Artemis and Caspian: The Spy

Chapter Five

Elena clicked her tongue awkwardly against the roof of her mouth as the Prince led her through the gardens. Taking Artemis's advice had been a start but not enough, she needed to push a bit more. The Lady could still feel a wall separating them. It was like they were strangers meeting for the first time. In an odd sense, they sort of were. She hadn't seen him since she was eight, a time when their only responsibility was creating mischief in the castle for the servants to clean. The memories of their misadventures lit a flickering smile in the corner of her lips. He was daring and adventurous then. She wondered what happened. He'd grown up. They both had.

"It's nice to see you again."

Startled, Elena looked up at Allister who caught her eye briefly before ripping his away.

"You as well," she began slowly, letting her eyes wander across the bushes of flowers. They were planted precisely in a garden stretching endlessly for what seemed like miles, framing topiaries and statues that glistened in the dying sunlight. "Wait."

Allister was jolted to a stop when Elena suddenly ripped her arm from his, scampering over to a planter overflowing with pure blue belle flowers, unfurling in the soft twilight air. Her eyes were wide as she watched them perform a coordinated dance, welcoming her back to the palace with the rustle of their petals. Elena giggled as the same breeze tickled the small brown hairs that framed her face. Allister watched dumbfounded, hoping the red from the sky would hide the red slowly crawling up his cheeks.

"You remembered!"

"Remembered? Remembered what?" Allister stammered, failing to stop himself from tripping over his words.

"Blue belles," Elena giggled, gently picking a flower by the stem. She felt a calm rush over her as she pressed the tip of a crystal blue petal up to her nose, inhaling the intoxicating, sweet scent. "These are my favorite flowers. I-I planted one, here during my last visit. I asked you to look after them."

"I-I didn't look after them!" the young Prince loudly protested, reluctant to take credit. He already hated the way she made him feel and taking credit for the flower raising would surely exacerbate his delicate situation. He didn't have time for distractions. It was better to be alone, he knew from experience. He was wrong, he wasn't ready for a new start or anything else that umbrella term entailed. "The servants looked after them."

"Oh?" Elena asked, causally tossing her hair over a shoulder. Allister felt his heartbeat quicken when she crossed over to him, a suspicious smile spreading quickly across naturally pink lips that looked dangerously soft. "And who told the servants to keep them?"

Before he could say anything, the future Queen tucked the small flower in the folds of his shirt, patting it down with one hand. The Prince watched her with terrified eyes as she adjusted her handiwork, making sure the little blue plant would stay put. He told himself to breathe and tried his best to ignore the butterflies taking flight in the pit of his stomach. It was like his heart was running away with him, encouraging new and uncomfortable feelings to let loose. They were slowly beginning to spin out of control, igniting fires that were out of reach from rationality. He needed a steady dose of reality to pull him back down to his senses. Before he could do anything reckless or embarrassing to ward off her advances, she left, pulling ahead of the Prince. Against his better judgment, he jogged to keep up with her, offering his arm to her again. She took it happily and the two continued to explore the maze that came to life with the memories of their distant childhood.

The sun was beginning to set as the couple rounded the last rose bush, laughing when a servant came quickly around the bend.

"My Prince, my Lady," he nodded, bowing, "I have urgent news from the palace, a stranger has arrived and requests an audience with you immediately."