The Scarlet Lillie

Permission

Chapter 19
As I predicted, my father was awaiting my arrival. As usual, Logan was sitting to his left, discussing things in hushed tones. When I walked in, I cleared my throat.
"Good morning, gentlemen." I greeted, gliding to my seat. Logan rose as a servant helped me into my chair, at the right hand of my father. "Please, sit." I encouraged.
Logan nodded and slid back into his seat. "Good morning, Princess. I trust you had a restful night."
I nodded. "Very much, thank you."
I turned to my father. "Father? I wish to talk to you about something. If now is not the right time, I would gladly wait until after the meal. It is no urgent matter."
My father looked unsurprised, but frowned. "Why don't we wait until after? I would like to hear about last night, as I was unable to attend a fair portion. I do apologize for that, my dear."
I shook my head. "You needn't worry, Father. I know there must have been a good reason."
A servant came in with a folded slip of paper and handed it to Logan. He opened it, and after reading it silently, handed it to my father. The king, after putting on his reading glasses, read the same words. He let out a sigh and folded the paper up.
"My dear, something has come up that needs my immediate attention. I shall have to ask that you excuse Logan and I."
I remained seated as the two men rose. "I understand. I will speak to you later, then." Logan bowed to me and followed my father out of the dining hall.
A servant brought me my breakfast, and I ate in silence. Upon finishing the meal, I thanked the servants and left the hall.
Since I didn't have the opportunity to discuss going outside the wall, I decided to first check on Midnight. Just in case he wasn't ready to ride.
I headed to the stables, taking a path I hadn't had any reason to walk in two years.
The stables were tucked away in a corner of the Royal Yard. It housed not only the Royal Horses, but was connected to our guards' quarters. Their horses resided in the same stables.
The second I stepped in, my heels echoed throughout, causing everyone to look up.
"Princess Scarlet!" A stable-man announced. He and the other men fell to their knees.
"Milady," the man said, his head down, "To what do we owe the honor of your presence?"
"Please, stand. I did not mean to interrupt your day; please, carry on." I encouraged. They obliged. All except the man who first saw me. "Sir, I simply wish to see Midnight. Is he here?"
The man nodded. "Yes, Milady. He is being brushed in his stall."
"Thank you," I hesitated. "Forgive me, I do not know your name."
The man looked surprised that I would ask for such a thing. "Jacob. My name is Jacob, Milady."
"Thank you, Jacob." I smiled. I excused myself and walked down to Midnight's stall. He was being brushed, just as Jacob had said. I gently rapped on the stall's frame.
"Pardon me for interrupting." I said. A small boy around ten jumped, knocking over a pale of water. He landed in a hay stack in the corner.
I pressed a hand over my mouth. "Goodness! Are you alright? I hadn't meant to startle you." I inquired, entering the stall and rushing to the boy's side.
"I'm fine. Just surprised, is all." He replied. I offered him a hand and he accepted. As he was pulling himself from the hay, he realized who the hand belonged to. Startled, his grip slipped and he fell back.
"Princess!" He exclaimed. He jerked himself from the pile and onto his knees.
"Please, you need not be so formal." I insisted.
"But-but I'm just a commoner. I shouldn't even be in your line of sight." He explained.
I frowned. "Rise so I may speak to your face." He slowly rose to his feet.
He was short, his eyes only reaching my shoulders. He wore filthy clothes, but they fit him nicely. I could tell he just gotten them dirty from the morning's work. There was hay all over him, particularly in his curly black hair.
"Tell me, please, where you heard such a thing." I requested.
"The people in my village said that royalty is always going to be better than we are. Since we are so low in the hierarchy, we should never even be in their line of sight. We'd be arrested and/or killed if we ever were." He explained. "I took the job as a stable boy last month only because I knew the royal family would never come to the stalls themselves." I shuffled his feet. "At least, I thought so."
"What is the name of your village?"
His eyes popped. "Kendrick's Village. But please don't do anything to them! Please, ma'am, they didn't know better! Honest! Please, they really are nice people!"
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I placed my hands on his shoulders and lowered myself to his level. "Calm down. I'm not going to hurt anyone." I insisted.
He stopped talking. A tear rolled down his cheek. "You aren't?"
I shook my head. "No; I would never dream of it. What's your name, young one?"
"Alex. My name is Alex Madden." He told me.
I began to pick pieces of hay from his hair. "Have you been taking care of my horse, Alex?"
He nodded, rubbing his cheeks. "Yes, ma'am."
"That's awfully kind of you. Thank you. Why would you want this job, though? Tough boy like yourself could do many other things." I questioned.
"My family needs money, ma'am. My older sister's sick, see, and my dad's farm isn't what it used to be. My mom can't sew clothing fast enough, either. They sent me here, to the capital, to find work over a month ago. When I heard about the job I came right here. Been collecting my money ever since."
I nodded. "I see." An idea came to me. I stood and walked over to Midnight. Rubbing his muzzle, I spoke to the boy. "How would you like to go visit your family?" I asked.
I heard him shift uncomfortably. "I would like it very much, ma'am, except I can't leave. I have to take care of the horse."
I turned back to him. "You would be coming with me. You see, I have just turned sixteen. I can now go outside the city walls. I was planning on going today, but up until now I had no real destination in mind. I would like to see your family, and your village. Would you be willing to lead me to them?"
He took a minute to process those words. Then, a huge smile broke out. "That would be incredible! Of course I'll take you! Of course!" He ran up and hugged me. I chuckled and gently hugged him back.
"I have to go inform my guards about this." Well, my father first. "Do you think you could have my horse along with six others ready within an hour?"
He nodded. "Any specific horses?"
"Yes. Tell Jacob that my personal guard will need their horses ready. He'll handle them. Can you ride your own horse?" I inquired.
"Yes, ma'am."
"Good. Then the sixth horse horse will be for you to ride." I explained. His green eyes shone. "If you'll kindly excuse me, then." I smiled at Alex and left the stall. Half way to the exit I heard an excited voice talking to a horse, exclaiming how he was going home.