4 The Winter Games 2

"What were you thinking??" You whisper under your breath to Kendra as you both walk behind the King to the balcony.

"It's once in a lifetime opportunity. I'm not going to let it slip through my fingers..." You make a soft grunt at her. Soon you're on the balcony and you take the seats behind the King's throne.

"Lady Winters, Lady Bennett...please come sit in front" He gestures to the chairs next to him. You hesitate for a moment about which chair you should take until Kendra gently shove you to the chair next to the King. You try to act normal and sit down gently as if you planned it that way. The King sees you out of the corner of his eye and covers his mouth with his hand to suppress a chuckle.

"Thank you for joining me, Lady Winters, Lady Bennett"

"It's only our pleasure, Sire...*giggling*" You kick her on her shin and she makes a soft moaning noise. You look at her and give her evil eyes. She mouths at you "What??"

The parade walks past the King and they bow their heads at the King as they walk past. It's clear that they truly are happy to see the King at the games. He just nods his head at them as they go past and sometimes wave.

The first event is about to begin when the crowd starts to quiet down again. You see the King's face falling as Princess Catherine makes her way to her chair. You and Kendra jump up and bows as she enters.

"Ah...and who might you be?" The princess looks your way. "I'm Lady Winters and this is my good friend Lady Bennett. It's a pleasure to meet you, princess Catherine"

"It's nice to make your acquaintance" You bow at each other and take your seat again. The King stands and he kisses her hand. "I didn't know you would grace us with your presence today, princess?"

"Oh, it was a last-minute decision. I wanted to see what all the commotion was about"

"Of course, please have a seat" You see his face is filled with annoyance and shock. He helps her to her seat and then sits on his own. He put his arm on the armrest and clench the armrest with his hand until his knuckles turn white. You suddenly feel deep compassion for him and wonder what he's thinking.

Someone walks up to the balcony and speaks to the King "What's the odds that we will see the King at an event so beneath the high and mighty?"

The King smiles and stands up. He turns to give the man a hug. "How good of you to come, my friend"

Lord Harrison, the King's best friend answers "You know I'm always here to brighten up your day?" They laugh and slap each other on the shoulder. Then he turns his attention to the Princess."Always a pleasure princess"

"Likewise, Lord Harrison" He kisses her on the hand and then turns around to you and Kendra.

"Excuse me for being so rude. I'm Lord Harrison and may I have the pleasure of your names?"

You answer "Please to meet you, Lord Harrison, I'm Lady Winters and this is Lady Burnette" He scarcely see you and moves right to Kendra's hand. He kisses her hand and looks deep into her eyes. "Have my eyes cheated on me? Or is this truly a rare beauty before me?" Kendra swallows deep and almost falls off her chair.

"It's a pleasure, Lord Harrison"

"Would you mind if I sit next to you?"

"No, of course not" She looks at him as he sits next to her. You whisper to her."You have a little bit of drool on your lip there..." You gesture with your hand and she slaps it away. You laugh. The announcer goes to the middle of the field and introduces the first game, Jousting. Everyone watches as the game begins.

The King bends down to you "Do you enjoy the winter games, Lady Winters?"

"Yes, Sire. I find it very entertaining and you, Sire?"

"I used to love coming to these games, of course...*clearing his throat*..that was before my father passed. After that, I didn't see the use of coming here again, until now..."

"I'm so sorry, Sire. It must have been hard on you. What changed, that brought you here today?" He stares deep into your eyes and you feel yourself blushing. He nods a little bit to you. The princess puts her hand on his, demanding his attention.

"Sire, please tell me more about this event, they call jousting?" You feel your heart almost exploding in your chest. His attention is back to the princess and you try to keep your composure. You watch the games.

After a while, explaining to the princess the game of jousting, he excuses himself. You watch as the games unfold and the love that is blossoming between Kendra and Lord Harrison. You smile, happy that she found someone. Suddenly the trumpet sound and the announcer speak. "Make way for the King!!"

Everyone stands and starts to cheer him on as he comes riding on a horse. Lady Kendra sees the King and says "Wow, I never thought I'll see him on a jousting horse again. He was pretty good back then"

"What? Why can't I remember this?"

"Maybe because you were busy doing the nasty with Lord Patterson in your mother's carriage"

"Oh, yes! How could I forget? I'm so glad that they decided to buy land far from here"

The crowd goes wild as he put on his helmet and gets ready to charge. The trumpet blows and they're off. You feel nervous for him, suddenly. "Oh my...!!" You cover your mouth with your hand.

Kendra gasps "No!" As you see the King falling off his horse, after the knight got him in the chest

"James!" The princess runs to the grounds.