That's What I'm Looking For...

Lately I've been wrestling with a question.

Well, not just lately. I've been struggling with this question for a long time now. It's just recently, after writing a play about a love story and then walking through a breakup shortly after, that I've actually had the time to really ponder this conundrum all over again. That question is this...

What is love?

I know the typical answer, from a Christian perspective, is that "God is love." That's true, and I treasure that truth in my heart. But at the moment I'm talking about romantic love. I've been turning it over and over in my mind, and I just keep coming up short. I've even interviewed people I know on the subject, asking questions about how they and their significant other met and when they "knew" this was the person they'd spend the rest of their life with.

Was it a bolt of lightning or writing on the wall? Was it some magical fuzzy feeling, or something they said? Was it a particular list of things they had in common?

The evidence I've found has been...inconclusive at best. Everyone's story is different. All lovely, all perfectly orchestrated by God in his perfect timing. But all different.

Today, when I was asking God more questions, he placed my favorite book series on my heart. I haven't touched its pages in months, which is unusual for me. Over the years it seems I've constantly gone back to that one series to find deeper wisdom, and allowed God to speak to my heart from it.

That series is Dragons in our Midst by Bryan Davis.

Today God brought to mind two specific quotes from that series. Quotes that I used to have memorized, and yet now had almost totally forgotten. Apparently, I needed a refresher.

Boy, did I ever.

The first quote is from Tears of a Dragon (Dragons in our Midst, Book 4, pages 103,105)

When it comes to being a godly wife someday, this quote always convicts me, because these are points that involve patience, and I am not good at that. But I'm growing, and I have a feeling I'll keep coming back to this passage as I do.

And not only does this apply to being a godly wife, but as a sister, a daughter, and a friend, too.

    Bonnie glanced around at all the quiet activity. "Isn't anyone going with Walter?" she asked. "He looked really upset."
    Marilyn spread one arm around Ashley and one around Bonnie. "There's something I've learned about men. They're indispensable. Well, not all men, I suppose, but at least the good ones. In one way, they're fiercely independent, holding their own beliefs and passionately following visions that no one else can see. They need time alone to gather their thoughts, seek God's counsel, and get reenergized. But, when they get back together, they lay aside their differences and forge an unbreakable unit, like a single sword that rips through their enemies with furious rage."
    Ashley pulled away from Marilyn's embrace. "I think I understand what they're feeling. I'd like to be alone for a while, too." She strolled toward the trees, waving behind her. "I'll be back."
    Marilyn kept her arm around Bonnie. "Looks like it's you and me, kid."

(Skipping down a little bit to where the conversation picks up again)

    (Marilyn) wrapped her arms around her legs and pulled them closer. "Trials change a man, you know. They make a godly man stronger, wiser, a better leader, and, believe it or not, more humble."
    Marilyn nodded toward Billy. He was shining the pendant's light on a page of Fama Regis, carefully studying the glowing letters. The light flashed back into his face, trimming his skin in scarlet and brushing his hair with reddish highlights. Bonnie smiled. Billy looked more like his father than ever before.
    "Whatever you do, Bonnie, give him room to be a leader. Give him time to fill out his masculine frame, always supporting him with love and encouragement. If he drags himself home from a defeat on the battlefield, impatient nagging will just cut his legs from under him, but an encouraging word will puff his chest out and make him charge back into battle. He needs a woman to inject him with power and purpose, because a good man draws his sword for only one reason, to protect his wife and children."
    Another tingle raced across Bonnie's skin, and her heart thumped. Her soul drank in the words as Marilyn continued.
"The mind-numbing complaints of a shrieking shrew will pour acid in his cuts and squeeze dry his masculine energy. But the tender hands of a loving wife will salve his wounds and open the floodgates to power from above."

This conversation totally put things in perspective for me. And it opened my eyes to the fact that I handled so many things incorrectly in my past relationships. I love how beautifully this is worded, and I ache to be this kind of person so desperately. To be the kind of woman who lifts up the men in her life, and infuses them with the strength and energy to charge onto the spiritual battle field.

The other thing I've learned about love from this series, though, is that being a godly wife first requires the commitment of a godly man. That's where the next passage comes in. Without a doubt, this is my favorite conversation in any book I've ever read, and the pages of this chapter are worn to prove it. These words always bring a smile to my face and light a flame within me, spurring me on to wait for a man who will see me this way.

This passage is from The Bones of Makaidos (Oracles of Fire, Book 4, pages 483-485)

    Clearing his throat and hoping to keep his voice steady, he said, "So does that mean you don't want to marry me?" He cringed. Was that too bold?
    (Bonnie's) face displayed half amusement and half anguish. "No, no. That's not it at all. I just want to know that I don't have to marry you. I want us both to be sure that we want to. If you love me, I want you to pursue my heart with your courage, your kindness, and your godly manner. And I want to freely give my heart to you in love, not by compulsion because of a prophecy that seems to chain us together without a choice."
    As she continued, tears streamed down both cheeks. "Ever since Someone labeled me as the prophetic virgin bride, I was okay with it, because you're such a great guy, but it felt like an arranged marriage. We didn't have any choice. Then, when I heard that the prophesy might not be for us, I felt free. I didn't have to marry you if I didn't want to."
    She caressed his cheek, her voice shaking. "But that's a good thing, Billy. If we really do get married, neither one of us will ever wonder about being bound by someone else's words, a predestined edict that denies our free will and forces us to obey its irresistible decree. Instead we can come together by a choice to love that is free and resistible, because if we aren't able to choose to walk away from each other, then our coming together wouldn't be because of love at all, would it?"
    As she drew back her hand, a torrent of conflicting emotions flooded his mind. She was so right. Being bound like that wouldn't be love. Freedom to choose a life partner was the basis of love in the first place. Being dragged by fiat into a relationship would be nothing more than bondage. Still, not knowing for sure that he would forever be with this amazing girl nearly tore him apart. Finally, he squeezed out a reply. "I...I think you're right. But it's scary. It was kind of..." He paused. The words had to be just right. "It was comfortable, I guess, knowing that you would be in my future. I didn't have to guess what was going to happen."
    Her fists clenched in her lap. "But I don't want you to be comfortable. I want you to win my heart. I want you to fight for me, sweat for me, bleed for me. I want you to know that you had to pay a valuable price for me, and that I am a treasure in your mind, not a trophy that was handed to you because of a divine proclamation."
    Billy looked into her fiery eyes. She had been bold, confident, and true. Again, she was right, and he couldn't say a word.
    She laid her palms on her chest, covering the sunburst on her uniform. Then, slowly, ever so slowly, she extended her arms, her palms up. "Here is my heart, Billy. It's yours if you want it. But you have to buy it. And since it's the most valuable possession I have, it will be very expensive."
    He glanced between her palms and her pleading eyes. "How much will it cost me?"
    With a quivering smile, she wept through her words. "Everything. It will cost you your life, your devotion, your commitment to love me for the rest of your life till death do us part." Sniffing back a sob, she added, "But don't answer now. I don't want words. Show me. Show me that you'll pay the price for my heart, and I'll show you that it's worth every drop of sweat and blood you spend."
    Billy cupped his hand over her palms, making a covering for her "heart." Firming his jaw, he pushed every ounce of energy he had into his voice, giving it strength, yet a sense of calmness, like a lighthouse in the midst of a storm. "Watch me, Bonnie. We have battles ahead. We have enemies to conquer. And we have women and children to protect from some of the greatest evils imaginable. But I will not neglect this mission. I will show you how much you mean to me, how precious your heart is to mine. And when you see how much I'm willing to pay, then you can decide if it's enough to buy what is priceless."

The very idea of a man ever loving me this much is unfathomable to me. Honestly, I could type up this entire series scene by scene for examples of beautiful godly relationships. I've been reading about these characters since the 5th grade, and I've gotta tell you, even though the men in these books are far from perfect, they set the standard at an early age.

I don't want to settle.

Not when it comes to being a godly woman. Not when it comes to finding a godly man. And definitely not when it comes to building a godly marriage.

I have this list. It's the typical "I Need A Guy Who..." list that every girl makes when waiting for her husband to come along. Mine has well over fifty points to it so far. But God convicted me about that a few months ago.

"You only need one," he said. "Let me give it to you."

So, I opened my heart, and he did. That one standard is this...

"Can I serve God better with this man by my side than I can without?"

This hit me so hard. Especially when I realized that, so far, for every guy I've ever dated, the answer was no. Every single one.

Honestly, though, it's not their fault. The realm of ministry I'm in is so, so hard. It's the type of ministry that you can't really get away from when you go home. I'm painstakingly aware that the guy God sends my way is going to have to be prepared for so many things, and he's going to have to put up with having a crazy theatre ministry director as a wife. I get it, that is not normal. He's going to have to be very special and unique, and I'm counting on it. I won't settle for anything less.

So...if my future guy happens to be reading this...

Here's my heart.

It's yours if you want it. But you have to buy it. And since it's the most valuable possession I have, it will be very expensive. It will cost you everything. Your life, your devotion, your commitment to love me for the rest of your life till death do us part. But don't answer me now. I don't want words. Show me. Show me that you'll pay the price for my heart, and I'll show you that it's worth every drop of sweat and blood you spend.

Four Literary Friendzones That Actually Turned Out Okay

Hello, readers and fellow bloggers of the world!

So, I've been hearing a lot of negativity on this all-so-horrible subject called "the Friendzone" lately, and from someone who has personally experienced it, I've decided to speak up.  I truly feel like it's not as big of a deal as you're all making it out to be.  I mean, I hate to say you're wrong but...

You're wrong.

Come on, don't go marching off and telling me I don't understand.  I promise, I do!  I know what it feels like to be in that bubble of "Gosh, I like this person a lot, and I'm never even going to get to show it."  But, even though it can be kind of horrible and confusing, I've learned something incredibly important through those experiences...

By trusting the friendzone, we're basically denying our trust in God.

Now, don't get me wrong.  I know the "just friends" bubble exists.  But I also know this:

God created the stars in a day, created everything good and beautiful in this world, and yet for some reason we seem to think he can't turn a lovely friendship into something more.  He most definitely CAN do that.  But only by his will, and only in his timing.  If we can't trust him with that much, how are we ever going to trust him at all?

I feel like Jamie Grace's song, Just Friends, says it best...

Father I will place this in your hands

You know me and all my crazy plans

Humbly I surrender this to you

So I'll keep dreaming, you keep coming through

I know you see what I don't see

So I'll be just a friend, I'll be just a friend

I know that I will be happy

Even if we're just friends, I'll be just a friend

I guess that's that

To be honest, I'm a strong believer that the friendzone is actually one of the healthiest ways to begin a relationship.  If you want to know more on why I think the "Dreaded Friendzone" is actually important, check out the blog post here.

Basically, what it comes down to is that most of the things we desire in this world take wisdom and discernment in order to be cared for properly.  But they also take something else, which is the reason for the clock in that picture up there.

Patience.

Believe me, I'm preaching mostly to myself here.  If something is in God's will, it will happen, but only in his timing.  Sometimes his timing takes a little while, sometimes a lot of while.  Either way, good things come to those who wait, and that's the lesson I took away with me from the books below.

So, after that entirely long intro... Because of my extreme love for the written word, I have hand picked with care some of my favorite fictional couples that display the friendzone in a positive light.  I hope it inspires you and helps you see the beauty of what it can become, instead of just the "sorrow" of what it is.

Without further ado...in no particular order...here's a little hope for your week.

Annabeth and Percy from Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan

Her first words to him were "you drool when you sleep", they competed and teased each other to no end, and almost lost their lives countless times before finally noticing how much they had grown to care about each other.  Even then, their friendship always came first, and they would do anything (and have done everything) to make sure the other one is alright.  Not even Greek/Roman warfare or a walk through Tartarus could separate these two Camp Half-Blood regulars.

"Put your cap back on," I said.  "Get out!"

"What?"  Annabeth Shrieked.  "No!  I'm not leaving you."

"I've got a plan.  I'll distract them.  You can use the metal spider - maybe it'll lead you back to Hephaestus.  You have to tell him what's going on."

"But you'll be killed!"

"I'll be fine.  Besides, we've got no choice."

Annabeth glared at me like she was going to punch me.  And then she did something that surprised me even more.  She kissed me.

"Be careful, Seaweed Brain."  She put on her hat and vanished.

I probably would've sat there for the rest of the day staring at the lava and trying to remember what my name was but the sea demons jarred me back to reality. 

Emma and Mr. Knightly from Emma by Jane Austen

He knew her and loved her since she was practically a baby.  She considered him her dear friend who was sometimes a little too honest.  Their friendship was a roller coaster, filled with her dizzy, romantic schemes for her friends, and him trying to get her out of trouble.  But no matter how big of a mistake she made, he was always the one to love her just as she was.  I love this story, because the two people who thought themselves the most difficult person to love, ended up finding love in each other.

Emma was almost ready to sink under the agitation of this moment.  The dread of being awakened from the happiest dream, was perhaps the most prominent feeling.

'I cannot make speeches, Emma:' - he soon resumed; and in a tone of such sincere, decided, intelligible tenderness as was tolerably convincing. - 'If I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more.  But you know what I am. - You hear nothing but truth from me. - I have blamed you, and lectured you, and you have borne it as no other woman in England would have borne it. - Bear with the truths I would tell you now, dearest Emma, as well as you have borne with them.'

Note: The quote is from the book, but the picture is from the web-series, Emma Approved, which is most definitely worth checking out.

Walter and Ashley from the Dragons in our Midst series by Bryan Davis

When they met she was a hired genius in a science lab, and much too old for his childish ways and endless humor.  Just a few years later, he's still just as annoyingly optimistic and sarcastic as ever, but it doesn't seem to matter as much to her any more.  He's rescued her and his friends on several occasions, and proven himself to be a man of real integrity.  Maybe he wasn't so obnoxious after all.  In fact, Ashley thinks, maybe she's the one who needs to loosen up and trust in his friendship that has been so constant all this time.

Tears welled in her eyes again.  She tried to swallow back the surge of emotion, but it leaked out through her trembling voice.  "Walter...you know what I said about you and me?"  She rubbed her thumb along his finger.  "Maybe someday.  ...I mean, when we're older."  Her cheeks flushed hot, and she shook her head.  "I guess I'd better shut up.  I'm getting all sappy."

Setting Excalibur on the steps, Walter rose to his feet and pulled Ashley to hers, keeping their hands locked together as he gazed into her eyes.  "Listen carefully.  We're going to find your brother, your sister, and even your father, and put your family back together.  Then, someday when I'm old enough to learn to be at least half the man your father must have been, I might come knocking at his door and speak to him about a lovely princess I'd like to have a lot more adventures with."

Her tears now flowing, Ashley laid a hand on his cheek.  It was hot and damp.  "Walter, I... I don't know what to say."

"Then don't say anything.  We have at least a few years between now and then."  He picked up Excalibur and hurried down the stairs.  "We'd better get going." 

Anne and Gilbert from Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

Smashing a school black board over someone's head isn't exactly the crowning way to start a relationship, but it seemed to work out for this pair.  In fact, I would go as far as saying that Gilbert Blythe is the KING of the friendzone.  Anne shunned him to no end, even after they became friends.  And yet, even after all she put him through and all the times she turned him down, he remained dedicated to her in friendship and "would not be sidetracked".  He knew she was the only one he could love, and so he waited patiently and respectfully for several years until she could find it within herself to love him too.  This is my favorite friendzone example.  I could have used any number of scenes as a sample of these characters, but I chose this one specifically because it's the first time Anne finds the notion within herself that there could be something more with Gilbert, and I think it's worded brilliantly.

"Yes, it's beautiful," said Gilbert, looking steadily down into Anne's uplifted face, "but wouldn't it have been more beautiful still, Anne, if there had been NO separation or misunderstanding... If they had come hand in hand all the way through life, with no memories behind them but those which belonged to each other?"

For a moment Anne's heart fluttered queerly and for the first time her eyes faltered under Gilbert's gaze and a rosy flush stained the paleness of her face.  It was as if a veil that had hung before her inner consciousness had been lifted, giving to her view a revelation of unsuspected feelings and realities.  Perhaps, after all, romance did not come into one's life with pomp and blare, like a gay knight riding down; perhaps it crept to one's side like an old friend through quiet ways; perhaps it revealed itself in seeming prose, until some sudden shaft of illumination flung athwart its pages betrayed the rhythm and the music, perhaps...perhaps...love unfolded naturally out of a beautiful friendship, as a golden-hearted rose slipping from its green sheath.

Well, I hope you enjoyed this attempt at a little sunshine in the middle of what is usually a negative subject.  And I hope even MORE so that you'll check out all these books for yourselves.  They're really fantastic!

Thanks for reading!  God bless!

Bits and Pieces: First Look At The Shepherd's Eye!

*SPOILER ALERT*
-
-
If you don't want anything from my book to be given away, read no further!
-
-
*SPOILER ALERT*

Recently I've had some more free time on my hands, which has resulted in a lot more writing in the sequel to The Iridian Dagger.  To celebrate the fact that my very first book signing event is tomorrow (woohoo!), I decided to finally release an excerpt from The Shepherd's Eye, which will be the title of the second book in my Fluents and Shadows series!  Happy reading!

“Maggie, have you heard from James and Shane yet?” Sam entered the kitchen and found Maggie at the counter. They had only been at Shane’s vacation home for a little over a month, but everyone had settled in fairly fast. Maggie still missed her beautiful library back in Minnesota, but Tennessee held the huge plus of much warmer weather. 

“No, I haven’t. I’m kind of worried about them, actually.” She turned around holding a small pot and a wooden spoon. “Mac and cheese?” 

Sam shook his head and laughed. “Do you usually eat when you’re worried?” 

She spoke through a mouth full of macaroni. “Not until recently.” 

“I thought you were a stress reader, not a stress eater.” 

“Well, it turns out I’m both.” She had barely even finished speaking before she was shoving another spoonful into her mouth. “Have you tried calling them?” 

“Yes, but it won’t patch me through. I tried James’s phone and Shane’s, but both just send me right to voicemail.” 

Maggie set down the pot and spoon to check her phone. “It’s not like both of their phones could have died at the same time.” 

“Have they tried getting ahold of you at all? I’ve found that for some reason Shane always contacts you first.” Sam looked up at her as she continued to scroll through text messages and missed calls, waiting for her to notice. 

Finally, she recognized the silence and met his smirking eyes. “What’s so funny?” Cheese dust covered the counter, so she brushed it off before sitting down on top of it. 

“Oh, nothing.” He turned to retrieve a glass and filled it with water. 

“You’re just jealous that Shane finally has a close friend other than just you.” She sent back the same teasing smile. She and Shane had been spending a lot of time together while working on the tracking device, and Sam had been stuck with the paperwork. The Light Keepers had made him the main contact for their rag-tag group, and that meant sending a lot of documents, and making a lot of phone calls. 

Flashing lights filled the house. Alarms echoed through every hall. Sam and Maggie jumped with shock at the unexpected outburst of noise. Before Maggie could ask what was going on, the alarms ceased and an automated voice came through. “Incoming call from Shane Mitchel. Accept or decline?” 

“Accept!” Sam and Maggie shouted in unison. 

“Call accepted. Connection in progress. One moment please.” 

Three short beeps sounded, and then fuzzy crackling could be heard over the speaker system. “Shane, are you there?” Sam shouted over the buzz. 

“Perfect Pizzas, may I take your order?” Shane’s classic sarcasm made his identity clear, but his voice sounded a bit shaken. 

Sam shook his head. “Shane, I told you only to use this line in case of emergency! What are you doing?” 

“Oh, believe me, Sam. This is definitely an emergency. I think James is going crazy.” This time he sounded seriously anxious. 

James’s voice came from the background, shouting from a distance. “I’m not crazy, Shane, I can really hear it! The voice…it’s getting louder.” 

“Voice?” Maggie’s eyes narrowed. “What voice is he talking about?” 

Shane came through again. “That’s the thing, I have no clue. I can’t hear anything, and neither can anyone around us. We’re stuck in a traffic jam the size of Texas, the sky has gone completely black with clouds, and no one seems to know why. I was hoping to see if Maggie’s friend could tell us anything.” 

Maggie hopped down off the counter. “I’m on it, Shane.” As soon as she spoke Malachi appeared in front of her. She walked through the house, hoping to get somewhere quieter. Thanks to the speaker system, Shane’s voice was coming through all over the place. 

“Thanks, Maggie. Let me know as soon as you know anything.” 

Maggie locked eyes with Malachi, her guardian angel and constant companion. “Did you hear all that?” This house was older than Shane’s house in Madeline Island, and the floor creaked with proof as she walked along. 

He nodded. “I did. It definitely does not sound like the making of a good situation.” 

Her thoughts went to the certainty in James’s voice. He hadn’t sounded insane or out of sorts. She could always tell when he wasn’t thinking straight because his tone of voice changed. His voice over the phone had sounded perfectly normal. A little stressed, but still normal. “Well, what do you think could be causing this?” Reaching the den, Maggie finally slowed her pace. “I know James isn’t imagining things.” 

“Yes, I heard your thoughts about his vocal stability. I do have one idea as to what could be causing this, but I am not positive.” He sat down next to Maggie, who had planted herself on a leather sofa near the center of the room. 

“We’ll take anything you’ve got. Just give us a picture of what we might be up against.” 

His partially transparent head shook back and forth. “I cannot do that unless I know for sure what we are dealing with. Tell Shane to alert us as soon as James sees anything.”  

Maggie stood and began walking around the room. “Shane, can you hear me in here?”  

“Copy that, Book Worm. Mr. Techie hears you loud and clear.” 

Maggie released a sigh. “Nice job sounding official, but now is not really the time.” 

“Sorry. I couldn’t help it. What did you find out?” 

“Malachi is hesitant to release the information this soon. He said to alert us the minute James sees anything out of the ordinary.” The floor creaked once more as she stood to go back to the kitchen with Sam, but Shane’s voice stopped her before she could take another step. 

“In that case, he might as well just tell us right now.” His voice shook. 

Maggie looked at one of the speakers above her as though it would help Shane see her worried expression. “Shane…what do you mean?” 

A long pause ensued in which Maggie could hear Shane and James’s voices going back and forth. She couldn’t make out anything they were saying, but she had a pretty good idea it involved James seeing something weird. The urge to intervene and ask what in the world was going on was overwhelming, but she restrained herself. Whatever they were trying to figure out, any interruption would only frustrate them more. As they mumbled on over the speaker system, Maggie once again began walking back toward the kitchen. 

Right as she spotted Sam at the counter, a sharp yell caused the speakers to fuzz.“They’re falling from the sky!” 

That was James! Maggie thought. 

“What is, James?” Sam inquired. 

Before James could answer, Shane’s shouting voice echoed through the kitchen. “Yow! Something just bit me!” 

“Will someone please tell me what’s going on?” Sam was pleading now. 

“I don’t know, I couldn’t see anything. It definitely felt bigger than a mosquito though.” 

“I saw it!” James exclaimed. “It was a snake of some kind. Any ideas, Sam?” 

Sam looked white as a sheet. “What, uh, what did it look like?” 

“Black with a metallic shimmer, and a flair around its head that popped out like some lizards have.” 

“What color was the flair?” 

“Reddish-orange.  And I’m pretty sure it had horns too!” 

He gripped the counter behind him with both hands, eyes wide. “James, you and Shane need to get out of there right now!”

Bits and Pieces: Have-Not's Alley

As you may have noticed, I didn't put out a Tidbit Tuesday blog post last week.  After considering my crazy lifestyle, I realized that scheduling out my blog might not be the best idea.  Especially because I won't always have a bit of story in mind to post anyway.  So, I've decided to rename this segment "Bits and Pieces", and use it to post my favorite bits of reading or writing on any given day, not just Tuesdays.

Today I've chosen an excerpt from a novel that I started writing during NaNoWriMo in 2013.  I've always had this obsession with fairytales, but I'm always bothered by how perfect the characters are made to be.  Nobody is actually perfect, so I decided it might be fun to create a fairytale with characters who have faults, make mistakes, and need to be brought back down to earth sometimes.  That's what this scene is all about.  

That, and I really like the character Christopher.  I always imagine him having a Scottish accent and that makes me super happy.

Enjoy!

The less public way into town was the path through Have-Not's Alley that I usually took to get around, and although it normally remained pretty empty, today it was packed with people.  On holidays like this one, the back alleys of the town were used by immigrants and poor folk as a grand mall of sorts.  The narrow, filthy streets were crowded with beggars, buyers, and even some carts for vendors.  It seemed every single person in the entire village was out enjoying the festivities, or even just taking advantage of the good moods of the people. 

I lifted the hood on my cloak so that no one would recognize me as the Prince and beg for my assistance (or wealth), and concentrated on looking at my feet.  I knew these streets better than I knew the castle, so navigating them with my head down did not prove to be much of a challenge...until...

Someone was following me.  Someone in a green cape, who also had their hood down over their eyes.  Every time I stopped or took the slightest hesitation, they would stop as well and pretend to look at one of the items that was for sale.  But I could tell they weren't just shopping, whoever they were, because every time I stopped they appeared a little bit closer than before..

I began to pick up speed, trying to be subtle about it.  My strange shadow picked up speed as well.  This was good.  Now I could hear their footsteps amidst the crowd.  The faster I walked, the louder their steps became.  My heart elevated in rhythm, pounding in my chest like a drum.  Finally, I made up my mind to find out who my new "secret" watcher was. 

I broke into an all-out run, navigating the city's back streets with little hesitation.  Just as I hoped, my shadow ran to match my speed.  My timing would have to be perfect if this was going to work. To my right was a line of buildings, the back sides of town shops and stores with around five or six feet of space in between each one.   I waited until the person behind me was lined up with one of these small alleyways between buildings, then I turned and pounced.  Quick as a coiled snake I pushed the person up against the building, pinned them to the wall with my arm across their collarbone, and tore the hood off their head to reveal...

"Christopher?"

"Hello, Daniel.  Fancy seeing you here."  He grinned sheepishly as I looked on in bewilderment.  "Um...Could you let me go now?"

I did as he asked, taking a step back and finally allowing myself to catch my breath.  Adrenaline still coursed through me, causing my lungs to shake with my hasty inhale, exhale rhythm.  "Christopher...you scared the living day lights out of me!"  I panted between sentences.  "What were you thinking?  I could have killed you!"

"Well, thank you for not doing that.  I really, really appreciate it.  And I was thinking about how your parents would have my head on a gold platter if I didn't follow you.  By the way, your dad is extremely scary sometimes!"

"Oh, I know."  I muttered.

"What are you doing creeping around in the back alleys of the village like a peasant?  It’s dangerous for you to be down here in the slums." 

"I have been training in swordsmanship and combat since I could walk.  I think I would be fine, Chris." 

Then he gave me that look.  That one look that always meant he was about to say something wise in a way only Christopher could.  "Daniel...Prince Daniel...have you ever stopped to consider if something did happen to you?  What if you were ambushed and perished in some awful way.  Your father is not getting any younger.  And your mother is wise, but she cannot rule a kingdom on her own.  The next in line for the throne after Your Highness is Blake, and we both know that would be disastrous.  So, excuse me if I worry about you, Daniel, but I am your friend, and I want you to succeed your father more than anything."

The seriousness in his eyes caused my confidence to crumble.  I held out my arm, and he grasped it heartily.  "I apologize, Chris.  I did not know I was worrying you so.  I will try not to be this careless and self-thinking from now on.  Will that please you?"

He smiled gently and nodded.  "Very much, Prince Daniel.  Thank you for considering my plea."

I released my hand and looked down the alley toward the main streets.  They were filled with flowers, ribbons, and costumes in a rainbow of colors.  "Well, I say we attend the festival.  What say you?"

His smile grew.  "Yes, Prince Daniel."  Then, after bowing deeply, he took off toward the festival at a run.