That was a part of it, yes. The other part was that my mother knew the duty of a personal guard required not only a sacrifice of everything else, but a deep desire to protect and safeguard the one you were assigned to; not just out of debt, but loyalty and even love as well. Though my actions had given Christopher everything and though the two of us were inseparable as children, she fully intended to test our bonds to the limit to try and see if it was right.
So when I turned 13, I was forbidden from ever speaking with Christopher again. I was shoved into my studies as a prince and he into his training as a guardsmen. We tried to be obedient and good, but after so long of being as good as brothers, neither of us could stand the loneliness again.
So we began to disobey my mother. Sneaking out at night, or during lulls in the guard, or even just sending letters to each other via Kuriboh, we kept in contact and kept each other from feeling lonely. I had thought we were being clever, and to a degree, we were... but my mother knew all of what was going on. It had been exactly what she wanted to see, after all, and since we were smart enough to get around the regular guards, she never felt the need to call attention to it.
...And then... I became old enough to be considered a proper prince. My mother decided to hold a tournament to see who would be my guard and had all but the junior knights allowed to participate. Now, the thing about royal knights is that they must be skilled... but even knights that aren't fully trained can start out with a very young royal, so that the two adjust and the knight can be specially trained for the position. For a reason no one understood until it was over, my mother refused this, and pointedly forbade them during the court's meeting.
Christopher, at the time, was still a junior knight, but was horrified at his exclusion -- after all, the reason he had trained so hard even when were separated is so that, one day, he could be assigned that position, or at least be eligible.
In a move that made the entire court go silent, Christopher stood up and spoke out of turn. He demanded that the junior knights be allowed to try out as well. My mother calmly stood up and challenged him to a fight then and there, which he accepted. Needless to say... Christopher was no match for her, yet he kept getting up, over and over, no matter how many times she knocked him down. Finally, when he was so exhausted and hurt that he had to use his sword just to stand, she asked why he wouldn't stay down. He told her that he would never give up, and that no matter what she tried, some day, he would be the one to protect me.
I remember it being so perfectly silent, with even the birds not daring to sing a note. And then, slowly, my mother began to laugh, clapping. The first words from her mouth, then, were...
no subject
So when I turned 13, I was forbidden from ever speaking with Christopher again. I was shoved into my studies as a prince and he into his training as a guardsmen. We tried to be obedient and good, but after so long of being as good as brothers, neither of us could stand the loneliness again.
So we began to disobey my mother. Sneaking out at night, or during lulls in the guard, or even just sending letters to each other via Kuriboh, we kept in contact and kept each other from feeling lonely. I had thought we were being clever, and to a degree, we were... but my mother knew all of what was going on. It had been exactly what she wanted to see, after all, and since we were smart enough to get around the regular guards, she never felt the need to call attention to it.
...And then... I became old enough to be considered a proper prince. My mother decided to hold a tournament to see who would be my guard and had all but the junior knights allowed to participate. Now, the thing about royal knights is that they must be skilled... but even knights that aren't fully trained can start out with a very young royal, so that the two adjust and the knight can be specially trained for the position. For a reason no one understood until it was over, my mother refused this, and pointedly forbade them during the court's meeting.
Christopher, at the time, was still a junior knight, but was horrified at his exclusion -- after all, the reason he had trained so hard even when were separated is so that, one day, he could be assigned that position, or at least be eligible.
In a move that made the entire court go silent, Christopher stood up and spoke out of turn. He demanded that the junior knights be allowed to try out as well. My mother calmly stood up and challenged him to a fight then and there, which he accepted. Needless to say... Christopher was no match for her, yet he kept getting up, over and over, no matter how many times she knocked him down. Finally, when he was so exhausted and hurt that he had to use his sword just to stand, she asked why he wouldn't stay down. He told her that he would never give up, and that no matter what she tried, some day, he would be the one to protect me.
I remember it being so perfectly silent, with even the birds not daring to sing a note. And then, slowly, my mother began to laugh, clapping. The first words from her mouth, then, were...
"It's about time."