Queen Kenna Rys sat on the throne in the great hall of Stormholt's castle, staring longingly out the window. The bright sun warmed the earth below, the trees swayed in the slight breeze, and the joyful songs of the birds could be faintly heard over the yammering of the prince standing before her. She nodded her head so as to appear to be listening and let her thoughts continue to drift elsewhere. She was reminded of a day much like this one, when she and Dom had snuck away from the castle as children and spent the day exploring the surrounding forests and fields. Gabriel had almost had Dom's head when he discovered the children missing, but Kenna had been able to convince him of Dom's innocence in the scheme and all had ended well.
"Oh, Dom…" Kenna thought.
"If only I could run off to the forests with you now."
She pictured him standing before her, with a twinkle in his eye and a smile on his face, his tunic slightly open to reveal the mysterious fire brand on his chest. Just thinking about him caused Kenna to smile dreamily.
"Your Majesty? Your Majesty! Did you hear anything I just said?" The prince said, raising his voice and snapping Kenna out of her daydream.
"Oh, uh, yes, uh, of course. You were saying something about…uh…" She stammered, trying to recover.
"I take that as a no then. Maybe an alliance between our kingdoms wouldn't be as advantageous as I had hoped." The prince said, clearly frustrated that she had heard none of his speech.
"Stop! Wait! No! I was listening, I swear!" Kenna exclaimed, jumping out of her seat to run after the prince as he turned to leave.
"I'm sorry, Leon, but I must take leave. Your queen doesn't seem to be very interested in my proposal." He said curtly to the man, and stormed out of the hall.
Kenna stood in the middle of the empty room for a moment and stared at the closed door. Sighing, she slowly turned around to face her former captain of the royal guard and prepared herself for the lecture she knew was coming.
"What was that?!" Leon snapped at her.
"I'm sorry, Leon. I really am." She tried to apologize.
"I expected more from you, my queen. It was your mother's wish before she died to see Stormholt strengthened through your marriage, and I intend to honor her memory by fulfilling that wish. Dozens of eligible princes from very powerful kingdoms have come here to meet you, but your response seems to be to ignore them in favor of daydreaming about a certain fire-powered peasant." He retorted.
"Don't bring Dom into this!" Kenna snapped back.
"It's not his fault I'm stuck in here day after day listening to the same speech over and over. And no one seems to care if I'm actually interested in marrying any of these princes or not!"
"But it is his fault that you're distracted. I understand he is your closest friend, but he must remain as such. I cannot have you jeopardizing the security of our kingdom to live out some fairy-tale fantasy you may have dreamed up in your head." Leon scolded.
"Leon, I've had enough." Kenna said sternly.
"Of course, Your Majesty. I apologize if I upset you." Leon said, as he bowed and left Kenna to her thoughts.
Kenna moved to the window and leaned against the stone frame. She understood Leon's concern. It was the same concern her mother had shared after all. And it certainly was her duty to protect her kingdom and provide for its security. But could she really bring herself to marry someone she didn't love? Once again, her thoughts drifted to Dom. He had become one of the fiercest warriors in all of Stormholt and he had risked his life for her on more than one occasion. He was charming and friendly, not to mention terribly good-looking. But most importantly, he saw Kenna for who she really was and understood her like no one else could. He would be more than qualified to rule at Kenna's side…he just wasn't a royal.
"Should that really be all that decides who is a king?" Kenna thought.
It was starting to grow dim outside, and the lights from the village below began to flicker in the window like tiny candles. A flash of light suddenly flew by the window, startling Kenna. Looking closer, she could make out the fiery form of the phoenix as it circled back around to land on the window sill in front of her. Smiling, Kenna gave the bird a nod, turned, and raced back to her chambers to don her peasant disguise. Drawing her cloak close around her body, she snuck through the castle halls, making sure no one saw her. Once she had made it out of the castle, she quickly followed the path to the village and came upon the festivities of the yearly Beltane Festival.
The entire village was bustling with activity. Vendors lined the streets, selling a variety of foods and sweets, while festive music floated in the air amongst the bustling villagers. Taking in everything around her, Kenna made her way to the village square, where the festival bonfire burned as bright as the mid-day sun.
All around her, fair maidens danced and twirled merrily to the music, while the young men gleefully chased after them. Surrounded by joy and laughter, Kenna turned back to stare longingly at the fire. The flames seemed to dance and sway to the beat of the music and grow brighter with each enthusiastic crescendo. Just basking in its warmth comforted her troubled mind. Suddenly, she became aware of someone behind her and felt a pair of warm hands gently grip both her arms.
"And here I thought I was through sending messages to you by bird."
"Dom!" She gasped, turning around to come face to face with that all too familiar grin. Kenna immediately threw her arms around his neck as Dom spun her around in a joyous hug. Her feet once again on the ground, Kenna hesitated to remove herself from his embrace.
"I've missed you, Dom." She said, gazing up into his twinkling blue eyes.
"I've missed you too." He replied, reaching down to give her a quick kiss on the lips before glancing around to make sure no one was watching them.
"Come. There's something I want to show you." Dom said, taking her hand in his and leading her away from the fire. They wound through narrow streets and alleys until they finally arrived at a field on the edge of the village. Walking a little farther, Kenna saw a blanket laid out at the crest of a little hill, and a basket filled with food from the various festival booths.
"Dom…what is this?" Kenna asked, turning around to look at him, a smile breaking across her face.
"I wanted to give you a taste of the Beltane festival and a place where you could be a normal girl, without having to worry about people seeing you…with a certain someone." He said, grinning devilishly.
"Dom, that is the sweetest thing I have heard all day. And I have heard many suitors today try to woo me with sweet proclamations of love." Kenna told him.
"Leon still trying to play matchmaker for our Queen then?" Dom quipped, moving to take a seat on the blanket.
"Unfortunately, yes. Suitors have come from kingdoms around the realm, some I've never even heard of, and each one has better reasons than the last as to why they are the most charming and why it would be most advantageous to unite our kingdoms through marriage…" Kenna complained, plopping down on the blanket next to Dom.
"To be honest, it all gets a little boring and repetitive…especially when I'm not really interested in any of them." She said, looking up to meet Dom's gaze.
Dom pulled Kenna closer and planted a tender kiss on her forehead.
"What am I supposed to do, Dom?" She asked, her face nuzzled into his chest.
"I know have a duty to my kingdom and its people…but I can't ignore the feelings in my heart."
"I wish the circumstances were different, Kenna, I really do." He said comfortingly, wrapping his arm around her and pulling her closer to his body.
"Because…I love you…and there's nothing more that I want than to spend the rest of my days by your side. Life doesn't always give us an easy path. But if there's one thing anyone should know about you, it's that you don't run from a challenge. You fight for what you want and for what is right. And I know whatever you choose to do, it will be for the best."
"Oh, Dom." Kenna said, tears in her eyes. Her right hand moved to gently cup his face as Dom reached down to kiss her. She kissed him with a passion as the world around them seemed to fade away into nothingness.
And in that moment, Kenna knew what she had to do.