"Tatyana is that you?"
Tatyana looked up to the man in a castle uniform with a shocked expression on her face. How does he know my name? Does he work at the castle? I haven't seen him before? Even if he knew my name, we haven't ever talked before for him to ask me a question like that.
"Yes, its me. Do I happen to know you sir?" She asked with an innocent face. Daryl took a look at the man and remembered him from the construction site earlier that week. Is this man everywhere? He sat up straight on his chair and looked at the man.
"Well I do happen to know him. What do you want? Seems like you haven't yet learnt to respect royalty!" He said with his brows furrowing. The man was oblivious to what he was saying.
"Bells, don't you remember me?! Its me, Booker! But wait....you died. How can you be alive! I saw you be buried!" He said while wiping away his tears. He still didnt believe what he saw. Daryl grew frustrated with the man in front of him. He stood up and looked him straight in the eye, growing more annoyed by the second. Tatyana's face was drained of all the color and became pale at the man's sentence.
"If you don't take this chance, and leave, I will make sure to send you to the dungeon! How can she be dead while she's here alive and kicking?! Get the hell out of my sight?!" Booker quickly left the area before he got into more trouble than he was already in.
Tatyana didnt say a thing throughout the whole meal. Daryl cleared his throat to get her attention but failed to do so as she was way too deep in her thoughts. "Tats. It beats me as to why you're frustrated by that foolish man! For the few times we've come to cross paths, he is a real idiot. Ugh! I should make sure he gets to sleep in the dungeon so he can think about what he's done!" She finally snapped out of the trance she was in and looked at Daryl.
"Don't send him to the dungeon!"
"Why shouldn't I? Clearly he deserves it. Plus, why would you care? Do you know him?" He said while becoming aggravated by the simple thought of him.
"No, I don't know him.... But I feel like I used to. Just don't send him to the dungeon, please Daryl?" She asked while giving him puppy dog eyes. Daryl couldn't be able to say no when she was looking at him like that.
"Fine. But I won't make any promises for the next time I see him." He said while taking a sip of his orange juice. He was shocked as to why Tatyana cared about that man.
The king and queen saw the little scene that had taken place earlier and were shaken up. Others noticed it too, and remembered that she looked a lot like a certain deceased princess but they were scared of talking about it for fear of the outcome of doing such. The queen continued telling her husband that she actually did look like her but the king decided to tune out his wife's voice from his thought process.
Booker, walked in to his house but he didn't notice his kids running up to him. He went and sat down on the sofa in the sitting room, still not believing what he saw earlier. His mother came and put a kettle and a teacup on the table. He didnt even notice her presence. His mother paid him no attention until she saw tears running down his cheeks.
"Booker, what's wrong?" Booker looked up at his mother and he took her hand and pulled her down next to him. He gave her a huge hug and kept on sniffling. His mother was shocked at this sudden expression of emotions. She didn't say anything and just rubbed his head.
After a few minutes later when his heavy sobs had subsided, his mother decided to bring up the question that had been eating her up the whole time. "So, want to tell what the matter is now?" She asked while looking down at her son. He took a few breaths and finally said something since he walked in the house.
"Mom. I saw Tatyana today." Griselda's eyes flew wide open. Tears started flowing.
"Dont joke with me Booker!"
"I'm not joking mom. She was wearing the same dress as the one she had on her eighth birthday. Her brown hair flowing down her back, her white gloves. Everything is the same. Except for now, she's grown to be such a beautiful young woman. She was sitting next to the Metuzan prince. My best friend is still alive mother. And I won't rest until I find her." He finished while standing up and heading to his room. Griselda still couldnt believe what her son had told her. How could she when the whole kingdom had mourned the loss of their princess?
"So how do I looky Booky?" The little girl asked her best friend. He put on an overdramatic shocked expression on his face.
"Oh my gosh! Taty! You look so beautiful!" He said while picking her up and spinning her around.
"Oh my young friend, how will you look when you're all grown up? You will murder the population of all the men in the Grid with your beauty. If I, your twelve year old male friend says this, how about when we grow up?" He said while putting her down. The little girl tilted her head for she didn't understand a single thing he was from saying. He shook his head and said, "My dear Taty, you'll understand when you turn twelve darlin. Which is....a whole four years from now."
She pouted and crossed her arms on her chest.
"Its not fair Booky, just because you're twelve doesn't mean you should brag about it! Mommy said you should stop using big words while talking to me! It just isn't fair to me!" She said and turned around. Her back was now facing Booker.
He held her shoulders and leant down to her ear. "Are you mad at me Taty?" She shrugged and he walked infont of her so as to look at her. "I'm sorry Bells. Will you forgive me? You dont have to answer, just take my hand and let's head to the dance floor." He stood there hanging as she didnt move a single muscle. He decided to make a compromise.
"I'll tell the maestro to play your favourite song?" She finally opened her eyes and looked at his hand undecided. She decided to dance with her best friend. He took her hand and they headed to the dance floor. They swiftly moved according to the tune. Even though they were young, they still knew how to dance as taught by their instructors. Booker looked down to his best friend and smiled. "Best friends forever?"
She looked up at him and smiled. She answered the question that he always asked when she was angry to finally let her forget what he had done.
"Best friends forever."
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Next up on Hidden Princess:
"Is it what that dude said yesterday?"
"How do you know?
"You mean how does everybody else know? Incase you didn't know, rumours fly really fast here at the castle grounds. So is it him?"
"Yes...its him. To add insult to the wound, I dreamt about him yesterday."