The Knight

Chapter Seven

The days flew by quickly for Phil. Hours seemed to blur together as he assisted the royal family in planning their trip to Auberon. From memorizing the castle's floor plan to escorting The Prince to yet another outfit fitting, Phil never seemed to have had a moment of rest.

The resting couldn't start now though, as he currently stood by the door of a carriage, watching bags and parcels of various sizes be loaded in. Phil peered over to Daniel, who stood arguing with his father. The smaller man huffed as King Marcus fiddled with a stay curl on his son's forehead.

"You need to look presentable, Daniel. We need to make a good impression."

Daniel rolled his eyes and batted his father's hand out of the way.

"It's a six hour carriage ride. None of us are going to arrive looking presentable. Our clothes will be wrinkled and we'll all be exhausted, so why should I even try?" The King ignored his son and continued to fix his curly hair, finally satisfied when the footman announced the carriage was packed.

The King and Prince Adrian entered the carriage with haste, anxious to get on their journey, but Daniel went back to the castle entrance to give Pj one last hug. The family would only be gone for a week, but clearly even seven days was too long for Daniel to leave Pj's side. Phil watched as he hugged the tailor tightly before giving Johanna a prolonged squeeze as well.

The Prince hurried back to the carriage and took a seat next to his brother. Phil entered after and sat by King Marcus, the only empty seat left. He felt a twinge of sweat on his neck but eased up when The King gave him a broad smile.

"Don't worry son, I'll try not to fall asleep on your shoulder during the ride." Phil chuckled at the comment and tried to get comfortable as the carriage wheels started to rumble beneath his feet.

They had been traveling for less than a half hour when Daniel fell asleep. Phil had been too absorbed in his book to notice, but he looked to the boy when he heard Prince Adrian give a soft chuckle.

Phil smiled too. Daniel was curled into himself, his feet propped on his seat and his suit coat wrapped tightly around his small frame, with his head resting on the window. With every soft exhale that left his mouth, Phil felt his heart warm just a little bit more.

With a fond expression and no hesitation, Adrian adjusted his position on their shared carriage bench and maneuvered his arm around Daniel. He carefully rearranged his brother so that his head was rested on his shoulder and his own jacket was added over Daniel's body.

Phil wished more than anything that he could be in Adrian's position.

Adrian let out a fond sigh and turned to Phil, a gentle smile on his tan face.

"I swear my brother's still a toddler. Dan will use every chance he can get to take a nap." Adrian joked. Phil chuckled warmly at the remark.

"Have you ever been to Auberon, Philip?" Adrian asked. Although Phil was surprised at his attempt at casual conversation, Prince Adrian genuinely looked curious, his eyes glinting with interest.

Phil shook his head.

"I haven't, Your Majesty. I've never gotten the chance to travel around much, but I've heard it's beautiful."

Adrian nodded understandingly.

"You would be correct; it is quite beautiful. And Philip, I hope you know that we greatly appreciate your dedication to your work here, but you really need to cut it out with the 'your majesty' crap. The formality is making me uncomfortable."

Phil felt his face flush a deep red, but Adrian merely laughed. He only stopped his giggles when his father gave him a stern glare.

"I'm just messing with you. But seriously, just call me Adrian. If you're going to be a permanent fixture in our private security, I want us to be able to converse like normal acquaintances. It's nice to forget titles with the people we're close to."