Stephenie Meyer owns the Twilight Universe. I own a twisted imagination.
Chapter 8
The ring felt heavy on Isabella's finger as she preformed her duties the next day. All during breakfast preparation she was aware of it. She struggled not to pause and look a her hand many times over. Thankfully no one else noticed the new adornment.
Isabella was quite busy working when Prince Edward came to the kitchen. Her back was turned to him so she did not see the object of her burgeoning affections. He laid a dozen partridges on the poultry table and quickly left the room. Something in the kitchen that day made him feel uneasy and he hasten his retreat without speaking to anyone.
The ogre called Isabella over and had her pack the trundle buggy with the small birds. The other basket was already packed with a veritable mountain of pasties for Rosalie and her family. Isabella secured both and started on her journey down the path. The walk was uneventful although she could hear a rustling noise in the forest as she travelled. She though it most likely to be a rabbit or some other small creature.
Isabella arrived to a great shock. Rose was waiting for her at the garden gate with a small bundle in her arms.
"Greeting to you, Bella. Look who came just after you left the other day. Impatient this one, I barely had time to put my teacup down and she made her arrival. We named her Isabella. I do hope you don't mind. It's not that I think you are impatient, too, but after thirteen others I'd all but run out of names. Yours was the first that popped into mind as we cleaned her up. Here, you hold her, I'll take the baskets." Rose had said all this in one breath, Bella was certain. It seems as though Rose has much more energy now having given birth. Those poor partridges, Isabella thought.
Bella found herself relieved of her baskets and plunked on to a stool, baby in hand, in very short order. A strange sort of thump-like noise emanated from the trees. Bella looked up to see the cause but found nothing and turned her attention back to the baby.
"We thought we'd call her Tizzy to differentiate from you. Can't have too many Bellas, we learned that lesson with Emmett junior, neither of them knew at whom I was yelling unless I used the junior part." Rose prattled on as she attacked the partridges.
"I'm so glad for the pasties. Now I don't have to cook tonight, if I can keep the younger ones from getting to them first."
Isabella barely heard anything Rose was saying. Her attention was solely in the baby in her arms. Her eyes were kept captive by the hazy blue ones staring at her. She hadn't held a child this age since Katie was born. She stroked one finger across the downy cheek and smiled. She hoped that one day she could have a child of her own.
Rose had to call her name three times before she broke her gaze with Tizzy. The partridges were finished and it was time for Bella to go back to the castle. She kissed the little cheek and passed the babe back to her mother. Bella kissed Rose's cheek, too, and congratulated her on her new arrival. She was still in a bit of a baby daze as she walked back to work. She didn't notice the tree root that grabbed her foot and sent her sprawling.
Isabella groaned, her hands were full of mud and her ankle twisted. She knew the Ogre would have a fit when she got back to the kitchens. If she could get back to the kitchens. She wasn't sure if her ankle would allow that. She lay where she fell for a few minutes deciding the best course of action. She was just about to roll over and check the damage when she heard the rustling in the forest again but this time louder. The noise got closer and closer and Isabella feared that she was about to be attacked by some strange, large animal when Prince Edward broke through the trees.
Isabella had barely raised her head when he rushed over to her and dropped down beside her. He reached out one hand but did not touch her.
"Have you been hurt?" He asked, his voice full of concern.
"I'm fine, Sir. Thank you for asking." She rolled to the side and sat up. She did not know how to address him. Was she supposed to know who he was when they had never been introduced. Having had no interaction with the royal family here, she had no idea what their preference was for their staff to address them. She couldn't even curtsey in this condition.
Isabella brushed the dirt from her hands and started to stand. Prince Edward extended one hand to her and she looked at it for a moment before taking it. She stood on her good leg and dropped his hand with a very quiet 'thank you'. She waited thinking that now that she was upright he would go on his way and she could limp home in private. She gingerly tested her weight on her injured ankle. It was sore but not too bad, she could make her way back to the castle taking her time at it.
Prince Edward was still standing before her. The trundled buggy lay on it's side just behind her. She made to bend at the knee to get it when the Prince sprang forward and righted it for her. Again she thanked him. She took a few steps to where the other empty basket had fallen and retrieved it without the Prince's help.
"Thank you for all you help, Sir. A good day to you." Isabella bobbed a passable curtsey and restarted her trip back to the castle. She was surprised to hear the Prince walking along beside her.
"May I accompany you? We are going in the same direction, I think."
"Of course, Your Highness, I serve at your pleasure and it would be an honour to have you accompany me." Isabella was thrilled but scared to have the Prince escort her.
"Oh you work in the castle? I've never seen you there before."
"I've only been there a month, Sir."
"A month? My eyes must be failing me. 'Tis for sure I would have noticed you before today." He paused and thought over the last month. He had been jailed inside his own mind over the necessity of finding a bride. Perhaps this was the reason she had slipped past his notice.
The more Isabella walked, the more her ankle pained her. She tried very hard not to favour it or limp. She did not want to call attention to it. It was unseemly to her to play the damsel in distress before the handsome Prince. She despised such coquettish games.
However, try as she may, the Prince did notice the change in her gait.
"You have done yourself a turn, haven't you. If you lay down your baskets I could carry you back to the castle."
Isabella stopped walking and looked at him aghast. It was one thing for him to walk with her but for him to carry her, well, if her former position were renewed and anyone saw, her reputation would be tattered beyond repair. In her current situation, if the ogre saw her in the arms of the Prince, she would be dismissed in an instant. As much as the idea of being held by him appealed to her she had to decline. He tried an other tactic.
"Perhaps if I were to take the wheeled one you could take my other arm as support?"
"Thank you, Sir. It is very kind of you to offer." He took the handle of the basket from her hand and held out his arm for her. She slipped her arm through his and they began to walk again.
"Now that I have you in my clutches, might I know your name?"
"Of course, Sir. My name is Bella." She though it best to use her new nickname, just in case the news of King Charles disowning his daughter had reached this Kingdom.
"A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Bella."
"Likewise, Your Highness."
They moved in silence for a while until the small cottage that sat at the edge of the wood came into view signalling the end of their journey together.
"I'm afraid I must part with you now, Your Highness. If the Housekeeper were to see me bothering you she's have my head and then my job. I do thank you for your kindness and your help, Sir." Isabella took the buggy back and dropped a curtsey once more. Prince Edward, although he wanted to, did not try to dissuade her. He knew the reputation of the head housekeeper very well.
"Farewell, Bella." He watched as she walked away, her gait still slightly uneven. He watched until he could see her no longer then he rushed to the door of the cottage, calling for his nurse.
"Nanny, Nanny, I think I've found her." He shouted while pounding his fist on the door.
AN: Thank you for reading. It's like pulling teeth to get these two to talk to each other. Just so you know, their interaction is intentionally stilted. She is still in hiding and he is the wrong kind of stiff. Oh well, we may get a look into Edward's psyche tomorrow.
