~ Twenty - Season I ~

Currently in my study as I skimmed through the new reports on my desk.

Today didn’t end well, but what should I expect? Aside from my impossible relationship with James, my current situation with Laura abruptly crossed my mind. All of a sudden, everything stopped.

Laura…

What I did to her this afternoon was just… gut-wrenching. Unacceptable.

I could only hope that she would forgive me. But, what could I do to express my guilt? What should I say in order to earn her forgiveness? I turned to the table by the window. And I immediately caught sight of a pen, on top of a few pieces of paper.

A letter!

Perhaps, a letter could help resolve some of the pain I caused between us?

I shook my head as I removed myself from my thoughts. Why was I even too troubled about her? We just met and yet, she had some sort of impact on me. What I did to her shouldn’t matter this much to me. But why was I feeling this way?

Instead of going back to work, I contemplated even more on what I should do. Should I finish half of the reports? Or should I spend more time thinking of an acceptable letter to apologise for my actions? My eyes switched back and forth, from the stack of papers to the table across the room.

My mind scolded me as it reminded me to continue reading, to put my duties first. As the prince of Western Wind, my responsibilities as heir should be my priority.

My heart, however, said otherwise. Mother raised me to have accountability with my actions, to apologise for any wrongdoing that I made.

Duty? Or to be a compassionate being?

A sudden knock interrupted my overwhelming thoughts.

“Who is it?” I answered.

The door opened and Gonzalo entered with a tray of my food. “Your dinner as requested, Your Highness,” he said.

“Thank you, Gonzalo. You may put it over there, please,” I instructed as I pointed to the table by the window.

He nodded and proceeded to where I told him. He carefully settled the tray down and returned to me. He continued, “I also brought a message from His Majesty to you, Your Highness.”

Another message from James? At this point, I just wanted to burn everything that was on my desk. All because I told him what he didn’t want to hear, he couldn’t tell me his thoughts to my face?

Was this the effort that my mother, sister, and Nana Olsa asked me to think through?

“What is it this time?” I asked, frustrated.

He replied, “His Royal Majesty asked to retrieve all the reports that’s been sent here right now. He said he will not be assigning any more financial reports to you starting tomorrow. A few of his servants will be sent here to fetch the documents.”

I sighed as I shook my head. I pursed my lips firmly as I glanced over the pile to my left. “If he says so.” I then closed the report in my hands and put it back onto the unfinished pile. “These,” I prepared the pile to my right, “These are the finished reports. Tell him that he can make any revisions that he wants.”

“Understood, Your Highness,” he bowed. He asked, “Is there anything else that you would like for me to bring to you?”

I turned to the table across me and did my best to hold back my impulsive nature. After a moment to process everything, I said, “I will be writing a letter while I eat my dinner.” Looking at Gonzalo, I continued, “I shall call for you once I’m finished with everything. But, I would like for you to have the messenger ready. He needs to send the letter to a bakery in the Mortal Realm.”

Gonzalo slightly tilted his head. “A bakery in the Mortal Realm? Did they upset you, Your Highness?” he asked.

I shook my head. “On the contrary, everyone there has been accommodating. I just need to write a letter to a friend that I made there. And it must be delivered tonight.”

“As you wish, Your Highness. I’ll have the messenger prepare himself right away.” He then bowed and headed for the door.

“Also,” I said as I stood up. He came into a halt and faced me once again. With my hands behind me, I continued, “I would like for this to be just between the two of us, Gonzalo. His Majesty doesn’t need to know about this. Tell the messenger precisely that.”

“Is that a logical thing to do, Your Highness?” he asked. He explained, “If His Majesty finds out that we’re doing something without his knowledge, the punishment will be incredibly unimaginable.”

I stared at him as I was slowly annoyed. I thought I already told him that there were some matters that I wanted to keep from James. Not everything had to be reported to him.

“Gonzalo, must I remind you what I told you before lunch?” I asked.

He thought everything through for a while. And when he realised what I was pertaining to, he simply nodded.

I answered, “The king will not know anything if we keep our thoughts to ourselves. At the same time, he will not be able to suspect anything if you act as if you were only doing a mere chore.”

With his head low, Gonzalo said, “Yes, Your Highness. I understand.”

“Good. You may leave for now. I would like to have some peace and quiet,” I said.

He bowed once more and left without another word.

I returned to my table and laid out the food for myself. Fish, a few muscles, some vegetables, accompanied with a bowl of soup and a glass of wine.

Such a beautiful meal.

~*~*~*~

Putting the quill to the side, I reread the entire letter that I just wrote,

“Laura,

“I would like to apologise for the way that I treated you this afternoon.

“I admit that I was hostile towards you, and that I ended our day in the worst possible way.

“If you believe that I don’t care about your feelings, that is beyond the truth. No words can express how much torment I am currently in because of what I did to you.

“I would love to see you again. But, if you prefer not to see me again, I will respect that.

“I will await your response. There will be a special item with this letter. Should you plan to reply, put that item inside your letter and burn them together.

“It may be an unusual way of sending a letter. But you have to trust me.

“Robert.”

I then folded the letter three times, and carefully slid it inside a small, elongated wooden box. I turned to my right hand, closed it into a fist and whispered a simple spell into it. As I slowly opened my hand, a sparkling leaf appeared. Gently, I put it inside with the letter.

With a magical tug on the service bell, I waited for Gonzalo to arrive as I tied the box with a simple bow. I then planted a small peck on it, which left me stunned for a moment.

The door opened. “Your Highness,” Gonzalo bowed as he entered.

“Thank you for coming right away, Gonzalo,” I smiled as I stood to meet him halfway. I handed the box and said, “You know what to do with this.

“Yes, Your Highness. I already informed the messenger and told him exactly how you wanted things to be done,” Gonzalo nodded.

“That’s good to know. You may go.”

Before he turned around, he saw the soiled plates and utensils on my table. “Should I bring those with me as well, Your Highness?” he asked.

I briefly turned my head before I returned to him. “There will be no need for that, Gonzalo. I will send it down to the kitchen through my dumb-waiter. The letter is your priority for tonight,” I said.

“I shall take my leave, then.” With a quick bow, he hastily left my room. I prayed to all the ancient gods and high ancestors, hoping that Laura would reply to my letter. Even if that response was to push me away, it wouldn’t matter.

I needed to know her thoughts.