words. I continued, “It’s better to end it now than to hurt somebody else if we proceed with it.” I grabbed my waterskin and walked back inside the castle. I didn’t
When I turned to my corridor, Gonzalo was already waiting at the door. “Your dinner is already inside, Your Highness,” Gonzalo bowed as I reached him. “Thank you, Gonzalo,” I nodded as I opened my door. “Is there anything else that I can help you with, young prince,” he asked as I stepped inside. “There is nothing else for me, Gonzalo. But, I would like for you to bring a glass of water for my sister. Her handmaidens are nowhere to be seen and she needs it right away,” I replied. “As you wish, Your Highness,” he bowed. I continued, “Also, talk to the handmaidens about this matter. It’s a rule in this castle that at least two servants are to accompany a monarch at night. Just because you are allowed to do other tasks at night, that doesn’t mean that they get to the same.” “Yes, Your Highness. I will speak to them first thing in the morning,” Gonzalo replied, bowing once again. Slowly, I closed my door and headed to my writing desk. My food was already there but something else ca
‘I opened my eyes and was shocked. ‘I was sitting under a tree, on top of a hill. It was a quiet and peaceful environment. The birds sang and the wind blew ever so gently. There was nothing but grass, stretching as far as the eyes could see. Tall trees stood everywhere. Silhouettes of mountains could be seen from far away. ‘But, why was I here? What was I doing here? ‘Suddenly, faint, muffled voices came from afar and it was headed to where I was. I quickly stood up and climbed up the tree, going higher as I possibly could. And when there were no branches left to climb, I sat down and kept quiet. ‘A deep man’s voice asked, “Are you enjoying yourself, son?” ‘A child’s voice squealed happily, “Yes, Father. This is the best day I have ever had!” ‘The laughter of children continued as footsteps came closer to the tree. The father and his son were then joined by two more people. An adult woman, who seemed to be his wife. There was also a little girl, who was, perhaps, their daughter