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How long has it been, really? Days? No. Months? Maybe. Years? No, not years, that would’ve been too much.
As her younger cousin left, she took another look at him just to be sure.
Yep, still a child. Okay, so, it’s not been years. Isabella could relax about that.
Relax? How could she relax when she’s been a prisoner for… days? Months? Okay, who cares now? She couldn’t take it anymore. She has to break off this engagement. She can’t marry him.
She won’t.
But what about her parents? Could Harry actually do something to hurt them?
No, no, oh God, no. Of course not. They’re his uncle and aunt. The worse he could do is throw them all out of the castle.
And then they will have to search for somewhere else to stay.
That’s settled then: Isabella will ask for an audience with Prince Harry and tell him all those things. Break off the engagement, pack her things, reunite everybody and be gone.
It’ll all be alright.
Hopefully.
The only thing she knew for sure is that she couldn’t remain locked in this bloody doll house any longer.
It seems he’s been traveling back and forth more than he ever imagined he would, and Galavant was growing really tired of that.
He missed his home, his bed, his tavern, his pig.
His pig. His neighbors will be damned if they dared to turn his baby into bacon strips.
But if he was being honest, a nice big plate of crisp dripping bacon strips would be the most welcome.
God, he was hungry. What wouldn’t he give to be sitting at a table in Ye Horse’s Arse munching away at a fat roasted turkey leg, nagging Tommy for refills, and…
What is wrong with you? All you’ve done since we left is complain. You’re supposed to be a bloody hero.
His chest tightened. Straightening up, Galavant dropped the reins down and pressed his heels into his horse, turning the canter into full galloping.
And I’ve got every intention of being one, Princess.
Her kind of hero.
He’s returning for them.
For her.
As it turned out, infiltrating the castle of Valencia was easier the second time around (and without a murderous king wanting his head on a stick it was even better) but he couldn’t push his luck.
Straight for the dungeons, knock the guards out, release everybody and leave.
Galavant managed the knocking out part perfectly and when he turned around he—
“Sid? Where’s everybody else?”
His squire was practically jumping up and down from relief. “Sir! You’re alive! You’re okay! You’re here!”
“Yes, yes, yes, Sid. But where’s everybody? Where’s Isabella?”
“I… actually don’t know, sir. Gareth released everyone but kept me as… insurance?”
“What?”
“The princess said she would come back but it’s been a while and… well, I started to lose hope.”
“You have no idea where they are?”
Sid’s lips turned into a thin line. “No,” he whispered, looking down at his boots.
“Good thing I do.”
Galavant’s jaw clenched at the familiar voice. “Yeah, I’m acquainted with the ways you seem to know everything, Gareth”.
“I’m quite the people’s person. And as it turns out, your little princess went for her cousin-fiancé’s kingdom for help”.
Gareth held the key to Sid’s cell in front of them. “Did you hold up to your end of the deal?”
“Yes”.
Key in the keyhole. Key turned. Opened cell.
“Your horses are in the stables, saddled”. Gareth then shoved a crumpled paper into Galavant’s chest.
A wedding announcement.
Her wedding announcement.
Gareth snickered. “If you’re lucky, you might get there just in time for the party”.
How could this be happening? Where did her courage go?
She was supposed to talk to Harry. Be free from all of this and now…
She’s getting ready for her wedding ceremony.
Isabella tried, but all her attempts were in vain. She wasn’t even allowed to talk to her parents, and now she would only have the time in the ceremony and maybe the party and then she was doomed forever.
Doomed to spend her life as Harry’s most precious toy.
No, there was time. There was still hope and if she couldn’t do it the easy way, she would do it the hard way:
Knocking up the guards and running away.
No, not run— she will find Harry and try to reason with him and call this whole thing off and she will do it…
Now.
As swiftly as she could, Isabella took the sword of one of her guards and smacked the pommel of the hilt into his forehead, while kicking the other away with one foot, hitting his head with the blunt edge of the blade.
Good God, she was in so much trouble.
And she needed to get away from the room as fast as she could.
Running blindly through the maze of corridors, Isabella was trying to figure where the hell can Harry’s room be when, not so distant from where she’s standing she heard what it seemed like… fighting?
Oh God, did they find she was gone already?
She gripped the hilt tighter and took a deep breath, walking heavy and intently towards the noise, ready to battle when…
Knocked down guards pooled around his feet, and as he turned around to go against some more he froze, eyes widened and mouth agape.
“Isabella?”
“Galavant? What the hell are you doing here?”
“What does it look like I’m doing?” he waved his arms around. “I’m here to rescue you!”
Isabella frowned, clicked her tongue, and shrugged. “Well…”
He sighed exasperatedly. “For God’s sake—why can’t you be like a normal princess?”
“Why can’t you be like a normal knight?”
“I am a normal knight!”
She took a deep breath. “Yeah, you are”.
The annoyed expression soon turned into a loving one, and Galavant couldn’t help but to snort. Taking a few steps towards her, he closed the distance between them.
“I missed you”.
Isabella smiled. “I missed you too”.
He dropped his sword then. “I’m going to kiss you now”.
Hers met the floor with a loud clang.
“You better”.