First at Last (Updated Version)

Chapter Five

The next day, I sneaked out to go meet William. Despite the previous night, it was not very difficult. Once a week, Mother would meet with her friends for tea—well, they called it tea, but, really, it was to gossip and discuss the latest affairs and scandals. She would leave before noon and return later in the day, so I knew she would be out of the house. And Father would be working, though it did not really matter where he was concerned anyway, because he did not really care about what we were all doing. Alice was the only other one I had to worry about and I did not see her as I tiptoed to the front door and shut it quietly behind me.

Once outside in the chilled afternoon air, I breathed a sigh of relief. I found Walter in the stables brushing down a bay gelding.

"Good afternoon, Walter," I said.

He turned and bowed. "Good afternoon, Miss. How may I help you?"

I asked him for a ride to the palace, which he happily obliged. It was midafternoon by the time we arrived at the palace gates.

William sat beneath a willow tree just inside the front gates, his head bowed over a book, dark hair falling into his eyes. My heart sped up as I made my way toward him.

He looked up as I approached and smiled.

I returned the smile and sat down beside him. "What are you reading?"

He held up the cover for me. "Bleak House," he replied.

"I've heard that novel is rather complicated, though I've never read it. Is it good?"

"It's very interesting, though, yes, a bit complex at times. You might like it though."

I smiled and clasped my hands in my lap. "I will have to read it, then."

A quiet settled around us. The air was warmer today than it had been recently, and smelled faintly of cherry blossoms. The world seemed calm and relaxed, the guards laughed and talked as they guarded the palace, a faint breeze rustled my hair as I looked around.

When I turned back to William, I found him watching me, a faint smile playing about his lips. I blushed. "What is it?"

"Oh," his eyes widened and he looked away suddenly. "It's nothing. You just . . . your face."

I blinked several times. "My . . . face?"

His face turned a bright shade of red. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that." He sighed in exasperation and passed a hand over his eyes. "I was suddenly struck by your beauty and found that I could not look away."

My own face began to burn. "Oh, er, thank you. That sounds like something one might read in a Jane Austen novel."

He smiled wryly, still looking slightly embarrassed. "I do enjoy Jane Austen, so that might be where I drew my inspiration from."

He reads Jane Austen, I thought dreamily. Is this man even real?  I smiled as I met William's sapphire eyes. "Her novels are a wonderful picture of romance and if you had to draw inspiration from somewhere I am pleased that it was her."

We lapsed into comfortable silence once more. After a moment, I spoke. "What is it like being a prince?"

He paused, raising his eyes skyward to think. "I suppose it is equal parts rewarding and burdensome. It is rewarding because I know I am doing something meaningful. I am learning how to be a leader, how to guide the country the best way I can. I get to go to parties a balls, dance with beautiful women, like you"—I blushed at this—"and there is a lot of freedom and privilege that comes with being a prince. I do not have to worry about things that a lot of people have to worry about, such as the wintertime and food stores. However, it is also a lot of responsibility being a prince who will one day become king. I am always on guard—always remembering how to conduct myself. It will not just affect me, but also my parents, perhaps the whole country. My relationship with my father is different, I think, because I am a subject first and then a son, the same way he will always be my sovereign before he is my father. Similarly, my relationships in general are different because of my status. To everyone, I am a prince and then a friend. There is a lot of pressure being prince. I enjoy it, really, but it is certainly not without it's trials." Although his smile was still fixed in place, it looked sadder than before.