The Stains of the Crown

Chapter Seven

On Community Day, the queen, the princess and I all ride to the nearby town in the carriage. I watch people bowing at the carriage, feeling sick to my stomach when I see the fear in some of their eyes. Jovianne grabs my hand, drawing a pattern on it. I take a deep breath as the carriage pulls to a stop in front of an overly fancy fountain. We all step out, and they smile at the townspeople. I trail behind them, unsure of what to do.

"Come on. Mom and I usually plant flowers." I nod, following the princess. They walk up to a cart that has little yellow and purple flowers in pots.

"Wry, how are you?" The large man gives Queen Amira a hearty smile.

"I'm doing well. Jes is expecting our fourth child, and Kipston just started school. He's loving it so far."

"That's wonderful," she smiles. They talk for a little while longer before the princess grabs a flower pot and hands it to me. She grabs one for herself before leading me over to an empty planter. She quickly explains how to replant the flowers. I plant three or four before I say anything.

"Is there something else I could do?"

"Not having fun?"

"Not really."

"Well, I think Mom and I are going to stay here, but if you go back to Wry, he'll know which projects will need some extra help." I nod at her and wipe the dirt off my hands. I walk back towards the man at the cart. He bows to me, which makes me frown.

"Princess Echodis, what can I do for you?" I scratch the back of my neck.

"I was just wondering if you knew of anyone needing extra help with something. Planting flowers isn't really my strongsuit." He hums.

"Well, some of the men are trying to tame a couple horses for the Widow Taylor. Any good at that?"

"Yeah, I could do that. Where are they?"

"They're three blocks down from the candy shop." I look around for a minute before grinning sheepishly.

"I'm sorry, do you think you could show me? This is my first time in town and I don't really know where anything is." He chuckles, walking out from behind his cart.

"I'd be happy to, Princess." We walk quietly for a minute before he speaks again. "So what were you before you found out Princess Jovianne was your mate? You don't seem like royalty."

"I was a Hunter. I was actually Dalla's Second."

"A Second, huh? That's impressive." I shrug. "Were you always a Hunter?" I nod.

"Dalla pulled me from the streets when I was about six."

"Wow, you were pretty young."

"Yeah. Dalla recruits a lot of kids, gives orphans a chance to do something other than live on the streets."

"She's a good woman. I've met her a few times. She's always helped out wherever she could." I nod.

"Yeah, she's very kind." Another block of silence, and then I see a horse pen. A bunch of men sit on the fences, laughing as a man gets thrown. I thank Wry before walking over to them. "Can I help?" One of the men turns, raising an eyebrow.

"This is no job for a princess." I feel a flicker of anger, but hide it.

"I've only been a princess for a week. I've tamed horses before." He sighs.

"Why don't you find something else to do?"

"Yeah, wouldn't want to dirty your clothes," another man snickers. I scoff. I take off my vest, tossing it to the ground. I roll up my sleeves, not caring that my scars were now visible. I climb over the fence, grabbing the still-frantic horse by the reins. He rears up, nearly kicking me in the head. One of the men laughs. The horse settles a bit, and I climb onto the saddle. Immediately, the horse starts bucking. I stay on for a bit, but then he throws me. The men laugh, which fuels my anger. I glance at them, annoyed by their cackling. I wait for the horse to run by me again before using the horn of the saddle to throw myself back onto it's back.