The Kingdom

Chapter 6

The moment Will walked back into the lounge; Jonathon immediately noticed the abrupt change in his mood. When Will had stormed out of the lounge an hour ago he was furious, hurt and overwhelmed with the news that the late King was his father, and that Queen Alexandrea is his sister. The poor boy had been through so much, and the past 6 hours had not been easy for him. Jonathon had taken Will under his wing 7 years ago, and in a way, he viewed Will like a son. Jonathon never had the pleasure of being a father, his wife had passed due to illness when he was serving the kingdom as a soldier 30 years ago, and after his wife's passing, he could never bring himself to be with another woman, so sadly children of his own was never an option for him. Jonathon had retired from the royal guard 8 years ago, taking an early retirement after receiving many brutal arrows to the leg during combat. He was sad to stop being a soldier, but when an early retirement was offered to him by the royal guard commander, he was hardly going to refuse. He left the kingdom and build a small wooden cabin to the west of the kingdom grounds. His cabin lay hidden surrounded by a forest, and a calm stream flowed close to his cabin, perfect for bathing and washing his clothes. It was the perfect retirement, peaceful and quiet, a stark contrast to his life as a soldier.

Until Will came along. The skinny young boy had shown up at his cabin one fateful winter evening, banging on the door so hard Jonathon was worried the door would give way. Jonathon had thrown open the door that day, prepared to defend himself from an intruder, and Will had collapsed to the floor, falling into his cabin, only able to utter a desperate, "please... help me" before falling unconscious. Anyone in their right mind would have tossed the boy out and left him to die in the cold winter night, but for some reason, Jonathan couldn't bring himself to do it. He took Will in, cared for him, learnt his story, and helped shape into the strong, capable man he was now.

So, when Will bounced back into the lounge, a slight spring in his step, and a thinly concealed smile on his face, Jonathan could tell immediately, and could likely guess what could have had such an abrupt positive influence on Will's mood. In the meantime, he couldn't help the fatherly love that filled his chest as he watched Will. Will had come so far in the 7 years of his banishment, and Jonathon could never be prouder of him, despite Will's flare ups of anger. He knew that Will held a lot of masked rage deep inside of him, the injustice he had gone through still haunting him to this day. However, Jonathan knew that with time and perhaps even with the attention of the fey girl Will had taken a liking too, as Jonathon had noticed earlier, Will would be able to overcome the pain of his past and be able to live at peace. Jonathon could only hope the fey girl returned Will's feelings; he would hate to see Will crushed by the pain of rejection as well as everything else he is going through.

Will cleared his throat, announcing his presence as he stood awkwardly at the entrance of the lounge, almost as if he was embarrassed at his reaction to the news he was given earlier. Jonathan thought Will handled the revelation well, all things considered, he wished Will wouldn't be so hard on himself. Queen Alexandrea turned in the direction of the noise, and upon seeing Will, quickly yet gracefully flew to her feet and was at his side in an instant, taking his hands in hers. Will smiled down weakly at her, as he was a good few inches taller than the queen, and their eyes met. A sort of unspoken bond passed between them, both wordlessly acknowledging the trauma their father had caused them and finding reassurance in their shared blood.

"I'm sorry Queen Alexan-", Will began before Queen Alexandrea shushed him and pulled him in for a hug. Much to Jonathon's surprise, Will relaxed a little into the hug, letting his older sister support him, just for a moment. Queen Alexandrea wordlessly held him in that moment, her hands squeezing his shoulders in reassurance. Jonathon's respect for the Queen grew even more than it had already. She was a strong capable woman, and a loving Queen, and she was genuinely happy Will had returned to the Kingdom, his rightful home. Jonathan felt tears form in his eyes at the sweet moment, but he quickly blinked them away.