Summer fought the entire trip to keep her melancholy concealed. It became easier when they arrived at Kent; she immediately plunged into a whirlwind of wedding preparations, interspersed with lessons and fittings and formal presentations, leaving her little time to focus on missing Isaac.
But she thought of him every night, and hardly a week passed without her crying herself to sleep at least once.
After Winter’s wedding, though, the situation worsened rapidly. The former serf felt isolated and alone. The folk she’d come to Kent to learn about seemed to have no time for her, or expected her to be someone different. She missed Isaac dreadfully, and began to neglect herself, spending hours in her tower absorbed only in thoughts of him.
Days moved into weeks, weeks into months, and Isaac became near sullen and silent, reminding those around him of that small, broken little boy who’d first entered the Kingdom in search of a new home, and had instead found a new family. Cora and Derek tried desperately between them to bring their little brother out of his dark mood, but they couldn’t even elicit a smile in him, his heart was broken, and the only remedy was miles away, in the home of her true family.
He spent the days training for whatever war, whatever battle would be next, needing the activity and exercise to keep his mind off of everything. But thoughts of her still lingered constantly in his mind.
Prince Derek finally decided to take drastic action. He took the copy of the bill announcing Kent’s Yuletide tournament and left it where Isaac could see it, hoping the young knight would at least be willing to take the opportunity to see his lost love. He hesitated to order Isaac to go, but if the knight wouldn’t go on his own …
Prince Edward, meanwhile, had no such easy solution for his daughter’s melancholy. His concern remains slight, for the most part, until the servants themselves began to report worries to him — trays returning to the kitchen untouched, her bed going unslept in, clothes unworn. One maid resigned in tears, blaming herself for her inability to stir her mistress’ apathy.