Isabelle couldn't resist coming back past the portrait several times in the following few days. Each time she briefly stopped to just stare at an image that was so familiar to her.
"Young master was really handsome, wasn't he?" Matilda asked as she walked up to Isabelle unexpectedly. Isabelle jumped at Matilda's sudden appearance.
"Hmm…" Isabelle contemplated on an answer. "It's those blue eyes, Matilda. I don't think they're like anything I've ever seen."
Matilda smiled at Isabelle with a knowing look.
"Perhaps it's the eyes." Matilda nodded. "Perhaps it's something about his character."
"How did Prince Cassian get along with his brother?" Isabelle asked curiously.
"Well, like typical brothers. Sometimes better and sometimes worse. They had very different personalities since they were in nappies. It's hard to see eye to eye all of the time if you're so different." Matilda then added. "They've got along better as they've got older, accepting their differences and all."
"That's good." Isabelle nodded feeling a bit of relief that maybe Atlas was remembered after all.
"I came looking for you as it is almost time for dinner."
"Oh, I didn't realise," Isabelle mumbled. "I have been wandering around the castle for some time already. I've lost track of time again."
"It's alright, Adeline. Guards are very good at spotting you wandering so I always know where to look for you." Matilda tried to be reassuring. Somehow her comment made Isabelle uneasy. Every step of the way someone was watching her.
She ate her dinner at servants' quarters, meeting more and more people working within the castle, getting along with them very well. She felt more at home with them than any of the royalty or aristocracy.
Isabelle continued exploring the grounds, and as the days started to get longer, she started to yearn for the outdoors.
One day she decided to explore the outside as warm sunlight shone brightly through the stained window. Snow has started to melt away. Isabelle picked her cape and went out into the garden where she spotted Gilbert, a stable boy who sometimes sat with them to breakfast in servants' quarters. He spotted her and waved to her cheerfully. Isabelle smiled at him and she walked down the slope towards the stables.
Cassian's POV
"Your highness!" Matilda ran into the study.
"What's the matter?" Cassian stood up quickly.
"She's gone. I can't find her anywhere!"
"Not again." Samuel rolled his eyes.
"Samuel, keep everyone on high alert. She is not to be constrained or touched if she's found. I just want a report of her whereabouts and I want you to ensure her safety. Send that information to everyone." Cassian ordered.
Cassian went straight out towards the stables, suspecting that if Isabelle run away, she probably did so going out to the city. The fastest way to catch up with her was on his loyal stallion.
However, as he reached the door of the stables he heard Isabelle's voice. His anxiety eased as he realised that she didn't run away and she was safe.
He stopped and listened to her conversation with the stable boy, leaning over just enough to get a glimpse of her.
"She's beautiful," Isabelle said, gently stroking the side of the horse's head.
"It's Midnight," Gilbert answered with a smile.
"Hello, Midnight."
"She's a little temperamental but a lovely creature. Do you ride, Adeline?"
"I used to but haven't in a long time," Isabelle said still focused on the animal before her.
"If you'd like, I can prepare a saddle for you."
"No, thank you." Isabelle shook her head. "Could I brush her mane though?"
"Of course." Gilbert passed her a caddy with brushes and Isabelle started carefully brushing any stray hair and dirt out of Midnight's hair. "Why don't you ride anymore?" Gilbert asked rather bluntly.
"I guess it's because I used to ride along with some people that were dear to me and then I lost them. It reminds me of that and I struggle to enjoy it."
"Oh, I understand." Gilbert nodded. "I used to help my ma bake bread on Sunday mornings. I can't do it now that she's gone. It's rather sad that such a beautiful memory turns to sorrow after the loss."
"It is indeed." Isabelle nodded. "I'm sorry about your ma."
"She died during the plague. Like many others." Gilbert looked at Isabelle curiously. "What about your ma?"
"I didn't know her. She died when I was born." Isabelle answered honestly. "I was then raised by my grandfather. He was a rather cold and disciplined man but I didn't lack anything. He passed not long before I turned eighteen. My father took me in then, although he was probably even worse than my grandfather. He had a particular keenness on the rod and a whip."
"Do you have any sisters or brothers?"
"I have a half-sister. My stepmother was expecting another child as I was getting married. They've said it'll be a boy. I dearly hope so for her and father's sake."
"How so?"
"My father needs an heir to his throne."
"Why can't you or your sister take the throne?"
"Oh, Gilbert." Isabelle chuckled. "Only a man can sit on the throne."
"That's stupid," Gilbert commented. Isabelle smiled at his naivety but said nothing more on the matter. "Will you be sad to not meet your new sibling?"
"I don't know. I think so. But then, I haven't met my sister until I was almost an adult."
"Why?"
"It's complicated. Three months after my ma's death my father remarried. My stepmother considered it a betrayal to have his first wife's child in the castle."
"Three months after your ma's death?" Gilbert repeated.
"Well, it took a while for a formal royal wedding to be arranged." Isabelle shrugged. Isabelle felt a burning on her back and she turned towards a door. Cassian quickly moved away but Isabelle managed to still catch a glimpse of his shadow. "I might head inside. Thank you for letting me groom Midnight." Isabelle waved to Gilbert as she hurried out. She looked around curiously wondering who was spying on her. She spotted large footprints in the snow around that definitely belonged to the man. She turned around but hasn't spotted anyone so she made her way back.
Cassian watched her retreat to the castle before he made his way in. He didn't know why he hid from her, perhaps because he didn't want to make her nervous again. He hated to see her so vulnerable and scared.
He then made his way to the castle himself, walking straight towards Samuel who was organising the guards.
"Samuel, can you make sure that Midnight is available for Isabelle at any given time?" Cassian asked. "And get her an appropriate horse-riding equipment."
"Of course." Samuel nodded. "Am I to understand that you found her highness?"
"Indeed." Cassian nodded. "Now, tell me. How can she speak with Gilbert, the stable boy, but not her own husband?"
"She has an issue with authority?" Samuel suggested with a shrug.
"I am pretty sure that it's me." Cassian decided in a defeated tone.
"Perhaps it's because she doesn't know you very well," Samuel suggested. Cassian looked back at him with a scowl. "As Matilda said, she's no longer a teen and neither are you. She doesn't know the present you."
"I see."
"Try to slowly ease her into your presence. A small chunk of time. Like a progressive exposure."
"Call off the search and go to bed," Cassian ordered him. He didn't like being told what to do. And he definitely didn't like when Samuel told him what to do. Which is why he picked Samuel as his advisor many years earlier. He needed someone to tell him things he didn't like hearing. Samuel was perfect for that.