The Princess, the Witch and the Pirate

The White Knight

Six adolescents shared breakfast in an ancient castello that warm summer morning. Mikael continued to lecture at breakfast.

"...this particular port is special in that a war lord decided to settle it with his horde of men. Wanting a proper title, he married the queen of this castle..."

"...took her by force, you mean," interrupted Olivia.

"...women didn't have many options back then, so, I'm afraid you're probably right. At any rate, he became known as The Pirate King. The townspeople paid tribute to be kept safe or were otherwise sold into slavery. The king had two children..."

Days had passed since her unfathomable victory over Katia. Olivia looked at Arthur from across the table and tried to imagine him as Katia's knight in shining armor, burdened with the task of diving into chilly ocean waters in search of his drowning lover at the risk of his own life. His golden blonde hair was slick and perfect. He'd chosen the white linen suit and a pink tee shirt that morning. She didn't have to look to know he wasn't wearing socks with his champagne loafers. He was tall, sturdy, and handsome by ordinary standards, but beside Serge, Arthur looked thin, effeminate, and pretty. Arthur took his eyes off Serge a moment and glanced at Olivia. He grinned and looked away, knowing and coy. She understood why girls fell for his charm, but could not muster the feeling of attraction herself. His easy demeanor clashed against her knowledge of his desperate yet futile efforts and subsequent loss the night he saved Katia.

After breakfast, Mikey and Katia played badminton in the garden while Ansa and Olivia sat on a sunny bench soaking the heat from the stone. Backs against one another, one girl pretended to read while the other listened to The Cure through borrowed headphones singing quietly along;

You
Soft and only
You
Lost and lonely
You
Strange as angels
Dancing in the deepest oceans
Twisting in the water

"Olivia, are you reading a book?" Arthur feigned shock as he approached, one hand in his pocket, the other on his chest.

"Erm...pretending to."

"I'd like a word, if you don't mind?" His words attracted the attention of the couple playing on the lawn who glanced with interest, then at one another, before restarting their match.

"I supposed it was inevitable." Olivia leaned her head back onto Ansa's shoulder prompting her to remove the borrowed headphones from one ear to hear what her companion had to say. "Back in a bit." She stood and smiled down at Ansa who, unaware, shimmied her shoulders to the beat of the song.

Arthur offered his arm the same way Mikael offered it to Ansa and Katia. She sighed and threaded her arm through his as Ansa and Katia would have. He guided her inside and through to the parlor.

"Go on. I'm ready," she moaned, entering the cozy room where they'd first met.

"It's not what you're thinking."

"You're not going to challenge me?" She ambled about the furniture then stopped to glance at the painting of the young man with the deep-set green eyes and wavy black hair that rolled past his shoulders. He looks like Ansa.

"We've plenty of time for that. I wanted to ask you something, actually." Arthur took a seat on one side of the tufted leather couch and crossed his leg. "Sit," he offered, hand pointing to the other end.

Olivia leaning her back against the arm rest, comfortable in sneakers, jeans, and a plain white tee shirt.

"What do you intend to do with the girl if you beat me?"

"When I beat you. And her name is Ansa, I'm sure you know."

"If you beat me, she will be your responsibility. She's all of 14."