Chapter 2

Four Years Later

It had been four years since Tom walked down this same cold, drafty, hall of the castle, with Cookie on his shoulder, to the princess's room. He was on his way to try to fix what they broke four years earlier, when he and the princess had a huge fight and that's how they left their friendship. As they continued on their way, Tom started to remember everything about the fight, the light, the color of the princess's dress, and mostly the pain the felt from how she reacted to what he told her. While Tom was remembering, he did not notice a figure sneaking into the castle through the window, thankfully Cookie did.

Cookie tapped on Tom's shoulder, "Tom, Tom!" he said in a loud whisper.

"What Cookie?"

"There's someone sneaking into the castle," and he pointed to the figure. Tom ducked behind a pillar on the left side of the hall. Tom brought out his sword, ready to defend the castle. Then he realized who the figure was and smiled, he walked behind the figure, and pointed his sword to its back. The figure was dressed in pants, a shirt, and brown boots. He was also carrying with him a bow and arrows and a sword, which hung around the waste. Tom knew who this was right away and walked over to the figure.

"You are in serious trouble, boy," said Tom to the figure. The figure was shocked she had never been caught before. "You are going straight to the dungeons for this one; it's a serious crime breaking into the castle."

The girl could not take being lectured anymore and made an attempt for her sword but he was much faster, "no you don't," grabbing it before she did, "and the bow and arrows." She took her bow and arrows, and tried to turn around to give him them to him, but instead he said "face front," and he took the bow from her, "any surprise I should know about," the girl shock no and they started their way to the dungeon.

They were walking in silence for a long time, when the girl realized they were going the wrong way, that this wasn't the way to the dungeons. She knew the castle like the back of her hand, for she lived their all her life. She was about to turn around to figure out what was going on when Tom, through her in one of the rooms, it happened to be the princess's. "Now little girl, you stay in here and do your women's work like a good girl," the girl could not believe what she was hearing she turned around.

"Tom Kint, how dare you show your face back here!"

"Your highness I was only doing my duty," said Tom with a smile.

"I see you haven't changed," said the Princess.

"I see you haven't either," said Tom in reply.

"I just sorry you're not dead," said Tor.

"Are you, or are you not the same girl who cried to try to make me stay!"

"I wasn't crying to make you stay, I have felelings, unlike you, and they were hurt, so like any normal person I showed them!"

"You know I have been back less than fifteen minutes, and you are already yelling at me, I came over here to try to fix what we broke, not pick up where we left it!"

"Your highness," Cookie, who had watched the entire thing, finally spoke up and intervened.

"Cookie it's so good to see you, and to see you in your same little vest," it was true Cookie was in the same outfit that he wear the day he left, unlike Tom who had grown immensely. He was now six foot, with broad shoulders and wore his best cloths that he owned; he wanted to look his best for the princess.

"It's good to see you too," he jumped from Tom's are to her's, and they walked over to the bed. Tom just stood there while they talked.

"You know I missed you so much," she squeezed the little monkey.

"And I missed you, but Tom missed you more," she looked away as he continued, "Tor he really did."

"Prove it," demanded the princess.

"While in one of the battles, Tom," he paused, "Tom got hit, he got hit real bad. There was blood everywhere, and I tried to keep Tom awake. Finally I called for help, and the Head General came over to see what was wrong. He looked at Tom and then at me and then Tom again. He brought Tom into his tent and he laid here for three days," he paused again, "When the Head General came back out he told me that Tom wasn't going to make it, and that I should say my good bye," the princess had tears in her eyes.

"So I went into the tent and saw Tom laying here all bandaged up, but he still had his eyes closed. I walked over to him and jumped on the bed. I said 'Tom,' he opened his eyes a crake. 'Hey buddy' he said, 'Is it already time to wake up?' I didn't understand what he meant, but he continued. 'Do you think I'll win today?' 'Win what' I said back. 'Win against the princess, of course, you know who she always wins I think I'm going to win today, and when I do I'm gonna make her kiss me, like yesterday.' 'Yesterday?' I said. 'Yeah you know yesterday before the Duke attacked, she kissed me!' He thought he never left and that he was still with you. I told him that he wasn't going to fight you and that we weren't in the castle, but at war. After a long time of convincing he finally believed me.

"Then he asked me if he was going to die, and I said yes, he nodded, and went back to sleep. He next morning I woke up to Tom walking all over the room trying to find something to eat, he looked like he was never hurt at all. When I asked him what happened he told me he had a dream about you and that you held him, held him with a kiss," Cookie finally finished the story, Tor had a single tear roll down her face and Tom just looked at her in aw.

"Is what he says true?" she asked. He nodded and she got off the bed and walked to him, "why did you come back?"

"I needed your fathers help on something," Tom said, Cookie put his head in his hands.

"What?" asked Tor.

"Oh that reminds me, Cookie we got to go," Cookie jumped on his shoulder and they were off.

"You can't just tell me something like that and walk away!" yelled the princess trying to catch up to them.

"I'm sorry Tori put we have an appointment that we can't miss," said Tom

"With who?"

"Your father," Tor finally caught up, "I don't think your dad wants to see you like that."

"Who say's I'm going to see my father?"

"Well then we are you following me," they were at the Great Hall and Tom opened the door.

"I'm not following you," she said and everyone in the room looked up.

"Victoria, what are you wearing?" said the King before Tor could even explain the King said, "go change."

"Yes father," and she turned around and left, but not before catching a glimpse of Tom smirking like he finally won a battle against her.

Tom looked around at the room, same old same old he thought. The King had not changed after four years the room had not change it was just the same way Tom left it and all he could do was smile.

"Tom," started King Harry, "I'm so glad you returned safely,"

"Thank you, your majesty, I'm glad to be back,"

"Now you said something about a map that you found on your travels back from the war lands?"

"Yes," Tom quickly pulled out a piece of parchment and laid it out on the table. The parchment was long in width and looked like it was made a long time ago. The weird thing about the map was that it had a hole in it right in the vertex of two adjoining streams, "It's a map to the treasures untold."

"Oh," said King Harry as he looked at the map, "why is there a hole in it?"

"That is where the key goes," Tom replied.

"Do you have the key?" asked the King curiously.

"I have a piece."

"A piece?"

"Yes, I just need the other one, and the map will be complete," the King looked up.

"And what exactly do you plan on doing with the map when it is completed?"

Tor continued on her way back to her room, "This is ridiculous why does Tom always do this to me," she asked herself out loud. She kicked the floor, she was seventeen, and she still did not understand boys any better than when she was thirteen. She did not understand what did Tom want from her? She loved him with all her heart he keeps sending all these mixed signals. Crack, she stopped, she thought she heard something, looked around and so nothing so she continued. Crack there she heard it again, she stopped.

"Stop cracking your knuckles she'll her us!"

Tor did not know what to do, should she run to her room? Should she hide behind something? Then she thought what would Tom do? Well he probably would stand and fight, she looked down to see that she did not put her sword back into its sheath after Tom took it, Drat! Since she did not have a sword, and there was no place to hide, Tor decided to do the next best thing she took off in a sprint to her room. She could still her someone following her; she dashed into her room, and slammed the door. Then she waited, listening by the door to hear if the men who were following her were knew where she was.

"Come out, Come out where ever you are?" she heard from behind the door, she lifted her ear for just a second and put it back. Then her door flu open and Tor fell on the floor. Two men walked into the room, one was taller than the other but they had the same body tone, big. The taller of the two was holding a bundle under his arm and the smaller one was holding a sword to Tor's neck.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"He's Liam and, I'm Flint," said the taller man.

"Your not suppose to tell her that!" said the smaller man, who's name was apparently Liam.

"Sorry, Liam," said Flint.

"It's okay, now Princess tell us where Tom is!" Liam demanded.

"Why do you think I know where he is?"

"Because we have been following him all the way from Duff town, and we know you were with him last."

"If you have been following him since Duff town how come you don't know where he is?"

"Um, well, we don't have to answer that you are the one being interrogated here, now tell us where he is!" snapped Liam.

"What's in it for me?"

"You live," said Flint.

"Then, no," replied the princess.

"Fine then we will make Tom come to us," Liam said he grabbed the bundle from under Flint's arm and throw it at Tor, "put it on," he commanded. Tor held up the monk's robe that he throw at her.

"You just put it over your cloths," said Flint, and Tor did what she was told. She put on the monks robe and then Liam told her that she had to wear the hood as while.

The three of them walked out of the princess's room in a line, with Flint in front, Princess, Tor in the middle and Liam in the back, towards the exit of the castle. They were about to go through the castle gates when the guards made them halt. "My good sir," started Liam, "we have to get the head monk back to the monastery before the evening mass."

"We are just checking to see make sure there is no items being smuggled from the castle," said the guard on the right as the left one reached their things. Once he was done he nodded to the right one and they three of them were free to go. They got on three horses, which Flint and Liam already had prepared for them so they could ride back to Duff town, but they made the princess ride with Flint.

Once they were a quarter of a mile out they stopped. "Get off," Flint said to Princess Tor, and she did, "Now take off the robes," she did that too.

"What are you doing?" asked Tor.

"You can ride a horse, can't you princess?" Tor was insulted; she could not believe that they thought she couldn't ride.

"Yes, I can ride extremely well thank you very much," she said very proudly

"Can you ride with your hands tied behind your back?"

"Yes," she said not realizing what she just did until she said it.

"Good," said Liam, "Tie her up," he told Flint. Flint did what he was told and he tied Tor's hands behind her back, he then put her on the third horse tied another rope onto the saddle on each side. He then gave one end to Liam and then he got on his horse and held the other piece, and they continued on their way.

They rode for about two hours straight, before Tor figured out a plain, "You know," said Tor, "You are not the smartest people in the world." Liam and Flint were shocked at how blunt the princess was being.

"You're got some nerve, Princess," said Liam.

"Yes, I do and for my next trick I will escape."

"I very much doubt that," replied Flint.

"We'll see," said Tor and she dug her foot into her horse, and the horse was off, picking up lots of speed. Since Flint and Liam were till holding on to the pieces of rope, they flu off their horses as Tor's picked up speed, "and you said I couldn't do it,"

"Technically you haven't escaped you," Liam said as he was being dragged by Tor's horse.

"We will see won't we," said Tor with a smile. Liam looked up as much as he could to figure out how to stop her, but when he looked up he saw that he would not have to. Tor was riding her horse straight into a dead end. The horse started to slow down and Tor looked from left to right to see where she was going to go. This was Liam's and Flint's chance they used all their remaining strength to lift themselves up and then they found a tree and they tied the two pieces of rope to it. Tor was caught again.

"Get her off," said Liam to Flint. Flint walked off and dragged Tor and throw her over his shoulder, as Liam walked over to get their horses that just arrived.

"Let go of me," said Tor as she tried to twist of Flint's broad shoulder.

"Okay," said Flint and he put her down on Liam's horse, with her backside in the air.

"Now Princess," he said as he got back on his horse, "you caused us to lose precious time with your little stunt, and my Lord's not going to be happy about it, so now we have to ride nonstop, now Ya," and he slapped her backside.

"That wasn't your horse!" she told her angrily.

"Oh, I'm sorry your highness," and Flint and Liam started to laugh.

They rode all the rest of the way to Duff town in silence when they were in sight of Duff town. Tor recalled the only other time she had been there. It was when she was a little girl for Duff town's annual fair that went on every year their jesters, and games and everyone was so happy, but Tor had not been to Duff town since then for it was no place for a princess, that was always her fathers excuses.

As Tor and her captures rode into the town it was not at all like she had remembered but a sad lonely excuse for a town that was once filled with happy and smiling people.

"What happened here?" asked the very confused Princess.

"Well, our Lord sucked the life out of it when he arrived," answered Flint. Liam turned to Flint and glared.

"Our Lord did not suck the life out of this town it simple died when he got here," said Liam glaring at Flint still.

"Who is your Lord anyway?" asked the Princess.

"You will soon find out," then Liam dismounted his horse, "Flint get the Princess and put her under the blanket I want her to be a surprise. Flint then grabbed the Princess and throw the blanket over her. Tor could tell that this was not going to be good.