They were something to behold
Everyone saw it
He pulled on her curls
She pushed him down
He laughed, amused
She frowned, but smiled when she turned around
He was a year her senior
Five and six when they met
During which, they were not the best of friends
He was more like a pest
She put up with
Over years though, it grew into something more
Akin to friendship
They would go out into fields
Chasing each other
Laughter filled the space
But then there were quiet moments
When breathing was caught
And looks were shared
And words were spoken
Some deep and buried
Brought out in the open
It was in those moments
Where things shift and change
Attraction became of them
As they grew in age
But neither acted in haste
Years of friendship prevented that
Still, gazes persisted; touches lingered
Talks became more intimate
They still laughed and teased the other
Both desired more though
But he was to leave for war
And not return, by any means, in a year’s or so time
One his last day before he left
They met
In a field
And she laid on his chest
He fiddled with her hair, pulling at her curls
Smiling when she punched his abdomen
When he pulled too hard
He would miss this
Miss her
She would miss him too
They soaked up the silence of night
Not talking just enjoying the sounds of the earth
He left at dawn
When he did, she would never tell a soul
How much she cried

He did not return in year or two or three
He returned four and half long years after
And he was not the same boy he was when he left
No, he was quite a different man
His eyes did not hold the same animation
They once did
His heart seemed hardened by his years at war
Guarded, more reserved
When he saw her for the first time
It was months after his return
In a crowded market
She was not a girl
No, not the girl he left
She was a woman
As much as he was a man
She did not see him at first
Her attention was elsewhere
He walked closer but stopped
A young girl about three emerged from behind the crate
Her fingers coated in something red and sticky
Which she was trying to clean
He could have sworn his heart stopped
And maybe it did
Because his breathing seemed to have ceased
The men around him became worried
His face ashen
Body rigid with tension
When she finally turned his way
Caught his gaze
Eye wide in surprise
In recognition…
He could feel her sigh
It seemed like the world stopped
People appeared frozen but moved with time
Passing in front of them
As two individuals allowed it to stop
But soon, he was recognized
They bowed and curtsied  
Saying meaningless pleasantries
It was not until
She walked up
Did he hear anyone  
The young ******* her hip
Face in the crook of her neck
Twirling her mother’s curls in her small hand
The woman—with perfect formality—
Curtsied and addressed,
“Your majesty.”