"Why do they hate me?!" Belle sobbed as she threw herself into my arms. "I try to be nice to them, and they hate me!"
"The servants who work in the forest hate everyone," I assured her. "It's not just you."
"I can see the pain in their eyes. I know they're miserable. They need friends. Why won't they make friends? What kind of princess will I be if I can't even make my own servants realize I'm here to help?"
To appease my fiancée, I promised to go talk to the forest caretakers. Loup was easy enough to find. He was in a nearby clearing, chopping firewood in what had to be the least efficient way known to man. He would throw a log into the air and swing an axe, attempting to cut the log before it hit the ground.
"Is there no better way?" I wondered aloud.
"Keeps my skills up," he replied. "My sister can throw several logs at the same time and chop them all without missing even once before they fall."
"Impressive." I watched him throw and cut another log. "I thought perhaps we might talk."
"Sorry. I don't have time. Why is it that whenever the woodcutters get the day off, I'm the one who suffers?!"
I sighed. "I was hoping it wouldn't come to this. As dauphin, I order you to rest for a few minutes and speak with me."
"Make me!"
His response shouldn't have surprised me, but what was I to do? If I allowed him to get away with such blatant insolence, none of my subjects would obey me, and rebellion would be inevitable. On the other hand, there was something cryptic about him that I didn't fully trust.
"Come now," I coaxed. "I'll give you the rest of the day off."
"I work as long as my men do," he replied.
"Technically, your men are my servants."
"I pay them out of my own wages. You give them nothing."
"You must be one of my wealthiest servants," I remarked.
"I stay up late at night doing extra chores so I can afford to provide for them. The wages you give me wouldn't last a peasant a week!"
I wondered if his belligerent nature was the result of the pain in his fractured limb or years of anger, but I knew better than to ask. There are just certain topics you don't mention when talking to Loup.
"My fiancée is concerned that you don't like her," I remarked. "She tries to befriend everyone, and she's a bit hurt by your…"
"Hostile demeanor and belligerent nature?" he finished for me.
I nodded.
"She's the woman who broke the spell about a month ago, and for that, I am grateful," he responded. "However, I wish she'd stop coming into the woods to find a quarterstaff. She should simply accept that she can't do it!"
"She says you'll tell her more about yourself when she finds one," I cautiously reminded him.
"I'll keep my word as a gentleman," Loup replied, "but every time she comes out into the forest, we have to stop what we're doing and babysit her because she goes traipsing around without a care in the world! This isn't one of her cute little books! Unlike the upper-class servants, we actually have work to do, and her presence is a great hindrance!"
"What if I help?" I offered. "I'll help you with your chores, and you give Belle some straight answers."
He crossed his arms. "Three. No more."
"Very well," I agreed. "I'll help you for three days, and if I can't handle it, Belle will stop pestering you, but if I manage, you owe her three answers."
He extended his arm, and we shook on the bargain. I thought the matter was settled and I would see him after breakfast with a few chores, but to my surprise, I was awakened just past midnight to the sound of someone pounding on my bedroom door.
"What is it?" I muttered groggily.
"My brother says it's time for you to begin chores with us," Louve's voice replied.
I groaned. "You've got to be kidding me!"
"What are you complaining about?! My brother says since you're not use to it, we're giving you light work on your first day!"
Yawning, I followed her to the stairwell.
"Come on! You're too slow!" she scolded.
Against my will, I hurried after her as she led the way through the forest. Although she ran swiftly and gracefully, I stumbled over every root and uneven patch of ground imaginable.
"Open your eyes and lift your feet!" Louve exclaimed. "Do you fancy a sprained ankle?! Time waits for no one!"
At last we reached a small cabin.
"We clean one every morning," she explained. "These cabins are our homes away from home. Here we sleep when we're doing nocturnal surveillance against poachers or we get caught in a storm and can't make our way back to the castle. As you can see, they all have kitchens and bedrooms and everything else we need. We made sure of it, for we built them ourselves."
"You want me to clean this cabin?" I asked.
"Before a half hour has passed," she responded. "We like them spotless and ready for our arrival at any time."
I nodded. "Where's the duster?"
Louve rolled her eyes. "What will you ask for next, a broom and furniture polish?! There are the scraps of cloth. Make sure to wash them when you finish. The river's just down there!"
I could tell by the amber gleam in her eyes that she was in no mood to here that the distance was about half a mile, and I was a little bit hesitant about walking through the forest alone in the dark. Grabbing a rusted excuse for a bucket, I headed for water.
Carrying the water back to the cabin was torture. Every muscle in my arm ached from the weight of the bucket, and the walk was entirely uphill. Despite the coolness of the morning, sweat poured down my face.
To my horror, Louve was waiting back at the cabin, standing akimbo. "What is this?! You still have not cleaned the cabin?! Well, half an hour behind schedule means half an hour working overtime without benefits!"
She disappeared, and I began cleaning the cabin as quickly as I could. The water was so frigid that my hands grew numb. I was beginning to feel pain in every joint below my wrist, but I continued to work until I was startled by Louve's voice behind me.
"Slipshod, but we must move on. Follow me!"
As I followed, she explained that Loup was tracking game. It was his duty to know the movements of every animal passing through the forest within ten miles of the castle, as well as every behavior of the resident creatures. In this way, overpopulation and epidemics were kept under control.
"You're lucky this is such a peaceful morning," Louve stated. "Once we had to deal with a forest fire, and I can't tell you how many poachers we've seen over the years. Patrolling the forest is especially difficult in bad weather at night, but no time off for us!"
When we reached a secluded grove, she handed me a small, crude trowel. "This is our finest shovel. We entrust you to plant trees."
"Where are the seeds?" I queried.
She crossed her arms. "Are you honestly so foolish that you can't find tree seeds in a forest?! Remember, this particular area needs English walnut, not black walnut, and you must plant sugar maple rather than red maple, and it simply won't do to forget that we need live oak, not white oak. Too many of one species and not enough of the other would be disastrous for the entire ecosystem!"
My head was already spinning.
Despite his limp, Loup managed to run up to where we stood. "How's he doing?"
"Pathetic!" Louve exclaimed in disgust. "He can't even keep his trees straight! My arm's fractured, and I'm still doing more work than he can!"
Loup sighed. "I was afraid of that." He thought a moment. "I know! We'll have him make breakfast for us!"
"Great idea!" I agreed. "I'll go to the pantry and…"
"You have to catch it," he interrupted. "Remember, the servants don't clean our rooms in the castle or make breakfast for us because we're not important enough to dine with royalty. If you want breakfast, you must either catch it, gather it, or take something into the village to sell and use the money to buy breakfast."
I nodded. "I'll sell something in the village."
"What will you sell?"
I thought long and hard. "Firewood."
"Very well," Louve replied. "Go cut some wood. When you have enough, carry it on your back and walk to the village…"
My eyes widened in horror, but there was no help for it. I chopped firewood until every muscle in my back and arms ached. Then I reluctantly secured the bundle on my back and started for town.
The road was much longer than I remembered. I was in too much pain to care about the terror each strange noise would ordinarily have caused. I wished I had a strong horse. Each step was torture, but there was no help for it but to go on.
After two hours, I finally reached the village. The baker was just beginning to make the day's bread as the sky lightened. He saw me at the window and waved me over.
"Here for breakfast?" he queried.
"Indeed," I replied. "May I have some croissants and baguettes in exchange for this wood?"
He looked over the load. "It's a lot smaller than what the regular customers usually bring. I suppose I can part with one baguette."
I frowned. "I've carried this wood on my back for over two hours, and…"
"Two hours? It takes them less than one, and they're injured! What's your excuse?!"
I thought of all the work left to do. I had yet to try my hand at fletching arrows or gathering and brewing herbs for medicinal purposes, nor had I yet cleared a trail, mended a hem, darned a sock, or gathered the day's supply of water. I had not faced down a wild animal or been at someone else's beck and call for petty errands. I had not encountered poachers or bandits or storms. I had not been forced to cook my own meal over a fire I made myself. I had not dug for truffles to make my own truffle oil to hawk in the village so I could afford a pair of boots, nor were my hands scratched from gathering berries.
"I concede defeat," I admitted.
The baker frowned. "Beg your pardon?"
I fished a few coins out of my satchel. "I'll pay someone to give me a ride to the crossroads."
One of the baker's first customers was pleased by the bargain, and he allowed me to ride in his wagon. However, when we reached the crossroads, we were greeted by Louve and Loup, swords drawn.
"What brings you to the royal forest, peasant?!" Loup demanded.
"This man offered to pay me if I gave him a ride here!" my benefactor explained. "He says he lives in the castle."
"Our master said to kill all intruders, no exceptions!"
"Exception!" I exclaimed hurriedly. "I revoke my previous order! From now on, you're not to kill anyone who does not present a threat!"
Louve made no reply. She simply placed the tip of her sword against the man's throat. "Out of the wagon! Now!"
Trembling, he hastened to comply. When the forest caretakers had searched the wagon, they told him in no uncertain terms that he was to return to town at once, and he was too glad to agree.
"I concede defeat," I admitted when I was left alone with my servants. "I'll keep Belle from pestering you or wandering through the forest when you have chores, and if we plan an outing to the forest, we'll try to let you know in advance."
Loup glanced at his sister. "Should we let him off?"
"I don't know." Louve tossed her dagger and caught it by the hilt, repeating the gesture as she spoke. "Usually when someone wastes our time like this, we have to give them a sound thrashing."
"The day off with wages?" I offered.
"Done!" they exclaimed in unison.
The forest workers may have been satisfied, but Belle wasn't.
"Adam, you were so close!" she complained. "We need them to trust us and open up to us! They were so close to giving us answers we need to help them, and you gave up!"
I sighed. "If you want to try your hand at bargaining with them, be my guest!"