The queen rode to the riverbank at dusk, looking for the young man who saved her life weeks earlier. She noticed some smoke coming from a fire and her faintly-illuminated pennon hanging from a tree nearby. Upon seeing the young man fishing at the river from under the tree, she dismounted from her horse, tied it to another tree, and dusted off her dress before approaching him on foot.
The young man was lulled by the gentle flow of the river and the crackling of firewood while he was fishing when he began hearing footsteps rustling through the grass behind him. He turned around, and, to his surprise, saw the young lady he saved from drowning weeks ago, wearing the exact same dress and overcoat she wore when they first met. With her crown on her head, there's no mistaking her for anything other than a queen this time.
"Her most righteous majesty, Isabel, chosen by God and protector of the faith, does condescend to greet you," she introduced herself and extended her right hand. "And you?"
He set the fishing rod aside and, with his trembling hands, took hers to kiss it. "I'm João, son of Afonso de Aviz, the duke of Guimarães," he introduced himself in turn. "I greet you with effusive ebullience, Your Majesty."
She held onto his hands and looked into his eyes. "João, I'm glad to meet you again. Thank you for saving me earlier."
"I just did what anyone else would have done in that situation, Your Majesty," he brushed her off before he resumed fishing.
She noticed the bucket with the fish he caught earlier that day while he was trying to catch more. "May I help you on these?" she requested.
"Sure," he nodded before pulling one last fish out of the river. While taking it to the bucket, he saw her taking another fish from the bucket. With a knife, she gutted and scaled it before skewering and roasting it over the bonfire. "I didn't expect you to know how to do that," he wondered.
"I didn't always have ladies-in-waiting who assisted me with chores like this," she explained while preparing the rest for roasting. "I had to learn how to do them by myself."
"Why?" he asked. "Weren't you prepared to become the queen?"
"Not at all. My half-brother was the previous king, and he neglected my mother and me," she recalled. "We thought that he'd have children who'll inherit from him, and I'll no longer be next in line to the throne of Castilla. But when he died battling pirates a month ago, he didn't have any. I have to take the crown, whether or not I'm ready for it and the burden that comes along with it."
He silently observed her as she worked on the fish, then glanced at her face, focusing at the crown on her head. He's astounded by the willingness of someone of her stature to do something so menial. After preparing the fish, she went to fetch one of her saddlebags from her horse.
The saffron red skies of dusk have all but vanished when he removed the first fish from the fire and began roasting another. On her way back, the scent of roasted fish filled the air, and she can't help but be reminded of simpler times when she and her mother cooked together back when she was a little princess.
"Here, have the first one, Your Majesty," he offered the newly-cooked fish upon seeing her again. "I can wait for the next."
She thanked him and gave him some bread in return before asking him, "How about you? How did you end up here?"
"That battle where your half-brother died? I was also there," he answered while eating the bread, "as a squire to one of the knights there. When our ship sunk, I managed to swim back ashore, but my knight and many others didn't survive. I've been wandering along the river by myself ever since, wondering what's next for my life. I never thought I'd run into you of all people."
He took his turn to take and eat the roasted fish, then kept on with roasting the rest one by one.
He continued, "So, why are you traveling alone, Your Majesty? Aren't you afraid of someone hurting you?"
"Most people don't know nobles besides their local lords," she replied. "The more observant ones guess that I'm a noblewoman from elsewhere in the kingdom, but to everyone else, I'm just another face in the crowd. I could blend in among them just fine as long as I don't go around flaunting my high station."
"Like the time when you revealed yourself as queen when we first met. You brandished your scepter at me and nearly beat me to death with it," he interrupted, making her briefly cover her face in shame.
Once she regained her composure, she gently apologized to him, "João, I'm so sorry for lashing out on you that day."
"It's all right, Your Majesty," he responded. "But I can't believe you're apologizing at all."
"I might be the queen, but I can still make mistakes like anyone else. That was a lapse of judgement in my part," she awkwardly explained. "Anyway, people tend to speak more freely when they think I'm just like them, and traveling alone gives me a chance to think."
"Does anyone worry about you while traveling alone?" he probed.
"My advisors would sometimes tell me what to expect from each part of this kingdom. Beyond that, they trust me to take care of myself," she bragged. "Besides, I could always find friends within the kingdom that I could rely on."
He followed up without skipping a beat, "How about your mother?"
"My mother worries sometimes," she shrugged, "but she understands what being queen entails."
"Do you have anyone else in your family, like a husband?" he prodded further. She briefly stopped eating and stared at him with mouth agape. She didn't mind answering his questions, but she felt this one hitting too close to home.
"Just so you know, I'm not yet married," she revealed as the smile she was forcing faded, "but I was supposed to be."
"Really? What happened?"
"It happened a few years ago, when I'm not yet the queen." She took a deep breath before continuing. "I was betrothed to the son of another duke within the kingdom when my father was alive. My half-brother, when he became king, broke it and tried to find someone else for me to marry. None of the men he suggested appealed to me, so I tried to reach out to my original betrothed. Unfortunately, he wasn't interested anymore and married another woman instead."
He was perplexed. "Why did he do that?"
She speculated, "He might have thought that any modestly-wealthy noblewoman would be a better wife than the impoverished princess that I used to be, who'd be pushed further from the line of succession every time my half-brother has a new child."
Trying to distract himself from glancing at her, he began roasting the last of the fish on the bonfire. "Now that you're the queen, do you still want to get married?" he asked.
"That can wait," she brushed him off. "I'm the first woman on the throne, and my advisors want me to share my powers with whomever I marry. Until I find someone worthy of that, I'm better off ruling alone for now." He could only wonder what would pass as worthy for a queen like her.
She finished off her share of the fish and left the rest for him before continuing. "Anyway, I went to the dockyards at Sevilla to see what's left of our navy. Was the aftermath of the battle really that bad?"
He tried to stave off sleepiness as he responded. "Yes. Many of the ships seemed barely afloat when my fellow sailors and I reached land. What's your plan for them, Your Majesty?"
"We'll need not just new ships, but also new sailors that would man them," she elaborated. "We have to rebuild the navy to keep the pirates away from our coasts. With your experience on fighting at sea, you'd be able to help me on this."
"How?" he asked before hurrying up on eating what's left of the fish.
"I'll give you a fiefdom of your own at the western coast of the kingdom," she offered. "You'll be in charge of gathering new sailors for the ships that would be built and patrolling the seas nearby."
"Really?" he looked at her somewhat skeptically.
"Indeed," she confirmed, meeting his gaze. "That will be my reward for you, for saving my life."
"That's very generous of you, Your Majesty. I'll be happy to serve you that way," he thanked her.
She smiled at him warmly. "It's the least I can do for someone who saved my life."
The slowly-rising wooly-white moon reminded both of them that the night was getting late. Sleepiness began catching up to her as well. Although she was considering to go back to Urraca's manor, taking him along, she ultimately decided against it. "I'm too tired," she yawned. "We're sleeping under trees tonight."
Remembering the spare overcoat that the duchess gave her earlier that day, she reached for her saddlebag, pulled her other overcoat out and offered it to him. "Here's something to make the rest of the night more bearable."
"I'm just fine, I swear," he tried to refuse while he slightly shivered.
"Please take it," she insistently patted his shoulder. "Our bonfire might not last through the night. You'll need something else to keep you warm."
He relented and wore the overcoat. "Thank you, Your Majesty. I appreciate it."
"Now, let's get to sleep," she told him. "As soon as we wake up tomorrow, I'll take you to Madrid. There, you'll train with the kingdom's best knights and sailors to ensure you're ready for your new duties." He couldn't help but silently smile at her. They then lied down under the tree and soon fell asleep, with the sound of the river lulling them into a peaceful slumber.
Urraca woke up just before sunrise and opened a window of her room to see near the Tajo River the faint, dying embers of the bonfire the young man built the night before. Before she slept last night, she saw the same bonfire burning brightly as the queen and the young man talked with each other. While glad to see the queen following her advice of reconciling with him, the duchess expected her to return to the manor, with or without him, if she can't travel any further that night. Puzzled over not seeing any sign of the two, she decided to come to the river to see if anyone was still there.
With a torch on her hand and a sack bag slung on her shoulder, Urraca approached what was left of the bonfire, careful not to startle the queen's horse. She was pleased to see the queen and the young man sleeping side by side under the tree closest to the bridge. The young man, now wearing the duchess's overcoat, leaned on the queen, who wore her crown even at her sleep. Urraca cleared her throat loudly to wake the two up, grinning when they jolt upright in surprise.
"Good morning, Your Majesty! Good morning, João!" Urraca roused them.
Isabel groaned and sat up, rubbing her eyes as she gently pushed João off herself. "What brings you here so early, Urraca?" she grumbled.
"I just wanted to see both of you before you go," Urraca excitedly replied to the queen. "It's great to see you two getting along with each other!"
João, barely awake, told Urraca, "First impression aside, Her Majesty seems to be..."
He was struggling to finish his sentence when Urraca quickly followed up by teasing him, "So sweet, you didn't mind to spend the rest of the night with her, to say the least." He slid down the trunk of the tree when Urraca's implication hit him.
"Please, Urraca, don't assume anything." Isabel begged. "We just slept beside each other after supper, nothing more." Then she hurried to fetch her horse, saddlebag in her hand.
When Isabel returned leading her horse to the foot of the bridge, João had just gotten up, returning to Urraca the borrowed fishing rod and bucket. "Are you ready?" the queen called on him.
"Yes, Your Majesty," he replied.
"You go first and take the reins," she ordered him. He mounted the horse astride, then she took off her crown and put it inside her saddlebag.
Before the queen could get up to her horse, Urraca tapped her shoulder. "Your Majesty, have you entertained new suitors recently?" Urraca asked, her tone taking a slightly more serious turn.
Isabel was intrigued. "No. Why do you ask?"
"It's been quite a while since you last tried to find someone to marry," Urraca recalled. "Don't you think it's about time you started looking again? How about your new travel companion, as a start?" Then she gave a knowing glance to João.
"Me?" he winced at Urraca. "No way! I don't think she likes me that way, right, Your Majesty?" Right afterwards, Isabel caught him stealing a glance at her.
Nervously giggling while turning away from him, she halfheartedly agreed, "Come on, Urraca. We're just friends."
"For now," Urraca doubted them. "Don't be too quick to dismiss of feelings that go beyond friendship."
"We'll see about that," Isabel deflected before she got up onto her horse. "Anyway, we have to go now. Thanks for looking out for us both."
"I'm glad to be of help to you two," Urraca gushed before she loosened the drawstring of her bag to reveal its contents. "Before I forget, please take these loaves of bread. You could always use more food for the long journey ahead." Isabel took the bag, slung it across her body, and thanked Urraca before signaling to the horse to start moving.
As soon as their horse carried them beyond Urraca's earshot, João asked, "Your Majesty, aren't you bothered by Duchess Urraca being very eager to get us together?"
"I'm not that bothered, really," Isabel shrugged. "It's a refreshing change of pace after constantly talking about more serious matters these past few weeks with almost every other noble I had to meet. She just means well for both of us."
He turned to look at her. "I know. I don't want to take things too far and make it awkward for both of us, especially that—"
She leaned towards him and returned his gaze. "You see me more as a ruler than as a person?"
"Uh, yes. And I'd rather not come across as disrespectful and upset you again."
"Understandable. How about you avoid addressing me as 'Your Majesty' while we're on our way to Madrid? We have a long way to go from here, and I don't want to attract too much attention while on the road. As long as we don't come across anyone who'd recognize either of us, treat me as you would any other noble lady."
"Agreed, Senhora." He then turned his eyes back to the dirt road ahead of them. Had he not crossed paths with the queen, he would still be walking along this same road, making his way upstream the Tajo, wandering aimlessly from town to town. He doesn't know what to expect from the people the queen wanted him to meet in Madrid, but he'd welcome anything different from the life he had after the battle.