Where are you Gloria?

Scene 10: Better, but not Better

A week later Princess Gloria's wounds have mostly healed, she is still sore but in a much better condition than she was. Even though she felt better on the outside, she still felt awful on the inside, knowing what she must do now, made her stomach ache, the thought of ever seeing the man that kidnapped, and tormented her made her completely terrified, but she knew she had to do it, so she sucked it up and walked down to the throne room where her father was.

"Ah, my lovely daughter how are you feeling?" The king said walking off his throne down to Gloria.

"I'm alright father..." Gloria took a sigh "...but I have some important issues to talk to you about"

Looking at his daughter the king noticed this must be serious and opened his ears,

"Talk away Gloria, I'm all ears"

Gloria, smiled a little and finialy came out with what she had to say,

"I'm sorry if I frightened you father with my disappearance, but I couldn't wait with what had to be done..."

The king looked at Gloria worriedly, Gloria spoke up again,

"...But, I went to Knight Rodericks house, and I got lost along the way in the woods"

The King looked at his daughter startled,

"Gloria, I sent Felix and a group of our guards to Knight Rodericks house a few days before you arrived back at the castle, and Felix told me that Roderick said that he hadn't seen you after the time you two bumped together in the town"

Gloria's heart dropped and she had to think of something quick,

"That...That's because I didn't want anyone to know, and he had promised me he wouldn't tell a single man"

The king gave a confused look,

"Why wouldn't you want to tell anyone"

Gloria closed her eyes and took a big sigh, than she remembered that if she wanted to get married to someone she had to be happy, so she opened her eyes and smiled,

"Because father I wanted it to be a surprise!"

"Wanted what to be a surprise Gloria?"

"That I wish to marry Knight Roderick father!"

The King stared wide eyed at Gloria,

"Gloria! thats Fantastick!"

"I know isn't it father?!"

The king was smiling ear to ear and picked his daughter up and spun her around in his arms, he put her back down and Gloria caught herself from falling,

"Gloria, I undertand it now! You went to Knight Rodericks house to talk about your differences that you acquired before, and didn't tell anyone because you wanted to surprise us!"

Gloria looked at her father,

"Uh...Yes Father! you are correct!"

"oh! how delighted I am to hear of this! my daughter getting married, we must make the arrangements at once!"

The King put his hands on Gloria's shoulders,

"Dont you worry about anything! I will take care of the whole wedding! you just sit back and wait for your beloved to come to the castle" The king kissed his daughters cheek and walked merrily out of the throne room, and Gloria waited until her father left and than fell to her knees, and softly said,

"But hes not my beloved, Henry is..."

Gloria stayed in her room for the next few days, she stared out her window, praying that knight Roderick wouldn't come, but deep down, she knew he would. She thought a lot of her mother that if she where here she would have never been caught dead in a mess like this. She thought about her father on how she knew he meant well for her to get married and all but he was too wound up in money and being king that he didn't stop to think about how she truly felt about this whole situation, on how that if her father wasn't so busy being king, he would have thought this over twice considering the fight Roderick and her had right in front of him. But, she still loved her father dearly, she just wished things didn't work out at they did.

She thought a lot about Henry. About the laughs they had, the way he made her feel, the way he listened to her, the way he cared so much that he actually let her go at her worst time because she told him to. She thought about every kiss they shared, the butterflies in her stomach when she saw him, the fast heart beat and the weak knees, and most of all, the fact that she wished for him to be here with her, she wished he was the one that she was marrying.

But all her thoughts stopped when she saw the carriage pull up, and watched Knight Roderick step out, her heart dropped.

"Princess?! Your loved one has arrived!"

"I will be right down Beatrice!"

Gloria took her time getting down stares. She stopped at her mirror and put on her tiara, her pink gown flowed down to the floor, she retied the gold bow in the back, and kept her long hair down. Gloria took a sigh and walked down the stares and slowly out to the front of the castle, she saw her father and Felix greeting Knight Roderick and his parents.

"Gloria! there you are!" Knight Roderick said, he walked over to her and grabbed her hand. He bowed and kissed it. Gloria gave a little smirk and started walking over to his parents,

"Oliver! Mary! It's so nice to see you again!"

"Princess Gloria! You are more beautiful than before!" Oliver happily said bowing before her.

Gloria smiled,

"Thank you"

"Your majesty, how are the wedding preparations going?" Mary asked the king

"Everything is done, everyone should know about this magnificent day by now, would you like to see?"

"If course I would!" Mary Happily said, and the two walked into the castle.

"Father, would you like a tour of the castle?" Roderick asked his father,

"That would be fantastic my son!" He answered back. Than he turned and looked at Gloria,

"Would you like to come my dear?"

Gloria was touched by the gesture, Maybe Roderick's parents weren't as stuck up as their son, but she shook her head no,

"Thank you but I'm gonna take a walk In the garden, I'm sure Roderick knows his way around, and he knows I like taking walks in the garden"

"Well than my dear, you go right ahead, if you need me, you know where to find me" Roderick spoke in a sweet tone, than him and his father walked off.

Gloria was surprised on how sweet Roderick sounded, but she knew it was all an act, an act from a man that hurt her, she knew not to trust him, so she went on her walk in the garden to get her mind straight.

Henry was back with Knight Victor, doing his job. Not thinking about anything but what he was doing, it was painful to think about Gloria so he put her to the back of his mind, he cleaned and cooked, and answered to Victor, he payed no attention to the outside world, he isolated himself because he loved Gloria soo much.

The day before the wedding back at the castle Gloria was walking through the castle, when she walks into Roderick he gives her a stair, and she shakes her head,

"Are you happy now?..." Gloria said.

Roderick looked at her and Gloria walked around him and looked him in the face,

"...is your sick mind happy with what is about to happen in the next day?..." Gloria looked down,

Roderick Smiled, and Gloria spoke up again still looking down,

"...I can tell you one thing, I'm not happy being with slime like you..." Gloria looked back up into Roderick's eyes, and Roderick took the smile off his face,

"...I only agreed to marrying you Knight Roderick, for the fact of my people, my kingdom, my father, not because you forced me, you don't deserve to be king..." Gloria put her finger up to Roderick's face,

"...but I don't want you near me after this kiss, I...must...give you" Gloria stared at Roderick for a moment, than turned around and walked away, leaving Knight Roderick behind with nothing to say.