It was afternoon, and the sun, still high in the sky, filled the air with a gentle warmth that convinced William to spend a few hours outdoors.
He had brought a book with him and settled in a wrought-iron gazebo near the queen's rose garden. It was a quiet corner, where he wouldn't run into any of the nobles who loitered around the court.
Instead, he was soon joined by Prince Alexander and little Prince Rudi, both armed with toy swords and determined to play a sword fight right in front of him.
William lifted his gaze from the pages of the novel he'd been trying to read and glanced toward the two princes. Alex was laughing a little too loudly as he pretended to be struck by his younger brother's wooden blade.
An innocent game that for some reason made him think of his own little brother. They had never been that close, and looking back, it was a shame. Noah must have suffered because of it.
Alex sprang to his feet and grabbed Prince Rudi by the waist, lifting him high. The child burst into loud laughter, and William allowed himself a tiny smile.
Maybe he had judged him too quickly. Prince Alexander hadn't changed much since William had first met him, over thirteen years earlier, and he didn't resemble the nobles William had dealt with at the Academy.
"It's a lovely day, isn't it?"
William startled and turned: Queen Victoria, wrapped in a voluminous sky-blue gown, was smiling at him.
"Your Majesty." He bow quickly.
The woman took a seat beside him on the cushioned bench of the gazebo. "Are they bothering you?"
William shook his head. "No, it's actually nice to watch them."
The queen's lips curved in a knowing smile. "If you need silence, I can send them to play somewhere else if you need quiet."
"That wouldn't be right. They're princes, and I'm just a mage."
She nodded, folding her hands in her lap. "How are your injuries?"
"Better. I'm deeply sorry that His Highness was hurt."
"Alex has a strong constitution, even if he doesn't look it. And he was more worried about your wounds than his own."
William lowered his gaze to his pale fingers. He didn't understand the prince; his selflessness unsettled him.
"He's not what I expected," he murmured.
"And what did you expect?"
"I don't know. Someone a bit more… arrogant, I guess." He bit his lip. "Forgive me, I shouldn't have said that."
The queen let out a clear, crystalline laugh. There was no malice in the sound, no judgment. Only sincere surprise and a light amusement that warmed his chest.
Nothing like the laughter William had heard at the Academy.
"The day my son behaves arrogantly with anyone, you can be sure I'll tug his ear so hard it turns bright red."
The mage allowed himself a faint smile. "I don't doubt it, Your Majesty."
Prince Alexander burst into another loud laugh and darted off to chase his little brother. The sun lit his face, still bruised from Reyne's blows, yet the bronze tone of his skin radiated life and warmth. It formed a pleasant contrast with the gold of his hair and the pale blue of his eyes.
And he was so different from William that the mage wondered whether they made a strange match.
"Thank you for protecting him," the queen said.
He looked back at her and was surprised to find her so serious.
"I only did my duty, Your Majesty."
"You still deserve my thanks. Not as a queen, but as a mother." She met his gaze. "If anything had happened to either of you, I don't think I would have had the courage to look your mother in the eyes. It was my husband who underestimated the danger and sent you there without an escort. Whatever happened would have been entirely our fault."
"The King couldn't have known."
"No, but he was still reckless. He never meant to put you in danger, but that's what happened in the end. So thank you for protecting my son."
"His Highness did the same for me. You have no reason to feel indebted."
The Queen smiled and turned back to watch her two sons, who were still chasing each other around the gazebo.
"I hope your opinion of my son has improved a little. I know you don't think highly of the nobility."
William lowered his gaze to the leather cover of the novel and brushed his fingers over its surface.
"I haven't had good experiences, and I thought all of them, including him, might be the same. But I shouldn't have judged him so quickly."
"Has the nobility hurt you?" asked the Queen.
"A little."
The pain tightened in his chest again, and William wished he could flee that place and hide among the library shelves, where bad memories might not reach him.
The Queen rested a hand on his arm—a light, fleeting touch that made him feel less alone.
"I know it's not much, but you have the support of the royal family. Court dynamics are complicated, and often even we cannot act as we wish. But I promise you this: whatever happens, you will have our support."
"I don't understand."
Why were they being kind to a nobody like him? Why didn't they behave as cruelly and arrogantly as the other nobles he had met?
Why had the prince put himself in danger to protect him?
The Queen smiled. "Not all nobles are cruel, William. There are good people among those who rule, just as there are bad people among common folk."
"I know, but he… He is the future sovereign. Why worry about someone like me?"
The smile on the woman's face faded. "Alex believes he must carry the weight of the world on his shoulders and that he has the duty to protect everyone under him. That makes him impulsive and naïve, and far too hard on himself."
"I noticed. We argued about it."
The Queen gave him an amused smile. "You're a truly strange boy, William. But I'm glad you're here. Your presence will help my son grow."
"I'd like to be his friend," William murmured. Then he bit his lip, realizing only in that moment that he had voiced a wish he should have kept in his heart.
The Queen raised her eyebrows, then her lips curved into a gentle, almost motherly smile.
"I'm sure he wishes the same."
"I'm not good with people."
By the spirits, what was he opening up like that to the Queen? He was a subject—he shouldn't burden her with such silly complaints.
Yet she reminded him of his mother. In the way she spoke, in the way she looked at him. He would never have imagined finding so much humanity in that palace.
Queen Victoria briefly laid a hand on his shoulder. "Alex can read people better than he lets on. And he understands them, so I'm sure you'll have no trouble getting along."
She smiled at him, withdrew her hand, and turned back to the princes.
"May I ask you something, William?"
He nodded.
"Why did you accept the position? You could have refused, citing any reason—the difference in rank or your health. The King wouldn't have insisted." She looked him in the eye, but there was no judgment or reproach there. Only curiosity. "And yet you came here, even though you don't hold the nobility or the court in high regard."
William looked away and tightened his fingers around the novel. "I owed it to him. To the prince."
"To Alex?"
"Yes. He's the reason I made it this far."
The reason he had worked so hard to become a mage worthy of serving the crown.
The Queen blinked, perplexed. "Forgive me, but I don't think I understand."
"We've met before, many years ago. He doesn't remember, but I do." For him, it had been an important encounter, even if brief. "He helped me, so I swore to become a loyal servant and help him in return. But seeing him arrive late at our meeting, I thought he was as arrogant as all the other nobles. I was wrong."
Prince Alexander was still the same compassionate and courageous young boy he had been thirteen years ago.
"I envy his light," William murmured. "And I just want to protect him."
But he wasn't sure he could.
"Mother!" Prince Rudi threw himself against the Queen's legs. "Did you see how good I am? I defeated big brother!"
The woman smiled and pinched his cheek. "You're wonderful, darling. I'm sure you'll become a great warrior."
Prince Alexander approached, and for a moment William thought he looked embarrassed.
"Were we bothering you?" asked the prince.
William tightened his fingers around the novel. "There's no need to apologize."
"So that's a yes."
"Your Highness, you are the future King."
"And you're a nobody," Prince Alexander huffed. "You've told me that at least a hundred times already. I'm not stupid."
He shot him an amused look and, for a brief moment, William was certain his heart had stopped.
"But now you can't say you don't matter," the prince continued. "Now you're my Court Mage, so your life is as important as mine."
"Your Highness…"
"No excuses, or I'll get angry." He winked at him, and William's stomach filled with butterflies.
Prince Alexander was everything he would never be: noble, kind-hearted, and radiant like a small sun. A ray of light where the mage was a cold breath of wind. And he had the ability to brighten his world like no one ever had.
And William found himself wanting him, because the prince was the first person to touch his skin without making him feel dirty or wrong.
But William knew he could never have him.