A Princess's Duty

•Chapter Seven• Friends

A soft voice called his name in the dark, and Charles' muddled thoughts started to come together. Just a moment ago, he had been floating, drifting along the river of dreams. The numbness that had been taking over his body faded slowly.

"Charles," called Kathryn softly, kneeling by the arm of the chair he say in. According to Bethany, he would be waking any minute now. He stirred, and before she could move, he jolted awake, tipping the chair.

Charles' eyes bolted open, and before he could remember where he was, he felt the surface beneath him give way, and he crashed to the floor.

Only it wasn't the floor beneath him.

In a rush, everything flooded back. The girl who was looking up at him, laughter in her eyes, was Kathryn, the crazy woman who had bright him to some hit in the woods.

"Feeling better?" She asked as he scrambled up, cheeks flushed.

Something green and soft fell off of his face and onto the ground, and he wrinkled his nose at the sickly sweet herb smell.

"Much, thanks," he managed to get out, reaching up to wipe off the goop that seemed to be stuck to his forehead.

"Stop that!" exclaimed an old woman as she hobbled into the room, a damp cloth in hand. "You're making a mess!"

"You really ought to listen," said Kathryn, standing and fusing herself off. "Those herbs will help bring down the swelling, though they do tend to make you a bit sleepy."

So that had been what had happened. After he hit his head and they trudged through the woods for what seemed like eternity, they had come across the hit where this old woman, Bethany, lived.

"How long was I out?" he asked.

"An hour or so." said Kathryn. "We really ought to head back. Looks like we won't be able to have any fun today."

"An hour! Won't everyone be looking for us?" Charles exclaimed. His parents would skewer him. Being out with a princess for that long, and with no explanation, would ravage both of their reputations.

"I took care of it." She said, winking in his direction.

"How--"

"She ran up to the castle, got all prettied up, wove a tale, and ran all the way back." Bethany said, shaking her mane of frizz.

"I told my mother that you were feeling ill, and that you'd retired to your room." Kathryn said, "And I sent a servant up to answer the door in case anyone tried to check up on you, with instructions not to inform any well wishing guests you didn't want visitors."

Charles stared at her. She was reckless, yet resourceful. She was frighteningly beautiful in surprising ways. He had no doubt she'd be easy to fall for; no doubt she'd be an amazing queen and wife.

It was silent for what seemed like forever as she looked away from Charles, who seemed to be scrutinizing her with his blue eyes. He looked away suddenly, realizing he had probably made her uncomfortable.

Bethany cackled out of nowhere, dispelling the awkwardness that hung in the air. "You lot ought to be heading back. You won't be seeing Fenhallow today."

Kathryn nodded, running her hands through her hair. "Well I guess we'll be off then."

Kathryn walked over to the older woman, embracing her before waving Charles over. Bethany gave Charles a smile and handed him the rag in her hand. He wiped the herbs off of his face, nodding in thanks as she took the rag back.

"Come again sometime, princeling," said Bethany as that walked out. Kathryn waved at the old woman, smiling.

As the door to the hut shut, Charles looked at Kathryn again. "I'm sorry," he said.

She looked sideways at him. "Why?"

"For putting you through all that trouble."

"It was nothing, really." She said, waving her hand. "I'm glad we got to spend a little time together without any pretense. I was hoping we could be friends."

She smiled, meeting his gaze.

"I'd like that...if we could, you know, be friends...and yeah..."

He stifled the urge to scowl. Why has his words chosen to leave him at this moment? He had been trained since childhood to never let a thing faze him, yet this offer of friendship had thrown him off balance.

Kathryn only laughed. "Let's be off then," she said, grabbing ahold of his hand.

He couldn't help it when his heart skipped a beat, and he let himself be strung along through the forest once more.

•••

They reached the castle relatively quickly, and Kathryn managed to get the two of them into the castle relatively unnoticed, save a few servants whom Kathryn had known by name and asked to keep quiet.

Charles marveled at how she had taken the effort to know servants on such a personal level, not looking at rank but seeing the hardworking person beneath. He was reluctant to admit that he had never paid much attention to the servants around the castle, never realized that they had their own lives and opinions.

Each servants eyes held love and respect for their princess, unlike anything he had ever seen. The servants in Nydrar looked at the royals with awe and fear, keeping themselves hidden in the shadows.

He could only hope to be half the person she was, and he marveled once more at the way she has morphed into someone entirely new. She held an air for regality that hadn't been present in the forest, and if not for the dirt on her boots, he'd think the whole trek in the woods had been naught more than some delusion.

When they came upon a fork in the hallway they were walking down, Kathryn turned to him. "Do you know how to get to your rooms from here?"

He nodded. "I'll be alright. Aren't your quarters on the other side of the castle? Don't you think you may be seen?"

"Yeah, but I'll just take a servants passage. I need to grab a bite from the kitchens anyways."

She smiled once more turning around and walking off, not looking back once as he watched her go.

Would she be his wife on day? Would she be the mother of children that would come to run these very halls? What kind of Queen would she be?

He couldn't answer his own questions now, but as he lay in his bed, staring at the empty ceiling, he couldn't help but hope that whomever she married, she found the happiness she deserved.