Title: The Princess
Author: DancingStar
Crossover: PSI Factor/ Sue Thomas FB Eye
Pairing: Connor/ Lindsay, Jack/ Sue
Category: Romance, AU
Rating: 12
Summaries: What could have happened if the druid from "Sleeping Beauty in Stone" hadn´t cursed the princess and she wouldn´t need to wake up 500 years later?
Comments: The Summaries tells everything and actually "Sleeping Beauty in Stone" and these are two different stories but this is not about the OSIR or FBI. I have to apologize that I had to make an independent kingdom out of Ireland for this story. And I apologize to the Sue Thomas- fans because in this story Jack´s real name isn´t Jackson, but Jacob (that fits better). An Irish prince who´s called Jackson, so please...! :-)
The Princess
Ireland, 1623
"Are you ready? Do you think you're able to defeat me?", asked Jack his older brother Connor, the King of Ireland, and he drew his sword. The two brothers preferred to train together the art of sword fighting in the garden of Callenburgh Castle, if the weather was fine. Ireland was a peaceful kingdom, but if it was necessary, Connor had to defend it with his life. His younger brother Jack thought he was the best swordsman in Ireland and Connor had to admit he had never managed to defeat him so far.
As always, Jack's beautiful wife Sue sat on a bench at the edge of the grass and shook her head amused. Sometimes they behaved like children.
"Why do you think you're always the best?", Connor asked, but he also drew his sword, "You should be happy with the things you have."
"I am happy," Jack replied, "But what about you? You should find a wife, too. You´re getting older day by day." He knew he had hit a weak point.
"I'm twenty-six," Connor disagreed. And since his father had died six years ago, he ruled over this country. "There is no need to look for a wife. Princess Lindsay of Scotland was introduced to me and to secure peace between our two countries, she was espoused to me."
Jack dodged the sword of the king, "How old is the princess?"
"She´s celebrating her twenty-fifth birthday in a few days", now Connor also dodged his brother´s sword, "And she's very pretty and very smart. Years ago, when our father was talking to King William, I heard how William told his daughter is even able to read." Reading was a very rare ability for women in this medieval time.
"Recently, when I was at the market," Sue began, who was watching the conversation between the two during the sword fight, "I saw a messenger of the King of Scotland, who said King William would consider to solve the engagement because Princess Lindsay would rather stay in Scotland." Sue couldn´t understand. How could people hate the beautiful Ireland?
"What?", Connor asked, looking at her. In that moment Jack stole his brother´s sword with a deft hand grip. Jack said he defeated him again, but Connor didn´t care. He thought Sue's story wasn´t true, until he received a letter from Scotland in the same evening. King William wrote the connection between Connor and the princess would end. He had to talk immediately to King William.
After two days on horseback, Connor and his entourage arrived at Edinburgh Castle. Furiously, Connor burst into the throne room. "Why have you broken the engagement?", he asked as he walked up the countless stairs.
"I have already explained in the letter," King William disagreed. Connor remembered the lines in which the king wrote, Princess Lindsay preferred to stay in her home and this meant she wouldn´t come to Ireland.
"That means you will pay back the loan you borrowed from my father ten years ago," Connor said. The marriage to the princess wasn´t only meant to save the peace between Scotland and Ireland, but also financial stability. Scotland struggled for years with the debts that were caused by the war against the Scandinavian Kingdom and Connors father (May God rest his soul), borrowed King William a very high credit ten years ago.
"I can´t pay the loan back to you," King William rose from his throne and in that moment Princess Lindsay entered the hall. She just arrived from Brodie Castle.
"Princess, you come at the right time," Connor told her, "Maybe you can explain to me why you canceled your engagement and refuse to come to Ireland." Connor circled the princess as a dangerous predator.
"There´s no need to be your wife."
"Surely you know about the loan contract which was completed by our fathers ten years ago", Connor started and it didn´t surprise him the princess had no idea, "Your father asked my father for financial help. As security for this contract, he promised to my father you will be my wife some day."
"Is this true?", Princess Lindsay wanted to know about her father and he nodded slowly. She recalled their first met last year and her father had told her meeting the Irish king was out of pure politeness. It was a lie.
"And now tell me, princess, what should I do, if you decide to cancel the engagement and your father can´t pay the borrowed money back to the Kingdom of Ireland? Maybe I should take what I deserve..."
"You won´t," William King said, tore one of the decorative swords from the wall and rushed to his daughter. At this moment, Connor thanked his brother internally, who insisted on train with the swords. Connor also drew his sword and fought with the king until he had forced them against the wall. The princess watched the fight and when she saw her father had lost, she held her breath.
"It's not my way to kill kings," Connor said suddenly and put his sword away, "If you don´t want to give me the princess for marriage, pay the loan back immediately." Connor turned around to go and that moment he heard how King William ran after him with a sword. But Connor grabbed him in time and pushed him hard away and the king fell down the stairs that led to the throne room.
"Father!", Princess Lindsay rushed, her heart raced with fear for the life of her father.
"Father! FATHER!", the princess cried, the king didn´t move. She desperately shook his shoulder, but he didn´t want to wake up. Tears ran down her face and suddenly someone grabbed her arm. It was Connor, who moved away from the king and with her he went outside. Princess Lindsay was still crying when she removed from her father and she tried to escape. In the courtyard, he helped the stubborn princess on his huge horse and they rode off. She didn´t want to come to Ireland with Connor and she didn´t want to leave her poor father alone. But it was futile.
Two days on horseback were very exhausting. The princess was accustomed to travel in coaches. Her whole body ached when they reached the home of the Irish king. Callenburgh Castle was a huge, enchanting castle with three wings, which was located on a hill above Dublin and it surrounded the capital of the Irish kingdom with a protective wall. Even from here, Lindsay could smell the roses in the rose garden. Still, she hated the thought that this place should be her home now.
"We're there," Connor said, when he stopped his horse in the yard, "Come, I'll help you." He stretched out his hand to help her off the horse, but she ignored him. For a second Lindsay thought what happened if she´d grab the reins and run back home alone, but her mind told her this wasn´t a good idea. After all, the journey from Edinburgh till here took nearly two days on horseback and by boat.
Connor didn´t want to argue with an insulted princess and so he grabbed her waist and lifted the protesting women from the horse. "Come in!", he told her, "The nights in Ireland are still very cold in May."
She watched how he entered the castle and when she didn´t follow him, she was shoved unceremoniously by one of his followers. They walked to the throne room, where the king laid aside his long coat and called for Princess Susan. He didn´t wait very long because two minutes later a very pretty, blond woman entered the room.
"This is Princess Lindsay of Scotland," he introduced, "She is our guest. Take good care of her."
"Milady," the pretty blonde woman bowed her head before Lindsay, "I am Princess Susan."
"I don´t need anyone to take care of me!", Lindsay´s angry words weren´t meant for Sue, but the king, "I can take care for myself very well!"
"I hope you haven´t the talent of your father!", Connor disagreed with irony.
"You´re a murderer! How do you dare to talk to me like this? Take me back to Scotland immediately, or you will regret it!"
Connor didn´t believe what she had just said. "Your room is in the only tower of the castle," he sounded very angry, "Maybe you can even see your Scotland up there." So he sent her away and Princess Sue took Princess Lindsay to her room.
The way there was tough, but Princess Lindsay was too proud and she´d never refuse the 100 steps that led to her tower room. Once there, she sat down first next to the window and looked out. On the other side the castle was surrounded by sea and in the distance she could see land, but she didn´t know if it was Scotland.
"I'll pick you up tomorrow morning," Sue told her. Because Lindsay didn´t look at her Sue didn´t know if the princess agreed. She walked down the 100 steps alone.
"I'm sorry," Lindsay apologized next morning when Princess Susan had picked her up from her room in the tower, "When I said I don´t need anyone to look after me, that wasn´t meant bad. I was so angry about the king..."
"That's alright," Princess Susan smiled, while they went to the Rose Garden.
"You're Prince Jacob´s wife, right?", Lindsay recalled that the younger brother of her father, also named Jacob.
Sue nodded: "Yes, I am his wife but family and friends call me Sue."
"May I ask you a question?", Lindsay waited until Sue nodded, "Why are you speaking so strangely?"
"I'm not from Ireland," Sue lied, "I was born and raised in Wales but my family immigrated a few years ago." In truth, Sue was speaking strangely, as Princess Lindsay said, because she was deaf and only her husband knew about it. Sue was the daughter of a poor baker and her mother had always feared people might think Sue was a witch because she was a deaf girl who was able to talk and so it was a secret. But she trusted in Jack and when she told him, it brought them closer together than ever before. Jack admired her trust and he returned the favor every day with his boundless love and care-free life on the Irish royal court, which he offered her. Sue liked thinking about their first met: Once, a young, high-spirited man fell from his horse and landed in the river near the house of her parents. Sue jumped into the water to rescue the man from drowning and the moment when she saw Jack for the first time was magical. Luckily he had fallen in love with her, too, because otherwise she wouldn´t know what she should do without him. After she saved the life of the stranger, from whom she didn´t know he was the Prince of Ireland, they met each other secretly and a sweet love story began. Jack was her first kiss and some day he also gave her a beautiful dapple gray horse. Sue told him her family couldn´t afford a horse but he explained he´d take care about the financials. She stole away from home at night to meet him. One time they came in a thunder storm and they had to spend the night in an old, abandoned barn. It was so unbearably wonderful to share their bed in this night. Her mother had always told her to wait until she married the man she was espoused to but she couldn´t resist Jack and his hazel eyes and his gentle kisses. Then her father learned about his daughter´s secret. He became angry and when he prohibited Sue to meet the handsome stranger she walked to their secret meeting place one last time. She told Jack, her father didn´t wanted her to see him again and then she went back home. Sue learned about he was the Prince when he reached her parents´ house next day and asked her father if he was allowed to take Sue with him to Callenburgh Castle and marry her.
Lindsay and Sue reached the rose garden and the princess found out disappointed there were only red roses. Her favorite flowers were light yellow roses with a pink edge. These roses grow only in the Garden of Edinburgh Castle. The princess looked a little helplessly and proposed to leave the Rose Garden.
She didn´t know the king and his brother were watching them. "What do you think about her?", Connor asked his younger brother Jack. Actually, his real name was Jacob, but his father and his brother called him Jack since childhood. Her mother had died when Connor was four years and Jack three years old: Connor remembered a dark day when he, his father and his mother were riding on horses. They had left Jack in the castle. It was Connor's birthday and he had received his first pony. They rode into the forest, it was foggy and suddenly his mother´s horse was afraid. The horse galloped away, his mother sat in the saddle and the panicked horse ran through the fog, right to a ravine. The Queen and the animal tumbled into the depths. When the Queen was found on the same evening, but the personal physician of the family only found her death. Jack couldn´t recall that terrible day, but Connor could.
"She won´t never forgive you, you killed her father," Jack said.
"Is this your only opinion?", Connor asked, but he was also surprised Jack sounded so serious. He was even more surprised when Jack nodded. Apparently he had not much to say. Sue had told him yesterday evening how stubborn the princess was and that was probably because Connor had killed her father in a battle. Jack wasn´t in the position to comment his brother´s actions.
"Tell your wife to bring the princess to me," Connor ordered. He was still looking out the window and didn´t turn around to face his brother.
"I'm not your errand boy," Jack said, indignant again.
"But I know you like being with your wife... Go on."
Jack thought that was really good of his brother and he got up. He walked down the stairs and looked how Princess Lindsay and his wife went along on a paved path. Jack called for his wife, then he realized she couldn´t hear him. Just because the princess stopped, Sue saw him. She was very happy to meet him.
"Princess Lindsay, the king awaits you," Jack said to her, a little bit breathless as he caught up with them. Then he described her the way to the place where the king was waiting for her and Lindsay walked away reluctantly. Now Jack asked his wife if she wanted to spend some time with him. Sue suggested going for a ride on horses and Jack offered her his arm. Both went to the stables.
With a strange feeling in her stomach Lindsay entered the room where the king was waiting for her. He wasn´t looking at her when she came in, but when he heard her steps, he turned to her. Lindsay had decided to behave better than yesterday, but still she hated the cold- hearted, strict and ruthless person for killing her father. And that's why she punished him with cold ignorance. She declined politely for a moment. The formal curtsy, how her mother taught her.
"You don´t have to do the formal curtsy for of me," Connor said and came closer slowly, "There´s only one person who enjoys this privilege and that's my queen."
"I won´t marry you," when she said this, she realized she had made a mistake, because she actually wanted to ignore him. The way he spoke to her, showed her he also had no respect for her.
"Your wish is not important," he told her, "Your father promised that I marry you one day..."
"That was before you killed him!", she screamed and she was almost frightened about herself. Then he grabbed her wrists roughly after he saw the hate in her eyes.
"I had no choice. That's why I took what´s my due." He pulled her to him and kissed her harshly. Lindsay was so appalled that he behaved so outrageously and she slapped him like a reflex. Angrily she tore herself away from him and ran out. This was a terrible first kiss, she thought. She wiped away the tears from her eyes while she ran into the Rose Garden, where she couldn´t find her favorite roses. Frustrated, she finally rushed back to her room.
She hated this place more than ever.
Lindsay told Sue about the incident and announced she would never leave her room again. She didn´t even leave the room, if the king had dinner with his brother and Jack´s wife Sue and so Sue had to arrange that the Princess received her food in her room. Lindsay often sat for days at the window and read in books, in which freedom was an important topic. The King ordered she´d learn the Irish language in lessons but she missed it on purpose. She thought if she wasn´t able to speak the language she would never have to be the queen.
One day, Princess Sue came as usual to check on her and she brought a stack of fine dresses in every imaginable color. "This is for you," Sue said, when she put the precious dresses on Lindsay's bed. Lindsay's hands glided over the soft fabric. "They're beautiful."
"Yes, the King would be very happy if you wear one of them." In her mind Sue added the king had probably guessed that Lindsay wore only her own clothes since she lived here and when Sue mentioned the king, Lindsay threw the dress back on the bed angrily.
"Thanks, but I prefer to wear my own clothes."
Sue then had to remove the pile of clothes from the bed but she decided to put them in the closet.
Connor asked that night if Lindsay liked the dresses and Sue was sorry to disappoint him.
Again two weeks later, the Princess was now already for one month at Callenburgh Castle, Connor sent her a box of the finest and most expensive gold jewelry in the country but the princess sent it back. Connor asked the carrier if the princess had at least tried on the jewelry, but the man shook his head in disappointment.
He wondered what she wanted but of course he knew it. Because her wish was impossible and she couldn´t return to Scotland, he sent her another gift in the following week: A beautiful bottle with the most precious perfume from far-eastern plants, but even this she sent back to him.
Another week later the king sent the cutest puppy from the litter of his best hunting dog as a gift, but the princess didn´t like the puppy. She gave the dog to Sue.
In her seventh week on Callenburgh Castle Lindsay was surprised by twelve dozen red roses in her room after she returned from a walk with Jack and Sue. The gardener had to remove the roses.
Seven days later, on a beautiful day in late June, Sue exclaimed excitedly, Lindsay shall leave her room and immediately get into the garden. Lindsay got up from the chair on which she sat and thought sadly. She hurried down the 100 stairs and left the small building which housed the entrance to the tower. A strong, black horse with a long flowing mane was standing on the grass and on its bridle hung a message. It had the royal seal.
"This is a very nice horse. I've read these horses are bred only in Friesland for the moment", Sue pulled the letter from the holster and read it was for the princess. She handed her the note, the princess opened the envelope and read the message.
"What's wrong?", Sue asked when Lindsay crumpled the letter into a prom.
"The horse is a gift by the king," she sounded angry and hurried back to her room, "Send the horse back. I don´t want it."
She hated him. She hated the king for each of his gifts he had given her in the recent weeks and, of course, that he had killed her father.
Connor wasn´t pleased when he heard from Sue that Lindsay didn´t like the horse and asked her and his brother for help. "Why is she doing this?", he asked, "She shouldn´t behave in such a way because she´s a princess...! She's my future wife. Why is she defending against it?"
"She refused every one of your gifts: the dresses, the jewelry, the perfume, the puppy, the roses, the horse..." So Jack brought him back to earth.
"Thank you for reminding me about it", Connor circled perplexed around the table where Jack and Sue sat, "What should I do? She doesn´t even talk to me if we meet." Yesterday, Lindsay had agreed to join Sue to the garden. There she met the king but she apologized only with a heartless formal curtsy and went on.
"You won´t like it," Sue said, "You said the Scottish kingdom isn´t doing well. Bring her back to Scotland. Perhaps she must first understand she can´t save her country alone. If she needs your help, she will come to you."
Connor listened to her words. Finally he nodded and looked at his brother: "Your wife is very wise. I wish I had someone like her at my side." With these words the king went to his room.
Sue woke the princess next morning before the first ray of sun and told her she should pack her belongings in a bag. "Do we travel?", Lindsay asked, but Sue didn´t answer. Instead, she led the princess into the courtyard of the palace where the king sat up already on his brown horse. Jack was also sitting on a horse. He would accompany his brother to Dublin Harbor. There, they would bring the princess to a ship which stopped in a Scottish port. They wanted to ride off as soon as possible. Even the court was covered by mist.
"Give me your hand," Connor told, "I´ll bring you back home."
A smile flitted across her face and Connor wished she had done it in his presence only one time. The princess had a beautiful smile.
She grabbed his hand, wanted to put her foot in the stirrup of the saddle to be able to climb easily, but she slipped and fell on the flank of the horse. The king´s horse was young and scared and it jumped to the side. Connor lost his balance and landed on the hard asphalt, his horse galloped away with fluttering mane. Jacks scream told that something else might be happened. He also jumped from the saddle, turned his brother on his back and saw that he had landed in a hoof knife. The blacksmith supplied the horses from the royal stables with new shoes and now he wanted to continue with his work. That's why he hadn´t cleaned up his tools yet.
"Sue, call a doctor!", Jack yelled to his wife and she ran away quickly. He saw how much blood his brother lost and how he began to tremble. Connor was writhing in pain. "No!", Jack yelled at him with concern, when Connor closed his eyes. "He won´t die, won´t he?", Lindsay sobbed. She was sitting just as scared next to Connor as Jack.
Sue returned with the doctor and they took Connor to his room.
The doctor took nearly till night, but then he announced the king was alright. Jack hugged Sue in relief. Lindsay was still staring at the floor. "It's my fault," she said in a low voice, but Jack ignored it.
"How long will it take till he's healthy again?", Sue asked and the doctor shook his head ignorant. He didn´t know if the King had maybe an infection by the fall into the hoof knife and how long it would take to heal the deep wound. He didn´t even know if he would survive the night. Then the doctor apologized and left.
"That's a good idea. Let's go to bed", Jack suggested and Sue nodded tired: "Princess, do you mind if you go to your room alone today?"
"No, that's fine," Lindsay's voice was very quiet and she listened when Jack's and Sue's steps were more and more distant. If she hadn´t fallen on Connor's horse, the king wouldn´t be hurt now and she convinced herself everything was her fault. With tears in her eyes she got up from her chair and walked to the door that led to Connor's room. She could see him in the glow of the fire: He was asleep and beads of perspiration were on his forehead. The thick bandage around his stomach was already soaked with a small, blood-red stain.
Slowly she came closer and when she reached the bed, she knelt in front of it and reached for his hand. She was not able to leave him alone so she stayed all night.
Connor woke up next morning when the sun was shining in his face and he saw his brother standing at the window and looked out. Next, he noticed a heavy object lying on his hand. Connor raised his head and saw how Princess Lindsay still knelt beside the bed, but her head was asleep on his right hand. Her blonde hair tickled his skin when a gust of wind blew gently through the room.
"Jack?", he asked, his brother turned around.
"You're awake," said Jack happily, "How are you doing?"
"What... Why is Princess Lindsay here?"
"She's been with you all night," Jack whispered because he didn´t want to wake her, "The princess believes your fall was her fault."
"But that's not true." He didn´t understand why she stayed with him after all, if he meant nothing to her. His brother left and when the princess woke up, Connor pretend as if he was sleeping.
He didn´t want she left him now. Actually he didn´t want her to return to Scotland again, so he thought his accident as a way of destiny. So that she visited him every day, Connor decided to send his meals back to the kitchen without eating a bite. He told Sue he would only eat in the company of Princess Lindsay and Sue was successful: in tears, she asked Lindsay to have dinner with Connor because otherwise the already weakened King would die.
Lindsay gave in, but she realized his plan quickly and so she allowed herself to cook his meals. She prepared meals from her Scottish home and watched with amusement he didn´t like most of them.
She, however, visited him every day and she often brought books from the library. Sometimes he read the books alone, sometimes she was reading for him. When he felt better, they took short walks through the castle or in the garden without reporting to the doctor. She brought fresh roses from the garden every day.
So one month passed, as the doctor allowed that Connor left his room and today the princess also brought fresh roses. She didn´t think much about it, but even Connor mentioned she was now for three months on Callenburgh Castle and he asked her if she felt at home here.
"These are very beautiful flowers," Lindsay was avoiding his question when he put on his shirt and she noticed how handsome he was. The wound still ached a little when he was moving.
She put the flowers in a vase and decided not to pay too much attention at the king. "But they aren´t the most beautiful creatures..."
"That's right," he interrupted, "You're the most beautiful creature here." He was amused to note how she blushed and shook her head quickly. "The roses... I thought these roses aren´t the most beautiful creatures. There are nicer ones. These are not perfect."
"What´s wrong with them?", Connor couldn´t see what was wrong with the roses.
"It's not my favorite roses. My favorite roses are yellow and they have a pink edge. Such flowers are only available in Scotland."
"I see," he nodded, "You are homesick, am I right?"
"A little bit," she admitted sadly, "I miss the beautiful cliffs that were close to the coasts, the sheep in the pastures..."
"We also have sheep here in Ireland. And we also have very beautiful cliffs. Come, I'll show you."
He was very happy she had agreed to accompany him and so the two left in the afternoon on horseback for the cliffs. Jack was worried when he learned that his brother wanted to take a trip with the princess alone and he thought it wasn´t a good idea, when he was riding a horse in this condition. No matter what he said: Mostly, the king didn´t listen to him and so today. He also feared the princess might kill this brother near the cliffs because... No, Jack didn´t even dare to think about it, because it meant he would be King of Ireland and he hated this idea.
That Lindsay wanted to come along was a positive sign for Connor, but he didn´t like the choice of her horse: She still wasn´t riding on the horse that he had given her.
Along the way they met a herd of sheep and Lindsay laughed as they cruised through them with their horses. The sheep protested bleating loudly.
Although Callenburgh Castle was located near the sea they reached the cliffs after one hour and their horses were eating on the lush green grass. "It's beautiful!", the princess breathed in the fresh air, when she also settled on the floor and watched the sea. Connor sat down beside her. She discovered how a screaming seagull flew over the cliffs and for a second he wondered what she was thinking.
"Thanks, for staying with me when I was sick," he said suddenly.
"You knew that?", She sounded shocked and at that moment he put his head in her lap and smiled at her, "This is a very pleasant way to rest."
Lindsay stretched for a flower, plucked it and began to tickle him, when he had closed his eyes for just half a minute. "What will people think if they see us like this?", she asked indignantly.
"But we´re alone."
Lindsay laughed and when he got up she took the opportunity to run away.
"Wait!", he yelled after her. He had to follow her far, as he grabbed her wrist and they both stumbled. They landed on the floor, Connor directly on her. Her breathing fastened as she noticed his nearness. She could feel his breath on her skin clearly.
Connor was caught by her pretty eyes and at this moment he wanted to kiss her but he didn´t take the risk, to be slapped once again by her. So he got up and helped her up. The princess wiped a few blades of grass from her dress. "Let's get the horses and ride along the beach," she suggested.
"Your wish is my command," he conceded and he also wondered why she didn´t put him out of this bittersweet misery. Couldn´t she see how much he yearned for her?
On their horses they rode for a while along the cliffs and then down to the beach where the cool waters of the Irish Sea met the sand.
Connor remarked how happy she was here and he wished there was a way to make her happy on Callenburgh Castle and he finally asked her what he needed to do so she felt at home with him but Lindsay didn´t answer.
They stayed until late afternoon then Connor suggested riding back to the castle.
That evening Prince Jacob´s birthday was honored with a prom and Princess Sue had promised to help Lindsay with the preparations. First, the Princess had refused to appear at the prom because she hadn´t a pretty dress and Sue told her she should wear one of the dresses that Connor had given her.
Lindsay didn´t like that idea and she told Sue. She added for her it felt like she would finally fulfill Connor's wish.
Sue, however, shook her head helplessly, when she helped the princess and said she hopefully didn´t want to meet their important guests, the King and Princess of Spain, in her oldest dress.
"It could be worse for you," Sue didn´t know what was Lindsay's problem because the king was very handsome, "Forgive me if I come too close, but what do you think happens if you further reject the King?", asked Sue and this question was of course entitled, "Someday he´ll send you away, if he´s married to Princess Magdalena of Spain."
"He wants to marry the Princess of Spain?"
"I know the king and his brother talked about it... And Princess Magdalena is known to be slightly jealous. If she only lives here, she won´t tolerate you for long. You can meet her today... Excuse me, Jack will be waiting for me." Sue left the princess alone. She looked at her reflection for a long time and wondered if she really should go to the prom.
Connor met the Princess of Spain a few minutes ago and found that his brother was right with his stories: the Princess was no beauty and she certainly was some years older than him. Her voice was also high and shrill.
"My poor brother," Jack told Sue, "I can´t imagine he will marry the Princess of Spain... " Jack had talked to his brother this morning and Connor revealed he´d prefer Princess Lindsay as his wife.
"Where is she now?", Jack asked.
"She probably won´t come," Sue murmured and noticed how the guests were looking at the stairs. Sue thought she couldn´t believe her eyes: Princess Lindsay walked in a red, velvet dress down the stone staircase. The color of the dress made her hair shine and the people were entranced by her sight. When she reached the foot of the stairs and saw Jack and Sue, she came to them.
"I´m happy you came", Sue said. And she was relieved she had chosen one of the most beautiful clothes the king had given her. Probably, the king also saw it, because he asked her to dance first. Lindsay refused she wasn´t able to dance the Irish dancing at the royal court and Connor replied this wasn´t true: She only wanted to hide she was a terrible dancer and so he had awakened her ambition. They danced together until dinner and Jack and Sue, who observed the two, noticed that the King of Spain wasn´t happy about the pretty rival of his daughter. He seemed to be pleased, when the Scottish princess had her dinner at the other end of the table, far away from King Connor and so Magdalena had enough time to get to know her future husband. Magdalena and would meet the king's brother and his wife.
Lindsay watched the conversation concerned. Magdalena seemed to be very amused but she couldn´t see how Connor was.
Suddenly the King was gone and she decided to get up. Lindsay was looking for him, but she couldn´t discover him in the dancing crowd. So she walked away from the celebrating crowds. Her footsteps echoed through the large, stone building. She screamed in horror when someone grabbed her wrist and pulled her behind a pillar, where they couldn´t be seen. "It´s you," she was relieved when she saw Connor in the glow of a few candles, "I have been looking for you," she admitted.
They were standing so close together that their bodies were almost touching.
"Is it true?", she asked in a whisper, "Is it true you´ll marry Princess Magdalena?"
"Only you can prevent," his voice was as quiet as hers, "Marry me and I promise you, you'll..."
"I can´t," she didn´t let him finish the sentence, "I'm sorry, but I can´t." There was an uncomfortable moment of silence, but finally he asked her if he was allowed to have only one minute of her time to remember her forever.
"How?", she asked, looking up at him.
Connor grabbed for her waist, pulled her close and kissed her lovingly. The princess hesitated, but then she returned his kisses and it almost seemed as she could feel his longing for her. And she hoped he wouldn´t feel her yearning for him. She blushed when he gently brushed with his lips over hers to deepen the kiss and she moaned softly. A shiver ran through her body while she granted him his wish and at the same time they became one in a tender and passionate kiss. But suddenly he released her and pushed her away.
"If it´s necessary to marry Magdalena, I'll do it. But my heart belongs to another woman", with these words he let her go and walked away.
After that, everything changed: Lindsay decided to leave the prom and she said goodbye to Jack and Sue and Sue decided to accompany her to her room. There she left her alone when she threw herself into a chair exhausted. Lindsay had to think: When Connor stole the first kiss of her life she had slapped him because she hated him with all her heart. But now... Now she didn´t want to end the kiss. She thought about her mother who once told her that many princesses weren´t allowed to marry the man of their dreams. Her mother also told her a kiss out of love felt sweet and overwhelming and Lindsay was sure it was exactly how Connor kissed her. She also wondered how it could happen she fist hated the king, then she fell in love...
"Sorry, this is a message for you," Sue handed her a letter she had just received from the messenger and it had the royal seal. The princess hurriedly tore the envelope and began to read: He wrote he would abandon the crown for her, if that was her wish and that he would go to a faraway place with her, if it was needed. He wrote he loved her and he would never feel the same for Magdalena.
Sue watched the princess when she read her the letter. "Many women in this kingdom wouldn´t hesitate for a second if the king wrote them such a wonderful letter," she finally said, touched.
"You think I should marry him?"
"He risked a scandal with Spain for you", so Sue's answer was yes, "He also wrote in the letter he loves you."
Lindsay asked herself if she loved him, too, and got up from the chair where she sat. She had made her decision and would now see the King to inform him.
"Don´t wait for me, you understand?", she crept to the door, walked down the 100 steps and then hurried along the dark corridor to the king´s room. When she saw a guard at the door, she turned down another corridor and went to a door that was marked on the plans of the castle as a secret passage. Apparently, the guard didn´t know the secret passage because the door was unguarded. In the darkness Lindsay walked along a narrow corridor and at the end she opened a door.
Connor didn´t seem to see her, because he was still sitting at his desk and thought as well. Only when he heard a faint click, he noticed her presence and got up.
"I received the letter," she said and showed him the piece of paper, "Is it true? Do you love me so much you would give up the crown?"
"If you want..."
"I don´t want to separate a kingdom and a king in this way", she said and walked up to him, "But I also don´t want to separate a king and his queen."
It took a moment before he understood, then he pulled her close and kissed her longingly and uncontrolled. Lindsay returned his kisses immediately.
"Did anyone see you when you came to me?", he asked while his hands slid impatiently over her body.
"No, but Sue knows where I am….", With a beatific smile, she noticed how he kissed her neck and shoulder. Lindsay put his hands in his hair and she gasped for air, "We shouldn´t do this. I never…"
"I promise, I won´t hurt you." Then he kissed her again, so tenderly, as if he would only ask for permission to help her slowly out of her dress. Her mind said it was better if she left now, but her heart and her body demanded for more. She had kept him waiting for too long and when she thought about it she felt how his fingertips where on the bare skin of her back. Her entire body felt tingly. When she helped him out of the shirt, she noticed the bandage that was still wrapped around his body and he grabbed her hand. She shouldn´t think this wound was her fault. Connor deepened the kiss, as he leaned back with her. Tonight it wasn´t just his bed, tonight it was their bed and he prayed it wasn´t their last night.
Connor woke up alone next morning in the huge bed and he realized Lindsay wasn´t beside him. He saw her standing by the window, wrapped in a brown floor length coat, and looked out to sea.
Connor got up silently from the bed and came to her. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders lovingly and kissed her temple. "What's wrong with you?", he asked and she shook her head. Then he knew why she was troubled. Gently, he turned her slightly to the left and pointed to a dark shadow in the distance.
"The land which you see there is the Isle of Man and in this direction…", now he turned her even further to the left, "...there is Scotland."
"What will happen to the Princess of Spain?", she asked instead. Since she had woken up, she had constantly to think about it and she also thought she didn´t want to spend her life as a secret mistress of the king after last night, when she gave him the most important treasure she had.
"Nothing," Connor replied, "I told her and her father yesterday evening during dinner, I won´t marry her. The princess seemed to be very relieved about it. Probably she doesn´t like Ireland."
"You mean you knew I would come to you?", She now turned around to him.
"I was hoping, dear", he embraced her one more, "I love you."
She wasn´t able to respond.
Connor was surprised when the princess visited him at noon and asked for a ride on horses. Only at the second time he noticed she wore one of the dresses, which he had given her.
They went to the stables and when she was sure they were alone, she took his hand. Suddenly she felt like a little kid and it was so exciting to be with him.
"The horses are ready", she told him when they reached the stables. Connor was now even more surprised, because obviously she had chosen the black horse, which was also his gift to her.
Lindsay led him to the cliffs, where they were yesterday and because her horse was so huge, she demanded he should help her dismount. Connor laughed and announced she was already behaving like a vain queen. He, however, helped her but they lost their footing and landed together in the grass, which was warmed by the sun. Lindsay was right on him and his hands were still on their waist. He recognized the scent of her intoxicating perfumes, which was also one of his gifts. "What are you doing?", Connor asked. The look in her watery blue eyes struck him in the heart.
"Telling you how much I love you," she shyly smiled, "This morning I wasn´t able to, but I know you forgive me that I sometimes need a little more time."
Connor had to smile and he reached for her to kiss her. Then he let her go and asked: "Princess, will you now do me the honor and become my wife?" He had expected she´d refuse again, but she smiled and nodded in agreement. "Yes, I´d love to become your wife," she told him and their lips met again in a tender kiss.
They reached the castle and when their horses were taken away by a stable-boy, Connor pulled Lindsay close to him in the shadow of the building. "I hate the idea of being separated from you until our wedding," he muttered, "Then you must never walk up 100 steps to your room, I promise you."
"That's very sweet," she smiled and kissed him. He promised her they never had to spend a night separated from each other, although he would like to savor their infatuation immediately.
While he held her in his arms and kissed her, Sue asked herself where the princess might was and she was visibly disturbed. She asked Jack to help her with searching. Sue hoped Lindsay hadn´t run away last night, but when she and Jack reached the stables, they noticed it wasn´t so. Even from this distance, Sue saw how the king whispered a sweet compliment to the princess´ ear and of course she saw what it was.
"What are they doing...?", Sue asked and wanted to run, but Jack held her arm.
"How does it look like?", Jack was amused, "Seems like they ended their dispute... Perhaps even more than that," He smiled at his wife.
"Yes," Sue sighed, "This reminds me of us when we were in love."
"We were in love?", Jack asked horrified and Sue smiled, "I thought we ARE still in love!"
"Of course we are. More than ever before," she reached for him and kissed him quickly. Then she noticed Connor and Lindsay had seen them.
"Where have you been?", Sue asked Lindsay. Lindsay and Connor walked side by side past her and the princess had laid her hand at the king´s forearm.
"We were at the cliffs by horses," Lindsay replied, "Sorry for making you worry."
Sue noticed the happy smile on Lindsay's face and she beamed even more as she looked at Connor.
"What happened on the road?", Jack also thought it was odd.
"She has accepted my proposal. We are getting married."
"Did he really say they will get married?", Sue asked and when Jack nodded she hugged him impetuously.
"What do you think about next Sunday?", Connor asked his future wife and she nodded when they walked together across the courtyard. Today there was a market here and the guests and traders bowed their heads before their king.
"I understand you don´t want to wait any longer," she smiled and looked at the carriage of a florist. While Connor was talking to Jack and Sue, who had followed them, Lindsay went to the trader and looked at his flowers. Daffodils, tulips, roses and lilies were for sale. Lindsay liked one flower most: There were bright yellow roses, whose edge was lined in pink. "These roses only grow in Scotland," the trader, an old bearded man, explained to her and the princess nodded as he handed her a rose.
"I know. I'm from Scotland. These flowers only grow in the garden of my father."
"You found something you like?", she suddenly heard a voice saying and with the rose in her hand she frantically turned to Connor.
"I...", she shook her head in embarrassment but Connor had noticed immediately. He remembered the roses, of which she had told him and he told the florist he wanted to buy all his yellow roses with pink edge on Sunday. The trader said he would send his son to deliver the flowers.
Very happy Connor and Lindsay entered the castle with Jack and Sue.
The florist, who wasn´t a real florist, took almost two days then he reached Edinburgh Castle. Once in the courtyard, he pulled hard on the reins of his wet with sweat horse, jumped from the saddle and ran as fast as he could into the room of the king.
King William was sick and tired. Since his daughter Princess Lindsay was torn from life, he didn´t want to live longer. Three months had passed since the death of the pretty princess and his strength ebbed from day to day. He was convinced of the death of his daughter, because three days after he awoke from the coma, an almost burned woman's body was found near Edinburgh. The tragedy threw the king into a deep depression and his wounds wouldn´t heal ever. His kingdom was gray and dull without the presence of his lovely daughter. William knew if he was going to die now, his younger brother Jacob would have the crown, but he didn´t care. The wounds of the battle were still aching very much. His doctor called it a miracle the king hadn´t died because of his injuries.
The trader tried to convince the doctor that he could speak to the king. He had ridden nearly three horses to death on the way here so the massage was very important.
The doctor gave him five minutes. Then he demanded he left the room.
"My king," the bearded man bowed his head, "I found the princess."
"The princess is dead," William protested, "Why do you torment my battered heart?"
"My king, the Princess is alive! I saw her when I sold flowers in the castle of the Irish king."
William suddenly straightened up. "Is she all right?"
The man nodded. He found the princess didn´t seemed to be unhappy.
"Leave now," the king ordered the man out and he was breathing heavily. If it was true what the man said, then King William had to be healthy as fast as it was possible and travel to Ireland. The King of Ireland had kidnapped his daughter and it was about time to get her home.
They married in a Cathedral in Dublin on a wonderful Sunday in August, adorned with the favorite roses of the princess. The day became an official holiday for the people. Besides some important guests from the parliament, Jack and Sue were also present and Sue squeezed her husband's hand affectionately, when the king and his beautiful bride were kissing at the end of the ceremony.
In the evening, when the guests were still celebrating and the king and the queen had gone back to their room, she watched the dancing crowd through a window while Connor wrapped his arms around her and kissed her neck lovingly. Suddenly it felt more intimate and passionate to be with him. Lindsay was sure she had made the right decision. Next day, she wrote in her diary she couldn't be happier.
Three months after their wedding, she surprised the king and visited him in his office. She apologized for disturbing him but she had to tell something that couldn´t wait until the evening. Lindsay wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. Connor was very curious to hear what couldn´t wait. The queen took a deep breath and said: "We are expecting a baby." When he heard it, he lifted her up and spun her around. Lindsay was laughing excited and as he put her back on the floor, he apologized to her if he had hurt her.
They enjoyed their time together and the queen almost thought the happiness in the kingdom of Ireland would grow in the same way as and her husband´s happiness. Autumn and winter passed by quickly and Lindsay watched pleased how her stomach was rounded in spring.
The child was born in the night of the second day in May. Connor and Jack had been waiting for hours and Connor was walking in the corridor even more restless. He heard the queen crying and screaming and at the same time he wished once more, he could be with his wife now. When she cried out in pain, he clenched a fist and almost slammed it against the elaborately decorated wooden wall. But he controlled himself.
"Try to calm down," Jack admonished and Connor shook his head.
"You don´t know how it is…"
"But I'll know soon," he replied, looking at his brother, "Sue told me this morning we´ll have a baby in about six month."
"I'm very happy for you. You´ll be a great father and...", Connor said, and he was interrupted because at that moment he heard the cries of a child and Sue opened the heavy wooden door.
"It´s a princess," she announced, Connor ran past her to the bed where his wife was. Lindsay was tired and beads of perspiration were still on her forehead. In her arms she held a little crying baby. "I'm sorry," her voice was a whisper and she was still crying. Connor sat down beside her and reached for her hand. "There is no reason to be sad. Our daughter is a very pretty girl. She looks like you", Connor said. The baby calmed down immediately, when it was in the arms of its father. "She isn´t only pretty, she's beautiful," Connor corrected and kissed his wife, "Thanks, dear."
The baby cried a lot when it should be baptized seven days later and immediately Lindsay was at the cradle and took the child on her arm. "Don´t cry," she told the little girl and kissed her daughter´s cheek. The baby quieted immediately.
The queen wanted to raise her daughter and because Connor couldn´t refuse his wife's request, the cradle of the little princess was standing in her parents´ room. Lindsay didn´t mind to spend time in the night to take care of her child. She was also raised by her mother, and not by a nanny, and she found it hadn´t harmed her.
Princess Isadora of Ireland was the sweetest baby Lindsay had ever seen. Finally, it was her own baby and Lindsay smiled at the thought. It was still inconceivable she actually had a child. She thought about Connor and how lovingly he treated their daughter. He told his wife maybe was it time that Ireland was ruled by a queen someday, when he and Lindsay should die. Connor loved her and the baby so much and sometimes she really believed it was just a dream. Sometimes she wondered, how Connor did it, that she fell madly in love with him.
"I still can´t believe this is my baby", Lindsay told Sue, who was with her today, "And I can´t believe you also expect a baby."
"A miracle, hm?", Sue asked and rolled her eyes.
"No!", Lindsay disagreed hectic, "It wasn´t meant that way!"
Of course Sue knew and they had to hurry, because soon Connor and Jack would come to pick them up. Then they would walk together to the castle church, where the baby should be baptized.
"Will we meet them halfway?", Lindsay suggested. In their finest dresses and with small, delicate crowns on their heads, the two women started for the church and they actually met Jack and Connor. Jack hugged Sue and told her she looked very beautiful. "How's the baby?", he asked, touching her belly and smiling at her.
"The baby is very hungry today," she said and hugged him, too. On this day, it was almost impossible for her to hide her little round belly in her green silk dress.
After Connor had convinced himself, that they wouldn´t be seen by anyone, he reached for his wife and kissed her as well. The Princess in Lindsay's arm began to cry.
"She´s crying constantly," Lindsay said, "Maybe she isn´t in the mood to be baptized." She laughed and together they made their way to the church, where people from Dublin already lined the streets. They all wanted to take a look at their little princess.
King William and his strongest man were dressed like trades on this warm day in May when they crept to Callenburgh Castle. The last months of recovery were hard and difficult for the king, but the thought of his daughter kept him alive. The wish to see her again gave him new strength and courage to fight against the Irish king and kill him if it was necessary.
The men couldn´t see much, when they hid in the crowd who had gathered in the streets today. The knight noticed a man walking down the street in fine clothes. On his side was a beautiful, blonde woman, who waved.
"Is this Connor?", asked the knight.
"It´s Prince Jacob," King William said and he regretted that the strongest man in his country was probably also the most stupid, "I didn´t know Princess Susan is expecting a baby." William watched the people and then he discovered Connor and he saw that Lindsay was at his side and her smile beamed like a happy summer sun. Occasionally she waved at the people, but she carried a small baby on her arm, which was wrapped in a white baptismal. William noted the wedding ring on his daughter´s finger. Again and again she looked at the baby and then at her husband affectionately. The royal couple stopped in front of the church and bowed reverently before the bishop. The bishop explained he was very pleased, to pay the first sacrament of the Church to Princess Isadora of Ireland and the King and Queen and Prince Jacob and his wife entered the church.
"My king, what do we do now?", the knight asked. King William was unable to answer. He couldn´t believe his daughter actually became Queen of Ireland. She also looked very happy and if she really loved her husband, for what the little baby in her arms was the best evidence, she would never allow something was happening to him.
"We´ll do nothing", the king replied to the question of his knight, "We´ll return to our camp." He would get rid of the gray trader clothes and put on his best clothes. Then he would ask the King of Ireland for peace. Perhaps Scotland was a better place again if it was ruled by a couple like Connor and Lindsay, and one day by their daughter. King William felt he wasn´t called to this task any longer.
But he was sure his daughter, and the man she loved so much, were...
Fin