Surprise meeting

Some days later the Lady had left with her daughter to have some tea with the Lady's old friend, who had promised to introduce Beatrice to a nice young gentleman she knew. The Lady was of course going to judge whether the boy was good enough to be a husband for Beatrice and Kat had a pretty good hunch that he wasn't, and to be honest she felt pretty relived for the boy as nobody should be misfortunate enough to marry an airhead like Beatrice.

The Lady had of course left Kat an immense list of chores to do. Clean the terrace, wash the curtains and carpets, do the laundry, mop and wax the hall's parquet and get some new silk ribbons from the tailor.

Kat decided to start with the washing as so they could be left to dry outside while she mops and waxes the floors. She took all the curtains and carpets from the manor and took them outside, where the washing bin was waiting. And while she scrubbed the curtains she kept humming the familiar lullaby to herself to pass the time.

After a long time of scrubbing and rinsing she finally left the clean curtains and carpets to dry outside in the warm spring air. She then moved to wash the terrace that had gotten dusty with pollen from the spring flowers and after she had managed to get the sticky pollen off of the floor boards the terrace was finished and clean. After wiping some sweat off from her forehead she went to the well and refilled her bucket full of water and put a little pit of soap in it and then went inside to mop the floor from the hall.

After she had finally finished the mopping and waxing the floor it was already midday and her hands were soaked wrinkly and her stomach reminded her about the disappearance of her small breakfast, that she had eaten hours ago and so she decided that it was time to eat some lunch before heading to the village to get the ribbons the Lady wanted.

She went to the kitchen and took an old roll from the basket full of cold rolls she hadn't had the time to throw away yet and some milk. After eating her small lunch she washed her face and hands from all the sweat and dirt so she was somewhat presentable as she prepared to go to the village where she dreaded to go.

Kat took off her dirty apron and placed it on the table to wait for her when she would return. She then took her old basket and the small amount of money the Lady had left for her to buy the ribbons and she then started to walk towards the village.

As she entered the village she could hear how people started to whisper around her and it always made her feel very uncomfortable as she knew what they were gossiping about. Her. She quickly headed to the tailor shop to escape the mean whispers. And as she entered the shop one could hear the bell chime above the door to indicate that a customer had arrived.

''Hello, how may I help you?'' A sweet old lady asked from behind the counter.

''Some silk ribbons to the Lady Du Bond,'' Kat answered and the old woman's eyes lit up knowingly.

''I have just the thing,'' she said as she went to the back room of the shop and then quickly came back with small black box. She placed the box on the table and opened the lid and inside the box were about twelve different colored silk ribbons that had a nice shine in them.

''I'll take them,'' Kat said, feeling just a tad bit jealous knowing that she will never have anything as nice as those ribbons. Her clothes were all second hand and her boots were for who knows how old.

Kat gave the money to the old lady and then quickly left the shop. She looked around the village and noticed that she still had some time left before the Lady and Beatrice would come back, so she started heading to her favorite shop in the entire village. The book shop.

The book shop's owner Mr. Chase was an old man in his early sixties and was one of those villagers who knew that what the priest said was all just an old man's ravings. And he liked Kat as Kat on her rare free times helped around the shop and so he let her borrow the books from the shop.

Kat walked across the village and entered the old book store.

''Hello, Mr. Chase,'' Kat called among the book shelves.

''Kitty Kat is that you?'' Came an old raspy voice somewhere from the book shop.

''Yes, it's me. Where are you?'' Kat called again as she tried to see between the shelves.

''I'm in between the astronomy and geology,'' came the replay and Kat, knowing the book store better than the back of her hand, weaved through the shelves and found a gray haired slightly chubby short man standing on a ladder while holding a pile of big old books in his hands.

''Why don't I do that before you fall and break your neck,'' Kat said as she placed her basket to the floor and took the books from Mr. Chase, who started to decent the ladder.

''Well thank you my dear. There aren't enough young people around anymore ready to help an old man in need,'' Mr. Chase chuckled as Kat started to climb the ladder and organizing the books on their rightful places.

''That's why you have me,'' Kat said as she placed one book on the shelf.

''Indeed I do,'' Mr. Chase murmured. And after Kat had placed all the books on the shelves, she decedent the ladder to face the smiling Mr. Chase.

''Thank you again my dear. So tell me, what brings you to the village?'' Mr. Chase asked as he guided Kat to the counter of the shop.

''The Lady wanted some ribbons,'' Kat said lifting up her basket she had picked from the floor.

''Of course she did. Next time she wants lace and after that some fancy buttons. I still don't understand why you still live with her when she treats you so poorly,'' Mr. Chase says sympathetically.

''Where else would I go? You can't take me in as you can't afford to keep a second worker in the shop and nobody else in the village wants to hire the 'Daughter of the Devil','' Kat said the last part in a mocking tone.

''Soon they will see that all the priest says is just a drunk man raving for nothing. And how can you be a Devil's child when your birthmark is a pair of angel's wings?'' Mr. Chase snorted. And true to his word Kat's birthmark indeed was a pair of angel's wings on her left wrist. But somehow the priest had everybody convinced that she was the spawn of Devil.

''But for your reward,'' Mr. Chase said snapping Kat out of her thoughts.

''No, really I don't want anything,'' Kat tried to say, but Mr. Chase didn't hear it.

''I just had this. I want you to be the first one to read it,'' he said as he placed a small book on her hands. It was a fairytale book and it looked brand new. The covers were shining red, the pages were snow white and you could still smell the ink from them and the title on the cover was written in beautiful curved golden letters. Kat herself wasn't really one for fairytales as she found them giving her false hope of the better life when her current life was anything but a fairytale, but to please Mr. Chase she was ready to suffer through it.

''Thank you,'' Kat said as she carefully placed the book into her basket.

''You can return it when you come to the village next time,'' Mr. Chase said as Kat started to walk to the door.

''I will, but I have to go now before the Lady comes home and has my head for being late,'' Kat said as she waved goodbye to Mr. Chase and went out of the door.

At the same time on the other side of the village Prince Aidan of the neighboring kingdom of Valora, had come to sign a trading contract with King Kit. And as he had journeyed to the palace, he had seen the small village and had told his escorts to go ahead to the palace while he checked the village. His Captain of course, being a close friend to the young prince, protested against it, but the prince held his ground and finally the escort left him alone.

And as Aidan was riding across the small village he could honestly say he liked what he saw. The people there looked happy and well off and the market itself was very productive. But while he rode his horse through the market place, he could see some young maidens looking at his direction, clearly seeing a rich young man and tried to get his attention by giggling and fluttering their eyelashes thinking that would attract him.

Oh how wrong they were. Aidan hated when girls would try to get his attention purely based on the fact that he was handsome and rich. He was looking for a girl who would feel the need to see beyond the looks and wealth. He wanted someone he could honestly love and who would love him back. One who would truly love him and not his looks, wealth, title or any other little things that did not define who Aidan himself was.

But he was quickly running out of time to find someone like that. His father the King of Valora had instructed him to find a wife in one year or he would choose for him. Aidan knew his father only meant well, but he didn't understand his son. His father had been blessed to meet his mother in a fancy ball, where only so called 'suitable' women were seen. In other words his father had fallen in love with a princess from a small country and their parents had of course approved their union.

But Aidan had seen in his short twenty three years a lot of princesses. And even if some of them were nice and he could say that he had had pleasant conversations with them, they weren't the ones he would want to marry. He desperately wanted his father to take the same approach in thoughts as the King Kit's late father had as the late king had agreed to let his son marry a commoner the young prince loved, instead of the princess that had been deemed suitable at the time.

But while he was deep in his thoughts he had finally passed the last house of the village and an angry bee suddenly stung his horse, which immediately rose to its hind legs making a surprised Aidan fall from its back with a loud shout. But as he fell his left leg got stuck in the stirrup and he got dragged with the horse, who was now wildly galloping away from the village.

Aidan tried to raise his abdomen to get the reins, but every time he got close his horse would pounce so wildly that Aidan would fall once again. Time to time Aidan tried to shout for help, but nobody was around to hear. He then noticed how his horse had run into the forest and Aidan prayed that there weren't any fallen tree trunks lying around, since he would surely hit his head on them if his horse were to jump over one.

But just as he was about to try to reach the reins once again, he saw a gentle pair of hands close themselves around the reins and made the horse stop its wild gallop.

''There you are. You're okay, you're safe,'' a soothing female voice calmed the wild horse, who immediately after hearing it and feeling a gentle hand on its muzzle stopped its trashing. Aidan finally, now that the horse had stopped, managed to get his foot free from the stirrup and fell to the soft mossy ground.

''Are you alright sir?'' He heard the gentle voice ask. Aidan got up from the ground and was about to circle the horse to face his savior, when he noticed the young woman standing right in front of him. And the sight of her made him lose his words.

She was a true beauty. She had long dark wavy brown hair that framed her beautiful delicate face. Her warm brown eyes, that now held a worried look in them, were framed by thick black lashes and her arched brows complimented her eyes perfectly. Her nose was small and straight and her lips, that were pink and full, were slightly parted as to be ready to say something.

One of her delicate yet strong hands held his horse's reins while the other one was on its muzzle to calm it down. She wore a shabby looking green dress that went to her knees and had slightly puffed short sleeves. On her feet she wore a pair of old brown boots and one of the boot's laces was shorter than the others so it wasn't tied all the way up like the other one. But even in her ragged clothes, she was without doubt the most beautiful woman Aidan had ever laid eyes on.

Kat had managed to calm the wild horse down and was now looking worriedly at the man who had been riding it. He had windblown short golden brown hair and on his chin he had a small amount of stubble growing and it surprisingly suited him while other young men in the village preferred to shave. His eyes were icy blue, but they still held a warm undertone in them as they looked at her.

His clothes, a nice royal blue coat with white trousers and shiny black boots, were a bit dirty due to him landing on the ground when he got his foot off of the stirrup, but other than that he looked to be unharmed from the event.

''Are you alright sir?'' Kat repeated the question as the man in front of her just kept staring at her. She knew she didn't look like a very presentable woman, but it would be polite to answer to a question. And just then the man snapped out of his thoughts,

''Ah, yes, I'm fine, thank you my lady,'' the man said to her as he bowed.

''No need to bow to me. I just saw you having some trouble on my way home so I decided to help you. That's something anyone would have done,'' Kat said as she passed the horse's reins to the man who took them.

''And yet you were the first one to help, my lady,'' the man said.

''Don't call me that. I'm not a lady,'' Kat said, feeling a bit embarrassed.

''To me you are. You saved me, I owe you my life,'' the man said. He then started looking around, having a confused look on his handsome face. ''And it would seem I'm in dire need of your assistance once again. I was on my way to the palace, but now it seems I have lost my way. Could you perhaps help me once again,'' the man said. To that Kat gave him a bright smile.

''Of course. I was on my way home and if you'll follow me we can get to my house and from there it is a short trip to the palace,'' Kat said as she walked a bit further from the man and his horse and took her fallen basket, where luckily all its content were still in precise condition and started leading the man out of the forest.

During the trip Aidan kept staring at the beautiful young woman next to him as he held onto the reins of his horse while they walked. He couldn't understand her. She had clearly seen his expensive clothes, his sword and of course she had seen his nicely groomed horse. Yet she didn't try to flirt with him, didn't try to win his affection or try to make him fall in love with her. She just saw him as a person in need of help that she was ready to provide without expecting any payment what so ever.

In his eyes she seemed like an angel, who dropped from the sky when he needed her the most. She didn't try to flaunt her beauty, to be honest it seemed like she was completely oblivious to it, and her pure kindness, one Aidan could honestly say he had never seen before, astonished him. But by the looks of her clothes he could deduct that her life was not the best one, or at least not the richest one, yet she didn't ask any reward which she could most likely use.

''You know if you keep staring me like that you're going to drill a hole onto my head,'' the woman teased him, making Aidan's face flush red with embarrassment.

''I'm sorry, my lady,'' Aidan said.

''It's alright; I'm used to being stared at. And I told you, you don't have to call me a lady,'' she replied as she turned to look at his way while holding a small smile on her lips. And to Aidan that smile was the most beautiful thing in the world. How can this young woman, whose name Aidan didn't even know, affect him this way?

But just when the woman next to him raised her left hand to brush a strand of hair behind her ear, Aidan noticed the strange mark on her wrist.

''Pardon me for asking, but what is that?'' Aidan said pointing at her wrist where the mark was. The woman looked at her wrist and immediately hid it from view.

''It's my birthmark, sir. I'm not very proud of it,'' she mumbled the last part. Aidan stopped his walking and turned to look at the young woman.

''May I?'' Aidan asked as he held his hand so that the woman could place hers onto his. The woman looked a little afraid, but eventually she sighed and placed her left hand onto Aidan's, her wrist facing up.

Aidan looked at the small hand and the wrist and to his surprise her birthmark was a pair of beautiful angel's wings.

''It's beautiful,'' Aidan said as the woman quickly pulled her hand away from view, while looking away from him.

''Yes, well, not everyone agrees with you,'' she said sadly.

''What do you mean?'' Aidan asked confused by the woman's words.

''The village priest saw it when I was just a child and now he has convinced almost everyone that I'm the child of the Devil,'' the woman said sadly and not daring to look at him in the face.

''How can anyone with angel's wings as a birthmark be any relation to the Devil?'' Aidan asked feeling very angry at the priest for spreading such a cruel rumor of this obviously kind woman in front of him.

''Well the priest is getting pretty old and unfortunately he has a bit of a drinking habit. But he has been this village's priest for as far as I can remember, so people believe him,'' she said to him. She then continued the walking, indicating that she doesn't want to talk about it anymore, and to respect her wishes Aidan didn't pry anymore. But inside Aidan was fuming for both the priest and the villagers, who were so oblivious to the priest's drunken talk that they shunned this wonderful woman away from their community purely based on a rumor an old drunk man said.

Kat lead the man out of the forest and from the small distance they could see the Lady's small manor right next to a green hill. They reached the front port, where Kat turns to face the man.

''If you ride this road about half a mile you come to the main road that will lead you to the palace. You can't get lost,'' Kat said pointing towards the small road that passed the manor.

''Again I thank you my lady. I owe you once again,'' the man said as he mounted his horse.

''It was nothing and please don't call me a lady,'' Kat once again said.

''Then what is the name I should call you?'' The man asked.

''Kat. Well Katherine, but everyone calls me Kat,'' Kat answered the man, who started smiling.

''Then I must insist you call me Aidan,'' the man said.

''Aidan,'' Kat repeated, making him smile even wider.

''Kat,'' he said making Kat smile and nod.

''Have a safe ride Mr. Aidan,'' Kat said as she opened the gate to the manor's garden.

''I will, and thank you once again Ms. Kat,'' Aidan said as he started riding the road towards the palace, while Kat went inside the manor to continue her chores before the Lady returns from her tea party.