4 False Reality

The day has finally come. From the early morning the whole castle was incredibly busy, although a better description would be, that it was thrown into chaos. The servants were preparing the ball room for the banquet, the cooks were busy with the feast and maids decorated every possible nook of the castle, from the gardens up to the towers.

In the meantime I was being tortured by two older maids, who couldn't decide what outfit suited me best and would present itself well at the festivities.

"Red doesn't go well with young master's hair... I think dark green would be best," said one of them, holding three shirts at once.

"Dark blue might be better," chirped the other one.

"Oh yes, it goes perfectly with young master's eyes. But this embroidery looks a bit strange..."

That did it. I summoned the loveliest smile that I could manage after half an hour of female jabbering and politely showed them the door. After making sure, that none of them peeked through it, I picked what I liked the most in about three seconds and changed.

The black, simple trousers were light and comfortable, as was the black shirt, it's long, flared sleeves adding to the elegance. At the same time the delicate dark-blue and silver thread adornments prevented the outfit from being banal, giving it a festive touch.

Some people said I looked "princely" - handsome but a little feminine at the same time. My dark eyes were always at least a little covered by the messy black bangs, and despite having a touch of mischievousness, they were always kind of pure and gentle, making me look irritatingly innocent. My scrawny silhouette seemed even thinner because of the color of the clothes, but in combination with my pale skin kind of added to the royal elegance.

I looked far better, than when the maids would have dressed me, but something about my appearance still seemed odd to me, misplaced and unfit. I sighed and gently stroked Sha.

"I'm sorry that I won't take you with me," I whispered, scratching behind one ear. "But I promise, that when I return, we will go somewhere together, alright?"

She gave me a loud, content purr, and I smiled at her one last time before leaving the room.

During lunch, which most of the important personages of the land, invited by my father attended, I was barely able to sit still. The company, the cheerful music and delicious food was completely unimportant to me. The only thing that mattered, was that when I left this hall, I would go to the capital city.

And then my patience got rewarded at last.

The guests poured out of the castle around the time, when the sun reached it's zenith. Walking foremost with my father, I cast an instinctive glance at the castle's southern wall. In one of the windows I spotted Kiya, waving to me with what looked like a hint of pride on her face, like a pleased older sister. I discreetly waved back. Despite everything I've been through, right now I felt happy.

I kept my eyes outside the window the whole ride.

We passed between two narrow lines of grassy slopes called the Pine Hills, then a few golden wheat fields. Behind a stone bridge crossing a small, crystal clear brook, the road went into a gentle curve, the landscape was covered by trees for maybe one minute, and suddenly I started seeing the first buildings of the city. They looked so tiny in comparison to the castle, and most of them had little gardens, already empty and prepared for the winter.

The first signs of festivities started to appear soon as well. The bushes and fences surrounding the houses were colorfully decorated with ribbons and lanterns. What interested me the most though, were the people, so different from the ones I was used to. Their clothing was simple, the faces marked with troubles of another nature than the ones I knew. And yet, I felt like I was familiar with them in some way, like there was something connecting us...

Feeling an unpleasant sting of undeterminable nature in my chest, I finally turned away from the window.

When we arrived at the spacious plaza in what must have been the heart of the capital, Yial stepped out of the carriage and led me straight to a wooden podium, from which he wanted to address the gathered crowd. Five royal guards in light armor followed close behind.

I climbed the three wooden steps, took my place at the right of my father, and suddenly got a much better view of the plaza. I don't think I've ever seen this many excited faces crowded in the same place before. But what shook me more was the sensation, that I knew this place, it seemed so familiar, like I've seen it already somewhere in the past, and then forgot... and when the crowd started cheering, it stunned me all the way into numbness. I didn't understand much of what my father said, when the people fell silent again...

To my relief, the speech was soon over, and we stepped down from the platform.

"Are you all right?" I heard the king's voice, seeming a bit distant. "You're pale."

"Yes I... I'm fine," I managed. "I just need some fresher air, I think..."

"Take a little walk then, try talking to people. I need to meet someone before the main ceremony. Be sure to be there on time."

"As you wish, father..."

When he vanished from sight, I made my way towards a little grove at the southern border of the plaza. I was in no mood to talk to anyone, even though I was looking forward to meeting the people earlier... I barely even noticed the two soldiers, that followed me like shadows.

I sat down on a stone under one of the trees and closed my eyes for a moment. The buzzing in my ears slowly started to fade, but I still didn't understand what just happened. I leaned back against the soft bark and took a few deep breaths. I heard the soft hum of insects in the undergrowth, the murmur of conversations nearby, the occasional louder laughter...

I glanced towards the guardians standing between the trees, and stared for a moment, not yet really understanding where they even came from. A delicate gust of wind snatched a few dry leaves and cast them at my feet to my right. I looked at them, and suddenly spotted a shadow in the corner of my eye...

Behind one of the thicker trunks stood a girl my age, maybe a year younger. Her long, blonde hair was tied behind her back, reaching all the way to her waist. There was something in her azure eyes, that pinned me into place, making me unable to move.

She seemed... shocked? I wasn't sure, but she stared at me with an expression of pure disbelief, and I thought I saw a glint of tears in her eyes.

After a very long moment, her pale lips moved slightly, and a heard a faint whisper: "Sian...?"

My vision turned black for a brief moment. That strange word, that I've never heard before, started echoing in my mind... but... was it really unfamiliar? It plucked a string somewhere deep in my memory, and the girl suddenly didn't look like a stranger to me anymore. I started feeling dizzy again...

Eventually, even to the not so bright soldiers, it became clear, that something was wrong. They stepped closer, hands on the hilts of their swords.

"Is everything all right, young master?" I heard one of them asking.

The fog before my eyes cleared a little, but I still wasn't able to say a word. Instead, the other guardn glared at the mysterious girl, still standing behind the tree, and growled at her: "What do you want here? Get..."

I suddenly regained my senses. "Leave her alone."

"But... young master, who is this?"

"I have no idea, but if you dare to touch her, I will see that you land in the dungeons for the rest of the week..."

The two soldiers mumbled in understanding and retreated a bit, but stayed close. I turned to the stranger again. We looked eachother in the eyes for a few moments, before she took a hesitant step in my direction. Then another. I didn't move in the slightest, as if the feeling of familiarity nailed me down to the rock I was sitting on. She raised her hand slightly...

At this very moment, four silhouettes appeared at the edge of the grove and I suddenly heard the king's annoyed voice: "What is the meaning of this? Caval, the ceremony is about to begin, what are you still doing here?"

The girl immediately turned and darted away like a frightened doe. I followed the beautiful blond hair with my gaze for a brief moment, before turning to face my father. "I'm coming..."

I couldn't stop thinking about this encounter. The festive music was floating away somewhere beside me, the comedians didn't even exist. The only thing on my mind was trying to figure out where I've seen this girl before, tried to assign her appearance somewhere, where it made sense. I could still hear that one word that fell from her lips.

I stayed like this until the evening, when we returned to the castle. I barely registered my father's command to prepare for the banquet and retreated to my chamber. I sat down on the satin bedsheets and started to mindlessly play with the flared sleeves of my shirt. I completely lost track of time. I came to my senses upon hearing a soft knock on the door.

After a faint "Come in", Kiya entered the room.

"The king is asking if you are ready, young master..." her voice faltered, when she saw my expression. She dropped all manners of officiality and came closer, concern evident on her face. "Are you alright? You're so pale..."

I thankfully welcomed the more friendly and warm tone we sometimes used, when we were alone. "Kiya... could you tell my father, that I won't be attending the banquette? I feel horrible..."

"Are you sick? Maybe I should get the medic..."

I shook my head slightly. "No, it's fine... I just... think I had too much excitement for one day... I just need some rest..."

She was silent for a moment, as if she wasn't sure I really knew what I was saying. "I will bring you some herb tea..." she finally said. "That should help a little."

I managed a small smile and nodded. She answered with a reassuring smile of her own and left silently. I slowly stood up and took a few steps towards the balcony, returning to my thoughts.

After a few minutes, Kiya returned with a porcelain cup and an information, that my father ordered me to unconditionally come down to the banquet, which made my irritation reach it's peak. I quickly drank the tea, thanked my worried friend, and after briefly checking the state of my clothes, headed down to the ball room.

During the banquet I didn't even touch the delicacies that appeared on the tables. I felt like I wouldn't last until the end if I did. I didn't say much, practically nothing, and the encouragements of my father to ask one of the ladies for a dance were left unnoticed.

When the world outside turned completely black, and only little stars sparkled like little jewels on the vast canvas called sky, I was finally allowed to return to my chamber. Upon entering it, I immediately threw myself on the bed.

Before I could fall asleep though, I was once again visited by Kiya. It was getting really late, and the only light in the room was the glow of the fireplace, and the little candle, that she brought with her.

"Something is troubling you..." she started softly. "You know you can tell me. Maybe I can help."

"I'm not sure if anyone is able to, but..." I hesitated for a second, "maybe if you could answer me one question..."

"I'll do my best."

"Does the word 'Sian' ring any bells to you? If so, what does it mean?"

Kiya didn't answer right away. She just stared at me for a while, like she just saw a ghost. I started to think that maybe I unintentionally said something inappropriate, and was ready to apologize, when she did something I least expected in this situation.

She started crying.

"Kiya..." I immediately sat up, panicked. "What happened? Kiya please... did I say something wrong? I'm sorry..."

She shook her head rapidly, covering her mouth with a hand.

"If the king learns about this... he forbade to speak about it... But it's too late now, you will find out eventually..." she took a few deep breaths. "You see... Caval is the name that was given to you, when you were brought here two years ago... Sian... that is your real name..."