Chapter 4, the life of Prince Daniel

After his mother died Prince Daniel's father remarried. King Macadam married Princess Peyton Driscoll of the kingdom of Manhattan. Unlike Lindsay's stepmother, Danny's stepmother was a kind and loving woman to the three Princes. She did however love to host balls for the prince's birthdays. For Prince Louie's eighteenth and twenty first birthdays she held a lavish ball, hoping that he would chose a bride. On his eighteenth birthday he looked at all of the eligible young ladies and failed to find the one that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. He did, however, find her at his twenty first birthday ball. The lady that he chose was the beautiful princess Aiden of Brooklyn when she was visiting the kingdom of Staten Island. They were then married that spring, as the ball was held in winter, in a lavish wedding. Now that Prince Louis was happily married, Queen Peyton had her mind set on having Daniel married.

After Danny saved Lindsay's life that day, he had her in his mind almost every day. When he would sneak into the market, he would constantly search for her but she would never be there. At one point, he thought he saw her hair as he remembered it, but the clothes that she wore signaled that she was a servant. She was not a servant when I saved her. He thought. She was a fine lady, I guess then that that is not my Lindsay. He searched endlessly for his Lindsay. But to no avail. He never found her in the market.

To escape from his anguish, he decided to travel the continent, he met with all of the princesses on the east coast but he could not find one that even remotely compared to Lindsay. She stole him away when she curtsied after he saved from being run over. He could still clearly see her face in his mind; her hair, the color of vivid golden brown leaves in the fall, her eyes, the color of….. Well, he couldn't think of a worthy comparison, they were so beautifully brown, her flawless smile as white as the fluffy clouds overhead.

When Queen Peyton sent out an invitation to Danny for Louie's wedding however, he rushed straight home for the wedding to be his brother's best man. Having seen the eligible princesses within a distance that was accessible without traveling on a ship, nor finding the one that he was looking for, he decided to stay in his kingdom and continue on his search for Lindsay. He left for his journey when he was sixteen after seeing the maid who looked like Lindsay in the market, (The maid of course was Lindsay, for this was after her father died) and he returned three years later for his brother's wedding. He tried to find Lindsay's home left but he had no idea where it was. He then left to travel and try to chase her from his mind, but again to no avail, he simply couldn't shake her from his mind. After two years of still more searching, this time in his own kingdom, he consented to letting his stepmother host a grand ball for his twenty first birth day in the attempt to find himself either a bride or his Lindsay.

Queen Peyton, now having permission from Daniel to host the ball, had a long list made up for all of the supplies for the ball. "Adam!" she called.

"Yes your highness."

She handed him the list of supplies for the ball, including a general invite to the ball. When he returned, the Queen ordered the royal seamstresses to sew several royal ball gowns and suits, the cooks were set to work creating a lavish menu for the ball and the royal decorators set about redecorating the castle with freshly embroidered banners and fresh cut flowers.

Daniel was in his quarters trying on his suit for the ball the next night when Adam knocked quietly on the door. "Come in." Daniel said, admiring the freshly sewn suit he was wearing, tailored twilight blue with gold thread embroidery and gold detailing. he gave Adam permission to speak.

"Danny, there is someone here to see you and he will stay for the ball." Adam informed the prince.

"Adam, who is it?"

"It is your old friend, Lord Hawkes." Adam answered.

"By all means then," Daniel instructed, "Bring in my old friend."

Adam left shortly, letting Daniel change into his usual clothing. When he had changed into an ivory colored silk shirt and linen pants, he heard a soft knock on the door. "Come in Sheldon!" he said cheerfully. Lord Hawkes entered and hugged his old friend. Lord Hawkes was a man who was intelligent in science and arithmetic. He was black, with dark brown eyes and black hair. Of slight build, he made up for his man power with his elegance and intellect. He had also been Danny's best friend since they were young children. He had just turned twenty.

"Hey, how have you been Hawkes?" Daniel asked while patting Hawkes on the back.

"I've been well, thank you." He said. "I'm still looking for a lady but the search is going well. How has the search for your Lindsay been going?" He asked. At this Daniel hung his head.

"Not well I'm afraid." He admitted. "I can't seem to find her or forget her. I hope to find someone like her at the ball."

"Did you try her house?" Sheldon inquired.

"I tried to find her house before I left and couldn't find the place." Daniel answered.

"If I know you and I do, you will find who you are looking for at the ball" Hawkes said.

"Thanks bro." Daniel said.

"Any time."