The Prince and The Healer

Apologies and Backstories

 I felt like I was constantly on the brink of throwing up the next couple days. The knot in my stomach had become like a live thing. Swirling and twisting my intestines till I didn't feel like eating or moving. What I'd said to Louis had been awful, no, more than that, unforgivable. In the heat of the moment I completely forgotten about his mother, about the kingdom he had to inevitably run. He'd had his share of hardships, and I'd treated him like a spoiled brat.

For a couple of days afterward I'd half expected the guards to come into the Healer's quarters, pick me up, and toss me in a cell. I didn't think Louis was unkind or hateful, but perhaps he thought I needed to be taught a lesson about respect. While Louis was not cruel by any means, he was known for his short temper and quick tongue. Perhaps, he'd drag me into the courtroom and embarrass me in front of everyone, just so he could have the last word.

However, as the days passed, nothing happened, and it almost made me feel worse. I wanted to be punished for how insolent and uncaring I'd been. Instead, my special form of punishment was thinking of how Louis had looked after what I'd said.

I tried to throw myself into my work, though the only people who were coming in were nobles with hangovers they wanted to disguise as an illness. It was laughable how far the rich and powerful would go to preserve their image. Rather than just admit they'd been too fullhearty with the alcoholic beverages, they'd pretend they were suffering some disease they'd caught in the castle.

At first I'd told them they were simply hungover, but when I did they turned purple with anger. They'd swear up and down that they hadn't touched alcohol. One even went as far as to say they hadn't had wine in ten years. After the first dozen, Nora told me to tell them they all had a 24 hour bug that was going around. It seemed to satisfy every one of them.

My mother had always told me I was too negative, that I should look for silver linings more often. Now that she was gone, I tried hard to follow her advice. It was difficult to think of one for the situation I was in. One I could've mentioned was it should've been much easier to forget about someone when they wouldn't see you. Alas, if only it were true. If anything, I thought of Louis more now than before. Guilt covered my life like a thick blanket.

I suppose a silver lining could be that now that I'd offended Louis so badly, I was never in fear that he'd be waiting for me in my Courtyard. Though, I didn't know just how silvery that lining was, seeing as I would've loved a visit from him. Now I had it all to myself once more, and I returned there daily, like I used to, to read. I found reading a good way to escape my reality. In books I wasn't a stupid girl with a guilty conscious, I was a traveller in another world, where I could dive into another person's story.

I entered the Courtyard with a bucket of water. The days had been dry, and my tree needed watering. I poured the water I'd brought over the tree, and filled my bucket again from the fountain, which was running a bit low itself.

"I thought you were a Healer, not a Gardener," I heard sarcastic voice say. I whipped around to see a boy leaning in the shadows. He pushed himself off the wall, and I gulped audibly.

"Your Majesty," I dropped immediately to the ground.

"Get up," Louis ordered in a somewhat harsh voice. I stayed on the ground, my fingers digging into the dirt.

"If it pleases your Highness," I said a little too loudly. "I'd like to be able to tell him of my deepest regrets and sorrows over the words I spoke to him just five days ago."

"I wish you'd do it face-to-face," Louis said darkly.

"I cannot, for I do not deserve to look into the eyes of the future King, I am in disgrace."