A/N: Hey guys! I'm back after I don't know how long! I'm so sorry! Work and school has been stressing me out so much lately, I haven't even had time to deal with family matters yet. Ugh! Anywho! Time for what y'all came here for. So here it is. Chapter 3. The Old & the New.
Chapter 3
The Old & the New
Gregorio rose the next morning, expecting the teen to be sleeping when he awoke. To his surprise she was up, cleaning and feeding the horses. Plunging the towel into the pale of water, she smiled at him. "Good morning, Gregorio. How did you sleep?" She said wiping down the horses neck. "I slept well.. And you?" He said going over to the horses and her. "Oh I slept wonderfully. I had an amazing dream. We were in Florence and we owned a house of our own and we could go wherever we wanted and we had our own horses to take care of and get around the town with. I loved it. It was amazing. If only that had actually happened." She explained with a painful smile.
He smiles at her 'Every day she reminds me of my daughter more and more… I miss you Teresa..' Sighing he goes over and pets the horse that has already been washed, them grazing on the grass available around them. "How long have you been up, Amythist?"
"Oh just an hour I believe." She said wiping the horses back down with the water that she got from a local pond. "I see. Well. Once you are done with the horses, please saddle that one up to start pulling the carriage again. We are only a few towns away from Florence." He said going to the harness for the horses, putting one by the pale for Amythist. Going over to the grazing horse, Gregorio tried to pick the horses head up with no success. "Come on.. I'll buy you apples in the city. Just please. Let me put this harness on you." The old man said to the horse in hopes to coax the horse into cooperating. The horse looking at him, with a neigh he put his head up reluctantly, letting his owner put the harness on him and tie him to the carriage.
Gregorio going into the carriage straightening a few things up, by the time he is done his housekeeping Amythist is finished washing the horse and is tying the horse to the carriage. Amythist rushing over to Gregorio, helping him down the stairs of the carriage. "Thank you, my dear." The older man said, smiling at her. "We should get going before the sun reaches its peak." He continued after climbing up onto the driving bench. Amythist looked around as she hoisted herself up next to the older man. "So… what town are we going to be peddling in today, Gregorio?" Amythist said playing with the leather reins, inspecting the craftsmanship on it. "A little town named Gimignano. I have been there once before a few years ago, before you were born darling." Gregorio replied looking at the handmade map that was resting in his lap. Amythist smiled at herself as she looked ahead of the horses. "I love small towns and villages." She said snapping the reins once more as the horses began to slow down. "Everyone is very nice and at ease, I have realized that that was the same thing in all these towns that we have peddled in." She continues, glancing over at Gregorio, waiting for his direction. With a point by his trembling hand, she turned down a dry, dusty road headed toward Gimignano.
"So, Gregorio, you said your reasoning for going to Florence was your wife, may she rest in peace. I understand if you do not wish to talk about your late wife with a teenager." Amythist said playing with her hands, Gregorio having taken the reins a while back down the road. "No worries Amythist, my dear. I do not mind talking about my wife. She was an amazing woman.." He started off.
"Her name was Paoula. She and I met in the market. I was just starting out as a peddler and she approached my stand. From the moment I saw her I knew there was something different about her. She ordered almost everything on my stand. She had me help carry it back to her house that I happily did for her. She had the most beautiful blue eyes, which my daughter, Teresa, took on. I came to her house the next day with a flower and asked her out with her father's permission, of course. I took her to an Italian place in her home town, where I was peddling at the time. We talked till the wee hours of the night. She told me all about how she wanted to travel to Italy and Spain and all these different countries. I listened to her.. I was not much of a talker when she and I were out on dates. I would just listen in amazement at her imagination. She would also talk to horses and say little words to objects that did not move." He said smiling at the memory, his eyes watering. "I set up a permanent stand at the local market and I stayed in her town for a while. She eventually got bored there. She always did that… She would get bored and then want to move. Luckily my job could move. Literally. Her family let her come along with me, well… She was in her twenties so she could do as she pleased. I did not want to upset her parents because I would have to ask for her hand in marriage one day." He smiled. Looking down at his wrinkled hands, he continued. "She was very beautiful. She was also about the height that you are. She had gorgeous blue eyes. She was also lighter skin than I. Hair as dark as mud on a rainy day." He smiled and laughed. "She would hit me for saying that if she were here. When she and I were traveling around she slipped and fell in mud and did not know some had gotten into her hair until it had dried" He smiled and chucked again.
"Her and I did most everything together until we returned to her home town when her mother fell ill." His tone quickly changing somber. "Her mother started losing hair, becoming weaker as the days passed. The doctor had quickly realized that she would not live much longer. Paoula wanted to stay in the city until her mother had passed. I agreed, figuring it would mean a lot to her, which it did. Her mother was an amazing woman. Always caring for her family. I asked her for her daughters hand in marriage and she was most happy when I asked. After she said yes I asked her father. He smiled and said "Your better protect her, son. She will be a good house wife. She will do you well, Gregorio. I have knives. I am not afraid to use them if someone hurts my daughter. Remember this and you may marry my daughter." I then went out to find the most appropriate ring for my dear beloved Paoula." He continued, as the teen was leaning on his slumped shoulders, the sun setting on the horizon. "I then asked for the honor to marry her in front of her mother as Paoula had asked.. She said yes and I gladly gave her the ring that I thought had suited her. Her mother passed a few nights later." With a sigh he looked at the leather reins in his hands, Amythist looking at him. "I am sorry for your loss. I am sure that she was a wonderful mother." She said as she leaned back onto his shoulder. "So… after you and Paoula had the ceremony what happened then..?" Her sounding intrigued in the older man's life.
"Well... We stayed in her home town. I did not mind that because the was well there. She wanted to settle down, have a family and stay with her father. We had our own house by then. It was not a big home but it suited us and our little family well, it was also only a few steps away from her father, which she was glad about. I'll never forget the day she told me that she was carrying my child. It was the happiest day of my life. When she was carrying my child I did everything I could for her. Most men would not have, it was a women's job to take care of her being with a child. Also we did not have the money for a doctor and a midwife for her. She loved carrying my child she would always say that it was like she had a part of me always with her. When child birth came I had helped her through the process but a doctor said that he would help with not much cost. A few hours after sun down my little girl came. She was so pretty. She looked just like her mother. Aside from her skin color I would not have known it to be mine." He chuckled lightheartedly. His tone of voice changed to somber. "When my daughter was 14 years of age when she started to vomit and her head felt as if it were on fire. She passed away a few months later… I miss both of them…" Gregorio wiped his tear stained cheek with his shaking hands. Amythist looked at him, taking the reins cautiously, not wanting to upset him more. "I am sorry for your loss Gregorio…" The teen said looking down, her feeling bad for a man and his wife to lose their child.
Gregorio looked at the dirt being kicked up by the horse. "Thank you Amythist. If you do not mind I do not wish to talk about that anymore…" She looked down nodding. "My apologies for bringing the subject up my friend…"
"Do not be Amythist. You were simply curious to my life. I do wish to hear about your life in return."
She looked down, sighing. "I do not wish to tell you currently. I will tell you when the time is right. I do apologize, you have told me so much about your life and I have not shared any of mine."
"No. It is quite alright Amythist."
"Okay… It seems as if we are close to Florence, no?"
Gregorio surveyed their surroundings. "It seems as if the city's walls are not too far from our position. We should set up for the night. It is getting quite dark."
"Okay Gregorio. I will tie up the horse and feed her. In the morning we will start heading into Florence correct?"
The man simply nodded in return, pulling back on the reins, the horse came to a stop. Amythist hopped off of the steering bench and onto the ground. Unhooking the horse from the carriage, she tied him up to a near tree, giving her food and water. After a pat on the horses back, Amythist walked toward the back of the carriage, getting out the blankets and pillows. Gregorio helped her lay them out for them to sleep on, both of them lying down on the pad underneath the blankets. After good nights were exchanged Amythist began to wonder how her country had dealt with her disappearance.
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"What do you mean gone?! My daughter cannot simply disappear she has no black magic to my knowledge! She must be around the castle or its surroundings. Check EVERYWHERE! I want no crack, nor crevasse unsearched! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?!" The king barked at the soldiers, them responding in a shout of "Yes, Sir."
"Why must you yell dear?"
"Because I am the king and I will do as I wish and our daughter is missing and today was supposed to be her wedding to Prince Mihale. Her coronation is tomorrow! You do not seem concerned one bit! I do not wish to rule this land till I find myself my own grave!"
"I am concerned Richard! My own daughter is missing as we yell at each other! I did not plan this and neither did you! We had hoped our daughter would not turn out to be such a hassle to deal with. We were not that fortunate. We were cursed with a selfish daughter."
"She is YOUR daughter."
"We both made her. I cannot take all of the blame on her disappearance."
With a huff the king stormed off to his chambers, the queen starting to pace by the door, questions rolling through her mind as if it were the guest list for the coronation. The maids and butlers rushed around, taking down the wedding decorations in the palace. A maid confiscating a bottle of wine from Mihale, cursing and yelling at no one in particular. The servants secretly wishing Amythist would come back so the chaos would subside back to its normal levels, no one piping up their opinion, scared that they would be scolded for thinking such thoughts.