Sabrina smirked as she leaned away from the door and turned away to walk down the stairs. She heard the king and his brother's entire conversation.
She was happy. Why?
They're getting rid of that slave. That slave has always been in her way.
Sabrina let out a small chuckle as she walked out of the castle. She smiled and placed her hands akimbo as the cool evening breeze caressed her face.
Now, everything is going just great.
*
*
Axel sat on the throne seat, long after Elliot had gone. He had his hand to his jaw, reminiscing over what Elliot had just told him.
It was a great idea. It was for the best. That's what he would do, then he would finally have his son back. He really misses the old Luciano, but first he has to do something.
"Zane."
*
*
Gwen and Eleanor laughed heartily as they walked hand in hand outside the palace grounds.
"Oh my god! That's hilarious!" Gwen laughed harder, clutching her stomach tightly. "I can't believe he'd sit and listen to you talk about that."
"Hey come on! There's nothing wrong with him listening to me. Though I can't quite understand why he got angry when I told him the princess forgave the prince." Eleanor explained, raising her brows and shrugging her shoulders.
"He was like, why would she forgive him after all he did to her?! He was so mad I had to convince and reassure him it was just a book and I did the same thing." Eleanor narrated, her eyes looking faraway, her voice softening a bit. "I did the same thing. I forgave him after all he did to me." She concluded, glancing at Gwen with a small smile on her face.
Gwen smiled at her before speaking. "You know, it's kinda funny the way things have changed in the past few weeks."
"Hmm." Eleanor hummed, her lips stretching into a wide smile. "We got the prince on our side. What did you expect?"
"It's really nice and funny, you know, how we left out people wondering."
Eleanor's smile widened as she remembered all the good amazing things that also happened to the people of Narva.
The remaining people of Narva also benefited from the change between her and the prince.
She wasn't the only one feeding well, the prince made sure to send guards and some of the maids to sneak food into the slave quarters, threatening them not to say a word about it. And of course they dare not go against the Prince's order or say a word about it to royal members of the castle.
Apart from the fact that they still had to work all day, there was a different glow in their faces. They were well taken care of. They had new clothes, not fancy ones but clothes better than the ones they had before.
It gave Eleanor joy to see them smile, amidst the fact that they were still enslaved. They were a little bit happy. It gave her so much joy to see the young children smile again, play together unlike those times when they would just sit at a corner, their faces dull and glues with dirt from improper caring. Their eyes teary, their clothes dirty and looking like rags. They would always sit at the corner in slave quarters waiting for the other grown ups to come back. Waiting to see if they would have food that day.
Most times when Eleanor would come there, they would tug at her dress and look up at her with teary eyes and ask in their timid tiny voices.
"Would we ever be free again?"
"Would there be food today?"
"Would I see my mother again?"
"Have you seen my father? He said he'd always be there for me."
They thought she was going to the castle to talk to the prince to free them. They thought she was going to open a gate for greener pastures for them.
If only they knew what she went to the palace to do. But she couldn't tell the little ones what she really went there for, she didn't want to kill their tiny hope.
She didn't go to the big castle to free them. She didn't go there with the intention of bringing hope to them, but things changed. The prince fell in love with her and gave her people a little hope. Hope that someday they might be free.
Or they might never be free and things might just get worse. But she can't tell them that.
She knows this won't last for forever but she won't tell them. She wants to be the only one to bear the fear of what would happen if things go the wrong way.
For now, she would let them enjoy this little change without thinking of the danger that lays ahead.
"Don't you think we should start heading back to the castle?" Gwen asked, drawing her out of her thoughts.
"Oh yeah, that's true." Eleanor stopped walking and grabbed her hand, walking back to the palace.
*
*
Luciano frowned, his brows knitted in confusion as he focused on the book in his hand. He was finding it hard to understand what he was reading.
Don't get it wrong, he wasn't reading one of those long scrolls as usual, he was reading one of these fairytale romance books Eleanor introduced him to.
He was finding it hard to understand what 'love' is all about.
It was quite confusing to understand why people who had nothing in common, who aren't fit for each other suddenly develop a liking for each other and fall deeply in love with each other.
It's quite strange.
Luciano was so engrossed in what he was reading he barely heard the knock on the door. He looked up from the book, glaring at the door, obviously angry for the disturbance.
"Who is it?" He groaned out.
"It's Killian, my prince." He heard the guard's voice say at the other side of the door.
"Come in."
Barely three seconds after he permitted the entrance, the door went open and Killian stepped in and closed the door behind him, walking to the middle of the room. He took a quick bow before speaking. "The King requests to see you."
Luciano rolled his eyes before standing up from the chair, heading out to go meet his father.
*
"You requested to see me." Luciano voiced out immediately he stepped into the throne room, sighting his mother and father on the throne seats.
Great. Just great.
He doesn't need a sorcerer to tell him what they called him for. And he had made up his mind and he would say it to them.
"I called you here for an important discussion Luciano." The King stated, not minding his son's rudeness.
"And that is?"
"You're getting married to Sabrina-"
"No I'm not." Luciano cut him off.
King Axel raised his brows at him before taking a deep breath. "You're getting married to Sabrina and I need-"
"I said I'm not." Luciano groaned out, glaring at his father.
The King and Queen glanced at each before the Queen spoke. "I don't know what is wrong with you Luciano but you know you're getting married to Sabrina, I don't understand what's with-"
"I said I'm not getting married to her!" Luciano yelled, laying emphasis on each word.
"And why is that?" The King suddenly snapped.
"Because I don't love her."
"You can love her once you both get married." The Queen said, sitting up to stare intently at him.
"You can't force me. I don't love her and I'm not getting married to her." Luciano snapped angrily, he took a deep breath before adding. "I love someone else."
The Queen stared at him in shock, hoping it wasn't true. Hoping all she heard isn't true. "And who is it?" She managed to ask, gulping down the large lump in her throat.
Luciano stared at his parents with a profound look of determination on his face. He's done messing around. "It's Eleanor."
When he saw the look of surprise and disbelief on his mother's face he nodded before adding. "Yes, it's Eleanor. I love her."