Hello lovies! I really like this chapter tell me if you liked it as well or tell me if you absolutely hated it. But review! I only got three reviews last time and thank you to those who did but...yeah. Even if you have some suggestions, tell me. PMs are welcome as well. Anyway... enjoy!
ChapterTwo: Love?
As Elijah leads me up a few flights of stairs and down a couple of hallways, I immediately begin to recognize the path we are taking. I cannot help but feel ashamed to have a complete stranger help me find my way through my castle.
"Hither art we Madam…er I mean Clare." I smile at his efforts of trying his best to not call me Madam Clare. I know this must be a tad difficult for him. He must have been raised to be respectful. But nonetheless, I appreciate the endeavor. I curtsy to this kind young man and give him my appreciations
"Dost thou needest anything else?" Elijah offers politely.
"No that is quite alright, Elijah. Thank you. I'll see you around?"
"I guess you will, Clare." Just as Elijah turns to leave, a boisterous and stern sound was heard behind me.
"Excuse me! Young man!" I recognized the voice and instantly knew that it came from a middle-aged woman with brown hair, dark brown eyes and a strict demeanor. My mother.
Elijah slowly turns back around. I see his expressions filled with confusion and fear.
Why was she doing this?
I began to feel queasy and unsure on what was to come.
"Thou shalt not address my daughter, a princess, by her first name. Thou shalt call her, her majesty or Madam. A servant such as thyself should boweth down to the royal family and show some respect!"
"A thousand apologies, my queen. I swear to all that is pure that it shalt not occur again." And with that said the poor young man bowed down to both my wretched mother and me.
Elijah is very intriguing. Something about him interests me and makes me want to learn more about him. I will not stand around and let my mother treat a possible friend the way she did. It's about someone puts a stop to this unfair tyranny.
"No. Elijah, get up. Mother, do not dare talketh to him that way. He is a human being such as thyself and I. He deserves to be respected as well." Judging by the expression on her face, I would say that my mother seemed pretty shocked and angry at my defiance of orders. She seemed at a loss of words so I turned to Elijah, who was wide-eyed and dismayed, and took his hand.
"Cometh Elijah! Let us go to a place where people art respectful!" I beamed my mother a look filled with fury and walk off with Elijah's hand interwoven in mine.
Something about holding Elijah's hand felt right. I feel safer. I began to get goose bumps at the thought of his large, rough hand embracing my small, delicate one as we are deliberately disobeying the queen's commands. It brings a smile to my rosy-cheeked face.
I led Elijah to the garden. He was quiet on the way there; I guess he was just shocked on the turn of events. I'm grateful that he's still holding on to my hand.
I take a deep breath as I take in the scenery. It's a very large, square garden that is made up of a maze of bushes that are trimmed daily. It's divided into four parts: the red roses, the white roses, the colorful carnations, and the orange lilies. In the center of the garden, there is a huge stone fountain that is about twice my size. The base is round and the fountain has three tiers. At the very top, water pours out and gracefully falls to the base of the elegant fountain.
The whole garden is very majestic. I visit the garden every day after my classes. I sometimes take a stroll and then sit by the fountain with a good book and some tea.
Elijah and I take a seat at a nearby bench. I turn to him and our knees touch. I look down to my hands on my lap so Elijah does not notice my blush forming on my face.
"Listen, Elijah…"
"Just call me Eli." He interrupts. I turn my head back up to his direction. Eli has an expression of regret and I make out an 'I'm sorry' so I reach for Eli's hands and offer him a reassuring smile.
"Alright, Eli. Thanks again for helping me. And I'm sorry about my mother. Lately, she's been taking the whole 'I'm-the-queen-so-do-what-I-say' thing to her head." I say forming air quotes with my fingers.
Eli responds with a smirk that just gives me the tingles. I suddenly realize why I've had all of these feelings of nervousness lately. I like Eli.
I soon realize that I got lost in my thoughts and that there was an awkward silence.
"So Eli, tell me about thyself." I say in order to break the ice.
"Well, I work at the market place, my full name is Elijah Matthew Goldsworthy but my friends call me Eli, and methinks that what thee did was 'tis most splendid." He shot me one of his signature smirks and I instantly melted. I blushed like mad.
"I could not just stand by and let my mother treat thee the way she did." It's true. If it was any other person, I would have probably just let her carry on with her scolding. But with Eli, it was different. I felt a strong attraction to him that I never experienced with anyone else before. Well, I've liked someone before but I've never liked anyone so much.
Could this be love? No Clare! Stop it! I can't feel this way about Eli; he works at the market place for goodness sakes!
Wait a minute…
"If thou work at the market place, then why art thee at the castle?" I asked curiously.
"Uh...well that's because…um…" Eli stuttered and truthfully, it was adorable. I cocked up an eyebrow and smiled. Then suddenly, his face lit up.
"I came to visit my mother. She works at the castle."
"Uh-huh" I said in disbelief. Eli laughed.
"It's true!" He argued.
"Thee hesitated!" I replied loudly. We went into a laughing fit that lasted about three minutes. After we calmed down, Eli was the one to break the silence this time.
"So tell me about thyself, Clare." I smiled before I answered.
"Alright. I'm Clare Diana Martin, I love literature, and I honestly do not wish to be a princess." That last statement caught Eli off guard because I noticed how his eyebrows furrowed together in confusion.
"Can thee keepeth a secret?" I asked him as I leaned in a bit. He nodded his head slowly not absolutely sure if he wanted to know my secret or not. I took in a deep breath before I began.
"I was born into poverty. My mother was married to a man named Randall Edwards. He is my real father. He worked in the mines and my mother stayed home to take care of me because I was still a baby. One day, there was an accident in the mines and it exploded and everyone inside it died; including my father." I said. I began to feel tears appearing in my eyes so I blinked a couple of times to keep them from spilling.
"My mother had to get a job at the castle to maintain us. That's where she met King Martin. They fell in love and they got married when I was about six years old. I don't remember my father very well but my mother has told me all about him. She told me he was a very caring man. I would have loved to meet him. But Glen has been like a father to me. And Jake is the big brother that is always protecting his little sister. I love them both so much. The only problem is that my mother and Glen are making me marry a complete stranger from a different kingdom. What hurts me the most is that they don't care if I'm happy or not. All they care about is what's best for the kingdom. Well my mother once told me that I will always be the most important person in her life no matter what. But ever since the marriage, she's been too busy with the kingdom, Glen, and my half brothers and sisters to even greet me in the morning. She doesn't know what I'm going through because she was never forced into marriage; she married for love BOTH times. I do not find it fair that I get to be put through this."
At this point, tears were racing down my face and I felt embarrassed that
Eli had to see me like this. We just met and I'm already telling him about my past and my dreadful future.
I noticed Eli was at a loss of words so he hesitantly leaned in for a hug. I stretched my arms out to him and embraced him with all the strength I had left in me. It feels good to know that at least someone cares about me.
Thank you for reading. Please review. There's more to come!