Fall Into My Arms (Short Hiatus)

15. Lost Dreams and Hopes

Daniel

"Are these the lamb we were instructed to pick up?" asked Daniel whilst Roseline picked him up near court. Roseline never had the chance to respond. "This has been a strange trip. Picking up the lamb had been slowly falling at the bottom of my mind." 

"It has been strange," agreed Roseline. "Indeed, it has. Who could have guessed you lacked skill in the art of jousting? And you lost to that girl of all people. Even I could have likely knocked her off that horse."

There was a silence between them. Daniel held no desire to discuss the events of the tournament.

"Are you ready to go home?" she asked breaking the silence.

"No, I was asked to meet her again tonight at the beach. She wants to read a book with me."

"Of course, she does. Of course. A royal girl wants to read a book with a poor slave who hardly ever learned how to read. How could any of this possibly go wrong?"

"Are you alright?" Daniel stopped the horse. "Something is clearly bothering you."

Roseline placed her head towards the floor and breathed a breath of sadness and disappointment.

"Remember how I told you it was a dream of mine to stand on the tallest mountain near the castle? Well, while you were with that girl, I did and it was nothing close to how I dreamed it would be. Yes, I wanted to see the world for all it could be. I thought it would be special, but it was far from it. All I saw was empty land and water. My ears heard a few bird chirps. For several minutes I stood there wondering if perhaps I was missing something. Was I not looking hard enough? It dawned on me that there is nothing worth seeing in this world. My little girl's dream was simply all but a silly little dream. I would have been better off staying in the undesirable land."

Not a tear had fallen from this friend. Perhaps she had not a tear left to cry for she could be feeling numb to all the pain in her life. Daniel couldn't let Roseline feel defeated. But what could be done?

"Maybe I could come with you to the mountain." He grabbed her hand and squeezed it in great tightness. "Would it be a better experience if you had a friend with you?"

The soul in pain could not help but chuckle with a smile and made an effort to let go of the hand.

"Thanks, but I would rather not go back. It would not matter. At the end of the day, we are merely two slaves with dreams and hopes and nothing more. Damn it, our own people surely must have dreams and hopes, but not a soul could care if they were alive or dead."

Daniel sat there unsure of what to say. Was it possible that these words were correct? Or was it possible that this was simple but a pessimistic way of thinking?

"Dreams and hopes are what have kept our people alive all these years. Without it, we may not have survived. And of course, the prophecy."

"Have you forgotten? The Great Plague killed many of our people. Millions across the world lost their lives to that disease. Your own papa lost his life against the plague not long after buying both of your ways out of the undesirable land."

Yes, it was true. The Great Plague took his papa. How could he have forgotten?

War. Daniel had not dreamed of such a thing, but from all that was happening outside, war seemed to be a reality. From the outside, his ears heard the screaming and fighting of angry men. Some had caught the disease and others simply had gone mad. Others had been attempting to form an alliance and overthrow the king. The knights struggled to keep things under control.

Times were uncertain. Daniel was alone in a dark room. The night was only young. At any moment, there was a true possibility that fire would enter his room and burn down the house. Looking through the window, the fire was the most visible. Sweat overtook the boy's skin with each breath a great battle. Tears had grown uncontrollably.

"Papa," he softly cried. "Papa, where are you?"

Surely, his death was a lie. He was coming back. He had to. The man promised. How could any soul break a promise? His own papa could never break a promise. He was strong enough to make it through all of this. Yes! That was it! He was waiting at the seaport. It was up to him to come and find him. Without another second to waste, the young soul jumped from the floor and ran outside. Looking around, the chaos continued and just his luck, a lazy knight fell off his horse and perished.

This was his chance. Yes, the boy hardly knew how to ride a horse, but it did not matter for arriving at the seaport was far too urgent. With every might in his bones, he found himself on the horse.

"Daniel!" shouted his stepmother who stood at the door. "Where do you think you are going?"

"To the seaport! My papa is waiting for me there. I know he is. I will be back with him."

And without another word, the horse galloped away leaving the stepmother to yell in anger. Yelling would do no good. She would have to break the law and ride after him. It was the only way.

"I was a fool for thinking he was waiting for me at the seaport," spoke Daniel in a quiet tone. "The man was dead. Not alive, but dead. A waste of time to ride off to the seaport." In all brokenness, he sat there in thought. Roseline said nothing to provide comfort. "I could use a drink. What do you say we find a royal pub at the town square and have ourselves a quick glass of rum? Perhaps have a few shots for old-time's sake and enjoy a little entertainment?"

A strange smile consumed Roseline's face. "Sounds fine by me."

This concludes the fifteenth chapter! An exciting new chapter will arrive next Saturday! Please remember to comment and vote.

Will Roseline ever see more beyond the waters? Do you hope she does?

Was Daniel foolish in thinking his papa would be waiting for him at the seaport?