WHAT UP!

So sad, that last chapter huh? This will probably be the last sad chapter before things get interesting and a certain someone returns ;).

Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to Austin & Ally or The Princess Bride by William Goldman

Chapter 3

Prince Dallas's Proposal

Time seemed to pass much slower for Ally since she received that letter; the letter that turned her whole world upside down.

Every day it was the same routine, get up, try to eat breakfast and then set about on her chores. Once those were done, her mother would sit her down for a cup of tea and lunch, but she still would only pick at it. The rest of the day was either spent riding her horse, Seelie, or in her room, just staring at the ceiling. For months, that was her routine and it got to the point where Ally couldn't handle it anymore.

All she wanted was for Austin to walk through the door of her room and tell her that the note was wrong and take her in his arms and kiss her until they were both gasping for air. But, reality set in quick and reality was a cruel, cruel mistress to please.

Thankfully, before she could do anything to really harm herself, her parents had finally sat down with her and talk to her about her situation. Talking through it did help Ally, but in the long run, it didn't change how she felt. She wasn't going to marry anyone else besides Austin and so resigned herself to living on the farm. They didn't approve at first, but understood how hurt their daughter was by this whole situation. So, they didn't fight her on it and life returned to normal on the small farmhouse.

That is until a certain royal decree was made on Ally's 19th birthday.

It was a lovely, sunny summer day when Ally and her mother ventured to the town market only a few miles from their home. They came to the market to sell their wares and look for some new pots and pans as her father had burned all of them trying to cook, again.

"Honestly," Penny said as she looked through multiple copper pots and pans. "I love your father, I truly do, but if he touches my stove again, I'm going to hit him with that burned up pot! That was wedding gift from my mother as well as my favorite!" She huffed as she continued looking through the vast array.

Ally simply laughed at the way her mother often talked about her father, but it was still laced with affection, no matter what. She sighed as an unwanted thought entered into her mind.

I had that same relationship with Austin. She thought, trying to hold back tears. She shook her head and managed to hold them back.

No, I can't think like that! I closed my heart off to that feeling and I have to keep it closed, no matter the place or time. With that, she returned to helping her mother shop for new cookware. She picked up the hem of her skirt and quickly trudged through the muddy streets. There had recently been a heavy rain and the grounds had become squishy and she didn't want to ruin her dress with mud stains. They were a pain to clean out of cotton.

They had finished the day by stopping by a small trade booth that they frequented quite often. Penny placed a bag of root vegetables and milk on the counter and a woman came up from the back. She seemed to be in her mid-30s, same as Penny, and had long brown hair that she kept pinned up on the back of her head.

"Well, good morning Penny, I see you brought quite a haul with you today." The woman said as she stared at the counter. She picked up a parsnip and lifted it to her face to examine it.

"I promise you, Maggie, they're fresh. In fact, we picked them fresh this morning." Ally said as the older woman looked at her. Maggie gave a small smile as she placed the parsnip back on the counter.

"I don't doubt that Ally, but I'm running a business and I need to look professional." She explained. "If everyone knew I gave discounts to my friends, I'd be out of business." The three women laughed and then returned to their deal.

"So, Maggie," Penny started. "I need a good set of cookware, caste iron or cooper, if you have them." Maggie gave her a look before lifting her eyebrow and smirking.

"Lester tried cooking again?" Penny and Ally both nodded their heads in shame. They both wished that Lester would wait for them instead of trying to set their small house on fire. They had already gone through almost six pairs of cookware this year. "Lucky for you, I do have a set of pristine cooper cookware, just came in yesterday." And with that she headed towards the back of the shop to retrieve the cookware.

"Well," Penny said. "Lucky we are indeed, otherwise we would have been eating raw vegetables for God knows how long." Ally giggled a little at that, but became distracted by the gathering of people around the notification board.

It mostly consisted of young woman, little girls and their mothers, so Ally paid no heed to it. If she knew anything, it was probably about some new fabrics or scents coming from the orient or some other far off country. When she heard the high pitched screaming, giggles and then each grabbing another to head of somewhere, she rolled her eyes and turned back to her mother. Maggie had returned with the cookware and set it down for Penny to examine. Her mother was ridiculously meticulous when it came to looking for imperfections. Finally, she let out a smile as she set the pot and pan back on the counter.

"Alright, Maggie, what will it be for the set?" Maggie had a thoughtful look on her face as she contemplated the price.

"I think I'll take the gallon of milk, 10 potatoes and 5 parsnips. That should cover me for the coming harvest festival. I know your vegetables sell out fast around that time." Penny gave a little giggle and shook hands with Maggie to seal the deal.

She handed over what Maggie wanted to her and then placed the cookware in her basket.

"Alright then, let's head on home. Dad must be done with the morning chores and is looking for some lunch by now." Ally told her mother, who shook her head in agreement. With that, they left the bustling market place and headed home.

Along the way, Ally seemed to notice some stares from other girls pointed towards her. They weren't exactly friendly stares to say the least. In fact, they looked like they wanted to attack Ally with a sharpened dagger right through the heart. This didn't faze Ally as she continued behind her mother and back to the farmhouse.

The rest of the day went by as usual, lunch was made and then they each went about their daily chores. After feeding the animals and weeding the garden, Ally had decided to call it a day. Seeing that her parents were distracted, she decided to sneak out to the flower field for a quick moment. She needed some peace of mind and time to herself.

She walked through the forest area to the field, a feeling of nostalgia and sadness washed over her as she stared at the marigolds flowing in the wind. She grabbed a handful of them and proceeded to walk towards the edge of the field and the forest. She knelt down next to a large oak tree and looked up. There carved into the trunk was a heart that had the simple, but sweet 'A+A'. This was their tree, where they had spent many a lovely afternoon together.

One particular afternoon, Austin had decided to surprise her with a picnic lunch. She was 16 and he was 17 and it had been a birthday picnic. Her eyes began to water as the memory began to play in her head.

Austin had his hands over her eyes, but Ally was still able to see a little through the cracks in his fingers. She trusted him, but this was taking it up a little.

"Austin, would you please tell me where you're taking me?" Ally asked as she felt him guild her over a fallen tree. Austin just smiled and said.

"Nope, I told you it's a surprise and a surprise means keeping your eyes closed and trusting me." He felt the movement of her eyes rolling.

"Alright, but I'll warn you now, if you try anything funny, my father does have access to various amounts of poisons." She said, trying to joke with him a little. Luckily, she got a laugh out of him.

"Duly noted." He said and continued guiding her down to their destination.

After a while, Ally felt Austin halt their movements and lean down towards her ear, his slightly long hair brushing against her cheek.

"Alright, we're here, but I want you to keep your eyes closed until I say to open them. Okay?" Ally shook her head in agreement, but Austin didn't remove his hands until her felt her eyelashes brush against his hands.

Making sure her eyes were closed, he moved away from her and towards her surprise.

"Okay, open your eyes." He said and Ally's eyes not only opened, but grew a little larger as well. Her mouth dropped open at what she saw before her.

Austin had gone the distance with a romantic, candlelight picnic for just the two of them. He was standing there with two goblets and a bottle of her father's home grown wine. She moved towards Austin and wrapped him in her embrace, her head resting on his chest.

"Did you really do all this just for me?" She asked and he shook his.

"There's no else I would rather do it for." He said as he moved to sit them both on the blanket, Ally still embracing his waist as he did. "Now, let's crack this bottle open and start celebrating your birthday." He handed her a goblet and poured some wine into each. Ally couldn't believe that he would do this for her, but she was happy that he did.

The afternoon was spent talking, eating, drinking and kissing…lots of kissing. Finally, they decided to pack up and head back for the farm. However, Austin stopped, looked towards the tree and a smile crept onto his face. He took out the small knife he kept on his person and began to work. Ally had stopped when she realized he wasn't following her and looked back to see what he was doing. She saw him kneeling on one knee with him knife in his hand and raised an eyebrow in curiosity. She leaned over his shoulder and he looked up at her with a smile on his face. He moved away from the tree to show her what he had done and she soon smiled as well. She leaned over and rested her head against his chest.

"Thank you, Austin." She said.

"For what?" He asked.

"Everything."

That memory will always be her favorite and this tree was when she had truly realized just how much she loved Austin. Now she visits this tree every year on her birthday as a way to honor that memory. She had made it into a makeshift grave for Austin, since they didn't have a body, and she would just sit there for hours, remembering happier times.

"I know you would want me to move on," She said. "But, I just can't. Austin, if you can hear me, then know that you'll always be the only man I will ever love. I know you also wouldn't want me saying this, but I look forward to the day when we will be reunited. I just miss you so much and every day, it only gets harder to wake up and live my life without you in it. I just want you to remember that I will always love you and only you for the rest of my days." And with that she stood up, kissed the carving and began her walk back to the house.

When she got back, however, she was met with a surprise. Standing outside her house were about 10 armored men and horses, some carrying flags with the crest of the royal family on it. Why were royal knights standing outside her humble home? What business did they have with her family?

She walked through the back entrance to her house and came face to face with none other than the prince of her country; Crown Prince Dallas. He and her parents were seated around the kitchen table as she stopped in the doorway. All three heads turned towards her as she stared back.

"Mother, father what's going on?" Ally cautiously asked. Her father got up and motioned for her to sit down.

"Ally, the prince has some news for you that we would like for you to hear out." He explained as she sat down. Ally came face to face with the prince as she waited.

"News that I believe will change your life forever." The prince said. "I, as the future king, have come to the age where it's time for me to settle down and find a wife. Unfortunately, no woman of royal or noble blood has come close to being my ideal match. They all want the same thing; the title, money, never for just me." He explained. This was making a little to no sense at all to Ally.

Wasn't it almost a requirement for a prince to marry a princess or a woman of noble blood? His parents must have introduced many eligible young women for him, yet he turned all of them down? Frankly, Ally felt a little uneasy at the direction this conversation was going.

"So, recently the counsel and my father agreed to change the stupid rule that nobility must marry within the nobility. It is now my decision and my decision alone as to whom I will call my queen." Dallas got up from his seat and dropped to the floor on one knee. Ally breath caught in his throat, her mother not far behind her as the prince took hold of her hands. "Ally, I have watched you from afar and I have grown to love and adore you and now I come here, not as the prince and future king, but as a man hopelessly in love to ask you to be my bride." It suddenly had become very hard to breath and the room had turned stuffily hot. A thousand thoughts were running through her head, but one stuck out through them all.

Run and run she did.

She jumped out of her chair, ran through the house and back to her room. She splashed her face with cold water to calm her down and finally, sat on her bed, her head in her hands. None of this made sense to her. How could the prince just suddenly appear out nowhere and propose to her of all people? There were other girls more willing than her that would kill to become queen, so why her?

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of her door opening and her mother and father coming in. She stared at them and they at her for a while until her father spoke and what came out was not what she wanted to hear.

"Ally, we would like for you to accept the prince's proposal." Ally immediately felt her anger begin to rise. She stood off her bed as she almost yelled at her father.

"Accept his proposal?! Why when you agreed that you wouldn't force me to marry another? I gave my heart to one man and he was taken from me. I will not let another try and take his place!" She felt the tears begin to form in her eyes and her mother moved to embrace her to try and calm her down.

"Ally, we know Austin is the only one in your heart," Her mother said as she held her. "But, he would want you to move on, find some form of happiness instead of sitting around here feeling sorry for yourself. Think of your own happiness instead of your grief."

"If not for yourself, than do it for your home." Her father said and that got her attention. She raised her head from her mother's chest and looked her father straight in the eye.

"What do you mean 'for my home'?" Her father simply hung his head in despair. "Is something wrong with the farm?"

"The soil is beginning to dry up which means a drought isn't far behind it. If we don't find some kind of support for the ground, we may lose our home." Now she felt the guilt beginning to build inside her.

Her parents left her with that on her mind and a thousand thoughts were running through it as well. She felt like she was backed into a corner with no way of escaping and now she had to seriously think.

If she accepted the proposal, would that mean she was betraying Austin? Would she eventually learn to love Dallas and have a life with him? Accepting would also mean leaving her home and becoming a part of the royal lifestyle. She wasn't the kind to sit in a large, ornate room on a throne dressed in fancy silk dresses and listen to diplomats or sit among court ladies and talk about God knows what. Another part would be any children she and Dallas might have together. Could she love those children like they needed to be or would she see them as mistakes and leave them to nannies to raise?

She spent many hours thinking over the pros and cons of this proposal and finally came to a decision. She and her family were brought to the castle and stood in front of not only the prince, but the king and queen as well.

"Well, Ally, do you have an answer for the prince?" A young page boy asked her. She sucked a breath in and answered.

"Yes, I do. After much consideration, I have decided to accept your proposal." The entire throne room erupted into cheers and many came to congratulate the newly engaged couple, but inside Ally was thinking something else.

I may have accepted the proposal, she thought, but I will never love you. I made a promise to love one man and I will keep that promise. What I'm doing, I'm doing for my family.

Just your average royal marriage; a marriage based on gaining and power, not true love, but it wasn't meant to last.

Across the sea in a Spanish port, a man dressed all in black boarded a small fishing vessel and began his long journey.

"I'm coming back; Ally and I promise to never leave you again."

DUN-DUN-DUUUUUUUN some major drama is about to go down in here! Remember to review, like and follow for the next chapter.

Thanks and remember, stay ROSSOME!