I stared hard into his face. He was not someone I knew. A pageboy maybe? He returned my gaze with emerald eyes. I felt my face burn hotter.
"Who are you?"
The boy chuckled. It was a pleasing, warm laugh. "Call me Cedar." He said with a sweeping bow. His sandy colored hair seemed barely tousled.
The sun was coming up over the trees. With the mist gone, the air warmed all around me. How much time had gone by?
"I'm very pleased to meet you Cedar, but I must be getting home. My mother will begin to worry." I said giving him a quick curtsy and climbed up onto Moon's saddle.
"A princess should never be left alone in the woods." Cedar said mounting his own horse.
"No, I'm fine, I know the way back."
"I insist!" His horse was now trotting beside Fair Moon.
He grinned at me and I gave him a half smile back.

"Mother, stop fretting."
Queen Arabella was busy playing with my brown curls. She centered my tiara then proclaimed me finished.
"Oh what is this, Dear?" she pulled a twig loose from my hair.
"A hairpin." I said quickly taking it from her hand and changing the subject. "Shall we go find Father and greet our guests?"
Another suitor was coming with his parents, the King and Queen of Merdyll.
Mother left my bedchamber to search for my father. I sighed looking at the twig in my hand. A week had passed since I saw the Forest Boy. Ever morning since then I had gone to the pond waiting for him. This morning was my last search.
I stood up to look into the mirror. A different person seemed to stare back at me. A pale creamy faced girl with beautiful brown eyes and curls. A lilac silk gown with a gold sash draped gracefully on her perfect body. The sight made my vision blur. I held back tears.
So many girls desired to be beautiful. Many princes wanted lovely wives. Why did I not think myself lucky?
This was not Ava. It was the Princess Avaline I hated. I would never love that part of who I was.
There was a knock at the door.
"Avaline, the prince is here. And my he is quite handsome. Come down and see. Father is waiting."
My mother's steps faded away as she strode down the corridor.
I sighed again and made my way down to the Entrance Hall.
Father stood talking to a tall handsome man and a graceful woman. Both were dressed in their finest.
A young man stood apart from his parents. With his arms behind his back and his legs apart, he looked just like his father only with a kinder face.
His emereld eyes stared into mine.

Part 2

A light rain had had begun to fall, so we took refuge in the trees.
The forest is known for its magical creatures both freighting and wonderful.
My windswept hair lay in a curly knotted mess, and my heart sang out at my freedom. I walked quietly through the trees. Fair Moon followed behind. She was more than happy to stretch her legs and run.
Dew sparkled on the blades of grass and my riding boots. A faint mist still covered the morning ground. It gave the forest and eerie chill. I shivered and walked closer to Moon.
A pond stretched out among the tall grass in a small clearing of the trees. I sat at the water's edge. Moon stood by me to drink from the glassy surface. Ripples covered the dark water from the rain.
I stood there stroking Fair Moons mane. A twig snapped behind me and leaves rustled. I turned around quickly, but a pine root caught my shoe and I fell to the earth.
"Oh, I'm so clumsy." I murmured to myself getting up to brush away the dirt.
"Are you alright?"
I looked up to see a tall boy walking towards me. He couldn't have been much older than I was.
"Yes, I'm fine." I said, blushing. A brown horse not nearly as graceful as Moon pawed at the ground behind him.
"You're a long way away from home, Princess."
I looked back up at him, shocked.
"Yes, I know who you are, Princess Avaline."
"Ava," I corrected him, "just Ava."

Intro

A princess must be perfect in every way. This is what I was told all my life. Well I'm not perfect, nowhere close, and most everyone knows that.
Now I'm Fourteen, marrying age. Every available prince is coming to see me. The endless days of boring speeches are driving me insane.
Proper etiquette is essential for a princess. Madame Shae thinks that my every breath is wrong, let alone my curtsy.
During the long hours of princes and etiquette, my mind slips away. I find myself riding through the woods a free soul. No more Princess Avaline to worry about, just Ava and who Ava wants to be.
***
"Okay Moon all done here."
Fair Moon's black glossy coat shimmered under the stable's faint light.
"What now?" I asked her impatiently as she nudged my arm.
Dark brown eyes stared back into mine. I know she was thinking exactly what I was.
"No, we can't go riding now. Prince Henry is coming today. Mother would be furious if she found out I had been riding all morning."
Those eyes looked to desperate, they were pleading.
"A few minutes can't hurt."