Magic and Gold

3: Protect

When I got to my room, I was a complete mess. I had stopped caring about my hair and skirts long ago. For a moment I wondered what the guards thought. And then I remembered I did not care. I stopped in front of the guard outside my room. He was wearing all white: hat, jacket, gloves, ironed and pleated pants, polished boots. The only bit of color was the gold buttons used to secure his gloves and jacket. "Alix," I said with a mischievous smile, cocking my head to the side.

"Princess," he said with a nod. He was stiff, his eyes staring straight forward. It was almost how funny, how seriously he took this job that was barely even necessary.

"I knew you couldn't go, so I brought you food. I know you love those fruit tarts, the ones with the apples and caramel. I know how you love caramel." The only response was his eyes flickering to meet mine for a moment. I sighed. "I know you're very serious about your job, but I'm the only one here. Guarding my empty room is so important. I bet you could do it even better on the inside."

"Right now, my job is protecting you, m'lady," he said tersely.

"Right." I took his hand. "Well then, come with me. You can protect me even better in here." I walked him into my room, handing him the plate. I shut the door behind me. "You know, you don't have to be so stiff every time you come in here."

In the privacy of my room, he looked less stiff and unfeeling. He was slightly more awkward, but it was good that he would actually talk to me now. "You know I do, Princess."

I shook my head. "If your job is to protect me, I think I should have more power to tell you to chill sometimes."

"Chill? I don't think that's very princess-y language."

"Good thing I'm not a princess when I'm with you. So don't call me Princess."

"As you wish, m'lady." He sat on the edge of a plush red chair. The Princess Suite was bigger than the average house. It had a large bedroom area with a king bed, a living room area with plush furniture, and a large balcony.

I sat in front of my mirror, taking out all of my hairpins until my hair was loose, falling to my waist. I brushed through it slowly, turning to face him. "We shouldn't have this conversation every time. You can relax around me, like when we were kids. Or are the other guards giving you a hard time again? Is that why you're so serious about staying reserved?"

Not that long ago, Alix had admitted to me that the other guards were giving him a hard time because of how often we went into my room, alone, for extended amounts of time. Their assumptions were completely false. Alixandre and I were just friends and had been that way for years. He was a guard's son, and had haunted the palace since he was a scrawny little kid. Being a guard was a prestigious opportunity for the peasantry to have a well-paying job with benefits. Often, palace jobs were passed through families, and so Alix has been able to come at a young age, especially since his mother used to be a maid as well.

We played together from a young age. At first, Alix and Tristain would play, oftentimes with me as the tag along. Tristain was the oldest, nearly four years older than me. Alix was next, two years older than me, so often Tristain would choose to play with Alix or Peter before me. Then Tristain became continually busy with his duties as the Crown Prince, so Alix and I spent more time around each other. Alix had sprung up like a weed when I was twelve and he was fourteen, so now he towered over me in terms of height. But some things never change. He still saw me as a good friend, just as I saw him. He was my best friend.