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On the evening of Nathan’s arrival, Ai sat to dine with the royal siblings. Michael stood behind her, whilst Nathan remained in his allotted bedchamber.
The dinner was a quiet one and the Ore princess dared not look at the sovereign. Since she had not had the opportunity to ponder on his words and actions the previous evening, she hoped to avoid him at all costs.
She ate hurriedly and excused herself. It was with great relief that she bade the royal siblings a good night, and went away with Michael, gladdened the king did not request another private meeting with her.
She asked Michael to lead her to where Nathan was lodged. Her knight raised a questioning brow but did as he was told. Nathan was awake and looked well-rested when he opened the door of the bedchamber to them.
“Nathan, walk with me, for I fear, I am unable to sleep with so many thoughts of my father’s indignation plaguing me. I so urgently need to be diverted, and you, my dear friend, are the best person to offer me tales to calm my nerves.”
The man gave a sceptical look but agreed to walk with her. “I shall tell you that I am immensely suspicious of your motives, for there is a familiar mischievous look in your eyes. I do not doubt that I am to be your victim.” The princess was surprised at how accurate he was in his opinion and wondered if she could achieve what she intended.
“I should have guessed you would be so distrusting and unkind. The only reason you think I am up to no good is because you always contrive to do mischief. Now you can never trust anyone because of your guilt. If you choose to be so provoking, sir, then please take yourself off to bed.” Ai said, feigning hurt.
“I do beg your pardon, ma’am. I am at your service. What tales do you desire to know of?”
“Nathan! Do not call me that odious title! You may reserve it for the elderly women of Ore. I must say that you and Michael are cut from the same cloth.”
“Alas, princess, I have said nothing to provoke you. Why do you choose to insult me so?” Michael inquired, looking offended.
“Michael! You greenhorn! It is your blessing to be likened to me. I agree with you on that one, Ai. I have sometimes considered that we are very similar...” A slap on his head made him cease from speaking.
“Michael, how odious of you to strike Nathan again, when he has said he might die if you do so. Come and sit Nathan, I shall save you from this brutish man.” Ai said laughing, as she gestured to a bench in the large passage. Nathan, holding his assaulted head obeyed silently, and in the next moment, the trio were chatting merrily.
As soon as Ai noticed that Nathan’s scepticism towards her was gone, she began to ask questions about his thoughts on the Bamish palace, in comparison to Ore.
“How about the royals? What do you think of them?” She asked.
“Well, I have only interacted with one royal, so I cannot make a complete judgement.”
“Well, tell me what your thoughts are. She is a princess and so am I. Perhaps, she appears superior?” Ai pushed.
“I do not think a comparison should be made, but differences should certainly be appreciated. I did not know she was a princess when I entered the room. I expected that the Bamish princess would be ridiculously haughty, especially, with the reputation of her father, but she is the most beautiful creature I ever laid my eyes on. She was also perfectly amiable, and I must confess that I was awestruck by her person.”
The princess had never heard her friend speak about anyone the way he did and concluded that they were most certainly infatuated with each other. She acted indifferent to his description and asked about other things to prevent any suspicion of her real purpose. After a short while, she arose.
“I must thank you, dear Nathan, for I am truly diverted.” On this note, they parted.
“What in heaven's name are you scheming, princess?” Michael asked as soon as they were away from Nathan and Ai smiled mischievously at him.
“Do not worry your mind about my schemes, Michael. I do however need you to make certain that I am awake at least two hours before noon on the morrow. Then you must send word to Nathan requesting him as my chaperone for a tour around Bamah.” When she saw that he was looking at her with evident suspicion, she laughed sheepishly. “It shall be the greatest diversion to see the beautiful towns in this kingdom, shall it not?” She asked as they reached her doors, and went in hurriedly before the Knight could deceive her into spilling the truth.
The next morning, the princess awoke to the loud sound of knocking on her door. She did not feel like being awakened and struggled to rise. Since the sound was persistent, she got off the bed and threw on her robes before going to the doors. She opened it slightly to see her knight standing and regarding her from below his eyes.
“It is now less than two hours before noon. I have been striving to awaken you for several minutes without success.”
“Oh dear! If you please, Michael, call for the maids to assist me at once. Have you sent word to Nathan?” She questioned and confirmed that he had done as she bade him the previous night.
The maidservants came in shortly to prepare her for the day, and she sent one of them with an urgent message for their princess. She ate a simple breakfast, and some minutes before noon, she was ready for the day’s adventure. She stepped out of her chambers to see her knight waiting at her door, looking ready to be off.
“Now sir, how is it that you are still at my door? I do think you should have this day off.”
“If it is a part of your scheme to be rid of me today, I assure you that you have quite failed. If you must know, I allowed other soldiers keep watch of your chambers through the night. You can be assured that I am well rested.”
Ai decided within herself to hide her scheme from him as much as she could. She charged him with ensuring that the Ore soldiers took the day to rest. She was glad he did not insist on taking them along, since there was a host of Bamish soldiers accompanying them.
Nathan was awaiting them at her carriage, at the entrance of the palace. He waved at Michael, who was receiving his horse from an Ore soldier and handed the princess up into the carriage.
"Your sudden desire to tour this kingdom is just as suspicious as not telling me about it yesterday!" He said as he sat himself beside her, not bothering with formal greetings.
The princess was too full of excitement, to think of a smart response, so she held her peace. Nathan raised a brow at her as she smiled to herself instead.
"I recognise that smile, and I am most certain that you are up to no good. For the love of God, Ai, would you tell me where we are going?" Nathan said, apprehensively.
"Why, did not Michael tell you?"
"Do not think that I believed, even for a moment that you wish for me to accompany you on a tour. I am not stupid."
“It is my utmost displeasure to disappoint you, sir, for we are indeed going on a tour. Not that I dare to claim that you are stupid.” Ai responded sardonically, her grin getting wider. It was the most exciting scheme she had done in all her life.
"Then, what do we wait around for?” Nathan asked, exasperatedly.
"Your impatience shall be the death of you, dear friend. If you must know, it is not what we are waiting for, but who."
Nathan frowned at this. He opened his mouth to speak, but before he had the opportunity, the carriage door flung open and Isa climbed on, helped by a servant.
"Dear Ai, accept my sincere apologies for my tardiness, but it was of utmost importance to make my brother aware of..." Isa's words ceased on her lips as she saw Nathan. Her reaction to his presence caused her to begin to fall back. Ai feared the imminent disaster, but Nathan was up, and able to catch her hand, steadying her.
Their eyes locked for a few moments and Isa sheepishly muttered words of thanks before sitting in the carriage beside Ai. The Ore princess watched the pair in amusement. It was almost as though a scene from a romantic book was played out before her.
After Isa was settled, Nathan gave Ai a knowing look, and she knew he had caught on to her matchmaking scheme. The journey was quite a silent one, with Ai constantly prompting the flustered Bamish royal to tell of the beautiful landmarks they passed. She noticed the two stealing glances at each other and was certain that if they continued in the carriage, her plan would never work.
"Ah, what a beautiful place!" Ai exclaimed as they passed by a vast garden with many kinds of colourful trees and flowers. It was so large that the princess could not see its ends.
"Ah, yes, that is the pride of Bamah, popularly referred to as the gardens of love. I never have had the opportunity to walk in it myself, but I always thought it was so magnificent," Isa responded looking just as awed as the Ore princess who had only read of it in books.
"Shall we stop the carriage and take a walk in it?" Ai asked rhetorically, signalling for the carriage to stop.
Isa cast her a wary glance. "Can we?"
"I do not see why not," Ai responded, with a questioning look. “You are the princess of this kingdom. I do not believe that you could be restricted from entering any public place you choose.” Upon reflection of her circumstances, she added, “Except it poses some sort of danger to your life.”
Isa looked to be in deep thought. “No, I do not think it is anything of that sort. Only, my father forbade me from visiting such a place that is so much associated with love. He believed that it was the weakest part of the kingdom and always said that love is for the weak."
Ai frowned at her words. She did not know much of the previous Bamish king but that he was the reason the festival of great kingdoms ended. He was consistently losing any form of esteem in her mind. He sounded all too different from her father who encouraged her to live up to her name and love freely.
“What are your sentiments, Princess Isa? Do you truly believe that love is for the weak?” Nathan asked to Ai’s surprise. He had been silent throughout the trip in an obvious attempt to frustrate her plans.
“In truth, if love was indeed for the weak, I would rather be weak,” Isa replied passionately and blushed when Nathan smiled at her.
Ai grinned widely at the exchange. “Shall we go into the garden then?”
"I do not see why not!" Isa replied excitedly.
