Bondage (formerly Escape from the Obstinate Prince)

Ami spent the next few days training with Lars. The training mainly consisted of Lars trying to teach Ami different and better techniques that the Svenlandians used, but since their techniques required more strength and less agility, she spent more time laughing over the absurdity of her trying to wield a heavy sword like Lars’ than she did actually trying to fight Lars.

“Ami!” Lars sighed exasperatedly but couldn’t help a smile from sneaking onto his face. “Just try. You can do it.”

Ami let out another bout of giggles before she straightened up and picked up the heavy sword. “Since when did Svenlandians use swords anyway? I thought they always used battle axes and had big beards and were fat and ugly. You contradict all of those.”

An amused look crossed Lars’ face. “We use many weapons. Swords being one of them. And I can get a big beard, only since I heard that the Crown Princess was coming aboard, I quickly cut off the shaggy old thing. As for being fat, I must say that Svenlandians like their food and ale, but being a sailor doesn’t give me enough room for getting terribly fat.” he patted his toned stomach. He stopped in his thinking process and looked at Ami. “You said Svenlandians were ugly. Does that mean you think I’m handsome,” he grinned lopsidedly and put his arm around her waist and drew her close, “darling?”

Ami’s eyes were wide. Her she was, up against a man who she had met just barely a week before, exchanging flirtatious remarks. Whether he meant it or not, Ami didn’t know. She also didn’t know whether or not to answer seriously or not. “Maybe I do.” Ami did her best to look not as if she was going to have a heart attack and look more as if she were more confident of herself than she actually was. “But then again, maybe not.”

Lars raised an eyebrow, smirk still in place.

Ami couldn’t fight off the smile that crept onto her face. She hadn’t had so much fun in her life. When she met Lars, she found that life could be so much more fun than the dull, day to day life that she had previously led. It would be a shame to never get to see him again after the marriage with the Prince.

Then it seemed as if the clouds blocked out all the sunlight as she came to a very frightening realization. She was going to Carenthia to form an alliance so they could destroy Svenland. Destroy Lars. She looked up at him with a frightened, and slightly horrified, look.

“What?” his playful smile left. “What’s wrong, Ami?”

She didn’t say anything. We’re supposed to be enemies. Once we declare war on Svenland we’ll be fighting against each other. Enemies, the word repeated itself in Ami’s ears.

She didn’t answer him and quickly dropped the sword, escaped from Lars’ arms, dashing to her private chambers and locking the door behind her. She leaned against the door breathing heavily, almost hyperventilating. She slid down the door until she was sitting in the cool wood.I can’t do this. Not anymore. I can’t call for him. I can’t even be friends with him. We’re supposed to be enemies as soon as the alliance goes through. she rested her head against the door and looked up, trying to angle her face so that the tears wouldn’t fall. I’m not strong enough to resist.

Ami felt a knock vibrating the door against her back. “Ami?” Lars’ confused, almost hurt voice sounded through the wooden door. “Ami did I do something wrong? Are you hurt? Is there anything I can do? Do you need anything?”

Ami debated on whether or not she should answer him.

“Ami, are you alright?” he asked again. “Should I get you anything? Should I get the Captain?”

Ami contemplated the consequences of answering him and of ignoring him. She decided that he was persistent and would most likely not leave her alone until she answered him. She stood up, frantically wiped her face in case she had any tear streaks before she opened the door. “Lars.”

Surprise flitted across his face. “Ami, is everything alright?”

He must have expected her to say yes, because he looked even more surprised to hear her answer him. “No.”

“What’s wrong?” his forehead creased. “Was it something I said? I’m sorry if I did anything.”

Any shook her head as she grabbed Lars’ arm, pulling him inside her room before closing the door behind her.

“Ami, what’s wrong?” he repeated softly and stood in front of her. He gently held onto her elbows.

She looked up at him. “Lars, we can’t do this.”

“Do what?” he wiped at Ami’s tear stains with his thumb.

“That.” she looked up sadly at him. “Do you know why I’m going to Carenthia?”

Lars looked slightly confused. “To form an alliance with the Prince of some sort, but what does that-”

“Forming an alliance to destroy Svenland.” she cut him off. “Rhone and Carenthia are going to join forces to cut off Svenland.”

Understanding started to fill Lars’ face. “But Ami, what does that have to do with this?” he wiped away another one of Ami’s tears that had started to fall. “I’ll be working with Rhone. Svenland had no hold on me.”

“Don’t you see?” Ami pleaded. “It’s not just that. I’m going to Carenthia. I’m going to marry the prince. This won’t work. We won’t work.” then she lowered her voice. “Not like there was ever a we to get working.”

Lars pulled her close to him and his chin rested on her head. “Oh Ami.” he closed his eyes and sighed. “I know that you’re going there to marry. But what’s wrong with friendship as long as you are still free? The Prince will never know and once you’re there, you’ll forget all about me, and the fun that we have here will be all but fond memories. The Prince needn’t ever know.”

He pulled away and looked into her blue eyes. “It’s just harmless fun.”

“Is it really harmless?” she questioned. “What if the Prince finds out? What if he doesn’t like it and sentences you to-”

“Ami,” he interrupted, “he won’t. He can’t. We’re at sea. No one will know. Stop thinking about it.” he tilted her chin up. “Listen to what’s in here.” he put a hand to her heart. “Follow what you feel. Your heart knows best.”

Ami looked at his entrancing eyes. This feels like a story from one of those books Mother used to read to me at bedtime. “But what if-”

“No buts.” he intervened. “No ifs. Just let all of it out. Break free. Ignore the rules for once.”

Ami was never one to believe that eyes could convey emotion but at that moment, she felt Lars’s gaze on her, urging her to just let everything go.

Forget about the Prince. Forget about being the Princess. All she could think about in that moment was Lars. The way his light brown hair curled at the bottom of his neck. The way his eyes seemed to darken a shade when he looked at her.

His head tilted slightly, one of his hands was around her waist, one holding the back of her head, dipped his head, getting closer to her than they ever had been before.

Ami realized where this was going. She had read about it in books. Heard about it from her ladies-in-waiting. They would giggle and talk about it for days. But she had never actually experienced a kiss before. She was going to protest but then Lars’ words rang in her ears. Forget royalty. Just go with it.

She closed her eyes and could feel the heat radiating from Lars, they were about to touch, she could sense it.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Ami jerked away from Lars, the spell broke. The bell rang two more times, telling them that it was the fifth hour of morning and time for them to go to the Captain’s table to eat luncheon.

They wordlessly exited her room and walked to the Captain’s table, silently taking their seats, neither one mentioning anything of the incident.

<><><>

“I want you to go to the port and pick her up when the ship arrives, no complaining.” the King sat in a walnut wood chair, his crown seeming to weigh down his head.

“Why can’t you just send some servants to fetch her?” Jack crossed his arms. “You have them for a reason you know.”

The King rubbed his tired eyes. “Katherine, can you,” he waved his hand, “help persuade the boy?”

A sly smile edged onto Katherine’s face. “Gavin, darling,” at this Jack pretended to gag, “I don’t know if he can be persuaded. He’s so set on not liking the poor dear Princess,” Jack glared, “that he is beyond repair.”

“Katherine!” the King groaned. “You’re not helping me at all! You were supposed to persuade him to go meet her!”

“What if he’s secretly in love with one of the castle maids or something?” Katherine asked innocently. “We can’t ask him to marry a girl for whom he has no feelings!”

Jack’s eyes widened at his mother’s accusation. “I have no such ‘secret love for a castle maiden’!”

Katherine wasn’t fazed. “But love, how do we know you’re telling the truth? I said ‘secret’ for a reason.”

“Mother, I assure you-”

“Perhaps, Gavin,” Katherine smiled brightly, “we should interrogate all of the young maidens and find the one that Jack is in love with, and just call the alliance off and let him marry one of our girls from Carenthia.”

“Mother!” Jack squeaked, his eyes wider than egg shells.

“We don’t really need the alliance. I’m sure we can find some other way to fix it. But we must make sure that our little boy marries the girl of his-”

“Stop it, Mother!” Jack covered his ears and got up from the table where they were reclining. “I’ll go! Just stop accusing me of being in love with a castle maid, and don’t call off the alliance. I’ll do it. Just give me time. You can’t expect me to love a girl who, last I checked, was a stupid,” the King and Queen frowned, “brainless, weak girl. She hates me, and I hate her. We’re even. Now if you’ll excuse me, I must go see to it that I’m ready for the excursion.”

He withdrew from the room, closing the door behind him.

“Well.” the King looked at the door where Jack retreated. “My dear, you have done it again.”

Katherine smiled. “I wasn’t even trying. But suppose he was in love with a castle maid and he just isn’t letting on? We couldn’t let him marry someone he doesn’t love.”

Gavin chuckled. “I’m quite sure that his isn’t in love with any of the castle maidens. I don’t think his mind can comprehend loving someone. Not yet anyway.Give the boy time and maybe he’ll discover the meaning of love. But marrying a peasant girl?”

“It wouldn’t be such a bad thing.” she batted her eyelashes. “After all, you used to be a peasant as well.”

“Who became a knight I might add.” his mouth twitched into a smile. “And married the Crown Princess.”

A gagging sound could be heard from behind them and Madison materialized, a thoroughly disgusted look on his face. “You two could, oh I don’t know, go somewhere private if you’re going to make such sickening comments about each other about how” Madison raised his voice so that he sounded like a lovesick girl, “lovely his eyes are in the moonlight and how you’d love to squish her cheeks till they turn pink. And how you two were in a romantic garden when he asked you to-”

“Madison, don’t you have anything better to do than to go eavesdropping on your King and Queen?” Gavin raised an eyebrow.

Madison sighed. “Apparently not. But, just so you know, I was in the library before you and Queen Katherine and Jack came barging in. And also, sooner or later Jack will tell me everything that you told him. In fact, I should probably go to his room and listen to him rant about how he had to go pick up the Princess. Again, I only heard that because I couldn’t help it. You three were talking there and I was sitting over here, plain as day itself. And I’ll just be going now, goodbye.” he tipped forward in a bow before exciting the library.

Katherine tsked and shook her head at the closed door. “The poor boy. He’s never been the same since Alexandra. He pretends to be alright, but I know he’s not.” she sighed. “I just wish I could do something for him.”

“We all do.” the King patted his wife’s shoulder. “I’m afraid that there isn’t really anything to do for him anymore.”

“Unless,” a mischievous glint caught in Katherine’s eyes, “we send him off on an King’s expedition to get his mind off of it. And then maybe, by chance, he’ll meet an incredible girl that will sweep him off of his feet.”

The King’s mouth twisted into a dull expression. “Why would we send him off? There are no foreign duties that need doing.”

“Well, we could, uh, um.” she frowned. “Oh, I don’t know! But you could appoint him as your Foreign Affairs Leader. And then if the need ever arises, he will be sent away into a foreign land, and then he will forget all about Alexandra!”

She beamed at her brilliant plan.

“Maybe.” the King rubbed his beard with his hand. “It might work. With Rhone and Carenthia teaming up and all...yes, this could work.”

“I knew you’d see it my way.” she patted his cheek and smiled before hopping out of her chair and flouncing out of the room.