Anita finished her breakfast, making small-talk with her mother all the while. Her father, King Regan, had never been much of a talker during meals, and that had come to be a good thing in Anita's mind. Whenever her father spoke at the table, it always seemed to lead to talk of war, causalities, and impending dangers. To her fortune, he had yet to speak this morning. No real battles had broken out as of recently, only small skirmishes, and all was good and well in the kingdom.
"I'll be away today. Cordelia and I are going to see a play, if that's alright with you?" she asked cautiously, being careful to choose her words wisely as to not upset either of her parents.
Her mother, Amadis, nodded. "That's fine. You deserve a chance to get out once in a while. Wouldn't you agree, dear?" she replied, glancing at her king for approval.
King Regan nodded. He didn't speak, as usual. If his queen was fine with the idea, he had no objections.
Anita smiled happily as she stood. She kissed both her mother and father, and then curtsied before exiting the room.
Waiting outside of the dinning hall was Cordelia. The girl had red hair tinted gold that fell to her waist. She was always a bit of an odd girl, and loved styling it in any way possibly. Today, she'd managed to make it appear somewhat normal by putting it in two small ponytails at the base of her neck. After all, it'd need to be kept out of the way for the day's adventure. She was sporting a simple dress which greatly resembled the one Anita wore; only hers was a brown color with gold accents instead of blue. Anita marveled at how well it matched her hair and pale green eyes.
"So what did they say, what did they say!?" she splurred out quickly but quietly, her words melting together in Anita's ears.
Anita let out the tiniest giggle. "We're going to a play!" she responded just as quick.
Cordelia grinned. Of course they weren't really going to a play. Cordelia had a passion for acting, but refused to attend a play she was not in. That being so, she knew Anita had something much better in store for them.
Anita pressed a finger to her lips and winked, signaling for Cordelia to keep quiet. She grabbed her friend's wrist, and both took off towards the castle's entrance. Each had to concentrate to hold back a stream of giggles. Once at the entrance, they immediately dove into the nearby brush, avoiding the eyes of any guards who might try to follow them. They snuck along the path, and eventually made their way across the street and into the nearby woods.
Far enough away from the busy streets, the two girls stopped and looked at each other. Cordelia was the first to break down in a fit of laughter, and Anita soon followed. It'd been a long while since their last escape, and both were thrilled to be away from the watchful eyes of Anita's parents.
Cordelia finally calmed down, and Anita followed suit. "Come Anita, we must be on our way. Wouldn't want to be late," Cordelia chuckled. The two bounded even further into the woods, until they heard other voices. Two male voices, to be exact. Both girls slowed, listening carefully.
"I'm telling you, it was back there!" Christopher called out in an annoyed tone as he gestured behind him.
"Whatever you say," retorted Jayden without much of a fuss. He was royalty, therefore, he was right. He was always right, even when he was wrong, or so his father'd said. He kept walking forward, and only stopped when he heard a branch snap, a noise which neither him nor Chris had produced. "Who's there?!" he called out, placing his right hand over the sword at his side. It wouldn't have been that unlikely for a member of the Regan's troops to be in the woods, so he had to keep alert at all times.
Anita was first to step out from the bushes. Under other circumstances, she would have kept hidden and prayed that the man who'd called out wasn't a soldier sent by the Parrish to assassinate her. However, she knew the man who'd called out quite well.
Jayden visually relaxed as he saw the girl, and the corners of his mouth were pulled up into a smile. "Anita!" he called out happily as he rushed to the girl's side, pulling her into a bear hug.
"T-too t-tight!" she breathed out, laughing with the little air she had left.
Jayden laughed along with her and loosened his grip, though he kept his arms wrapped around Anita's waist. "I haven't seen you in ages! I was worried your parents had thrown you into a cage or something," he chuckled.
Chris sighed, but smiled. Well, his job was done, now onto the next one. He was to leave and give the two friends some time alone, but he knew better than to depart on his own. "Come on Cordelia, I know you're hiding back there."
Cordelia rose to her feet and huffed in defiance. "Just once could you let me stay hidden in peace?" she grumbled. "Just one time I'd like to know what actually goes on between these too, since Anita refuses to tell me anything," She added snappishly.
Anita let out a small giggle as she pushed herself free of Jayden. "How many times must I tell you, there's nothing to tell? We only talk," she stated truthfully with a smile no one could mistakes for being false. She wasn't much of a liar anyways, so best to tell the truth.
Chris chuckled, and then made his way to Cordelia's side. "Come now, best to leave them alone," he explained simply, taking Cordelia gently by the hand and leading her away despite her many, sometimes violent, protests.
Once Cordelia's complaints were out of earshot, Anita and Jayden both looked at each other and laughed lightly. Both knew the truth, nothing really went on between them. For Anita, all was as it should be and the world was in perfect balance. As for Jayden, he wished Anita would pay more attention to detail. No matter for much he flattered her, or what presents he brought, the girl never quite seemed to understand his feelings. However, he was too much of a gentleman to come right out with it and put Anita in an awkward situation.
Anita sat down on a nearby rock, which was rather clean, despite the fact that it should have been coated in moss. "So, how have you been doing? I'm assuming your father's in good health. If not, I'm sure we would have caught wind of that news by now," Anita stated simply, smiling her usual little smile.
Jayden nodded. "Father's doing well. Or, at least as well as a man running a war could be," he replied, his smile revealing some of his hidden sorrows. Thank the sky his father was in good health. If not, then Jayden would have been forced to take the throne and lead his men into battle, something he wasn't quite sure he'd be able to do with Anita's people on the opposing side.
One might wonder how two children coming from such opposite backgrounds could be friends, or how they could even meet in the first place. To them, it was ancient history. For Cordelia and Christopher, it was still a miracle of sorts. Cordelia had convinced Anita to sneak away from home on the same day that Jayden had dragged Chris into the forest despite his many complaints. Cordelia had run ahead of Anita unintentionally, and Jayden had raced off ahead of Chris. While Anita sat to catch her breath, Jayden had run out of the nearby bushes and stepped on her hand. Being a gentleman even at the young age of eight, Jayden had stayed by Anita's side to comfort her until the sting in her hand faded and her tears slowed. By then, Cordelia and Chris had found them.
The four children ranging from age eleven to six spent the rest of the day together, playing in the forest. It wasn't until much later that anyone had thought to introduce themselves. Only Chris reacted to their names at first. He'd pulled Jayden back from the girls, glaring them down. Cordelia was second to realize which families the two royals belonged to. She glared right back at Chris and viciously spat, "Oh, what, after bein' with us for three hours ya suddenly think we're gonna kill ya?!" Even at a young age, Cordelia was still her own person.
After that, everyone relaxed and Jayden and Anita often snuck out to see each other. Christopher still wasn't fond of the idea, but he wouldn't tell a soul, and Jayden knew it. Cordelia was a hopeless romantic, and often assisted Anita in her escapes.
Jayden plucked a flower out of a nearby tree. It was the purest shade of white, with seven petals. Seven had always been Jayden's lucky number, ever since he first discovered the flower in the trees and had its name and meaning revealed to him. Jayden had been told it was a Kiyah, and it was supposed to bring good luck in love. It'd yet to do so for him, but Jayden wasn't one for giving up, even after years of trying. "For my princess," he spoke quietly as he bowed, offering the flower to Anita.
Anita giggled quietly, accepting the flower. "My favorite," she replied happily. The first flower she'd ever been given was this very one, from Jayden. It was a fond memory of her dear friend.
Jayden sensed something thick in the air, and glanced up at the sky. His suspicions were confirmed by the dark clouds and Christopher's return.
"Hey, Jay…" he muttered. "Sorry to interrupt, but it looks like rain. Your father will suspect something if we don't hurry back."
Cordelia appeared behind Chris. "Sorry you guys didn't get much time, but Chris is right. You're supposed to be at the play, Anita. If you come home soaked your parents won't let you out again."
Anita and Jayden looked at each other sadly and nodded. "Understood," both replied in unison. As royalty, they knew their duties. If they wanted any free time to spend with each other, they'd have to fulfill their regular roles first.
Everyone bid farewell to one another, save for Cordelia to Chris. Anita was slightly puzzled at this, but let it go for the moment. It was rather obvious something was troubling her friend, but she would be able to find out soon enough. With little less than a wave more, the two groups split and headed for their own kingdoms.
Jayden was quite for a short while, and then glanced at Chris when he was sure they were far enough from the girls. "You told her, didn't you?" he asked with a sad yet serious frown.
"Aye…now they'll know," Chris replied simply. Afterwards, neither spoke a word on their way back to the kingdom.
6