Into Thin Air

In a well-lit room, a boy's shadow sway as the wind gently blows. The smell of ink, and the rustles of paper can be heard as he write a letter for his father.

   The Prince met with the Princess that morning. After his courtesy to greet with the Duke, the Princess showed up with her Butler. When the Duke introduced him to her. It was evident on her pale charming face that it never crossed her mind that she would wed a man half her size. He did not expect to get married too at a young age and in truth, he was afraid he would not be able to attend to his duties as a husband properly, for he does not know how life will be as a married boy. He is educated in manners and etiquette, swordsmanship, politics and literature but not about the matters of the heart of a young lady. His teachers would praise him for his enormous talent and his intelligence that far exceeded that of a 7 year old child but it is too early for him to be able to understand a woman's heart.

   After that, they invited him over for tea, and he got to know more about the Princess who can't stop staring at him in disbelief and would repeat the words, 'Are you really going to be my husband?', over and over again. When she had her fill, the Princess excused herself and the Duke took this chance to talk to him about many things. Including the plans for when will their marriage be held to signify the unification of the two Kingdoms.

And, as promised the two Kingdoms will benefit from this marriage, and the Prince will then return home to his own country to continue his duties as the Crown Prince. And, when the Prince finally come of age, the Princess shall come to his Kingdom and the two of them will be hailed as the new King and Queen. It is also promised that the Princess shall provide him sons to further continue his family's royal lineage, and to crown a new prince who would be then, next in line for the throne.

    The young Prince's life was decided as such, and as one can see, he has no opinion on the matter. Everything is neatly planned, just as his father wanted. The Emerald City is a huge asset to his father's kingdom and it would further expand his power here in the North. The war was just an excuse that conveniently happened, giving the advantage his father needed to finally convince the Duke to accept his offer of marriage to his young daughter. If not for the war and it's threat, the Duke who is well-known to favor his daughter, The Princess, would never offer her hand in marriage for political purposes. And, thus he is sent here to Emerald City to win the Princess, and the Duke's favor. His father's hope in making his ambitions come true through the young Prince burdens him, and not being able to voice out the words in his heart truly puzzles him so.

     All he knows as he currently write the letter to his father in the room, the Duke provided him,  is that this is also his duty as a Prince and as the one who will one day take over his father's place. After he finished writing it, he took out the raven with it's red eyes gleaming in the dark from its cage and tied the letter to its feet.

"May the letter reach my father.", he said it in a gentle voice and it almost sounded like a prayer as he let the raven fly free from his chamber's window to the open night sky.

He looks at its silhouette as it finally disappears into the darkness, how he wish, like the raven, he can fly free from what shackles him. And, that night as he turn in and sleep, leading to a deep slumber, he dreamt of what life could be if he were a normal boy, away from the horrifying life he now leads, and in his mother's arms, laughing gleefully.

Once morning came, the Young Prince prepare for the scheduled sightseeing of the marketplace of the City with his assigned servants and guards. The Duke said that the Palace itself is surely boring for a Prince like himself who came from a wealthy Kingdom.

Also, the capital is a wonderful place to let him see the beauty of the City thus there is no reason why the young Prince should be locked up inside the palace. The Emerald City prize itself in its huge business of trade, that is why the market is the place the Duke suggested as the Duke thought it would interest him. And to be quite frank, it is indeed what caught the young boy's eyes the first time he arrived at the City.

After breakfast, the Prince was escorted into a carriage with the Butler of the Princess who was assigned to be of service to him the whole trip. The Butler was to fully introduce him to the City and its people. The Duke thought that a citizen who spent his childhood at the very heart of Emerald City would surely entertain the young Prince, and give him accurate knowledge about it. And, no one is more befitting of that position but the Butler himself who loyally serves the Duke and his family.

The Princess wanted to go with them but the Duke forbids it because she might be put into unnecessary harm especially with the war knocking on their neighbors doors, who knows what could happen to her. And, the Princess's reckless behavior that is well-known to the Duke convinced him further that bringing her along would only be bringing forth unnecessary danger.

And so, after everything has been decided, the young Prince, and the Butler left the palace's gates and into the heart of the City.

  There were jewelry, fruits, vegetables, potteries, robes and fabrics from different places and people from different races that made the young Prince's heart leap with excitement and joy as his eyes wander from one shop to another, offering delicacies and foreign objects that he himself didn't know about. The marketplace was very crowded and if not for the Butler beside him, he could've been lost in the sea of people a long time ago, going back and forth in the middle of the huge street of the market where different shops and stalls stands. Everything shines in his eyes and the Butler seeing the young Prince make his way into the crowd filled with excitement and a carefree smile on his face from one shop to another shows just how much of a child the young boy is.

It might not show on his perfected calm expression on his face but the truth is at first he felt jealousy towards this little boy who will wed the Princess, the woman he had always fantasize about one day marrying.

Thinking how a little boy will steal the girl he loves away from him, and leaving him in shambles is not what he had in mind but looking at the young Prince at this very moment, made him feel like a fool for having such ill feelings towards him. The boy is nothing but a sweet innocent angel. And now, his heart aches for the poor boy who knows nothing about the world he lives in, not being able to choose as to how he wants to live his life, and growing up living a sheltered life inside the palace walls with his future set in stone and tied with a perfect yellow ribbon. He will grow up surely knowing how to rule a kingdom with a set of rules and values taught to him since infancy. He will know how to wield a sword and go to war for his people. But he will never know how to live life with true happiness and the choice of whom he will love for the rest of his life.

The Butler closes his eyes for a moment as if to pray. The feelings of grief for the Prince washes over him, and when he opens them to gaze upon the image of the young boy who is supposedly just in front of him, the young Prince suddenly disappeared.

Alarmed by this, the Butler's eyes dart from one direction to another in hope that his eyes are only tricking him but seeing no sign of the Prince, only confirms what this feeling of dread building up in his stomach means.

He immediately alerted the guards that are only a meter away from him to search for the boy and they immediately move to do as he instructed them. The Butler grits his teeth in annoyance over his own carelessness and not long after, he himself started searching for the Prince in the midst of the sea of people in the marketplace while at the same time avoiding to cause panic even as he himself feels his heart race in thoughts of what could happen to the little Prince.

His brows furrowed, and his eyes were peeled for any sign of the little boy, his thoughts wander and he asks himself...

Wherever could the young boy be?