Earning the Love of a Princess-Chapter 78: My Brother, My Rival

Francis pursed his lips, clearly uncomfortable with the change in conversation. "It’s complicated, Your Grace. Richard and I have been in the the same circles all our lives but I can’t really say we’re friends anymore. We still respect each other from being comrades in arms. But I disagree with many of his actions."

The young man paused, then looked around and lowered his voice. "And frankly, I think he’s a poor influence on Prince William. He appeals to Will’s worst instincts and drives him on. Their behaviour together can run wild."

"But the prince is so loyal to him. Surely there’s a reason why they’re such good friends?"

Francis slowly nodded and said, "William and Richard have been together all their lives. The Bentworths are an ancient noble family and they have sent their heirs over many generations to court as infants to be raised alongside the royal children. The two of them are as close to brothers as they can be. And because of that, their rivalry has always been fierce."

"Have you known Sir Richard since you were a child as well?"

Francis nodded. "Oh yes. Prince Tom and Robin Sainsbury as well. All of us were raised together. Rich was the de facto leader of the nursery. Being a couple of years older than the rest of us, he was always the smartest and strongest child. He was taught to ride and wield a sword first, he was the first to take part in a joust and to be knighted. So of course we all looked up to him."

"And I’m sure he made a point of lording his achievements over you all?"

Francis gave her a rueful smile. "You are perceptive, Your Grace."

"He sounds like a little bully." Camilla found it easy to picture him as a domineering child.

Laughing, Francis didn’t disagree. "That’s the nature of brothers. When you’re small lads, a two year age gap is significant. Rich was always tall and broad for his age as well, so the rest of us came off second best when paired against him in anything physical. He was also ahead of us all in book knowledge. So it was inevitable for Will to always be a step behind and have to follow Richard’s lead, as we all did."

Camilla noticed Francis’ usually gentle expression hardening. "Things started to change as we grew older though. A gap in age of two years began to seem less noticeable, especially as we each started discovering and developing our own individual talents. Suddenly, Richard was no longer the best at everything by default solely because of his age."

"And when the other boys started matching or even surpassing him at some skills, he would’ve hated it." Camilla surmised.

Francis smiled again. "You’re far wiser than you’re given credit for, Princess. But it was like the more we all caught up to Rich, the greater his desire grew to prove he could still outfight or outride or out learn us."

"It sounds like a selfish approach to friendship. If a friendship is dependent on one person always needing to feel superior to the rest, how can it last?" Camilla remembered the rivalry between her brothers, particularly Duncan and Daniel as the eldest ones. But despite the quarrels and occasional punches thrown, there had been great respect and affection between the three princes. She couldn’t imagine one being genuinely resentful of another’s particular talent.

"William especially has grown into an exceptional knight. He doesn’t have Richard’s build or raw strength but he’s quicker with the sword and has a better head for battlefield strategy." said Francis.

Camilla frowned. "But surely it’s more than that, isn’t it? Their behaviour can’t just be driven by wanting to see who’s the better knight."

"Yes, I think it’s more than that." Francis looked up pensively. "My belief is that as they’ve gotten older and realised the difference in their stations, this has also made Richard bitter. He is the son of an earl but Will is the son of a prince and grandson of a king. He’s directly descended from a long line of kings. The Devon line have ruled Islia longer than anyone remembers. William has riches and land far beyond what Rich will ever inherit."

Francis’s voice turned quiet, as if hesitant to say much more. "Then there’s the matter of women..."

"Women?"

"I’m sure you’ve noticed the prince is extremely popular with the ladies, Your Highness. He’s never had trouble bedding whoever he wants. But the ladies don’t love Richard the same way."

Camilla was unsympathetic. "Maybe Sir Richard would fare better if he stopped treating women as useless creatures there to just follow his orders. He talks to me as if I’m incapable of even basic thought and it’s insulting. I doubt other ladies like it either."

"Regardless of what it is, Rich knows he doesn’t have William’s looks or charm. He doesn’t have a prince’s wealth or bloodline. He’s possibly not even the best fighter among us any more. I think the only way he feels he can control his envy and reassert his dominance is to beat Will in a fight or a race, to try and knock him down a peg or two."

"And what does the prince see in Sir Richard, then? Why does he value their friendship?" Camilla struggled to see why William was loyal to a cruel bully of a man.

"I think Will truly loves Richard like the blood brother he never had. His childhood companions are the only family he knows." Francis’s smile was tinged with sadness. "No matter how questionable Richard’s actions are, Will’s instinct will always be to protect him from others’ criticism. I think part of Will is still that lonely little boy who admires his idol."

Camilla thought of all the times she had been shocked by Richard’s words or behaviour but kept quiet. Even if she had spoken up, who would have sided with her? All she would’ve done was earn more of the prince’s hatred. She suddenly remembered a line her mother had once uttered.

There are none so blind as those who will not see.

Francis admitted, "Unfortunately the two of them bring out the worst of each other. In everything they do, they’ll push each other to the absolute limit because they’re both so determined to come out on top. Neither will ever concede."

"If that’s their nature, then they deserve each other." Camilla shook her head, eager to change the subject. "Tell me about your betrothed then, Sir Francis."

Francis looked startled at the new topic but smiled shyly. "Anne? I’ve known her for as long as I can remember. Our families’ lands neighbour each other, so our lines have a long history together. We’re to be married in the autumn."

"And you care for her?"

"Yes? I mean, I’m very fond of her. I know she has a kind heart and we have things in common. But..." his voice tapered off.

"But what?"

"It’s just that beyond being childhood playmates, we don’t know each other terribly well. I’ve spent most of my life training at court and she’s been in her family’s estate. Since we stopped being small children, we haven’t actually spent much time alone together." Francis scrunched his face pensively. "Do you think that’s a bad thing, my lady?"

"Not necessarily. If the two of you are already fond of each other, that’s more than many couples have at the start of a marriage. And you’ll have all of your lives to get to know each other better, won’t you?" Camilla gave him a reassuring smile.

"I suppose we will." Francis said dubiously. Privately, he worried his union with Anne would be one of friendship and comfortable familiarity, but nothing more. No spark, no fire, no passion. Would that be enough to sustain them both for the decades to come? He tried to explain this concern to the princess as delicately as possible.

As he expected, the look on her face was one of complete confusion. "But isn’t a relationship built on friendship the very best kind? And what exactly is this spark you keeping speaking of? I don’t understand."

Francis had to bite his tongue so that he didn’t blurt out, "Like the spark between you and Will." He knew Princess Camilla didn’t want to broach the subject, given the two weren’t on speaking terms. But the intense attraction between the two of them was undeniable to anyone with eyes. A constant undercurrent of heat seemed to link them, as if they were always aware of the other’s presence.

He wondered idly which of the two young royals would break first and confess their feelings. They both struck him as equally stubborn. And he figured William must have done something fairly stupid for Princess Camilla to ice him out.

Then again, they seemed to attract like magnets, even when there was anger between them. Francis figured something would eventually have to give.