Gabriella stroked Snow's nose, before brushing it gently while slightly patting her. The horse was very gentle and tame, and seemed to enjoy Gabriella's company while it chewed on the carrots that Gabriella brought for her.

As Gabriella was brushing the horse, she noticed that Lady Brooke was standing nearby while watching her Queen intently. Figuring that her ladiesmaid was afraid that she might sneak out of the castle again, she chuckled before saying in a gentle voice "I'm not going anywhere Lady Brooke..."

"Y...yes, Your Majesty." Lady Brooke immediately diverted her gaze as soon as she heard Gabriella. "Forgive me for making you feel uncomfortable, Your Majesty."

Gabriella smiled as she continued to brush snow. "I'm the one to be sorry..."

"Pardon?" Lady brooke asked in confusion

"You must have suffered a lot of scolding from His Majesty because of me..." Gabriella finished silently while her eyes were fixed on her hands as she brushed Snow, unable to look at Lady Brooke as she felt guilty for bringing trouble to Lady Brooke. She admit to herself that she may be careless at times and would often forget that her actions might put other people around her in a difficult situation because of her. Though she never meant to bring trouble to anyone, she had to accept the fact that as a Queen, her actions will not only affect herself but others too. That is why, it is not easy to be a Queen, and not anyone can be one. Once again, her mind played back to the wedding and imagined what would it be like now if she was not chosen as the Queen.

"How do you know I did not punished her instead?"

Gabriella's thoughts were cut short as soon as she heard his husky voice. She turned around to see him standing directly behind her, with an unreadable expression on his face.

"What..." Gabriella's eyes were searching for Lady Brooke, feeling shocked that she was not informed of the presence of the king, to find that Lady Brooke was no where to be found.

"I dismissed her." Troy stated coldly as he continued to look at her.

"Oh..." Gabriella's wandering gaze immediately dropped to the ground while her hands began to fidget on the brush she was holding, unsure what to say. Just then, the King reached out and took the brush from her hands before quietly brushing the horse.

"How do you like your wedding gift?" Troy asked slowly as Gabriella who was standing beside him watched him as he brushed.

"I... I love it." Gabriella replied silently although she would not want to admit how much she likes the present, since it is prepared by His Majesty.

"Thank you." She blurted out softly, knowing she hasn't thank the King for the gift yet.

Troy nodded, before turning to her. "Do you wanna ride it?"

"What?" She blinked, not believing what she heard. "But I don't know how."

Troy nodded before putting the brush aside. Without a warning, he put his hands around her waist before lifting her up on the horse making Gabriella shrieked in shock. He then walked to the front of the horse before untying the rein of the horse and leading it slowly out of the stables and towards the gate which leads out towards an open field.

Gabriella was silent as she swayed on top of the horse while watching the King walk in front of her. He did not turn back to check on her, but instead he just continued walking while pulling on the reins, leading the horse quietly. From Gabriella's view, Troy's back looked muscular and sturdy. She couldn't help but noticed the triceps showing on his arms every time he pulls on the rein.

While she was enjoying the warm evening breeze, both of them noticed that the sun was setting. The blue sky was now an orange colour as the sun hung low, barely peeping out from the silhouettes of the mountains.

"Shall we go back now?" Gabriella asked, thinking it will be a long way back since they've strolled for quite awhile.

Troy nodded before walking the the left side of the horse. In one swift motion, he climbed onto the horse so that he was straddling behind Gabriella.

"Are we riding back?" Gabriella asked, as she noticed his arms encircling her waist before holding onto the rein in front of them which makes her slightly uncomfortable for their close contact with each other.

"Do you expect me to walk all the way back too?" Troy asked coldly to which Gabriella does not answer.

He slapped on Snow's butt as the horse galloped in the direction back to the castle. Exhilirated by the speed, Gabriella hardly noticed that both of her hands were holding on the saddle so tightly that her knuckles has turned white.

Soon, they reached the Castle as the servants opened the door and helped them down from the horse before taking the horse away to the stables.

"You may ride the horse." The King stated coldly as Gabriella was fixing some loose strands that fell out from her hair. "But never ride alone."

"Why not?" Gabriella asked.

"I'm sure you should know why." With that, he left.