- Chapter 11 -
"To act, you must know pain. You must know what it means to be in love, what it means to be rejected."
~ Preity Zinta
As the lance of the opponent hit Benjamin's helmet, both Bartholomew's and Balthazar's breath caught up in their lungs.
Bartholomew shifted uneasily on his seat, running a hand to his mouth and letting it stay there a while before taking it off. "What is wrong with him?" he said almost to himself, concern for his older brother was clearly shown on his face.
"Are you certain he was in good condition?" asked Balthazar, mirroring the same concern.
"Oh please," replied Bartholomew. "You talk like you don't know that brother of ours."
"Two lances to none," chimed in Maxim. "Only way for your brother to win is to knock down Lord Vaughan there off his horse."
Both apprentices had been given consent by Merlin to go and see the tournament King Arthur was holding in honor of his coronation anniversary. Balthazar was looking forward to finally see his brother, Sir Benjamin, to joust in a real competition that he used to imagine it was his brother mounted on a horse with a lance when he was still very young, each time their parents would take them to watch. Maxim on the other hand, well, when was the last time he ever set foot on the tournament grounds? It was eight years ago, to be exact. His father would take him, along with his mother. He remembered his father would take him up to sit on the shoulders for him to have a better look. Those were moments he so dearly treasure...It hurts too much he almost wanted to comply to the urge of burning down the entire tournament grounds.
After the opposing riders went back to their respective places for the last go, everyone was silent. It was the round to determine whether who'd be tournament champion. Would it be the more experienced Elliot Lord Vaughan, or the young and talented knight, Sir Benjamin?
The flag was raised, the riders kicked on their horses, and off they were, lances pointing forward. As the opposing riders drew near, no one in the crowd dared to take their gazes off them with their lances. Until finally, when the opposing riders met, Benjamin's lance made a good hit on Lord Vaughan's armor, that the impact was so strong, it was able to unmount said lord. It was done, with the eldest son of Sir Frederick Blake having won, and was then, tournament champion. Applauds and cheering were heard across the grounds.
After the proclamation of champions, Bartholomew and Balthazar went down to congratulate their brother personally, with Maxim just close behind. They found the knight already having his armor removed, and was being tended to by his varlets.
"Ah, there they are!" greeted Benjamin to his brothers. "I was beginning to wonder whether the two of you didn't come at all."
Bartholomew went in first to give his brother a hug before Balthazar, after which, the eldest's attention went to Maxim.
"Well, this must be Maxim Horvath, if I'm not mistaken."
The dark haired teenager gave out a friendly smile. "No, sir. You are not mistaken at all."
All of a sudden, it was as like a long-awaited reunion between the brothers. Just watching the three Blakes, you would think as though they haven't seen each other for years. Well, perhaps in Balthazar's case, it has been indeed a few months, and already, Maxim was already feeling a little out of place. Fortunately, not for long.
His attention, which was having been focused on nothing in particular, had suddenly been taken away by some girl who happened to passed by, and she was all alone. She was a brunette, beautiful blue eyes, lovely face, and by the looks of it, perhaps the same age as he. Also judging by her clothes, she couldn't possibly be some peasant girl. No, it would seem as though she could be a noble. And for no reason at all, Maxim felt a sudden urge of following the girl.
He took off, not minding to let his fellow apprentice to know that he'd be away for a while.
The girl made a left turn behind a tent, Maxim followed still, keeping just enough distance. Not too far, not too close. Until the girl disappeared in making another turn behind another tent. Not wanting to lose the girl that quick, Maxim hurried on in his tracks, half running. When he finally got close to the tent, he heard two voices. One was from a girl, perhaps the brunette herself, and the other was from a teenage boy.
"What do you want?" came the girl's voice.
"I said I wanted to ask permission to court you," answered the boy's voice.
"For a hundred times, I told you already, I don't want to be courted by you," said the girl.
"But why?" The boy was persistent. "It isn't like there is already a certain boy you like."
Out from being hidden, Maxim risked to take a peek to set eyes on the scene. It was the brunette he was following indeed, with a red haired, freckled-face boy. Wait a minute. Red hair...Freckled-face...He knew the boy! It was one of those lads he took on the first time he met Balthazar.
"Whether there is or not, it doesn't matter," said the brunette, irritation clearly shown on her face, and heard in her voice. "I just don't like you, Wiliford. Now if you please, I must be off."
The brunette made off to leave, only to be having stopped by a hand on her arm from the red-hair lad, whom she addressed as Wiliford.
"You don't like most boys," said the lad.
The brunette tired to struggle free from the hold. "Let go, you're hurting me."
"You heard her," said Maxim, stepping out from where he was watching silently from behind a corner. "Let go."
Wiliford's eyes widened slightly, pointing a finger to the dark haired lad who came in the picture. "Wait, don't I know you?"
"Yes, of course you do." To make his point more clearly, Maxim drew out his sword, the hilt glowing in blue light.
"I-It's you!" said the red haired lad. "I remember you! You're that little sorcerer! With the lions!"
"Sorcerer?" whispered the brunette, out of more to herself.
"If you still remember me, then perhaps you know what's coming for you if you don't let go of the girl."
The look on Maxim's eyes was already enough for Wiliford to let go of the brunette and went running off without a second's thought.
As Maxim approached, the girl was still having her back on him, watching the retreating red-haired lad.
"Are you alright, milady?"
Startled a little from hearing a voice so close behind her, the brunette almost jumped from where she stood and turned sharply towards Maxim.
"Oh! Um, yes, yes. I'm alright. His grip wasn't that tight really," she managed to say, gathering up her composure.
Standing just two feet away from the girl, Maxim was able to adore her face more. He found that her eyes were more a sapphire-like blue, and that her face was much lovelier up close. And her lips. He thought that it was the most loveliest lips he ever set eyes upon.
"I must be off now," said the girl. "Thank you."
"Wait, please," said Maxim quickly, just before the girl had any time to turn around. "Can I at least know your name?"
For the first time, the brunette smiled. "Yvonne. My name is Yvonne Mortimer."
"Maxim." The dark haired lad held out a hand. "Maxim Horvath."
The brunette took the hand in a kind handshake. "A pleasure to meet you, Maxim Horvath."
"Pleasure's all mine."
It took a few moments more before Maxim thought of retracting his hand.
"I really must go now," said the brunette once more.
"But will I ever see you again?" asked Maxim, taking a step forward as though having intentions to grab the girl just to let her stay a while longer.
The girl flashed another kind smile. "Chances are very thin on that, but we'll see."
Finally, the girl was able to leave without further interference, leaving Maxim still wondering if ever she'd pass his way again. And in the middle of it all, he suddenly felt a gentle hand on his arm. When he turned to see who it was, he found Balthazar looking up to him.
"What are you doing here?" asked the blond. "You just left without a word, I've been looking for you."
"Apologies," said the older apprentice. "Something just...came about."
"That you even had no time to let me know?" asked Balthazar with a skeptical raised brow.
Shaking his head and placing an arm around Balthazar's shoulders, Maxim made to lead his fellow apprentice away. "It won't happen again, I promise. Now, where are we suppose to be off to?"
On that, the younger apprentice simply gave out a silly smile. "We have to get you a tunic."
"Tunic?" Maxim was puzzled, furrowing his brows. "What for?"
The two made a right turn on a particular tent before Balthazar answered his fellow apprentice.
"We are invited to go to the banquet tonight."
A banquet that night was then held at the royal palace, and the the ballroom was full of nobles, and knights, and most members of the court, including also a few sorcerers nearby. Of course, Merlin would be present there, as with Arthur insisting that his mentor, and good friend, should at least come. Besides, it was also part of the celebration of the coronation anniversary.
"Merlin! My dear friend! I knew you'd come," greeted Arthur to the sorcerer, approaching with open arms.
"Yes, yes, well, it is of the King's orders after all," replied Merlin, welcoming the young king in a warm embrace.
"Nonsense!" said Arthur, pulling back from the embrace, and looked upon the sorcerer once again. "You wanted to come anyway." It was only then that the young King noticed the two boys Merlin was with. "And these must be..."
"Yes, my apprentices," nodded Merlin, turning and gesturing a hand to the boys. "This here is Maxim Horvath, my very first, while the young lad over here is Balthazar Blake, son to Sir Frederick Blake. Boys, show respect to your king."
Both apprentices bowed down slightly to Arthur, both saying in unison, 'your Majesty'.
"I've heard that the two of you are quite a pair," said the young king. "Well, from your master, that is." Arthur jerked a head towards Merlin.
"And indeed they are, I tell you." Merlin raised a finger, as he cast a knowing look towards his apprentices. "Mostly on doing mischief together." Meanwhile, the two apprentices only tried to avoid their master's gaze, both having a hard time not to smirk.
Leaning over to Merlin, as though he was about to tell a secret, Arthur whispered, "Have you seen her yet?" When the sorcerer only looked up to him, he jerked his head towards a particular direction, and said, "She's over there."
Turning towards the direction the young king indicated, Merlin caught sight of a very familiar woman in a black long dress. Who else would it be but Morgana herself.
"So I see," murmured Merlin in a low tone, enough for only him and Arthur to hear.
"It couldn't be help. She'd have to be here either way," was all that Arthur said.
"It's not that I have any problem with it," said Merlin, facing the young king once more, clasping both hands casually behind his back, "but let us just hope and pray that me and her would be able to maintain the peace between us while here."
Arthur only placed an arm around the Merlin's shoulders. "I'll be praying hard then," he said, leading the sorcerer away along with the two apprentices to eat at the banquet.
Most certainly after dinner, the dancing followed, one that which Merlin feared especially with Morgana around. What made it worst was that someone, (he doesn't know exactly who it was), has gotten the idea of letting him dance with a certain lady. Although he really did not want to, for some reason, he was forced to dance. The dance started out rather awkward at first, and was on its way to form some sort of disaster on the dance floor. It would seem as though it was to be a long night for him.
Meanwhile, as their master was busy dancing, (if that's what you want to call it), Balthazar and Maxim was left at one corner of the huge room. Though, between the two, it was Maxim who was quite having a good time in being bored, since Balthazar was having trouble his own with not simply able to shake off the girls flocking around him, asking him how his apprenticeship with Merlin was, how did it all started, and what sort of spells can he do. Also a few more questions that Balthazar would count as rather too personal. Fortunately for the older apprentice, he need not get bored for too long, since the very same brunette from the tournament grounds earlier that day, had come to the banquet herself.
He couldn't be mistaken, Maxim recognized the smile, the eyes, though he had only just met her, and had set eyes on her for not more than a few seconds.
'Yvonne,' he thought.
She was on the move to leave or go somewhere when Maxim felt himself in motion same as well to catch up with the brunette. He eventually got to her when they both got out of the many people gathering. For a moment he doubted whether she could still remember him but he was relieved when she turned to face him and flashed a smile when he called her by name.
"It's you again," she greeted.
"This would seem rather too openly for me to say my thoughts to you but, a small portion of me was hoping I'd see you here," said Maxim, a broad smile on his face, his dark eyes having some kind of spark.
"Truly?" nodded Yvonne, a skeptical look on her face, placing her arms across her chest. "Or perhaps you were following me."
"Well, would you mind if I were?" asked the dark haired lad rather quickly.
Yvonne's smile vanished slowly, as she tried to look for something that would tell her it was just a jest in those brown eyes looking intently at her. She saw nothing else, only that the youth was serious in what he asked of her, it wasn't an entirely bad thing for her though. She had never met a boy so serious with his words when talking with her before, especially when it shows so clearly on his eyes. "You always talk this openly to people?" she then asked.
The lad shook his head, still not taking his gaze off her. "No," was his short answer.
The brunette only nodded.
A long moments of silence then suddenly fell between the two before Maxim was able to ask Yvonne if she would like to go somewhere else. The brunette agreed as they completely left the room, laughing and sharing stories along the way until they found themselves out in the garden under the bright moonlight.
"You did?" Yvonne asked. Her sudden interest with Maxim's stories about his one year as Merlin's only apprentice had eaten the best of her. Especially when the lad told her about the first time he ever set eyes on a real-life dragon, and ended up fighting it, and actually successful in killing it.
"Yes I did," said Maxim, no sign of boasting was in his features, since he was only telling the truth. "I was very afraid at first, but who wouldn't be when facing a dragon?"
"Oh, I would be terrified," Yvonne admitted vaguely, as she walked over to a stone bench and sat on it, looking up to the night sky as though adoring what she was seeing, until she said, "It's beautiful tonight isn't it? The moon..."
Glancing briefly up the moon, Maxim nodded in agreement, but when he set his eyes once more on Yvonne...
"Yes...it is.."
His answer was rather directed on the girl than on the moon itself.
"Ön szép," he then added.
"What?" She looked back to him.
"What?" the lad asked back.
Yvonne breathed out a short and soft laugh before replying. "I was asking you on what were you saying. It didn't sound like it was English."
The lad took in the few steps towards her, only looking a little sheepish. "You're right, it wasn't."
"Then what language was it?" She was looking up intently to him this time.
"Hungarian." He was at least at three feet away from the stone bench.
Though a little surprised in finding out the lad with her speaks a foreign language, Yvonne didn't show it. Instead she asked calmly, "What did it mean then?"
"It means..." Maxim had joined Yvonne on the bench and took a few moments necessary before finishing, "...you're beautiful."
He watched as her eyes widened slightly, and suddenly, he complied to the urge of kissing her on the lips. It was a light touch only and a rather quick kiss, although Maxim had already had his first kiss, he still didn't know how it goes. Yet still, that did not keep him from expressing his feelings for this girl with him that time. Although, having caught sight of the look on her face, he immediately apologized for his action, he even did not just look a little pathetic, but felt like so as well.
"My apologies. I have offended you," he said to her, trying to avoid her gaze. He could have sworn that he felt himself blush. "It's just that, I never felt this way before. I really like you." He listened to himself taking in a deep breath before saying, "In fact, I would like to ask if I could court you."
Yvonne took her time to reply, as she sighed softly. "Oh, Maxim, this is rather too fast, I..." She watched as the lad once again got the courage to look back to her. "It's..you...Listen to me." It took a lot from her to hold his hand in hers. "You are rather sweet, and I've never met any boy like you before, who can make me feel so comfortable with him. But you see..." But it would take a lot more to tell the truth to him. "Maxim, I like you but, I'm afraid I can only...well..." She bit her lower lip for a moment. "I can only offer you friendship."
Maxim felt a twinge of pain inside his chest, one that which he had never felt before.
"I'm sorry," she finally apologized, slowly and softly. "I truly am, but that's just all I have for you."
There was hurt in his eyes, Yvonne saw it, and she only watched still as Maxim took in breaths as though he was having trouble breathing at all. Suddenly, he stood up from the bench, bowed to her and said, "I'm sorry if I wasted your time, milady." Then he walked off into the night, not even looking back to her.
Yvonne was left with thoughts of guilt, and feeling of pity. What more could she have possibly done? She only said the truth. And on most times, the truth hurts.
Perhaps he expected his fellow apprentice to be there in that place somehow, but what really surprised Balthazar was the havoc Maxim made.
The trees were either burned or chopped down. There were a few burned bodies of birds and squirrels around, but the real terrifying sight was looking into those dark eyes.
Approaching with great caution, Balthazar asked the obvious to his friend, "Has something gone terribly wrong?"
The older apprentice's response to that was an angry shout, lifting his sword with both hands, the hilt glowing in a blue light, and a swung of the blade of the sword on the trunk of a nearby tree, causing a great amount of energy flow into the tree, and letting the tree lose its entire leaves, from the twig to branch, its wood had turned into a deep black color.
"I'll be taking that as a 'yes'," said Balthazar, as he reached Maxim within a two feet distance. He considered his brother-by-bond very carefully, and took note of the tears in those once so horrible dark eyes. "Will you at least tell me about it?"
Maxim shook his head. "It's nothing."
"Then why are you crying?" insisted Balthazar, stepping in much closer.
"I am not doing so!" denied Maxim, wiping the tears on his eyes with a closed fist. When he turned to Balthazar, he took note of the skeptical look the blond gave him. "Fine! I've made a fool out of myself because of a girl! You happy now, Lord Blake?"
In shock of how his best friend addressed him, Balthazar bowed his head, stormed over behind Maxim, and tried pushing the older apprentice forward as though indicating to walk away.
"What are you doing?" asked Maxim, his expressions turned into puzzlement.
"Let's to the castle and let us forget that this ever occurred!" came the blond's shouting reply.
It was Maxim's turn to be in a bit of shock. Balthazar didn't just shout angrily at him, the blond was already crying behind him.
"Forget about the damnable girl and everything else and so will I!" shouted the ten-year-old blond once more. "I never want to see you this way again!"
As Maxim turned around sharply, Balthazar didn't even had time to realize what was happening. But the next thing he knew, his older brother-by-bond was crushing him in a tight embrace, and he heard those words were said with a shattered voice, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I am so sorry."
That was the very first time Balthazar Blake heard Maxim Horvath sobbed.