A Warning of Fervor

When Prince Louis returns to the palace, he wastes no second as he searches for his brother to tell him what transpired in the café. From his brother's room to the Grand Library, he searches for him in a hurry. He finds him in the palace gardens having his daily lessons with Lady Adela. He wants to tell him what happened as soon as possible, but he is more afraid of Lady Adela, so he waits and waits until he could wait no more.

He approaches Prince Julien and asks Lady Adela for permission if he can take him away for a second. Since Julien is doing remarkably brilliant in his lessons, Adela lets it pass and allows the second prince to talk to his student. Louis grabs his brother outside the pavilion.

"Lord Brother," Prince Louis hyperventilates, "I saw Princess Ariana with a knight."

"A knight? Where? Calm down, Louis."

"They were eating so casually in a restaurant at the western part of the Capital. I also saw her with this knight these past few days. She was also with him at the time of her incident."

"Do you mean Leon?"

"You know him, too?"

"Yes, Leon saved Princess Ariana twice. From the rogue knight and an arrow, both could have killed her. He is practically a hero. When you saw her eat with him, it could mean that she is very thankful to Leon. It is a custom in Inglatera to treat a person you are indebted to as a way of showing thanks."

"But there was still something else," Louis insists. "How she looked at him was different. How she laughed at his jokes was different. She is a completely different person from when she is around us."

"So, she was happy with him. What's so strange with that?"

"Do you not even have the least bit of suspicion?"

"No, why would I suspect them of anything? Ariana and I are going to be married three weeks from now."

Prince Louis' heart feels defeat from his brother's comprehension of the situation. No matter how many times his brother eases his mind, the feeling of suspicion still lingers. He knows there is something strange going on between the two. He goes back to his room and calls two of his personal knights.

"This afternoon, a squad of knights, led by a knight named Leon, will head to Michael fort on the outskirts of the Capital," he says. "I want the two of you to investigate the connection between this Leon and Princess Ariana. Act as one of the knights in the fort and go with him on his quest. Report to me everything that he says, intercept every letter that is sent to him, and every letter he sends, and tell me what his subordinates think of him."

"Another thing," Louis continues, "you are to make sure that Princess Ariana does not become suspicious of your movements. She may be a princess, but she is as cunning as a fox and as careful as, who knows what. If she notices that Leon's letters are opened before she opens them. Then, she will have her means of hiding the real meaning of her messages. If that happens, then I will both have your heads. Am I understood?"

"Yes, Prince Louis," the two knights bow in obeisance.

"Then, go ride now." The knights leave the room. He grabs a bottle of wine from his study and pours a glass for himself. "If you don't act Lord Brother, then I will. You must also be careful. I might snatch her from under your vision. It would be unfortunate if something were to happen to you or Leon," he soliloquizes.

Meanwhile, Prince Julien finally finishes his lessons. He summons Gianni and Gabriel. He orders them to request an audience with Princess Ariana. The princess who just gets back from his gallivant with Leon. She approves, and the prince meets her on the balcony of the palace's east wing. The balcony has a great view of the palace gardens and the gates. They see Leon leave for Midael fort.

"Louis saw you with Leon," Prince Julien says. "He thinks there is something between you two. Well, is there something?"

"Prince Louis talked to us then left," Ariana answers. "I never thought he would tell you."

"Louis likes you. He was jealous of me when he knew that we were going to be wed."

"I did not know that. He always smiles when I am around, but I never thought he likes me."

"Do you like Leon?" Julien insists on the question.

"Umm."

"Umm, what?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"I don't know if this is love, but I feel happy when he is around me. In my eyes, he shines as bright as the sun. His every word moves me so much that I want to listen to him for the rest of my days, in every moment, every second of the day."

"So, he is right. You do like Leon."

"It seems so."

"I want you to be careful from now on. Louis has spies and ears everywhere. Don't send letters directed to Leon. Never speak about him when you are in his presence."

"Is he…"

"Yes, he is. Be careful from now on. One wrong move can ruin our plans for a better future."

"Okay, I understand. I will be careful."

"He might be sending his spies to watch Leon's every move as we speak. If he knows that you two are more than friends, he may do something horrendous to Leon."

"I can't bear that. You have to do something about your brother."

"I've tried assuring him, that Leon is not a threat. But he is smarter than that. If you send him letters, use my seal and send it as a code that his spies may never decipher."

"Like a poem?"

"No, even harder than poems. Riddles."

"But will Leon understand them? I have a hard time understanding some of the riddles myself."

"Listen, if you write poems, then Louis will immediately understand what you mean. And he will do something to remove Leon from the equation. If you write riddles that everyone will have a hard time understanding, then what remains is the strength of your emotions. Leon doesn't need to understand the riddle. He just needs to feel the emotions from you as its writer."

"You are right. Your wisdom does not fail to amaze me, Prince Julien."

"My teacher is the wisest, after all."

"If you'll excuse me, I'll take my leave." Princess Ariana leaves the balcony.

The next few days, she works on preventing from raising any suspicion from Prince Louis. She devotes all her time and focuses on planning the wedding. She orders sample bouquets from florists who are to supply flowers to the wedding. She reviews the food and how the chefs and cooks are progressing with Inglateran cuisine. She supervises the designers as they lay out their designs for the wedding in the cathedral. She even visits the Cathedral of Rimes, which is a day's travel from the Capital. She goes to the queen and reports all the progress.

Meanwhile, Prince Julien starts his research on the form of rule that he will implement once he becomes king. With Gianni and Gabriel, he spends his days in the Grand Library. He bids the two to gather all the political books and manuscripts, and historical scrolls containing the rule of law.

Gianni and Gabriel do as he instructs. Before they know it, they are carrying a whole mountain of books. Gianni place the books he is carrying safely on the floor beside the table where Prince Julien is sitting. He then goes to help Gabriel who carries more books than him.

As Gianni goes to see how Gabriel is doing, he sees him carrying an entire heap of books and manuscripts. Suddenly, the topmost book of the pile comes falling because of inertia. A very think the book is about to heat Gabriel's head, but Gianni runs as quickly as he can and keeps his head from getting hit. Gabriel's head is safe. But Gianni loses his balance since he tiptoes to save the former. The two falls on the floor. Gianni is on top of Gabriel.

Prince Julien hears the blow and goes to see what transpired. A shocking scene reveals to him. He sees the two on the floor with Gianni on top of Gabriel, their lips almost touching.