Frodo had spent the whole day picking vegetables. The servants knew when to put him to work. It was enough to drive him mad. All he wanted to do was work alongside Yvonne, not be put through so much work. Then again, maybe there was a good reason for doing this.
Or he was just mad.
Whoo! At least he still had the ball to consider.
It was late afternoon by the time he finished. Hot sweat beaded down his face. He stopped and looked up, finding Caspian watching him. The king shook his head, smiling and winking at him. He had enough of this. He moved over to a barrel and drank some water from a ladle. At least the water was refreshing.
"Why don't you put off working in the fields?" Caspian told him, calmly.
"I'm doing this for me." Frodo said, unsure what the king meant. "I'm not doing this because someone asked me to do it."
"You just want to work with Yvonne." Caspian guessed.
Frodo looked at him, with certainty in his eyes. "Let me go."
"Let the servants do their job." Caspian said, watching as Yvonne took the second basket. Frodo's basket. The hobbit shook his head in vain. Was his plan really all for naught? Caspian told him, calmly, "You are my guest. Don't you think you've done enough work for one day?"
"What do you want?" Frodo asked, confused.
"I want you to come back to the guest room and freshen up. Meet me in the dining room in an hour. There'll be a feast in your honor." The king suggested.
"What about Yvonne?" He asked, confused.
"She'll come when she's ready to talk." The king clasped his shoulder, leading him inside. "Go on. Wash up." He added. "No guest of mine should do what is needed, unless he asks for something. In your case, you want to know Yvonne. I can arrange that. I can't stop her from leaving in a month's time. But if you're really keen on meeting her, then I'll set it up for you."
"Thank you." He said, stunned. "So, I don't have to work anymore?"
"I think you've done quite enough for one day." Caspian said, patting him on the shoulder. "Go on. Get changed. You must be famished."
Frodo nodded. Good. He needed to rest and relax. He was all hot and sweaty. Nothing a bath wouldn't cure… if he had time for such things. He needed to rest after doing hard labor. What better way than to return to his room and clean up! Oh yes, he would do that.
.
Frodo changed into a green vest and a clean white dress shirt, before leaving the guest room. Yvonne was waiting for him with another basket, this time with white sheets. She smiled and waited for him to move, before departing into his bedroom. Well, at least she was fine… sort of. He wondered what her story was, after all this time.
After a few turns around the corners, Frodo made it into a large dining hall. There was grey stone on the walls and paintings of landscapes, as well as one portrait depicting Caspian as a boy. In this dining hall, there was a long wooden table with chairs. Also gathered on the table were an assortment of dishes, filled to the brim with Frodo's favorite foods. And at the end of the table was Caspian, tapping his fingers. He looked up and greeted the hobbit.
"Frodo. Sit down. Yvonne is coming soon." Caspian said, waiting for the hobbit to be seated. Frodo peered over at the door as Yvonne entered the room, sitting down across from him. "Now, let's eat and discuss the ball."
There was silence for a good couple of minutes. The food was too delicious to pass up. Frodo gorged on half the food, before Caspian spoke to him and Yvonne. Yvonne had most of her food eaten up. She must have been famished.
"From what I understand it, this whole mess began when the servants kicked Frodo out of the kitchens." Caspian explained. "I understand some servants are loyal to Miraz." He turned to Yvonne. "Are you still loyal to him or are you on my side?"
"I'm from Telmar." Yvonne told him, bluntly.
"Yes, but you haven't answered my question." Caspian addressed her. "Are you loyal to Miraz? Or are you loyal to me?"
"I'm loyal to you, sir." Yvonne said, nodding her approval.
"Yes." Caspian pointed out, "Frodo fancies you. He didn't need to go through all that work to make things so obvious."
"I wanted to work in the field." Frodo's voice trembled. He didn't know if that was right.
"Yes," Caspian spoke to him, "while that is true, you also wanted to get close to Yvonne."
"How do you know me so well, Caspian?' Frodo asked, confused.
"Because you are my guest, not one of my servants. You shouldn't have to work here." The king said, not understanding.
"Caspian!" The hobbit tried again. "Yes, I wanted to get close to Yvonne. She's the only other hobbit I've seen in this world, besides Samwise Gamgee. He's gone, he left Narnia. Who else do I have to talk to?"
"You have a tan, Frodo. You know that." Yvonne grinned.
"Right." Frodo said, wincing in pain. He supposed he received a suntan due to the work he went through. Maybe he was asking too much of himself. "What would you have me do?"
"I'm leaving in a month." Yvonne told him. "I have family in Telmar. I need to take care of them. I'm still loyal to Caspian. I always have." She turned to Caspian and said, plain and simple, "You may not have seen me, but there are hobbits on both sides. It's taking a while to get used to the fact that you are now ruler over Narnia." She looked at Frodo. "You can't convince me to stay. I need to seek out my family, see how they're doing."
"Well, you're welcome to come to the ball, Yvonne." Caspian said with a smile.
"Thank you. I will take that into consideration." Yvonne returned her gaze to Frodo. "You have to understand, Frodo Baggins, that we can never be together. You have a life here. I'm merely a servant. It'll never work out between us. We're not of age."
"I understand." Frodo said, his heart breaking. "At least, come to the ball. Be my partner there."
"Just this once." Yvonne said, smiling at him.
Frodo nodded. He lost her. He lost his chance at a relationship with Yvonne. Sure, he could have her as a dance partner, but that was it. What was he supposed to do now? He supposed he could choose some indoor activities, like helping other people out. But what good would that do him now? He lost Yvonne and there was still the ball to consider.
Well, he could have a good time. That's what counted. For now, he finished his dinner and went to the guest room to take a bath. Sleep overcame him fast, the moment he was in bed. The dream he had was peaceful. There, he saw Yvonne and the ballroom. He was having fun. When he awoke, he was rested and fit for the day ahead.
*.*.*
Thanks for reading. :)