Come Away To Freedom

I first saw Arthur when I was ten years old; too old to believe, but too young to understand.

~~~

The young prince of Spades looked around aimlessly in the green forest, full of life and sounds unheard to him before in his life. The trees reached to nearly the sky it seemed, branches spewing out from the tops, leaves occasionally breaking off and falling to the earthen ground. The sunlight trickled in, spotting the dirt like water droplets as he stepped along the pathway.

Where was he again?

Cerulean eyes scanned the area, nothing even beginning to look familiar to him. This was strange for him, he was never lost. He always knew where he was. The forest was such a familiar pathway for him, so why could he not place where he was? It was sort of aggravating for the young royal, not knowing his surroundings, yet he refused to admit he was 'lost'.

After a while, the sun's rays through the trees began to dim, and fear began to pile up in the young boy's heart. Where was he? Would he ever get home? What if his mother and father let him get lost on purpose, and they didn't want him? It was entirely possible; they had Mattie, right?

He stopped on the small dirt pathway, looking up at the overhang of leaves. The sun couldn't even be seen through them anymore, just pale, pinkish tinted clouds and fading blue sky. The young prince clenched his fists, unsure of what to do anymore when a voice forced him to turn to his left.

"Are you lost?"

~~~

By then, at that age, I'd learned a lot about faeries, or at least, what my people thought of faeries. I'd always been taught that they were cruel, heartless beings with magic inside of them, ready to hurt and harm any human that came their way, because they hated humans, and everything about us. They sometimes stole our babies at night just to eat them, or so I'd been told. And me being the child that I was, believed whatever my parents said.

~~~

His eyes snapped to the source of the voice, his heart immediately beginning to pound in his chest, fear gripping hold of him completely. The other person was another boy, slightly shorter than he, but he was different. His skin was much paler than his, almost as if he never saw the sun, and tangled, messy blond hair that fell into his sparkling, emerald eyes. His ears were slightly pointed at the ends, not terribly noticeable, but definitely there. And finally, a pair of small, translucent wings fluttered out behind him.

A faery.

The young prince swallowed heavily, terrified, afraid that he was going to be murdered by this creature and no one would ever know. He backed up hastily, accidentally tripping over one of the roots that extended out of the forest.

"I-I'm s-sorry!" the royal sputtered nervously. "I-I just…got lost! I didn't mean to! Please don't hurt me!"

The faery tilted his head curiously, a half smile on his lips, as if amused by his fear. He shook his head, and laughed with a soft voice, sounding sort of like bells.

"I'm not going to hurt you, silly. I asked if you were lost. And clearly, you are. Would you like some help finding your way out?" the faery asked, walking over to him and extending a hand. "I'm Arthur, by the way. Or at least, that's what you humans would call me."

Something about his sort of accented voice and soft smile made the young prince feel…compelled to deny his teachings. He hesitated for a long, long while as he stared at Arthur's hand, and then met his eyes. The young faery scowled a bit. "Come now, I won't bite you, curse you, or anything. Promise. They haven't even taught me that, yet. The curse part, at least."

Slowly, the other boy's hand extended, and took hold, before he was pulled to his feet. The royal dusted himself off, and smiled lightly, before saying quietly, "Thanks."

His smile widened, then. "I'm Alfred, by the way. Can I call you Artie?"

~~~

Arthur was different from anything I'd ever been taught. He was kind, and sweet, and in no ways any harm. Or at least, not physical harm. His words were something different, I'll tell you, but that's another story entirely. But he wasn't anything like what I'd always been told, just the opposite.

~~~

Arthur frowned, his rather large eyebrows furrowing a bit in irritation. "No you may not! Now come on, let's get you back before my mum comes looking for me."

"What…" Alfred began, beginning to follow the boy as he walked in one direction. "What do you mean?"

"My mum, stupid. You have a mum, don't you?" Arthur inquired, touching a tree and pausing at it, before continuing. "I can get you to the edge of the forest, will that be okay?"

Alfred nodded his head, making a small confirmation as he hopped over some of the leaves and twigs occupying the space below them. Arthur hummed a bit in response, as he finally asked, "How did you end up in the Faeries' Hollow, anyway?"

"Faeries'…Hollow?"

"Where you are right now. That's probably why you don't recognize anything. This is the Faeries' territory; humans rarely find their way over here. How did you end up here?" the faery paused and turned to him, raising a brow as if waiting for an explanation.

The young prince swallowed a bit. "Well…I decided to sneak out with the help of one of my friends, and I came into the forest, 'cause I like it here…and I usually know where I'm at. But like…I just sort of…lost my way. And then you found me."

Arthur nodded slowly, and again, hummed a bit as a response. His hums also sounded distantly like bells, which was really interesting in Alfred's opinion. The two of them walked through the thicket, before Arthur held out his hand behind him. "Here, take my hand so you won't fall behind."

Alfred knew better than to argue, and took the hand quickly, knowing, or rather, hoping, that Arthur was truly a nice faery and was really helping him out. Together, as the darkness began to slowly creep up on them, the edge of the forest came into view.

Arthur pulled Alfred ahead of him, and pointed to the opening. "Go straight through there, and you should be out. I…think you'll know where you are. But if not, you should find help."

The royal shook his head gratefully. "Thanks, Artie! I thought I was gonna die in there…"

"You're welcome, Alfred…" he paused, and bit his lip a bit, before saying softly, "Erm…hey…"

Alfred looked at him, cocking his head a bit to the side. "Huh?"

The faery boy brought his hands to his own ear, removing one of the earrings on his pointed ear, before putting it into Alfred's own hand. "There. Take this to remember me, because if you leave you might forget, so don't, alright? This is a faery gift; treasure it because if you have something belonging to a faery, they'll always owe you a favor until they get it back."

Alfred's eyes lit up a bit as he nodded his head quickly. "Okay, I'll take good care of it, I promise! I'll wear it all the time, okay? And I'll think of you whenever I feel it!"

Instead of a nod, or a hug, or a goodbye, Arthur pointed again before rushing back off into the other direction, before his mother came looking for him.

Alfred watched him go, before finally clipping the earring onto his ear, and sprinting out of the woods.

~~~

I did think of Arthur often, but slowly, as I grew up, I had to prepare to become king. My thoughts of him began to dwindle, my memories becoming deluded, and clouded. Slowly I began to forget the faery I'd met when I was ten, even though I always had the earring on. Of course, the mysterious boy with the emerald eyes always plagued my dreams at night, though, after time, a name never came with it.

~~~

"What was your name…?" the young boy sat up in his bed, looking out the window, where the moon's light spilled through the sill like milk on the table. He reached up and touched the earring, unclipping it and holding it up to the light, the sort of clouded green stone on it shimmering.

"…You said you'd owe me a favor…so what was your name…?" Alfred repeated, but of course, no response came.

Tired, he set the jewelry piece on the stand by his bed, and rolled back over, falling into sleep once again.

~~~

Little did I know nine years later, I would meet him again under the same circumstances, as before, though, for different reasons, it seemed.

~~~

A frustrated cry from the crown prince startled those inside of the castle walls, all heads turning as the youth stopped down the halls, tying back his hair. It had gotten longer over the years, as expected, and he actually sort of preferred it that way. Reaching just above his shoulders, just long enough to tie back into a small ponytail. He headed outside to the stables, grabbed his horse, affectionately named Freedom, and stormed out, despite the calls to stop from behind him.

There were so many stupid guidelines to be the king, Alfred thought bitterly as he rode to no place in particular. He could deal with all the lessons, history studies, tactical studies, and even how to have proper manners and ballroom dance, but seriously, to be getting married this early in his life? He was only nineteen! Nineteen was way young to even be considering marriage, yet his father wanted him to go ahead and get engaged, and be married soon after? It was completely idiotic, and he didn't want to deal with it!

Alfred continued riding until he got to the forest, his safe haven, his place of piece and quiet. The place he felt safe and comforted in. He hadn't been able to come in a while. Absentmindedly, he brought his hand up to touch his ear where the earring dangled, and after telling his horse to wait, he tied the reins to a tree, and trotted inside. He knew the forest like the back of his hand.

The young prince let out a quiet sigh as he stepped along the dirt, boots sinking in slightly. He smiled, hearing the leaves crunch and the twigs snap beneath him. The sounds of the animals and bugs all came together in sort of a hypnotic tune, and soon he found himself wandering off again, completely engrossed in the sounds and losing his sense of worry, and instead welcomed his sense of peace.

Alfred weaved his way through, feeling miraculously better, but still not willing to go home. The thought of getting married still sickening him to his stomach. In the midst of his travels, he found a small, secluded area full of rose bushes, just barely illuminated by the setting sun. There was a strange magic, a strange pull that compelled him to step forward. Alfred tried to stop, but continued to come closer, and closer to them, so beautiful, they were. He reached his hand out, gripping hold of one of the stems, before quickly recoiling.

"Ow!" he cried out, blood dripping from his newly punctured finger. He let out a small hiss of pain as he examined the small wound on his thumb, before suddenly feeling quite dizzy. Alfred brought his other hand to his head, covering his eye, trying to pinpoint the cause. No way the amount of blood that he lost would cause this…so why…?

He looked up at the sound of something snapping, a twig probably, but he realized the world began to fizz and fade. Alfred stumbled backwards; promptly tripping over his own feet, and reaching out for nothing, when he felt something, or someone, take his hand. He clenched his eyes shut and then opened them again, and caught the blurry outline of a figure, before everything went dark.

~~~

Whether or not Arthur helped me that day was because he owed me a favor, or because he recognized and remembered me was beyond me, but I'm really glad he did, or I'd likely be dead right now.

~~~

Alfred awoke to a slight movement, sort of a shake, and then a stinging pain.

He jolted forward from where he was laying down, letting out a cry. He was immediately pushed, or rather, shoved back down. "Hush! It's not that bad! No need to be a child about it!" the voice chided him.

Alfred looked over at him, and sitting in a chair next to the bed was a…a faery? A boy faery, with that somehow familiar tasseled blond hair, that pale complexion, the pointed ears, along with the emerald eyes, and the translucent wings. On one of his ears, there dangled a green earring, like his own, while the other remained vacant. He stared at him curiously as he dabbed his finger, and wondered how such a small puncture hurt so much being cleaned.

The faery stood up and walked over to one of the tables in the room, and found a small, glass bottle full of this pinkish colored liquid. He opened it up and took a smell out of it, before nodding and walking back. He extended it to him. "Drink," he commanded. "You need to get the toxin from that rose out of you."

"It…was toxic?" Alfred croaked, taking it, but not yet drinking it. "What…do you mean?"

The faery indicated for him to drink. "It's enchanted. While normal rose bushes aren't poisonous by any means, that one's enchanted. It's so humans like you will stay away. You did feel a pull to grab it, did you not?"

Alfred nodded slowly as he brought the bottle to his lips, before letting the drink flow down his throat. It was sort of sweet tasting, followed by a trail of bitter, and he almost coughed it up, but put a hand over his mouth to stop. He looked at the empty bottle and then back to him. "That…why I feel so weak?"

"Probably," the faery replied, taking the glass from him again, setting it back on the table. "Did you get lost again, Alfred? Or are you running away this time?"

"I'm not running away! I'm just--" he stopped short, realizing the faery had said his name. "How do you…know my name?"

He looked at him incredulously. "What do you mean, how do I know your name? You do remember me, don't you?"

Alfred looked him over, seeing him, thinking of all those dreams, those distant memories from nine years ago. He knew his face, yes, he knew his face, recognized his voice, that sweet voice sounding of bells, yet…he didn't remember his name.

"I…you're so familiar…but I can't…your name…" he brought a hand to his forehead. "Why can't I…"

"Stupid boy," the faery snapped, looking stricken, but not surprised. He watched him for a moment, and something in Alfred's face must've looked just as hurt, because his expression softened. "You must've forgotten because you've been gone for so long. You do remember that you ended up here nine years ago, right?"

Alfred nodded, closing his eyes. "Mmhm, I thought it would be fun to…to get out of the castle…and then the faery…the one I can't remember the name of…he helped me, and gave me…this…" he unclipped the earring from his ear and held it up. "It helps me keep his picture vivid in my mind…"

The faery reached out and took the earring from him, holding it next to his other one, as Alfred's eyes widened. He handed it back to him. "Do you see now?"

"You're…!" he sputtered, but still, his name wouldn't come to mind. "You're…the faery…but…I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I remember your face, your voice, what you are, but I…who you are…I can't…recall…"

"Arthur," he said simply. "Arthur is what humans would call me. Strange, haven't we had this discussion?" he smiled faintly.

"Can I call you Artie?" Alfred asked, the words slipping out before he could catch them. Arthur's stunned face drew out a laugh. "Ha! Wow, I can't believe I remembered that!"

"You're such an idiot!" Arthur retorted, hitting him upside the head, not hard, though. He turned around and crossed his arms, huffing, and unknown to Alfred, was hiding a small blush.

~~~

I don't know why I haven't said this yet; Arthur has always been beautiful. Maybe faeries were naturally beautiful, or maybe it was just him. But he's always been really, really beautiful. I don't want to use that term for a boy, but handsome doesn't seem to quite cut how strikingly amazing he is. Perhaps if I had been older upon our first meeting, I could've fallen in love earlier. But, beggars can't be choosers, I've always been told.

~~~

Alfred ceased laughing and rolled over onto his side, watching his translucent wings flutter ever so slightly. He smiled lightly as he reached out to touch them, in which Arthur turned back to him, staring at him curiously. "What are you staring at?"

The way the sun hit him through the window, it lit up his face, bringing out his eyes, sort of a shine in them. His smile widened as he rolled back over onto his back, closing his eyes again. "I never noticed this before, but you're…really beautiful."

A hot blush crept up Arthur's cheeks, this time noticeable, had Alfred opened his eyes. "W-why would you say that?"

"You just are," he complimented, and then, with a bit of effort, sat up. He stretched a bit, and let out a short cough, before tilting his head and smiling at him. "So, what are you going to do with me now?"

"Well…" Arthur began, sitting on the edge of his bed. "I talked to mother while you were asleep. She wants to meet you, or at least, the young boy who I gave my favor, to."

"And then?"

"And then we decide if we take you out of the forest, or keep you here."

Alfred tilted his head. "You have to decide whether I can go?"

Arthur shrugged a bit. "Well maybe it would be easier to decide if I knew why you're here to begin with. So start talking, if you please."

Alfred's happy expression faded, and he sighed a bit, brushing some of the stray bangs out of his hair. "It's like this. I never told you before…but see…I'm actually the crown prince of the kingdom. And well, all those years ago, I snuck out of the castle because I wanted to see the world. You ended up taking me back. So now, my dad wants me to get engaged to some princess in the kingdom over, and I don't even know her!"

The young prince flopped back down again. "I just…I'm okay with maybe getting married someday, but I wanna do it on my own terms, you know? I wanna meet someone and fall in love with them…slowly. I'll know when it's the one, but I'm not gonna know if they choose my fiancé for me! Maybe I'm being selfish…but…dad has already planned out nearly my entire life…I wanna be able to choose some things for myself, you know?"

Arthur hummed a bit in agreement, as Alfred remembered when they were children. "So…you ran away, then? Because you wanted to be free?"

"Yeah. I mean, they got Mattie, who'll be just a good, if not better ruler than me. So if I never go back, it's not like I'm leaving them without a replacement," he huffed a bit. "It's just not fair."

"Life isn't fair, love. For humans, as well as the fae," Arthur absentmindedly reached down and played with his ponytail. "Your hair looks good long, though, I distinctly remember it being shorter…and I'd have assumed you'd keep it that way…"

The royal clicked his tongue a bit, shrugging. "I dunno. I wanted to try it long, for a change. Yao always had his long, so I thought it might be cool on me."

The faery nodded, and then rose to his feet. "Well, the potion should be kicking in by now, can you walk?"

"Course!" Alfred chirped, throwing his legs over the side of the bed, where he saw his boots were sitting. He put them on and quickly laced them up, standing, and though he wobbled a bit, gave thumbs up.

Arthur smiled, and indicated for him to follow. "Let's go then."

"Yeah, time to go impress your mom."

~~~

Perhaps it was my young and carefree mind that told me that living with the faeries wouldn't be bad, or even better for me. Perhaps I was running away, because the responsibility of ruling the kingdom was all too much for me to handle, despite being prepared for it all my life. All I knew at the time was that the idea that I might have to stay seemed totally wonderful.

~~~

"So you're the boy my Arthur has told me about…"

Alfred quickly bowed his head before the faery queen herself, and then shot a look at Arthur, as if to ask, why didn't you tell me your mom was a queen? He smiled brightly at her, before raising his head. "Yes, the name's Alfred Jones, milady."

She smiled warmly in return, and then looked at Arthur. "You failed to mention what a handsome young man he's ended up being, Arthur dear."

Arthur blushed a bit, running his hand through his hair. "Mother!"

The queen laughed, waving her hand a bit, before returning her gaze to Alfred. "So tell me young man, what brings you here?"

Alfred proceeded to tell the story to her, explaining his doubts as a prince, as a son, and as a future ruler. He told her of how unfair things felt to him, despite how he knew it might be best. He knew that he was being quite selfish to make this decision without discussing it first, but it was so hard. All he wanted was to be free; he didn't need anything else.

All the while, she nodded carefully, listening to his every worry, complaint, and doubt. Alfred waited patiently when he finally stopped, sort of half expecting her to call him a selfish brat and to get out. But no, she continued to smile.

"As a youth, you are no different from most. You want freedom, to choose your own path in life. But while this nature of yours is normal, you have choices you need to make. But they're choices you must make on your own, that no one else can help you with."

He tilted his head, and the queen just laughed a bit. "So this is what I'll say. Because I know you've been waiting for this, we will neither make you leave, nor force you to stay. This will be the start of your choices. You must choose whether to stay here with the faeries, or to leave and take on the destiny that was set out for you. Know that while one may have an upside, there is always a downside, and that if there is a downside, there is always an upside to follow."

Arthur let out a quiet sigh of relief, and both sets of eyes turned to him. He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, and then nodded his head a bit. "Well then…"

With another short bow, they were dismissed, and when they left, Alfred let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. He smiled cheekily at Arthur, who rolled his eyes, and punched him playfully in the arm.

"Your mom totally likes me, Artie."

~~~

Of course, if you have too much of something, you get sick of it no matter what. So after the first few days, I'd made my choice to go home. I decided that I needed to at least face my father, tell him how I felt. If that didn't work, I didn't know what I'd do, but I'd figure it out. I always did.

~~~

"Do you…really have to go?" Arthur asked sullenly, handing the reins of the horse to Alfred, who nodded slowly in turn.

"I gotta at least talk to my dad, okay?" he sighed, shaking his head. "I have to do at least that much."

"But what if you work things out and never come back?" Arthur blurted out, and then put a hand to his mouth, a bit of red splotching his cheeks as he said them. He looked away. "S-sorry…"

Alfred's own face fell, feeling guilty for leaving now. The last time he'd left, he'd forgotten all about him, and now, after nine years, he'd finally gotten to see him again, only to see him leave. He unclipped the earring from his ear, and held it out to him. "Here."

"No, keep it. Just…in case…" he muttered, turning away.

Alfred smiled faintly, clipping the earring back on as he bent down a bit, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek, before mounting his horse, and without another word, trotted away, back homeward.

~~~

Things…never go according to plan.

~~~

"You are such an ungrateful child!" the king spat at his son. "How dare you off and leave like that, without a word to anyone! You were so irresponsible, and do you know the trouble you caused?"

Alfred winced a bit, clenching his fists and setting his jaw. "I'm sorry, father. I wasn't…thinking, clearly," he said simply, practically forcing the words out of his mouth.

"No, you weren't. That's very foolish of you, Alfred. You can't be running off and doing stupid things like you did. What if you had gotten hurt, or had gotten yourself killed? Then what of the kingdom?"

"If I'm so incapable of taking the throne, why don't you just give it to Mattie? He's a way better person than I'll ever be, and probably a better ruler, too! Who cares about stupid tradition, anyway? I don't care if I'm the oldest, if he's better for it, I give it to him!"

Before he could even blink, he felt a sudden burn, a stinging in his left cheek. He stopped, surprised, and then, hesitantly, raised his hand to his red flesh, and stared at his father with a childish innocence, one of disbelief, and not understanding.

"You will take the throne, and you will rule this land as I have. Do. You. Understand?" the king hissed lowly, his gaze narrowing.

Instead of responding, Alfred turned, and ran as fast and as far as his legs could carry him.

~~~

At the time I just wanted to get away, to run and to never go home. I didn't want to rule. I wanted to be Alfred, to be me. Part of me shut down and I just ran, ran to anywhere I could be accepted.

~~~

The riverside was the only place he could think of to go. It was safe, secluded, and he'd always come there as a child. He tied up Freedom, and sat by the river's edge, taking off his boots and slipping his feet into the water, after rolling his pant legs up. He let out a quiet sigh as he put his arms behind him, leaning back a bit. He sat like that for a few moments, and then leaned forward again, looking at his reflection in the water. Alfred felt the place where his father had slapped him, and he grimaced a bit.

All the more reason not to take the throne.

But where would he go? Where would he be accepted, be wanted? No one would think of sheltering the runaway prince, or so he thought. Surely they would send word to the castle and he'd be dragged home to be a "proper" prince. The thought sickened him, and he sighed.

"Who would ever think of keeping me around, anyway?" Alfred said allowed, to no one in particular. He smiled bitterly, splashing a bit in the water with his foot. "Nobody."

"Be careful what you say, for surely someone is always listening…"

Alfred jumped, and turned his head to look over his shoulder, then looking up a bit to see a familiar face. His somber smile turned amused, and nodded slowly.

"How was I to know you of all people would be listening, Artie?"

~~~

Perhaps running away was the worst way to handle my problems, but I didn't really care. I wanted to be someplace I was happy. Call me what you will, selfish, arrogant, whatever. But nobody should be faulted for wanting happiness in their life.

~~~

"I told you not to call me that," Arthur scowled a bit, but took a seat next to him, hugging his knees to his chest. "Things didn't go well, I presume?"

"Nah. I told my dad what was on my mind and he slapped me for it. Right here," he pointed to his cheek. "Hurt pretty bad. But now that the stinging is gone, the only thing that hurts is the fact that my old man legitimately hit me."

Arthur stared at him, appalled. "Are you serious? He hit you? My God, why would he--"

"Artie, it's okay. I don't have any regrets. I told him what I felt. I made my choice to go back, and this is how it turned out."

The faery looked reluctant. "Still…"

Alfred laughed. "That's the least of my worries. Now I just gotta figure out where to go, you know? Who will help the now runaway prince? Things will only get worse from here, really."

Arthur paused, and drew on the ground with his finger. "But…things always get better, eventually."

"Eventually."

The faery then rose to his feet, and stepped into the water, before smiling lightly. He stood on one of the stones just submerged in the water, and extended his hand, the sun pouring through, encasing him in light.

"If you're so worried then…why not come back with me? Mum already accepted you, and the fae actually missed you when you left. You can come home with us. You can be with us. We're not bad people, you've seen that. And no one will ever find you," Arthur said, and then quietly added, "Not to mention…I'd…love to have you around."

He didn't know what compelled him to stand, to walk over to him, and to take that hand, but whatever happened, he took that hand with a smile.

"I'd like that."

~~~

I made my choice. I've always been a person to believe that we had control of our destinies, whether it was set out before us prior, or written as we went along in life. I chose to change mine, to rewrite it the way I wanted it. And I think that was the most important thing. No matter how stupid my choices may have been, I did it the way my heart told me to do it, and that's the way it would stay.

When I first met Arthur, I had no idea how important he would be in my life. I was ten, too old to believe, but too young to understand. But even at ten, I knew he was special.

And now, years later, I knew why.