~A/N –I'm so sorry it's delayed by all these years! I decided I wanted to get Harold's Point of View told. (Also… I am sorry it took me so long to update… But worth the wait I hope?)~
Chapter 9: Without Lillian
(2 days earlier…)
Harold stared blankly ahead of himself. He watched as Lillian was taken away from him. He couldn't help but feel as if a piece of his heart was taken with her. Harold sighed as Lillian and all the king's horses and all the king's men were out of his sight.
"Lillian... You own my heart… Don't forget about me love…"
He swallowed hard. His heart hurting as he took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. Never in his life had he felt such a heart break. Never in his life had he felt so helpless… Even as a frog, Harold felt hopeful that one day he would become human again. Now… Would he ever see Lillian again? Would his heart ever heal? He sighed again, what was he going to do now?
Harold jumped as Xander came up behind him and pushed him gently with his snout. He turned to the gentle horse and looked into his eyes. They both didn't know why the King was so harsh to him. Xander's eyes told him that he too missed his always loving master. The horse had grown up with Lillian after all… Now he had been left behind like Harold.
Harold patted him and cleared his throat, "I… I'm not sure what to do next," He hoped up on the Xander's back and turned him toward Sethen. "We should go back to the place where they will miss us if we don't show up…" Before hitting the reins, Harold looked one more time to where he had last seen Lillian.
"Ohh Lillian…" He shook his head and headed toward Sethen, trying to decide how to get Lillian back.
Harold arrived to Sethen a half hour later. He had thought long and hard about what to do about Lillian and… nothing had come to his mind. If he went and barged over to Jarithen, they will kill him… or Lillian. Shaking his head, he put Xander back in the barn where he had been staying and he was happy to have some water and hay.
He walked up the stairs to the hotel with a heavy mind and heart. Opening the doors, he was confronted by his new friends.
"Harold!" Clifton cried from behind the clerk desk. Mary gasped and ran over to him and gave him a big hug.
She said, "Oh Harold, we were so worried about you guys!" She let him go and he could clearly see her puffy red eyes. "We heard shouting and we couldn't find you guys! Cedric told us someone was looking and shouting for Lillian!" Harold didn't say a word just looked away from her eyes and sighed.
Clifton ran over to them as well, "Wait! Where is Lillian?" They both looked around for her but, of course, they did not see her. Even when Clifton ran over to the door frantically looking for her, he came up empty handed.
Harold shook his head, "They took her." Mary gasped again.
"Who took her Harold?"
His fists clenched in anger as he answer her question, "Her father took her. He came and… Just took her away!" He punched the wall next to him. "That bastard! He is going to make Lillian marry a man she doesn't love all because he wants her to get married so she can take over when he dies! It's ridiculous!" Harold fumed more, ranting about the king and how much he hated him. Only Lillian knew how to keep him calm when he became angry. Now Lillian was taken away from him. How he loathed her father!
Mary and Clifton exchanged looks. They had never seen Harold that upset before. Finally Clifton went over to him and tried to calm him down.
"Harold! You need to calm down!" He grabbed him by the shoulders. "Harold! … Harold! It's going to be alright!"
He took a deep breath and brushed Clifton away from him, "I… I need to think of a way to get her back without putting her in harm's way," He looked Clifton in the eyes. "I love her."
Clifton patted him on the shoulder, "I know you do Harold, but right now you need to rest, you have been through a lot today," Harold nodded and took a deep breath, picturing Lillian's face helped him to calm down more than Clifton was. "Mary is almost done with dinner, why don't you join us? We can talk about what to do over her famous chicken!"
Mary went into the kitchen to check on her chicken, it had been in there for a while. Harold sighed for the 100th time that day and looked at Clifton, "Thank you, but I'm going to go to bed… I want to pretend this day never happened."
With that said, Harold walked up the stairs to the room that he and Lillian had shared leaving a disappointed Clifton behind. On his way up the stairs, he tried not to think of her. But it became impossible as he remembered the first time they walked up the stairs together… The first time they held hands… The first time they smiled at each other… The first time they kissed…
He groaned to himself as he opened the door and went slowly inside. The empty room made him miss her all the more. He could picture her as if she was right there, sitting on the bed, smiling at him as he entered the room.
Sighing, again, he shut the door softly behind him. Harold had felt defeat before, many times in fact, but he never felt so defeated that if he laid down on the bed, he would never get up. But he made his way over to the bed and held Lillian's pillow close to him.
This pillow smells like her…
A tear rolled out of Harold's tired eyes as he tried to think of a plan to get his beloved back to him. He had to think of a plan.
I can't put her life at risk… But I am going to find a way to get Lillian back. I've lost so much in my life… I will not allow Lillian to be on that list! He closed his eyes and wiped away his tears. Even if that means dying in the process…
He looked at the clock, it read 3:56 pm. Harold rolled over so his back was facing the alarm clock. He didn't care what time it was, he wished he didn't have to see the time. He wished all he could see was Lillian.
Closing his eyes tight, he kept opening his eyes and closing them again, wishing that would help wake him up from his nightmare. It only made him sleepy. He needed to make a plan and save her… maybe his dreams would help him. Dreams of Lillian filled his head as he fell into a deep sleep.
(1 day until the wedding)
"Harold!" Lillian ran to him, away from her father and all those making her marry the knight that didn't' deserve her. Running as fast as she could to her one true love. The only one in the world that mattered to her.
"Lillian!" Harold ran to Lillian and reached out to hold her in his arms. He ran as fast as he could to his true love, just for a chance to hold her in his arms again and show her how much he truly and deeply loved her.
Lillian reached for him too and they embraced as if they hadn't seen each other in years. They fell to their knees, holding each other dearly and close, never wanting to let go. Lillian started to cry and held on to Harold as if her life depended on it. Harold held her while she cried and he even cried with her. He didn't care if they were holding each other in the middle of the street, he felt as if he and she were the only ones in the world.
He lifted her chin and kissed her passionately and he felt her smile against his lips. Harold put his forehead to hers and said, "Lillian, I love you with my whole heart."
She cupped his face in her hands and kissed him on the nose. Lillian looked him deep in his eyes, smiling as she said, "I love you with my whole heart Harold," She hugged him tightly and threw her arms around his neck. "Come and rescue me Harold."
He hugged her back, "I'm coming Lillian… I'm coming to rescue you."
Harold woke up and shot up out of bed, falling to the ground and making a loud thud. Groaning, he sat up from the floor and quickly looked to the left side of the bed to see if Lillian had been there. But, as he feared, it was only a dream. He hasn't been with her for an entire day now.
Sighing, he laid back down on the cold floor and stared at the ceiling. Being with Lillian was the best thing that had ever happened to him. He not only became human again with her help, but for the first time in his life, someone looked past his appearance and saw the real him. The Harold that was more than just a frog and the Harold that was more than just a prince. She saw his heart and loved him for who he was.
Lillian, I can't just let you go…
He went back on top of the bed and pulled the covers over his head. Life wasn't worth living without his one true love, so he didn't want to face the world without her.
Suddenly, someone burst through the door. Harold threw the covers off his head as his heart began racing. He sighed again when he saw it was only Clifton, Alys, Cedric and Mary. They all were staring at him as the piled through the door to stand in front of his bed, arms crossed.
He laid back down, "Well… What a nice awakening. Good morning," He rolled his eyes, facing his back to them, bringing the covers back over his head. "Now if you would kindly leave. I do not feel much like visitors."
Cedric grabbed the covers off of his head and at the same time, Mary opened the window shades, and Alys chewed her gum and blew a few bubbles. Harold winced at the sudden light and quickly covered his eyes with his hands.
"Harold," He looked at Clifton with one eye, allowing it to become use to the light. Clifton still had his arms crossed and had one eye brow raised. "What are you doing Harold?"
Harold rolled his eyes, "What does it look like I am doing?"
Cedric crossed his arms and stood next to his older brother, "Sitting in a deep dark hole called depression." Clifton nodded along with Mary, who was still standing by the window.
Harold nodded, "Exactly. Kindly leave me in my depression." He rubbed his eyes one more time and looked at the small alarm clock on the bed stand. It was one in the afternoon. Have I really been sleeping for that long? He shook his head and looked at his friends once more. They looked at each other with concern.
Clifton gestured for his wife to go and talk to Harold next, thinking she would be able to get to him more than he or Cedric.
Mary nodded and sat next to Harold on the bed. Her kind eyes looked deep into his, "Harold, you shouldn't be depressed! You were right to want to think of a plan to get her back. Why don't we think of something together?" Harold sighed heavily and wiped a tear that fell out of his eye quickly before anyone saw. He was just feeling hopeless that the tears came naturally. "We want to help you!" Clifton and Cedric nodded at her statement. Alys sat next to her sister-in-law on the bed and patted Harold on the back. Mary smiled sweetly at him and put a hand on top of his in a friendly manner. They wanted to stand by Harold no matter what.
Harold looked into each of their kind eyes and saw that they truly wanted to help him. They wanted to help him get his Lillian back! Maybe Lillian isn't the only one to care about me anymore… After their time with the four young people that worked at the hotel, they had become quick and close friends with all of them.
"You'd… You'd really help me get her back?" He sighed again. "I'm not going to lie to you… Not only is it a long journey back to Jarithen, but it will be dangerous. The King threatened to kill me or harm Lillian if I were to step foot in Jarithen. He may harm you too. He is very ruthless."
Clifton said smiling and gesturing to his family, "We're your friends Harold. We want to help you get her back safe and sound." Cedric nodded and put his arm around Clifton.
"Yeah! We have talked about it, and we want to help you no matter what the cost," He then took out the wooden sword he had hidden in his belt and raised it to the sky. "That King won't know what hit him!" He swung it around for a second but tripped over something on the ground and fell onto his brother. Mary giggled and Alys rolled her eyes at the pair. Clifton sighed and helped up his little brother, brushing himself off.
Mary giggled a little more, but looked back at Harold, "That's what friends do. We'll get her back!"
Alys nodded and said, "Now are you on board, or do we need to, like, do this alone?"
Looking into their eyes once more, he saw their sincerity in what they were saying. They would risk their lives to help get Lillian back. His friends wanted to help him get back his true love. Friends. These are my true friends. Harold got out of bed and smiled at his friends.
He raised his fist in the air and shouted with triumph, "Let's go get my Lillian back!"
Harold, Cedric, and Clifton were standing at the kitchen table, gathering supplies for the trip. The girls went around town to gather two more horses for their journey, they already had Xander. Harold decided he wanted to get there a day before the wedding to try and surprise the king, more than likely he would have the actual wedding itself surrounded with guards. He didn't want to take the chance of not being able to get to Lillian.
He only prayed she was safe.
Cedric grabbed an empty brown sack the size of an ogre and threw it on the table. Clifton gave him a strange look, but, with a smile, Cedric said, "I figured we could use this for the food, do you think this is big enough?" Harold smiled at him, the boy loved food. He started to put fresh fruit and vegetables in the sack, anything easy to carry along. "How long will it take to get there, I forgot to ask."
"Not too long I hope…"
Harold looked toward the clock on the wall. It was 5:30 pm, "It is a long journey, but if we leave now, we should get there around 8 tomorrow morning," He sighed and looked toward his friends. "I wish I could get there now…" Harold sat down in the wooden chair behind him and sighed again. With every fiber of his being he wanted to be with Lillian again. He looked at his callused hands; they were dirty and slightly sweaty. "Her hand is the only one that seemed to fit mine perfectly." Closing his hands, he closes his eyes for a brief second to stop a tear from falling.
Clifton sighed too, Harold wasn't the only one who missed Lillian. He shook his head and said, "Don't worry Harold, we will get there as soon as we can. We won't let anything get in the way of this," Harold looked at Clifton and smiled. Clifton smiled back, eyes shining with the truth, and went to the front door of the hotel to look out the window. "I just hope Mary and Alys have some luck getting those horses – oh! There they are now!"
He opened the door and ran out to help the girls. Harold jumped up from his seat and, heart pounding, he followed Clifton outside. When he burst through the door, he saw two beautiful looking horses, the same size as Xander. Mary was riding a brown steed, while Alys was riding a black one.
Harold's heart leapt with joy, "We are so much closer to getting her back!"
Mary smiled as she got off her steed with Clifton's help, "Henric let us borrow Cheeko for a few days and Nancy, although she needs him back right away when we get home, she let us borrow Beau," Clifton smiled at her and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. She looked at Harold. "Nancy is the town nurse and Henric is the town blacksmith. We also borrowed some medical supplies from Nancy too."
Clifton smiled, "Great idea Hun! That's awesome," She smiled sweetly back at him and blew him a quick kiss. "Now if only we had—."
"And," Alys said smiling wildly while pulling something out from behind her back. "Henric also gave us some swords to use!"
Harold looked at Alys and the bag she was holding. She dropped it to the ground near Harold, nodding for him to look. He went to the bag and looked inside, sighing to himself as he did. Although he didn't like the thought of having to use weapons, he did agree that with how ruthless the King of Jarithen is, it would be a good idea to have them along.
Harold picked up the bag and put it in the side saddle on the horse called Cheeko. He gave the horse a gentle pat before he nodded at Alys and said, "These will do, thank you Alys." Alys nodded back at him and gave him a gentle smile.
Clifton cleared his throat and said, "We are almost set to go then," Mary scooted back on the horse and patted the saddle for Clifton to hop on and sit in front. He did just that and looked back at his friend. "Harold, anything else you think we need?"
Harold looked around and shook his head, "Besides getting Xander from the barn, I believe we have everything we need-."
"Wait!" They heard someone yelling from the barn. Harold started to walk towards the barn when out popped Cedric smiling widely. "Look what I borrowed from Farmer John!" he started to walk out with a cart that would fit onto one of the horses saddles.
Alys rolled her eyes, "Did you just borrow that so you could lay down while we ride and eat?"
Cedric laughed while he went around the horse Alys rode on with the cart, "No… well that too," He started to connect the cart to the saddle carefully and thoughtfully as he spoke. "But mostly in case anyone gets tired of sitting on a horse, I thought this would be a nice idea for all of us to take turns since we all know how to ride." Harold smiled at him. A kind and loyal boy that he didn't doubt would turn into a kind and loyal man.
Once the cart was connected to the saddle, Cedric gently and quickly laid down some hay for comfort sake. He then proceeded to help Harold load the cart with the bag of food and medical supplies. They kept the swords where they were, only wanting to take them out if need be.
The last thing Harold needed to do was go get Xander. He walked quickly into the barn, but carefully as to not spook the horse. As he approached him, Xander looked at him with sad eyes. Harold sighed and went over to pat him on the nose. He looked in his soulful eyes and grabbed the riens that were around his head. Xander's ears perked up.
Harold smiled at him, "Lets go get Lillan!" He neighed loudly and stomped his foot happily as Harold jumped up on his saddle. He trotted out of the barn happily, meeting the others who were waiting. Harold beamed proudly on top of the noble steed looking at all of his friends.
Clifton smiled upon Beau, holding his reins with his head held high. Mary had her arms around her husband, nodding at Harold that she was ready.
Alys nodded at Harold as well and Cedric nodded too as he took a big bite of an apple.
Harold looked toward Jarithen took a long, deep breath and let it out slowly to calm his nerves.
With newly captured bravery, he pushed his hips forward on the horse, squeezed his legs against Xander's sides and said, "Lets go!" and with one final neigh, Xander lead the charge and took off as fast as he could toward Jairthen, towards Lillian, towards his home. The other horses and their riders followed quickly behind them as they made their way to rescue their friend.
(Day of the Wedding)
As Harold had guessed, they arrived to Jarithen around 8am. They had stopped a few times to change riders, they also stopped to eat a meal together. But everyone was very eager to get to rescue Lillian that they all agreed they would take no more stops.
Once they arrived at the top of the hill overlooking Jarithen, Harold paused on top of Xander. He took a deep breath and heard the church bells ringing, everyone in the Kingdom looked happy and merry at it was almost the Princess's wedding day. Harold rolled his eyes, he didn't blame them but he was still irritated that they didn't know the circumstances surrounding all of this.
Clifton got down off Beau and walked over to Harold and Xander. He looked down at the Kingdom and sighed, "Well… Now that we arrived, we better somehow go and stop this wedding."
Harold nodded, not taking his eyes off the castle where Lillian no doubt was. He sighed again, "I do not have a plan."
Cedric hopped off of Cheeko, Mary and Alys were resting in the cart. He walked over to Harold and his brother and said, "Well… we better brain storm quick, do you know when the wedding will take place?"
"The King made it clear that his daughter would be married in three days time when he took her from me… the day should be tomorrow."
Clifton nodded, "Then I think the first thing we should do is sneak into the castle and try to find Lillian." Harold hopped down off Xander and went to tie his reins to a tree.
Xander happily took a break and started to munch on some grass. Harold patted him on the side and turned toward Clifton and Cedric, "Xander will have to stay here. The guards may recognize him as Lillian's horse and suspect something."
Mary jumped off of the cart and said "Alys and I can stay with the horses. If there are too many of us, it will be harder to stay hidden." Alys nodded in agreement.
Cedric patted his brother on the arm, "Us men can handle this, can't we?" He smiled widely at him as Clifton brushed him off and grabbed him by the shoulders.
"Little brother, I need you to stay with Mary and Alys," he was about to protest but Clifton continued before he could. "I need you to help protect them. We will leave you a sword—."
"I get a sword?" Cedric said happily. Clifton nodded and went to grab one from their secure spot. He handed Cedric a small sword that had a nice sharp edge.
He said smiling at his younger brother, "This one may be small, but it is as mighty as you are," Cedric gave him a small hug before taking the sword and went to practice with it. "Now… Harold and I will make our way down to the castle and figure out what to do from there since we have one more day until the wedding."
Everyone nodded. Mary hugged and kissed Clifton and gave Harold and big hug saying, "Good luck, may God be with you." He gave her a small hug back. As she let go, Alys nodded at both her brother and Harold. She then went to keep an eye on Cedric.
Harold looked at his friend and said, "Shall we?"
Clifton said, gesturing towards the Kingdom, "After you, my friend." Harold nodded.
And with one last deep breath, Harold started down the hill with Clifton close behind.
Besides the king and the knights, no one would have recognized Harold or Clifton so they walked carefully and calmly through the Kingdom, smiling and slightly waving at people who seemed friendly.
Harold looked around and said to quietly, "I can't believe we are finally here."
Clifton nodded after waving at a kind townsperson who waved at him, "I'm so happy for you Harold. Soon you will be reunited with your one true love."
Harold's heart skipped a beat at finally being able to see her again. He was so happy, in fact, that he wasn't paying attention and accidentally ran into a young woman who was pulling a cart behind her. Clifton luckily caught the girl right before she fell. However, Harold fell to the ground with a loud thud, certainly bruising his leg.
The young woman smiled, "I'm so sorry about that. Thank you for catching me!"
Clifton nodded, "Of course! Are you okay?"
She nodded, "Yes I am! I am in such a rush that I just wasn't watching where I was going."
Harold slowly got up from the ground, brushing himself off, "Thanks for the help on that one Clifton," he gave a side eye look toward his friend, before smiling at the young woman. "That's quite alright, I apologize as well. It appears that I was in a bit of a daydream."
Clifton glanced at the cart she was pulling and saw all kinds of baking ingredients. He smiled, he loved baking, especially the tasting part. "Wow! That's a lot of ingredients! Making something delicious I see."
"Yes!" The young woman said, "My father is the baker in this Kingdom and we have been tasked to make treats for the dessert table at the Princess's wedding! The King wanted the freshest desserts he could get so he wanted the treats made the day of the wedding."
Harold rolled his eyes and thought to himself "Well that's unfortunately going to be a waste of time as there will be no wedding…"
Clifton nodded, "Awe that's right, I heard the Princess's wedding will be taking place tomorrow. It's good you are getting the ingredients today then."
The young woman sighed as she grabbed her cart, "That's why I must hurry actually, I have to get these ingredients to my father as soon as possible so the treats have cooled in time for the wedding – which is actually in one hour and not tomorrow," Harold's heart sank, and a cold feeling came over him as she started to walk away. "I better get going, it was nice to meet you both!" The young woman hurried off, leaving Harold and Clifton in shock.
Clifton said to Harold, "Today? He must have moved it up… maybe he knew that you would try to come for her and didn't want to risk anything…"
Harold sat on the ground in shock. Clifton came over to him and said, "Harold," He placed a hand on each of Harold's shoulders so he would look at him. "We can still find her and stop this wedding. We can do this." He grabbed Harold by the arm, pulling him up with him as he stood. He brushed Harold off and grabbed him by the shoulders again.
"Harold, Lillian will be with you and not this awful Knight. Mark my words, we will stop this wedding!"
Harold took a deep breath and said, "Yes… yes, right…" he shook his head and rubbed his eyes. "Oh my Lillian."
He opened his eyes to look up at the castle he saw Knights heading inside, going into a storage closest and grabbing armor from there.
Harold smiled, "Clifton… I have an idea," He looked at him with a devilish grin. "How would you like to be a knight?"
Clifton looked to where Harold was looking and saw what he saw. He looked back and Harold and gave him that same smile, "I do believe that would be a marvelous idea."
They nodded at each other as they snuck towards to castle to grab some armor.
The closest wasn't being guarded when Clifton and Harold snuck in. Everyone was running around and being ordered this way and that for the Princess's wedding that no one seemed to notice two out of place men. They grabbed the armor as quickly as they could and joined the rest of the guards who waited by the church doors for the Princess to arrive.
Harold took a deep breath and let it out slowly again as he was starting to lose confidence in himself. Clifton patted him on the shoulder for comfort.
A man who looked this he was in charge came by and said, "Our orders are to protect the wedding at all cost. This wedding will go on."
Everyone besides Harold and Clifton said, "Yes sir!"
The man continued, "You two," he said pointing to Clifton and Harold. "Stay here at the back of the church and wait for the Princess and the King. You will stay at the back of the church while they walk in," He turned toward the rest of the men. "The rest of you, follow me inside the church."
And the rest of the guards did just that.
Harold looked in the mirror on his left and took another deep breath. But this time his breath got caught in his throat. As he was looking in the mirror, he finally saw what he came for.
Lillian. She was as beautiful as ever with her blonde hair done up perfectly, not a hair out of place. The flowers she was holding reminded him of how she always smelled wonderful. Oh how he wanted nothing more than to hold her and have her wonderful scent around him as he did. Her dress fit her perfectly and made her look somehow even more beautiful than she always did.
He finally let go of the breath he was holding as he almost ran to her, but he stopped himself as he saw her father walking closely behind her. He stopped looking in the mirror so as not be seen by the King and watched their exchange.
Lillian looked at herself in the mirror, but she looked so sad. Harold wanted to hold her and tell her so badly that he was there, but Clifton touched him arm and slightly shook his head. Now was not the right time.
"Soon you will have a husband. I've been waiting for this day probably longer than you have," Harold almost lashed out just hearing the King's voice. He will pay for this… He narrowed his eyes at him through his helmet as he spoke. He chuckled. "Now the day has finally come where you marry your soul mate."
Harold's heart sunk again as he heard that, but he knew that the King was wrong. He saw Lillian shake her head, "Father, this man is not my soul mate. I told you, Harold-."
"And I told you, that conversation was over. I do not want to hear that name ever again," Harold clenched his fists, what Lillian wanted should matter too. What a pig. The King adjusted his crown in the mirror. "Now… Let's go get you married, shall we?"
He tried to grab Lillian's arm, but she moved away from him. The King growled his anger at his Lillian as she spoke "I love Harold. I will always love Harold. There is nothing you can do to stop that. This man is not my soul mate, and this man is not who I want to spend the rest of my life with," She got closer to him, almost whispering but Harold was still able to hear what she said. "If you make me marry this man, I will do everything in my power to get away from him and everything in my power to get away from you."
Pride swelled in Harold's chest as she spoke those words. He knew that Lillian would be his forever as she felt the same way about him as he did about her. He couldn't wait to hold her and kiss her. Suddenly without warning, The King grabbed her arm harshly and pulled her close to him. Lillian gasped and winced. He whispered something harshly to her that Harold could not hear. Harold saw the King squeeze her arm tightly before letting her go.
Harold took a step forward, how dare he harm his Lillian. Who the hell does he think he is? Clifton put at arm out in front of him to stop him. The King glared at us, suspecting something.
Clifton bowed and disguised his voice, making it go deeper than normal, "Sorry your majesty, I'll make sure that doesn't happen again," He stood up straight, and Harold followed suit. "Whenever you are ready my Lord, no one will come into the church doors unless you gave permission."
The King nodded at them and Clifton and Harold left to go outside the church doors. Before the shut the doors behind them, Lillian looked right at Harold, looking deep into his eyes. He looked back at her and he saw a wave of comfort come over her features. She seems to nod slightly as if to say "thank you" he didn't stop looking at her the entire as the doors shut behind him. His Lillian was so close yet so out of reach.
He groaned as he her the wedding march song. The same one he deserved to have at his wedding with Lillian. He punched the outside church wall. And laid his forehead against the wall.
Clifton said, "Harold. It is time."
Harold lifted his head from the wall, "He was so cruel to her," he clenched his fist together. "I hate this man."
With a sigh, Clifton said, "My friend, you will take her far, far away from here in just a few short moments."
The heard The Wedding March end and the Priest say loudly from inside the church, "And who gives this woman to this man?"
"I, the King of Jarithen, give my daughter to this man."
Harold's stomach turned after hearing that, but he looked at Clifton and nodded, "Thank you for getting me here my friend."
Clifton nodded, "I would do anything for you and Lillan my friend," He went to the doors and waited to hear the right words. "I will push these doors open when you are ready." Harold nodded and stood in front of the doors, just behind Clifton who would open the doors. Soon Lillian… I'm coming for you. I'm here my love.
They then heard the priest say, "Now, though I'm sure it is not needed, I do still have to ask… If there is anyone that objects to these two getting married, speak now or forever hold your peace."
There was a pause in the church where all was silent as they waited to see if anyone would be brave enough to object.
In that moment, Harold was felt like he was the bravest man in the world as he looked at Clifton and said, "Now!"
In that moment, Clifton shoved open the doors to the church and Harold stood there, with every single person in the church gasping and looking surprised toward him. He felt a little nervous with all the eyes on him. But as his eyes fell on his Lillian, nothing else mattered.
Harold slowly but bravely walked toward his love. He ignored all of the patrons of the church. His eyes only had eyes for her, now and forever. Nothing would get in the way of them ever again.
Lillian was shocked to see someone was stopping the wedding, as she didn't know it was Harold yet. The groom growled and put a hand on the sword he had. But that did not stop Harold, who still had his eyes on Lillian.
The King, who was completely dumbfounded, stood in front of his daughter and shouted at Harold, "What is the meaning of this knight?!"
Harold still, ignoring the king, never took his eyes off Lillian. He moved past the king and his shouting. Lillian must have recognized Harold as the knight that tried to save her earlier as she gave him a small, confused smile.
Harold said bravely and happily, "I object to this marriage my King." Taking off his helmet, his smile widens at Lillian's reaction. A hand covers her mouth as she gasps and drops the flowers in her hands.
Lillian smiles as happy tears fill her eyes, "Harold."
Harold's eyes too fill with tears, "Lillian." He went to hold her, after all this time. But the King stepped in front of Lillian pushing Harold back a few steps.
He glared daggers at Harold, "How dare you come here! How dare you ruin her wedding! How dare you!"
Harold backed up one step, but stood firm once he got his footing back.
"Your highness, I am in love with your daughter," Lillian's heart leapt at his words. Harold looked into her eyes. "Your daughter loves me as well. We wish to be married since we are in love."
The King laughed and Harold glared at him as he watched his face grow dark and mean, "Marry you? HA! A peasant with no money or family? What do you have that my best Knight doesn't have?"
The knight grunted, "Soon he won't even have any arms or legs once I get through with him!"
Harold glared at him, "I am Prince Harold of Far, Far Away, I have far more to offer than you ever will," Harold stood up straight and proud. "But my status doesn't matter as much as my heart… and my heart belongs to Princess Lillian."
Lillian brushed past her father and the knight and ran into Harold's arms, holding him and embracing him like she hasn't seen him in years. She stopped the hug to look at him and put her forehead to his, "I knew you would come for me." She whispered to him.
She turned to look at her father and the knight, holding Harold's hand tightly, "And my heart belongs to Harold," Harold smiled widely. "Why doesn't that matter to you father?"
"ENOUGH!" Roared the King as he grabbed Damien's sword, pointing it directly at Harold's heart. But Harold didn't move from his spot, he only moved his arms to move Lillian to stand behind him to protect her. "You will either leave my Kingdom willing or in a body bag, the choice is yours peasant!"
No one saw her move from her spot at the front of the church, but suddenly the Queen was in front of the sword and Harold. She glared at her husband.
The King was shocked, but yelled, "Get out of the way Gloriana!"
The Queen pushed the sword away and said, "Enough, my love. This isn't good for the Kingdom, nor your daughter," She whispered the next part so only those at the alter could hear. "Do you even know what to do with a sword? Put that down."
Embarrassed, but in agreement with his Queen, the King put the sword down and said, "I suppose you are correct. But this man will not have my approval to marry my daughter," Harold's hands held Lillian's tight as her father continued. "But if you wish to marry my daughter…"
The King turned on his heels and started to walk away from the alter and back out of the church. He stopped half way and looked over his shoulder. "You and Damien must have a duel."
Harold was confused, "A duel?"
"Yes," the King sighed. "Whoever wins… marries the Princess." The King slowly turned around with a mischievous look on his face.
Harold was slightly discouraged; he was as good with a sword as a baker was good with medicine. But he stood up proudly, glaring at Damien, who started to head down the aisle back out of the church, and the King, "I will do anything for Lillian." He smiled at her, and she smiled back at him, hugging his arm from behind. She knew Harold would fight his very best for her.
The King clapped once loudly and said, "Excellent. We will have the duel take place tonight, gives you time to prepare. Yes, the winner will indeed marry the Princess," He turned around again to walk out the door, but stopped and looked over his shoulder. "And the loser… will die."
~A/N: I'm so sorry for the delay in this story. I got married and had two beautiful kiddos so my life has been very crazy and busy, but they started school and now I have some more free time! I hope you enjoyed this. I am hoping to get the next chapter up sooner than like 5 years! Ha… but seriously, I hope you enjoyed it! See you soon!~