“Another diplomatic vacation, eh? Where to this time?” Alexander merely chuckled, hands still diligently scrubbing away. Alissia paused, a beat too long.
“Indefinitely, Alexander,”
“Don't you wish, my lady,” he snorted.
“I'm to be married, Alexander,” At this, the soft shushing of the washing stopped. He turned to her, brows furrowed.
“I don't understand, my lady, are you not, um, missing a few steps? I was under the impression you needed to court a woman before marrying one” he stood as he spoke, grasping a nearby towel and drying the bubbly residue from his hands. Alissia refused to meet his eyes.
“Must you always do this?”
“Do what, my lady?”
“Turn everything into a joke,” she spat, fists clenched at her sides. “I'm to be married to a nobleman of the kingdom of Breacuria, and,” she swallowed hard before continuing, “I-It's good for diplomacy. For our people. And, that makes me happy,”
Her father's words, not hers. Alissia felt her face burning with shame.
“I don't understand,” Alexander repeated, rag still clenched in his hands. “You intend to bring happiness to the kingdom by leaving it behind?”
“It's better this way, for everyone,”
“And for me?” his voice was soft, trembling. Gingerly, he set the rag down and moved to her side. “It's better for me, left behind while you live your new life?”
“Yes, it's better this way,” she grit her teeth, feeling tears stinging her eyes.
“It's not better for me, Alissia,” he leaned into her then, cupping her cheek in his hand. “You expect me to continue on here without you?” She closed her eyes, lips pursed. Her chest was aching so badly she would have done anything to make the pain stop.
“Don't say such foolish, selfish things,” Her voice wavered before she continued, “It will be best. For both of us,”
“Well, that's lovely for you, isn't it?” Alexander spat, turning away from her, back to the pile of dishes. “Princess Alissia, you're finally following your dream, eh? Traveling? Living in comfort? I'm just thrilled,” his words held such poison that Alissia stumbled back a step.
“Alexander, no, I-”
“No, really, it's wonderful. For the good of the people, yes? So I should be grateful,” He sat heavily once again on his stool. His breath was coming in short bursts. His stomach was churning. He knew it was an irrational rage, that holding onto an impossible dream was destined to end in misery.
“It isn't my choice, Alexander!” Alissia finally snapped at him, not bothering to hide her sorrow. “If I had it my way, I...” she trailed off, watching his shoulders tense.
“If you had it your way, what would you do, Alissia?” he turned back to her then, a pained, hopeful expression marking his face.
But, what good would it do? To be true to him, reveal how she felt. She was leaving, and that was the end of it. They would live a life of regret, soiled by the knowledge that she loved him, and would never see one another again. She felt dirty, telling him the marriage was one arranged without her knowledge, that she was given away like a piece of meat. Hiding would scar her, but not nearly as much as the truth might.
So, Alissia ran. She ran from Alexander, the only man she had ever loved. She ran away from her life at the castle. She ran to a new country, where she would live as a Duchess. She had no choice but to leave the castle, all eyes were on her now, not only in her kingdom but across the land in a new country. Alissia took with her only the barest of essentials, clothing, jewelry, and a small pouch that contained her family crest, filled with gold, small sentimental items. She was promised a new life and new possessions.
And Alexander was alone. Alissia left him without a final goodbye.
His resentment grew by the day, a part of him hated her for so mindlessly obeying her father's whims. His heart twinged with every passing word of her in the halls, and as much as he wished he could forget her, and his love for her, he couldn't. He continued his days in the castle as normal, cooking meals and cleaning corridors. Each morning when he rose with the sun, he would walk the same paths he had walked with his princess for so long, bombarded by melancholy memories.
While Alexander succumbed to a life of routine, Alissia was destined to a life of monotony. She was told the Duke was moving to allow expanded opportunities for her home nation, not a word was spoken of the expansion, both between the common citizens and the elite. The only thing that appeared to be growing larger was the wealth her father had. Alissia couldn't dwell on this fact, it made her physically ill. As though she were cattle sold off to slaughter.
Months had passed in this way. While Alissia was allowed to roam the castle grounds, there were guards constantly at her side, consistently imploring her to remain where it was safe. While inside the castle, she rarely saw the Duke, her betrothed, save for expansive parties he would host in which she was forced to socialize with women no less than twice her age. She considered herself lucky that these events were often the most she had to see of her new husband. Godfrey slept in a different bed, a different room. She was a trophy, miserable in her new life.
She missed Alexander. Each day, she prayed to the gods to receive a letter from him, as she would write to him. She prayed that he was thinking of her, recalling stories she read as a girl of knights saving damsels in distress. But, Alexander never came, never wrote. It was as if the bond they shared never existed.
And still, she trusted Alexander. Alissia could not believe that he would just forget about her. Somehow, in their parting, she realized how deeply she cared for Alexander. Without him by her side, she couldn't find the strength to be the person she really was. He was able to bring out the best parts in her. She needed him to flourish, as he did her.
As the third month in her new home, Alissia began scheming. To simply disappear from the royal family would be ideal, but it was likely she would be caught, and then what? Suspect of treason? A noble could not simply walk out of the castle on grounds of meeting a commoner, especially not in her father's kingdom. Adultery was punishable, in some kingdoms with death. Would her father value her feelings over her life? To be honest, she wasn't sure. And even if she did return safely in Nelia, her father would begin a search for her. And further then, there would be no place for her there. Ousted by her father and her people, simply for falling in love.
Alissia realized she was on her own. If she were to act, it would have to be soon, before the Duke, or anyone else began to realize her plan. Alissia would run during the next full moon. She worked to be as inconspicuous as possible. A map torn from a leather-bound book in the library. The small pouch she had brought with her from home was still full of her emergency gold stockpile. For several days, she would ask the kitchen staff for a bit of bread to feed the birds in the courtyard and begin to squirrel it away with small rations of her meals. In the same way, she sneaked a water skin into her quarters. She memorized the schedules of the guards manning the stables, taking a special interest in which horses responded best to direction. It was a two day ride back to Alexander, and she couldn't do this without a horse. Not if she wanted to get there alive.
It was a muggy night when she decided to make her escape. The castle was uncomfortably, eerily silent at night. She dressed lightly, in the clothes she would wear during her exercise rather than her typically frilly and expensive dresses, a cloak was thrown haphazardly over her shoulders. She carried with her a small satchel, filled only with the food and water she had taken from the kitchen, the small pouch of gold, and a quill, ink, and paper. She steadied herself before opening the door of her bedroom, taking one last look at her past. It was now or never, and she had to move before she lost her resolve.
Alissia's heart was pounding as she ran, and her lungs were burning. She wanted nothing more than to stop moving, to go back and rest in the cushioned down of her bed. But, time was not on her side. The sun would rise within hours, and the moment the maids were aware of her disappearance, they would send the guards to begin searching for her. The castle remained quiet as she moved, the only sounds coming from the pumping of her own blood and the air coming in short bursts from her lungs.
Reaching the stables was the easy part, but she hadn't counted on the set of locks that held the doors in place. Paling, she shook at the doors, swearing under her breath. This wasn't something that she counted on. The travel was longer, much longer without a horse, and to travel the riding paths on foot could be dangerous. Alissia felt tears welling in her eyes. She felt so foolish, with a half-brained plan and no clear direction. Rubbing vigorously at her eyes, she turned away from the stables.
The journey would be perilous, but what choice did she have? It was too late to turn back in her eyes. Once again, she started to run. Through the castle gates, and onto the cart path. Hastily, without stopping, she pulled the map she carried out of her satchel. Two days by horse meant a minimum of four days by foot, and that was being generous. She refused to allow herself to turn around now, despite the odds.
Alissia kept to the shadows, walking just off the path, and in the comfort of the forest where she could. Carts scared her near to death, and there were several points where she bruised herself diving into bushes to avoid what turned out to be a merchant's cart. The beating of hooves on the path would wake her up from her short rests, which she took only during daylight hours when carts were more likely to travel. Her rations were only barely enough to sustain her, and she ended her first few days of travel both hungry and thirsty.
She felt horrible. Malnourished and exhausted, Alissia walked so many miles that there was no way for her to tell her specific location based on the blurry, hand-drawn map. The trek took her a total of five days, running on the absolute minimum function of her body. It was twilight on the fifth day when Alissia could finally make out the castle spire in the distance. At that moment, the adrenaline that pumped through her veins made her feel as though she had been sleeping peacefully for weeks. She ran ahead, eagerly, but careful to continue moving through the shadows.
Alissia began to pass familiar buildings, and her heart was thumping louder and louder as she approached her goal. She was nearly limping with over-exertion, but she made it. Her Alexander was just beyond this barrier. Like so many nights before, Alissia climbed through the window of his quarters, grunting with the effort as she moved. Her boots landed heavily on the floor, and she took her satchel from across her chest and dropped it on the floor with a thump. Glancing quickly around the room, it looked exactly as she had last seen it, down to the lantern still burning dimly in the corner of the room near Alexander's bed.
Alexander was just before her, asleep. Her heart pounded, and she was suddenly overwhelmed with anxiety. What would he say? Would he be happy to see her? Has he already moved on? With a shaky intake of breath, Alissia moved toward him, reaching out to brush her fingertips against his arm. She opened her mouth, and closed it, unsure what to say to him. Instead, her eyes traveled across his sleeping face. Alissia raised her arm to gently brush across his cheeks. Alexander's eyelids fluttered, and Alissia gasped. He looked directly at her and blinked several times before jolting upright.
“A-Am I dreaming?” Alexander rubbed his eyes, standing hastily.
“Hello to you too, Alexander,” she responded, suddenly wildly self-conscious. Alexander stared at her, mouth agape.
“How are you here right now, Alissia?” his eyes were darting back and forth between her form and the open window she had crawled through. It had been months since he had heard even the utterance of her name, as though she had disappeared entirely from his history. And yet, here she was before him. Her hair still had stray debris, woven into her locks. Her clothes were filthy, and her face was smudged with dirt. Her face was gaunt, and she looked dehydrated, but the fire that burned so brightly in her eyes was the same.
“I wrote to you,” her voice was shaking, nearly shouting at him.
“I wrote back, Alissia, for months, I-” he shook his head, incredulous, “Alissia, did you travel alone? Is there someone with you?”
“No,” she shook her head, “No one knows I'm here, at least I don't think so,”
“So you just stole a horse and ran here?” he responded incredulously, running a hand through his hair. “Gods, Alissia, I mean... That's a crime. Your marriage, as well, I-I mean-”
“I can't be with a man I don't love, Alexander,” she took another step toward him, cutting his rant short, “I can't leave the only place I have ever felt at peace, so I ran away,”
“The kingdom? Alissia, you can't return to the kingdom,” Alexander closed the distance between them, his hand raising to cup her cheek.
“After all this time, Alexander? You still haven't figured it out?” She met his gaze, longing clouding her eyes. She raised a hand to rest atop his. “My home is with you, Alexander.”
Alissia's heart was hammering in her chest, never before had she confessed to a man. Alexander brought her close, wrapping her in his warm embrace. His body encapsulated hers, his face buried in her mussed hair.
Alissia choked back a sob, arms wrapping around him in turn.
“Alissia, you are one of the most foolish, reckless, and hopeless people I have ever met in my life,” he spoke tenderly, stroking her shoulders with one hand.
“Please, Alexander,” Alissia's voice was muffled from where she lay on his chest. She gazes up at him, eyes glassy, “Don't turn me away after I've come so far,”
“I wouldn't dream of it, princess,”
Alexander inched his face toward hers, taking in the sight of her. The shadows danced along her face, and despite the grime that coated her, he had never found another woman more beautiful than her. Fragile, yet so strong, and here for him and only him. Alissia was close enough that he could feel the small puffs of breath she was exhaling, and his mind started to reel.
He was completely helpless to her, as she was to him. He tilted her chin with his thumb then, his lips brushing so gently against hers it caused her to gasp. Her grip tightens on him, and she pushes herself closer, into him, responding passionately, greedily. Alissia raised a hand to his face, gently across his stubble, and felt as though she will die if she didn’t drink in more of him. Her heart is pumping so fast, she could barely keep her mind on anything other than the man she loved.
Alexander was the first to pull away, taking in the sight of her swollen lips and flushed cheeks, before planting a chaste and gentle kiss to the top of her head.
“I love you, Alissia, like I have no other,”
Alissia started to laugh at this, scrubbing at her eyes.
“Oh, of course, you tell me that after the fact,”
Alexander smirked in turn.
“I love you, too, Alexander. I will follow you wherever your life might take you,”
“I'm flattered, Alissia, but you need to rest, please, you must be exhausted,”
Without bothering to argue, or even respond, Alissia nodded, settling herself down on his bed.
“I don't think I've ever been so tired in my whole life,”
“I'd imagine not,” Alexander moved to her side, taking her hand in his, as he always did. The small gesture now held so much meaning to him. She had run for him, braved harsh conditions, turned away everything she had ever known just to be by his side. He vowed to himself then, that even if it took every second of his life, he would make Alissia happy.
He would make the hardships she faced worth it. Perhaps one day, he would take her hand in marriage.
Alexander was silent, and in the dimly lit night, Alissia, half asleep where she lie, could see the corners of Alexander's lips upturn.
“So, I'm stuck with you then, my lady. Until the very end,”
“Do you have a problem with that?”
“No, my lady, it's my dream come true,”
https://steemit.com/romance/@naltedtirt/alexander-and-allisia
Thank you so much for stopping by and reading part or all of this fantasy romance. I know 5000 + words is an undertaking but really appreciate you making the effort. Nothing worthwhile is easy said a wise man once.
