The Knight of Avalon
Chapter 11

We spent some time in the stable, sharing funny stories of falling off horses and laughing at our own misadventures. The horses seemed to enjoy our company, their ears perking up as we recounted our tales. After some time, we said goodbye to the horses and headed back to the palace. “I wonder what the boys did while we were out,” Princess Amity said as we entered the palace grounds. The warm glow of the sun cast a golden hue on the magnificent structure, making it look even more enchanting than before. “I wonder what the boys did while we were out,” Princess Amity said as we entered the palace.

When we entered the palace, we looked around for the boys but couldn’t replace them anywhere. I approached one of the servants and asked if he had seen them. He informed us that they were in the garden but didn’t mention anything about what they were doing. Curious about their whereabouts, Princess Amity and I made our way towards the garden. As we approached, we heard the sound of laughter and playful chatter coming from within. “I wonder what they’re up to,” Princess Amity said with a mischievous glint in her eye.

When we stepped through the garden gates, we were greeted with a flurry of snowballs whizzing past us. I quickly ducked to avoid getting hit in the face, while Princess Amity giggled and dodged the snowballs with ease. “What are you two up to?” Princess Amity asked, amused. The princes laughed, and Prince Frost gestured to the snow forts they had built. “We’ve been having a snowball fight for the past hour,” he said. “And we even built our own forts to protect ourselves from each other’s attacks.”

“Why don’t you two join us?” Prince Frost suggested hurling a snowball in my direction. With a grin, I turned to Princess Amity and asked, “What do you say? Shall we team up, your highness?” She smirked and replied, “You read my mind.” We quickly scurried to a corner to construct our own fort, with Prince Frost creating two snowmen to aid our defense.

Once our fort was built, we crouched behind it, strategizing our next move. The boys had already amassed a large pile of snowballs, and Prince Frost also has his snow powers, so we knew we had to be careful. I peeked over the wall of our fort to see where they were positioned, and just as I did, a snowball grazed my cheek. “Hey, watch it!” I called out to them. They just laughed and continued to pelt us with snowballs. Princess Amity and I returned fire, launching snowballs back at them as fast as we could. The snowmen proved to be useful allies, deflecting some of the incoming snowballs.

As the battle raged on, I saw that Prince Frost’s snow powers were becoming stronger. He was able to create larger snowballs and even launch them with precision towards our fort. “We have to do something about Frost’s powers,” I said to Princess Amity. She nodded in agreement, and we quickly came up with a plan. I signaled to the snowmen, and they moved towards the boys’ fort, distracting them with their silly antics. Meanwhile, Princess Amity and I quietly sneaked around the back of the fort, out of sight of the boys. When we were in position, I whispered to her, “Ready? On three.” We both nodded, and I counted down. “One... two... three!”

We jumped up from our hiding spot and launched a flurry of snowballs directly at the boys. They were caught off guard and were unable to defend themselves against our surprise attack. Within minutes, we had taken over their fort and declared victory, cheering and high-five each other as we basked in the glow of our triumph. As we stood there, basking in our victory, we could hear the boys laughing and congratulating us on our successful attack. “You’ve got us good,” Prince Thomas said, grinning. “Yeah, we didn’t see that one coming,” Prince Frost added. “We didn’t stand a chance against you.” “Well, we had excellent allies,” I said, patting one of the snowmen on the head. “We couldn’t have done it without them.” Princess Amity chimed in, “And without each other. We make a pretty good team.” We all agreed and took a moment to catch our breath and admire the snow-covered garden. The sun had set by now, and the moon shone brightly, casting a silvery glow over the snow.

“I’ve got an idea,” Princess Amity said. “Why don’t we eat dinner outside tonight, but instead of all the fancy food, we can eat S’mores?” “Yes,” Prince Thomas chimed in, “it’ll be just like when we were kids and had that sleepover.” I could see the concern in Prince Frost’s eyes, and he shot me a pleading look that seemed to say, “Help me, please.” But I didn’t have the heart to say no to such a fun idea. “I think it’s a great idea,” I said. “I’ll go tell Michael and grab the ingredients.”

“I’ll come with you,” Prince Frost said, looking grateful for the support. “I’ll go get some pillows and blankets,” Princess Amity offered. “And I’ll go replace a perfect spot,” Prince Thomas said with a smile. We all split up to gather what we needed for our spontaneous outdoor dinner. While Prince Frost and I walked to the kitchen, he was telling me about his childhood memories of having S’mores around a campfire with his family. I couldn’t help but smile at the thought of him enjoying such a simple pleasure. “Then why did you give me a look earlier?” I asked him. “You see, it’s been a long time since I did that, and I didn’t want to look like a fool,” he added.

I chuckled and said, “Don’t worry; I think Princess Amity will help you make the perfect S’mores.” “Wait.... what?” He replied with a stunned face. “I may be wearing a helmet, but I’m sure not blind; you have a crush on the Princess, but you don’t want to admit it,” I said. “You must’ve hit your head in training this morning; I don’t like her in that way; I only see her as a friend,” he replied. “Keep telling yourself that,” I replied with a grin. “Anyway, “let’s just focus on the S’mores, okay? I can’t wait to taste them! It’s been ages since I’ve had a gooey, delicious s’more,” he said, trying to change the conversation.

“I know what you mean,” I said. “It’s been years since I’ve had one too. But I’m sure we can make them just as good as we remember.” As we entered the kitchen, Michael greeted us with a smile. “What can I do for you guys?” he asked. “We need some marshmallows, graham crackers, and chocolate bars,” I said. “We’re making S’mores for dinner tonight.” “S’mores for dinner?” he repeated with a laugh. “That’s a first. But sure, I’ll get you what you need.” We watched as Michael gathered the ingredients and placed them in a basket for us to carry outside. “Thanks, Michael,” I said, taking the basket from him.

We made our way back outside, where Princess Amity and Prince Thomas had already set up a cozy spot with pillows and blankets. The fire was roaring, so we all gathered around it and began making our S’mores. “Sire, why don’t you go sit with Princess Amity? I’m sure she’d love the company,” I suggested with a smile. He looked hesitant for a moment, but then he nodded and made his way over to where Princess Amity was sitting. They started chatting and laughing, and I turned my attention back to my own s’mores. As I melted the chocolate over the marshmallows and sandwiched them between the graham crackers, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of nostalgia wash over me. It was just like when I was a child, sitting around a campfire, enjoying a simple pleasure.