Throne of Blood

Chapter Nine: Happiness (Liam)

The sun was rising. I was sitting at the table waiting for the morning meal. Ranok was bringing the food to the table. He sat down and stared at me.

'It is considered rude to stare at people, uncle.' I said.

'I just don't understand why. Why were you up last night?' asked Ranok.

I began to shake in my chair, thinking back to the dream I had.

'I had a dream, uncle.' I said.

Ranok rolled his eyes and sighed.

'Everyone has dreams Liam.' said Ranok.

'No, I mean I had a dream about Elijah.' I said.

Uncle Ranok put down his fork.

'Is that why you were practicing?' asked Ranok.

I nodded my head.

'You are stressed. A king should be stressed out over his kingdom. Not over his brother.' said Ranok.

'I can't help it, uncle. I just have a lot on my mind.' I said and began to eat.

It was quiet. All both of us could hear was the gusts of wind blowing outside.

'I know. How about you take a walk around the kingdom. Go meet people! That always helps me think things straight.' said Ranok.

I nodded and stood up.

'Be sure to be back before it gets dark.' said Ranok.

I stepped outside. The sun was shining, the sky was clear, and the wind was blowing softly. I began to walk around the kingdom. Kids were playing in the roads and shops were open. Shop keepers were handing out free samples of freshly baked bread. The royal castle was not too far behind me. I stood and looked at it. The castle had a gothic design and was very big. The castle had blue banners that were flying with the wind. As I was walking down one of the many roads, I saw a little boy running around while flying a red kite. I will never forget the smile he had on his face. His smile was so big and bright. All of a sudden, he came running towards me; not looking where he was going. He bumped into me and we both fell to the ground.

'Ouch.' I said to myself.

'Oh! I'm sorry big fella!' said the boy cheerfully.

He got up and held out his hand to help me up. The boy was young and he had a grey hat on, black hair, and brown eyes. His face was pale and his cheeks were plush. He had a strange look on his face.

'Hey, you aren't from around here, are you?' asked the boy.

'No, I am not.' I said.

'Then... where are you from?' asked the boy.

I smiled at him.

'I am from a different kingdom.' I said.

'Why are you here?' asked the boy.

'I am... on vacation.' I lied.

'Cool! What's your name?' asked the boy.

'I am Liam. Nice to meet you. What is your name?' I asked.

He was shy now; looking down at the ground.

'William.' he said softly.

We shook hands.

'Hey, do you wanna fly my kite with me?' William asked.

'Sure, why not.' I said

'Come on!' William yelled.

He began to run ahead of me and I was not too far behind him. We came to a big meadow. Tall grass was waving in the wind and leaves were flying by. William began to laugh and he ran out into the meadow. This reminded me of where Elijah and I would practice sword fighting together. I watched William run around in the tall grass with his kite in the air.