Chapter 2
A few hours later that day I was sitting leisurely on a boulder in one of the gardens, a book balanced in my lap, and gardeners pruning hedges around me. The sun was shining in a cloudless sky, and birds twittered in the trees. It was the portrait of tranquility. And it was disturbed abruptly.
"Summer!" a voice called out angrily. Prince Cynric came striding into the garden crossly, his cape billowing out behind him and his lips pursed. I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye with mild amusement, and pretended not to hear him. About a hundred yards behind him, a maid came running after him, calling his name. He ignored her and kept walking to me until he stood squarely in front of me, waiting with his arms crossed for me to acknowledge his presence.
"Yes?" I asked, holding back the grin that threatened to reveal itself at any moment for fear that the enraged prince would lash out.
"You take the day off to do what?" he snapped, gesturing at the surroundings. "Here you are, reading! What is going on?" Here was when the maid who had been following him breathlessly came upon us, and, seeing the prince in such distress, stood quietly with her head bowed. "And you leave me with her, no less!" he exclaimed, pointing at the girl.
"What's the problem?" I asked calmly.
"The problem is that I was late for the luncheon with the princess because this dimwit wasn't prepared! And my bed sheets weren't even straightened when I returned, not to mention the bathroom still in the same condition that it was when I left it before the luncheon!"
"Stop it! Be quiet for a while, and take a walk with me. We need to talk."
He followed me out of the garden, and toward another, separate garden.
"What could you have done about that situation, Your Grace?" I said irritably.
"Why does it matter? She wasn't doing her job!" he snapped back.
"You're being a brute right now! You know very well you could have just asked the girl politely to do her job, and she would have done it! And I seriously hope you didn't leave the luncheon because the girl made those mistakes!"
"I didn't," he answered sharply. "But why did you leave today, when all you're doing is reading?"
"First of all, I haven't just been reading. I took today off to spend time enjoying myself, and if this is how you've been behaving all day, then I think it's a good thing I left!"
"Well, I want you to come back!" he roared.
"You could have just said that in the first place," I said. "Now, I think we should go back to the palace, and you owe a maid an apology."
He glowered at me, but agreed. We walked back slowly, admiring the gardens around the palace, and the palace itself.
"Why is the palace covered in ivy and roses? Was it the decision of the gardeners? I'm just curious; it looks splendid." Cynric's question startled me, and I floundered for an answer, not wanting yet to reveal the palace's immense secret.
"The gardeners made that decision; you're right." I chose to try and change the subject. "What did you and Annabelle do during the luncheon?" I asked curiously. Prince Cynric smirked.
"I'm glad you gave up on the politeness plan. It was getting annoying. I was wondering…"
"Yes?"
"Does the princess have any interests? I would like to take her somewhere or do something with her tomorrow."
~*~*~*~
"What was it that the prince was so upset about?" Mirra asked later in the kitchen, as we scrubbed and dried dishes.
"A maid that was substituting for me today didn't do everything perfectly, so he got upset."
"He didn't hurt you or that girl, did he?" Scarlett asked.
"No, but he looks quite amusing when he's angered, with his hair and eyes glowing and his cape billowing out behind him. I had to try my hardest not to laugh when he came storming into the garden today." Mirra raised her eyebrows and smirked.
"You sound like those silly lovesick girls that follow him around the palace."
"Rest assured, I have no interest in the man. He has too quick a temper and is too strange a man for me."
~*~*~*~
"What is the agenda for today?" was what Cynric asked me the next morning the instant he was awake.
"I arranged for you and Annabelle—and some servants, of course, to serve as chaperones—to go on horseback around the grounds of the palace and talk. Then you'll come back here and have the evening meal together, and then you will go to sleep. My agenda is a day of chores, starting the minute you and Annabelle leave."
"Why can't you join us? You could be one of the chaperones, and enjoy the day, since I ruined the last one you had."
"That's very kind of you, but I couldn't."
Cynric shook his head and sighed. "I don't see why. You need to get out and live a little. It seems like all you do is work and chores."
"If I went with you, then it would mean other servants would have to do my chores, and that doesn't seem right to me, as I've pretty much been sitting around idle ever since you came here. Anyway, I've already asked Annabelle's maids to go, and it would be rude of me to tell them that I've decided to go in their place."
Cynric leaned back against the wall of the room and took a bite out of the apple that was part of his breakfast, and gave me a puppy look. "That won't work," I said, and threw a grape at him. He scowled and whipped it back at me.
"If I ordered you to go, would you have to?" he asked curiously.
"Why would you order me to go?"
"The maids here follow me wherever I go. They act nicer than they ought to. They giggle excessively when I talk to them. They frighten me with the way they act toward me."
"They're lovesick."
"Exactly. Which is why I want you to come. You and Princess Annabelle are the only ladies in this palace that act normally toward me, and you two are the only females I feel safe around."
"Then I will have some men go," I said firmly.
"They dislike me. I hear them talk about me and how the women of the palace all swoon at the sight of me. They don't welcome me."
"That's truly sad. But I'm not going, and that's final."
"I order you to go then," he said.
"I choose to ignore that command. I'm staying here."
"Then I can report you to Annabelle."
"Then I can resign from attending you."
"Go ahead and do that then," he said, challenging me. I shrugged and walked out of the room.
"You wouldn't!" he exclaimed, dashing out into the hall and blocking my way.
"Wouldn't resign, you mean?" I said innocently.
"You wouldn't quit. You wouldn't leave me with one of those psychotic lovesick girls. You cant!" he exclaimed, and gave me a fearful look. "You've seen how they act! They'd rip my shirt off if they were left alone with me."
"Annabelle is going to be there too, you know. She's the one you're supposed to be spending the day with, remember? And you just said yourself that she's one of the two ladies in this palace that you trust. Anyway, none of the servants would have the courage to assault you in front of the princess, so you're safe."
He listened, but said nothing. After a pause he spoke. "So you're not resigning?" he asked.
~*~*~*~
How did he talk her into this? was what Annabelle was thinking as she looked behind her at Summer. Cynric had demanded that Summer join them, and to keep him happy she'd agreed to let her come. However, the maid didn't look too pleased about the arrangement. She was scowling at Cynric, who was riding beside Annabelle, 5 feet ahead of Summer.
It wasn't that she was jealous of the maid; she was just curious why the prince constantly insisted that she be with him. She didn't like having to compete for Cynric's time, and she was getting a little bugged. But if it kept him happy she'd keep her patience and survive it.
Annabelle was thinking about something else involving Prince Cynric as they trotted (on their horses) through the gardens. She was wondering what her feelings for the foreign monarch-to-be were. They were certainly strong feelings, but of what? It most definitely wasn't hatred, but it couldn't be love—yet—since the palace was still covered with ivy and roses, and nothing had changed. She sighed, and figured that it was still emotions of friendship she was feeling.
~*~*~*~
The following day Prince Cynric and Princess Annabelle went out to have a picnic in the field beside the apple grove. That time Summer didn't go with them. No one did, except for a maid of Annabelle's, to serve as the chaperone that was expected to go with Annabelle whenever she was alone with Cynric. But for some reason Summer felt the need to watch the couple from a balcony in the castle that oversaw the field in which the picnic was being held.
She felt a bit guilty for spying, but she also decided it was her duty to watch over Cynric and make sure he didn't do anything silly or stupid. So, with a pitcher of water and a small bundle of food beside her, she situated herself in a spot on the balcony where she would be hidden from the sight of the young couple (should they decide to look up) but where she could still see clearly what they did.
She took note of what happened. At first the two just sat there eating, occasionally making comments, but after the food was gone they got into deeper conversation. Cynric said something that made the two of them laugh. Suddenly, with no forewarning, he leaned in and kissed Annabelle.
"What?!" Summer exclaimed, surprised. "Where's that stupid chaperone when you need her?" She looked around the area and saw the "chaperone" picking flowers on a hill not far from the picnic site. Her jaw dropped in exasperation, and she turned back toward the couple. They continued the kiss for several seconds; then Annabelle broke away, blushing a deep pink. Summer felt a pang in her chest, and it was odd. It felt like anger, only worse. It was jealously and betrayal she felt. When she realized that, she snapped back to reality and ran back inside the castle, back to Cynric's room, where she laid down on his bed and sobbed into his pillows.
~*~*~*~
When His Royal Highness returned, Summer was still inside his rooms; only she'd wiped away her tears and smoothed her shabby dress and apron free of wrinkles, and was calmer than she'd been earlier.
"I hear you had a great picnic today," she stated calmly when he entered the room.
"Yes, as a matter of fact, I had an excellent picnic today." Summer bit her lip at that comment, but remained composed.
"Why are you so quiet?" Cynric asked, concerned. He sat down beside her and waited for an answer.
"I guess I'm just a bit tired," she lied.
"All right then. Maybe you'd better just lie down beside the fire and go to sleep now. Better yet, why don't you take my bed tonight? I can sleep on the floor and you can relax. Okay?" He stood up and walked to the straw mat beside the fire that served as Summer's bed. She instantly got up and rushed to the fire before he could lie down.
"No! I'll be fine. I just need to get a little bit of sleep; I don't need any special treatment." He looked confused, but nodded slightly and walked back to his comfortable bed.
~*~*~*~
For several days, things continued on being different between Cynric and myself. I couldn't meet his eyes for fear I would start crying again, and I didn't talk as much, or "debate" with him anymore.
He continued acting as if I were ill, trying to make me feel better and offering sympathy whenever it seemed like I needed it. I did feel slightly better after spending time with him, but then the image of him kissing Annabelle would reappear in my mind, and I would start sobbing again.
Scarlett and Mirra noticed my change in attitude when I visited them in the kitchens, and they knew that had to do with Cynric, though they didn't know what had happened and were too well-mannered to inquire about the situation. My life was quickly becoming messed up.
Three days (or to be more precise than that, 3 mornings) after the picnic I walked into Prince Cynric's rooms to find a surprise greater than anything I would've ever expected. He was gone. And (almost) even more surprising than that was the fact that the room(s) was/ were completely clean. He'd left everything absolutely perfect, wherever it was he'd gone.
On his bed, I noticed he'd left something behind. On the center of the bed lay a small bouquet of flowers gathered from the gardens, and beside it an envelope with my name on it. I opened it slowly and carefully, and read the note inside.
Summer,
I apologize sincerely to you about leaving, especially without telling you about it. I would say, "I am sorry" repeatedly over and over in this letter, but I'd rather not waste this paper.
Lately things have been odd around the palace. After I returned from the picnic I had with Annabelle, things between you and I seemed to change drastically. I don't know if it was something I did, or if you were truly ill. Either way, I hope you will one day forgive me for what it is that you may (or may not) have been mad at me about. I was, and still am, a bit worried about our bond. Do you remember the conversation we had when I told you that Annabelle and you were the only females I trusted? Well, that's still true, but it seems to me that things are different now. It was becoming too awkward living in the palace for me to deal with properly.
Besides that, the physician has told me that I am now fully recovered. The wounds I had are healed now, and it is safe for me to be traveling—just in case you were worried. I also felt it would be a bit rude of me to extend your hospitality without your knowing it. And by the way, I don't think I will ever be grateful enough to you for saving my life. Thank you. I owe you my life, and one day perhaps I will be able to repay you.
I will say farewell for now, but I hope one day we will meet again. If I can find my way back, I may try to return and visit. In another last hope to see you again one day, I will confide in you where I have gone. My kingdom's name is Uralby, but no one else at your palace knows that. Please, do not tell anyone else about this, not even to Annabelle. Good-bye again, my true friend.
Yours truly,
Prince Cynric Alden Hartford
A few hours later that day I was sitting leisurely on a boulder in one of the gardens, a book balanced in my lap, and gardeners pruning hedges around me. The sun was shining in a cloudless sky, and birds twittered in the trees. It was the portrait of tranquility. And it was disturbed abruptly.
"Summer!" a voice called out angrily. Prince Cynric came striding into the garden crossly, his cape billowing out behind him and his lips pursed. I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye with mild amusement, and pretended not to hear him. About a hundred yards behind him, a maid came running after him, calling his name. He ignored her and kept walking to me until he stood squarely in front of me, waiting with his arms crossed for me to acknowledge his presence.
"Yes?" I asked, holding back the grin that threatened to reveal itself at any moment for fear that the enraged prince would lash out.
"You take the day off to do what?" he snapped, gesturing at the surroundings. "Here you are, reading! What is going on?" Here was when the maid who had been following him breathlessly came upon us, and, seeing the prince in such distress, stood quietly with her head bowed. "And you leave me with her, no less!" he exclaimed, pointing at the girl.
"What's the problem?" I asked calmly.
"The problem is that I was late for the luncheon with the princess because this dimwit wasn't prepared! And my bed sheets weren't even straightened when I returned, not to mention the bathroom still in the same condition that it was when I left it before the luncheon!"
"Stop it! Be quiet for a while, and take a walk with me. We need to talk."
He followed me out of the garden, and toward another, separate garden.
"What could you have done about that situation, Your Grace?" I said irritably.
"Why does it matter? She wasn't doing her job!" he snapped back.
"You're being a brute right now! You know very well you could have just asked the girl politely to do her job, and she would have done it! And I seriously hope you didn't leave the luncheon because the girl made those mistakes!"
"I didn't," he answered sharply. "But why did you leave today, when all you're doing is reading?"
"First of all, I haven't just been reading. I took today off to spend time enjoying myself, and if this is how you've been behaving all day, then I think it's a good thing I left!"
"Well, I want you to come back!" he roared.
"You could have just said that in the first place," I said. "Now, I think we should go back to the palace, and you owe a maid an apology."
He glowered at me, but agreed. We walked back slowly, admiring the gardens around the palace, and the palace itself.
"Why is the palace covered in ivy and roses? Was it the decision of the gardeners? I'm just curious; it looks splendid." Cynric's question startled me, and I floundered for an answer, not wanting yet to reveal the palace's immense secret.
"The gardeners made that decision; you're right." I chose to try and change the subject. "What did you and Annabelle do during the luncheon?" I asked curiously. Prince Cynric smirked.
"I'm glad you gave up on the politeness plan. It was getting annoying. I was wondering…"
"Yes?"
"Does the princess have any interests? I would like to take her somewhere or do something with her tomorrow."
~*~*~*~
"What was it that the prince was so upset about?" Mirra asked later in the kitchen, as we scrubbed and dried dishes.
"A maid that was substituting for me today didn't do everything perfectly, so he got upset."
"He didn't hurt you or that girl, did he?" Scarlett asked.
"No, but he looks quite amusing when he's angered, with his hair and eyes glowing and his cape billowing out behind him. I had to try my hardest not to laugh when he came storming into the garden today." Mirra raised her eyebrows and smirked.
"You sound like those silly lovesick girls that follow him around the palace."
"Rest assured, I have no interest in the man. He has too quick a temper and is too strange a man for me."
~*~*~*~
"What is the agenda for today?" was what Cynric asked me the next morning the instant he was awake.
"I arranged for you and Annabelle—and some servants, of course, to serve as chaperones—to go on horseback around the grounds of the palace and talk. Then you'll come back here and have the evening meal together, and then you will go to sleep. My agenda is a day of chores, starting the minute you and Annabelle leave."
"Why can't you join us? You could be one of the chaperones, and enjoy the day, since I ruined the last one you had."
"That's very kind of you, but I couldn't."
Cynric shook his head and sighed. "I don't see why. You need to get out and live a little. It seems like all you do is work and chores."
"If I went with you, then it would mean other servants would have to do my chores, and that doesn't seem right to me, as I've pretty much been sitting around idle ever since you came here. Anyway, I've already asked Annabelle's maids to go, and it would be rude of me to tell them that I've decided to go in their place."
Cynric leaned back against the wall of the room and took a bite out of the apple that was part of his breakfast, and gave me a puppy look. "That won't work," I said, and threw a grape at him. He scowled and whipped it back at me.
"If I ordered you to go, would you have to?" he asked curiously.
"Why would you order me to go?"
"The maids here follow me wherever I go. They act nicer than they ought to. They giggle excessively when I talk to them. They frighten me with the way they act toward me."
"They're lovesick."
"Exactly. Which is why I want you to come. You and Princess Annabelle are the only ladies in this palace that act normally toward me, and you two are the only females I feel safe around."
"Then I will have some men go," I said firmly.
"They dislike me. I hear them talk about me and how the women of the palace all swoon at the sight of me. They don't welcome me."
"That's truly sad. But I'm not going, and that's final."
"I order you to go then," he said.
"I choose to ignore that command. I'm staying here."
"Then I can report you to Annabelle."
"Then I can resign from attending you."
"Go ahead and do that then," he said, challenging me. I shrugged and walked out of the room.
"You wouldn't!" he exclaimed, dashing out into the hall and blocking my way.
"Wouldn't resign, you mean?" I said innocently.
"You wouldn't quit. You wouldn't leave me with one of those psychotic lovesick girls. You cant!" he exclaimed, and gave me a fearful look. "You've seen how they act! They'd rip my shirt off if they were left alone with me."
"Annabelle is going to be there too, you know. She's the one you're supposed to be spending the day with, remember? And you just said yourself that she's one of the two ladies in this palace that you trust. Anyway, none of the servants would have the courage to assault you in front of the princess, so you're safe."
He listened, but said nothing. After a pause he spoke. "So you're not resigning?" he asked.
~*~*~*~
How did he talk her into this? was what Annabelle was thinking as she looked behind her at Summer. Cynric had demanded that Summer join them, and to keep him happy she'd agreed to let her come. However, the maid didn't look too pleased about the arrangement. She was scowling at Cynric, who was riding beside Annabelle, 5 feet ahead of Summer.
It wasn't that she was jealous of the maid; she was just curious why the prince constantly insisted that she be with him. She didn't like having to compete for Cynric's time, and she was getting a little bugged. But if it kept him happy she'd keep her patience and survive it.
Annabelle was thinking about something else involving Prince Cynric as they trotted (on their horses) through the gardens. She was wondering what her feelings for the foreign monarch-to-be were. They were certainly strong feelings, but of what? It most definitely wasn't hatred, but it couldn't be love—yet—since the palace was still covered with ivy and roses, and nothing had changed. She sighed, and figured that it was still emotions of friendship she was feeling.
~*~*~*~
The following day Prince Cynric and Princess Annabelle went out to have a picnic in the field beside the apple grove. That time Summer didn't go with them. No one did, except for a maid of Annabelle's, to serve as the chaperone that was expected to go with Annabelle whenever she was alone with Cynric. But for some reason Summer felt the need to watch the couple from a balcony in the castle that oversaw the field in which the picnic was being held.
She felt a bit guilty for spying, but she also decided it was her duty to watch over Cynric and make sure he didn't do anything silly or stupid. So, with a pitcher of water and a small bundle of food beside her, she situated herself in a spot on the balcony where she would be hidden from the sight of the young couple (should they decide to look up) but where she could still see clearly what they did.
She took note of what happened. At first the two just sat there eating, occasionally making comments, but after the food was gone they got into deeper conversation. Cynric said something that made the two of them laugh. Suddenly, with no forewarning, he leaned in and kissed Annabelle.
"What?!" Summer exclaimed, surprised. "Where's that stupid chaperone when you need her?" She looked around the area and saw the "chaperone" picking flowers on a hill not far from the picnic site. Her jaw dropped in exasperation, and she turned back toward the couple. They continued the kiss for several seconds; then Annabelle broke away, blushing a deep pink. Summer felt a pang in her chest, and it was odd. It felt like anger, only worse. It was jealously and betrayal she felt. When she realized that, she snapped back to reality and ran back inside the castle, back to Cynric's room, where she laid down on his bed and sobbed into his pillows.
~*~*~*~
When His Royal Highness returned, Summer was still inside his rooms; only she'd wiped away her tears and smoothed her shabby dress and apron free of wrinkles, and was calmer than she'd been earlier.
"I hear you had a great picnic today," she stated calmly when he entered the room.
"Yes, as a matter of fact, I had an excellent picnic today." Summer bit her lip at that comment, but remained composed.
"Why are you so quiet?" Cynric asked, concerned. He sat down beside her and waited for an answer.
"I guess I'm just a bit tired," she lied.
"All right then. Maybe you'd better just lie down beside the fire and go to sleep now. Better yet, why don't you take my bed tonight? I can sleep on the floor and you can relax. Okay?" He stood up and walked to the straw mat beside the fire that served as Summer's bed. She instantly got up and rushed to the fire before he could lie down.
"No! I'll be fine. I just need to get a little bit of sleep; I don't need any special treatment." He looked confused, but nodded slightly and walked back to his comfortable bed.
~*~*~*~
For several days, things continued on being different between Cynric and myself. I couldn't meet his eyes for fear I would start crying again, and I didn't talk as much, or "debate" with him anymore.
He continued acting as if I were ill, trying to make me feel better and offering sympathy whenever it seemed like I needed it. I did feel slightly better after spending time with him, but then the image of him kissing Annabelle would reappear in my mind, and I would start sobbing again.
Scarlett and Mirra noticed my change in attitude when I visited them in the kitchens, and they knew that had to do with Cynric, though they didn't know what had happened and were too well-mannered to inquire about the situation. My life was quickly becoming messed up.
Three days (or to be more precise than that, 3 mornings) after the picnic I walked into Prince Cynric's rooms to find a surprise greater than anything I would've ever expected. He was gone. And (almost) even more surprising than that was the fact that the room(s) was/ were completely clean. He'd left everything absolutely perfect, wherever it was he'd gone.
On his bed, I noticed he'd left something behind. On the center of the bed lay a small bouquet of flowers gathered from the gardens, and beside it an envelope with my name on it. I opened it slowly and carefully, and read the note inside.
Summer,
I apologize sincerely to you about leaving, especially without telling you about it. I would say, "I am sorry" repeatedly over and over in this letter, but I'd rather not waste this paper.
Lately things have been odd around the palace. After I returned from the picnic I had with Annabelle, things between you and I seemed to change drastically. I don't know if it was something I did, or if you were truly ill. Either way, I hope you will one day forgive me for what it is that you may (or may not) have been mad at me about. I was, and still am, a bit worried about our bond. Do you remember the conversation we had when I told you that Annabelle and you were the only females I trusted? Well, that's still true, but it seems to me that things are different now. It was becoming too awkward living in the palace for me to deal with properly.
Besides that, the physician has told me that I am now fully recovered. The wounds I had are healed now, and it is safe for me to be traveling—just in case you were worried. I also felt it would be a bit rude of me to extend your hospitality without your knowing it. And by the way, I don't think I will ever be grateful enough to you for saving my life. Thank you. I owe you my life, and one day perhaps I will be able to repay you.
I will say farewell for now, but I hope one day we will meet again. If I can find my way back, I may try to return and visit. In another last hope to see you again one day, I will confide in you where I have gone. My kingdom's name is Uralby, but no one else at your palace knows that. Please, do not tell anyone else about this, not even to Annabelle. Good-bye again, my true friend.
Yours truly,
Prince Cynric Alden Hartford