The Union

Freya stood up and washed her face. She stretched her limbs and looked at the scenery outside her window. Her bedroom was on the fifth floor of the palace so she could see the whole city of Nirvana. It was still early but the city was already alive. The merchants had already settled their stalls and the miners from the nearby villages were already searching buyers for their gems.

Back at their old house in Solon, the atmosphere was very different. Solon was dull, like an old man. But Nirvana was like a youth full of vigor. She had been living in Nirvana for about ten years now. Her father was a lesser n.o.ble. Although their status was not that high, his father used his connections to allow Freya to live in the palace. Living in the palace was a great opportunity for many n.o.ble children. They will meet important people in the palace and this network of acquaintances would be useful later on. For Freya, deciding to live in the palace was the greatest decision she ever made. Of course, she could only see her parents every once in a while, but if given a choice she wouldn"t want to go back to Solon. Nirvana was the King"s city. And there was another reason for her stay- Timothy Castonia.

She first met Timothy ten years ago. At first she was shy to go near him. Timothy always had Erik tailing him and they would go on adventures around the palace. One day, Timothy suddenly approached her and asked if she wanted to play with them. Freya felt alone during her first months at the palace, and Timothy was her first friend. The trio became best of friends.

Freya doesn"t know why, how or when, but she fell in love with Tim. Maybe because Timothy was her first friend in Nirvana, maybe because of his strange but interesting ideas, or maybe because she just did, but she really fell in love with him. For years, she always hid her feelings. The person she loves was not someone she could marry anyway. Her father was a lesser n.o.ble so the King would never allow his son to be with her. She always told herself that it was okay and decided that simply loving him was good enough. But deep down, it was painful.

When Tim was sent by the King to Knightsend, Freya wanted to protest. But what can she do? She was just a daughter of a lesser n.o.ble in Solon. She wouldn"t even be in the palace if not for her father"s connections. Freya knew of Tim"s wobbly relationship to his father. She knew that the King never viewed Tim as his son. She felt his pain. It was the pain of a son wanting the recognition of a father. But sending Timothy to Knightsend was just too much. The King exiled his own son. Furthermore, the Tulosans will soon invade. What will happen to Tim? Will Freya ever see him again? She was very worried when he left.

Every day she would wait for news of Knightsend, but people don"t talk much about the castle. Knightsend was at the edge of Castonia. But about a few weeks ago, Freya heard news of Timothy"s return. The King sent a letter recalling him! Freya was overjoyed. She will finally be able to see Tim again. When he gets back, she will reveal her feelings. What happened last year made her realize that she should take the initiative before it"s too late.

But with the news of Tim"s return, comes a troubling rumor. It was the reason why he was being recalled. People began suspecting that the King had arranged for Tim to marry. It wasn"t surprising because Timothy was at the ripe age. At first, Freya didn"t believe these rumors. She closed her ears. The rumors were baseless anyway. But a few days ago, another piece of news kind of confirmed the rumor. The second princess of Vanadis, Lucia, was on her way to Nirvana. A foreign princess coming to the palace only meant one thing, marriage.

For years, she had prepared herself for this. But after hearing the news, she changed her mind. She would not be idle. Well, she must admit that Lucia Vanadis was a better match for Tim. She was a princess and Vanadis was a rich Kingdom. She was also probably prettier and more refined. But Freya and Tim had known each other a long time. He must have also felt something for her, right? Even if it"s small, she wanted a place in his heart.

Today was the day of Tim"s arrival. It should be. Travel time from Knightsend to Nirvana was about 15 days. For days, Freya waited for Tim and today should be the day.

At midday, news of the third prince"s arrival reached Freya"s ear. She smiled dearly. Tim is back. But she knew that she mustn"t see him immediately. He was probably tired and she should give him time to rest.

*********************************************************************************************************

Timothy was really tired. They stayed longer than expected at Greenwater so they had to make up for it by travelling all day and night. Apparently, the Marquis missed his son so much. This further annoyed him. Benedict Connel, Erik"s father, was a good father- unlike someone! Not even asking how his journey had been or thanking him for sacrificing his youth for political reasons.

Timothy went to his room. It was the same as before. It was a little dusty, but it was still the same. He poured himself some wine. It was almost sunset. He didn"t have the energy to take a bath or eat. Timothy fell asleep.

That night, Tim had the same dream again. That woman again. The pain and sadness were even worse this time. He woke up gasping for air. Tim looked outside the window. The city was still asleep. Sunrise was still a few hours away so he went outside to walk around. If he catches a guard sleeping, then only the heavens know what he"ll do to him! He let out a small laugh. It seems that he forgot that he"s not a garrison commander anymore. There was no rooster prince in Nirvana, only Timothy the third prince.

Timothy went around the walls of the palace. He knew this place like the back of his hand. After a few hours, the sun started to rise. Thankfully, he failed to catch anyone sleeping on watch or else...

He then went to the garden and lied on the gra.s.s. He remained there until midday. He then saw a figure of a woman approach him. He can"t forget that face. He had known her for many years and she was one of his closest friends.

" It seems you"re back" Freya smiled while looking down on the lying Tim

" Howdy" Tim gave a playful smile.

" Those strange expressions of yours again Tim. It"s really you" Freya laughed.

" What?" Timothy stood up and faced her. He smirked " You think Prince Timothy Castonia can be replaced by an impostor?"

But Freya didn"t respond with words. She just lunged forward and hugged him. Timothy was surprised and a little embarra.s.sed. He was not insensitive to Freya"s feelings. He had known for a long time that Freya likes him. For a man and a woman to be in this position, especially if one of them had feelings for the other, it"s strange. But Tim didn"t pull himself out of Freya"s hug. He owes her this much. He brushed Freya"s hair with his hand. No words were needed as they both understood each other. But Tim really felt nothing towards her and fully rejecting her was the biggest mercy he could think of.

" I"m sorry Freya" Timothy apologized.

" Is.. is there really nothing for me in your heart?" She started to cry and buried her face into Tim"s chest. "I really need to know!"

" Yeah." Timothy felt bad for her. But he needs to draw the line. "And you must have known already that I"m getting married"

" I don"t care!" She declared stubbornly "If it"s okay with her then I don"t care being second as long as I"m with you. She doesn"t love you anyway." Freya then looked at Tim. Her eyes were still wet with tears.

But then, the guard at the gate announced,

"Announcing the arrival of Princess Lucia Vanadis, second princess of the Kingdom of Vanadis, and her royal retinue."