The True Northern King - James

Chapter 2

I was turning fourteen, and my parents were throwing a glorious party, though it was also a way to introduce the new baby, Liam. However, it was clear that one person wasn’t very happy about his arrival—Carter.

He had refused to even look at him. It seemed he wasn’t the adorable younger brother who got all the attention anymore. Of course, seeing Carter pouting just made me smile. I was happy about the new sibling, and I knew another was on the way.

I recognized the signs. My mother always craved sweets and cakes when she was pregnant, and she would also be less strict when we did something we weren’t supposed to, like skipping our lessons.

“Happy birthday, Your Highness,” a beautiful older woman said.

She curtsied elegantly and then moved aside to make room for a younger version of herself. The girl couldn’t have been older than eleven, maybe.

“Serina, bow to the prince. It is his birthday,” the woman instructed.

The young girl was dressed in an awful pink dress that made her look like a big pillow. I almost wanted to laugh at the sight. Yet, despite the ugliness of her dress, she was still very pretty. She had long blond hair and strikingly blue eyes.

“Happy birthday, Prince,” she said in a small, light voice.

I wanted to roll my eyes. Who even had such a light voice? She curtsied as she wished me a happy birthday, then slowly looked up.

I smiled, a bit cruelly, and then looked away, trying to appear thoroughly bored by her. She didn’t like that, and I could even hear her huff. For some reason, I enjoyed her reaction. It was fun to see, and I wanted to make her even angrier. Her cheeks turned a funny shade of red.

“Say thank you, boy.”

My father gave me a hard slap on the back, forcing me to step closer and stand right in front of the little girl. I shot an annoyed glance up at him. He was standing by my side, making conversation with the older lords and ladies, while ensuring that I was polite, greeted our guests, and thanked them for the many presents.

My father raised an eyebrow at me, clearly not understanding why I was hesitating. But as I turned back, I saw the girl’s smug look, and I didn’t like it. I wanted to annoy her again, to see her face turn red once more, but instead, I mumbled, “Thank you.”

“Louder, James,” my father said.

I glared at him over my shoulder, then noticed the smile spreading across the little girl’s lips—Serina, that was her name. What a ridiculous name. It sounded like someone trying to imitate an animal noise but failing miserably.

“Thank you,” I repeated, louder this time.

She crossed her arms and looked as if she had won some kind of battle between us, but I promised myself this wasn’t over. Who even stood like that? Was she not supposed to be a lady?

“Come, Serina, let the prince greet the next guests,” her mother said, gently taking her daughter’s hand and starting to walk away.

I watched them go, but then suddenly, Serina turned her head and stuck her tongue out at me. It made me angrier than I could describe.

“James!”

My father brought my attention back to the guests who continued to arrive, and I quickly masked my anger. However, I promised myself that I would find that annoying little girl later and show her exactly who the future king was.

But it took a while before I could break away from all the guests and their cheerful birthday wishes. I searched for the annoying girl as I moved through the large crowd. Where was she? Then suddenly, I saw her. She was dancing on the dance floor with… Henry?

The two of them were laughing as they spun around, not really following any steps but just having fun. She smiled and laughed as her hands were clasped with his, and they twirled around in circles. Why did I not like that? I shook my head at the sight before I turned around and nearly crashed into Will. He hated these parties, and I was certain he would have found a way to sneak off to his room.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

He just shrugged slightly, looking at the ground.

“Will?”

“Mother is keeping an eye on me,” he said.

He gave a small nod to the side, and I noticed our mother in conversation with another lady, though her eyes would occasionally drift away to check on Will. I smiled slightly and turned back to my brother.

“And… I wanted to give you this.”

He suddenly handed me something wrapped in an old cloth. I took it, feeling a bit confused, but he didn’t meet my gaze. While our parents often gave us gifts, we usually didn’t exchange them with each other.

I slowly unwrapped his gift, knowing I couldn’t just give it back—that would be rude. The fact that he had come to give it to me himself meant a lot. As I removed the cloth, my eyes widened at the sight of the small blade in my hand.

It was beautiful, with a handle that was dark red, adorned with gold lines running through it. In the center, a crown was carved, with a “J” in the middle. The blade was sheathed in a scabbard that matched the dark red and gold design. I slowly pulled it out, watching it gleam in the light from the party.

“You made this?” I asked in awe.

He nodded slowly. Will was already showing great talent at forging blades and swords. He was quite skilled, actually.

“This is amazing!” I said.

My brother looked up, appearing shocked. Did he think I would hate it? I smiled at him and placed my hand on his shoulder, giving him a little shake to show I was truly happy with the gift.

“Really?” he inquired.

I nodded. How could I not be thrilled about this?

“I’ll keep this with me always!” I promised.

I put the blade back in its scabbard and then secured it in my belt before looking at Will again. While he usually kept his emotions hidden deep down, he couldn’t do that now. I could see how happy he was that I liked his gift.

“Come on!” I said, pulling him along with me.

We walked over to get some food, and I knew he appreciated that I was keeping him entertained, so he didn’t feel so watched by our mother. However, I found it hard to concentrate on the conversation because Serina was still twirling around on the dance floor with Henry.

“Who is she?” Will asked.

He must have noticed me looking at her. I turned away and shrugged.

“Probably some lady’s daughter, I’m guessing,” I said.

“Henry seems to like her,” Will said.

Yeah… he did seem to like her.

“Well, you know him. He just likes to use his charm.”

Will nodded slightly, while I turned my head again to watch the two of them. The music ended, and they bowed to each other before leaving the dance floor. But instead of splitting up, they walked over to one of the tables with food and started talking.

They were both laughing a lot, and then Henry began teasing her, trying to make her eat some kind of cake that she clearly didn’t want. Yet she laughed as she playfully pushed his hand away.

I couldn’t stand there and watch any longer. I didn’t like how the two of them were laughing and having fun together, so I walked over to them, and the laughter instantly stopped.

“Hello, brother,” Henry said. “Have you met Serina?”

I looked down at her, but she just turned and gave me the cold shoulder.

“I have had… the pleasure, yes,” I replied.

“She’s a really good dancer,” Henry said.

Serina’s face lit up at his compliment, and I didn’t like it, so I made a bad decision and said, “I guess I’ll have to see for myself.”

I grabbed her hand and pulled her onto the dance floor. She, of course, couldn’t refuse me, but she didn’t loosen up like she did with Henry. Instead, she followed the stiff steps we’d both been taught since we could walk… I didn’t like it. Why could she laugh with Henry but not with me?