Playing: Tchaikovsky- Swan Lake
He held the door open and beaconed her to enter his humble bakery in which she obliged. There was no customers due to the fact that majority of the people just had their breakfast at this time of the day but in spite such reason, he wanted to find a reason to hang out with her, after all he admires her and it would be a shame to let this opportunity slip off of his hands.
"This is yours?" The girl asked confusion lacing her soft voice.
"Ah yeah, My mum and father had just given me the responsibility of taking over our bakery quite recently. Must be the reason why you're not familiar with me." He answered with a chuckle while rummaging through the shop. He is rather bright in nature as the gal is. But one thing women would seek if they are to choose who to marry is fortune and good lineage. One of the many reasons why women are dolling themselves and flocking over the presence of a nobleman much like how vultures would flock on a carcass, a rather odd comparison if you may ask.
Judy is certainly the diamond of the season. She had always been pursued by men of different classes with different things to boast about. Several of her suitors are noble mans who owned vast expanses of lands at the country and ginormous mansions a pair of feet would be exhausted of roaming around. But Judy knew better than to pursue wealth and he's slowly realizing it as he converse with her throughout her stay at the bakery. She was having much fun with him in this space they've shared for some time trying to acquaint each other with utmost success.
"You are a gentleman aren't you Mr. Terry?" She asked which she meant in a complementary way.
"That is quite flattering of you Miss Judy. Well, my father raised me to be one. Also, in this nation women is to be treated with utmost respect which I'm not really opposed to." He smiled as he rested his chin on his hands.
"I'm still really baffled as to why feminism is being highly implemented in this nation. Sure, men and women have equal rights in several things but not on pursuing jobs. It is certainly harder for lads to seek for a job after they graduate even from a prestigious university as they are not to find a job in this country thus moving out to settle elsewhere. I certainly do hope as the Queen's reign halt, so does this nonsense because her fixation over it is certainly not doing any good to the country nor the people. " She blurted out frustration lacing her voice and prevailing her features.
"Let's hope our Princess Julia isn't brainwashed by the false ideology of that harridan of a mother of her's shall we?" He asked with a grin before the door opened revealing the first costumer in a while. It was Sam, a good friend of his who sells Tulips by the Flora lane. Probably taking a break after a long day of merchandising his sister's fresh produce. Terry stood up to greet the lad who was occupying himself by picking up Horse bread from the basket.
"Can't you eat something more lavish than a horse bread as your afternoon snack, Sam?" Terry asked the lad who handed him three pieces to place it on a paper bag.
"I'm afraid I cannot, Terry. My sister needs the fortune I earn here for a better life and I am displeased to admit that I have bungled my duties as her brother. I shall work and save harder." He answered whilst grabbing the paper bag and bidding the lad as well as the gal a goodbye. After that, many customers started pouring in due to the sudden spike of demands for bread as afternoon snacks is at its utmost delightful after a busy day. Judy bid her farewells to Terry who was occupied with accommodating the costumers with their orders and pledged to come to him tomorrow to further acquaint themselves with each other. Clearly the gentleman has enthralled her.
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She was rather delighted by the feast she had this morning thus consuming more than what's habitual of her. She and her parents had discussed several things and one is her becoming a debutante. It appears that she will not disappoint her parents and bring shame upon her Family's name as her older sister had done before or will she? She is rather fond of playing her role and playing it with such proficiency. She was so full and so she decided to take some stroll to visit her beloved pet locked up on its cage situated in the Royal Garden. A peacock going by the name of Pavona which literally translates to Peacock in Italian has caught her big doe eyes as she was sauntering towards the cage. She did the unthinkable yet again and pulled out the set of keys from the gap between her corset and her waist this time around. She did not need more compression of her waist as it is adequately small and so she decided to store the keys in there because she believed it felt slightly uncomfortable to store it on her chest as if storing it on her could feel any better. She grabbed a key with an Amethyst embedded on its bow and unbolted the cage. The bird flew out of the cage right at the moment past her and immediately exhibited his ever so glamorous set of feathers on his tail and rattled it to attract potential mates. With his effort acknowledged, she is afraid however that his exertion of effort would be futile as she is yet to purchase a mate for him. A dazzling white peafowl perhaps. She bought him when she saw a picture of one when reading books about birds inside the Royal Library and so she purchased one herself straight from India without as much as planning. She has tried several times to buy a Peafowl but all of it were put to waste as the one's she requested were not resilient enough to live throughout the journey from India to Azalea as it is quite a distance to cover.
She entranced herself by staring at Pavona whilst sitting down a bench under a European Hornbeam tree. She was deep in thought thinking of many gentlemen's compliments towards her. Her gracefulness and exceptional beauty has always been the reason why she is the most sought after by the numerous Prince she has met throughout her life. Formed under pressure, desired by many yet not a single soul was able to attain her heart. However, there was this prince whom she met once during her childhood that has captivated her. He was the only one who complimented her of her spirit and amiable nature. Not a single soul has succeeded to capture her attention as much as he does even after 8 years. She even drew him in her sketchbook. His aristocratic features melted her heart along with his romantic demeanor that served as the wood that lit the flames of her heart. Their time with each other fanned the burning desire to be with one another and so he pledged to claim her as his bride upon her becoming a debutante in the near future. She was certainly enchanted to meet such a gentleman however, she was deprived of the opportunity to meet him again on international nor local fete. She overhead the gossips that the Kingdom where he resided was seized by the bandits and overthrown their family banishing them from the Kingdom for good by taking their life and ending their lineage all along. She was heartbroken beyond comprehension by the news and it took her a while to finally get back on her feet. However, he and hus promises still does linger in her mind occasionally.
"I want someone to compliment me of my spirit yet again. I want someone to see inside me and praise it more than what's outside." She muttered to herself with a smile while holding the amulet of Pink Sapphire that was given by the same boy she has thought of all these years.
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"Name?" She questioned still pointing the arrow at the lad.
"Seriously? You do not know of my identity?" He asked with pure disbelief.
"Just answer the darn question mister." She warned, glaring at him.
"I-uh....It is I, Ben Arthur Kim. The third prince of Larkspur." He stated with utmost pride or should I say, boastfulness.
"You are not jesting, aren't you?" She arched her eyebrows, skeptical of such claim. He in turn nodded in response as the girl put down her bow and arrow. She did not need a proof as she can distinguish how a royal behave in comparison to a fraudster despite being a wildling and her parent's displeasure. Besides, she sees the Amulet dangling from his neck.
"I shall not see the need to address you with such formality. After all, you are already crossing the border thus invalidating your rule upon anyone nor anything that happens to be here. There is nary a servant of yours in this place." She stated in a rather serious tone.
"I beg your pardon? But where am I? Where is this place again?" He questioned with pure curiosity.
"Could a prince be not more of an imbecile as you are? Have you not brought your map along with you? You're approaching the Queendom of Azalea." She answered in annoyance.
"Now if you'll excuse me, I shall take this specimen home." She sauntered towards the lifeless body of the raptor and carried it by its legs dangling it while walking towards the opposite direction. However, before she could cover an adequate distance, the lad had called her out with much desperation.
"Whoa there! Can I at least.....join you?" He strolled closer to her as he halted his steps and rested his hands on his waist.
"For what reason?" She questioned whilst turning to him with an arched brow.
"You see, I am currently in destitute and in desperate need of basic necessities. Whilst I was hunting, a sound resonating from a distance scared my target and ran away. It has caught my attention and so I did the obvious and strayed away from my initial activity to unveil whom created such sounds. It sounds as if a battle transpired in here and so I went here and before I knew it, my treasure, map, weapons even my horse were seized by a group of bandits and so here I am in your presence desperately seeking for help. I was lucky I hid my amulet in my.... Oh well I don't see the need for you to know but I was certainly fooled!" He explained with utmost disappointment.
"You were a fool to begin with." She said with little to no enthusiasm lacing her voice.
"I'll pay a hefty amount of fortune once I find my way back home. Just-just help me this instant." He pleaded now kneeling while rubbing his hands together, staring at the girl scrutinizing her in hopes of catching a glimpse of submission which did not disappoint him for the gal nodded in defeat.
"Do not mistake me for someone desperate of such inducements. I'm far better than that. Now, make haste Mister." She pursed her lips and commanded prior to continuing on her hike towards her home with the Prince tailing behind her vexing her.
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(4 months ago)
She was flabbergasted by her irrational action of knocking him out unconscious. She rattled and breathed unsteadily as she had no idea what to do of his state and so she did what she presumed to be the most viable thing to execute and checked his pulse then let out a sigh of relief once she felt steady beats. She attempted to carry the lad on her back but disappointingly failed as she succumb to her physical limitations and ultimately fell flat on the ground. She groaned in frustration before freeing herself off from his immensely heavy build laying unconscious above her. Her wariness has certainly engendered such things to transpire. Feeling the guilt seeping through, she resorted to drag his senseless body towards the farmhouse. By the time they arrived, the lad looked unkempt and almost appeared grotesque as an exaggeration with the mud coating him. She laid him on a pile of a hay at the corner of where the horses are kept for the night and awaited for him to gain his consciousness back.
He groaned in pain as he caressed his head. He shut his eyes open only to witness the sight of an alluring young lady scrutinizing him with evident worry. He sat up surprising the gal as she leaned back gasping. He traced his eyes around to see an unsightly place. The place where they store their livestock is certainly better than this.
"Where am I? Where are we? Who are you? What happened?" his question flooded her as soon as he regained sanity.
"Inform me of your identity first, Daniel." She commanded as she recalled his name.
"I am Daniel Dubhshláine Lee, The first born son of King Minhyuk and Queen Nayeon of Larkspur and the eldest of the three prince." He stated with a lace of boastfulness on his voice. It appears as though siblings do really share a few if not many similarities with each other after all.
"You're hilarious mister. Beyond fathomable, really." She bluntly stated. Perhaps his jest was far too hilarious for her simple mind to laugh at it, she presumed.
"I am not jesting." He argued with pure disbelief.
"Oh, how I wish you were not! However, the person you are claiming yourself to be is too far, too high to be sitting on a pile of hay inside a flimsy farmhouse at the edge of the border. I envision him to be occupied with his work as the next ruler of his Kingdom signing whatever papers in need to be signed or sitting on his opulent dining room at the palace, enjoying a feast on a luncheon along with some fine women of good lineage I suppose?" She asked narrowing her eyes with a playful grin on her face.
Now that he think of it, this lady is rather dazzling despite her unembellished choice of clothing. Her enticing sharp eyes indistinguishable to that of a feline's. Orange hair that appears to be flaming under the morning sunshine that penetrated through the windows and her seductive diction from when she speaks that sent chills down his system. He was drawn to her beauty so much so that he found himself spacing out which was immediately interrupted by a snap of a finger from the young lady.
"Oh you have no idea how enervating it is. I had to sit from dawn to dusk and if not, I am to attend fetes and soiree for boring talks." He complained whilst rubbing his temples and looking down. When he lifted his gaze up to the gal, he let out a sigh of frustration upon witnessing her amused façade.
"You do not believe me, do you?" he asked without much patience lacing his voice. The girl sauntered to her horse and caressed his muzzle while eyeing the lad.
"Your demeanor surely guaranteed me that you are at least a noblemen. Might be you revere him too much, I suppose. I at least needed a solid corroboration for such claim?" she asked, daring him to display such.
"Not as solid as.....an Aquamarine Stone?" He questioned. She laid her eyes upon the amulet he took out from inside his shirt. She gasped in surprise, eyes widened in disbelief. This necklace has the very exact design she saw on one of the books her father used to show to her and her brother as a child. Her papa was a man from Larkspur and so he shared quite a few facts about his home to his children. One of those was the traditions of the Kim's. That every male members of the family shall be given the exact same design of an amulet of Aquamarine Stone as to symbolize their sense of duty and responsibility they bear of taking care of the Kingdom and ensuring its desired well-being and growth maintained.
"Now that I think of it, I haven't caught you stating your name to me. This question I presume, should be better than the "who are you?" I asked earlier..... So, what is your name?"
"Lucy Ravenor Hwang" She stated still not leaving an inch farther from her horse as she was conversing with one of the Prince of Larkspur.
"A peasant?" He asked which earned nods from the gal as he stood up.
"I had to be sure, it's not everyday that I see such a beauty address herself as one." He said while chuckling which for some reason failed to ease the atmosphere.
"My father was not a peasant but my mother was one and so we addressed ourselves as peasants despite being quite well-off as compared to other people residing in this region. Now, stop messing with me, Mister. What did you mean by using your body as a payment for the havoc you've caused my Tulips?" She asks with impatience.
"Havoc is quite a word of exaggeration isn't it?" He asked whilst chuckling but clearly was not taken by the gal in a humorous manner.
"I-uh, it simply means that I shall offer to work under you. Y'know, Help out with what you need assistance with." He suggested with a rather awkward grin.
"You don't have a place to stay, do you?" She questioned the lad which earned a scratch from his nape and a series of nod.
"Then you shall stay in this very room should you repay for the damage you have caused on our business." she stated without any room for argument.
"Can't you at least, lend me a set of clothes perhaps? I'm afraid I shall head to a nearby rivulet to wash myself from these hays and sludge that has coated my body since you knocked me unconscious." He proposed.
"Very well, and while you're at it, could you carry two buckets of water back here? You suggested to do such labor and I am to grant your request at this very moment. Besides, the tulips are in need of heedful caring as they are to look their best this approaching season." She grinned whilst handing out two buckets for him.
"I shall fetch you your clothes, should you wait outside and immerse yourself with the idyllic view of the field. I'll be back in a minute."
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The unforeseen revelation of her Mother has plummeted her self-worth to an unthinkable depth. It appears so that all her excellence in the Royal University, Her proficiency on playing the pianoforte along with many more instruments, and her grace she has instilled onto herself all just to live up to everyone, especially the Queen's standard was rather futile. She believed she has not yet polished herself onto blending with the politics as well as the twist and turn of the responsibility she shall be bearing in the near future. And she could not do better to address her distress than to lock herself on her room and weep over it. She reminisced the days of her father's presence in her life. It is indeed very delightful as it brought her solace and felicity amidst this very distressing moment of her life. She remembered dashing through the hallway first thing in the morning to stick caricatures of her father's face on his desk in the study room. Arranging a tea party with the King, little Jinni, her sister and her dear cousin, Lady Catherine Shin and her only as her sister could not care less of doing such thing she deemed overly-feminine. Cackling to herself whilst pulling off pranks towards the king and getting compliments for her strategic planning which she hasn't heard from her mother all these years. All she heard was the pressure that molded her to be fitting of her standards. After all, she does not wish for perfection from her eldest daughter but rather demanded it. Yet she failed on providing her with the parenthood she and her sister deserved more than anyone else. She and her little sister had always been chaperoned by numerous servants since their father's passing and still is up to this day. Upon their father's passing, she expected her mother to finally be able to build a heart-to-heart relationship with her and her sister as they mourn his departure yet their distant status remained unchanged, even more distance added to be precise.
As she composed herself and wiped the tears off her cheeks that has been streaming down for a long while, she decided to pay the Royal Garden, a visit. Whilst her strolling, she happened to come across her dear cousin, sitting on a bench staring at her delightful pet in the form of a Peacock. She sat beside her and faced her.
"Y'know I've always wanted a Peacock myself, right?" she asked chuckling.
"Perhaps you want to steal Pavona away from me, don't you?" she questioned back with amusement.
"If I were to steal him from you, where shall I keep him?" She jokingly questioned back.
"Well then, that is for you to determine, Lady Julia." She answered.
"What has been bothering you?" Julia asked softly.
"The past, Julia." She let out a sigh and forced a weak smile on her face.
"So do I." She stated glancing at the Peacock at a distance.
"Of which one, Catherine? If I may ask?" She asked facing the gal beside her yet again. They scrutinized each other before the younger gal spoke.
"It is about the prince whom I met 8 years ago at a fete."
"Oh, the prince. I suppose you haven't forgotten of him."
"Indeed. My longing for him has only grown quite strong now that I am to be a debudante as shall be married off soon enough."
"You first met him at this very bench, didn't you?" She asked patting the bench which earned her a nod.
"He is indeed a splendid one. Throughout the stay of some Royal Families here from different parts of the world, I did not hear you utter a single word of praise of any other suitors of your's aside from him."
"Splendid beyond fathomable I may say." Catherine said while smiling, choosing to hide her displeasure.