Disbelief, confusion, panic, aversion, and all kind of emotions made her stomach twist. Feeling her mouth dry, she slowly turned in the direction the King was gesturing. Sitting on a single armchair next to Their Majesties was an armored man smiling gently at her.

The first word that crossed her mind when she saw him was 'wow'. He truly was nothing like she was expecting.

To be honest, Amelie never thought she would get married someday. Not because she was a pessimist or because she didn't want to, but because she didn't think she would ever find someone willing to marry her. Proof of that was the fact that she was still single even though she had come to age long ago.  If she ever did get married, she expected to marry an old man as a concubine or something similar, and that certainly was nothing to look forward to.

This knight, however, was young and handsome. More importantly, he didn't look unhappy at all at the idea of marrying her. She wondered if maybe he didn't know that she was a 'defective child', as the queen used to call her. Otherwise, why would he be looking at her so happily when he was the most unfortunate man on Earth?

She was so stunned that she forgot to greet him ⸻or even how to blink⸻, and only came back to her senses when she heard the King clearing his throat. She caught his disproving stare out of the corner of her eye and quickly proceeded to curtsy towards the knight. She wondered if he knew her name, and felt useless for not being able to do something as simple as greet and introduce herself properly.

She looked at him hesitantly, hoping he had not been offended by her lack of courtesy.  Contrary to her expectations, his smile was still there as he rose from his seat and walked toward her. They stood now face-to-face, or rather, chest-to-face.

He looked big with his armor on, and rather tall as well. Amelie wasn't on the tall side but she was not short either, so she wasn't used to straining her neck to look someone in the eyes.

Speaking of eyes, Amelia was a bit taken aback by his bright amber eyes that looked as sweet as honey. She didn't know many people so it was to be expected, but she had never seen such warm and gentle eyes.

Suddenly, he took her hand in his and, without saying a word, he bent down to kiss the back of it. She was vaguely aware thanks to books that it was a customary greeting between knights and noblewomen, but she had never received that gesture before. If she could talk, she would have surely let out a yelp of surprise.

After a few seconds, the man straightened himself and looked at her with a friendly smile. "It is truly a pleasure to meet you, Princess Amelie. I promise I shall respect you and make you happy."

She felt overwhelmed and extremely bashful upon hearing his words but he was being nice and sweet to her, so the last thing she wanted was to be rude. Feeling the blood run to her face, she smiled as best as she could and nodded softly.

She was not surprised or upset that this decision had been made without asking for her consent first. After all, when it came to political marriages, women's opinions weren't important. It wasn't fair, of course, but that was sadly the way things worked.

Apparently satisfied with their exchange, the King got up from his seat and said animatedly:  "Everything is settled then! I'll arrange a small feast for tonight so that we can eat together and discuss the wedding details. Meanwhile, Amelie, accompany him and guide him around the castle. It would be wonderful if you two talk and get to know each other."

She nodded and curtseyed again as the King and the Queen left the room, trying to hide her discomfort. How and what were they supposed to talk about?  And how was she supposed to guide him through a castle she herself had only visited a handful of times? She looked at the expectant knight and could only indicate him with a shy gesture to follow her. Luckily, he understood and they exited the room together.  

She was still processing what had just happened when Mary and Alice walked up to her. Amelie hadn’t noticed that they weren't allowed into the office and sighed at the thought of having to explain everything to them later. She was sure they were very confused to see her together with a man but she was not worried because they were extremely professional.  

Amelie looked at the man and then at her friends, and took a deep breath. She always felt shy and uncomfortable when she had to sign in front of other people, but this was the only way she could communicate with him. She hoped he wouldn't look at her as if she were an exotic animal as people used to do.

[Please ask him if he wants to go somewhere specific and help me take him there if necessary.]

The women eyed the man curiously, all the questions they wanted to ask clear on their faces. Still, they did as told right away and relayed her message.

Fortunately, the knight didn't look surprised or judgmental when she signed or when Mary interpreted for her. He just answered the question with a smile.

"Anywhere Her Highness likes is fine by me. Perhaps we could go somewhere we can relax and drink tea together."

Amelie finally felt relief and some of the tension leave her body. A place like that could only be found in her palace and the thought of being back home was comforting. Amelie pointed in the direction in which her palace was located. Mary let her know she had understood and once again addressed the knight politely.

"Well then, this way please."

Since Amelie's place was far away from everything, it had a considerably big garden. Maybe it was not as elegant and well-kept as the main garden but she and the other always tried to take care of it as much as they could. What she was most proud of was the huge and beautiful wisteria tree in the center of the garden and the flowers she had sowed around it.

When they got there, Amelie could help but ask.

[Is this place to your liking, Sir?]

This time it was Alice who interpreted for her, and Lionel replied with a genuine smile: "Of course!" Then, he looked at his surroundings, and the way he did it gave Amelie the impression that he was feeling nostalgic, "It's a beautiful place" he added and his honest comment made her very happy.

She asked her friends to bring some tea and refreshments and motioned the knight to a small table located under the wisteria tree. She would often sit there to read when the weather was nice so there was a book, a piece of parchment paper, a small bottle of ink, and a quill on the table. She always tried to keep those supplies at hand to be able to communicate with the guards or any other person when needed. 

Amelie observed the knight attentively as he continued looking around. She still couldn’t wrap her head around the idea of marriage. And she was having an even harder time believing that this man sitting in front of her was her future husband.

His straight and soft-looking chestnut hair gleamed and fluttered beautifully as he moved his head and the sunshine kissed him. Maybe it was a bit of an exaggeration but when she looked at him, she felt like she was watching an angel straight from a painting. He had a manly but also kind of soft and delicate face. He had a straight nose, an attractive mole near the corner of his right eye, and fine rosy lips.

Once she was done studying his face, her eyes unconsciously darted down towards his body. It was difficult to tell because of his armor but, although he looked strong, his body seemed to be rather lean and elegant.

He must have felt her intense stare on him because soon he turned around. Their eyes locked but she avoided his gaze quickly and tried to look casual as she took the quill and wrote on the parchment.

"Sir Lionel, is this your first time visiting the castle?"

She was still curious about the nostalgic look he had on his face a while ago, and that question seemed like a good way to break the ice. What she was not expecting, though, is that after reading what she had written his charming smile would slowly disappear. He looked at her once again, and now all she could see was something akin to disappointment and sadness.

"Amy⸻No. Umm," he licked his lips and looked down at his hands, apparently unsure of what to say. When he looked at her again, his eyes were like those of an abandoned puppy, "Your Highness... does this mean that you don't remember me?"