Squire (Male x Male) (Wattys Shortlist 2021 & 2022)

Chapter 5 - The Forest

Winter turned to spring, and I was starting to feel more like the castle was becoming home.

During the daytimes there was plenty to keep me occupied, and the tasks were varied and enjoyable. I often went on errands to the local market, which enabled me to get to know some of the residents of Garrow, the nearest town. I frequently delivered messages, either to the town or to the surrounding villages.

Nutmeg was an excellent horse for such tasks, and we bonded quickly over apples and petting. I also rode him for pleasure, usually on my own but occasionally with Richard if he requested my company.

Every day there was equipment or boots to clean, and I accepted Richard's offer of continuing to learn sword and fencing skills with him, and we practiced when we could. I also continued learning how to read and write.

I made sure I spared some time to practice the flute, which I enjoyed playing, even if I was the only one who heard it. I tried to replicate some of the songs I had heard being played by the buskers in Garrow. Some were slow and sad, some were faster folk songs, traditionally for a fiddle, but I adapted them for my instrument.

I made various friends and acquaintances around the castle. There were two other young men that frequently dealt with caring for the horses, Aaron and Paul, who were both of a similar age to me. The kitchen staff learned I had a good appetite, and one of the kitchen girls, Annabelle, seemed to have a particular affinity for me, as I did for her. We soon became good friends.

As for Richard, he had made sure I was comfortable and happy, and I had taken his offer of evening games at every opportunity. We played a variety of different games with varying strategies, including Surakarta, mancala, senet and various card games. He would offer me wine, but I would always decline. Concealing myself was difficult enough around him without the additional challenges that inebriation would bring. However, it was otherwise effortless to feel relaxed in his company, and therefore, other than my concerns about protecting the secret I held close, so far it had been easy to keep my oath of being honest and true when we were together.

The prince was warm and engaging, not just with me but with everyone around him. I liked him more with every passing day, and sometimes had cause to wonder whether I might be falling in love with him. I tried desperately to prevent myself tumbling further, but to no avail. My breath still hitched every time I laid eyes on him, and even more so when he smiled. But I assumed that since I had not yet been put to death, I had done a reasonable job of concealing it.

Overall, I got into a routine and was as happy as I could have been under the circumstances. I took some time at the start of spring to visit Sir Tristan and let him know that, although I missed him, things at the castle were working well, and he seemed pleased. I brought my flute in case he wanted to listen to me play the new music I had learned, and he obliged me with an audience. I passed on his best wishes to Richard at this request and said he would try to visit the castle soon.

A week or two after I returned from seeing Sir Tristan, Richard requested my company for a morning of horse riding. The air was crisp and fresh and filled with birdsong as we mounted the horses. We rode east across lush green fields strewn with daisies and buttercups and sparkling with morning dew. We galloped fast, and the wind surging through my hair made me feel like I was flying.

Richard slowed to a trot as we approached a stream. He alighted, and I followed suit. He encouraged the horses to drink, which they did happily. I knelt on the bank to splash my face in the inviting crystal-clear water, while a small group of minnows swam past unafraid. Richard looked like he was taking a walk down the river, so I sat back on the bank and enjoyed the spring sunshine.