“Ah, the shoeless princess is wreaking havoc in my kingdom again, I see,”

Rory had escaped her rooms.

She knew she was supposed to stay there till dinner but there was nothing to do. She’d already explored every inch of her suite. To her delight, she’d discovered her bedroom to be much more pleasantly decorated than the pink room. It had buttery yellow walls and a soft blue bed.

Still, no matter how lovely the decor, the room hadn't had much in the way of entertainment. Her Aunt was in a meeting so she would be none the wiser to a little harmless exploring. It was only uppity Zara that posed a threat to Rory’s fun. She would just have to avoid the handmaiden.

Rory headed for the sunlight. She would escape the watchful eyes of the palace servants amongst the plants and trees in the gardens.

She sprinted for the trees, kicking off her shoes as she went. She loved the grass tickling her bare feet and she especially enjoyed digging her toes into the damp earth. There was a liberating freedom to running barefoot.

“Ah, the shoeless princess is wreaking havoc in my kingdom again, I see,” called a familiar, teasing voice. Rory stumbled as she attempted to go from top speed to a dead halt while simultaneously twisting to see who had spoken.

It was Phillip.

She stared, unsure of what one says to a twelve year old boy.

Phillip chuckled pleasantly at the small girl’s shyness. His stepmother had told him that Rory was visiting for her tenth birthday so he wasn’t surprised at her appearance. She looked to him to be much too small for a ten year old with her thin arms and small, heart shaped face.

“I believe a ‘happy birthday’ is in order,” Phillip said after a moment of silence.

“My birthday isn't for three days,” she said, without thinking. Almost immediately she snapped her mouth shut with an audible click. That wasn’t the sort of thing one should say to a prince. Phillip only smiled broader.

There was another long pause. Rory stared at her dirt encrusted toes and Phillip stared at Rory.

“I’m off to practice with my slingshot,” Phillip said eventually. Rory noticed that he carried a Y shaped branch with a piece of leather stretched between its prongs. She hadn’t a clue what a slingshot was but nodded as if she knew.

“I will see you at dinner, little princess.” Phillip half waved and turned to walk deeper into the trees.

“Wait!” Rory called. She blushed when he glanced back at her. “Aunt Leah said that I should stay with you. She said you could show me around.” Leah had said nothing of the sort but if Phillip thought that he had to babysit her, maybe he would actually let her tag along. None of the boys from her village would tolerate the company of a girl unless forced to by an adult.

“Alright,” Phillip agreed easily. “Let’s go then.”

Rory blinked, shocked at how easy it was to get the boy to agree and followed behind him.