Satisfied that he had somewhere to put his mind, he returned to his work, as it was. The march on his back was becoming more and more noticeable, but his right hand was occupied with it. If it wasn't, it was almost game time.
"She's not like other women, you know," his younger brother had said to him as they looked through his window. His brother liked to wake him at the crack of dawn, and knock on his windows, like the birds outside. Those birds would never understand what it meant to be trapped behind glass and unable to live their lives. He believed life was more important than virtue or stature. Those were all fake anyway.
"Get out of here, Julius," he said.
Julius left him alone, and he went back to his window. It was her again. She was always in the garden. Her mother would plant something different every day. Even though his father's castle was very far from where they lived, he could still see this girl walking around their garden, picking flowers and fruit off their trees. He could hear the soft tapping as she looked at the flowers. Her soft tapping was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard. Even though he lived in the clouds, looking upon her from above, she was all he needed. All he ever looked for was her. When she drew in her hands, he sighed, imagining the smell of the flowers she was holding. Her walk was not rushed. Each step was filled with grace. It was as though she was floating, gliding to wherever she was going. At night, he would catch a glimpse of her through their bedroom window, and she would be lying under the trees, reading books. She seemed so relaxed, and he would imagine how lovely that was. To live without pressure, seems like a big luxury. He'd heard stories of demons either wanting power or freedom. He believed she had both, and he wanted to be her equal in every way. If only she could be his queen, he'd have the world at his feet.
"If she's not like all other women, then she is different to me as well," he thought. He didn't change his pants every day, and she had to wash his underwear. There was something very wrong with this world, and he'd seen it with his own eyes. How could she live in such luxury? Surely, from her window, she saw the same thing—people dying from hunger and poverty.
"If only I could fly with her, and talk to her, I would know," he thought.
He had to find away to get his chance to talk to her. In his eyes, she would be more than great company, but to have her actual company would be so much better. He couldn't fathom the life she lived with her family. Surely they could tire of having her around the place. No one else seemed to make her life so much harder than the birds outside. She was always smiling through it, though. She would always be out in the garden, living life in the moment. She had to know what was around her, yet she always seemed so innocent. This made him feel a kinship with her. She wasn't some rich debutant out trying to capture a man's heart for power. She was living in the moment, she was radiating, and she deserved another life. She deserved to be out of that garden, sitting on a beach with him. Her skin would glisten in the sun, and her eyes shone like diamonds. She didn't have to dress the way she did, measuring her beauty in the things she wore and the beads on her neck. Why wasn't she in the opposite of society? Why wasn't she with him?
"If only I could be with you," he thought.
The tapping at the window drew his attention from the window to himself. The wind had soothed the dust from the window, but he did not remember it being this dusty before. It was becoming harder to breath. He could not get close enough to talk to her. The garden was too small to be able to talk, and the window was too high to drop down from, even if he was tall enough. If only she could come into the castle, then he might have a chance.
"Yes?" he mumbled.
"The King wishes to see you," that was his father. Why were they waking him up at this time? What time was it, he wondered, but decided not to say that to his father. He knew what time it was. It was close to midnight. He had to have a successful meeting with his father, if he wanted to keep the beautiful woman.
"Yes, I'll be there in a minute," he said as he reached for his clothes. Looking though the window, he saw her walking around with her sister. He couldn't help but want to help to get her out of there. Now was his opportunity. His father wanted to see him, so he sent the guards to wake up the rest of the family. This would give him the chance to sneak up to her window and talk to her. When he was close enough, he called for her.
