19

Knight's hands bore the lingering stench of ink, a result of the countless drafts he had made, but none appeased him much. He had swallowed lots of draft papers; surely, his stomach would ache from the pieces he ate. Lord Hordy was still asleep, and the morning lights had not yet appeared and were barely visible.

It was 4 AM, and Knight wanted to write a piece for Lady Victoria, and then leave with it in hand to the Lancaster mansion. He had previously given Larny, Victoria's maid, a quest that came with a lot of pleading, in addition to offering her a handsome amount of coins. He still stood wondering if she gave the little piece to Lady Victoria. But he needed her, he needed Larny, if he truly wanted this acquaintance to work. But Larny was yet to know him; she just knew the guard who gave the piece to her—Knight's co-guard.

'My Lady… I …

I stand anonymous, how shameless of me, seeking the attention of a reader, and I pen no name. I like your blue eyes, but I depict no such blue genes in me—my brother does! Does this make you feel any better?

Well, how do you think curtsey plays in a man? Does this ring a bell?'

Knight observed the little piece of writing. He turned his head side to side, depicting the best angle to read the piece. Was it good enough? He questioned in the back of his mind. Probably showcasing a little bit about himself would make her have a slight idea of who he was, but the doubts that lingered in his mind; what if she liked blue-eyed men more than his hazel browns? What if she fantasized about him being a certain type and was utterly disappointed by the letter?

 "You're up quite early!" Lord Hordy sleepily called out, turning himself to a more comfortable sleeping position, making Knight grab the little piece, almost spilling Lady Evelyn's ink. He folded the paper quickly and forced it into his left front pocket. Later, he closed the ink and returned it to the little Somerset library that was on the right side of the living room. It was still dark. No one would see him, except the guards, of course. After making sure everything was perfectly placed as it was before using them, he put on his lengthy tailcoat and walked himself out of Lord Hordy's room to his own, which was used by his mum. He opened the doorknob quietly, and in one glance, looked at the sleeping bundle of his mother, who slightly shifted every second. He then closed the door quietly and tapped the guard who guarded the door on his right shoulder. He had no reason to tap him, but he had to.

With those final acts, he walked to the Somerset living room door, requested it be opened for him, and walked out to the cold morning dew. It was already five; he had wasted an hour thinking of simple words to write to a lady. But it was understandable, an hour was an okay for him. Some even stay a decade in thought of the first word to use to a lady –heartbreaking.

Unbeknownst to Knight, Lady Evelyn Somerset had already caught a glimpse of him leaving. She observed him from her bedroom window as he requested one guard to accompany him with a black horse, one of the strongest in the stables, and off they went through the front gate. This act left Lady Evelyn with a question that a gossiper like her needed to, of course, have an answer to: where was Prince Harry heading before dawn welcomed its light?

"Thank you. Tell none of this, I shall reward you accordingly," Knight assured Lady Evelyn's guard, outside Lady Hardington's gate. Knight was no fool to have the guard drop him at Lancaster. He knew Lady Evelyn would intensely query the guards about his whereabouts. But the thought of him being acknowledged as an admirer of the Hardington daughters was one thing he thought not of—at least, for now.

After the guard left, Knight hastily walked straight through the road towards the Lancaster gates, and upon arrival at the back gate, which was just a bend away from the front gate, he let himself in, as luckily at that moment, no guard stood there. They were probably quarreling over the timing the other would take over their shift. It was always something Knight had observed in those guards at the back gate of Lancaster. They were lucky the Earl never walked around the compound. He was always stuck in the library. One would barely know that he was truly in the house, other than during the little family mealtimes.

Today, however, Knight did not have the time to place the anonymous signature on the top of the visible folded part of the paper. Lord Hordy's speech had startled him, and he feared that if Hordy knew his secret, it would surely lead to everyone, especially his mother, knowing. Hordy was not one to hide gossip from Knight's mother.

Knight distantly walked through the back of the Lancaster mansion towards the workers' quarters. However, before he could turn his head left towards the hallway that led to the stairs of the male workers quarters, in the female quarters, he saw Lady Victoria's maid, Larny, already dressed in her blue female Lancaster house uniform, walking down the hallway towards the front compound. She was ready to start her day.

Knight's thoughts wandered for a second or two on whether to approach or not. But the more he stood and watched, the further the lady walked away, to the front compound. This thought made Knight unreasonably run towards Larny, startling her to almost run when Knight thoughtlessly placed his hand on her mouth. It was unintended, but he did it regardless, and pulled her inside the hall where the stairs towards the ladies' workers' quarters started.

Larny's eyes widened, and her breath quickened with every move that Knight made. Knight was observing the surroundings, hoping no one had seen him, and no one was anywhere around. And when he finally looked at Larny, his heart broke and softened—he had truly shocked the lady.

"I'm sorry, my Lady. I'm sorry… I am…" Knight repeatedly apologized as his left hand, which was previously on Larny's mouth, nervously tapped his pockets and held onto the folded letter, as he searched Victoria's maid's eyes, wondering if he could truly trust her.

"I need you to deliver something to Lady Victoria," he started, after realizing the lady's jawline had relaxed, and her eyes were normally fixated on him. An observant person would deem the maid had gotten lost in Knight's eyes—they were beautiful, though, especially the way they shifted colors, brown when angry and pure hazel when dilated and in his emotions.

"It is a simple writing," Knight continued, realizing Larny was not answering. "My name is—" Knight paused before stating his name. He knew telling her his name would be the doom of himself, and on the other hand, telling her his name would probably be the start of a beautiful chain of trust between them.

"I'm Prince Harry McVourse," he finished, swallowing hard from the way he was nervous about revealing his name.

"I know you help her a lot and much. A reason why… I… I…" He lacked the words, as his eyes became softer and softer as he spoke, "I…" He certainly could not fathom a word to say. Larny was deeply looking at him, and his eyes had already started wandering around, questioning if Larny was truly getting her, or if he was being observed as a man lunatic by her.

"Please tell her not of me… I mean, my name" He finally stated, removing the well-folded paper from his pocket, opened Larny's hands, who still seemed shocked, and placed it on her palm, and closed her palm for her. "I promise I shall acquaint myself with her. I promise! I wish not to heighten her feelings for no goal. I… please, don't, I…"

"I will, Prince Harry," she interrupted, on hearing a few footsteps on the floor above them as Knight's face brightened in hear of his name well pronounced by Larny, meaning she were following his speeches correcly. "I shall leave, you should too…" she quickly added, pointing at the way they stood, then hastily walking away from Knight. Knight looked at the staircase and glimpsed some palm shoes walking down, making him hastily leave his standing position. Within him, he was glad that he somehow found someone to give the little piece. But what if some ink had spilled on it? He questioned, hardly shaking his head from that bad thought as he ran hastily past the hallway towards the stairs that led to the male workers' quarters, up and approached the first floor that led to his room. He hoped that Lady Victoria would at least find solace and a feeling of belonging in that piece, as he did when writing it. The anxiety deserved an uproar at least.