The Flower Crown Princess

Part 16

Leaning on Kell only enough to straighten, I step away and brush the hem of my skirt, although little but dust has touched it, and even that falls off entirely very quickly. 

"I was not informed that you would be joining us," I say coolly, keeping my gaze down as I pick at the imaginary impurities on my skirt. 

"You'll be touring the kingdom, and it would be terribly improper for a princess to walk, my lady." He bows, as is expected in the presence of royalty, but he bows in a sarcastic way, clearly not meaning respect.

I let the hem fall and turn away, seeing that everyone but deck hands have gone below decks. I go to the stairway, going to follow them, but the rocking of the sparkling gray- green waves force me to go slowly. I don't want to fall again, nor would I wish to have to be caught again.

"What's the matter with me?" Kell asks, crossing the deck as though it were the floor of the castle. 

With my hand on the railing to steady myself, and the edges of my headscarf flapping in the salty breeze, I turn.

I open my mouth, but nothing comes out. I know what I want to say- that he's a living embodiment of my cowardice, that he's a danger to  the kingdom, a traitor; that this is just how royalty is supposed to behave toward their servants. Not a single sound escapes my parted lips as Kell waits. Unable to do anything else, I turn back to the door and open it, going towards the sounds of talking that can belong only to Lisbet and Jennis.

Lisbet is unusually pale from the rocking of the ship, but she looks out the porthole of the room with vigor in her gaze. Jennis peeks through as well, and the two seem to be little girls, watching the snow fall on a winter's day, waiting for the celebration of the solstice.

"Am I disturbing you?" I inquire in a near- whisper as I come into the room. 

They turn. Lisbet smiles. "Not at all. We were only admiring the waves." I walk over to the porthole and look, too. "Aren't they beautiful? I've never seen the ocean before today." Her eyes are wide and shining with the visions of rollicking waves that shimmer with every ray of sunshine that peeks through the clouds. The waves are enchanting, and somehow I can't tear my eyes from them as they roll and toss to the distant land ahead.

*****

After one and a half days of sitting in the tossing boat, there are calls of "Land ho!"

Jennis and I help Lisbet up to the deck. Lisbet has been a bit seasick these past hours, although now that the port of Tuanc is in clear view, her face is bright again.

We step off of the ship onto solid ground, but the docks seem to rock more than the deck of the ship! I try to regain my balance and succeed in not falling into the waves. A tall, well- dressed man stands smiling on the docks. 

"Princess Nivh," he says, bowing low. "Welcome to Tuanc. It is a great honour." 

"The pleasure is mine," I reply as he rises.

"Come this way, please, Your Highness. Tonight you'll stay in the castle here, as it is a few more hours to the capitol, and it is late. It isn't very far." A carriage is waiting, and so my ladies and I sit down in the topless vehicle, observing everything around us. Jennis has the most joyful look on her face- like she's home again, which I suppose she is. But she seems so relaxed, and the grin on her face is so wide that I cannot help but feel bad. I did ask her to leave, those many weeks ago. Of course she didn't have to accept, but still... I resolve to talk to her later.

Tuanc is a port city, built on the narrow neck of land between the sea and the lakes. But it is so very large, with buildings that reach high into the sky, blocking the late afternoon sun. And there are so many people around, milling around the docks and the streets, blocking any view of the ground. These are to be my people. They're the ones I'll see for the rest of my life.