Searching For Stars

(Rhys' POV)

It only took a single glance for me to realise who was in my arms when we woke up in the tavern. Although it had been five years since I've seen her, it was impossible to mistake her for somebody else. Well, I suppose her silhouette matches that of the Queen's but she was slightly taller than her mother and her hair was lighter in colour. I smiled to myself as I thought about how we had woken up. How she had been in my arms. At the same time, it brought a series of hallowing thoughts to my mind; most of them concerning the fact that neither of us had been formally introduced to each other before. Also, she was clearly shaken when she realised that a stranger had been holding onto her in such an intimate fashion.

Whilst she didn't seem to display any hint of hostility towards me following the incident, I knew better than to assume how she felt towards me. I sighed as I looked around Princess Daniella's pristine bathroom, taking note of the hanging chandelier over the huge bathtub that sat beyond some marble steps. I tiptoed over with curiosity and had a quick look at the products that were siting atop a shelf that was wedged between two stone pillars. I didn't even know that there could be so many things that one could put in their bath. On the shelf, there were many different coloured vials, glass containers and dishes. Some held oils, others held dried flower petals and yet still, others held thick liquids.

I peeled my eyes off the shelf when I felt a sweet floral scent envelope my senses. After glancing around in search of the source, I figured that it must be from the incense burners that were placed next to the candles around the walls.

Surely all of this must be a dream. Never in a million years would I have imagined that my memories would be taken away by somebody who wasn't the Queen. Never would I have imagined that I would be standing in the middle of my childhood crush's chambers. I bit my lip at the thought of that term and mentally corrected myself. She wasn't supposed to be my crush. She was the Princess and heir apparent to the throne. She was someone who would marry royal blood and rule as Queen one day. I would only ever be a knight to serve her reign.

For obvious reasons, she had always been off limits, but ever since we were ten years of age, the squires who I grew up with, would never cease to fantasize about being the Princess' knight in shining armour when we reached knighthood. As we matured, it became apparent that she probably didn't need any of us, given the magic she possesses. Although some of us had become much warier of her after rumours spread of how she had killed innocents by crushing hearts like her mother, the childish fantasy never really parted from my mind.

I cracked my knuckles. What exactly had gone on in Camelot to bring us within such close proximity of each other?

I was still mulling over my thoughts and all the possible answers to the question in mind when her soft feminine voice called out, "Ok, you can come out now."

I took a breath and straightened myself before exiting the bath chamber. I was not prepared, not in the slightest.

Though she looked every bit like the Queen with the outfit that she was wearing, there wasn't such a seductive aura around her. For five years, I still had the image of a young girl in my mind, but standing in front of me was a young woman. I couldn't help but notice the way that the dress knew exactly where to highlight her curves especially with the glittering corset that she was wearing around her small waist. Her outfit didn't expose everything, but it exposed enough. The neat shadows on her neck and shoulders. The dip that would deepen into a cleavage if only the top of the bodice was lowered slightly.

A whiff of youthfulness cusped the princess' expression and even though her smile tightened a little as it fell into a concerned frown, her lips were still slightly plump like the cupid statues in the garden.

"Are you ready?"

I gave her a nod and gestured my hand to the side, prompting her to walk first. Nothing but silence save for the soft click of her heeled shoes accompanied us as we walked down the hallway. I found myself deep in my thoughts once more. There were plenty of warning signs thrown in my face since day one. She wasn't only the daughter of the Queen, but also a powerful sorceress in her own right. One step in the wrong direction and I would be turned into charcoal. At the corner of my eyes, I snuck her a quick glance and my gaze fell upon the way that her long dark brunette hair swayed a little as she walked. Her long tresses ended right above her cinched waist which cast a dramatic silhouette in the long shadow we cast upon the stone tiles.

I put my hand over the other, which was now healed from the injury I had received from the curse. Once more, I threw a quick glance over in her direction. Surely, there is no way that the girl who just washed off blood from my hands and put a clean bandage over it would be someone without a heart. My lips quivered when I realised that I hadn't complimented her change of clothes and merely gawked at her like a peasant boy. Would it be too late to compliment her now? My mouth moved before I could stop it. I immediately regretted even letting those thoughts enter my mind when she stopped in her tracks and looked up at me. A small smile appeared on her rosy painted lips as she said simply, "You've said that twice already."

My chest constricted as I hastily attempted to correct myself, "Uh, I mean in this outfit." Wait no, that doesn't sound right. "No, like, you look great in both. Uh..." I shut my mouth.

What the hell was I getting myself into? I could tell that she was amused but she tried to mend the anxiety in the atmosphere as she joked, "Don't worry, I'm nervous about this dinner too. But don't feel bad about how we woke up in that tavern. I for one, am grateful that you shielded my face from the glass that clearly did some damage on your hand. I'm sure my mother will be grateful about that too."

Wait, does these words mean that she doesn't feel the same for me? Before I could get too wrapped up in my thoughts, I nodded and murmured a quick, "Oh, no it was nothing."

It didn't take us long after that interaction for us to arrive at the dining hall, though I noticed that it wasn't the same one that was often used when the knights occasionally dined with the Queen. "Are you sure we're here?"

Daniella raised her eyebrow and replied, "No one sent you to me, am I correct?" I shook my head so she continued, "That means my mother could only expect that I would come here to our private dining room."

My heart hammered. "Actually you're right. I was supposed to meet up with my father who is probably angry and worried that I had skipped this meeting or something."

"Well surely he can't be upset at you for being a gentleman and bringing the lady to dinner," Daniella quipped with a wink.

I chuckled in response, trying not to let her wink distract me. Then, I held my breath as the guards stationed outside the doors opened them for us. After walking in, the Princess greeted the Queen with a kiss on both cheeks whilst I gave my step-father a nod and waited behind her. When the Queen turned her attention to me, I bowed, hoping that showing respect would be a good start to what would no doubt turn into a rather awkward interaction, should she bring up the incident at the tavern. To my surprise, there was no trace of bitterness in her expression when she waved me off with one hand and said, "Please sit. Your stepfather was rather worried that you had run off but I suppose he should applaud you for doing what every gentleman should have done."

I mirrored Daniella's actions and slid back one of the high-backed chairs at the table. She took her place on the right hand side of her mother who was at the head of the table. When I slid into the seat next to my step-father it struck me how accurately the Princess had predicted her mother's reaction.

We waited for the Queen to speak, but she only opened her mouth after the servants brought us drinks and appetizers. Although I wasn't entirely surprised that she chose to focus on me first, my heart was nonetheless thumping violently against my chest in the seconds of silence that preceded. Her eyes scanned me for a moment before she began with a glass on wine elegantly balanced in her fingers, "Rhys, your stepfather tells me that you've excelled in your training despite being forced to swear allegiance to Arthur when you were in Camelot."

I gave my stepfather a glance and replied modestly, "He must be over-praising my efforts, though I had wished to improve my skills for the possibility that we would somehow return to your court, Majesty."

"And you have returned, evidently."

"Yes." After a pause, I added, "I must thank you, my Queen. It appears that we must have crossed paths in Camelot, for there wouldn't be any other plausible reason why my stepfather and I are back in this land."

The Queen gave me a smile, but as she looked away to give stepfather a glance, a frown decorated her features. In a determined tone, she declared, "I am more than eager to regain my memories of the time we lost, but with the Dark One running around freely, I could only imagine she would try to cause havoc whenever she could."

I didn't know exactly how to reply to that statement but luckily stepfather spoke up and asked, "With your permission my Queen, perhaps I could arrange a search party? A-"

"We're not talking about Snow White, Headley. Emma possesses the most powerful form of dark magic and as for what's on her agenda, it isn't to dethrone me. Rather, her mission is to ensure that the darkness multiples throughout the land. I can't imagine any particular reason why she would want to disturb me in particular. Yet I hate to admit it, but I owe it to her and her parents to help restore things to how they were."

"Oh?" stepfather commented with an inquiring look on his face.

The Queen replied after taking a sip of wine gracefully, "As it happens, Rumplestiltskin was foolish enough to decide that removing the darkness from him without a suitable carrier will be a good idea. Though I suppose his darkened heart would fail and bring about his death if he didn't do anything. Anyways, the darkness was seeking to inhabit somebody and being the next most eligible carrier on the market, it tried to enter me." After a pause, the Queen added a little sarcastically, "Of course, Emma came along and saved the day. An utterly expected move from someone who is a spawn of the Charming couple, if I may say so myself."

"Well, I am pleased to hear that it is not you, who has to face the darkness."

The Queen raised her eyebrow and with a rather amused smirk, said, "Oh, make no mistake, the darkness still entices me, though I've recently been in dealings with individuals whose feeble minds greatly outweighs both Emma and Snow White."

At the corner of my eye, I saw the Princess bite her lips as if in embarrassment over what the Queen said, but I tore my eyes away before she could catch me staring at her. The monarch's example which was accompanied with an eye roll put me on edge. "Take King Alrick for instance; desperately wants me to promise Daniella to his second-born son."

Finally, the Princess spoke up and said, "You told me you would never agree to it, right?"

The Queen nodded and gave her daughter a tight smile before affirming, "Of course not. For a long time, their kingdom had been in debt because of Alrick's mistakes in dealing with Midas. As I said, that man is extremely feeble minded as any dealing with Midas should have proceeded with caution given that he was able to turn anything into gold."

Daniella picked up on the use of past tense and questioned, "Was?"

"It had been Rumple who gave him the so called 'golden touch', and when he ceased being the Dark One, the spell ended. I must say, it's a relief to other rulers in this realm, not just myself. Though luckily, I still have control over the diamond mines."

I thought the topic had finally taken a political turn at the mention of Midas but then the Queen turned her attention back to me and asked without even bothering to go around the matter in a less obvious way. "A young man like yourself must surely have many admirers. Do you have someone special in mind, yourself?"

I was a little flabbergasted at the question, but I managed to stammer, "Oh, uh...that's kind of you to say, Your Majesty. Thank you, but no, not yet."

The Queen raised an eyebrow and paused to chew on her food. Then, she turned to my stepfather and asked as she lifted a manicured finger and pointed it at me, "Any plans for this one here?"

I held my breath, as stepfather had always hinted that he would find a girl for me to marry when I was older. Probably a daughter of one of the other knights so that she wouldn't lead me to stray away from the life that stepfather had fashioned for himself and for me. I didn't know how to feel when he replied casually, "No, though I might have to start scouring the land for a suitable match."

If the Queen was surprised, she gave no indication, but she did give him a look and said, "Really? I would have imagined someone as traditional as you would have laid out a plan for your boy's whole life already." Then, she turned to me and said with a wink, "You should take your chances when you can."

I gave her a nervous chuckle in return but ended up mulling over this single phrase for the rest of the dinner. What did she mean when I could? Is she suggesting that...

Every now and then, the Queen would draw her attention back to me. For the most part, Princess Daniella didn't have much to say, unless a question was thrown her way. At the end of the meal, stepfather and the Queen fell into a conversation regarding political matters which left the Princess and I to sit quietly. Not knowing where exactly to look, I kept my gaze lowered but when I lifted my head, I caught her deep brown eyes staring at me. She immediately looked away and bit her bottom lip as she reached for her glass of wine and brought it up to take a sip.

(Daniella's POV)

When mother stood up, the Headleys followed suit. She announced, "I have to attend to some matters before I retire for the night so I will take my leave now. Daniella, come with me."

The two men bowed as we left. I wordlessly tagged along her heels as she lead me back to her chambers. I wasn't even sure what came out of the dinner but I suspected that she would let me know so I nervously followed her without trying to think too much about what had been said. Mother led me straight into her dressing room and when we got there, she started humming to herself.

"Mama, what is it?" I questioned as she sat down at her vanity and started to take out the pins in her hair. Although her back was facing me, her eyes still didn't meet mine in the mirror's reflection as she teased, "Well well well, it seems like you've gotten yourself an admirer."

"What are you talking about?" I groaned as I crossed my arms and hugged myself tight. She merely chuckled and gave me an amused expression before turning around with an arched eyebrow and stating flatly with slightly narrowed eyes, "And it seems like you fancy him too."

I hugged myself closer, wishing that I could somehow spare myself from the embarrassment that was no doubt painting my cheeks a lovely red colour on top of the rouge I had already dusted onto my skin. I bit my tongue and tried to weigh down the muscles that were slowly but surely making a dumb smile appear on my face. Finally I asked quietly, "So, what do you have to say about it?"

"What do you want me to say?"

I flopped down on the chaise in the middle of the room and groaned, "Mother!"

She lifted herself up from the chair and came over to me. Sitting down slowly, she muttered, "Damn this curse. I would very much like to know some more."

I wrung my fingers together and stammered, "So do you think that Rhys and I..."

"I'm thinking whatever you're thinking, Firefly."

My heart hammered, excited at the prospect that perhaps something had happened between us but at the same time, a worry descended upon me. "What if its a trick?" I whispered. Then I groaned and crossed my arms saying, "What if the curse deliberately did this to me in order to trick me into believing that..."

"Is that how you feel?" mother asked with a frown as she cut me off.

Well, no. But I was afraid. Afraid of admitting that whenever I was near him, a fluttering feeling would enter my chest and seep slowly into the space that caressed my heart. I shook my head slowly. Then, I realised that mother hadn't even stated her opinion on Rhys yet. Reciprocally, I asked, "How do you feel?"

Mother raised an eyebrow. "About the boy?"

I nodded so she began as she fiddled with the ring around her finger, "As Queen, I am not entirely upset at Rhys' background, given that his reputation proceeds him. Besides, he's not of royal blood so there's no strings attached to him if he were to become closer with you. But as your mother-"

I held my breath as she took my hand into hers and squeezed it. Softly, she said, "I don't think I'll ever be ready to see you with, umm..." She paused and swallowed. After a dreadful silence, she opened her mouth again but before she could say what was on her mind, I reached around and hugged her. She chuckled and breathed, "Oh, my little Firefly. You're all grown up now. I forget how quickly these years have passed."

I replied quietly, "It doesn't feel that way though. I'll always be here for you, mama."

Her arms only tightened around me. After a shrunken sigh, she let go and brought a finger up to her eyelashes to make sure that her wet mascara didn't bleed into her eyes. With a little snort more characteristic of her, she cleared her throat and said, "Oh goodness, look at me. You've only started to pay attention to boys and I'm already reacting like this."

"I never said-"

"I can read your face, my dear," mother replied with a smirk.

I pouted and narrowed my eyes as I said, "Didn't you tell me recently that I've gotten better at hiding my emotions and thoughts in public?"

"That you have, but you can't hide from me because-"

"Because you're my mother, I know I know," I finished with a grin which she returned as she put her index finger underneath my chin and brought my face up to her. Finally, she said with a voice tuned to a more stern tone, "You may see him if you wish, but keep this within the palace walls for now."

"Really? Thank you!" I exclaimed before realising that my voice probably made me sound way too delighted. It didn't go unnoticed by mother who chuckled before waving me off with her hand. "Run off now. I'm going to retire for the night. My courtiers, ministers and knights have all given me a great headache today when I had to go and deal with our month-long disappearance."

I nodded and left mother's chambers immediately, knowing exactly where I would head in spite of the nervousness and doubt in my bones. I didn't know where the Headleys' rooms were, so after a moment of hesitation, I resorted to asking a random guard I passed in the corridor. I could have sworn that he gave me an unusual expression but upon catching my unamused glare, he schooled his features and after a quiet cough, he started leading the way. I wasn't entirely surprised that the rooms were in the better quarters on the third floor given that Sir Headley had been one of mother's favourites for quite some time. I shrugged off the thoughts that came to my mind when the guard asked, "Would you like me to tell the boy to come out?"

I nodded and after knocking twice on the door, the guard disappeared inside. Seconds later, Rhys slipped out with the guard beside him. "Your Highness?"

With my hand, I indicated for the guard to leave us. Then, I flexed my hand nervously beside me when I lowered it to accompany the quietening of the the guard's footsteps. Yet, I found myself unable to speak as I had been too caught up in thinking about Rhys rather than thinking about what to say to him. I mentally speared a dagger through my chest as I acknowledged my foolishness.

"Princess, you wished to speak to me?"

My eyes locked onto Rhys. I had to look up as he was a head taller than me and I happened to be wearing a pair of heels already. Carefully, I began, "I know it's late but would you like to accompany me on a walk in the gardens?"

His eyes widened slightly before they crinkled as he replied, "Oh, I...I would love to."

Did he hesitate? Or was he merely shocked that I would ask such a thing? Either way, he closed the door behind him and gave me a smile. I returned it but quickly turned around so that he wouldn't see my face in full. It was a quiet night, and we didn't pass many servants on the way to the ground level. Softly, I began, "I hope I didn't pull you out of anything important"

"Not at all. I was just rearranging some things in the room to make myself more comfortable."

My line of sight slid onto his face. "Are you finding it to your liking? If not, there's probably another room you can occupy."

"That's alright, though I appreciate your question."

I nodded and murmured a quiet, "Ok." Once we stepped out into the open, Rhys pointed out, "There's many stars in the sky today." I looked up at him first, but tore myself from staring at his strong jawline after a moment to gaze into the blanket of starlight above us.

"Indeed," I replied. "Oh, I can take you to the astronomy tower afterwards if you would like."

"There's an astronomy tower here?"

I chuckled and commented lightly, "I thought you had been living here for several years before you followed your stepfather to Camelot."

Rhys dipped his head and said, "Yes, though I must admit, I hadn't really gotten the chance to explore the palace fully. Afterall, we were restricted to certain areas."

"I can show you around if you want," I replied instantaneously before I realised how it probably made me sound all the more too eager and pushy. Hastily I added quietly, "It's up to you of course. I know you probably have things to attend to."

He gave me a smile and replied, "Not at the moment actually. My stepfather is still sorting things out but I think he'll allow me a few days to fall back into rhythm. I'll be delighted to join your tour though."

I felt my shoulders relax slightly as I lead him onto a path in the gardens.

"Do you often spend time in the astronomy tower, Your Highness?"

I shrugged. "I used to. The balcony gives you a nice view of the lands down below. Of course, the tower is also within the palace so I didn't need to have guards trail me if I wanted to go there."

Rhys then looked behind him as if expecting someone to be overlooking us, so I chuckled and reassured him, "Mother relaxed security a couple of years ago. They were stricter when I was young though." My hand went up to touch the place where Snow's arrow had hit my arm when mother and I were travelling to King George's lands. I added, "I suppose it's understandable, though thankfully there hasn't been any assassination attempts in a long time."

Rhys frowned but didn't reply. I felt my heart drop upon spying his expression at the corner of my eye. Was I talking too much? Luckily, he interrupted my thoughts once we approached the winding man-made stream which was tucked behind a series of blossoming shrubs. I quite liked the area, especially because there were stepping stones situated amongst the reeds in the water. Rhys commented, "I've never seen anyone come to light those lanterns yet they're always lit at night. Have they been enchanted?"

I nodded and replied with a hint of pride, "I enchanted them, actually."

Rhys cocked an eyebrow. "Oh really?"

"I'm surprised that the enchantment had lasted this long. I remember casting the spell when I was thirteen and spells like this rarely last for longer than a couple of months."

"That's awesome," Rhys breathed, which made my heart flutter. Did he really find the magic awesome, or my ability to do it? I didn't get the chance to ponder further on my thoughts as he added with a chuckle, "I've never really understood how magic works but it has always intrigued me to some degree."

I lifted my dress up with one hand and looked back at him as I stepped lightly on one of the stones lodged in the water. "It's rare to hear of people who find magic intriguing. Most would want to run in the opposite direction as soon as they are aware that sorcery is amongst them."

"Well, people will always be afraid of things they don't know or understand."

I turned back around and bit my bottom lip as I mulled over the meaning of his words. Then, I remembered that he had indirectly asked me how magic works. As I skipped along the stones, I began, "I don't need to re-state the obvious do I? I'm sure you're aware of the two types of magic."

"That's about the extent I know. So how do you use it? As in, how do you tap into it?"

I used the lanterns beside the rocks to guide my steps. Once I was sure that I knew where I was walking, I explained, "With light magic, you just need to think of things that bring you joy and peace. With dark magic, people say that it needs to come out of anger and whilst that definitely helps to summon powerful black magic, it gets easier the more uh..." I paused momentary and finished quickly, "The more dark magic you've performed in the past. Also, since the latter kind is often hereditary, it shows through at a younger age. I was ten when I found out I had magic."

"It must be exhilarating to be able to do the things others cannot," Rhys replied.

I tilted my head from side to side and replied, "I suppose you can put it that way." Then, I decided to shift the topic from magic which was obviously connected to myself as I asked, "So what do you do exactly? I mean...as a squire?"

"Well, all of us have to pass stages in our training but the older we get, the more we're involved with assisting higher ranking knights perform their day to day tasks."

"And so you've been training since you were a child?"

"Since my mother married my stepfather. I moved in here with him after she passed away because he is my only legal guardian. I never knew my grandparents or any other relatives as my mother never spoke of them."

"Oh, alright," I replied under my breath. I had just neared the end of the stone path when I spied a slimy shadow sitting at the spot where I was about to put my foot down. I yelped as I lost my footing and could feel myself slipping sideways in the direction of the water but a firm hand suddenly clasped my back. A force pushed me up and with a slid thud, I collided right into the centre of Rhys' chest. I shut my open mouth when I realised that I had gasped.

"You ok, Princess?"

I looked around and lit and small fireball in my hand as I bent over to peer at the rock to see something green in colour jump into the water. Embarrassed, I murmured as I turned back to Rhys, "I think it was a frog. Sorry."

He chuckled with an amused smirk and must have caught my flustered expression for he reassured me, "Don't worry about it. I'm laughing at our little green envious friend who decided to be our chaperone."

Chaperone. His words tugged at the ends of my lips before I realised how close I was standing to him. I cleared my throat quietly, which seemed to have notified him of the distance between us as he righted himself and stepped back. Once we had stepped back onto the solid gravel path, I suggested immediately, "Should I show you the tower then?"

Rhys nodded and though I was originally planning to take him up by walking, I could do with shortening the distance. "Would you mind travelling by magic?" I asked unsurely.

"Not at all."

I reached out my hand to allow him to take it and when the tips of our fingers touched, I surrounded the both of us in smoke. Seconds later, we were standing right outside the door of the tower. Rhys straightened himself up and mused, "I'm not going to lie, that wasn't as bad as the first time."

I feigned an offended expression and questioned with narrowed eyes, "Are you saying that my magic is not up to your standard?"

Rhys seemed to panic as he hurriedly corrected, "I mean, my reaction. I didn't mean to doubt your powers at all, Your Highness."

Initially, I tried to maintain a solemn expression on my face but when I caught sight of the way that Rhys genuinely seemed to be a little put off by my comment, I erupted into laughter. I took the liberty of explaining between chuckles, "Sorry, I was just joking."

Rhys looked relieved but then with a small smirk, he quipped, "I'll get you next time."

Although the desire was strong, I resisted my urge to stick out my tongue at him as the memory of getting told off by mother when I stuck my tongue out at Henry whilst in public was still fresh in my mind. Instead, I raised my brow to challenge Rhys who accepted it by mirroring my actions. I turned around and pressed my palm against the door, disintegrating the magic lock. I explained, "Mother was storing things in here for a while, so she sealed the room with blood magic. I'm pretty sure anybody could enter prior to that though."

When I lead him inside, Rhys gasped in awe at the silver structures that hung in the air, suspended into place by magic. At one end of the circular room was the balcony, complete with a telescope that stood on top of a little wooden podium. I beckoned him over to it and adjusted the instrument so that it would be a little taller. I had to stand on my tippy toes to reach it but I knew it had already been fixed to the right magnification so I turned around to Rhys and instructed, "Take a look inside."

When he peered through the instrument, his mouth part slightly. "What do you think?" I beamed.

"I never thought one could see these constellations up so close."

I chuckled and replied, "Neither. The telescope was actually a gift from Dr Frankenstein."

Rhys parted from the instrument and looked at me with widened eyes as he tilted his head slightly to one side. With the hint of a grimace on his lips, he drawled, "Frankenstein...isn't he a monster formed from various human body parts?"

"In popular myth from the Land Without Magic, yes. But I was referring to Victor Frankenstein." I decided to avoid talking about the curse that took us to Storybrooke so I left out details regarding his alter ego as Dr Whale and explained, "He's actually a scientist from a place called the Land Without Colour. He claimed that he could bring back the dead but I think he was also involved with other inventions and endeavours. He's only succeeded once in the feat but I believe it caused him enough trouble already."

"Did he give you this gift on a visit to our land?"

I fingered the golden handle and looked away from Rhys as I gazed down onto the lands below me. Quietly, I replied, "Long story short; a long time ago, my mother enlisted him to bring my father back from the dead but at the time, the Doctor was in a deal with the Dark One who told him that he mustn't succeed. In Storybrooke, he tried again in hopes that mother would help him return back to his land. He was eventually successful, but she found out that he never intended to accomplish his claims the first time. I suppose this is an apology gift of sorts."

Behind me, Rhys murmured an, "Oh," in reply. Then, he went over to the iron wrought railing of the balcony and gripped it firmly with his hands. My gaze drifted to the way that he was looking at the sky.

"Do you not like the view from the telescope?" I questioned.

Rhys' mouth twitched before he said in a whisper, "The lights twinkle more brightly if you are willing to meet their glow with your own eyes. Isn't it a little odd that there are instruments claiming to help you see them better when our ancestors have been admiring the skies with just as much delight for centuries before such things existed?"

He wasn't wrong. I smiled in agreement and came up to his side slowly. The only sound that echoed through the silence was the click of my heels against the marble tiled flooring. My heart was fluttering restlessly like an entrapped dove within a cage but I quashed down the tickling feeling and softly asked, "What do you think happened?"

His lips barely moved as he breathed, "What do you mean, Princess?"

I swallowed and clarified, "In Camelot."

Rhys inhaled sharply which initially threw worrying thoughts into my mind until he murmured, "I think something happened. Something special."

Shakily, I replied, "Me too."

After a moment of silence, I was about to speak up again but Rhys' luscious deep voice began in a contemplative tone, "After my mother died, I no longer believed in miracles and dreams as everything good would always be accompanied by a curse of sorts."

I scrunched up my face as I tried to understand what he was saying. Still confused, I stammered, "What do you mean?"

From the dimly lit candles in the room and the glow that filtered through from the illuminated sky that was peppered with flakes of starlight, his eyes appeared to be sparkling back at me. At the corner of my vision, I saw Rhys' hand leave the railing of the balcony. He raised it leisurely and it came to rest ever so gently at the side of my face, where his shapely fingers reached for a strand of hair that had fallen over my lips. I swallowed as he put it behind my ear and murmured, "Forgive me, I'm not well acquainted with the technicalities of dark curses."

I could barely hear my voice as I replied, "Rhys, what are you trying to say?"

"Do you feel it too?" Rhys merely questioned. Without tearing my gaze off him, I put my hand on his chest and dug my fingers carefully into his clothing. Instead of flinching, a small smile decorated his gorgeous lips. I was about to remove my hand when a warm energy suddenly pressed against my palm. It was the same warmth that hopped into my chest when I was washing the wound on his hand. The same that embraced my heart when he came out of his room to see me.

Carefully, I gave him a small nod and from the depths of my lungs, the words escaped, "I think so." Upon seeing him relax, I felt the tenseness in my muscles fade. A laughter erupted from the corners of my lips before I could realise that I had made the unbecoming sound myself. In sync, Rhys chuckled and although I tried to look away to stop an ugly grin from decorating my face, he tilted my head up with his hand and said, "Please don't hide it, Your Highness. Your smile is beautiful."

I took his hand into mine, but instead of putting it back to his side, I held onto it and whispered, "You can call me Daniella."

In a low thick voice, he tested my name as if tasting a selection of fine wine.

I looked back out at the sky with a smile that failed to disappear, even when I excused myself and returned to the royal wing of the palace. Rhys had offered to take me back to my chambers, but I couldn't possibly allow him to see the way that my cheeks stretched out every time I even made the slightest attempt to hide my grin. The guards posted at the entrance of my rooms must have seen it but I didn't care. Yvette was hanging up some dresses when I entered my bedchambers and before she could address me, I shooed her out immediately.

I flopped onto my bed and stared at the glittery silk and gauze fabric that were suspended around the bed posts. They were supposed to mimic the deep blue night sky and when I was a child, I would search for my favourite star amongst the embroidered patterns whenever I couldn't fall asleep.

Tonight, slumber slipped past my mind, but I didn't need to search any longer. It was all thanks to a dark curse, lost memories, and some magic at my fingertips to know when newfound love is reaching out and yearning for me to welcome it's ethereal touch.

Author's Note:

Yes, I'm a bit of a hopeless romantic myself. I hope you've enjoyed reading this chapter! If you've found it a little boring, I promise that there will be more 'action' in the upcoming instalments. As always, leave a review if you've loved this update! It's always a pleasure to hear from you!

Coming up next: Back To Square One