The Princess and The Pirate

The Queen glided down a twisting stone staircase. The satchel she held was too heavy to sway and didn’t flow with her walk. The servants’ quarters were alive with chatter and gossip about the recently deceased Estavan.

They say he was a traitor, trying to blackmail the King!

He wanted to marry the Princess and keep the kingship for himself!

The pirate corruption was deep. His whole command couldn’t be trusted!

Such scandalous whispers made the Queen happy. The fires of war bellowed from her social machine. Filled with satisfaction, she called out for the youngest messenger at the kingdom’s disposal: Günter.

Günter was an eleven-year-old foreigner. One day, long ago, he just turned up at the castle, hungry, pathetically dressed, and unable to speak a word of English.

With pity, they fed him, clothed him, educated him a bit, and gave him a job as a messenger, for he was small and nimble. His history aside, the reason behind the Queen’s selection was simple - he was an orphan.

“Günter, dear,” she called out as the petite, pale blond boy appeared, peeking around the corner. His bright blue eyes lit up when he saw the Queen, for he loved her dearly.

Smiling, she held out the heavy satchel to him. “Take this directly to the Monastery of the Humble Lady on the bluffs and seek Father Cordinae. There’s food and provisions inside for your travels. Stop for no one. Speak to no one other than the father, understand?”

Günter had never been to the bluffs before but he’d certainly find it. The package was heavy, but for her, he’d do anything. “Yes, my Queen!” His youthful voice had a thick German accent to it.

“You do me a great service.” Keeping her smile, she cupped the side of his face affectionately, “Now go, with haste!”

And in a flash, the boy was gone, sprinting down the servants’ corridor which led to its many ins and outs of the castle.

The Queen watched his shadow disappear around a corner and heard his footsteps echo down the hall.

No one would miss an orphaned messenger boy.

In reality she had hoped they wouldn’t need much communication with the father, because not many of the servants had such unique situations.