Tyranny of the Heart

Chapter 1: The Beginning

I burst through the trees, my lungs on fire. I had come to a clearing with the sound of hooves behind me. I desperately searched the clearing for any sort of hiding spot. Finally, my eyes rested on an old log laying on its side by the bushes.

I quickly ducked behind the log just as the horse came through the trees. I tried to quiet my breathing, but it was difficult with all of the running I had just done. I heard the rider of the horse dismount, his feet crunching the morning grass as he stepped. He was getting closer. I dared myself to shift around quietly and peer over the log. But when I did, I only saw the horse grazing. No rider in sight. Slightly confused, I stood up somewhat to see where he might have gone, but there was no trace of him.

Suddenly, a loud scream came from behind me, making me scream and trip over the log. I landed face-first in a fresh pile of cold and wet mud. A laugh came from above me as I looked over mud-covered self. “Caspian!” I shouted angrily, sitting up.

Caspian was laughing like a mad man, clutching his side as he did. “Oh, you should have seen your face!” He gasped.

“Father is going to kill me!” I said, trying to scrape as much mud off of my dress as possible. “You know how mad he was the last time I came home dirty.”

“Oh, come now, Aurina.” He breathed, finally calming down. “I was only having some fun.”

“I do not think I can afford much more ‘fun’. My father will be so mad.”

“Look, I am sorry, alright?” He said seriously. “I did not mean for you to fall and get muddy. Although, it was very funny seeing the daughter of the Great Philipanol scream like a little girl.” He fell into another laughing fit.

“Caspian, I will kill you!” I said, clenching my fists and running towards him. He saw me and started running away still laughing.

That morning was like many mornings before it. At the time, we were both barely old enough to carry a sword. Caspian and I had practically grown up together since my mother died. When she died, my father was promoted to Head General of the Telmarine army and we moved to the castle, where I met Caspian.

At first, I was almost scared to play with him, for he was a prince, after all. But after I spotted him putting a pine cone on one of the officers seats at a dinner, I knew that we would be good friends.

Since his father was the King and my father was the General, we were left on our own for long periods of time, which usually meant that we would find some way to get in trouble. And we were mischievous children. Luckily, we had the Professor to help keep us educated and to make sure we behaved properly.

Professor Cornelius, or Professor, as we used to call him, was Caspian’s tutor since he was a small boy, but when I came to live in the castle, he became my tutor as well. We looked up to him, as he told us all of wonderful things the world had to offer. Stars, geography, mathematics, history, we could sit for hours listening to him. It was the etiquette part of the lessons that were not as enjoyable. But being a future King and the daughter of the Head General, we had to practice how to behave like a lord and lady.

After I got changed out of my dirty clothes, I was late to our lessons with Professor. As I stumbled into his room breathless, he gave me a look, and Caspian had to try hard not to laugh. “It is not lady-like to arrive late to a lesson, Aurina. And it is very rude to breath heavily with your mouth open like that.” Professor said, raising a white eyebrow. Professor never got upset, he would merely give you a look. Caspian and I used to say that look could knock over the strongest of fortresses.

I straighten myself out and take a deep breath in. “I apologize, Professor.” I nodded, making my way to a chair, stumbling over the many piles of books in his room. Much like me, he enjoyed to collect written works of any sorts, but there was never enough room for it all, so they simply sat in stacks all over the room. It was really more of a library than a bedroom.