For Spadia

Remove the Helmet

Arthur couldn't take it. It had been three months. The knight looked stronger than ever and dare he say, happy. Arthur needed to see the face.
"Knight, What is your name?" Arthur asked when the throne room was mostly empty. The knight stepped forward so the Queen could see him.
"I... I have long forgotten, my liege." The voice was quiet from disuse. "I believe... it might have started with an A?" The question made the newer knights, compared to him, look shocked.
"How long have you served Spadia?" Arthur was saddened to know that the brave knight had forgotten his name.
"Since before the Royalty of Spadia claimed the throne. I... I helped to liberate the lands and formed the order of knights." Silence ruled the room. If he was who he claimed to be then the circlet of the king was on his head, his eyes would be sky blue, and he would be the reason why there was never a king on the throne for longer than 30 years tops. Not his fault that he didn't know that he was the king.
"Please take off your helmet, Rose of Spadia." Yao, Jack of Spades, broke the silence. The knight stiffened at the title, confirming the identity.
"Sir, I... I haven't been able to clean my face for a long time. It would be disrespectful..." Alfred was truly scared. Arthur interrupted him.
"Then take the helmet off while Alice gets you something to clean your face with." Alfred slowly reached up to unclasp the helmet that had only been removed during the beatings from the king. The breeze felt good on his face and played with his short hair playfully as he stood there taking a deep breath before opening his impossibly Spadian blue eyes to meet the emerald green eyes of the Queen. The mark of the king greeted the assembled knights and servants, gentle swirls of Black that occupied half his face and continued down his neck and would frame half his body. The King's mark had a K right under right eye beneath the blue tear drop of the tribal tattoo of the time mages. Arthur saw the dirt of a battle field and dried blood but bruises covered his face, all of them old. He reached out and gently touched the knight's face, not missing the flinch.
"Who did this to you?"
"The King."
"He wasn't the rightful King of Spadia, Alfred. You are. You have always been our king!" Alfred laughed, bitterly.
"Alfred. That sounds right. Why does it sound familiar? I was never king, never will be. I may have unified the kingdom but I was no king!" Alice appeared with a bowl of water, two towels, some soap, and some food. The Captain of the Guard brought over a chair and practically forced Alfred to sit while Alice cleaned his face. He spluttered while she cleaned off centuries of dirt.
"Your name is King Alfred the Great, first King of Spadia. You drove out the invaders and United the people for the first time. That circlet on your head is the battle circlet of the King. The markings on your body indicate your claim to the throne. What you have suffered for your kingdom is the mark a real king." Arthur watched as recognition flashed in those impossible eyes.