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The castle was quiet, you'd almost think it was an old, abandoned castle from how silent the halls were. The sun slowly rose above the horizon, lighting every room with it's warm glow. Inside a bedroom, wrapped in white sheets, laid a princess. Her name was Esther. Esther Hawthorn.
She could've slept for the entire day and the next if one of the servants hadn't knocked on the door. "Your parents wish to see you, Your Highness." the servant said loud enough for her snap awake. "Please meet them in the dining room for breakfast." Esther spent at least seven minutes staring at the ceiling through puffy eyes.
Esther groaned as she sat up in her bed, rubbing her eyes with a yawn. Her routine was simple; Wash up, slip on a dress(depending of the occasion), and make it through the day. It wasn't too bad, everything was pretty easy for someone like Esther, a pampered princess who had everything handed to her on a silver spoon. The worst part of her day was probably the suitors. So loud, so noisy, the complete opposite of herself. She'd rather die than marry any of those cocky, pompous pricks.
After Esther finished getting ready, she walked to the dining room to meet with her parents. She didn't know what they needed, but she assumed it wasn't something too important if they hadn't told her the day before. Stepping into the room, the sight of her parents, the king and queen, sitting at the table greeted them.
"Esther, we have something to discuss with you. Come, sit down." her father gestured for her to sit down in her seat. She nodded and sat down.
"How are you, my dear? Sleep well?" her mother piped up, taking a bite out of her breakfast. Esther just nodded and poked at her plate with a fork. She'd always been the quiet type, words were a practically a miracle to hear from Esther. Sometimes she'd hear rumors about herself, some believed she was born without a tongue, even wondering if she was alliterate. She wasn't. She didn't talk because everyone she met was too stupid. For a princess that had everything at the tip of her finger, she used that to work hard in intelligence and strength. The people she's talked to the most would probably be her parents, and even then it'd be in private, when no one but her and her parents were next to her.
Her parents were kind people. Being rulers of the kingdom, they did a good job along with being present in her life. "Make any new friends recently?" her father asked. Esther just shook her head. The closest she had to friends were the servants that helped around the castle, and even with them she only spoke a few words.
Her mother let out a soft sigh, setting down her fork. "Well, we'll stop beating around the bush." Finally, Esther thought, taking a bite out of her scrambled eggs. "Me and your father are aware of your... suitor problems. So, we came up with a solution." Esther's ears seemed to perk up, looking up from her plate with an almost hopeful expression. Were they finally going to get rid of those greasy bastards? The last one tried to smack her after she declined his hand in marriage.
"We've decided on giving you a personal knight." her father announced, Esther's eyes going cold. A personal knight. The thought of some box of metal following and bossing her around irritated her, her grip on her fork tightening significantly.
"What." Esther finally spoke, her eyebrows furrowed with irritation. She didn't want to be ungrateful, but really? A guard that was always right by her side? "You're kidding."
"It's for the better, dear." her mother replied, a satisfied smile on her face. "You get protection from those brutes, plus a new friend! We he'd help you open up a bit." He? As in a boy? She was already surrounded by men on the daily, how was this supposed to help?!
"I'm fine on my own, you know I've learned self-defense." Esther protested, taking more bites out of your breakfast. "I don't need a man. I can handle myself." She really could handle herself perfectly fine.
"Our decision is final, Esther. Your knight should be here any moment." those words were enough for her to shove the rest of her food in her mouth and leave the table, placing her plate in the sink.
"I'm going out." Esther excused, walking to the door and straight into someone with a clank! She looked up to the sight of a knight in full armor, just barely catching a glimpse of golden eyes through the helmet before the knight bowed.
"My name is Francis Lothaire, Your Royal Highness," the knight, now known as Francis, introduced himself. "As you may know, I will be your personal knight from here. I hope we get along well." Esther scanned him silently, trying to find any weaknesses or tricks. It was hard to look him over when he was covered head to toe in metal.
Esther didn't utter a word to him. Not even a hello. She only did a quick bow and walked past him, her flats clicking against the stone tiles below her. The king sighed, resting his chin in his palm. "We're sorry about our daughter, Sir Francis. She isn't very welcoming to new changes is all, we're sure she'll warm up to you eventually." the queen nodded along with an apologetic smile.
The knight just straightened himself up. "Should I go after her, Your Majesty?"
"Please do." the queen answered.
Esther sat in the castle garden, journaling and writing notes as she sat on a wooden bench, only the sound of the wind rustling leaves and birds chirping keeping her company, the sweet smell of nectar filling the air. She didn't understand why she had to have some loser breathe down her neck all the time, don't they know how capable she is of working on her own. Of course, Esther won't argue. Being the only child of a royal family, there could be people who want to hurt her, so she did suppose her parents made a wise decision.
Her peace was quickly broken when she heard that horrible sound. Metal boots clanking against the ground, birds flying away at the ruckus. Great. "Your Highness?" Francis called out from the entrance of the garden. Esther shut her journal, looking up at the knight with a neutral expression. "I am to stay by your side, no matter what." she resisted the urge to roll her eyes, standing up with her journal and walking away.
"Where are you going, Your Highness?" Esther heard Francis ask from behind her, his boots clanking against the ground. She just met him and she was already sick of the sound of metal shuffling everywhere she went. She still said nothing and kept walking. She had originally planned on getting a new journal on her own, since she just used the last page of the one she already had. "Helloooo? Your Highness? Princess? Do you know how to speak?" his voice only irritated Esther more.
Francis didn't stop when they reached the market, either. While Esther was browsing the different pens and journals, he kept bugging her like a leech. When would he learn to let it go and just let her be in her own little world? "What're you getting, Your Highness?" Francis asked. Esther still wouldn't answer him.
It seemed that he had eventually gave up after Esther paid for her things, Francis was silent on the way back to the castle. Esther almost let out a sigh of relief when he finally shut up, hoping that he'd stay quiet when they made it back to the castle. The last thing she had on her mental to-do list was to work through paperwork. Esther's parents told her that it'd be way for her to be prepared for whenever she becomes queen.
Esther sat down at her desk in the study room, sorting through papers in a calm silence. Francis stood over her shoulder, watching her do her work. Esther could almost feel the boredom radiating off of him, sliding the knight a blank piece of paper and a pen.
"What do you want me to do with this, Your Highness?" Francis asked. Esther drew a tiny fox and then went back to organizing papers. He seemed to understand the memo, taking free seat and drawing on the paper.
Esther was finally done going through the papers, leaning over to look at the Francis's paper. It was a drawing of Esther sorting paperwork, a focused expression on her face. When she saw Francis look up, she looked away and put the files into a drawer.
A small stone was thrown through the open window nearby, landing at Esther's chair. Then another. And another. Esther and Francis looked at each other before standing up and walking to the window. Francis smacked away another rock that was thrown.
Standing near the flowerbeds, just a floor below the study's window, was a man holding a page that looked like it was torn out of a book. The man stopped throwing stones at the sight of Esther, bowing quickly before standing upright and clearing his throat. "Your Royal Highness, the Princess of the Fantasia Kingdom, I ask for your hand to be mine!" it sounded like he was reading it off of an old poem that was translated five times. "You light up every room with your big, grey eyes! Your white curls enhance your already astonishing features! Your skin like cinnamon, just as sweet as your personality! I will make the best husband and king for you!"
Esther stared down the man with blank eyes. His words were disgustingly sweet for someone that looked twice her age, and he definitely had some poet write that down for him. She looked over at Francis with a raised eyebrow, the knight shaking his head in disagreement. Esther looked back through the window, shaking her head. No way in hell she'll marry someone that throws rocks to catch her attention.
The man didn't seem to see it properly, yelling louder. "Is that a head shake for yes?" Esther quickly wrote down "NO." on a piece of paper, balled it up, and tossed it at the man, and walked away from the window. By the time she was halfway down the hall, she could hear the man cursing and kicking gravel.
"He was very... poetic, Your Highness." Francis noted as they walked alongside eachother. "I don't think he was a good fit, though. Didn't sound true coming from his mouth." Esther nodded in agreement.
The sun was setting by now, so Esther walked back to her room, giving a small bow to Francis before shutting the door and walking into her bathroom. She filled the bathtub with warm water and slipped off her dress, sliding into the tub with a relaxed sigh. Her day surprisingly hadn't been too bad with that knight around. And he wasn't so bad being around when he wasn't yapping her ear off, either.
After Esther finished bathing, she emptied the water and dried herself off with a towel. She pulled on a lavender nightgown and went out to the dining room for dinner. When she arrived her parents sat at the table talking to each other, turning to wave at Esther with smiles. "Esther, my darling, we were just talking about you!" her mother beamed, waving for her to sit down at the table. As always, Esther followed along and sat down at her seat, one of the servants bringing her plate.
"So, how was your first day with a knight by your side, Esther? Nothing too bad happened, right?" her father asked, half of his plate already eaten. Esther could've sworn she heard her mother muttering something along the lines of "If he didn't do his job, I'll kill him,". Yikes.
"It was fine." Esther stated plainly, taking a bite out of her steak. "He stopped a rock from being thrown at me."
"Good, he's doing his job as a knight to protect you." her mother nodded.
"Someone was throwing rocks at you?" her father seemed concerned, stopping mid-bite to ask.
"Just some dumb suitor reading off of a script. I could see it all over his wrinkly forehead that he just wanted to be king." Esther sighed, mixing the gravy and mashed potatoes together.
"At least you didn't get hurt." her mother breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm so glad we found the right one for you, dear! It's so hard to find proper knights that don't find you strange." Esther would've rolled her eyes if she didn't hear that last part. Francis didn't think of her in a bad way? That felt strange to hear.
Her father seemed to notice Esther's puzzled expression, giving a dismissing wave. "It's not a bad thing, sweetheart! It's just that people can be rude and spread lies, many people don't understand to not judge a book by it's cover."
"I know that, I'm not a little kid." Esther sighed, standing up and walking out of the room. "I'm going to the garden, I'm not hungry." her parents watched her go, a tense silence left at the dinner table.
The garden was quiet, crickets chirping keeping Esther company. Fireflies buzzed around her, faintly illuminating the space around themselves. These small moments mattered to Esther most. The times where she didn't have to be around others, no worrying about what to do. A small breeze made Esther shiver, digging her nails into her lap.
"Don't you need a robe, princess?" A voice called out from the side. Esther snapped up head towards the noise. Someone stood at one of the tone pillars, wavy blonde hair reaching their chest. Was it a boy or a girl? Esther couldn't tell, they had some feminine features but their voice sounded a bit deep for a woman. The figure stepped closer, their features clearer now out of the darkness and into the faint moonlight that casted upon their face.
Esther could see better now, looking their face up and down. The person seemed well kept, maybe from a noble family? Especially with the blue eyes, that tended to be a sign for nobility. She also noted the mole under their right eye. They seemed to have a decent body strength, as well. Esther didn't feel weird for looking him over this much, she overlooked everyone she meets.
"You should go inside, Princess, you might catch a cold." the stranger warned, stepping closer and holding out a hand. Esther stared at the stranger's outstretched hand, slowly taking it into herself and flipping them onto the ground with an audible thud, knocking the wind out of their lungs. Esther knelt down and moved the hair out of their face. "Visitors aren't allowed in after 7pm, you shouldn't be here." Esther said in a slightly bitter tone, watching the stranger's eyes widen with surprise.
"So you can speak." the stranger muttered breathlessly. Esther paid no mind to their obvious statement, placing her hand on their throat.
"That isn't relevant. Who sent you? Or are you too stupid to follow castle rules? If you're a suitor, I'm not looking for marriage right now." Esther was getting frustrated, pressing her thumb harder against the stranger's airway.
"Ow, you sure can hurt a man," So he's not a girl, Esther noted in her head. "Why'd you do that, Your Highness?" the man asked through a weak laugh. That question made her pause. Where the hell had she heard that before? Suddenly a voice repeated in her head over and over. And not in a good way.
Your Highness, Your Highness, Your Highness...
It all suddenly made sense, letting go of the man with a gasp. "Francis??" Esther couldn't believe it. That was the loud knight that bugged her for half of the day?!
"In the flesh," Francis chuckled, sitting up and brushing grass and dirt off of his shoulders. "I'm surprised you didn't recognize me, Your Highness."
"You're a walking tincan, of course I won't recognize you!"
"Yeah, yeah, that's obvious." Francis shrugged dismissively, suddenly looking over at Esther and furrowing his brows. "Hey, since you can talk, doesn't that mean you've been ignoring me on purpose?"
Esther suddenly went quiet, standing up and dusting the dirt off of her lap. Francis just kept talking. "And where'd you learn to flip someone? I thought princesses were supposed to be refined and elegant." Esther ignored him and walked back inside. "Hey! Heeeeeyyyy, I know you can talk now, answer me! What's your favorite season? What animals do you like? What do you hate?" Esther noted that he was very nosy, especially now.
They reached about the middle of the hallway back to her room before Esther spun around and stopped in her tracks, Francis almost bumping into her. "We aren't friends, Francis. You and I are polar opposites. It isn't your job to be my friend. I don't have to answer to you." Esther snapped, a scowl crossing her face.
Francis froze for a moment, giving Esther a confused look. "It's part of my job, technically. The king said you needed a friend and personal guard."
"What?" Esther deadpanned. Neither of her parents told her that part, the betrayal!
"Look, Your Highness," Francis sighed, a somber expression falling over his face despite how joyful he was minutes ago. "I know you don't like me. And I'm fine if you'd rather not see us as friends, but it is my duty to serve you, as your knight. We don't have to be friends, but I hope to protect you from as much as I can." Esther searched his face for any sign of deceite. She could tell he was telling the truth, but it felt strange to hear it from someone she thought would be too arrogant to admit it.
"Yeah." Esther mumbled, turning and going back to walking down the hallway to her room, Francis following beside her. When she reached her door, her hand paused on the handle, looking over her shoulder at Francis. "... I'll try to be nicer. And I'm not good with people, so I'm sorry if I've been rude. Goodnight, Francis." Esther then slipped into her room and shut the door with soft click.
"Goodnight, Your Highness." Francis replied as the door shut, standing there for a few more minutes before walking to his room. Inside was simple furniture, nothing too comfortable or from home, everything he brought from his home kingdom packed up inside a box at the edge of his bed. Francis took this time to unpack everything. Changing into the pajamas he packed, Francis laid down on the bed and stared at the ceiling, wondering what happened today. First he got sent here since it was a good job, got ignored all day as expected, then suddenly the princess that couldn't speak had a voice, plus she didn't recognize him? He didn't blame her on that last part, though, she hadn't seen him without a helmet.
Speaking of sight, Francis hadn't taken too long to really get a look at Esther. Her eyes were wide in a greyish-green color which kinda reminded him of a bug, and her curly hair fell to her lowerback in white strand. Her light brown skin seemed to glow in the sunlight, her permanently neutral expression left an air of serenity and quiet strength. Francis wasn't sure why he thought about it for so long, eventually dozing off.
Meanwhile, Esther laid wide awake in her bed, reconsidering her words and actions. A million questions swam through her mind. Why did she talk to him? Why does he have to be so loud? Why does he look so feminine? Esther groaned and plunged her face into her pillow, rolling onto her back when she ran out of breath. After calming down, she thought about everything she gathered about Francis.
Well, to start, he's got those blonde locks. And piercing blue eyes with that little mole under his right eye. He could probably blind someone with those things. He's also got that responsible, nagging personality when he's in public or around the king and queen and in his armor, but without the armor and it's just him and Esther he sounds so cocky. Like a wannabe prince charming.
Of course, she had to admit he fit the standards for a knight. Good physique, responsible nature(mostly), fast reflexes, she didn't blame her parents for hiring a good choice. It's better than some old, greasy man that would stand too close for comfort. Esther, feeling unnerved by the thought of a gross man watching her every move, took a deep breath and let herself fall into a deep slumber.