Once again, the Prince rung the bell summoning Hopkins, once again timing him. “Hopkins!” Once again the Prince's voice echoed.

This time though, no one answered, no pattering of feet could be heard and most definitely was there no aroma of food. The Prince checked his watch impatiently, tugging on the rope once more.

Once again, no paw pattering, once again, no sweet aroma of Acorn Tea. “Where is he?” The Prince started to mutter to himself, his stomach growling in anger, “Where is he!” He jerked the bell more and more.

And finally!

Finally!

The pattering of paws could be heard, Prince Fir though cocked his head in confusion, his honed hearing picking up more than one pair of paws pattering across the floor, and… robes?

Fear started to overcome the young mouse, his whiskers twitched, and his tailed furled and unfurled, could his parents be coming? He sat upright in his bed, looked around and was grateful to see the servants had come and cleaned. His parents always talked to him when his room was untidy it gave them the high ground.

He must be wrong then! After all, Hopkins always comes alone, and the bells ring directly into his room, no self-respecting noble goes into the servant room! His doubts assuaged he once again looked at the timepiece, sixty seconds late, sixty-one, sixty-two, the pattering stops and Fir waits for the knock to come, the classic one knock, one knock, one, instead though all he hears is the door opening? Too much! Too much! Butler, Royalty, no one doesn’t knock! He ignores the little voice at the back of his head telling him that the King doesn’t knock except when it suits him.

The door opened and Hopkins entered, “HOPKINS! YOU SHALL BE SACKED! EIGHTY SECONDS LATE! EIGHTY!” He was immediately greeted by the triad of the young and boisterous princeling, he refused to say arrogant, a princeling that was currently very angry.

“-THINK YOUR ARE? WHERE IS MY FOOD! DA- darn it Hoppy, I am ever so stressed right now.” The princelings voice lowers, and he quiets down by an amazing degree and became more civil as well. This was due to the fact that his parents had appeared at the doorway, whiskers twitching and tails furling.

He looked at them in horror, before trying to salvage his both pride and the situation, “Dear Hoppy,” Fir sighed, “I’m sorry for my outburst earlier, and please accept my atonement, for I did not mean to shout, it’s just that when a commoner as useless as you proves himself to be even more useless then originally thought it can be hard for an aristocrat such as myself to operate. Please accept my sincere reparation!”

That should do it, Fir mused, after all, my parents are wrapped around my little finger and they… what is the commoner saying? Ain’t nev’r unwindin. He looked at them expectantly waiting for them to forgive the butler and forgive him as they had so many times before.

“Sit down, Fir. Sit down and shut up. We have much to talk about.” The King's voice rang across the room, his eyes boring into his sons, allowing no room for disobedience.

Fir sat, and Fir shut up as well, inside though he was wondering where he went wrong, his parents had never taken a tone like that with him before, he had seen them take that tone with others, but never him.

So, he shut up and sat down. Waiting for the final verdict.

The Queen was the first to break the sudden silence. “It has come to our attention that you have been mistreating Hoppy and the other servants around this household. We would like to know why.” Her voice was hard and both her and the King stared at their errant son with steely expressions.

Fir on his part was outraged! “Mother! Father! Do you take me for some common thug? I merely tell the servants off and tell them to do their jobs better so as not to bring embarrassment to the royal family!” Fir felt that he was completely justified in his beliefs, never once thinking that it might actually be him that was the problem here.

The King spoke this time, “First! You never take that tone with us youngling, we are your parents! Your rulers! Your guardians!” The King was outraged! “Second! Your ‘telling off’ has put servants into tears! It has even made them leave our service!” The King looked hard at his son, “Thirdly, we have seen first hand what you have done and we are disgusted by it, not only does it bring dishonour on our family name, it brings dishonour on all of Everdell!”

“Forsooth! We are royalty! Who cares what the common folk think? Their job is to serve us and the kingdom, and our duty is to help them in a way that we see fit! What I have been doing is for the good of the kingdom!” The response was quick, well thought out, and only served to cement the King and Queens decision.

The Queen sighed and shook her head, her tailing lashing about, “It is for those very reasons that we have come to the conclusion that you must be sent to the Everguard. To truly learn what it means to serve the critters of our kingdom and truly learn what it means to help the critters of our kingdom.”

Fir gasped in horror, this was worse then he had originally thought, “Those barbarians? You would consign me to such a thing? You would consign me to rolling in the mud with the peasantry! Please! Anything but that!” He looked desperately into his parent's eyes, but all he saw was a steely resolve, not an ounce of pity or any emotion that he would be able to use to help his desperate situation.

“Yes, you must train with the Everguard and learn what it means to be part of the royal family. There is no getting out of this Fir.” His parents would not budge.

Prince Fir straightened his back, smoothed his whiskers, and prepared himself mentally for what was about to come.

It would be a hard time, a time of trial and tribulation, but he would come out on top, so long as he had his entourage of course.

His parent's musn’t know what he was planning though otherwise, they would be sure to shut it down. So Prince Fir with a confident voice said “I am ready to serve! My life for the Kingdom!”

The King looked on in pride, the Queen with a little bit of scepticism, but the butler, the butler knew what was about to come, and he had to warn all the critters currently in residence, for the when the Prince was ready to move…. Nothing would stop him from taking an entourage, and all the critters that were to here about it would be shaking in there boots.

For the fallout that was to come would not be pretty, especially with the prince's parents going on a season-long trip tomorrow.

The prince looked at Hoppy evilly already thinking about who would be the first to join his entourage.