Home Sweet Home

I arose from my bed bright and early that day. It was a sunny day amidst the summer heat. The wind flew through the window as my mother's voice rang.

"K'Layah, come down. It's time to eat."

I stand up. Today is the big day—my 16th birthday. I was promised many things today. One being me becoming a knight for my father's royal army, and two, my father spoke in his last letter of how he wanted to tell me something special. I look into the mirror. I stand at a higher than above average height for women. I have muscles carved out of my body from my father's days. I have a slim back, my hair flows down my back, and my eyebrows stand firm upward. My bright red hair reflects off the sun in the mirror. My eyes are a bright hazel color. My face is jumbled all up from sleeping face down all the time. I am a tanned complexion from helping my mother out all day. I put on some clothes and ran out of my barn house of a room. I jump down the stairs and run into the kitchen. My mother greets me while I sit at the table for food.

"We got a letter from your father; he said he wants us to ride the royal carriage and come see him. It sounded urgent. Don't eat all that food. Save some for me."

I scoff under my breath while eating my cheese imported from foreign lands. My family being friends with the king has its perks. I eat that with a slice of ham and eggs. After eating, I grab my father's sword from the wall. I inspect it. It is made from a foreign technique called tamahagane. It curves backward. You could tell by the look it's crafted by a master smith. I put it back in its sheath and call to my mother.

"Mother Catherine, I'm off to hunt for food for the next Sundown. I'll be back before the candles burn out."

I don't get a response.

"Mother..."

Still nothing. I walk back towards the kitchen while calling her out. I hold the blade's handle, ready to strike and turn the corner screaming. There I see my mother standing, wooden spoon in hand. She swings at me, and I duck.

"You come back here who gave you the right to call me by my name! I am your mother. I sedated the great Frank of Royaume du Paradis. I will not be bested by our daughter!"

I run out of the kitchen and down to the door. I burst it open and ran through our field. While my mother screams for me to stop running, I might get hurt. As I slow down my pace because I know my mom can't keep up with me, I look at our little village again. Our house stands on the outskirts of the town. We have a large field of grass surrounded by caged farm animals. We have all sorts of animals, from cows to dogs to lizards. Yeah, my father is a little weird. I see our gate is being blocked by the royal carriage that my mother spoke of. I walk over to the guard and talk to him.

"I was hoping that you would be a little bit later. I'll call for a mother to get ready. Can I bring my father's sword?"

"I'm sorry, ms. K'Layah, but this is urgent and must be now. Your mother will be in a different carriage. Now let's go!" The knight says.

He tries to grab my arm, but I throw him off and step back with my father's blade in hand.

"Noone gets to grab me like that!"

My mother's voice interjects from behind me.

"K'Layah, show some manners. These people are sent from your father."

I close the blade and step into the carriage. The door closes behind me, and I look out the window as my mother stands there waving. As we travel through the village, I notice the villagers have gathered before the road blocking our path. They stand swords in hand, waving at my driver. I sit and listen to the commotion. Father always taught me never to bear arms against the commoners. He taught me to treat them respectfully and only wage war in defense. The villagers speak

"We know of the king's true intention with the daughter of Frank. We will not allow her to be taken away."

I hear the driver click his weapon, and I jump out the back.

"Hey guys, don't worry. My father had already told me beforehand what was to come. And we both know my father would never let anything wrong happen to me. I ask that you put down your weapons and enjoy the simple life."

I can see the sweat gleaming off of the guard's face. The villagers start murmuring amongst themselves before leaving. Another crisis averted. I walk back towards the carriage and hop in.

"You're welcome. If they would've got a hold of you, any weapon you have wouldn't have saved you."

The guard doesn't respond and nudges the horses to continue the route. I stick my head out the window again and wave to everyone. Honestly, I have no clue why my father called us so urgently. Perhaps he wanted my knight ceremony to be an honor. I smile as we leave past the village gate. I look around between carriages and horses I don't see any with the royal symbol. The guard spoke of another to come to get my mother. I don't see any with the same symbol as mine. I begin to panic, but I think to myself. My father would never lie to us, would he? Surely there will be another carriage to pick up my mother. There was no need for me to panic. Maybe they will throw me a party for my special day. My hopes become super high as I sit back into the carriage. I hope they prepared an outfit for me because I still have my farm girl clothes on. My shirt barely fits past my stomach, and my pants were an old set I had when I was younger. Doc told me I'd stop growing at this point, but I seem to be getting taller and more muscular. I could give my old man a run for his money. I hold his sword in my lap as I lie down. The castle is roughly four hours away. It would be best for me to get some sleep. The hoofs play a song in my head, and I hear the driver humming a tune. I twist and turn and imagine music as I try my hardest to rest. All this joy is hard to contain. I can't wait to see how Cnut has been. It's been ages since we hung out. With the war going on with the empire, we haven't been able to see each other. I can almost hear his childish laughter again. We used to ruff up the peasant's kids because they considered us royalty. Rightfully Cnut is, but I never want to be anything like that. I want to live among the common folk and laugh with the best of the best. There is no good in rising to the top. My father has taught me that. I hope Cnut can understand that. There is no love in being king...

I wake up to the sound of the guard yelling. I jump out of my sleep and enter high alert. The horse leading the carriage has gone into a frenzy. I stick my head out the window, nearly having it blown off. A fire is burning and raging against a village, and the horses are afraid to go into it. I look harder and see there are men young men who are running from the flames. I yell at the driver.

"Hold the carriage. We can save these people."

He looks at me, and I see fear in his eyes. I don't understand why would he be afraid? It hits me those men are being chased. I can barely see it. I barge through the door and land on my feet. I run to the young kids and draw my father's sword. I recite the words he gave to me.

"I draw this blade. I wield this blade to protect my people. To always be brave."

He told me only to draw the blade in defense no matter what I was protecting. I throw away the bindings on the sword and ready myself. The kids run to me and hold on to me for dear life. Then from a burning building, a man comes crashing down before me. His armor was on fire, and he looked like a soldier of high rank. Gold glittered across strands of fur. His coat was draped in blood, with sparks of flame dripping to the ground. His mask looked like a face of a demon. The eye sockets burned with smoke rising where his hair would be.

"He made no noise. He made no sound. He landed on the ground and struck hell.

The Demons of Heaven has arisen."

He charges faster than lighting towards me. I barely had enough time to block the attack with my blade before being blown backward. I fall over onto the ground, and my reflexes kick in. I roll and dodge another strike from his sword. I jump up and take a breath. He stands there motionless. The mask cocks back, and I hear a voice come from behind it.

"Later."

And he runs away. He sprints into the forest to my right, leaving a trail of fire that turns to ash. I try my best not to panic and look at the children.

"It's alright, kids. He's gone now." I say in fear.

They are all hiding behind the horse. One approaches me, and they slowly surround me. They all begin praising and thanking me.

"Thank you, miss. You saved us," one says.

"I can't believe you helped us, ma'am," another says.

I feel my back pocket shift, and I turn around. There, one of the children stands with my two gold pieces in hand.

"What the..."

THWACK!

I fall over unconscious. I can't see anything, but all I hear is the sound of weapons going off as I drift out of conciseness.

I wake up back in the cabin of the carriage. My head is throbbing in pain. I moan for the guard, and he speaks.

"Yea, those kids tried to rob you right before me. I can't believe it like I'd let the wife of Cnut get hurt."

The what of what now? My head is hurting too much as I blush.

"I could never be a wife," I say.

The guard hops off his horse and opens my carriage door.

"We're here," he says.

I try my hardest to lift and jump from the carriage. I barely land on my feet and look for something to hold onto. The guard catches me as I hear two familiar voices ring in the distance.

"K'Layah, it's been too long. I haven't seen you in forever."

I look up to see Hazel and Agnes running to greet me.

"Oh hey guys, how's it been," I say.

"It's been great your father has been sent out on another mission, so we'll help you get settled until he gets here," Hazel said.

"Wow, K'Lay, you look really big," Agnes said while sucking on some candy.

I never noticed it, but most of the guards are the same height as myself, except for a few knights and my father, of course. I stand up straight and hold my head where the child hit me. They escort me through the castle like I haven't been here before. They show me new rooms and new nobles among the people. My father is considered a noble due to being given bits of land after saving the kingdom. Although he's never governed before, he quickly rose to the top of the wealth because of his popularity. He was given the nickname

"Frank le bouclier du Royaume des cieux." which roughly translates to Frank the shield of heaven. He held off our enemy's invasion and a surprise attack for fifteen straight months. Our kingdom was on the brink of extinction, and he brought us back. After he saved us, Knight Joseph would carry us on his back and get revenge for us while my father would heal our wounds. Our injuries are reopened because most of these nobles want independence from the king. That is what I have been told from Hazel, of course, and the king wishes to address all matters tonight. I was given royal garbs to be fitted before tonight. So I'm spending most of my time getting measured. The outfits they gave me didn't seem like they were big enough. Hazel accompanies me through the day. She stated I won't see my father till tonight. After a while, I finally get time to myself while waiting for my dress to come. Hazel and I sit in my room talking about various things.

"K'layah, I never asked what you want to do in your life?"

"I have been asked that question many times, and part of me wants to lead a grand army across many seas. I want to capture kings and fight great warriors, but I think that is just my father's blood talking. He always fought nonstop, using his hands to injure and decapitate many foes. Yet he still made time for my mother and me. I can't remember a time my father wasn't there during my childhood. It's only recently that I see what toll that takes on your family. I've had to play both roles in my life: the mother and the father. I only hope that when I get knighted, people don't look at me differently."

Hazel shifts in her seat.

"K'layah, you are a woman. No woman can fight as the men do. It's just not possible. Why not settle down and become a housewife? Any man would be lucky to marry a daughter of Frank," she says.

I look over at her. I feel a sense of urgency.

"Why must you bring up those things. I am the daughter of a great man. No way could I be tied down. And I can best any man in combat. No one in this world could stop me."

"It's not about you being bested. We all know you can beat any foe. It's about the balance of things in this world. If God wanted us to be warriors, he would've prepared us for that. It's unnatural."

"WHAT ARE YOU SAYING, HAZEL. I have been given a gift. I will use my gift to alter the way people think. My father did, and so will I."

"YOU CAN'T DO THAT AS QUEEN OF ROYAUME DU PARADIS!"

I look at her as she covers her mouth with her hands. She knows she messed up big time. Confusion hits me at first, then fear. Then hatred.

"What do you mean as queen?" I ask.

I never wanted to be queen, and I'm not of royal blood. The people might accept, but the nobles would never. I shake my head. This and the guard saying I'm a wife to Cnut. No, does she mean? I'd never marry him. He's like a brother to me. I'd never agree to that unless. I look at her again. She's slowly walking away, stuttering and stammering.

"No, I meant. I mean you. I..."

She's caught.

"What do you mean, queen?" I say.

She's struggling with the door handle and, at the same time, maintaining eye contact with me.

"Your father didn't tell you then."

"No, he didn't," I say.

"You and Cnut are getting married."