The Princess and The Knight

Chapter Nine

Before Princess Grace could give an official answer, the prince came over. His posture was on point and his crown shimmered in the afternoon sun. He was wearing a red official uniform with many medals that were gold and diamond encrusted. His hair was golden blonde and was short, but still had curls that made his hair bounce a little as he walked. Long story short, Sir John already hated him.

Prince Alexander bowed and went for Princess Grace's hand. "Good afternoon Princess. How-" he immediately stopped and gasped. "Is this your knight?"

Confused as to why he said it this way, she responded, "Yes?"

The prince had a confused and disgusted look on his face. "A knight must always be a few paces back from royalty. That is a rule that must never change."

The princess' eyes immediately widened in amazement. Not by his looks, but by his awful behavior towards someone. She responded in a way that had bite yet sounded graceful. The knight was about to talk, but was cut off by the princess. "You're absolutely right. I'm-"

Princess Grace: "My apologies, but what did you say?"

The knight paused and looked at the princess. He was shocked to see her respond this way. This was not typical for the princess. He knew she had a good heart and spirit in her, but standing up to someone like a prince was not something he expected.

The prince turned quickly and made his way across the courtyard to the palace steps. He quickly walked past the other knights, who bowed. Prince Alexander didn't glance at them in the slightest and just kept walking. Princess Grace knew she had to think of something or Sir John may be in trouble. As much as he annoyed her before, she could never let that happen to him now that she knew him. Princess Grace curtsied and prayed the prince would agree.

Princess Grace: "May I have a moment of your time in the garden? That is something I would appreciate greatly."

The prince turned and looked at her while walking back and offering his arm. "Why, yes. I knew you would want to spend time with me. I shall accompany you, princess," he said a little too confidently.

Princess Grace tried to contain her outbursts, which were on the tip of her tongue. This prince was so full of himself, but she couldn't find anything to say. Come to think of it, she couldn't find anything remotely "attractive" at all. The prince was no where close to her type...if she had one. The reluctantly took his arm and said, "We should go to the garden. It's so-" The prince cut her off.

Prince Alexander: "I was thinking more toward the fountain. There are seats that I can sit in so my hair and clothes don't get wet. I can't ruin my medals."

Princess Grace forced a smile. She already wanted to turn around and sprint to the palace. Her response was just an action and that action was a respectful curtsy. The last thing this prince deserved.

Princess Grace: "Of course, Prince Alexander. We have plenty of seats far enough away. The shade there is lovely as well."

The knight rolled his eyes as he followed a few paces behind her. He forced a smile immediately after to try and not draw too much attention to his disgust that he had for the prince. Princess Grace glanced back at Sir John and gave him a "see what I mean" look as the prince droned on about some trial he won.

The knight wished no harm on the prince, but hated to see him treat the princess this way. He immediately met her eyes as if he were drawn to them by a magnet. She gave him a little smile after the look and he giggled while nodding in agreement.

When they finally arrived, the prince pulled out the chair for her and the princess sat down. At least he was somewhat a gentleman. The fountain was a beautiful marble that had little figurines around it. The water flowed over each layer and trickled to the bottom, making the water droplets dance then fuse into the water itself. There was a good amount of shade, but the sun beams hit the water and the marble making it shine. Even though there weren't any clouds in the sky overall, nothing could brighten up the conversation.