The Crown

Chapter Six

Gathering courage, Tobias shook his own head. "Perhaps if you had allowed me my ancestral right in engaging with my kingdom and future constituents, I would feel more encouraged to continue courting the unbearable princess."

Marcus' eyes went wide at his son's disobedience. He raised his hand in motion to strike him, but paused. Instead, he grabbed his collar, forcing him lower to his eyesight. "If you wish to continue your life in my castle, you will do as I say. You are not to speak with me, nor to be in the same room as me, until the princess and her father are in my bureau discussing marriage arrangements. Do I make myself clear?"

Tobias stared at his father before walking past him, shoving him in the shoulder in the process. He walked toward the garden, clenched fists. 

Marcus stood, watching. He turned his head and caught a shadow spying on their conversation, but when he stepped to look further, the shadow disappeared.

With her head full of questions and an excruciating headache, Beatrice pressed her palm against her forehead as she walked away. She had not meant to eavesdrop on the conversation - she was resting against one of the large pillars of the castle and the conversation took place near. 

Her heart pained at the memory of Tobias stepping up to his father, and watching the King nearly strike him in the middle of the lobby. Beatrice fiddled with her fingers, guilt washing over her at how hard she had judged the prince these past couple of days. 

She sighed as she turned a corner, resting against the wall anew. He's more than just a spoiled prince; he's a trapped prisoner. 

She looked back and spotted Tobias as he left the castle to retreat in the garden. 

He's just as stuck as I am, she thought to herself.

The sound of fast steps alerted Beatrice's attention. She looked up and watched Christina run over to her, reaching out for her hands. "Beatrice, please speak to me!"

Beatrice looked at her best friend and sighed. "I'm so-"

"No! Don't be sorry, please. I lied," She sighed and leaned against the wall. "One of the many fights I had with my parents was about marriage when I accepted the post at the castle. They were so incredibly angry at my decision to leave, especially since it meant they had to refuse an offer of marriage for my hand. They incessantly compared me to your family, and revealed that you would enter an arrangement soon with Robert."

Her breathing hitched. "Is this the reason you abruptly accepted the position? To escape an arranged marriage?"

Christina nodded, wiping away a few tears. "Yes, and I'm eternally grateful I did," she sighed and leaned against the wall beside her best friend. "Will..." she smiled. "He's perfect. I couldn't be happier to be with him."

"That's wonderful news, Christina," Beatrice smiled, truly content. "I'm sorry for overreacting about your decision to not tell me."

"That's just it," she explained. "I didn't want to tell you right away since you and Robert were supposed to be involved by the time you came. Adjustment to the castle is hard enough, and telling you of my relationship was nothing less of cheap knowing you had just left your lover."

Beatrice covered her mouth and let out a laugh. "Lover? Involved? Oh, Chris, I didn't want to marry Robert! I found him suffocating," She laughed. "If you call a man who I'd see once a week for a family dinner my lover, and ignoring every word he says means we're involved, then Christina, I'm in love with Robert."

Christina laughed and shook her head before wrapping her arms around her best friend. 

"You have no idea how much weight I feel was lifted from my chest. Not being able to find comfort in your embrace has been the hardest part about these past two years," Christina confessed softly. "But, enough of that. You have to tell me about your first day! Were the rumors of the prince true? Is he as horrible as the stories say?"

Beatrice sighed. She hesitated to tell her of their moment together in the bedroom where they both spoke so unexpectedly candid to one other. The encounter she endured in the storage confused her more than it gave her answers, so she decided to keep it to herself. And surely she would never disclose of the conversation she overheard between the prince and the king.

"The stories are exaggerative," She told her. "The prince is kind."

"Kind?!" Christina asked shocked. She chuckled. "Oh, dear Beatrice. I fear the idea of princes and royalty from books we used to read as children have obstructed your take on reality."

Beatrice forced a chuckle as well, accepting that Christina would not choose to believe in the prince's true kindness. As Christina spoke about an incident that happened in the morning, Beatrice glanced over at the spot where she had watched the interaction between the royals. 

The fairytales she had entertained as a child were clearly unrealistic of how the castle truly was. Beatrice was discovering more and more about how different reality seemed to be.