Peasant…. Or Princess?- Chapter 4

I stood up and grabbed my sack. My face throbbed in pain. I took the pins out of my hair again and went to the marketplace. I yelled, “Guards! I need your help! I will reward you generously!” The guards who chased me before came. I explained to them what happened and what the boy looked like. They saw a boy who looked like him, chased him, and wrestled him to the ground, just like they did to me. They grabbed the tiara and part of the money that I took that I didn’t even know was there. This boy must have really searched around in my sack. They returned to me the money and the tiara.  I decided to pay the fruit-seller from whom I had stolen previously, when I didn’t know that I still had a large sum of money hidden in the bottom of my sack. I counted the money. It was an extremely large sum, and I would be able to pay the merchant and still have a lot of money left. And so I paid the merchant.

I pinned up my hair again and walked. I had absolutely no idea where I was going. I must have looked rather awful, since a woman spotted me in the crowd and came over to me. She put her hand on my face. She smelled of perfume, face cream, and face powder.  She had a beautiful dress on and her hair was braided. She appeared to be of the high-society. I think I may have seen her a few times at balls. “Oh, you poor darling,” she exclaimed. “Somebody must have beaten you quite badly. Come with me to my home. I will give you comfort, food, and shelter,” she said sympathetically. “B-But,” I stammered. I had plans to take a coach to the country and perhaps find an inn or an abandoned shack to stay. “I will not take no for an answer. You must come with me,” she said dramatically. I supposed that if one is willing to be so charitable, I should not refuse. So I joined her.

We walked along, her skirts rustling as we walked. “Who did this to you?” she asked, almost angrily.  I did not feel comfortable telling her the full story, so I simply replied, “A boy selling papers. He wanted to steal my sack.” We walked in silence to her home.

The minute we got to her home, my suspicions were confirmed: she was part of the high society. Her house was almost as grand as our palace, with gorgeous balconies and buttresses. She led me up the spiral staircase. She opened a door. “This is where you’ll be staying,” she said. “You can’t stay in those rags. Let me give you some of my son’s clothing. How old are you?” “Twelve”, I replied. “Perfect.”, she said. She went and came back with a stack of clothes, a wash basin filled with water from a stream down the road, and a bar of soap. “Here,” she said, “wash and change your clothes.” I washed and changed my clothes. The woman knocked. She came in with bandages and such and took care of my wounds. “What shall I call you?” I asked. “Mrs. Peabody. My son’s name is Caleb.”, she answered. “Now lie down and rest.” I lay down. There was a stack of books on the bedside table. I picked one up and started to read.

There was a knock on the door. “Who is it?” I yelled. “Caleb. Caleb Peabody.” a rather manly voice for a boy of twelve answered. “Come in.” A tall, strong-looking, rather handsome  boy around my age, with brown hair and blue eyes came in. “Hello.”, he said, “You’re rather small, aren’t you?” He struck me as rather pleasant, so I decided to reveal that I am a girl. “It’s because I’m not a boy.”, I said as I unpinned my hair and the thick blond hair spilled on to my shoulder. His blue eyes widened. “You’re Princess Catalina!” he exclaimed. “Yes. Yes I am. But let’s keep this our secret.”, I reply. I then tell him the whole story. He looks at me dreamily. Then he leans in. I’m confused. He kisses me. I kiss back.  That was a big surprise. I actually like him, so I don’t mind. After he breaks away, I say, “A bit young, aren’t we?” He shrugs. I take a paper and write down the address of the palace. “So you can send me letters or visit me. Momma and Papa won’t mind, since you’re part of the high society.”, I say as I hand the paper to him.

We walk downstairs. Mrs. Peabody introduces me to everybody. When she introduces me to Caleb, I say, “I’ve already met him.” and wink at him. We both laugh. Mrs. Peabody looks bewildered, but she doesn’t question why we’re laughing.