The Knight of Avalon
Chapter 10

While we discussed the Queen’s impending arrival over lunch, Princess Amity offered her opinion that their mother preferred simplicity over extravagance. I took a quick glance at Prince Frost; he seemed completely distracted and uninterested in the conversation. His gaze was fixed on Princess Amity, completely lost in her beauty and charm. Prince Thomas had to call out to him twice before he finally snapped out of his trance. “Earth to Frost, hello, anyone home?” Prince Thomas joked, trying to get his attention. “Hmm... Yes, we can do that,” Prince Frost finally responded, trying to sound like he had been paying attention all along. “Sire, are you okay? You seem a bit distracted,” I asked him. “Yes, everything is fine; I’m just thinking about what we should do for the Queen tomorrow,” he said. “Okay, if you say so,” I replied, chuckling.

“So Alexis, where are you headed now?” Princess Amity asked me after lunch was over. “Well, I was planning to go into the village to inform the villagers about the Queen’s arrival tomorrow and maybe give Casper a bath,” I replied as I got up from the table. “That sounds nice; may I join you?” she asked me. I was pleasantly surprised by the princess’s request to join me on my trip to the village. “Of course, Princess Amity,” I said, giving her a small smile. “It would be great to have your company and assistance.” “Can I join too?” Prince Thomas asked. “No, you’re staying here with Prince Frost,” Princess Amity replied. Prince Thomas looked a bit disappointed, but I reassured him that there would be a next time. “In the mean time, the two of you could do some exploring in the palace, maybe even find a secret entrance or something,” Princess Amity told the two Princes’. “By the way, Sire, where’s Luke? I haven’t seen him all morning,” I asked Prince Frost. “He must be in the garden playing with the snowmen,” he replied.

With that, Princess Amity and I made our way to the village, we talked about various things. She told me about her interest in nature and animals and how she wished to explore the kingdom’s forests one day. I shared with her some stories about my past adventures and my experiences as a messenger for Prince Frost. Wehen we arrived at the village, we were greeted by a group of children playing in the street. Princess Amity and I stopped to talk to them, and they were overjoyed to see the princess in their village. “Alexis, it’s been so long since we have seen you; how is Casper?” a little girl asked me. “He’s doing fine; in fact, today I’m going to give him a bath,” I replied. “Would you please give him this apple for me?” she asked as she handed me the apple. “Of course I will, and tell you what I’ll bring him for a visit next time,” I said as I ruffled her hair. We spent some time with them, playing games and listening to their stories.

Afterwards, we went door to door, informing the villagers about the Queen’s arrival and the preparations that needed to be made. Princess Amity was a great help, as she was able to speak with the villagers in their native language, making them feel more comfortable. It was around 3 o’clock in the afternoon when we were finished speaking with the villagers. As we made our way back to the palace, I saw the sun was beginning to set, casting a warm orange glow across the village, with a hint of snow falling.

When we reached the palace gates, a group of children waved goodbye to us, and we waved back, happy to have made new friends. We then walked towards the the stables, where I had promised to give Casper a bath. Princess Amity was excited to see the horses and gladly agreed to come along. Once at the stables, Princess Amity was greeted by the stable hands, who were delighted to show her around. I left them to their tour and went to prepare Casper for his bath. I took out the apple that I got earlier and gave it to him while he was munching. I headed to the tack room to get the supplies for his bath.

As I grabbed the bucket and the shampoo from the tack room, I couldn’t help but smile at the sound of Princess Amity’s laughter. It was clear that she was having a wonderful time exploring the stables and getting to know the horses. I made my way back to Casper, who was still munching on his apple contentedly. He looked up at me curiously as I began to fill the bucket with warm water, but he didn’t seem too bothered by what was about to happen.

With the supplies at hand, I started to lather up the shampoo in the water, creating suds that would help me clean Casper’s coat. As I approached him with the bucket, he shifted his weight slightly, but he remained calm and let me get to work. It took some effort to scrub away all the dirt and grime that had accumulated on Casper’s fur, but I was careful to be gentle and avoid any sensitive areas. I could tell that he appreciated the attention and care that I was giving him, as he nuzzled my hand affectionately when I reached out to pat his neck.

When the bath was done, I rinsed Casper off with clean water, making sure to remove all the soap suds. I then led him out of the wash area and began to dry him off with a towel. He shook his head a few times, sending droplets of water flying in all directions, but he didn’t seem too bothered by the process. As I finished up, I could hear Princess Amity approaching. “He’s very beautiful; what’s his name?” She asked me. “This is Casper; I got him as a gift from my father,” I replied as I patted his shoulder. Princess Amity stepped closer to Casper and extended her hand, letting him sniff it before giving him a gentle pat on the nose. Casper nuzzled her hand, and the princess giggled in delight. “He’s so soft,” Princess Amity remarked. “And he has such kind eyes. I can see why you love him.”

“By the way, your highness, have you visited your brother’s horse as well?” I asked her as I was finishing up. “Oh yeah, I was going to ask you where she was; I haven’t seen her since she had been limping. I hope she’s alright,” Princess Amity said. “Well then, why don’t we go see her? she’s next Bruce” I said. After I was finished putting away all the supplies I used, Princess Amity and I headed to Nova’s stable. When Nova saw Princess Amity, she neighed at her and walked up to the gate to greet her. “Nova missed you,” I said to Princess Amity.

Hi, Nova,” she said softly. “How are you feeling?” Nova nuzzled her hand and let out a contented sigh. It was clear that she was feeling much better than before. “I’m glad to see that she’s doing well,” Princess Amity said, smiling. “I had cleaned up her hoof, taken care of a small cut, and also put on a new shoe,” I told her. Princess Amity nodded. “Thank you for taking such good care of her,” she said. “She’s very special to my brother.”

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