The noise that woke James from his slumber wasn't very loud, so he knew it must be morning and time to rise. He quickly saw that the source of the soft sounds was Pavel, using some straw to coax the embers in the fireplace back to life. When Pavel saw James moving, he was immediately apologetic, but James waved that off immediately.
"Might I hazard a guess that the nobles of this land are not early risers either?"
Pavel gave a small smile at that question.
"There are one or two exceptions, but by and large, their hours tend to be more from midday to midnight rather than from sunrise to sunset."
Shaking his head, James reached for his clothing.
"I have trouble imaging such, but if your people do not mind, it hardly matters."
There was a hesitation as Pavel finally managed to get the straw to blaze. When he spoke again, it was softly as if he were afraid of being overheard.
"The people mind, but they have been biding their time. How much do you know of the history of Atlantus?"
"Very little, I fear. I do not even recall my tutor bringing Atlantus up beyond the current ruling family and its location."
"King David is only the second of his line to wear the crown. His father, King Stephen came to Atlantus under the guise of being an ambassador from the Kingdom of Reman. He was received as an honored guest and roomed in the palace with his entourage. During the night, he and his followers assassinated the whole of the royal family with the exception only of the youngest, Princess Eleanor. Before the nobles of the land even knew anything was amiss, Stephen had crowned himself king and Princess Eleanor had been forced to wed his eldest son, then Prince David - now King David. She has borne him one and only one child, Prince Leonard."
James realized that his mouth had dropped open during the telling of the tale and reclosed it.
"Is this tale the truth? How did the surrounding kingdoms allow it?"
From the doorway, Lady Amanda spoke.
"It is the truth, but what could the surrounding kingdoms do beyond attempt to invade and take over the lands themselves - and none of them had the resources or the will to do such. With only the one exception, all who could claim relation to the royal family were tracked down and executed for the most trivial of reasons. Pavel, I take it that you heard the truth of it from your grandmother?"
"Yes, Lady."
"You know that the King will not be pleased that you have been telling it?"
A slightly sad smile formed on Pavel's face.
"He will already have my head for aiding Prince Leonard's escape from the tower. Why should I fear making him angrier?"
It took James a moment to digest the wording, but then he looked at Pavel.
"You mean that quite literally? He will have you executed for helping me rescue Leonard?"
There was not the slightest hesitation before Pavel nodded.
"I knew that before I agreed to help and I would do the same again. I have already made peace with my fate."
James was immediately on his feet and scowling.
"Well I have not made peace with it and will not. You will come with us to my kingdom. I give you my word that my Lady Mother will welcome you with open arms."
The expression on Pavel's face was a mix of hope and reluctance which puzzled James until the young man spoke.
"But . . . my grandmother . . "
Lady Amanda stepped in, laying her hand in Pavel's curls once more.
"Your grandmother would grieve your death far more than she will knowing that you are alive and well in another land. I will send word to her myself."
It wasn't hard to see the internal struggle playing out on the young man's face, but Pavel finally nodded.
"Yes, you are right, Lady. I will go."
She gave Pavel an encouraging smile, then motioned to James.
"Leonard is awake and asking for you. Come. I will take you to him."
James quickly pulled on his boots and followed in Lady Amanda's wake. He briefly wondered where her son was, but didn't question it as he entered the main house and soon found himself in a well-furnished bedroom. Not that any of the details of the room were noticed beyond the periphery - all his attention was on the figure propped up on pillows in the bed.
All the worries James had about his worthiness were cast aside when Leonard's eyes opened and he smiled as he extended a hand toward him. A small smile played on Lady Amanda's lips as she watched James rush to clasp that hand and bring it to his chest over his heart. Satisfied with that gesture, she withdrew quietly, closing the door behind her to leave the pair alone.
Bruising still discolored most of Leonard's face, but the colors were showing signs of starting to fade and the swelling was far less than it had been just the day before.
"You took an awful risk coming back for me, James."
Lowering his eyes to look at the hand he was holding, James spoke softly.
"There was no way I would leave you there. Not when it was my fault that the King was punishing you."
The snort coming from Leonard drew his eyes back up.
"That is so untrue as to be ridiculous, James. Believe me, if it had not been our love, then it would have been something else. All of my life, I have only managed to do one thing that my sire has approved of and that was being born a male child. No point in dwelling on that though, James. I have been doing some thinking."
"About what, Leonard?"
"About possibly seeing the world as Cinderella and Rapunzel are. Finding my place."
Without knowing he did so, James grasped Leonard's hand tighter.
"I know I am not worthy, Leonard, but you have a place. If you want it."
The slightly confused look on Leonard's face morphed into anger.
"Who has told you that you are not worthy? It is a vile lie."
"I suppose I told it to myself. You could have denied me and gone on with your life."
"And you could have left me in the tower and gone on with yours. If I believe you that I am worthy, will you believe me when I say that you are as well?"
There was a moment of hesitation, but then James nodded. Leonard rewarded that with a smile. Keeping hold of Leonard's hand, James gave a brief glance toward the door.
"Pavel will be coming with us when we leave. He and Lady Amanda are both of the opinion that your - that the King will be unlikely to be merciful about his role in your escape."
"Highly unlikely. I hate that the lad is having to leave his home on my account."
With a sigh, Leonard sank back down onto the bed.
"No offense against my dear mother, but whatever she saw in my sire is beyond my reckoning."
Swallowing hard, it hit James like a stone that Leonard knew nothing of how his mother had been forced into marriage. He kept that thought to himself as he gently released Leonard's hand.
"Rest and heal. We have far to go and the journey cannot begin until you are well again."
The door opened again then and Lady Amanda stepped back in with a cup in her hand.
"It is time for your medication, Leonard. You and James can have your supper together tonight. You should be able to sit up for it by that time."
It was a sign of how injured Leonard still was that he merely nodded before drinking down the contents of the cup. His eyes closed almost immediately and Lady Amanda smoothed the quilts covering her godson before leaving the room with James following behind. James kept silent until they entered the kitchen area of the home.
"Leonard is ignorant of the history that Pavel told me, is he not?"
The sigh was so soft that James nearly missed it.
"That was his mother's wish. She did not wish to create conflict between father and son, though it arose without her interference. Leonard is much like his grandsire - his mother's father, the late King Horatio - in both looks and temperament."
"That must truly gall King David."
"Indeed. He even tried to accuse the Queen of being unfaithful, but as he does not grant her privacy, such would be impossible."
Frowning, James met Lady Amanda's eyes.
"He should know now. The knowledge will not cause further rift than has already occurred."
Motioning for James to take a seat at the table, Lady Amanda sat across from him.
"I gave my word not to tell Leonard. I will not exact the same vow from you, but I ask you to wait until you are back in your kingdom and Leonard is fully healed. King David knows full well that Queen Eleanor is the only reason some of the populace has not already revolted. He will not harm her."
Blue eyes narrowing, James gave a curt nod.
"I will do as you suggest, but know he will return one day for her and he will not return alone."
The smile on Lady Amanda's face didn't match the steely look in her eyes.
"I look forward to that day, Prince James."