As Agatha woke up the next day, she didn't even want to leave her bed. First of all, it was nice and toasty and the real world was full of horrors that Agatha didn't want to face. Her night had consisted of endless tossing and turning, and when she thought she would finally be able to fall asleep, a ridiculous thought came and pestered her, such as, "Why am I doing this?" Obviously, Agatha knew the answer, but now she lost all signs of hope of a peaceful sleep. They had started very rational, until they became the thoughts of a sleep deprived person, such as "Uh... Why?" And then Agatha would turn to only find that her spot wasn't comfortable. Agatha was lucky to get even about two hours of sleep.
Also, she didn't want to go on a trip who knows how many days?! She didn't want to do any of this. But she had to. "Yes..." Agatha thought miserably, "I have to." And then she would repeat the same question of "why do I have to do this?" over and over again, only to repeat the same exact answer. Those annoying, stupid guards said they would be here by dawn, which meant she needed to wake up very early in the morning. She and her mother were up by about five, and Agatha, to say the least, was very tired, and slumped down stairs and dressed in a gown that was borrowed from Sophie and for once, cleaned herself up. Last night, she and her mother had stayed up until ten just packing and discussing what their plan was for tomorrow. Then, she was sleepless and restless, which resulted in a very, very tired Agatha. Agatha only owned a small bag, but the two found a way to pack an amount of clothes they thought sufficient for the trip. Neither were really clear how much time Agatha would be on the road. They just knew it wouldn't be too short.
Agatha and Callis sat in the kitchen in an awkward silence, Agatha staring at her feet and tapping her washed hands against the table in a repetetive beat. Callis then broke it:
"I know I am not the most eloquent person you know, but I want to let you know that I will miss you," Agatha looked up for the first time today to see her mother, her eyes meeting another and she almost saw deep emotions and misery swirling around in the pools of dark brown, which made her feel slightly unhappy, among all the other reasons why.
"I know," Agatha replied quietly, averting her gaze. There were so many words in this language, so many phrases, but none could be used to express how much she wanted to run away from this terrible fate. She felt cheated, she felt used, and it was just stupid. So, so, so stupid. But underneath all that anger and frustration, she was scared. Agatha didn't want to admit it, but she was petrified. All the 'What if's' in her mind were negative, and just she couldn't picture a good ending to this. She knew how royalty works, and she knew women are degraded to just being pretty and elegant, and of course, to give the kingdom an heir. That was what Agatha dreaded the most, a thought that had lingered in her mind all night, well, that and being executed for treason or being too ugly to be a princess. If that last one was even a reason to be executed.
Thoughts swirled around in her mind like a tornado, or a bomb ready to burst. "They're never going to accept me," Agatha thought miserably, wrapping her arms around her like a blanket. She held a lot of fear in her heart, like a burden on her shoulders or a weight trapping her in it all. She was scared. So, so, so, scared.
Someone knocked on the door, they looked at each other as if to say they knew this was the end. Callis got up and opened the door, but it wasn't the guards like Agatha expected, it was Sophie. Agatha felt her heart soar with hope and joy at that moment, seeing Sophie's emerald green eyes meet hers. Agatha knew Sophie would come like she promised, but seeing her here was so much better, like a slight delay of the storm that was about to thunder.
Seeing her for one last time, Agatha thought, and she brushed it off immediately, trying to blink away the tears that were forming.
Sophie was the one girl that didn't judge her by her looks, or her miserable mood. She was there for her from the very beginning, and Agatha hadn't felt happier since. They would take walks together, and though Agatha would act sour and grumpy, Sophie actually brought a ghost of a smile to her features, a true smile of pure joy. Now, Agatha would lose her only friend. Not any friend. Her best friend.
"I know you weren't expecting me, but I told Agatha I would come," Sophie said in a drowsy voice. Sophie was so sleepy that she didn't speak in her usual, chirpy tone, but in a slight monotone one. She rushed to Agatha and hugged her before Agatha could object. Apparently even at five in the morning, Sophie was willing to hug her. Agatha returned the embrace tightly, a few tears escaped her eyes, and a few sobs escaped Sophie.
Agatha wished she could be enveloped into the warmth of the embrace completely, but she had to face reality.
It was only then, it hit completely, fully, that after this, she probably will never see Sophie again.
More tears streamed down her face, and Agatha held Sophie even closer. She was going to lose Sophie.
"You need to write me as soon as you get there," Sophie said quietly, wiping her tears with the back of her hand.
"I will," Agatha said in the same hushed tone, and she vowed to herself she would write to Sophie every week as she pulled back from Sophie's embrace, only then for Sophie to plagued her with questions, just like she had the previous afternoon. "Are you going to be watched all the time? How long until you become a queen? Will you have your portrait in a hall or something?" Agatha gave the same answer repeatedly, "I don't know."
"I don't know." The words seemed to echo in Agatha's mind, just like the unsure that was in front of her. It was like the stars that used to shine so bright in the distance for Agatha, but now dimmed, swerving to a completely different universe.
The atmosphere was especially gloomy, it was as if someone had died and the three of them were mourning together. Nobody said anything, and the silence flooded the room like a waterfall, except silent and lurking.
Suddenly they heard a knock on the door. This was it. No more visitors. The guards were here. Callis got up again, her expression was grim, more than usual. Agatha matched her mother's, while Sophie was simply melancholic. Agatha's heart thumped against her ribcage, a drop of sweat trickled down the back of her neck. Agatha was scared. Definitely scared.
Agatha held on to Sophie one more time, before letting her go to face the guards.
The guards came in, the blond one speaking first.
"Ladies, as you know, we are here to take Agatha with us. You may give each other your goodbyes," He said formally, and Sophie yet again threw her arms around Agatha, she started sobbing softly again.
"I'll miss you so much! I won't forget about you, please don't ever forget me," Sophie said with pleading, miserable eyes, filled with depths of sadness.
"I'll miss you more than you'll ever know." Agatha thought silently, before turning around.
"I know you won't," Agatha pulled back again, then her mother looked at her simply, and Agatha felt another wave of misery course through her.
"Well, don't do anything stupid, don't become an airhead, and please, do write some time, at least to say you are still alive. And please, write a letter as soon as you get there, at least to tell me how horrible it looks. I'll miss you" Agatha hugged after she finished gushing, and then a stream of new tears flowed from her cheeks as she collapsed.
"I will, and don't worry, what kind of disaster could I make?" Agatha replied, Callis grinned at her reply for once, before returning to her mourning mood. Agatha turned to the guards.
"Well, are we leaving or not?" Agatha asked, feeling her skin shiver as if I spider crawled on it.
"Are you ready?" The red haired asked. Agatha nodded in reply, giving a final wave to both women, her mother with a sad smile, Sophie quietly sobbing. And that was the final look she gave to the house that had been hers for nearly seventeen years.
The guards seemed to have come ready, having a carriage with two horses pulling it right outside their door. The best way Agatha could describe it was that it looked like a box. A box with windows and a door to the side. It was a dark shade of brown with some ochre details, like the dresses Sophie owned and the embroidery on the sides.
"Well, we will be traveling for approximately 14 days to 17 days, and that is my shortest estimate. I expect we will be fine," Said the blond one, standing next to Agatha.
"Great. More than two weeks" Agatha complained bitterly, casting her last look at Gavaldon before turning away forever, a new future set for her. And despite her complaining self, Agatha was sorrowful inside.
"Hey, we weren't expecting to go so far," The red haired said in reply to her complaint, slight disbelief at the edge of his voice.
Agatha was tired of thinking of him as the "red haired guard", or the thinking of the other guard as the "blonde one". At least it was a distraction from the pain inside herself.
"Will I ever know your names?" Agatha asked.
"Oh right, sorry. Well, I am Chaddick," The blonde one said. Then he pointed at the other guard. "And he is Tristan."
"So, the plan is to make me queen right?" Agatha asked yet another question.
"Well, at some point you will be one," Tristan said.
"You do realize that goes against any protocol set by society? Princes don't marry peasants, nor vice versa, it is unheard of. And what will this prince even say when he sees me? Because I don't think he will find me very appealing, at least physically," Agatha verbalized, then realizing she was probably annoying asking so many questions.
"Well, you do have a point there," Tristan said, getting slightly nervous.
"And if they don't like me, the fault will be yours, because you technically chose me. Another question, why did the prince didn't come here? You would think he would come," Agatha asked, an edge to her voice could be heard.
"Look, they need to stick with you, after all, money was invested in this, and they're not wasting money in this again. And Prince Tedros happens to be very busy preparing to be king," Tristan answered again. If he was annoyed, he was hiding it well.
"So there is no chance of replacing me? Pity. When will he becoming king?" Agatha inquired curiously, Tristan helping her onto the carriage at the same time.
"We don't know yet," Chaddick said. "We do know you guys will be getting married shortly after you arrive,"
Agatha's eyes widened, but then she recovered and returned to her normal state in a flash.
"Great," Agatha said sarcastically, feeling her heart pounding within herself.
"Well, don't sound so excited." Tristan mumbled, turning then to Chaddick "She sure is not what a typical princess is, total opposite of all we've seen."
'What makes you say that, the hair, the clothes or perhaps the 'lack of manners'" Agatha retorted, she was so done already, everything seemed petty at the moment.
"Well, all of it actually, but the part about not wanting to marry is rather unusual." Tristan replied, Agatha rolled her eyes for what seemed the millionth time today.
"Getting married in general, is just a scam, an opportunity so people can get richer by affinity. Lovely, just lovely." Agatha snorted, she always heard people saying how beautiful marriage is, the sanctity of it, but really, people just want to get richer. Rarely did she hear about a marriage of true love.
"You know, that is a peculiar view on marriage, yet it is very true," Tristan said, sighing slightly as he looked outside the window.
Chaddick snickered, and whispered something into Tristan's ear as he muttered a "shut up!".
"Even you agree with it, which means I'm probably right" Agatha mumbled, wishing she knew what they were talking about as both guards mounted their horses.
"So, do you know how to read and write?" Chaddick asked her out of the blue.
"I do, but my calligraphy isn't great," Agatha replied, she supposed he asked because peasants rarely can do either.
"I don't think you are going to have such problems adapting, I think you'll be better than what we thought." Tristan said "One less thing you'll have to learn."
"Well, and then ten thousand more things to learn." Agatha thought. "How to be pretty, if I could manage it, etiquette, manners, elegance... Why did they choose me? Of all people?"
"Why did you pick me?" Agatha blurted out, this was another question that pestered her repeatedly all night, even at the moment, she couldn't figure it out.
Tristan and Chaddick snickered, then Tristan replied.
"Well, we did it as a joke, get the ugliest girl in the town as a way of revenge for this odious task. Then see his reaction. But now I'm starting to think it was a good idea. You seem educated, at least," Agatha just rolled her eyes, she knew it had to be a joke there was no reason to choose her.
"God forbid you seriously saw something in me," Agatha said bitterly, she assumed it could be a possibility, but hearing it made it sound even worse. If that was possible.
"One last question," Agatha said "Was there any sort of 'requisites' to follow? You know, for a princess?"
Tristan and Chaddick remained silent for a minute, but Chaddick replied the question.
"Well, in some way, yes. Tedros wanted a princess who would be beautiful inside and out, but mainly the inside. Then, he said in a softer voice, "Princesses have been falling for him for a long time, but they never got past his fortune or appearance. That's why Tedros wanted someone who was better than just beautiful on the outside. He wanted someone who would understand himself for... him."
"You already messed up with that one." Agatha mumbled, Chaddick continued without hearing her.
"He wanted someone who seems genuine, and someone who will love for who he is, rather than just his looks or his crown,"
Agatha remained silent after that.
And with that, the carriage started moving.
The road to the blasted Camelot was going to be long. Terribly, horribly, awfully long