Chapter 12 The Forest, Gregory

I woke the next morning and saw Anjanique still asleep next to me. Parts of her hair had fallen in front of her face and she was smiling. She looked so cute and so happy. Then I noticed the fire. It had gone out; probably hours ago. I didn't want to, but I knew I need to, move to build up the fire, so she didn't get cold. I carefully moved her small body off of my chest and laid her flat on the ground covering her with the blankets and my cloak.

I moved away from the blankets and pulled on my boots and walked over to where the fire had been. I threw some tinder into the hole and then threw some small sticks on top of it. I lit it with my flint and my knife and slowly feed pieces of wood onto it until it kept a flame on its own. I turned back around to see Anne awake and looking around. Her hair was still hanging in front of her face.

I went back over to the blankets and brushed the hair out of her face. "Morning beautiful."

She looked at me squinty eyed. "We stayed out all night."

I leaned over and kissed her forehead. "Does that matter?" I asked her before kissing her lips gently.

"Not really." She then laid her head on my chest, like she had all night, and snuggled closer to me.
I couldn't believe my stroke of luck with Anne. Had she been a princess I would have never gotten her out of the place last night much less gotten her all the way out here or gotten her to stay here with me. All night. Barely moving and barely speaking. Silence is nice. Just sitting there. The two of us. Not having to say anything to know what the other is thinking.

"Greg?" I looked down at the head on my chest and she was looking up at me. "I've got to ask you something."

"What?"

"Where's my shirt?" I should have seen that one coming. I had almost forgotten about that part of last night. Well I guess it would have been really early this morning.
Being alone at night with a girl does something to a boy. Even if that boy is the prince and knows better. Completely knows better.

"Um… I think you are probably sitting on it. Sorry. I don't know what happened last night. I didn't mean for that to happen."

She sat up and looked under her and I had been right she found her shirt. She pulled it on over her head and then laid back down on my chest. "I wasn't complaining was I? There was nothing wrong with it. I just figured it would be a bad idea to show back up at the palace without a shirt on." She laughed lightly and twisted her fingers into mine.

"You mean you were okay with it? I didn't screw up this time?"

She sat back up so our heads were level again. "No I didn't mind. I actually…" Anne stammered and blushed. That was a true rarity for her. "I actually really liked it." When she finished saying this she was looking down at the ground.

"Well, then. Because I can't do this when we get back to the palace," I didn't finish my sentence. I gently lifted her chin and brought her lips to mine again. I very slowly and meticulously moved my lips against hers. I didn't want her to feel uncomfortable so I let her take the lead, and I barely noticed when she twisted her fingers in my hair. I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her closer to me, but she pulled quickly back. She broke our contact and turned around to look behind her.

"Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?" I hadn't heard anything and I tried to pull her back to me, but she pulled away.

"Shh. Listen."

I decided to listen and see if I could hear what she heard. Right as her head snapped to look behind her, I heard a stick break and I looked too. Somebody screeched and ran out from behind the bushes back towards the palace.

"Who was that?" Anne was sitting on her knees and quickly braiding her hair back.

"It was one of Nariel's maids."

"Oh no. We are going to be in so much trouble. She's going to tell everyone and…" Anne was standing up now and practically pacing back and forth through the clearing.

I stood up and grabbed her and held her to my chest. "Anne, calm down. It's going to be fine. Anybody that girl tells, will believe me if I just deny it. Don't worry about it." She had her head buried in my shoulder and I couldn't understand what she said. "What? I can't hear you."

"You don't understand Greg. That girl will go and tell Nariel. Nariel has probably been having you followed the entire time she's been here! And people will believe Nariel! She's evil. You know what she told me? She told me to stay away from you and that if I didn't I wouldn't be around for long. She wants you Greg! And she's not going to stop until she gets you! What are we going to do?"

I carefully took her face in my hands to calm her down, like I had seen her father do. "Right now? We aren't going to do anything." I kissed her forehead and she smiled lightly. "Right now we are going to go back to that blanket and sit down. We are going to hold each other until I'm sure everyone in the palace who would notice has gone to church. Then we are going to sneak back and then I'll deal with Nariel if problems come up.

"If you hear anything from anyone that says that I would never do anything like that with anyone much less a peasant, even if you hear from my own mouth, do not believe it. I'm at that point just trying to get us out of trouble. Alright?" I made her look at me and I could see the tears in her eyes. I wiped them away with my thumbs. "Alright?" I said gently.

"Alright." She said this so softly, I could barely hear her. I hugged her close to me and kissed her forehead again. I then picked her up like she was a baby and carried her back to the blankets.



It took Anjanique a long time to calm back down. She sat there in my arms so still and so silent, at times I didn't even know she was awake. Forty five minutes after the initial freak out I leaned over to her and quietly whispered in her ear. "You okay now? We really should be getting back to the palace."

"Yeah. I'm fine." She said this quietly, and I almost didn't hear. She sat up from laying in my lap for the last little while and looked at me. She looked a lot better then she had before. "Just one thing before we go back."

"What?"

"Kiss me again." I smiled I never thought I would hear Anjanique say that. Of course I would comply.
I placed my hand on the side of her face so my fingers were lightly twisted in her hair. I then gently pulled her head towards mine and she tipped her head to the side. Our lips met and she parted her lips just a little. Just enough to make us both go nuts.

Once we had finished kissing we both quickly ate a piece of bread and cheese and packed up all of the blankets and everything else.

I doused the fire while she took the horse to the pond to get a drink. When she came back the fire was gone and I helped her up onto the horse and then quickly swung up in front of her. She wrapped her arms around me and laid her head on my back.

When we got to the gate the same stable hand that had been there the night before opened the gate and took the horse from us. I slid off and then helped Anne off. "Not a soul remember?"

"Of course not sir," the stable hand said with a small bow. "Don't forget a match," he said handing me a match so I could light the candle in the passage.

I took the match and then took Anne's hand and we ran off toward the passage door. When we got to the door I kissed her forehead and then lightly kissed her lips and opened the door to passage. I lit the candle and then pulled her in with me.

We fallowed the same passage back to her room as we had followed away from it. Right before we got to the door behind the tapestry we both pulled off our boots and I kissed her one more time.

I moved the tapestry back to check that no one was in the hall, and when there was no one I signaled for her to come out. She blew out the candle and we were totally silent as we ran barefoot down the hall to her room.

Standing outside her room, she hugged me quickly and whispered, "Thank you," in my ear before slipping into her room.

Best night of my life. I think so.

Chapter 11Runaway Anjanique

"I can't believe he would do that. It isn't like him. I thought he was my friend!" I was sitting on my window seat while talking; okay more like shouting, to Colleen.

"I don't know Anjanique. I don't think it was his fault. It looked like she forced him into it."

"But," I was silenced by the sound of a knock at my door. I watched as Colleen went to answer and to see who it was. I could see that it was Lena, and what was I going to do? Turn Lena away? Lena was like my sister. Our mom's had both come from the neighboring country of Farthing. Her mom had married the price at seventeen and my mom came to Dracoon to study. That was where she met my dad. When we were little we played together all the time.

Lena came in and sat next to me on the window seat. She was holding a bouquet of yellow daisies and blue snap dragons, and a piece of paper folded in half. She handed them to me and said,

"Theses are from Gregory." I took them and almost threw them on the ground but Lena stopped me.

"Before you destroy them, he said to tell you he didn't mean it, and that it wasn't his fault. I don't know what he's talking about, but why would he go to all this trouble if he didn't mean it?" Lena stood up and looked down at me. "I'm just saying, Louis wouldn't go to all that trouble to lie to me and I don't think Gregory would either." She messed up my hair and left my room.

I looked at the flowers and didn't throw them. Lena was right. Greg was a terrible liar, and he would never go to the trouble of trying to make a lie sound or look good because he knows it wouldn't work.

I put the flowers down beside me, and opened the note.

Anne,
I am so sorry. I didn't mean for it to happen. She threw herself at me. I was just showing her around like Mother told me to. I didn't want any of that to happen. If you can forgive me, meet just outside of your bedroom door at ten after it gets dark. I hope you do. I'm sure Colleen will cover for you.
Greg.

I smiled and looked out of the window again. It was starting to get dark. When I showed Colleen the note she agreed to cover for me, so we didn't get caught. She also said I told you so. And she was right. Greg hadn't meant any of it and it wasn't his fault.

I stayed in the clothes I had been wearing all day until after the physician checked on me and I ate dinner. I then pulled on pants and tunic and carried my boots in my hand until I was out in the hall.
I walked into the hall and Gregory sighed in relief. He was carrying his boots too; we really were being sneaky.

He kissed my forehead and grabbed my hand. "Follow me." I smiled and followed him down the hall. Sneakily and quietly. He turned to me and held a finger to his lips and the pulled back the tapestry we were standing in front of. He grabbed a candle from and nearby table and led me into the tunnel behind the tapestry.

He turned to me again and held the candle up so I could see. "Okay. You can put your boots on now. They can't hear us in here." I bent down and pulled my boots on over my pants and then Greg did the same.

He straightened back up and smiled at me again. One of those silly crooked smiles and grabbed my hand again and kept leading me down the hidden hallway.

"Where are you taking me?" I asked him as he kept pulling me through the hallway.

"You'll see. I promise."

He pulled me through the nearly dark hallway for a solid five minutes in silence, and then out of now where he stopped. He turned to me and held his finger to his lips again so I knew to be quiet. He pushed open a door that was hidden in the wall, that I would have never known was there. He held the door open for me, and once I was out her followed me and blew out the candle.

We were outside now, and the moon was full so it lit our way. He grabbed my hand once more and started walking quite fast, and in the shadows, towards the stables. We went passed the stables and far back into the grounds. He took me to a place that I didn't even know existed.

Waiting by the wall the marked the edge of the castle grounds was one of the stable hands. He was standing by a gate in the wall, holding a single horse by the reigns. Gregory walked up to the horse and swung himself easily and swiftly on, and then he reached down and grabbed my hand and helped pull me on behind him.

"Are you going to tell me where we are going yet?" I whisper fiercely into his ear.

"Not yet. Soon." The stable hand then handed Greg the reigns to the horse. "Did you get everything I asked for?" He asked the teenage boy stand near us.

"Yes, you're Highness. It is all in the saddle bags," the boy said as he made a small bow to Gregory.

"Alright then. Thank you. Open the gate. And tell no one we left."

"Of course you're Highness. Not a soul." The boy opened the gate and Greg kicked the horse and started away from the castle.

This gate lead straight into the forest that surrounded this side of the palace and you could barely see the moon above us. I wrapped my arms around Gregory's torso so I wouldn't slip off the horse. Again Gregory kept quiet and just let the horse walk.

It took ten minutes to get to where we were going. Greg slid of the horse and tied it to a tree before reaching up and helping me off the horse. Once on the ground he kissed my forehead again and took of his cloak and wrapped it around me. "Stay warm, while I build a fire."

I nodded and looked around at where we were while he built his fire and unloaded the horse. We were at a small lake that was almost entirely surrounded by trees. He built his fire far enough away from the trees so they wouldn't catch, but close enough that we could lean up against them.

Fire built he dumped out one of the saddle bags and laid out a blanket and then pulled me over to it and pulled me onto the ground with him. We sat in silence for a while, while I looked at the ground and he stared into the fire.

"Anne," he said and I looked up from the ground. He placed his hand on the side of my face. It was so warm. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for any of that to happen, much less for you to see. She threw herself on me, and I understand if you don't believe me, but please, I mean it."

I looked at him and smiled softly. "I believe you," I said and then laid my head on his collarbone.

"So you're not mad at me?" He asked running his fingers through my hair.

"Not anymore. I was then but that was because I didn't know what happened."

"Then why didn't you let me explain before?"

"I don't know. I was just so mad. I didn't care what you said." I rolled me eyes to look up at him and he smiled at me.

"You know your beautiful right?" He said as he twisted my hair around his fingers.

I looked down again. "You're just saying that."

"No. I'm not. I can't wait to see what you look like on the night of the Ball. I'm sure you'll look even more beautiful then." I laughed at this. "What?"

"There are going to be hundreds of other girls there. Not just girls but royal girls. Noble girls. Not just the falconer's daughter."

"It won't matter how many girls are there. I have only had eyes for one girl for the last two years. And she is sitting right here with me."

"Really?"

"Yes. I was only doing what my mother told me to do this afternoon, or I would have never left your room."

I sat up and his cloak fell off my shoulders. I looked him straight in the eye and said, "You really mean it? You're not just saying it?"

He moved his hand to my face and brushed the hair out of it again. "Why would I lie about something like that?"

"You wouldn't I guess. I just don't understand why me."

Gregory laughed lightly and pulled his cloak back up around my shoulders. He then wrapped his arms around me again and pulled me back to him. "Because you aren't like other girls," he whispered. "You could care less if I was the Prince of if I was just any other boy on the streets. You don't care what anyone thinks about you. You are just you. It doesn't matter that you are the falconer's daughter, because you would still be you, even if you weren't his daughter. Now do see why you?" I nodded against his chest and yawned. He laughed again and his body shook. He wrapped his arms tighter around me. "Sleep. Don't worry no one will find us."

I smiled lightly and closed my eyes. I fell asleep that wonderful night wrapped in my Gregory's arms. Not Prince Gregory; just Gregory.

Ch. 10 Nariel (Gregory)

When I walked out of her room, I could hear both my mother and Anne's father talking the physician.

"I didn't even know she had gotten bit yesterday. I knew she tripped, but I didn't think anything of it. I feel like such a bad Father."

"James, it could have happened to anyone. Don't punish yourself for this." My mother was trying to comfort her father but it didn't seem like it was working.

"Given the circumstances, I'm surprised she only tripped once." Now the physician was
talking to James.

"Excuse me? What do you mean?"

"Your daughter sprained her ankle on what was it Tuesday, I think. It may have even been Monday."

"Wait she did? Doing what?" Oh no. The cat was out of the bag now.

"Yes. I believe she tripped over a rock while she was on a walk with my son." I chose that moment to step from behind the corner and clear my throat. All three of them looked at me.

"She's asleep. I'm going to go to my room now. I'll be there if you need me." I then turned and walked away from the adults.

Even as I neared my room, I could still hear them whispering about her.

I woke the next morning to Simeon trying to roll me out of bed again. I groaned and rolled over and glared at him. "Simeon, its Saturday. Why in the world are you waking me up? I don't have lessons today."

"Anjanique, is awake, and she is asking for you." My eyes shot open in an instant and seconds later I was out of my bed and at my closet pulling out clothes. "I figured that get you out of bed."

I had my shirt half way on and I turned to glare at him. "Is this a joke then?" Either way I was up I might as well just finish getting dressed.

"No, not completely. She is awake and she is asking for you, but is also almost noon and your mother doesn't want to you leave your other guest the Princess Nariel alone all day. She said you could visit Anjanique for a few minutes but then she expects you to be down at lunch with Nariel." I groaned internally. I could only imagine what Mother had planned for me and Nariel. I sat down on my bed and pulled on my boots.

"Okay got it; Anne for a few minutes and lunch with Nariel. How bad can it be?"
I walked out of my room while running my fingers through my hair to try and make it lie flat. Well that was a lost cause.

I knocked on her door and when no one answered I just let myself in. She was sitting up in her bed but her eyes were closed, so I thought she must have fallen asleep again. As I got closer her eyes opened and she kind, but not really, glared at me. I kneeled down by the edge of her bed and moved some hair out of her face. Her face wasn't hot like it had been last night. Did that mean the fever was gone?

"Hey," I whispered. "You feel any better?" This was when she rolled her head around to look at me.

"Yes. I feel just fine actually. But that pompous old fool you keep sending to look at me won't let me get out of bed."

I touched her cheek again, and she squirmed away from it. "Well, I'm sure he has a reason for it."

"Yeah probably as much of a reason as I have for putting off doing my laundry at home." I knew she was feeling better then and I knew my time was up. "I have to go eat lunch with Nariel, I'll come back later. I promise."

She didn't look at me and she didn't say anything either, and if it wasn't for the circumstances I would have started pestering her to get her to tell me what was wrong, but I really didn't have to go. I stood up and touched her hand. "I promise I'll come back as long as you want me. Alright?"

"Whatever." She muttered this very quietly. Oh she really was mad at me, but right that second there was nothing I could do about it.


I walked down to the Great Hall and when I got there Nariel, and my brothers were already there. As I sat down Louis punched me in the shoulder. "Sleep in Shorty?"

I shoved him back. "Don't call me that." I honestly couldn't believe that he was shoving me around Nariel. We didn't do that around Leah until, well I don't know. Not the first time at the table. Wait what was I thinking? What did I care what Nariel thought about me and my brothers? Honestly.

As lunch was starting to be served I turned to Nariel and started talking to her. "So, Nariel what would you like today? I am yours all afternoon." I was being polite. I didn't want to be with her all afternoon and I had no idea what to do with her. I had, had plans for me and Anne to do but, well that wasn't happening.

"Well, I was wondering if you could show me the rest of the gardens and the courtyard. I didn't get to see very much of anything yesterday since you were in your lessons and Anjanique got sick. I hope she's feeling better."

Well that was nice of her. "Of course I can show you the rest of the gardens, if that is
what you would like to do. We can do anything you like."

"I'd like to see the gardens."

"The gardens it is then." She turned back to lunch and didn't talk anymore.

"Suck up." Louis was leaning over and whispering to me.

"Be quiet, or I'll really hit you."

"Oh and what is that going to do?"

I was not surprised when Edmund stepped right about them. "Hey, you two, cut it out. There is a lady at the table, and you two aren't being very polite." Edmund was right, and we both stopped arguing and apologized to Nariel. Mainly because he was older than both of us and we both knew he could kick both of our butts.

After lunch I took Nariel out to the gardens, just like she asked. As we walked we talked about the palace, the gardens and the kingdom's history. I don't know why she was so interested in it.

After about an hour we sat down on one of the benches in the inner courtyard. "So Gregory, you are next in line for the thrown aren't you?"

"I wish I wasn't but both my brothers have abdicated. We haven't announced it to the
kingdom yet but yes I am next in line. By default."

"Why wouldn't you want to be king? What could be better?"

"Well… I… um had other plans for my life. And if I am king I don't really think I can make those plans work."

Nariel looked at me with this strange look. It wasn't an evil glare, but it wasn't a friendly
look either. It was kind of in between.

"Like what other kind of plans? If you don't mind me asking."

"I would rather not talk about it. It's rather personal." I stood up and was planning on walking away from her, but Nariel got up and started following me.

"Oh, come on Gregory. Tell me, please."

I turned to look at her and she was batting her eyelashes, just like any other princess, besides Lena, I have ever met did. "No, Nariel. I'm not going to tell you." I turned back around and walked back towards the main lobby of the palace.

"Gregory! Wait!" Nariel raised her voice to get me to stop, which was uncommon for a princess.

"What?" I turned around to face her and she threw herself on me, and began kissing me. I heard somebody gasp above me. It only took me a mere second to push her off of me, and she fell to the ground. I looked up and saw that we had been standing below Anjanique's balcony. Oh great. "What were you thinking Nariel? You know what, never mind. I don't care."

I turned away from her where she was still on the ground and ran all the way back to the palace entrance. I knew I was going to hear about pushing her and leaving her there, but what was I suppose to do? I stopped in the lobby and caught my breath for just a second and then ran up the two flights of stairs to Anjanique's room.

I knocked on the door and Colleen answered it. She barely opened the door and I could hear Anne. "If that's Gregory, tell him to go away."

I pushed past Colleen into the front foyer of Anne's room. "Please, Anne. Let me explain."

Anne was out of her bed and was already walking towards me. "No. I don't want to see you. I don't want to talk to." By now she was six inches away from me. "Now get out of my room." She turned away from me, but I didn't move. She turned back around and shoved me in the chest, hard enough that I lost my balance and fell flat on my back. "I said leave."

I looked up at her and could tell she had been crying. I picked myself up off the ground. "Alright. You know where to find me." I turned and walked out of her room.


I slammed my bedroom door as I walked in. I couldn't even imagine what she had to be thinking about me now. She was angry; that I was sure of. And she probably hated me now. I hated myself. How did I manage to get into that situation? What was Nariel thinking when she did that? Wasn't obvious that we, I mean, Anne and I, were I don't know. Engaged? No, that's not the right word. More than friends? I guess that is a good way to put it.

I sat down on the edge of my bed and pushed the gold circlet off of my head. I leaned over and placed my elbows on my knees, and was practically pulling my hair our. What in the world was I going to do? I couldn't think of anything. My brain was dry and I was mad. Mad at myself and mad at Nariel. Mad at my parents for bring both Anne and Nariel here. What were they thinking? Why do they keep meddling in my life?

I groaned and threw my hands above my head before I fell backwards onto my bed. As I fell I hit my head on the gold circlet. "Ouch. That was stupid." I pulled the circlet out from under my head and held it up. That's why she did it. I'm the prince of Dracoon; the most powerful kingdom on the continent. Not just the prince but the prince next in line for the thrown. That's why Nariel threw herself on me. She wanted me to marry her, so she could someday be queen of my country. That insolent, little, turd eater. She was no better than any other princess that I had met. She just wanted to be a queen and to rule and be controlling.

What on earth was I going to do about the Anjanique situation? She wouldn't let me see her, so that ruled out going and talking to her. After what she had seen today she probably wasn't going to go back out on her balcony, and she wasn't going to fall for the throwing pebbles thing again. I knew she wasn't.

I got up off my bed and walked to the window seat in my room and sat down on it. I stared out the window into the distance not taking in anything. That was until I heard the sound of carriage wheels broke my trance. I watched as the carriage pulled right up to the front door of the palace. I watched as someone stepped out of the carriage. I couldn't completely tell who it was, but I was pretty sure it was Lena. My thoughts where confirmed when Louis ran out of the palace shouting her name and then scooped her up and swung her around.

Right then and there I knew how I was going to explain to Anjanique what happened. I knew just how I was going to make it up to her.

Ch.9 Infection (Anjanique)

What did I just do? I walked to my wardrobe and as I did I touched my lips. I really had just done what I thought I did. I smacked myself in the face. What had I been thinking? He was a prince and I well I'm just a falconer's daughter. A peasant. I wasn't cut out for court life. Why did I even try? Was I completely insane?

As I pulled out a dress for supper I decided that, no, I was not completely insane. And my reasoning? Well, there wasn't much. It had happened before. A prince falling in love with a girl that was below him. I had read it in a history book only a few days ago. The girl's name was Ella and the Prince was Charles. It had happened before. I was not going crazy. I wasn't saying that I was going to marry Gregory or anything just that I wasn't going crazy.

Just as I was brushing out my braids and pulling my bangs back with a ribbon, there was a knock on my door. "Anjanique? Are you nearly ready?" I smiled and quickly finished tying the ribbon and stepped back into my shoes. I opened the door and walked out of my room to see Gregory waiting there. I smiled as he twisted his fingers through mine again. I almost couldn't believe that he was making such a bold move twice in one day. Maybe I was going crazy, but maybe so was he.

As we walked into the Great Hall the king stood saying "Ah Gregory, Anjanique. I wondered when you would get here." Gregory quickly dropped my hand and for a second I wonder why, and then I saw her. There was a very finely dressed girl about our age sitting at the table, where I would have normally been sitting.

"Gregory," Alexandra started saying as Gregory pulled a chair out from me. One seat away from the new girl, and then sitting in the seat in between the two of us. "This is Princess Nariel, of Silesia. She'll be staying with us."

My eyes darted around the room, and eventually landed on Greg. He looked just ask confused as I knew I was. Another girl in the palace? This was going to put him into over drive; I was sure of it. Not that I could do anything about it, and no, I was not jealous of the over dressed fool sitting a seat away from me. Why would I be? I bet she can't cook, or weed a garden or anything like that. Sure she could probably sing, and make tapestries, but what good was that going to do her? Honestly.

All through supper I stayed quiet. I didn't talk unless spoken to, and tonight, that wasn't much. Everyone was much more concern with Nariel. I guess there wasn't much to ask me anyway. Everyone in the room had known me for almost five years and I had been here for nearly a week. I suppose I was just uninteresting now, but I'm okay with that.

Gregory tried a couple of times to try and get me involved in the conversation, but every time he tried one of his parents would butt in or something like that. He would look at me with a look in his eyes that I knew he was trying so hard not to scream and a look that said, "I'm sorry," in it. I would inconspicuously shrug and roll my eyes. I knew it wasn't his fault or anything.

We were well into dinner when the Queen started talking to me. "Anjanique, Simeon says you are extremely smart for never going to school. So I was wondering if you would like to skip your lessons tomorrow, and show Nariel around the palace."

My heart speed up when she said that. No I didn't really want to, but what was I suppose to say? I watched as Greg's eyes flipped over to me for just a second and I knew he didn't want me to either, but really I had no choice. "Of course, you're maje…Alexandra." I caught myself before she gave me the look she had been giving me when I didn't call her by her first name.

"Wonderful! You can show her the gardens and the library. Oh and if she wanted you could show her the birds." I smiled and nodded as the Queen talked about all the places I could show Nariel. Did I really want to? No. But would I? Yes.

After dinner was finally over, Gregory walked me back to my room in silence. When we got to my room I turned to Gregory; he was looking down at the ground. "Did you know she was coming?"

He looked up at me. "Um… My parents hinted at it. I didn't think they would actually do it. Anne, I'm sorry. If I…"

I covered his mouth with my hand. "Don't worry about it. It's not a big deal."

He pulled my hand away from his face. "Anne, are you sure? I mean I can talk to my mother and then…." I cut him off again.

"Gregory, it's fine. I'll deal with it. I mean how bad can it be?"


I got up the next morning and ate breakfast in my room. Today I dressed in one of the shorter skirts and leggings and brushed my hair into two braids. I looked at myself in the mirror and even after almost a week I still couldn't believe that I was looking at myself. I shrugged slipping my shoes on and then leaving my room.

The princess's room was actually just down the hall from mine so it didn't take me long to find it. I knocked softly on the door, and one of her ladies maids that had come with her answered it. "Yes?" She asked me. I guess to her I probably looked like any other palace servant.

"I'm Anjanique. I'm supposed to show the Princess around the palace today."

"Oh." She looked like she was surprised. "She should be ready in just a minute. When her Highness said one of the other guests was going to be showing her around I was, well expecting more of another guest."

Wow. The people from Silesia were rude. I had never heard anything like that from any of the court people here. Maybe that was because I had grown up with it and didn't notice it or maybe people here just didn't say things like that. I didn't say anything to the ladies maid because I figured it wouldn't honestly do any good.

I waited for almost ten minutes while the princess finished getting ready. What could honestly take that long? When she did finally come out her ladies maid said something to her that I couldn't hear from across the corridor where I had gone to sit. All I did hear was "Yes, Millie, I'm sure."

I stood up as she approached me. "Shall we be going then, you're Highness?"

"Oh yes." We started walking towards the stairs that lead to the main entry of the palace. I could find anything from the entry, but not necessarily from my room, so that's why I was taking her there first. Half way down the stairs she started babbling. "So Anjanique, we didn't really get introduced properly last night. Who exactly are you?"

"Oh!" I was surprised. "I'm the falconer's daughter."

"And how do you know Prince Gregory so well?"

"Well, um…" I was being articulate. "My father has taught all three of the princes the art of falconry from the time they turn twelve. Gregory is only a few weeks younger than me, and when he turned twelve, my father had recently fired his apprentice. He needed someone to help him carry his things to a falconry lesson one day and I went with him. My father hasn't taken another apprentice on since then. He's just had me." By now we had left the main entry and walked out into the inner gardens. Many of the gardeners were still out pruning and grooming the plants.

"Oh. I see. So you know Prince Gregory well?"

"Well, yeah. He's sort of my best friend." I can't believe I just said that. How stupid could I be?

The princess turned to me while we were standing under this tree. "Well, you want to know something? Stay away from him." I was a little confused, and I guess she could see it in my face.
"I've come to marry him. That's why I am here. He can't take the thrown unless he marries. And he's going to marry me. Got that?"

She was a princess, and I was just a falconer's apprentice. What was I suppose to say? Not a chance? No. I just nodded and let her keep telling me to stay away from my best friend in the whole world who I thought maybe was beginning to become more than that. "Yes, you're Highness," was all I could manage to get out when she was done telling me off.

"See? Was that so bad? I knew we could be friends. Right Anjanique?"

"Yes Ma'am." I said this with a small curtsy and the slightest sound of fear in my voice. How else was I suppose to react?

"Now why don't you show me the library now that we have all of that settled?" I simply nodded and showed her to the library.


When it was time for lunch I took her back down to the Great Hall. During lunch I didn't talk to Gregory, I barely even looked at him. I also told my etiquette teacher that I wasn't feeling well and she told me to go back to my room and rest.

I got up from the table and started walking out. Nariel shot me an evil look, and Gregory quickly jumped up to follow me back to my room. When Greg caught up with me he wrapped his arm around my waist, but I shrugged away from it. "Are you just trying to get out of class?" He whispered as we started up the stairs.

"No. I really don't feel so great." Truth of it was that I had been feeling kind of sick ever since Nariel had told me off.

"You looked kind of upset when you and Nariel came into the library. Were you feeling sick then?" My head was pounding, and I didn't really want to talk for fear of repeating any part of what Nariel had said to me. I just nodded my answer.

Gregory sighed as we reached the doors to my room. "Anne, why didn't you tell anybody?"

"I figured it would just go away."

He sighed again and held me by my shoulders. "Anne, I want you to go into that room and lie down. I'm going to send for the physician." Just about as I was going to tell him not to get the physician he said, "And you are not going to fight me on this. I bet that bite and that cut on your leg that you go on the hunt the other day are infected."

"But Gregory!" I wined and I never wine.

"No buts about it." He was holding my face in his hands now making me look at him. He kissed my forehead lightly and then placed his forehead against mine. "I don't want to see you any sicker than this. Alright?"

I gave up on arguing with him and just nodded. "Now go in and rest."


Gregory was right. Both the cut on my leg, from when I had tripped and the bite on my wrist were infected. The physician came and practically scrubbed my skin off around the cuts, trying to get the infection out. After he was done with that he covered them with clean bandages and then told me to stay in my bed, because I had a fever too.

A few minutes after he left Gregory walked into my room. He pulled the chair from the writing desk over by my bed. He sat down by my head board and carefully touched my hand. "I could hear you screaming out in the hall." He then pushed some of the hair that had fallen in front of my face away from my face. "Is there anything I can do?"

I shook my head, and in a very quiet voice whispered, "It hurt."

He traced his fingers down my face again before saying, "I'm sorry, but now you should get better." When I didn't say anything, he started talking again. "I should go. Let you sleep. You need the rest." He started standing up and my eyes shot open.

"No, Gregory. Don't go. Stay. Please?" My voice was so strained I wondered if he had even heard me. When he sat back down I knew he had.

"I really should let you sleep. I could get in trouble for this, you know." I knew he was joking to a point. He wouldn't get in trouble from the people he thought he would. It was Nariel he should be afraid of, not his parents.

"I know. But please just stay." He touched my hand again, and sighed.

"Alright, you win. But only until you fall asleep."

Ch. 8 Swings (Gregory)

After I had said goodnight to Anjanique, I went back to my rooms and fell flat on my bed. I laid there for a few minutes before there was a rap on my door. "Gregory, may I come in? I want to talk to you about tomorrow." It was Mother standing at the door. What was I suppose to do? Tell her 'No. Go away.'? I sat up and told the door man to let her in.

She came in and I stood. "Yes Mother?" I asked her.

"Gregory, tomorrow afternoon I would like you to go to Anjanique's etiquette class with her. They are going to be working on dance, and she will need a partner. I have already talked to Simeon and he is fine with you missing your afternoon lessons for one maybe two days."

My mind was spinning. It wasn't that I had never been that close to a girl, because I had; there had been plenty of other balls. It was that I had never been that close to Anjanique, and she wasn't really one of those people who just let other people touch her. I counted to ten in my head to keep myself from screaming and then calmly—or at least I think it was calmly—said "Yes Mother. Of course Mother." I was being very formal and I knew it but it was one of those times when I just sort of had to be.

"Thank you Gregory." Mother said as she put her hand on my shoulder. "I thought that Anjanique might feel a little bit more at ease if she was learning to dance with someone she knows fairly well, rather than someone she doesn't know at all." Mother was right; Anne would feel more at ease if she was with someone she knew. At least I hoped she would be. "I also want you to make sure she doesn't over do it on that ankle that she sprained. I know Anjanique can be one of those people who hides pain to please people and I know it is probably sore after that hunt the three of you went on today. Alright Gregory?"

I wondered if I should tell Mother that I had seen Anne not ten minutes ago and that she had said that her ankle was purple. I decided against it and just said "Yes Mother. Help her learn to dance and don't let her over do it on her foot."

"Thank you Gregory. I will see you at breakfast in the morning." I guess in Mother's eyes I was a little kid because she kissed my forehead and said "Good night," before leaving my room. I fell back onto my bed and sighed. I was going to be helping Anjanique learn how to dance. Could I handle that? Could she handle that? Or was this going to ruin everything?



I woke up the next morning, almost dreading that afternoon. I was excited to get to dance with Anjanique, but I didn't know if it was going to make her mad or make her think that I was involved with things I wasn't again. I got dressed brushed my hair and then headed off to get Anjanique for breakfast.

I knocked on her door and Colleen answered it. "She's almost ready you're Highness. Just a moment please sir." She said performing the standard curtsies and such.
Just a minute later Anjanique came out of her room wearing a full length dress. It was a very simple blue dress that laced up the sides and then it was over a simple white over dress that was laced at her wrists.

I kept my mouth shut. The last time I had said anything about what she was wearing I got punched. She took the arm I put out to her, and we started walking to the library for morning lessons. "How's the ankle?" I asked her when I could feel the very slight limp that she giving onto my arm.

"Still purple." I thought about telling her that she didn't have to go to dance lessons and then I decided against it. I knew she would just say it was fine and it was no big deal and that her ankle didn't hurt that bad that it didn't hurt at all, but I had my mind made up. The second she started limping through the dances, whether or not she wanted to stop, I was going to make her. I already felt responsible enough as it is for the sprain, I really, really didn't want it to get any worse.

We walked into the library and I pulled out her chair for her, and she sat. That was the end of ever maybe even getting to talk to her a little bit. Simeon jumped right into our lessons saying that we were going to be studying math today. Unlike history and politics, I suck at math, but Anjanique, that's another story. She was amazing at math and could figure anything out from simple numbers to geometry and word problems. I figured that she was having an enjoyable time showing off to my tutor.

Simeon was impressed. I could tell when they got into a heated battle of multiplication. Simeon would say two numbers and then Anjanique would multiply them in her head and then give the answer back to him. The numbers weren't little either they were big like 67 times 34. Numbers like that. Nothing I could do in my head. I stuck to working from the book Simeon pushed in front of me at the beginning of the lesson and kept quiet until lunch.

When we went down to lunch Anjanique wasn't limping anymore, so maybe she would make it through the dance lesson. We ate in silence. Anjanique did once apologize for what happened during the math lesson and for taking my teacher away from me. She said that it wasn't fair and that it wouldn't happen again. I told her it was fine and not a big deal. It wasn't like I was always going to be sharing a tutor with her. That must have struck a nerve because she didn't say anything else through the rest of lunch.

Not only that, she didn't say anything on the way to her dance lesson either. In fact she barely spoke to me for the next hour and a half. She kept her mouth shut through the first hour of the lesson and only spoke when spoken to.

We went through the motions of the dances that were always done during the Balls that my parents held; dances that court children started learning when they were six. The teacher was surprised at how well Anjanique was picking them up, so she let us go at the hour and a half mark.

Anjanique didn't wait for me. She picked up her skirts and ran out the door. And I mean ran. I tried to follow after her but I completely lost her. I tried her room, but when no one answered and I went in, her room was empty. I didn't even look like she had been back after the dance lesson. I tried to think of where she could have gone. And then it hit me.

I practically ran out of her room, down the stairs, through the kitchen and out the side door of the palace. The side door lead to dirt clearing with a well and a tree with a swing hanging from it. That's where I found her. Sitting on the swing but not really swinging. She was looking at the ground when I walked up to her. I squatted down in front of her and made her look at me. "Hey, are you okay? You ran off really fast."

She looked at me; not smiling but not frowning either. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"Anne, you know I know you better than that. Come on what's wrong?" I carefully grabbed her chin and made her look up and not at the ground.

"I…." She was stuttering. I had never heard her do that before. "Its… just….I don't know. I don't know what's wrong with me. And I don't know why I ran out like that. I just did." She almost looked like she was going to cry.

I stood up. "Don't go anywhere. Stay there." I turned and walked back into the kitchen. When I came back out she was still on the swing and I was carrying two cups of hot chocolate.

"Here." I said handing one of them to her. She took it and sipped from it. And then she smiled.

"Thanks." She said as she kept sipping from the cup. I sat down on the ground in front of her.

"Better now?" I asked as I drank from my cup.

"Yeah." She said smiling. She looked up at the sky and then said, "Remember when we used to sit out here for hours while my father was out hunting with your brothers before you were old enough? Swinging and playing marbles?"

I laughed, while standing and taking the cup from her hands. I placed both cups on a bench nearby and walked behind her. I grabbed the ropes that tied the swing to the tree and pulled her back. I leaned in close to her ear before letting her go and whispered "Yes." I let go of the swing and she laughed. I was glad I was making her happy.
I kept pushing her back and forth until cook came out of the kitchen.

"Gregory your Highness, Miss Anjanique," she curtsied and continued. "Supper is almost ready, I would suggest that you two hurry and go change."

As the swing came back to me I grabbed the ropes and slowed Anne to a stop. She slid off the swing and started walking into the palace, and I hurried to catch up with her.

As I caught up with Anjanique I laced my fingers through hers and to my surprise she didn't flinch or pull away like I thought she would. Her eyes darted down to our hands and then back up to me and smiled softly. I walked her back to her room so she could change into dinner attire. Before she walked into her room she turned to me, bit her lip, and then she did something completely unexpected. She kissed me lightly on my cheek, and then ran into her room. I ran quickly off to my room to change, because I knew that the sooner I did, the sooner I could see Anjanique again.

Ch. 7 Politics (Anjanique)

Edmund walked me to my rooms while constantly talking. "You two weren't on a walk were you?" He asked as we approached my door. I bit my lip. "Because that limp is not a 'tripped over a rock' limp. That's a 'I fell doing something stupid that I shouldn't have been doing ' limp."

My eyes shifted around. "No we weren't on a walk. He took me out to the sparing field, and I lost my footing."

"Oh my idiot brother of mine." He said as he opened the door to my room for me.

"It wasn't all his fault. I'm the one who consented to do it." I bit my lip again. "Edmund? Can I ask you something?"

"Let me guess. You want to know if I know anything about what they're talking about down in the great hall. Probably about that I decided to join the church. I'll leave for seminary after the ball. Am I right?" I nodded. "I thought so. Well goodnight Anjanique."

I went into my room and sat down on my bed. "So Edmund's joining the church, not a fairy. Boy, was I wrong." I rolled onto my bed and grabbed the book Utopia, I had swiped it from the library that morning, and started reading it. Simeon thought that it was a little bit thick for a "peasant girl," but he forgets that I am not who I appear to be. Eventually I changed into my night gown and went to sleep.


The next morning I jumped out of bed and landed on my feet. My ankle didn't hurt at all, and it was Wednesday! I hurried to my closet and pulled out leggings and a tunic. Wednesday's meant I could dress like I was used to and Dad came for falconry lessons. I dressed and brushed my hair; quickly braiding it into falconer's braids and then lacing it with leather thongs.

As I started putting my shoes on Greg knocked on the door. "Just a second!" I shouted and hurriedly tied my shoes. I opened the door and walked out. "Morning."

He smiled at me; his little just turned up at the corners smile and took my arm, now that he could because I left my crutches in my room. "You look a lot happier this morning. Did you sleep better last night?" I nodded. I didn't say anything and there was and awkward silence. "Anne, I…"

"Greg, um…" We both started talking at the same time. "You go first."

"No, Ladies first. Always."

"Oh never mind it was nothing."

"Anjanique, you know I know you better than that. What were you going to say?"

I bit my lip. "Really Gregory, I wasn't going to say anything. What were you going to say?"

"Um… nothing. Just trying to break the silence." He laughed. He knew I was lying, and I knew he was lying, but neither of us tried to do anything. I smiled at him and he smiled back.

Once breakfast was over we walked off to class in the library. Talking, laughing and cracking jokes the whole way. We both hated it when we would have to go in because it meant having to be quiet until lunch.

Today was a history and government day. Great politics. Gregory understood them, but I didn't. He had it easy. He grew up with it and me, well I don't know anything.

Simeon started me out with a small book of basic ruling laws and why decrees from the king worked and that kind of thing. I always thought it was just because the king was the king that he could make decrees and laws, but actually there was this big long reason why he could. Something about 'for the good of the people' and yada yada yada. Most of it still didn't make sense, but some of it did.

As I was flipping through this book and reading it I came across something about the rights of inheritance. I read this passage through several times before it made complete sense.

In the case of the throne, if the oldest son denounces his right it passes to the next son. If that son denounces then it is passed again and so on and so forth. If an immediate heir is not established then the throne is passed to the next family in line.
Reasons a son may denounce throne
Joining the clergy
Marrying a princess that is in line for own throne
Incompetent
Choice of not marrying

After reading this, I realized something. Gregory, was next in line for the throne. That's what Edmund had been trying to tell me last night. How could I have been so stupid? Edmund was joining the church and last I knew Louis was going to be moving to Cretha after he married Princess Lena who was in line for her throne. That left Gregory; and if I know his parents then they gave him the "you'll do it for the good of our people whether you like it or not talk." His father, the king, was completely against the idea of turning his kingdom that had been in his family for four hundred years to the Duke of Laysonville's family, which was the next family in line and they had tried to take control several times.

I shook my head and tried to push this thought out of my head. Gregory couldn't take the throne, but I know he would because he knew it was for the best. I knew he didn't want it, he had talked to me about that. He hated the idea of being of being king. He had even told me once that he didn't like being a prince. That it just wasn't his thing. Being told what to do, and when to do it. He liked the idea of living in the village in just a little house with his parents like I did. And that was even how he explained it. I shook my head again and closed the book with a thump.

Gregory leaned over to me and whispered, "Anne, you alright?" I nodded.
He smiled and turned back to his own assignment, and I pushed the book away from me. I grabbed another on and started flipping through it until lunch.

We walked down to lunch together, talking and laughing. We had a simple lunch and when the etiquette teachers tried to come and pull me away, my father walked in. I smiled and ran to him; very unlady like.

"Come Anjanique, its time for you lady lessons." One of the teachers said.

"Actually ma'am I do believe that on Wednesdays my daughter belongs to me and is my apprentice for Gregory's falconry lessons." My father said to the teachers and they backed off and left. I grinned at Dad and hugged him tightly. "Missed you sweet girl. Are you two ready?" He asked as I let him go and stood next to him.

"I have to run up to my room to grab my glove, and then I'll meet you in the garden." Gregory said and then went off to his room.

As he left he sent me one of his secret little smiles, that I knew meant he did it on purpose so I could see my dad for a little bit.

Dad wrapped his arm around my shoulder and we started walking to the gardens. "Let's go get the birds kiddo." We walked out to the bird box and I pulled on my glove and then went in and got Shadow my Merlin falcon. He hopped right onto my fist and let me hook the jess to his feet.

"So are you having fun staying her Anjanique?" Dad asked me as he pulled Mika from the box.

"Um… sure Dad." I was putting the bells on Shadow. "Its great I guess. Simeon doesn't think I'm up to my 'level.' He doesn't realize how much I really can read and understand, even if I don't show it. He's a nincompoop."

"Anjanique, you know that's not what I meant. What about Gregory?"

"Nothing has changed. Can we not talk about this Dad?" I love my dad and can tell him just about anything, and he knows about Gregory and everything but sometimes he tries to hard.

"Of course, Anjanique. Here he comes." He said hitting me lightly in the shoulder.

"Oh shush it Dad."

Gregory came into the clearing and walked into the hawk box without saying anything. I wondered what was going through his head as he pulled out his red-tailed hawk, Meckshaw.

He came out with Meckshaw and started hooking bells and jesses onto him. "So what are we going to do today, James?" He asked my father.

"Well I thought we would just take them out on a mini hunt. Not a full one. Just a couple of hours out in the thicket just outside of the castle walls; what do you two think about that? I think the birds would like it."

I turned to look at Gregory, and he had the same look on his face that I was sure was on mine. Dad didn't know about the ankle sprain, and I wasn't going to tell him. Sure, I had been walking all around the palace this morning but that was just short bursts. I didn't honestly know if I was ready to go out on a hunt, but I was going to have to.

Gregory apparently had been thinking the same thing and had analyzed the look on my face, because he said "That sounds great."

"Let's get going then." Dad said as he started walking off out of the bird arena where we normally held our lessons.

I hung back with Gregory for a minute. "Are you going to be okay with walking that much? The physician said…"

I cut him off my placing my hand on his chest. "I'll be fine. I don't care what the physician said. I'll be fine and Dad isn't going to know about the silly sprain. Right?"

He had a shocked look on his face. He knew I told Dad everything. "Right. Let's catch up with him."


A few hours later, after a late dinner I was sitting in my room, and pulled off my boot. My foot and ankle was bruised purple. I had successfully gone on that spur of the moment hunt and survived without Dad knowing about the sprain.

There was a knock at the door and after I acknowledged it Colleen came in. She handed me a bag of ice. I hadn't even seen her all day. "Prince Gregory said you might need that, and asked me to bring it to you since it's not appropriate for him to come into your room after eight." That would explain why she would know that my ankle was purple, after not even seeing me today.

I put the bag on my ankle and jumped. It was cold, but of course it was cold. It was ice. When she asked if there was anything she could do for me I shook my head and bit my thumbnail. I really didn't like this whole being waited on thing.

I fell back on my bed and then there was a tapping at my window. As if someone was throwing pebbles at it…Wait a second. I jumped up and walked to my balcony window. Someone was throwing pebbles. I opened the glass door and walked out on the balcony and got pelted with a pebble in the forehead. "Hey! That one hit me!"

He dropped the rest of the pebbles he had been holding. "How's your foot? You were limping a little on the way back."

"It's very purple." His face screwed up like he was blaming himself. "Don't you even dare go blaming yourself for it. I'm the one who spared with you and then went out on the hunt. It's my fault."

"But Anne…" He stopped when I gave him a look that obviously said 'cut it out.'

"Don't 'but Anne' me. If you are I'm going back in my room and going to bed. I'm probably going to do that anyway." He looked at me and smiled that turned up at the corners smiles and said "Good Night Anjanique. Sleep well." He then turned away from my balcony and walked away.

Ch. 6 I'm Never Going to Get This Right

After classes on Tuesday, I went to Anjanique's room to try and find her. I wanted to take her on a walk with me. A real walk this time not saying it was a walk and it was really something else. When I got to her room her maid, Colleen, said that she had left about half an hour ago and had gone to the courtyard.

I tried my hardest not to run as fast as I could out to the courtyard to find her. I had to keep my cool; I really didn't need to totally blow me secret yet. It wasn't so much that I wanted to go for a walk with her as that I wanted to make sure she was okay. During our lessons this morning she had been really quiet, even to the library. She honestly didn't look like she had slept the night before.

When I finally found her she was in a secluded part of the courtyard with a peregrine falcon on her fist. She was sitting cross legged on a bench gently stroking the bird. I came up behind her and gently placed my hand on her shoulder to let her know I was there and so she didn't spook the bird. "Is that Kenai?" I asked her right before I sat next to her.

"Yeah. Dad let him out of quarantine a couple of days ago and I thought he might like to get out of the box." She smiled lightly and continued to stroke the small bird. Anjanique always seemed really at ease with herself and the world when she was with a bird. "Did you want something?" She asked me as she kept stroking Kenai.

"Um… yeah. You were really quiet this morning. Are you alright? Was your ankle bothering you or something?"

She rolled her eyes at me and I knew she really didn't want to talk about it, but I knew she would. That's one thing about sort of growing up with her. I could speak her body language. "I was a little tired this morning. My ankle bugged me a bit last night while I was trying to sleep, but it's nothing I couldn't handle."

I touched her shoulder, and looked at her. "Why didn't you say something to someone? They would have fetched the physician for you. There's no doubt that he could have given you something to help you sleep." She pulled away from me, and then shifted Kenai to her shoulder.

"Because, I didn't want it, Greg! There's no point in it." She grabbed her crutches from the side of her and stood. "I have to take Kenai back. See you later." She stood up and then hobbled off.

As she hobbled off towards the falcon yard, I smacked myself in the face. I did it again. I'm such an idiot. I stood up and walked back to the castle, but I didn't go to my room. I went to Louis's.

I'm going to regret this, I thought as I knocked on his door.

"What do you want little brother?" Louis asked, through a just barely open door.

"Louis, I've got to talk to you. It's about Anjanique." He rolled his eyes and opened the door the rest of the way.

"So what's the problem baby brother?"

"I keep screwing things up with her. She's barely even talking to me anymore. I try to do something nice for her and it all just blows up in my face. How did you manage with Lena? I mean you're about to propose right?"

"I didn't try to make it happen, Gregory. It just did. That and Lena's royal it was a little easier to make it work. Anjanique's different. You might have to wait for her to do something. I can't really help you this time. Sorry, little brother."

I sighed and walked back to the door. "Thanks anyway Louis."

"Just a second little brother." I knew I was going to regret this.

"Yeah, Louis?"

"Do you care if I propose to Lena at your birthday ball?"

I rolled my eyes internally. "No. Go ahead."

"Thanks, Gregory." I nodded and left the room. Oh great. Never going to live this down.

I walked backed back to my rooms and fell onto my bed. This is so not fair. It always seemed like she was storming off on me, not like there was much I could do about it. She was a girl and I was a guy, and well we don't get each other.

I laid there contemplating things until it was time to go get Anjanique for supper. I rolled off of my bed and changed clothes. I never did understand why I had to change before we ate. It was a waste of time.

I walked to her room and knocked on the door. She came out of her room and didn't say anything, but her eyes were slightly puffy and it looked like she had been crying. She started hobbling to the Great Hall. "Anne, are…" I started to say, but she cut me off.

"I don't want to talk about it, so don't try." She gave me that look that made me know she was serious, and I kept my mouth shut, and followed her to the Great Hall.

Supper was uneventful. Anjanique ignored me. Mother asked what was wrong. Anjanique said 'nothing.' My brothers messed with me and left Anjanique alone.

When we got up to leave Mother stopped us. "Edmund, will you take Anjanique back to her rooms? Your father and I need to talk to Gregory." He nodded and helped her out of the Hall.

I bit my lip, and looked at my parents. "Gregory, sit down please. This is important." Father said gesturing to a seat close to them. I sat down and looked at them.

"Gregory, this is about the kingdom." Father said this with a serious look on his face. "Your brother Edmund informed us today that he plans to join the clergy, and that's why he hasn't courted anyone. And I'm sure you know of Louis's plans to propose to Princess Lena. I'm also sure that you know she is in line for her own kingdom's throne and that Louis has denounced his right to the throne after Edmund…"

I interrupted Father. "Wait! Are you saying that the kingdom is mine?!"

"Yes, that's what I was about to say. Now in order…"

"I don't want it! I wasn't planning on this, I don't want the throne!"

"Gregory, be reasonable." Mother started talking now. "Your brothers have made their choices. We would much rather keep the throne in the family and not turn it over to a family that the people don't know or trust. This is really for the people. They all love you."

"But Mother!" I was practically whining now-which I never do-and was standing up.

"Gregory! Listen!" Father was pulling his kingness on me now so I kept my mouth shut. "This is for the good of the kingdom. And you are best option. You are the one I trust with the kingdom. Now you will have to find a wife. Do you understand?"

I nodded, but said nothing. "You may go now." Father said.

As I started walking away, Mother started talking again. "Gregory," I paused. "Remember, it is still your choice. Make the one for you." I nodded and left the Hall.

What the hell am I going to do?