CANONETW1V021 CAQ0001 TLCS-90 —kVS160 Book1g TXT Ch.14,15,16pp140-159 QWkˆījŠ LST ŃŅÓŌ**ÕÖ LBL ×ŲŒŁŚŪ€ą=ō   šĄ‚š šN¶†īV ƒ !0 123@ABCDEFGHIJK Tessy knew that she would have to speak with the guards, who had accompanied her to the prison, hoping that she was correct about feeling that she could trust them. After discussing this with Anna, Tessy decided to invite them along, when she and Anna would go visit Anna's old home. They could all take a ride together through the countryside. Anna suggested that they might even do a little fishing at the river, where they would surely have complete privacy to perhaps talk. The guards agreed to accompany them, simply because that was their job but didn't suspect anything out of the ordinary. €The next morning, Tessy and Anna awakened early, to eat breakfast and plan the conversation between Tessy and the guards. The guards met them at the palace gate, helping them onto their horses, and loading several baskets of food for a picnic, just in case no fish were caught. Tessy remained aloof, not being her usual friendly self, all during their ride. When they finally arrived at the shack, Anna called home, Tessy watched Anna's expression become quite woeful.€"I suspect it sounds ridiculous to miss this old place," Anna explained, "but there is so much peace and serenity found here, that I know all the luxuries of the palace could never replace." She took a quick look around, and then got back on her horse. "Let's go on to the river, for the fish mainly bite in the early morning, and it is getting almost too late."€Anna led the way into the woods, with branches scraping the horses, and subsequently brushing against Tessy, so much that she had to concentrate on avoiding one bouncing back and hitting her face. Soon, the refreshing sound of the rushing river roared throughout the whole area, a melody like no other, even the sound of the waves at the ocean, Tessy had tried to remember. Tessy felt the peace and strength that the special place had to offer.€"I must talk with you two, and that is why I have brought you here to question your loyalty. Make no mistake, what I am telling you will be neither easy or pleasant for you or for me." Then Tessy went on to explain about the Studivent's visit two nights before, trying to not reveal the way that she felt, or even suggest at this point whether she believed him. After she finished, it felt like hours before one of the guards responded.€"We have been suspect of this situation, from long before you ever visited Sturdivent. Without any doubt, I would say that there are others in the army, who would also believe, and would be loyal to you, no matter what. But you must understand, that the others are not necessarily evil; they simply aren't enlightened. I served under your father, Tessy, and I owe him whatever it takes to honor you, and of course, Anna."€Tessy turned to the younger guard and asked, "and what about you, sir? You must tell me the truth; how do you feel about this situation?"€"Exactly the same, and I would consider it a privilege to be able to do anything that would help you in this treacherous situation," he quickly responded, adding, "what would you like for us to do to help?"€"Nothing, at this time," Tessy answered, "but Sturdivent is chomping at the bits to take action, so he may be ready with a plan sooner than I would expect. That is why I didn't want to dawdle too long, before I found out exactly where you stood. Of course, you are both very special to me, for all that you already have helped me with in my life. I want to make certain that you both are free from any harm."€"Our job, Tessy, I mean "Princess" is to take care of you, at any risk," the guard immediately retorted.€Tessy turned to Anna, shaking her head, "Oh Anna, I do not know if I am ready for this."€"Well, look here, are you ready for this?" Anna asked, smiling as she displayed an enormous fish. "I've been busy while you were talking, trying to let you handle the situation yourself. I believe we can all have a great feast with this one," again showing off her prize catch.€Tessy temporarily forgot about her concerns and entered into the competition, to see if she could catch a fish that would stand up to her mother's. "Come on, you two, why don't you give this a try?" Tessy asked, trying to coax the two guards into having some fun for a change. €Before long, they were all fishing, with periods of silence until someone caught something, and everyone would enthusiastically help to pull it up onto the bank. Anna's first fish still remained the catch of the day, but after all was said and done, they had certainly caught far more than they would be able to eat in one sitting. So the day passed without much more serious dialogue, and Tessy left, feeling a certain assurance that all was well.€When the foursome arrived back at the palace, they were tired, but felt refreshed from being outdoors. They were greeted by the message that the king and his traveling party had just returned from their journey abroad, and Tessy's heart sunk deeply, looking solemnly at the members of her group. I am not ready for this she thought, and wished they could only have just a few more days together before the princess had returned. €Tessy hadn't even realized how much she had enjoyed her freedom to be with Anna and not having to contend with the princess's demands and whims. Hopefully, the traveling party would be much too weary to want to get together that evening. The guards appeared emotionless, but Tessy could see the concern in Anna's eyes. How strange, that her true loyalty could change so drastically from the princess to her mother, but truly, she could never allow her mother to continue her life as it had been, and she would do anything that it might take, to restore her mother's position of honor. €„Chapter 14€When Tessy arrived at her room, the princess was waiting for her. "Where have you been?" she asked excitedly, running up to hug Tessy. Tessy felt a strange coldness between them now, and her transparency could not hide these new feelings.€"Anna and I spent a day in the country. We did some fishing. I probably smell like fish!" Tessy answered, trying to make an excuse for her coldness.€The princess laughed and agreed that she did just a bit. "We surely have a lot of catching up to do, Tessy! I can't wait to show you all my new things. I have so much to tell you too! Let's just reserve tomorrow for each other, alright?" the princess didn't wait for an answer. "I'll be here early to have breakfast with you, then we'll go unpack all my new treasures, and catch up on the last few months. I can't believe how much I missed you. Did you get my letters?" €Tessy answered, "Yes, and I really enjoyed them. I have saved them for you, in case you would like them as memoirs of your trip. I kept wishing I could write you, but I did keep a scant journal. It will probably just bore you to tears."€"Never, nothing you could ever write would bore me a second, my dearest, best friend. Now, let's get some good rest tonight, so we'll have a great day tomorrow!" the princess suggested, as she left to go back to her room. Tessy tried to act happy, but felt the pain of the tremendous secret that was tearing the two apart, and knew that things might never be the same.€€During the night, Tessy struggled to sleep, dreaming that the princess was crying and became very sick again. Tessy loved the princess tremendously, and she hoped that their friendship would stand up under the strain of secrecy. She remembered reading in one of her favorite books, a line that stated, all true friendships must endure a test, and she thought that maybe this was BCtheirBC test. If their friendship was true, then it would endure all the other problems. Finally, Tessy was able to sleep and dreamed no more.€"Good morning! Get up! Get up!" the princess called out bright and early the next morning. "I can't believe what a sleepyhead you have become lately." The princess was in ecstasy this morning, being unable to wait to show Tessy all the beautiful souvenirs and treasures from her trip. "Get dressed, Tessy, and let's have breakfast in my room, just like the old days, alright?"€"Can it truly be morning, or are you just teasing me? Where is the sun?" Tessy answered half-teasing herself. €"Tessy, you know we have to be ready to eat to have breakfast watching the sunrise; that's how we always did it, except you were usually the one trying to get BCmeBC out of bed," the princess giggled as she spoke, and started dragging Tessy by the arm.€"Very well, now, easy on me, I am coming," Tessy tried to stumble on her own to her wash basin to splash the cook water on her face, before dressing. "What shall I wear?" Tessy asked, not noticing the princess had already pulled out a dress for her. Tessy felt strange to again be subservient to her friend's every wish, even to the point of her selecting her dress to wear. Tessy didn't even think, before saying, "I don't think I want to wear that one today."€The princess looked shocked for a minute, and Tessy was sure that this was the first time she had not totally gone along with her wishes. The princess just pranced off, saying, "Well, pick one out yourself, and hurry up! I'm sure that breakfast will be there by the time you get to my room."€Tessy felt proud of herself, for being honest, for the first time with the princess, but also felt uneasy, for she had always felt it easier to just agree with everything. However, to keep from annoying the princess any further, she dressed more rapidly than normal, arriving at the princess's room, slightly before the servants who were bringing in breakfast.€"You look lovely," the princess greeted her, taking her hand to lead her to the table in front of the huge picture window. "Look Tessy, at the sun barely peeking over the mountains. Just think, as you and I have been growing up, those mountains seem just the same. Don't you ever wish everything could just stay the same forever?"€Tessy thought that Carma didn't have any idea how much she wished that, but answered, "Yes, I have a hard time, sometimes, it seems with all the changes, and sometimes I don't like change at all."€"Me either, but Tessy, you and I, we are still best friends? I mean, I sense something is troubling you. BCYouBC have changed, and I don't understand," Carmalyn asked sincerely. Tessy wanted so to tell her why, but she just looked down, again resolving that she could not do anything to hurt her friend. Carmalyn continued asking questions, "What has happened, Tessy? You must tell me, so that I can help BCyouBC this time. You can't just hold this inside. You must get it out! I know it had something to do with your trip to the prison; now, tell me, Tessy, what exactly happened? What happened to make you so melancholy around me?"€Tessy pondered over the feeling that she had gotten when she had been honest about the dress and wondered if she could get relief by being honest about everything with the princess. She looked at her face, filled with such curiosity, anticipating an answer. With tremendous difficulty, she spoke slowly.€"Carma, you know you have always meant more to me, than probably even my own life. I have and always will love you, and I never want to hurt you in any way," Tessy paused for courage.€The princess interjected, "I feel the same way about you, now go on," trying to coax Tessy to talk.€"Well, my secret is horrible for us; I mean, you and me, and I just can't bring myself to tell you," Tessy continued.€"Oh, so, you BCdoBC have a secret then; I knew it! I knew it! Tessy, you know that we can't go on, and grow old together with some nasty old secret between us. Please unburden yourself, and I will do my best to understand. Don't you believe me?" the princess spoke with such utter candor that Tessy felt she had no choice but to unveil the mysterious way she had been acting.€Tessy began the story and gave every detail of what she remembered that the prisoner, named Sturdivent, had revealed to her. Tessy began weeping, while she was telling the princess what he had said about her father, and had to stop abruptly to regain her composure. €The princess interrupted, trying to comfort her, "Surely you must have realized that this prisoner was lying. Why have you let such an infidel deprive you of your joy? I mean, he is obviously a deserter, filled with deception and deceit. How can you allow such travesty to occupy your mind?"€"You do not understand, Carma...I have every reason to believe that what he told me, though, I deplore thinking this, but I fear it is completely the truth, like it or not," Tessy answered.€"Now, BCyouBC have gone mad! I can't believe what I am hearing! You are calling my father a murderer, and at the same time, claiming that you are the princess? This is outrageous! No wonder you did not want to tell me," the princess cried out in total disbelief.€"That is not at all why I did not want to tell you. I have not wanted anything ever to hurt you, and I certainly never wanted anything like this to be true. I would rather this be happening to anyone but me. I don't want fame or glory, don't you know that? In my eyes, I can't see you as anything but the princess, and how could I ever try to take anything away from you? You just wanted to know what was troubling me, and I have told you. I regret it all, but Carma, you told me that we would always be friends. I have placed myself in your hands, by trusting you with this information. However you feel about it is up to you, but you must always believe me, that I have never and would never do anything intentionally to upset you."€The princess didn't have to say anything to explain how she felt, as she looked at Tessy with utter disgust, glaring at her, through the air so filled with dissonance, the sunlight itself, seemed to fade into darkness. "I want to dissolve our friendship, Tessy. You have disgraced my father and myself. I am going to speak to him immediately, and have you banished from the kingdom forever!"€Tessy had never seen this vindictive side of her friend, and hung her head in silence and despair. No words now would suffice, for indeed, Tessy's friend was unable to stand the test.„Chapter 15€Tessy left the room in silence. Fearing that she would endanger Anna's life, she did not go to her this time. She had been very careful not to mention anything about Anna being her mother, and now she was at least relieved for that decision. Tessy had barely made it to her room,when she heard loud and strange footsteps down the corridor. She darted into her room and bolted the door, holding her breath to listen and see if they were coming towards her. She heard them fade away, but detected some uncanny danger and so, she began to hurridly gather some of her clothes and most necessary belongings, stuffing them into a bag. She wanted so badly to go tell Anna, but frantically opened the door, checking both ways to make sure she was alone. Tessy scurried down the long corridor, as quietly as possible, praying only to be able to leave the palace without being noticed. €"Where are you going, young lady, in such a hurry?" asked a voice she recognized as being the king. Tessy turned around in horror, as she stood before him, Carmalyn, and several guards.€"I have told Father of your wretched tales of treason and disgrace," the princess explained.€"Are you trying to escape? This is proof, that you are guilty, I'm sorry to say," the king growled.€With a bag of clothes in hand, the fact was undeniable, and Tessy was taken by the guards to the palace dungeon. She tried to look back, but couldn't see anything but two estranged figures appearing as a dark shadow, fading completely into the darness. Feeling dazed and totally baffled, Tessy begged the guards to let go of her, promising she would walk with them, but they wouldn't listen. Tessy never realized the word humiliation until this moment, and at this point, she made the decision, that whatever it took, she would live to rectify the lies and restore truth again to the kingdom.€The dungeon was damp and had no light at all, except for a few small cracks in the walls. Tessy's arms were chained, and she felt terribly weak. She could hear the faint whispers of the guards, talking about what sounded like an execution. Surely they were not talking about her, but then, she heard her name, and the whispering stopped. She had no other choice but to call out to them, "Please tell me, if you know, what is the king planning on doing to me?"€One guard came over to her and spit in her face, "Like who are you to ask, missy?" he snarled and then added, "it's like this," and he pointed his finger across her throat.€Tessy assumed that he meant she was going to be beheaded and asked him again, "Do you mean, he's going to cut off my head?"€The guards laughed and told cruel jokes for a minute, indicating that was exactly what the king had ordered. Unable to bear the thought, Tessy passed out completely, saving herself from further torment. „Chapter 16€Tessy had no idea how long she had been unconscious, when someone began wiping her forehead with fresh water, but the voice was that of her trusted and dear friend, the guard, who had rescued her life as an infant. She looked up and smiled, saying, "I guess I've gotten myself into some deep trouble, haven't I?"€The guard unlocked her chains and answered softly, "Tessy, I am taking you away, according to the king's orders. He has commanded that you be executed away from the palace, so as not to disturb the princess. Of course, the princess doesn't know anything about this, but word has been sent to your mother. You mustn't fear, though, because you know what I am going to do, don't you?"€"Set me free, I hope," Tessy whispered. The guard did not have to answer, for this was his intent, but knowing that his own life was at stake, cautioned her to move with lightning speed, yet as quietly as eagles fly over the great mountains. Like brilliant clockwork, the other friendly guard had their two horses ready to mount at the gate. €Tessy felt at the threshold of freedom, the taste never being so delicious. Tessy's hair blew across the sky, with the horse moving with the wind, and her heart sang songs, as she floated behind her dear friend and servant. Never would she waste another moment worrying, she vowed as the moon seemed to lift them down the hill almost magically gliding over the steep, rocky crevices. € When safely out of sight from the palace, the guard stopped to confer with Tessy about his plans, "We really need to take you to Lockhart, but would never make it before dawn, so I am taking you to your mother's old house down by the river, where you should be safe for today. Madam Ramona in Lockhart will be waiting for you, but I will not be able to take you to her. You will have to make the trip on your own. Let's go, quickly," he nudged his horse and bolted towards the familiar road towards the river. € Tessy had very little strength, and her arms ached terribly from the chains that had bound them so tightly. She prayed that she would be able to hang on until they reached the old cabin. Suddenly, the guard's horse skidded to an abrupt halt, and Tessy managed not to run into him by the hair on her chin. "We'll cut through these trees. Get off your horse, and walk slightly behind your horse," the guard instructed.€Only a few steps inside the thicket, strange voices and the sounds of horses blurted out through the woods, coming from the trail they had just left. "Be still," the guard said, motioning Tessy to lean behind a tree. Tessy stood perfectly still, but her heartbeat seemed loud enough that she thought surely the men on the trail would hear. Standing motionless for several minutes, Tessy listened as the voices and horses' hoofs faded away into the stillness of the early morning. €"We must move now, hurry and make no unnecessary noises," the guard cautioned.€Soon they would be well out of sight of anyone's hearing range. Tessy was never so happy, as to see the first glimpse of the old house, but immediately felt the absence of Anna, and longed to see her and hear sweet voice. The guard ripped off the boards nailed across the doorway. and sent Tessy inside. "I will take your horse down by the river," said the guard. €Tessy looked for a candle to light, and managed to find an old oil lamp. Dust and dirt seemed to be the only visitors that had been inside for a very long time. Tessy sat on the bed, waiting for the guard's return, which to her relief, took only a few minutes. He explained where he had put the horse, and told Tessy he would reboard the front door. She would have to break through a boarded window in the back, and would have to nail back the boards before leaving the next night for Lockhart.€Tessy listened carefully, as he gave her his final instructions. "You must ride as swiftly as possible, until you get to Lockhart. I am sending a messanger to Sturdivent, who will meet you as soon as possible. Stay completely out of sight, for at this moment, you must beware of anyone who might recognize you. Now I will be off, and may all the Good be with you," the guard spoke and put his hand on Tessy's shoulder.€"I owe you my life many times over; how can I ever repay you?" Tessy thanked the guard, but the guard just shook his head.€"You owe me nothing, my young friend. I am only doing my job, and your safety will be my payment," he answered and turned to leave without further farewells. Tessy listened as he boarded the door, holding an old blanket around her tightly. She lay on the bed, hungry and aching, but was soon sound asleep.€Back at the palace, Carmalyn had tossed and turned all through the night, not being able to sleep in peace. Tessy's words had haunted her every waking moment. The princess felt guilty for her reaction to Tessy, and couldn't wait another minute to speak with her once more. She wanted to ask if she could see Tessy and beg her forgiveness. So, she rushed to her father's chambers, only to be stopped by several guards, who had been placed in front of the hall, with orders not to allow the king to be disturbed until after his breakfast. € The princess demanded to see her father, but the guards wouldn't budge or listen. "Then take me to where you are keeping Tessy. I must speak with her at once," the princess insisted.€"I'm afraid that you can not see her, for she was taken to be executed during the night," the guards answered sharply.€"What? What are you saying?" Carmalyn had heard them, but she couldn't believe her ears. "Let me see my father at once! You will have to cut my throat to stop me."€The guards reluctantly moved aside to allow the determined princess by, and she ran into her father's chambers, without even knocking. "Father, wake up! It is me, your daughter," she exclaimed as she stood before his magnificent bed."€"Yes, dear, why are you calling on me, so early this morning?" the king greeted her, as he cassually stretched his lusty arms, under the luxurious, satin and velvet covers. The princess trudged slowly over by him and began sobbing and talking at the same time.€"Father, what kind of lunacy is going on here? You promised you would not hurt Tessy, and I was just informed that you had her executed during the night. Tell me this is just a lie, Father, surely I've been misinformed. I want to know the truth, tell me," the princess sounded hysterical. €"Calm down, Carmalyn. I will not discuss this with you. while you are acting hysterical. Now, there, that is much better." he said waiting for the princess to quit crying. "I had to make this decision, dear, with my ministers, who felt it was necessary. I had no other choice," the king yawned indicating his lack of feeling.€"There was nothing necessary about it, unless what she said was true!" the princess screamed. "You BCareBC a cold-hearted murderer, and I hate you! Tessy must have been telling the truth, and it is you who is the liar. That is the only reason, you would have ever had Tessy killed. I will never love you again, and I don't want ever to have anything to do with you!" Carmalyn ran out of his room and to her bedroom, overwhelmed with anguish and grief. €Anna heard the crying through her door, as she walked by, and gently knocked, hoping the princess would see her. "Carmalyn, it is me, Anna. May I please speak with you?"€Anna knew that Tessy was still alive, and wanted nothing more than to calm Carmalyn with the truth, but felt she must not tell. Carmalyn opened the door, and hugged Anna tightly, telling her at once what had happened. Anna held her as she would have held her own Tessy, soothing her with words of comfort but giving no clues concerning Tessy's whereabouts. She simply tried to relieve Carmalyn's guilt, by assuring her that Tessy knew that she had only reacted normally to her accusations, and that she knew Tessy had forgiven her completely. € This seemed to calm the princess somewhat, but not enough to end her remorse. "Anna, I just want to see her again. I would rather have had my own life taken than Tessy's. I don't think I can live without her." Anna stayed with the princess most of the day, just holding her and comforting her, as best as she could. "I just wanted somehow to have told her how very sorry I am for being so hateful...Oh, Anna, I am terribly sorry." The princess mourned deeply, feeling both the guilt and also grieving over her tremendous loss. € Anna said little to make her feel better, for she felt the princess needed to weep, in order to heal on the inside. Shortly, they were interupted by the king himself, who had gone looking for his precious daughter, hoping to somehow restore their relationship. Needless to say, he was quite shocked when he discovered Carmalyn in the arms of Anna. € Anna's beautiful, long black hair was down and draped over the side of one of her shoulders. Her piercing blue eyes with the longest eyelashes, looked up at him, seeming as shocked to see him standing there, as he was to see her holding his daughter. €€Carmalyn scolded her father for coming to find her, "I don't want to see you, Father! Go away and leave me alone."€The king ignored the harsh words of his daughter and stood silent, seeming completely in awe of Anna's beauty, as he gazed at her and smiled in such a way, that Anna felt extremely embarassed and uneasy. Why was he staring at her like this? Anna struggled for words to end the cold silence.€€ą=ō   šĄ‚š šN¶†īV ƒ !0 123@ABCDEFGHIJKc.knight…#ööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööööö