Chapter 21: Chapter 19
As I'm leaving my room, I quickly remember something. I grab a knife and wrap it around my calf so that I can access it easily. Then I walk out. On my way to the gardens, I bump into Zander, he looks rushed.
"Hey Zander," I say.
"Hi Iris," He says somewhat nervously. "Where are you off to?" His eyes scan me up and down. He looks suspicious of my nice attire.
"The prince and I are going to take a stroll through the garden."
"Why are you dressed up so nicely."
"Just because I fight and do things that men would do, it doesn't mean that I don't enjoy looking nice."
"Yeah right. That's not the Iris I know. The Iris I know doesn't fancy men and doesn't care how she looks. The Iris know would rather spend time sword fighting; not strolling around a ."
I detect a hint of jealousy in his eyes and quickly change the subject. "So why are you hanging around this area of the castle?"
His nervous look returns and his eyes dart right to left quickly. "I um... am... going to visit another guard on duty. I hear he needs some relief from his post."
I'm not convinced at what he says but I play along with it. "Well, have fun."
With that we part our own ways. As I'm walking to the garden, I think about Zander's words. Maybe he's right. I have never been in love with anybody. Am I really in love with the prince? Maybe I should just be independent and go back to the old Iris. Fighting does sound quite appealing right now. These thoughts confuse me.
On my way I bump into someone I haven't seen in awhile.
"Samuel!" I say.
"Iris!"
In these past few months, Samuel has grown up. He looks thinner and more mature. He may only be ten, but to me he's already turning into a man.
"What are you doing here right now?"
"I'm going to hang out with your brother in the garden."
He smiles mischievously at me and says, "Do you you him?"
I tussle his hair and laugh, "No. I'm not in love with Ashton."
"I don't believe you."
"Why not?"
"I've seen the way he looks at you. He also talks about you a lot."
This makes me blush. "Samuel, you do realize that you're talking about everything your does. Maybe he likes me, but that doesn't mean I like him."
"I still don't believe you."
"Would you believe me if I threatened to stop training you?"
"You wouldn't."
"Try me."
"Okay fine. You win."
"Ha. I got you there."
Suddenly he sprints away and yells out, "Iris loves Ashton! Iris loves Ashton!"
"Samuel!" I yell back. Ugh, boys.
When I reach the garden, I'm stunned once again by its beauty. No matter how many times I see it, it continues to amaze me. I just stand there staring until a voice behind me says, "It's beautiful, isn't it?"
"Yes," I breathe. Turning around, I face the prince. He also changed and cleaned up.
"Every time I come out here, I'm still stunned by its beauty," He says.
We walk down the path for a little ways. Eventually we stop to rest.
"So Iris," The prince starts. "About earlier..."
"I said I don't want to talk about it."
"Just let me speak. I just want to say I'm sorry. I really like yo-"
I hold up my hand so that he stops. "I'm sorry Ashton. I like you too, just not in way."
He blinks at me and angrily says, "So you've been doing the same thing, too? Leading me to believe other things?"
"I never wanted to mislead you! I thought you knew!"
Now both of our voices are raised and we're staring at each other.
"Let me guess. You love Zander."
"No! I'm not the type of girl that falls in love. I love being free and brave. Right now, I'd rather be shooting arrows into a target. The garden is beautiful, it's just not really my type of things."
Do I really think of these things?
The prince stares at me and then to my surprise, he laughs. "Thank you for saying that. I feel the same way. In fact, this is rather boring."
"Then why did you even suggest this in the first place?"
"Because at the time, I just wanted to make Juliana mad and this sounded like a good idea. I'm will admit, I'm still mad at you for misleading me. Every time I look into your eyes, I think I see something. Something that might be for me. I guess I was wrong."
"I'm sorry Ashton."
He just waves me off. "I should probably go back to my work. There's a farmer that complains about how is neighbors chickens always do their business all over his yard. Anyways, I'll see you later."
"Goodbye."
I head in one direction and he the other. Did I really mean all of those words? Or am I just scared of my emotions?
As I'm walking along, I think I hear something rustling in the bushes. It's probably a bird. All of a sudden, a figure in black jumps out and grabs me. Not again! This time I'm determined to get away. Just when I think this, two more men grab me. By this time, I start screaming and I try to fight them off. I manage to grab my knife and scratch one of the men with the tip of the blade. Suddenly, the prince comes around the corner and when he sees me, he yells, "Iris!" He runs toward us and grabs the sword that he keeps with himself all the time.
Together, we manage to hold them off. It's a lot more difficult to fight in a dress. At one point, my dress trips me and I fall into the ground. I have to roll quickly to avoid being impaled. I can't decide if they're trying to capture or kill me. We keep fighting until I'm exhausted. My leg is starting to ache and my arm is getting weaker. Maybe I'm not completely back to normal yet.
Off in the distance we hear a noise. The men try to run off, but only two make it away. The third continues to struggle but eventually the prince holds him down. As he holds him, he says, "Take off his mask!"
I approach him, breathing heavily, and pull off his mask. What I find makes my stomach drop.
"No..." I whisper. "Zander?"
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