Are the future King and Queen up to the task of becoming? We will find out soon in this chapter.
Kingdom of Largo
Chapter 12
The Future King and Queen
The meeting with Samuel did not go well, which took King Aylard by surprise. He thought Samuel would be thrilled with his suggestion to gift Emma a horse but he flatly refused it. Then to stop all the rumors around the kingdom, he suggested for Emma to marry Theo, and Samuel had also refused... well, for the time being anyway, for he had his own reasons.
Emma became very upset and ran out of the room. Theo ran after her, leaving the two old men behind.
Theo found Emma in tears, leaning against a pillar.
“Theo,” Emma paused for a second, “so, is it true that you are going to be the future king?”
“Well, I suppose so! I don't have any choice in the matter either. Father says it's traditional. It's the rule,” he answered.
“Am I going to be the queen when I marry you?”
“Of course! That was why Father wants us to get married, so there won't be any rumors in the kingdom, but your father has refused the marriage for now,” Theo said, stretching his strong arm across Emma's shoulders to comfort her. All of a sudden he felt he was responsible for Emma's well-being.
“I know, my father can be very stubborn,” Emma sympathized, “he always makes life so difficult for me. He wants me to stay home and learn to cook and sew first from my mother. Those chores are so boring! I never liked doing them. He also wants me to learn how to walk and talk like a queen. Oh! There are so many things to learn!” she cried, sobbing heavily.
“Yes, you may have to do that just to please him for a while until he gives up.”
“Theo! I'm so mad!!! Why did father refuse King Aylard to gift me a horse? I feel father is always against me just because I'm a girl,” Emma said, gritting her teeth, tightening her lips.
“I agree. Your father seems much tougher than my father. At times, when he keeps quiet and doesn't say anything I cannot guess what's inside his head. At least, with my father, I know what he is thinking most of the time,” said Theo.
Emma was still mad. She was still pulling a long face.
“Yet, he allowed Drake and Durwin to be trained to become warriors. They each own a horse already. I don't see why I can't have one yet! It makes me so mad! I feel like walking away from this palace. There are just too many ridiculous rules for girls,” Emma was still protesting.
“Emma, listen - I'm not a warrior yet, I still need to get trained. So, give it some time. Okay? Bear with me until I'm well-trained. Then we'll think of something,” Theo said.
“Okay, I don't know how long I can stand being here. I have to learn so many things,” Emma responded, still protesting.
“Well, Emma!” Theo smiled, “that's what you may have to learn to become a queen, Hahaha!!!” Theo was now back to his playful old self again.
“So, when? When will you become the king?” Emma asked again.
“Oh, I don't know! Er... I guess I will have to wait 'til my father, the king passes... I think.”
“What? That could be for a long time! Your father is still in good health!”
“Well, I guess so.”
“Hey, Theo!” Emma suddenly sounded like she had an idea. “Do you remember the time when we all met with your father when my father just come back from visiting Lord Gaston? Do you remember that map that he showed us?”
“Yes, what about it?” Theo was curious now. He was wondering what Emma had up her sleeve.
“Do you remember when father told us that up north there are two Feudal Lords at war with each other, but in the far south, unknown tribes rule the land?”
“Yes, what about it, Emma?” Theo kept asking. He hadn't a clue what Emma was up to.
“What if you and I go south to those lands and make a name for ourselves?”
“Well, Emma! There's a thought! But we can't - at least not now,” Theo protested. “I can't go anywhere with you now, because I'm not trained to fight yet. If father won't kill me, those robbers and murderers will, for sure.”
Emma became silent. She now knew that Theo would never support the idea of eloping with her. Quite frankly, he was right. Her father said those wild tribes are nothing more than robbers and murderers.
“Oh, well, it was just a crazy thought that has been running through my head. I know those tribes are dangerous anyway.”
“Emma, promise me you will learn to become a queen because I will want you to be by my side when I become the king,” said Theo, holding Emma's hands as if to seek her reassurance.
Emma looked Theo in the eyes. There appeared to be some sincerity in them. She felt Theo had seemed suddenly grown up after the meeting with the king and her father. Next Summer she will be twelve, and Theo, will be eleven, but he was so big and strong he could pass for fourteen. She might as well give him time to be trained as a skillful warrior. She wanted him to be a good fighter.
“And besides, who's to say that you can't ride the horse with me? I see two people on horseback all the time,” he looked at Emma, watching her face brighten up once again.
“You can ride with me on the days that you are not in training with your mother,” he said, “And we can still go places.”
“We can?” Emma sounded hopeful again.
“Of course, we can! I will choose a strong starter horse. They say I have to change horses after two years. When I become a skilled warrior, I will have a warrior horse.”
“Okay, then! It's a deal!” she stretched out her pinky finger to seal the deal, intertwining it with Theo's pinky. “I will do my best to train myself to become the queen, and you better train yourself well to become a good fighting warrior.”
With that being said, Emma and Theo had sealed their future. Emma was no longer upset about not having a horse. For now, she would just look forward to becoming the future queen of the Kingdom of Largo.
They both walked back into the room where the two old men were still sitting, waiting for their return.
“Father, Emma has agreed to be trained as the queen. She said she can begin her training as soon as I begin my training as a warrior,” Theo announced to his father as well as Samuel.
Both men let out a sigh of relief. Samuel smiled warmly at Emma for the first time since the morning.
“Emma, come! Sit down here beside me, my dear daughter!” he said, “you know, the chores are not so hard to learn. You are a smart girl. You will master those chores in no time at all.”
“I know, Father!” Emma responded.
Samuel widened his eyebrows, wondering what kind of magic Theo had possessed to calm down his wild daughter. Whatever that was, he was happy to see the change in Emma.
“The sooner you learn the chores, the sooner you two can get married. This is for your own good, my dear Emma,” Samuel continued to explain.
“I know, Father! I understand now!”
“Good!” King Aylard rejoiced. “This calls for a celebration! We will ask the cookery to bring in something good for noon. We will have a good meal. Theo, you might as well tell your warriors to rest, or they can do whatever activities they want in the courtyard this morning since you both are going to be with us until afternoon.”
“Okay, I shall do that, Father!” Theo walked out to the courtyard to advise his protectors that they could do whatever they liked until the afternoon when they will be needed again. He stood there, suddenly felt like he was the one who was in command, a power which he had never known before. He also found it interesting when his father used the term “your warriors” to describe his protectors.
So, these are MY warriors? He thought. He also remembered his father telling him that he shall be forming his own army. So perhaps these 50 good warriors were the starting point for him. He suddenly felt proud of himself. Maybe being the future king wouldn't be so bad after all.
XXXXX
For the next while, Samuel was happy to see the change in Emma. She stayed home on many occasions to help her mother Cateline to cook. She seemed to be learning quite fast. She had learned to sew as well. This was quite a change. In the end, Samuel gave in and told Emma that she could take a rest here and there, to do whatever she liked to do during those free days.
Eventually, Theo was awarded the real sword which came together with a shield. He finally began to feel like a real warrior. Next, he was accompanied by Stanley, the horse trainer, to the stable to choose his first horse. This was a very exciting day in Theo's life. Stanley advised him to pick a starter young horse that can also be trained while he is learning. He went down the aisle to look for a smaller horse. When Theo came upon Ethan its beauty took his breath away!
Ethan had a shiny brown body and for a small horse, its features were strong! He had muscular shoulders and legs and a lush, jet-black mane. Ethan's most distinguishing feature, though, was on his face. On his forehead was a white spot that was shaped like a heart! Theo had never seen that on any horse before. He thought the horse was lovable and sweet. As it turned out, Ethan was only just reaching his fourth Summer, so he was not yet very sociable among other horses. He usually went on his own for his daily exercise. He was sort of a loner type of horse.
“Are you sure you want to take this one?” The trainer asked. Ethan had not been properly trained yet for anyone to ride on, and Stanley was not sure whether it was a good idea for Theo to choose him as the first starter horse.
“This one may be hard for you to handle,” he continued to explain and discourage Theo, trying to make him choose another horse.
“There will be no problem, Stanley! I am good with animals so I may just be the one who will calm him down,” replied Theo with a lot of confidence.
“Okay, then. He's yours!” Stanley proceeded to open the stall to allow Ethan to come out.
“His name is Ethan,” he told Theo.
“Hey, Ethan!” He called to the horse loudly, “guess you'll be joining the Royal Family now!”
Ethan came out of his stall, but he was already annoyed by Stanley's loud announcement. He neighed loudly in protest.
Stanley gave Ethan a few heavy pets on his neck and told him to follow Theo, his new owner.
Ethan was young, and like Theo, needed to grow and develop his character. Theo took hold of him by his lead and walked Ethan out of the stable.
Once outside, Ethan seemed happy, and it gave out some happy neighs.
He protested the first time when Theo wanted to ride on him. He galloped all over the place, kicking up his front heels and neighing angrily. Theo tried to mount him but was thrown off his back several times, causing Theo to go home with aching shoulders and sore arms. It took Theo several days to calm Ethan down. He began by petting him and talking to him before he would mount him. He made sure Ethan was calm and knew him first. The horse responded by letting him ride on his back without much fuss a few days later, he had finally accepted Theo as his new owner.
When Theo rode on Ethan's back he sure ran fast. It made Theo nervous in the beginning but later he learned how to use his saddle for support, and soon he learned to ride Ethan like a pro. He could not wait to show Emma what he and Ethan could do. He hoped Ethan would accept Emma too like the way he had accepted him.
XXXXX
Today was a day of learning in court affairs. It was a part of the learning process that Theo would have to learn in order to become the king.
He arrived in the courthouse just in time to hear the day's first case, brought on by a west-side farmer. The farmer claimed that he had lost one old cow due to its sickness and a sheep due to the recent donation to Lord Gaston, so he claimed his production had suffered and he needed to be compensated for the loss. He was requesting for some gold in compensation and a young cow in its productive years and a sheep to make up for his loss.
King Aylard thought the farmer was ridiculous to have made such a demand, but he did not make the ruling immediately. He set the next court date on the morning after the next 10 moons.
Later, as he was in his chamber he called on Theo to discuss the case of the west-side farmer. He asked Theo how he would rule in this case. Theo sat there in front of his father. He thought hard, but could not come up with any solution.
“Should we just give him what he asked for?” asked King Aylard.
Theo wracked his brain for an answer – anything that would not make him sound stupid as he knew his father was just trying to see how he would solve those court cases, testing him just to see how he would rule. He could not come up with an answer. Theo was frustrated!
“Ugh! Father! You always do that! You always try to make me feel stupid!” He accused his father.
“Theo! Why do you say that? I'm here discussing this matter with you, trying to let you see some of the most ridiculous cases some people may bring to us, as you will have to deal with many such cases when you become the king,” explained King Aylard, trying to make his son understand him.
Theo was confused and frustrated – here he was, presented with a seemingly simple case, yet, he could not think of a proper ruling for it.
“Well, let me just say we cannot compensate one farmer with gold and replace the cow that was old and died of old age. Nothing lives forever, not even humans, and the sheep that he had donated for a good cause should not be compensated. A donation is a gift to something or someone, you cannot ask for anything back after you sent out a gift. What kind of charity is that? You can't donate something and then get it back.”
“I agree. Theo, that was my point! And besides, farmers are supposed to be helpful to the kingdom. Our warriors fought for the lands for them and supplied them with the lands which they did not have to pay for to grow their crops and animals. So, a little bit of the donation from them was for a good cause. This farmer should not have asked for anything back after he willingly donated his sheep.”
“Father, but how are we going to rule on this one? And remember, Father, if you give back compensation to one farmer, all other farmers are going to file court cases for their compensation as well. So we cannot rule in the farmer's favor,” Theo felt as though he had suddenly gotten smarter.
King Aylard gave Theo a satisfying smile, “Yes, I know,” he said.
“Well, Father, there is no hurry on this one. The second court date is set for 10 moons from today, so we still have a lot of time to think about the ruling. I will get back to you later before the next court date,” Theo reassured his father that he will deal with the ruling himself.
When Theo got back to his own chamber, all he could think about was how to rule this case. He thought he would probably have to seek Emma's advice. Emma could always come up with solutions to problems. He hoped she would come through this time as well.
The next morning after the sword and horse training he went to see Emma, to tell her about the ridiculous farmer's case.
“Don't worry! I will ask one of my girlfriends to pay a visit to this farmer. You just sit there and wait for our findings. We will let you know the result this evening,” said Emma.
Theo watched Emma as she walked away to look for her girlfriend. He was glad that Emma had always been there for him. She seemed to know just what to do with everything. She was such a smart girl!
Later that same evening, Emma came to Theo. She handed him a piece of paper:
Deaths: One old cow
Births: Three calves – Two females, and one male.
Loss: one
Gained: Three
Donation: One sheep
Births: Four lambs
Loss: One
Gained: Four
“After he donated the sheep, four lambs were born within the next few days, so the farmer has not suffered any losses. He should not be compensated for anything. And about the old cow that died of old age, it was only of natural death. Yet, within the same period, three calves were born. The births outnumbered the deaths, so it will not be necessary to compensate him a cow either as he has not suffered any losses. There will be no gold, no compensation.” Emma said.
Theo gave Emma a big sweeping smile. He felt himself overcome with the urge to wrap his arms around this smart girl!
“Emma, you're a genius! Now, why haven't I thought about that?”
“Admit it, Theo! You'll need me in your life,” Emma responded.
“And you are right, Emma! And how is your training coming along?”
“Alright, I guess. Now, I actually find those chores aren't too boring at all. Some of the food I am actually enjoying cooking. My mother is a very good teacher.”
“How is your father? How is he treating you now?”
“Okay, I guess,” she replied again.
“Theo, I miss those dog-wagon rides with you. Do you miss me? When can I ride on your horse? Father told me I could have a day off here and there, I just need to tell him when.”
“Emma, I will take you on my horseback soon. Ethan, my horse, is a very special horse. You should see him! He is so beautiful! You should see that heart sign on his forehead,” Theo enthusiastically replied.
“It took a few days for Ethan to accept me as his new owner. I have been thrown off his back many times before that. I am so afraid that Ethan will hurt you when you try to mount him.”
“Well, perhaps let me go to see him a few times first before and make sure he accepts me as your friend first,” Emma suggested.
“That may be a better idea. After he accepts you, he will have no problems in letting you ride him,” Theo reassured Emma.
“Sounds like someone is having fun without me,” Emma jested.
“Well, if you will come by my place tomorrow morning, and wait there for me to finish my sword training, I can take you to see Ethan. We have built a mini-stable for him already.”
“Okay, I will. I'll let father know in the morning I need tomorrow off. Then I'll come to you.”
Then off she went. Theo watched Emma as she walked away, and then looked down at the piece of paper Emma had scribbled on. The handwriting wasn't perfect, since she had just begun to learn to read and write. Her findings made perfect sense. Nothing should be awarded to the greedy farmer.
Theo would inform his father of his ruling the following morning. He felt certain the king would be pleased with his judgment.
This is a great story of adolescents, coming of age, becoming more mature in their thinking and taking on adult responsibilities. King Aylard & Samuel advised their children correctly, that if they want to be trusted then they have to become more responsible in their actions & activities.
The children in the pre-medieval times or in the medieval times were not the same in terms of maturity levels with the children of nowadays. They learned to do everything at very young age and they matured a lot earlier than children of nowadays. Ten-years-old boys were considered adults and they could be sent out by the parents to learn trade from others. They also get married at very young age through arranged marriages, or the parents may declare a promise to wed. It was the norm in the ancient days for parents to do. In China, girls as young as 4 or 5 years old could be promised to wed a boy of 6 or 7. Later, the girl may move into the boy's home and they may grow up together.
Emma and Theo are not as young in the story as you think they are. They are considered as adults and that is why there were rumors of the two being inappropriately together. Theo, being in the 10th Spring of age, he was and should be ready to take on the responsibilty in learning new things. Emma's suggestion in running off to the south to make a name for themselves was not unusual a suggestion to Theo. However, as you can read in the story, Theo was not ready for the adventure yet.
Thank you for spending time to read and comment on this chapter. I always appreciate and respect your feedback!
So your story of kingdoms and very young children that want to run to the southern kingdoms to become famous and Emma hating the work learning top be a queen... Poor child.
I like that your paragraphs are short leaving space between... Good writing.
I love Ethan and his proud spirit…and the lovely
Heart on his forehead that makes him stand out…
He’s a real character…
Your great enthusiasm is carrying you along
splendidly Sandie…
And now some romance…
Great choice of horse for Theo! Ethan is so handsome a horse! I'm glad both children agreed to receive the training that was necessary for their roles.
The third in The Seventh Circle Series. Join the Seventh Circle and friends as they battle against the forces of the Black Order, the four demons, and contiune their quest to find the Soulstone.
If you took every major epic fantasy that has ever been written and twisted them all into one fantastic tale of magic, sword play, and just plain old fantasy fun, you might get the first half of this 235,000 word monster of a read. The last half is a
