Alexander was surprised by the way the people in the room were looking at him. He didn’t understand why everyone was behaving oddly, especially around this marriage thing. Was he banned from marrying anyone? His gaze shifted to his mother and she had the same look on her face. She had to blink twice to confirm that it was really Alexander who said those words.

Out of all the people present in the room, only Lord Richard knew why Alexander was acting this way. He slapped his forehead in disappointment. He had forgotten to inform them, especially the queen about his memory loss. Where could he even start. And how would everyone take it? His gaze shifted to the queen and saw disbelief written all over her face. He thought she looked cute and a naughty memory flashed in his mind making him to grin. But this was not the time nor the place to reminicize on such memories.

"And who do you want to marry?" A court official asked.

"Well. I guess my mother here has someone in mind," he said scratching his back nervously.

Queen Victoria felt like bursting in tears. Was this the same Alexander she knew or was her mind playing tricks on her. She blinked for the nth time and it was indeed Alexander standing in front of him. But since the moment he stepped into the throne hall, she felt something about him had greatly changed. Something she couldn’t put her finger on. And the more she thought about it, the more her fear of the unknown grew, and she knew it won’t be long before the long buried secrets were uncovered. That made her to swallow nervously.

"Mother? Are you alright?" Alexander asked, pulling her back to reality. She smiled nervously and gave him a small nod.

"You’ll marry Princess Roselyn then. She will be more than happy to hear this," Queen Victoria stated.

"Alright," Alexander nodded. "Inform me once everything is planned."

"You’ll get married as soon as the coronation is over." Queen Victoria added. The court officials nodded in agreement. This would be a busy week indeed.

"I’ll take my leave now," Alexander said and stalked out of the room.

Lord Richard was conflicted now. He knew Alexander never liked Roselyn. Why then did he consent to this marriage? He knew the old Alexander would not have wanted this, and so was the late king. Queen Victoria acted this way because she thought of her son’s happiness. She had always said that Roselyn would be the woman to bring happiness to his son, even going to the heights of betrothing the two, though with a lot of resistance. But with her title as queen and her authority as Alexander’s mother, she was able to make it happen. And now that Alexander had lost most of his recent memories, Lord Richard was afraid he would consent to everything his mother told him. He had to do something. He didn’t want Alexander to make a decision he would regret in the future.

"I have to look for Roselyn now. I can’t wait to see how happy she’ll be when I disclose the good news to her," Queen Victoria said in excitement.

*******

It was already evening when Roselyn and her father met. The darkness had started to crawl in and the torches in the Valorian palace had already been lit. Roselyn was seating across the parlor with her father. The silence between them, ominous. Her father was throwing that calculating look at her and she could only guess what was going inside his mind.

"Are you happy being here, with Alex?" He asked breaking the ominous silence. Roselyn lifted her face to look at her father but averted it immediately after looking at his blue eyes.

"Yes," she replied, her gaze darting everywhere else but him.

"Look at me Roselyn." He demanded. Roselyn did now want to look at him. Her father’s eyes was her weakness. "I said look at me!" He demanded, his voice a bit louder now making her to stiffen. She slowly lifted her face and their gazes locked. Those blue eyes! She felt like an open book whenever he looked at her. It was as if he could see through you and unveil the most darkest and deepest secrets within you.

"Don’t lie to me Roselyn. I know what it feels like to love someone who don’t love you back," he said, assuming a softer voice now.

Roselyn gazed at his blue eyes intensely. Did he really know the pain? No, he didn’t. If he did, he could understand what she was going through right now, not scolding her.

"No, you don’t understand father," she said looking at her hands now. "It’s like...." She couldn’t even find the right word to describe how it felt. She could not hold the stinging tears anymore and let them wash over her face. She didn’t care about anything now. She wanted to cry her heart out. Maybe this would ease the pain. "I love him father. But he doesn’t. What did I do wrong?" She sobbed again.

Her father drew her in her arms. Seeing his daughter hurting because of a man was the last thing he wanted. Besides, there were many men out there. Alexander was not the only one. He patted her back and let her rest on the crook of his neck, just like the old days.

"I understand Roselyn. That’s why I want you to get out of here. Come back to Arcadia with us. You don’t belong here." Roselyn pulled from the hug surprised by the words her father had said.

Could she really go back to that place? It was better staying away from someone who hurt you than seeing him everyday, flirting with other women at that. That was what hurt her the most. Especially that maid! How could she, a princess, be chosen over a maid? The only solution to this unending pain was to go back her maternal home. Yes! She would follow her parents and leave Valoria for good.

"I’m coming with you father."