(A/N: Sorry for the atrociously long period of time since my last update, but I just haven't had the time to write, and the next few months are going to be much the same. Therefore updates are going to be coming far less often than I'd like them to, though I assure you that this story/series is far from completion and will be finished no matter what. Thank you for your patience.)

About fifteen minutes passed before Eric re-emerged from the crowd, carrying what looked to be a small brown paper bag. Stephan watched as the boy expertly made his way through the thick crowd of late morning shoppers, ducking under crates and jumping out the way of carts as if it were an everyday occurrence for him. There were moments were Stephan felt frightened to watch, as Eric came dangerously close to being knocked down and trampled by the crowd. He wasn't tall for his age, quite the opposite in fact; Eric stood about three inches shorter than other boys his age, his agility making him perfect for this particular task as he went unseen by most of those around him. But the fact that he was unseen meant that most people didn't even realise how close they were to knocking him over.

Another thing Stephan noticed as he watched the young Prince dance his way through the hustle and bustle of the town centre, was just how well he fitted in, and how comfortable he looked as being able to go about his business without being fussed. The old man found himself smiling, thinking back to when Eric had actually lived as one of the villagers for six years. Of course, they hadn't known each other back then, but Stephan remembered seeing him day after day, watching him grow from this very bench, as he collected coins. It all seemed so long ago now, for the boy he saw now was much more mature, and almost seemed more like an adult than a child.

His thoughts were brought to an abrupt halt when Eric stopped in front of him, his arm outstretched so that the paper bag was just above the old man's lap. Stephan merely stared at the young Prince in puzzlement for a moment, and was about to voice his scepticism when the sweet smell of the bakery invaded his nostrils. With his rough, weathered hand trembling, he reached out and took the bag from Eric, never taking his eyes away from the boys own sky blue ones.

"If the money's mine then I get to decide what I spend it on" said Eric, watching as Stephan carefully unrolled the top of the bag so as to view its contents. Inside was a selection of breads and pastries from the bakery, ten all together. Stephan could do nothing but stare, though every instinct was screaming at him to eat the whole lot immediately and his hunger was becoming painfully obvious as his stomach gave a desperate growl. But ever so slowly, he moved his eyes from Eric to the bag and back again.

"Why are you helping me," he asked, "we've barely known each other an hour."

"Because I was really poorly when I was hungry, and I don't want you to feel the same" replied Eric simply. The response brought tears to Stephan's eyes, as he recalled the events of the weeks leading up to the Prince's fourth birthday. The fact that Eric was doing this simply to prevent the same from happening to him all but made the pauper's heart melt.

"Thank you" he said, his voice barely above a whisper. Though a mere thank you wasn't nearly enough, Stephan honestly didn't know what else to say. No one had ever done anything like this for him before. Eric smiled, showing his dimples, and watched as Stephan took a delicate bite of a custard pastry, savouring every morsel as he closed his eyes in indulgence. At their feet, Bella whined and nudged Eric's leg with her head. The Prince looked sadly down at the bitch and immediately felt bad about not leaving any money to get her anything.

"Eric!"

Both Eric and Stephan turned round as a voice tore through the chatter of the crowds. Eric recognised the voice immediately and was suddenly overcome by a wave of guilt at having run off.

Carlotta let out a relieved sort of sob when she spotted Eric in the town centre, and rushed towards him as quickly as her plump frame would allow. She had been searching the Kingdom for almost an hour now, her fear and anxiety increasing every minute that passed as her efforts began to seem fruitless.

"Oh, darling I've been looking everywhere for you" she gasped, wrapping her arms around the twelve year olds shoulders. Eric froze for a second as he remembered why he had run off in the first place. He'd been scared, panicked, and openly shown this to the woman who he had been trying to detach himself from, for no reason other than to prove to himself that he wasn't as weak as he had been when he was younger. After all, King's didn't cry. But the familiarity of Carlotta's arms around him reminded Eric of just how much he needed her, and the mere thought that he would one day be without her brought tears to his eyes. Did he care about what people thought of him? Yes. Would people think less of him if he showed weakness? Yes. But suddenly none of that seemed to matter, and Eric found himself realising that it didn't really matter what people thought of him. He wanted to be a good King, but worrying about it wasn't going to help, and Carlotta was the only person he knew who could ease away every one of his fears, if only for a while. He wasn't going to give her up just yet.

Wrapping his arms around the maid, he relaxed and began to realise just how much worry he must have caused her.

"I'm sorry" he said tearfully. Carlotta squeezed him tighter before pulling back and cupping his face in her hands.

"You're not hurt are you" she asked? Eric just shook his head, noticing the worry that had etched its way into Carlotta's face.

"I'm fine," he said, "Carlotta I'm sorry for running off."

"Don't be darling, I know exactly why you did."

"You do" asked Eric, perplexed?

"Yes, and I'm so sorry for not being there, I just assumed that…" Carlotta sighed and hung her head for a moment, before looking back to Eric's wide blue eyes. "It doesn't matter," she continued, "but I need you to know that I'm always here for you Eric." Eric nodded again and threw his arms around the woman who had raised him.

Carlotta gladly returned the embrace, but suddenly noticed the man with whom Eric had been standing prior to her arrival. As soon as she had noticed his presence, she also noticed the way in which he was staring at Eric and every one of her instincts screamed 'danger!' She knew paupers to be the sort of people who would do anything for money, and her immediate thought, judging by the bag of food on his lap, was that he had been hassling the young boy in her arms.

If Eric was in any sort of danger then she was going to protect him in any way she could, and right now that meant getting him away from here, now.