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Knox ____________________________________________________ When the clatter of the carriages didn’t start up for some time, Knox opened his eyes, looking around. He got off his horse, his boots hit the cobblestone with a clunk. He patted the beast's neck and went off to find the problem. He found three coachmen around the luggage cart, whispering among themselves like it was gossip hour. “What seems to be the problem?” The man asked, seeming to startle the three. Surely they had heard him coming up behind them? He wasn’t trying to be quiet, and the tapping of his boots was always a dead giveaway as well as the sound of his sword hitting his leg as he strolled along. On guard duty, he didn’t carry his sword, only when he was in his Knights uniform. The polished brass handle shown in the early morning sun, glittering like a treasure that one would find washed up on the beach. “I’m so sorry Sir, but it appears that there is a defect with his wheel.” One said, stepping out of the way to let him see. Knox crouched down, his sword hitting the ground with an uncomfortable scraping noise. He glanced to the right to find Ange looking at it as well. One of the wells was cracked. “Well that is no good, now is it?” He asked, standing up. He gave the head maid a small nod. He had never spoken to her before Arno had by chance run right into his arms, but now he thought quite fondly of the small woman. She was friendly, and that was hard to find among the palace. Most maids were more interested in squawking like old hens in the hen house rather than doing their job or being kind to the guards. She was a good person to be accompanied by. “Do you know how to fix the wheel?” Knox asked, returning his attention to the coachmen. “No Sir.” All three said in unison. What kind of coachmen were working for the Crown? “We simply drive them, there is no need for us to fix them.” One spoke up upon seeing the disappointment shadowing Knox’s blue eyes. The knight sighed and tapped his foot. “Well, you are in luck. I used to fix carriages for a living.” It was partly true. Before he turned 18 to come and work for the Crown he had a job fixing carriages for the townspeople. He had done it for two years to save up to afford the guard school’s rate. Growing up on a farm where what they grew and butchered was their food for the year, and whatever money they got went to one pair of shoes per person per year or fabric for clothes, and maybe gloves or a scarf if they were lucky. While all of the other children went to school just to complain about it, Knox and his siblings were working by the time they were ten, worn out by the labor by the time they were just fifteen. - Knox stared at the spare wheels behind the barn, trying to figure out what size. Once he determined it, he rolled it back to the carriages at the front of the palace. The old wheel was to be discarded for firewood, and the new one leaned against the carriage. He removed his cape and rolled up his white sleeves to his elbow, getting started on attaching the wheel. It wasn’t terribly hard nor too time consuming, and the party was lucky that the coachmen had caught it so early on. It would be much harder to replace on the road, especially in the middle of nowhere. He was on his knees, hammering the wheel onto the axle, his breeches now covered in dust that had come off the carriage as he hammered it. Once it was one, and sturdy the man handed off the hammer and nodded. “There we go. Not too hard.” He said with a smile towards the coachmen. “Thank you Ange.” He said, swinging his cape over his shoulder and lacing it back up. The black fabric laid over his white shirt, covering the soot stains on his left arm from brushing against the axle when he had checked to make sure it was intact. His steed was still standing where the knight had left him. The horse nickered at him as the man approached, ears flicked forwards. The grey horse was a sight to see, and not too many people had guessed that he’d been born on the man's family farm instead of inside the imperial stables. The large horse was well muscled and fit, and clearly well cared for, his white mane in button braids. He mounted the horse from the ground, and took his spot at the back once again. The carriages clattered as they lurched forwards and Knox followed behind at a walk until they were off the cobblestone. As the carriages picked up pace, so did Orega. The party trotted through the woodland, the leaves dead on the forest floor. The knight was surveying the forest around them, looking for any movement that could be thieves. Pesky buggers they were. “Sir Knox!” A guard called out from the carriage, “The Prince is asking for you. He wants to know about the stall on departure.” The knight nodded and moved the horse up to a collected canter to catch up with the Prince’s canter. They went around the luggage carriage, the magnificent horse blowing air out from his nostrils, tossing his head, wanting to go faster. The beast got light on his front end, putting his weight on the rear and jumping forwards. “Easy.” Knox said, trying to calm the hot horse. Upon reaching the Prince’s carriage, Knox slowed from the canter to a calmer trot, the horse's tail swishing with anticipated excitement to go faster. “Prince, you asked for me?” Knox asked, giving the man a warm, lopsided smile that he was trying to fight. He noticed Ange’s grim expression and the other maids' excitement shone through their eyes. He hadn’t met the other maids aside from Ange, and it would be interesting to see what their personalities would grow to be in this adventure. He caught the small shakes of Ange’s head as she crossed her arms at the Prince and looked the other direction, something clearly upsetting her. “Unbelievable.” He caught her mumbling to herself. He noticed the mystery book in Arno’s lap, a sting of jealousy rang through him. He had never learned to read, and he was pretty sure that none of the maids had learned either. Arno was the phoenix among the regular birds in the party, and it was clear from how the maids gazed longingly at the book. Knox’s smile disappeared to a smaller smile, the one that everyone saw. “Is everything alright your Highness?” He questioned, taking his reins in one hand to pat his horse who was calming down. As his gloved hand stroked the beast, his neck arched in excitement much like a stud’s would, even though Orega wasn’t a stud. He snorted and shook his head, ears perked forwards, chewing the bit in his mouth. Knox’s eyes traveled past Arno to watch Ange as she gazed out her window, her own gaze distant, head resting on her hand. Every once in a while she would glance at Arno. Knox assumed that Arno would be getting chewed out after he fell back into his position at the back. The Knight had a feeling of what this was about. “I am so sorry Your Highness about how long it took to depart.” Knox gave him a small dip of his head, “There was a defect with one of the wheels on the luggage carriage that had to be taken care of before we got stranded somewhere at nightfall in a dangerous part of the woodland. He gave the Prince an apologetic look, glancing at the sleeping maid as her small whistling snores filled the cab. That was going to be a fun trip for the rest of the group stuck in there with her. The knight found it hard to hear Arno from the wind rushing past his ears, taking Arno’s voice with it. His eyebrows knitted together as he stared at him, trying to figure out what the Prince was saying. “I am so sorry sir, would you mind repeating that?” He asked, nudging his horse sideways, closer to the carriage. Once he was as close as he could safely be, he leaned down, trying to get his ear as close to the man as he could without his horse taking off on him. “I’m sorry, can you repeat that one more time?” He asked, finally in a spot where he could hear over the wind that rushed by. |
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Arno
There was a beat of tense silence as Arno settled himself back into his seat before all hell broke loose. Ange continued to scold him along with bombarding him insults to his intelligence, Mouse nearly sobbed as she blubbered on about his general disregard of his own safety and how scared something might have befell on him, while the remaining maid Natalie who wasn't asleep fussed over like a worried hen. It was astounding how fast all of the women crowded around him, causing the carriage to shake in the process, and a little impressive the maid Laci was still sleeping through out the whole ordeal. Any satisfaction Arno had from the stunt he had pulled was quickly short lived, replaced with irritation the coach continued to rock, but he couldn't exactly say he regretted his actions. Far from it really. He needed to thank Knox for stepping in when he did, god knows how long Alexander would have stalled them without his intervention, along with fixing the broken down cart. The knight was practically a guardian angle at this point... Plus apologizing for the duke's frankly inappropriate actions wouldn't hurt, not for Alexander's sake, but his own. Drumming his fingers on his disregarded novel, Arno shot a hand up to put some distance between him and his maid, motioning them to sit down again, " Ladies, ladies, ladies! Good god everyone, take a seat before you flip over the poor carriage, you can scold me all you want later... Please, just think of the poor coachman and horses." " It's- It's not our fault!" Mouse wailed, wiping tears out of her eyes," You were the one who nearly launched himself out of the coach your highness! You could have... You could have died!" " Arno, I swear to all things that truly matter in this world, if you weren't the prince I would have strangled you," Ange hissed back at him, fixing her skirts in a huff. " Alright, alright, I get it! Now... Isn't that better? Everyone's seated and not causing a possible accident that can lead to their own or everyone's death, fabulous," Arno said with a heavy sigh, slinking further into his seat. Ange on the other hand, glowered at him, clearly not moved his care free attitude. tutting his tongue, The prince turned to the two maids who were still conscious with a smile, pulling his novel back into his lap as he eyed Laci momentarily," I don't know how she's still asleep with everything that happened... But! How about I pick up where I left off in my book and we can pretend that nothing happened, hmm?" Mouse's watery eyes lit up at the suggestion while Natalie relaxed, rather relieved at his offer, Ange was still unimpressed. Arno was only able to get through a page of the book when the sound of hooves approaching his side of the coach distracted him. Returning the novel to his lap, The prince brought his attention to the handsome pair that was now coming into view besides them, and Arno himself grow self conscious of his unkempt appearance. He was pretty sure his hair was a mess from the wind, and his clothes wrinkled from Mouse and Ange's man handling, he really should have done something about that before Knox reached them. Biting his lip, Arno flashed Knox the best smile he could muster, hoping the flush on his cheeks could simply be dismissed for the coldness of the wind getting to him. " I did! Apologies for taking you from your station Sire Ridge," The prince chirped, chipper as ever as the maid besides him rolled her eyes, it would be best if he ignore Ange's muttering for the mean time, " But everything's fine, I can assure you." " Unbelievable," Ange snorted, uncrossing her arms as she brought her head to her hand, still grumbling on but at a quieter volume now. Lips in a thin smile, Arno took the time to take in the knight, blocking out his maid's remarks mentally. He hadn't had the opportunity to do so earlier with Alexander's rude interference, but the Knight was smartly dressed, hair tousled by the wind in a way the complimented him nicely, and he was wearing the cape he had offered Arno all those nights ago. It suited Knox. Probably far better than it did him, the memory was still fresh in his mind, and a fond one at that. Knox's horse was also a beautiful specimen, strong and well taken care of, it was clear the animal was special to the knight. The beast seemed excitable as well, amusingly enough, Arno had half a mind to find it endearing. The only thing that distracted the prince from the handsome picture in front of him was the angry hand shaped splotch on the knight's cheek from where Alexander had slapped him. Arno couldn't help but to chew the inside of his cheek, a flurry of conflicting emotions whirled in him. The prince couldn't deny that he still had a soft spot for his old lover but... Arno wasn't he could find it in himself to forgive the duke for harming the knight. How strange, He had even come to terms with Alexander basically abandoning him for another, but this of all things was his tipping point. Drawing his attention back to the knight at hand, Arno nodded along, quickly grounding himself before his line of thought got too out of hand. " Nonsense, an inevitable delay is understandable, if anything it sounded like you were nothing but helpful to the coachmen when you fixed the apparent problem at hand," The prince waved his hand dismissively in response, yet another example of Knox saving the day only for him to come to him with an apology. " Don't apologize for saving us the trouble and the embarrassment of having to someone to fix a wheel. Besides, I really should be the one apologizing to you..." When the knight's brows knit together after a beat of silence on his end, the prince paused. The wind was getting louder, he already had to yell out to the guard who was previously stationed besides him to grab their attention, he'd probably have to shout to be heard. Knox only confirmed his concerns, voice also muffled as he nudged his horse closer to the carriage. Pursing his lips, Arno eyed the maids besides him, Ange and Mouse were giving him a look. It was like they could read his mind. Call him predictable then. Flashing the two maids a smile, Arno gripped the cab window as he shoved his head and shoulders out of carriage once again, much to the girl's dismay. What followed was a bout of screams as Mouse and Ange grabbed once again his torso as Arno came nearly face to face with Knox. Emphasis on nearly. Even with the knight leaning down as he was and with Arno hoisting himself closer to Knox, there was thankfully enough distance between the two that they weren't exactly face to face. That didn't stop the prince from almost losing his balance they got closer to each other, thankful that the now three maids were stabilizing him along with his now death grip on the window. Waiting for the cab to settle down from jostling it just experienced, Arno tried compose himself again. " What I said was- Ah forget it! Don't worry about it, it's just a stupid wheel we were going to have to wait for anyways! What I wanted to say was I'm sorry!" Arno tried to speak loudly and clearly, competing with the sounds of hooves, wheels, wind, and now Mouse's sobs and Ange's slurry of curses directed towards him. He was definitely going to be chewed out by the maid from hell and back once this was all over. Clearing his throat, the prince began to speak again, " Duke Durant was out of line back before we departed. I know it's not my place to apologize for him, nor do I expect or want you to forgive him for his actions but... I just thought... I just couldn't leave it at that. Alexander was a man that I put up with because I, at the time, thought I was in love with him. But for you... He shouldn't have treated you like that Knox, and I'm sorry I wasn't able to put a stop to it. Duke Durant has a history for taking out his anger on others he knows can't fight back, but he should where his place is... I would have socked him for you if that makes you feel any better." The prince allowed himself a beat of silence, wind whipping around him as he took another moment to collect his thoughts. Arno flashed Knox his own apologetic smile, eyeing the maids behind him momentarily before returning his gaze back to the knight in front of him, " If there's anything I can possibly do to make it up to you, feel free to tell me and I'll see if I can make it happen. Ah, that is if Ange doesn't kill me first." |
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Knox ________________________________________________ It could be said that Arno apparently needed a red ribbon attached to his wrist to warn others of the chaos that pursued him. Knox couldn’t even begin to describe the scene that would soon play out if someone else asked because it was all a blur. The last thing that was really clear to him was bending down, putting his weight forwards which excited the hot horse under him. He had half-halted just as he had asked the Prince to repeat himself. He remembered this clearly, putting both reins into both hands and gently pulling back to slow the horse that had begun to outpace the carriage. He had glanced down at the horse's neck before returning his gaze to Arno inside the carriage. The wind blew between the men, both of their hair blowing back in the breeze, making it hard for Knox to see through his own fringe. He held both reins in one hand as he began to try to swipe his own fiery red hair out of his eyes when it happened. When his vision was no longer impaired, the scene in front of him was what could be only described by the word havoc. The carriage bounced about as the maids screamed a horror movie scream. It was high pitched, causing the birds in the nearby trees to fly off in their own state of terror. Orega’s head shot up, his own eyes wide, ears back as he quickly backed off from the excited pace he’d been trying to push on Knox. The maids scuttered around like chickens without their heads, squawking and flailing their arms. Knox could see the white of their eyes and smell their panic coming from inside the carriage cab.”The hell…?” He questioned when Arno seemed to throw himself out the window. Knox’s heart stopped, his blood pressure raised and he was pretty sure he would be fired if the man came tumbling out of the window. He dropped both reins to catch the man if he was trying to jump out. His own panic laced his eyes as he realized that Arno wasn’t coming out at him. His shaky hands picked his reins back up, swallowing. “You really like the idea of giving me a heart attack, don’t you?” He teased, “I have a family history of heart attacks, you truly might be the end of me.” Knox chaffed, trying to calm his racing heart. - Knox listened to the man, giving him his full attention just as he’d been taught when a royal talked to him. His gaze was intense as he watched the Prince who was halfway out a window just to talk to him on a bumpy road. How reckless. How… sweet. His heart skipped a beat as he tried to focus simply on what Arno said, but his mind kept on going back to the fact that no one had ever tried to jump out a window just to talk to him. Was right now, right here really a good time to do this however? Knox’s wistful blue gaze flicked to the four maids who stared back at him.They clearly were judging him and the situation and that made Knox just a small bit uncomfortable. These women were terrifying. His sister was the second youngest with three older brothers and she had beaten all three of them if they teased her on a bad day. She was the princess of the family, and the three of them had always spoiled her as much as they could. He was positive that even with his formal Knight training that he’d gone through (which was just more advanced than the basic guard training of those who rode around them) that these four would take him down if he dared mess with Arno; Ange especially. “Why are you sorry?” He yelled over the wind. “I had pushed the Duke, and I stepped out of line. I will hear no more of your nonsense.” He paused, listening to the Prince. Why was he telling him this? They were merely acquaintances at this point. Knox wanted to consider the Third Prince his friend, but that was a title he kept to himself, afraid that it wouldn’t be mutual. Knox’s jaw clenched as he stared out the other window of the carriage, deep in thought, lost wandering through his own mind. Friend was a foreign term to Knox. He had never really been around anyone his own age, he had work acquaintances yes, but no one had never been close enough to him to consider them a friend. Arno’s voice brought him back from the space in his own mind. His eyes flicked back to watch the Prince’s face as he spoke. “There is nothing that you can do for me, Arno. I am an employee of the Crown, it is my job for me to serve you, not the other way around. Your offer is very generous, but please, I am simply here to do my job. If it means getting decked across the face to keep us on schedule, I will do so, and there is no need for you to slap Alexander back for me unless it was for yourself.” But it did make Knox feel better. Perhaps they were friends, because an acquaintance had never offered to do such a thing in the past or present, nor did he see them doing so in the future. He laughed heartily and looked at the very angry maid that was still cursing her way to hell, if there was such a thing. “It’s my duty to protect you from any potential dangers, that includes angry head maids.” He joked, winking at her. That seemed to infuriate her even more and she slowly shook her head at Knox. He patted his horse's neck who had since then calmed down and sat up in his riding seat. “Is there anything else I can assist you with?” He questioned, watching the maids whisper among themselves. The gossip was already starting. Could there be any force of maids that didn’t whisper among themselves? The guards never had any sort of issues or drama among them, and there were more guards in the palace than maids, but then again, the guards hardly knew one anothers names, where they were from, ages or much of anything about others. They still got along fine however. “Back inside with you.” Knox stated, motioning for the maids to pull the Prince back inside the cab. “We have a steep downhill coming and we don’t need you to get hurt; how would we describe that to the King?” He asked, raising an eyebrow at Arno. - “How much further until that downhill?” Knox asked one of the guards. “Not too much longer.” He responded, looking down at Knox. The knight nodded. He didn’t want to go down the hill next to the carriages due to safety concerns regarding his steed. “Thank you.” He called up. “If you need anything,” He told Arno, “Fetch for me after this downhill.” He gave the man one last smile and brought his horse to a halt, allowing the carriages to pass him, giving the grey horse a breather before following the carriages down the hill. He asked Orega to shift back onto his haunches as they came down this, trying to zigzag down the hill to avoid tumbling down it. Once the pair had reached the bottom, they premused their post riding at the back of the party, the beautiful view of the mountains and rolling hills that lay in front of the group blocked. They were officially out of the forest, clear of any raiders that hid behind the large trees, allowing Knox to take a deep breath. |
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Arno
The look on Knox's face was priceless, recklessness rewarded in full as the prince watched the gears in the knight's brain start to work in overdrive. Arno was told he had that affect on people, typically in a less than favorable manor, but it something the prince found amusing none the less. Knox clearly had every intention to catch him if there was even the slightest chance that he was to tumble out of the carriage he was in, releasing his horse's reigns as his arms swung out rapidly to catch him. Arno knew that Knox was simply doing his job, putting the knight himself at danger while they were at it, but he couldn't help the warm feeling the bloomed in his chest. With the death grip the girls had on him, the prince doubted he was in any real danger of falling now, but the sentiment was still the same in his heart. Whether or not he was getting a head of himself or not though... Perhaps just a bit longer, he could delude himself for a bit longer into thinking he wasn't crazy for the puppy crush he had on the handsome knight, one that was far too comfortable and grew a little too suddenly for Arno's liking. He would squash it once it got too out of hand. - Arno couldn't help the frown that was forming fast on his face, He knew he was being selfish with the apology, but... Knox busy trying to reassure him that it was simply just part of his job to ensure things went smoothly. Which was true, as much as the prince hated it. Arno knew he was spoiled, that he tended to think of himself first over others, often making the lives of others harder than they should have been just simply by existing in the way he did, and often disregarding the castle servants and guards for his own whims, and yet... He wanted Knox to know didn't have to take this disrespect Duke Durant had given him. The prince might not be as powerful as his brothers or father, but he was still a prince of the kingdom of Asmarhea, even the duke wouldn't be able to put up much of a fight against him. Arno's nails dug into the outside wood of the coach, he wanted to argue with Knox but knew it wasn't his place. Arno could tell the knight to do what ever he pleased, but that didn't necessarily mean he would feel comfortable with it, not to mention how conceited it would make him look. Regardless of how the prince put it, he couldn't exactly call the knight a friend without putting word in Knox's mouth, not without worrying he was forcing Knox into the relationship considering both of their statuses.... He needed to get over himself for the time being. Flashing the man the best smile he could, hair still sticking to his face due to the wind still rushing past them, Arno gave Knox an almost dumb nod. It was hard for to find words in that moment that wouldn't cause him to ramble on uselessly." There is nothing else I can think of at the moment, apologies for keeping you for so long," The prince chided himself internally for the deflated tone his voice took on in response to the knight's question, his expression falling for a second before catching himself. The girls behind him were already murmuring to themselves as their grips on him loosened, Knox was giving them both an out before more serious questions arose from them, that was all. No need to take up more of Knox's time with even more drivel than he had. But.... " My offer still stands though, Sire Knight, even if it is just to indulge in my own selfish request. Need I remind you that it's not every day you can say that a member of the royal family owes you a favor," Arno could feel Ange tug at him, wishing to draw him back into the carriage at once, he just need a moment more. Tightening his grip on the window, The prince hoped he was coming off as earnest as he spoke," I don't just offer anyone my time, I truly do mean that. If for whatever reason you decided to change your mind during or after this trip, do not hesitate to flag me down, I don't bite. Not hard at the very least. Good bye Sire Knox, for now. Hopefully." All it took was a swift tug from Ange and Mouse before he was back inside the comfortable coach, latch to the window shut as Ange glowered over him. Arno could only watch from his position on the floor of his cab as Knox regarded him one last time before pulling away from the carriage, due to what he could only assume was for safety concerns. Looming over him, Ange's hands were curled into tight fists, the prince could only look up at her rather apathetically from the rumbling wood as the other maids quietly situated themselves. Down hill and he was going to get a talking to by the most peeved maid know to man. Arno couldn't exactly blame her though. At the very least the other girls knew when to keep to themselves. - By the time the mousey hair maid was finished chewing him out, Arno wasn't sure what was funnier. The fact that he spent the whole scolding at the feet of the maids, that Ange's poor voice was going hoarse by the end of it, or that he could practically feel his brain rattling from the way the carriage jostled about as they maid their way down that damn hill. He almost felt like he was a child again as the experience finally ended, Ange panting before slumping into her seat defeated. Arno only felt a little bad that he enjoyed it. " You're going to be the end of me your highness, I swear. And poor Knox too." Rising from the ground only slightly wobbly, The prince noted the thinning tree line as the on coming grassy hills mountains came into view. The beauty of Asmarhea couldn't be understated really, even in the dreary winter that they were currently in, Arno was still proud to call his county home. " I would hope The knight was just jesting about the heart attack thing, but I fear that you my dear Ange, you might be correct," dusting himself off, the prince eyed the patches of melting snow to the sides of the path they were on course of. The weather was starting to warm up a bit, and the bare bushes and dead grass would be sure to bloom in no time, but for now Arno couldn't say he was displeased with the scenery. It reminded him of a winter landscape his father owned, sandwiched between royal portraiture and paintings of famous battles through out Asmarhea's history. Arno always appreciated it for it's subtle beauty, conveying the somber feeling that the cold season brought with each precise stroke of a paint brush. " I can't make any promises I can't keep though, but I'll try to keep my head and body inside the cab for the rest of the day. Probably." Ange groaned. Taking his seat besides her, Natalie having returned to her needle work spoke up, " You and that knight seem awfully close your highness." Arno could feel himself freeze. " I wouldn't say close... But we're acquainted with each other at the very least." " I always took your highness as someone who wouldn't waste his time with us commoners unless he had to," Yawned Luci, the excitement from before clearly not waking her up like one would have thought, arms crossed as she looked at him with half lidded eyes, " But I suppose you wouldn't have up in the cab with you if that were the case... Hmm, I didn't think much of it at the time, but I heard some girls talking about how you tried your luck with one of the knights. I'm going to assume that knight there was one they were talking about." " I would say it's of poor manners to talk about rumors of your employer right in front of them," Arno hissed through thin lips, face turning a bright shade of pink. Just what were these girls thinking? " But he is quite handsome, wouldn't you say Laci? I couldn't blame his highness if that was the case. None of the boys back home were as good looking ones in the capital," Mouse piped in, eyes sparkling as she clasped her hands in a dreamy manner, " He was truly something, his horse looked beautiful, and definitely more well groomed than the boys in my old town. He also seems so regal too, ah, not to say that you aren't handsome yourself your highness. I'm sure he'd be lucky to have someone like you, you'd make such a good looking pair!" " Girls-" " I heard he got dumped though Maria, before the trip and all. I don't think it worked out like his highness hoped it would." " Eh? Oh gosh, I- I'm sorry your highness! I didn't mean reopen old wounds for you! I'm sure you'll find someone better than him in no time, so please don't dwell on my careless words!" " Girls-!" " I'm sure his highness will be fine, but I am surprised. If it were me I would have taken any opportunity to experience the high life even if it was just for a little bit. I suppose to each their own." " I guess that's true... I would find it hard to say no to being swept up by a handsome prince, but everyone has their own tastes. But if I had to choose, finding true love is something I'd pick any day, maybe that's what our knight was thinking?" " Girls!" Arno's voice came out a little more shrill than he wanted, causing Laci and Mouse to turn their full attention him. The prince's face was burning as he shook in barely contained anger and embarrassment. after a pause, Arno gave the girls smile that didn't quite meet his eyes, hands tightly clasped together as they sat in awkward silence. Ange was curiously silent through out the conversation, probably as a sort of revenge for his reckless behavior, while Natalie had opted to stay quite after her comment. The fact that Laci, Natalie, and Mouse even felt comfortable gossiping about his supposedly love life in front of him was truly humiliating. " I think this conversation has gone on long enough! I don't know what impression I have given you, I'm afraid I will have to dismiss those impressions you have of me. I may be more lax than my siblings, but that in no means entails that I'm someone you can walk all over and disrespect like that! Not only am I your employer, I am you prince first an foremost! To even have the gaul... I swear! You should be luck that I'm nothing like my brothers and won't have you harshly reprimanded. Or worse mind you!" The trio of maids had turned pale, Natalie and Laci adverting their gaze from the prince while Mouse seemed seconds away from tears again. Ange on the other hand, could barely contain her laughter. Voice still raspy, the hint of a smile dance on her lips, clearly amused at his outburst, " You say that but I know you don't have the balls to properly make sure they're punished, you're too soft. Ah, but you are right. They should know better than to start clucking about like that in front of their employer, even if it's not you specifically Arno if they don't want to loose their jobs. My word though! I don't think I've seen you this angry in a good long while! You really ruffled his feathers girls!" " Ange!" " What? You can find joy in my misery, why can't I?" " You're so lucky that I don't tell the coachman right to stop right here right now to drop you off in the middle of the road..." Arno couldn't help but grit his teeth, his nails digging into the palms of his hands. " See? Soft," Ange hummed, before here eyes drifted towards Arno's book, " We still have a good way before we make our first stop of the journey, I say you continue on with your book and do your Shiforian accent if you want to truly punish these girls. That main character of the novel is from their, if I'm remembering correctly, right?" " I am not doing an accent to punish my maids Ange!" "... What's so bad about his accent?" Of course Mouse would ask, much to his dismay and Ange's amusement. " His highness never got the hang of the langue, so he has the worst Shiforian accent known to man. He can never get the intonation correct so he sounds both nasally and shrill. It's a nightmare to hear him stumble through a conversation, but a delight to hear him struggle." " Coachman! How long until we reach our first stop!" Arno cried out in desperation. After a moment, a muffled response replied, " I'm afraid not until another four hours or so if nothing goes awry, you highness." Arno let out a muffled anguished groan into his hands while the maid besides him laughed. " I suggest you start reading or else you're in for a long ride with nothing to do." Arno had a feeling he was going to regret bring along the maid as their trip progressed on further. |
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Knox _____________________________________________ The beauty of the kingdom that Knox was privileged enough to call home was truly breathtaking. The blue mountains that rose up at the edges of the miles and miles of flat lands, the tips streaked with white looked like something out of a fairytale. Perhaps this was Knox’s fairytale, after all, he was on the steed that he’d watched be raised from birth, accompanying the Prince and his maids to a far off land. Knox was surrounded by his own comrades that he outranked, but to him, a rank was nothing more than a badge of honor that showed his dedication to the crown. It didn’t put him above the guards unless it was an emergency, and then he’d take the lead, but even then, he didn’t think of himself as a higher power. Shouts ahead brought him out of the trance that the landscape had put him in. He tried to hear what was going on, but he’d fallen behind the group, and was too far back to hear much of anything. The carriages didn’t stop, so clearly it wasn't an emergency. He picked up a canter, keeping his reins short to not let the hot horse take off, yet again. The horse's ears flicked forwards and his strong neck pumped as he happily picked up the pace. Knox could feel the horse's powerful haunches moving under him, kicking up to the next gear as the carriages increased their speed now that they were off the bumpy forest road to the much better worn flat lands. Knox preferred to be on horseback rather than in any carriage. A carriage ride this long would leave him ill for days, and, who wouldn’t want the view behind the ears? The view was always better this way. Wind whistled in his ears as he slowed his steed, remaining in a calm, collected canter. His horse's ears pointed down towards the ground as they moved smoothly in a nice frame that many of the guard’s horses weren’t trained in. Being a warhorse, Orega was required to know the moves that perhaps would one day be helpful on the battlefield, the piaffes, the passage and so many more. A horse of many talents he truly was, and Knox was lucky enough to still have him. The pair remained about ten feet behind the last carriage. According to the map that he’d studied that morning before he left and that was tucked into his luggage in the carriage in front of him, they still had quite the trek to get to their spot for the night. It was a small inn shoved into a quiet spot, or so he’d heard. Knox hadn’t ever traveled this far from the kingdom, as work didn’t allow it, and when he was home, he didn’t have the time. It was give or take, four hours from where they were now. That meant four hours left of traveling along the mountain range on the flatlands they currently were on. Perhaps at one point Knox wanted to spot to allow his horse to eat, and water during this long of a trip was important to not only Orega, but those that pulled the carriages. He’d keep an eye out. - A bit later, when Knox had since then stopped being marveled by the beauty, and slightly tired of this trip and the landscape getting boring, he heard what sounded like a stream. He looked around, and saw that they were riding adjacent to a river. It was now well past noon according to the sun, and Knox was starting to feel that he hadn’t eaten yet that day. He pulled off the path behind the carriages, calling out to the guard. “I am going to let him get a drink. I’ll catch up!” The guard nodded and sent the message up the line. He cantered through the field, diagonal off the path, his horse leaving his own trail through the tall dead grass as they moved up past the carriages towards the river. Knox pulled the horse up, and dismounted, patting the horse's neck as he led him to the shallow end of the water. The horse sniffed the water as if it were going to kill him, and decided that it wouldn’t and started to drink. He watched the carriages continue on, tracking them as they moved on, not wanting to lose the line from his sight. The dirt here under the dead grass was nice, and clearly some really good soil for growing crops. Knox removed a glove and bent down to pick up a handful. It was smooth, and rich, and he looked around the valley. Why hadn’t anyone set up a farm here? It was the perfect spot. The water and rich summer grass was perfect for cows, sheep and the other livestock, and enough space for your own crops. It was flat, so not much needed to be done before building a house or barn. - Orega picked up his head, water dripping out of his mouth as he turned to watch the carriages fading away into the distance. He whinnied, and Knox took that as his sign that his horse was ready to continue on. Knox checked his girth before mounting again.He gathered his reins and put his glove back on. The horse waited patiently for his command to go. Knox kissed at him, and the horse shot off like a bullet. The tall grass hit the horse's chest as he galloped towards his friends that had left him behind. As they galloped through the unkept ground, Knox was looking out for any sort of vole or mole holes that could injure his horse. He steered him towards the path, knowing that it was less likely for the horse to break a leg on the well maintained path rather than out in this field. The horse's black hooves hit the path, and he put his head down. Knox knew what was coming next, and did his best to get the horse's head back up, but unsuccessfully did so, feeling the horse buck under him. “Knock it off.” He scolded, trying to get the horse to slow. Orega’s ears pinned back as he listened, coming to a safer, calmer pace, breathing heavy from his burst of excitement. Knox was still quite a bit behind the carriages, the only sounds he heard was his steed’s breathing and the horses hooves striking the ground as he calmly cantered along. Once the pair had caught up to the pace of the rest of the line, Knox relaxed once again, catching his breath as the horse too took a breath, seemingly happy to be with the herd again. The sun beat down on Knox, but its rays weren’t strong enough to feel warm over the wind that came through the valley. The Knight’s hair blew back with the breeze, his cape that normally rested on his shoulder, even when he was cantering blew back in the wind as well. He could already feel the windburn starting to form on his cheeks. “Do you want to stop for lunch?” He yelled up the guard, standing up in his irons to get closer to the younger man. The guard shrugged. “It’s up to the prince.” Knox nodded and sat back down. Should he be the one to ask Arno if he wanted to break for lunch or to eat while on the road? The King had been very generous with the food he’d sent with his son, making Knox believe that it was the King's way of apologizing to his son for casting him away like he had. The Knight’s mind swirled back to the way Arno nearly came out of the carriage not too long ago. Perhaps they needed to get a lock on the outside of the window to keep the man inside. Ange had been pretty peeved, and he wondered if Arno would come out of this trip in one piece or if she’d be the end of him. If looks could kill, Arno would have died a hundred times over. He chuckled to himself, the silent smile lighting up his eyes as he stared at the back of the luggage carriage. He supposed that he ought to ask if the Prince was ready for lunch, but would he be invading his space once more? He knew the King would be pissed if his son didn’t eat, and it would be dinner by the time they got there… Knox wasn’t sure why he was hesitating to ask such a simple question of “Do you want to eat?” But if he did, would it look like he was trying to cozy up to the Prince? With a sigh, he moved his horse forwards, going to the side of the luggage cab, and attempting to catch up with Arno’s carriage yet again. The window was closed this time, good. Maybe the man wouldn’t come tumbling out this time. Knox brought his knuckle up to the window, and paused before knocking. It seemed so quiet and peaceful in the cab, and he almost felt bad disturbing the people in there. Ange had seemed to calm down, a mischievous look danced in her eyes as her gaze caught him. He gave her a small smile and tapped the glass. “Stay inside.” He told the Prince as the window opened. “I am just here to ask if you would like your lunch now or if you would prefer to eat without the movement of the carriage.” Knox looked at the woman, knowing that their answers would probably override Arno’s but at the end of the day, it was Arno’s choice. His eyes fell to the book that the man held, raising an eyebrow. Reading? Knox would have been passed out the minute that the carriage started to move. Maybe that was the reason that he preferred to be on the outside of it. He waited patiently for his answer, preparing the orders for the rest of the crew depending on what Arno chose. |
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Winter Month: 2 
Day 
Sleet
