The Captured Princess

Chapter Fourteen: Theo

As my fellow guards dragged me out of the castle, I didn't bother to resist. I knew most of the men personally and it was obvious that they were just obeying the king. I had to be responsible for my actions even if they weren't worthy of this kind of treatment.

When Daunce and Lenon finally released my arms, I straightened and crossed my arms.

Daunce could tell I was not happy, so he spoke up first. "Just calm down, Theo, before you do something stupid."

"Calm down? I did nothing wrong!" I snapped back. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't angry at my friends, but I was very angry at the king.

Lenon placed a hand on my shoulder. "He's right. You need to relax."

"How could you have been so stupid?" demanded Daunce. He stepped closer to me, staring straight into my eyes.

I opened my mouth to snap back at him, but he didn't let me speak before continuing. "That was so incredibly foolish, Theo!" he growled, "The king could have ordered us to do something much worse! He could have had you killed."

At his words, I realized what I had done was wrong. It had been very foolish of me to kiss the princess especially when we weren't somewhere private. It didn't matter if I loved her or not, the king would never accept it.

"I know," I answered quietly, "And I should have been more careful."

Lenon shook his head and removed his hand from my shoulder. "You don't understand. It wasn't a matter of being careful." I looked at him, confused. What did they mean then? "You shouldn't have fallen for the princess at all. You can't have a relationship with her."

Oh. So that's what they meant. Well, I had heard that enough from others already and I didn't want to hear more of it. I couldn't just not fall in love with someone! They were being unreasonable.

"I'm not going to just ignore her, Lenon. I really do love her," I told him seriously.

"It doesn't matter if you love her or not. The thing you two have can never be real. It endangers you and it endangers her. Just think about it, okay? We are just trying to look out for you."

I didn't answer, but I did consider what he was saying. And it was true. I was putting Adira in danger and I couldn't do that. Not if I really loved her.

Aw, snap. Poor Theo. Will he scorn his friend's advice and stay with the one he loves? ^_^ Tune in next time, folks. ;)

Theo - Ithildae