A tight frown was drawn on the little boy's face. His wood stick traced a mindless line on the ground.

"What's wrong?" the little girl's voice bloomed behind him, a panoply of flowers waiting to be woven into a crown awaited on her delicate yellow dress. "Don't you want to play knight?"

The little boy shook his head, his pout more apparent. "My father said he has to leave."

"Where?"

A shrug. "I don't know. Overseas for work."

"So he will come back." The flowy and graceful dress folded next to him as the girl smiled, but he didn't return it. She didn't let it deter her as she extended her flower crown to him, but the boy shook his head away. The crown fell back on her lap.

The boy threw off his wood stick, lacing his arms around his knees, and buried his head into them. "But when he goes away, it's for days!"

The little girl arranged her coily hair away from her face. "When Father travels outside the country. He always comes back," she said reassuringly, her smile still bright and endearing. "He will come back because you are his son." Lach peeked away from his knees, eyes misty.

He sniffed. "Are you sure?"

She nodded excitingly before jolting onto her feet and retrieving the wood stick. "Sure. He will. Now, let's play knight before-" A loud, gripping sound thundered into the garden, akin to a whale in pain.

Panic infused the little girl's round gaze.

"What's going on?" Lach asked.

"Father is there. I have to go." She dusted her dress before staring far away. The boy followed her gaze. The silver gates opened in a loud creaking noise as an all-gold platted carriage rolled in.

She brushed past him as she raced through the grass, her skirt floating like waves around her.

"Wait!" the boy circled his palms around his mouth. "You still didn't tell me your name!"

She stopped in her track, a blooming yellow flower on the vibrant grass. "I will let you know next time," she yelled before running again.

"I am Lach!" he screamed, but her figure was already fading.

The boy's cheeks were scarlet as he picked up the abandoned flower crown, already picturing the bright smile awaiting his next visit.

However, the time they would see each other again died like the last summer Ornuv had ever experienced.

It was the last time he saw her.

**

Large windows lined up the courtroom allowing pools of dull daylight to illuminate the stony interior. Still, the air was heavy and constricting when the Princess stepped inside, stifling with the stares of the council members lining up before the King's throne. She met Zakrus's stark gaze before looking away.

But those that pierced through were identical to hers.

"Amaya," the grave voice of the King resonated, staring down from the throne.

A courtesy. "Father."

"I believe you know why I summoned you this morning." Amaya's stomach gripped with dread. Still, she kept her chin up. "Your ceremony brought guests friends from all over the continent. Those who agreed to the peace treaty despite our position. Still, you deigned to disrespect their presence by leaving in the middle of it." His voice teetered with a wave of booming anger that left Amaya's stomach tight. "This is not the behavior of a future Queen." The slap was as hard as the harsh wind.

"Father. I-"

"Silence!" the baritone voice boomed inside the room, echoing against the walls and making every cell jolt. Amaya flinched. He had never screamed at her like that.

A light bolt in his eyes was directed at her. "You are the Princess of Ornuv." He screamed like thunders tearing the sky apart, and he might have. Even the council members didn't dare to breathe or move. "You were blessed by the Sun God. You are the future Queen. You need to start behaving like the role you need to fulfill."

The thunder of his voice might have bound the bodies and voices of the council members but not hers. "I never asked for all this," Gasps rose. "I never wished to be given like a vulgar prize!" The witnesses' of this insolence glanced at the King. His face stayed passive, anger sleeping and waiting to be unleashed with the next bold statement. "I do not understand why I should marry to run the country." Whispers of indignation rose among the council. Commander Zakrus rose an interested brow. "I am capable of running this country, and if we could find the Fav-

"You must marry for the sake of Ornuv!" The King rose from his seat as his voice boomed again. This time tenfold, silence fell quickly as murmurs escaped through the windows.

Amaya's lips quivered. "But-"

"You pretend to be capable of leading Ornuv yet can't even be present to host a crucial ceremony." The man's chest heaved. All the frustration of the last few days finally bolted out of him. "A child-like behavior is no way of running a country. This is not worthy of a Queen." Amaya blinked, the words so sharp and bold they slashed through her. All eyes were on her, and she wished the ground would open and swallow her whole. He had never been that hurtful. Though her father was always this strong embodiment of rules and duty in her life, he had never let his anger go as far as a reprimand. Then again, she had never dared to go against his decision before.

Her eyes stung, but she wouldn't let those scrutinizing eyes full of greed the pleasure of seeing how far it affected her. She kept her feelings behind the quiver of her lips.

A staff echoed, and all eyes fell on Lord Virwan. "Your Highness, please pardon the Princess' impetuous behavior." All the gazes snapped to the Lord, the surprise of interfering in that family affair glinting in their eyes. "The pressure is great and heavy on her young shoulders. Be indulgent, my King. Insurgence is the core of youth. Give her time to carry her burden."

The King's chest settled down, and his eyes softened. "I know you have been troubled the past few days." His heavy, tired eyes fixed on her, but she kept hers down, limbs trembling. "The decision seemed to be too grand for you." Amaya's eyes jerked up to him; something swelled in his words, something that she had apprehended since the beginning. "So I will take the burden from you and choose for you." His words, like spoiled food, turned her stomach.

She blinked heavily, still trying to make sense of the literal embodiment of her nightmare manifesting before her eyes. The sting behind her eyelids kept on getting stronger. "Father...No-Please-"

The King settled back on his throne. "I have made my decision."

"Father..." a strained plea. A call for help. A daughter in need of her father.

Amaya's eyes welled up. Here she was, snatched of the only semblance of control over her life. "Father-"her voice was frail like a branch. "Please. Don't do this." He couldn't take that choice away from her. It was her only consolation amidst those unbearable circumstances. He couldn't do that. Her lips tremored. "Please."

"You can go now," the King said, voice low with a wave of his hand.

"Father." A last plea. But the King wouldn't look at her, and when the silence stretched so long, Amaya could hear her own sniffles. She turned on her heels and left before the first salted drop rolled on her cheek.

The door shut heavily, and the King massaged the place between his eyelids.

"She got her mother spirit," Virwan commented.

"I don't know whether it is a gift or a curse." The King sighed heavily, passing a hand through his beard.

Lord Virwan leaned toward the King. "A child she is. Give her time, your Highness."

"We don't have time." The King stated. "Solstice is in six days. We can't afford to go on like this for another year."

"We have just enough," Lord Virwan replied. "Just enough."

Zakrus's eyes narrowed silently.

-

Lach's gaze was lost, a harness hanging in one hand and a cloth in the other. A loud yawn rose behind him. Rid laid down on a pile of hay, and Lach wondered if he should tell him about the Princess visiting.

He wiped the fine leather of the harness before hanging it on a wall with the others. He tightened his lips. No, it wouldn't be right. It wasn't that he didn't trust Rid, more like he didn't trust a drunk Rid trying to impress the next girl. He grabbed another harness and started the meticulous cleaning. He would have to keep that information to himself for now. Still, then, Zakrus was another story tormenting him too.

"I can feel the smoke coming from your brain from here." Rid tilted his head to the side. "I know I am still hungry too." He sighed, sitting down. "One would think that working in the castle would grant you access to a feast, not mere crumbs. Tch."

Lach worried his lips as he fidgeted with the harness. "I- there is something..." his words died in a sigh. He turned around, wiping the leather. "Leave it."

"Come one! Tell me!" Rid jumped on his feet.

The words danced on his tongue before he finally let them out, "I have heard a conversation between Zakrus and someone...Something."

Bushy dark blond brows rose. "What conversation?" Rid asked, fidgeting with the pile of harnesses.

Even though they were alone in the stables, Lach couldn't help but let his eyes dart around. He scooted closer to Rid's intrigued face and murmured. "I believe Zakrus doesn't want that wedding to happen."

A laugh burst out in the stable that stood the horses' ears upward. Lach attempted to shush the man's rolling laughter down in vain. "Most men don't want that wedding to happen. As a matter of fact, I don't want it to happen." A cheeky smile stretched on Rid's face. "And you are probably one of them too."

Heat burst on Lach's face. "Not at all!" Rid blinked at the outburst, his cheeky smile stretching even more, and Lach wished to snatch it away. Rid could always read him so easily. "I mean. It is not my concern but-" But that moment in the hallway with Zakrus kept creeping his back. "The commander is planning something that won't be good." Lach insisted with a stark gaze.

"Right..." Rid drawled out.

"I am serious." Lach passed a hand through his dark strands. "If you had seen what I saw-"

"What did you actually see?"

The smoke invaded Lach's mind, confusing his souvenirs. "I am not sure of it myself."

Rid twisted his mouth, gathering his thought as he leaned against a pole. "So you are telling me that the Knight commander who pledged his life to the Crown, who devoted his entire life to protect the Kingdom, the King, and the Princess, is planning against them?" Lach rubbed his neck. "Do you hear yourself?"

Stated like that, it sounded like words coming from a fool's mouth. "I- you are right."

"The Commander does seem a little...strange, but he wouldn't endanger his position as the Knight Commander." Rid put an arm on Lach's shoulders. "The last events really put you through. Come to the tavern with us tonight. You need a pint to clear your mind or whatever crisis you are going through now. You might even find a girl for that." Lach pulled away from him and hung the harness with the others.

Maybe, Lach was going crazy, but he still had a duty to attend. "I can't. I need to go to the mar-"

"-ket," Rid finished with a sigh. "Ok, mama's boy."

"Thanks, and the quicker you help me clean those harnesses, the sooner I can do that," Lach grabbed another one and frowned. The buckle was hanging weirdly. He stretched it with both hands, and the buckle came undone. He threw it at Rid, who caught it in the air. "This one is broken."

"You are really not fun, aren't you?" He said, pointing at him with the harness.

"When was I ever?"

"Right answer." The harness fell on a wood box behind Rid. "I can wait to have a pint tonight." Something flashed behind the blond, and Lach looked up with a frown. "I might see that girl from last time." Something shuffled, and before Lach could even understand what was happening, he saw Aurora being guided outside her stall by someone. A woman. A woman he had wished to see all morning. He froze. His wide eyes prompted Rid to turn around, and he let out a strident gasp.

"Princess!" Rid yelled as he bowed down. The woman stilled for a furtive second. She met Lach's gaze, and that melancholy was back; it was so profound and deep he could feel it where he was. "What can I do for you? Do you need help?" Rid went into a rambling as the Princess passed next to him, she grabbed the harness on the box, and Lach scooted closer.

"What's wrong?" Upon closer look, dry traces traveled her cheeks. "What happened?" he searched her gaze, but her eyes stayed stubbornly down.

"Don't try to stop me," she stepped away and buckled the harness on Aurora before climbing on her with a swift swing of her leg, flying her skirt.

"But-" A fast wind tousled Lach's strands as she galloped away. Lach's feet stayed frozen into place, trying to make sense of what happened.

"Lach..." Rid called, voice laced with panic. Lach turned to him and frowned. Rid's eyes were wide and terrified. "The harness," The blond swallowed thickly. "She took the broken one."

Blood bounced in Lach's veins as he observed the empty surface of the wooden box.

A harness was grabbed, and a horse released before Rid could defrost from his position, and Lach rode in the Princess's direction.