The Scarlet Phoenix and the Prince of Winter

Chapter Two

It never occurred to me, not even in my wildest dreams, that the love of my life will one night snatch me from my boring life and ask me if I was me. It's crazy because I don't think Prince Kao knows everyone's names in this castle, so for him to know that I exist is already a feat in my book.

But of course, I'm not saying that it's impossible for someone like him with high status to notice a lowly court servant like me, because her deceased mother was a tailor's daughter before she married King Luander and became the queen of Aure. It's just unusual. There could be a hundred sensible reasons why would he search for me but I'd prefer what my wild imagination tells me. And it tells me that either I stood out in his eyes, (which is what makes this thing so wild) or I made a huge mistake that forced him to recognize me. Either way, I feel so honored to have been called by my name by him--- the next king of this eternal winter country. I could even die now if he would just ask. No complaints there, because I think it's a better way of dying than just being frozen solid.

"Answer me, servant!" he hissed at me and that just made everything worse for me because I never thought that a demanding and imposing Prince Kao is super attractive too. "Are you the court servant called Rainha?"

I only managed to gulp, then nod stiffly as my reply to his query. This calmed him a bit and removed his hand off my mouth (which smelled sweet and princely by the way.) He looked at the door first as if checking if somebody was there before talking again to me. "We need to talk, Rainha," he said seriously with his dark eyes, as if he was still not serious. "Come, follow me to my room."

If touching me was already worth a sack of coalstones, asking me to go to his room would be equivalent to a mountain of those hot pebbles. Good Lord. With these impure thoughts of mine, I wonder how long will I survive this. Another word from him might make me faint.

He was already motioning me to follow him but because I was not moving on my own, the Crown Prince pulled me again. This time we walked like we were burglars who managed to infiltrate the dark castle. A couple of times we saw royal guards passing by at a distance, or just standing on their positions, which made the Prince pull me behind stone posts or columbars to camouflage our bodies in the dark. I don't know why but these secretive gestures of him made me so happy. Maybe because to my crazy, ambitious self, this feels like he's trying to hide me from everybody like he's trying to be selfish when it comes to me. Yes, that's how stupid my brain works.

I know this was the time to wonder what on earth was happening, and to question why does the Prince keep on acting like he was hiding a secret, but his hand holding mine tightly as we move swiftly from corridors to pillars to the stone stairs erased the remaining sense on my already corrupted mind. While we were like silver cats creeping silently on the last two corridors and the last flight of stairs leading to his room on the southern tower, my mind was already on a different level. It was already on a c****x of a story I would never ever dare tell anyone because my decapitation would immediately commence the moment I blurted out the words of this wild fantasy.

I know this was the most farfetched version of what was really happening but on my live-action daydream, Prince Kao had finally decided to admit his feelings towards me and had even decided to take it a step further. And that is to bring me to his room to do well... things.

Shaking my head, I don't even know how the hell I managed to remain silent while we walk and sprint until we reach his room. I didn't even notice that I was already panting from the hustle of roaming the castle with the Crown Prince, if not for him suggesting that I should rest just after we entered his room.

I stood there, staring at the entirety of his room for the first time. Only our superior, Madame Morris, is allowed to clean his room so being able to come here is like some sort of achievement (and even more because it's me.) The room is expectedly spacious. It's as huge as the common hall where the people can take refuge when the Ruthless Blizzards come to even punish our already shivering-to-death kingdom. Several decorations hang on the pristine ceiling and walls attached to a crystal white chandelier, showcasing the symbol of the monarch---a fiery bird encompassing a snowy coat of arms. Of course, he has his own pillars of columbars here to keep him warm. Not one, not two, but three, standing like sentinels on the corners, giving me a warmer feeling that I had never felt before in my entire life. So this is what it feels like to be warm enough. It feels so incredible.

I looked around more, seeing a huge black study desk that will welcome your eyes because it occupies almost half of the room. The desk was attached by the closed windows accompanied by a ceiling-high wooden shelf of books, which made my heart pound with joy. having thousands of books meant that the Crown Prince is an intellectual as I would have liked him to be.

The study is understandably messy, with a lot of parchment scattered all over. I noticed a pair of dark-rimmed glasses next to it and my mind just went baloney trying to picture out the Crown Prince with it. I'm quite sure he looks good with glasses on, no questions asked.

And then of course there's his royal bed, the centerpiece of my many fanfictions about Prince Kao, which was in royal dark blue. Giant pillows encircle the bed like guards, while a silver blanket that I recognized as made from a winter elephant's hide was sloppily folded in the edge of the massive bed. It was a bed fit for the future king.

The sight of his bed however did things in me, as I had just this sudden urge to dive on that soft bed and just smell his scent coming from it, and I think I would have already done it if not for the Prince finally talking again which quickly brought me back to my senses.

"So you are Rainha," he said, then pointed at a chair I didn't even notice was there next to the study. "Have a seat."

It was only then that I remembered to honor him as I should so I immediately bowed my head and stared on the floor. "I'll just remain standing, Your Highness."

"Drop the protocols," he said, asserting that I should follow his instructions. "My reason for wanting to talk to you is unrelated to your work."

That made me look at him again full on his face. Which was a bad decision, because it only made me blush for the Crown Prince has a regal, perfect face. "P-Pardon, Your H-Highness?"

His face looked a little smug at my idiocy. "I said I didn't bring you here to order you around or something like that. I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Oh." I stopped at 'oh' because my mouth would have said words I could not take back so it's better to shut up. My goal right now should be prolonging this moment for as long as I can.

"You are Rainha Filbuster, brother of the twenty-third squad leader of the royal guards, Garreth Filbuster, am I right?"

"Y-Yes."

"And you live with your Aunt in Aurville, Milca Filbuster?"

I nodded. I was not expecting an interrogation like this, so the bubble that was my fantasy I created just now popped into thin air.

"You were orphaned when you were an infant?" he asked further and my insides twisted uncomfortably as soon as I heard that because I now know where this was going. Of course, this is what the Crown Prince is interested in. My family history is the only thing that's interesting in my life. Why would he bring me here about something else? Omitting my sorry background will leave me a dull story of my life. Receiving the whole town's pity for being orphaned at birth. Growing up with only my brother and a sickly Aunt who only took us in because she was afraid of what the people will say, being our last relative.

"Your father is a former royal guard too, who was called Peterson Filbuster?"

"Y-You are correct, Your Highness."

"And your mother is a---?"

"She was an Outsider," I quickly replied in an attempt to stop this conversation, but I think it only made the Crown Prince more curious.

"I see. My information is right then," he said with a look that tells me he was not only interested in what I just confirmed about me, but he is also suspicious about me, as he should be. Everyone in Aurville has been suspicious of me because I was born outside of this country.

"Do you by any chance know where did your mother live before she came here to Aure?"

I shook my head without having second thoughts because if there was one person who would be clueless about my mother's origin, that would be me, because she died when I was still an infant. I never learned anything much about my parent's story of how they actually met other than the fact that my father was patrolling the western border of our kingdom when he saw a body lying in the freezing cold. That was my mother.

I told the Crown Prince about this, how my father took my mother in and how they fell in love. Then my brother was born and they lived happily despite the conditions they were living in. And then one day, when my brother was four, my mother just disappeared completely. My father tried to find her, even going out of Aure which no one dares to do because no one returns after leaving this kingdom. Outside Aure's borders is a freezing hell and not a single person had successfully returned once they go there. But my father did return months later, much to everyone's astonishment. He was seen holding me as a baby in his arms, saying to his sister that my mother's gone.

"And then my father died shortly after returning home with me because his body suffered enough from the cold outside the kingdom." I ended it there in the hopes that Prince Kao would already stop at that, but he did not show any sign that we were already done.

"So you don't know exactly where your mother came from. Which country, which tribe, which race," he continued, maybe still hoping that he will be able to squeeze out more information than I was already giving him.

I shook my head again, and that did it. Prince Kao moved closer to me, which prompted me to step back, but he held me on my shoulders and smiled his sweetest smile at me yet. "Thank you for the information, Rainha. But I have to ask you this too. Do you think your Aunt knows more than what you told me?"

I shrugged. "Probably, Your Highness."

"I must see her then," he said, more to himself. He then rested his knuckles under his chin, and it was the cutest thing ever. I never knew a puzzled and a pondering Prince Kao was as adorable as the rest of his personalities. "Rainha, can you bring me to your Aunt?"

I did not know how to respond to that. What on earth was happening? Why is the Crown Prince suddenly interested in my mother so much that he's willing to go see my father's sister? In normal circumstances, I wouldn't have dared to ask the Crown Prince a question even if I wanted to, but I couldn't resist the urge to ask him about his reason for doing all of this.

"Your Highness, can I ask you a question? Why---?"

"You want to ask me why I'm so interested in you and your mother right?" he replied before I can even continue talking. He then went to his study where he picked up a black leather-bound book that looked ancient. He went to where I was standing and showed me the front cover of the book. Letters forming the title of the book was embossed there in big, ancient font. It spelled 'Mythus' which is a word I don't even recognize.

"Mythus?"

Prince Kao nodded. "It's a book that tells the fantastic lore in this kingdom, Rainha, which includes the story of this mythical tribe of snow gypsies led by female priestesses."

"I don't know about them, Your Highness."

"We both don't have a clue of who they are," the Crown prince added while looking at my face. I couldn't meet his intense gaze for so many reasons, so I went back to staring on the floor. "The snow gypsies are part of our kingdom's tales. Everyone thinks that they don't really exist, but in my research, they might actually be a real tribe that used to be part of Aure."

I gasped loudly at that because I now understood why the Crown Prince wanted to see me, why he asked about my mother, and why he wants to see my Aunt. "Y-Your Highness, pardon my bluntness but are you saying that my mother could be part of this mythical tribe called snow gypsies since she was an outsider?"

"Yes. I think so," he said with confidence and I don't know what's worse. The Crown prince thinking I may be a daughter of a mythical tribal woman, or me hoping that its true so that Prince Kao would give me this attention more.