My mind and body, weary from all the excitement, welcomed sleep’s caress. My consciousness slipped into darkness.
I was dreaming.
I was in an unfamiliar place.
My father and stepmother, my sister, and I all sat at a table, enjoying a cozy meal together.
In the dream, I was euphoric.
A loving family—that might have been what I wished for all along.
Eric and I were to marry and become a family.
Would we be able to build as happy a family as the one in my dream?
When I woke, the sun was shining through the western window. I had overslept.
But what did that dream mean?
My family, whom I hadn’t seen in a while, was there—it was strange that I would dream about them.
“Family… At some point along the way, life in the same house with Jill and Catherine became a source of anguish. I have very few good memories with my family…”
Up until quite recently, a part of me had given up on the idea of family, thinking it was never meant to be. At some point, I had lost faith in the people I called family…
I don’t know what a happy family feels like… Will I be able to act the part when my time comes?
“Come on, Leia, don’t discourage yourself. Your relationship with Eric is too strong to let something like that shake it.”
I would be with Eric. He chose me—what kind of partner would I be if I didn’t believe in myself? I decided to walk by his side, no matter how treacherous the path we were on. I couldn’t waste any time falling into despair.
There was a rap at the door and one of the palace servants called out to me, “Lady Leia, Prince Eric is expecting you.” It was nearly time for our dinner with the king.
“Understood, I’ll be out shortly. Could you tell His Highness for me?”
“Yes, my lady.”
I would hate for us to be late to dinner because I was dragging my feet. I quickly got dressed, opened the door, and headed to Eric’s study.
I’m about to have dinner with the king. Come to think of it, this is a first for me.
“Sorry to have kept you waiting, Eric.”
I opened the door to find Eric smiling sweetly.
“No problem, I’m glad you were able to get some rest. So, are you ready?”
“Yes!”
We walked side by side down the corridors of the palace until we reached the dining hall on the first floor. When we opened the door, we were greeted by a massive round table with a white tablecloth, its center adorned stylishly with seasonal blossoms.
“Ah splendid. Eric, Leia, you’re here,” the king greeted us as he arrived, soon after we were escorted to our seats. He sat down with us and had a servant promptly pour us all some wine.
“Now, I think this calls for a toast,” His Majesty said as the servant reverently backed away. We clinked our glasses together.
“To the young couple and the bright future of Elshaid.”
“Cheers!”
Thus began our banquet with the king.
I was nervous about this new experience, but the dinner had a serene atmosphere from start to finish. The king was in good spirits as he sipped his wine. According to Eric, His Majesty held his liquor well, and nobody had ever seen him drunk. As if to prove this, there wasn’t even a hint of pink in his cheeks as he spoke with us.
“I see, I see. So you have given quite a bit of thought as to what sort of king you would like to be and how you would steer the kingdom.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Perhaps because he was a little tipsy, Eric chatted freely with the king. His Majesty seemed relieved to discover that his son had a clear vision for the future of Elshaid.
When we were down to our last bottle of wine, the king pressed Eric with another question. “It is quite clear that you have the proper attitude for a crown prince. But, Eric, now that you’re to be wed, have you given any thought to what kind of family you desire?”
“Huh?! What kind of…family, Father? Er, well, I…I haven’t yet…”
“Eric, why the panic? Think of poor Leia’s feelings.”
“Sorry, Father…”
Eric looked uncharacteristically wounded by his father’s admonishment. I had to cut in.
“It’s all right, Your Majesty, I’ve never brought it up with Eric…though I fully intend to have that conversation moving forward.”
“I see. Well, I am still quite impressed at how calm you are, Leia. I suppose it was that calm disposition of yours that held Eric up all this time.”
“Oh, that’s an exaggeration, Your Majesty…”
The king chuckled. “Modest as ever, aren’t we? That’s one of your virtues, Leia. Now, Eric, why don’t we take the opportunity to have a nice long chat? This isn’t mandatory, of course, but personally, I would love to see my son in a happy marriage.”
The king looked at Eric with soft eyes. It was the look of a proud father who’s watched his son grow over the years. Eric held his gaze in silence for a while, until he finally mustered up the courage to say, “As you wish, Father. We can have a long heart-to-heart.”
“Mm-hmm. I’ll leave you to it. Now, do you know why I’ve brought up the subject of family? It’s because, to a king, his kingdom is like a giant family.”
“A giant…family, you say?”
“Correct. Eric, if you wish to succeed as king, you must first build a small, happy family of your own. That is my advice.”
The king’s voice was quiet, yet firm. “Build a happy family…” The words reverberated loudly in my heart as the dream I had earlier came back to me.
“Yes, Your Majesty, I will take your advice to heart. I’ll start by making Leia happy.”
“Good. Now, my wine glass is empty, so I’d best be on my way.” The king rose to leave the table. Eric and I stood to see him out, but the king raised a hand and said, “You two, have some nice quality time together. I’ll see you later.”
With that, the king left the dining hall.
Phew… I was too nervous to even taste the food.
Left alone, Eric and I resumed our dinner in silence.
What do we do now? Eric assured the king we would talk about starting a family…but maybe I should be the one to break the ice?
As I was about to speak, Eric spoke first. “So, I guess I’ll start?”
“Oh, um, go ahead.”
“Thanks. I…I was born a prince, so I always knew I had to live my life in service of my kingdom. I felt that it was my duty as royalty.”
I mulled over Eric’s words. Truly, as crown prince, he had shouldered the duty of leading the kingdom since birth. To live up to the expectations placed on him, he had always let his strong sense of justice guide him through life.
“Needless to say, my sense of duty hasn’t changed. But ever since I met you, my way of thinking has, little by little. I regret the way I treated you at the start, but my days with you have been filled with joy, Leia. It’s a feeling I’ve never felt before.”
“Me too, Eric. Our days together are more precious to me than the finest jewels.”
And I truly meant it. Each and every memory with Eric sparkled like a precious gem.
“I’m so happy to hear that… So, this is where things get serious. I asked you to marry me because I wanted us to have a happy future together.”
“And I want that too, Eric.”
It was thrilling to hear he had thought so much about us and about my happiness. Without Eric, I never would have known the joy in sharing the same feelings with another person.
“Which brings me to what I wanted to discuss with you. Firstly, how should we even go about this? As I’m sure you’re well aware, I never gave a passing thought to this sort of thing before.”
“I know… Well, why don’t we start by brainstorming what we both want in our daily lives? Like, what sorts of things we might want to do together.”