Herba's Forrest [Complete]

Chapter 4

"Mother, I'm sorry I ran off. I was bored! Surely you understand boredom and the need to just gallop?" Tara asked her mother.

"Of course I do, love. But you are a princess and are expected by others to act like one. I know it's not easy. I had the hardest time getting used to it myself when I married your father, but please try."

Tara sighed. "Yes, mother. I'll try harder."

The queen kissed her daughter on the forehead then changed the subject. "I heard you found a man in the forest. Is that true?"

Tara perked up. "Yes, it is." She explained what had happened.

When she had finished, Queen Estelle frowned. "It just makes me so angry that anyone could beat someone like that. Tomorrow I will go with you to visit him. Alright?"

"Alright," Tara replied.

There was a knock on the door. "Come in," said the queen.

The door opened and a palace guard stood there, holding a girl about the age of Tara by the arm. "Your Majesty, we found this girl wandering around the castle grounds. No one is able to identify her. What shall we do with her?"

"Come here, girl," the queen instructed.

Natalie wrenched her arm out of the soldier's grasp and walked into the room toward the woman. She wasn't sure what she was supposed to do, so she made a slight curtsy.

Estelle smiled at her and asked, "What is your name?"

"Natalie, ma'am. Natalie Johnson."

"You are dressed very oddly, Natalie. Where do you come from?" asked Queen Estelle.

"Mother, the boy was dressed like that, too. Maybe they came from the same place?" Tara told her mother.

Natalie's face lit up excitedly. "Is Ben here, too?" she looked around hopefully.

"Tara, take her to see the boy." To Natalie, she said, "My daughter found a boy lying in the forest several hours ago. He was injured, so she brought him here. Go with her and she will take you to him."

Tara led Natalie down the hall to the infirmary. When they entered, Natalie spotted Ben lying on the bed immediately. She ran to his side and sucked in her breath when she saw the enormous bruises across his ribs.

"Is this him?" asked Tara, coming to stand beside Natalie.

Natalie nodded.

The doctor told them, "He should be waking up soon. If you'd like, you can pull up a chair and wait."

Natalie found a chair and pulled it close to the bed. Tara did the same. The two sat in near silence as they waited.

The door opened and Brendan walked in with his father.

"Natalie, this is my brother, Prince Brendan, and my father, King Kotaku. This is Natalie," she told them. "She got here not long ago. She knows the boy. His name is Ben."

The prince and his father bowed to Natalie and said, "Nice to meet you." They were almost perfectly in sync and Natalie had to stifle a giggle as she nodded to each in turn.

"We came to check on him," said the king. "So where do you come from? The two of you are dressed most unusually."

"Um, we come from a town called Rocky Creek. I'm not exactly sure where it is from here, though… See, we're kind of lost…" Natalie answered slowly. She noticed the prince staring at her and blushed. He smiled at her.

At that moment, Ben groaned and tried to sit up, opening his eyes as he did so.

The doctor pushed him back onto the bed and said, "Oh, no you don't. You are to stay lying down. Come," he said to the royal family, "let's let them talk alone." They left the room.