TRUST

Chapter 5: Silver Foe (Part 2)

 "Lexis? Are you okay?" 

My eyes suddenly focused again. Sapphira was in front of me, her brown eyes burning into mine. 

"I apologize, your highness." I backed away a little. I had to back away, taking myself from her beautiful sight, her caring eyes.  But then she shook her head.

"Just call me Sapphira. At least when father's not around." She pretended not to notice my reaction, and smiled, as she always did.

"Okay, Sapphira." 

"See, now you can smile much more easily. What happened? You just went silent for a moment there. May I know the reason?"

"I was just remembering my brother's look when he left, a memory I never want to lose." I said honestly. 

"I might not know your brother, Lexis. But trust me, he is fine like my brothers are, they are alive and well, I promise."

"Thank you, Sapphira. Thank you"

We just walked in silence, both deep in our own thoughts. She must be thinking about her brothers again. If only I could, I would find her brothers for her, to get rid of that sad look she had.

We reached the doors of her garden and entered. The garden was as beautiful as I could remember with the smell of spring that seemed to always come from it. I could see that the tenseness in her expression started to relax as she entered the presence of her comforting garden.

"Lexis,"

"Yes, Sapphira?"

"Do you think I'll ever be free?

"Free? From what?"

"Everything, duties, titles."

"I..." How could I answer this? Because I know exactly, and the answer was no. 

"Just answer it, would you?"

"No, I don't think you will. Wherever you go, you'll be Princess Sapphira but that isn't a burden, it's a gift that you should cherish."

"You have no clue how hard it is to be the child of a king, too many things that depends on you,"

I know how you feel Sapphira, I know exactly, I know even more.

"What I know is that whatever you are now, the daughter of a king or a fisherman be your best at it. You can never and should never be anyone else. No matter how hard it gets."

She nodded and smiled a little, agreeing with me but deep within hated that it was true. I hated that it wastrue for me too. I told her to be herself, but I had not been myself for a long time.

***

~ S~

Lexis.

He was a man with oddness beaming from him. Secrets and thoughts seemed to be kept cleverly inside, unuttered. Yet to be decided, was it really those?

Spartan.

A word he uttered loud and crystal. It signified who he must have been before setting foot here, under the roofs of Althea.

'When reaching seven years of age, boys are sent to the barracks'

I recalled the sentence he spoke not too long ago. The word of it shocked me, a thing he should never have make known if it was to be true.

Was he a Spartan?

As far as I knew, no other place else has rules such as that, only Spartan children were required to train since infancy and be sent away. It was not like that here. If men or young men wanted to become a soldier it is their decision to make. Not that I knew that much either about such things.