"You were the boy in the stables," said Bernard, staring at Pip as if another piece of the puzzle had fallen into place.

Pip nodded.

"And you ... think you fell in love with me? That same day?" Bernard questioned.

"I fell in love with Rue. Only, when I asked around, everyone said there was nobody named Rue at the palace," Pip said.

"Ah, but there was," Bernard said with a smile. "Rue is my Temple Name. I had just been initiated into the Temple of the Moon, and received my true name from the high priestess. I was obliged to introduce myself as Rue for an entire moon cycle."

"Oh, I'm so glad there really is a Rue!" said Pip in delight.

"Look, I don't really want to hang around Smedley's office all morning," said Bernard abruptly. "Would you like to come for a walk?"

"Yes please," said Pip shyly.

"Smedley!" bellowed Bernard, bending his head as he opened the office door where Mr Smedley sat on the bench outside, looking like a schoolboy sent to the headmaster. "Did you sack Pip here?"

"Yes I did, sir. Was that wrong of me?" gasped Mr Smedley, his face pale and frightened.

"No, that was perfectly alright," said Bernard. "Pip will be leaving now. I have paid him compensation for the money our corrupt lawyers stole from him several years ago, forcing him to work in the kitchens. I hope you were not involved in this shameful episode in any way."

"Sir, I had no idea it wasn't all above aboard," said Mr Smedley, looking shocked. "I trusted the palace's lawyers implicitly, and I apologise to Pip, and to the royal family itself, if everything wasn't as it should have been."

"Pip, did Smedley ever treat you amiss?" asked Bernard, drawing himself up to his full height.

"No, I don't think so," said Pip thoughtfully. "I would say he was strict, but fair. I never heard of him ill-treating anyone, and he offered my granny a job when she had nowhere else to turn."

"Yes, thank you, Pip," said Mr Smedley, looking at Bernard more defiantly. "I have always tried to do the right thing by Pip, and everyone in the kitchens. A kitchen needs to be run by someone strict, or it soon becomes lax and dirty."

"Well, I think you're a slippery character, Smedley, but you seem to have slipped free once more," said Bernard. "Just be grateful I didn't look too closely into the kitchen accounts."

"Sir! With the greatest respect, there is absolutely nothing wrong - " began Mr Smedley indignantly, but Bernard had already pushed past him, holding onto Pip by the shoulder.

"Is this the portrait of me the poor staff have to look at every day?" asked Bernard, wrinkling his nose in disgust at a painting that showed a handsome young man with glorious red-gold curls and an odiously smug expression, apparently in poetic contemplation of a single rose. "It's revolting."

Pip gave a shocked giggle as Bernard led him down the hallway towards the door, where he was farewelled deferentially by the porter and the guard.

"Er, yes. Keep up the good work, men," said Bernard vaguely, and then he and Pip were out the door at last.

It was a beautiful spring morning with little white clouds scudding across a pale blue sky, and fresh breezes blowing the scents of blossoms around every corner. Pip gave a grin at the thought he wasn't working in a kitchen any more, as Bernard slipped his fingers through his.

It didn't seem as if Bernard minded Pip hands being rough and work-hardened, because he gave them an affectionate squeeze as he led him down a quiet avenue of linden trees, their flowers smelling richly of honey and lemon. 

"Pip, we have had a few false starts," Bernard said seriously. "I would like the chance for us to get to know each other properly, just as we are."

"I'd like that, Bernard," Pip replied, "but when I fell in love with Rue, I think that was the real you."

"That's very flattering," said Bernard carefully, "but Pip, you must see that was only a childish infatuation."

"I wasn't a child," Pip said indignantly. "I was thirteen, a year older than Princess Alice when she became betrothed to Prince Hugo."

"Oh, I thought you were about ten," Bernard said. "And Alice wasn't betrothed when she was twelve, she only met Hugo then."

"And you were eighteen," Pip went on. "That's two years older than Hugo when he met Alice. If they could be in love, then why couldn't we?"

"Hugo and Alice didn't fall in love at twelve and sixteen, they were just good friends," Bernard said.

"Oh," Pip said, sounding disappointed. "So you didn't fall in love with me at first sight?"

"Well, no. You were only a little boy," Bernard explained. "I tell you what though, Pip. I went to my father, and asked if you could come to Denmark with me."

"You're joking. Doing what?" Pip asked in amazement.

"Anything, it didn't matter. You could clean my shoes for all I cared. I just wanted you out of the kitchens," Bernard said. "Father and I had a blazing row about it, actually. Then he told me my diplomatic meeting in Denmark wasn't my real mission. That was in sealed orders, which I could only open once I was in Copenhagen. I opened them on the spot, and discovered that my real mission was to set sail for the polar regions, to find new trade routes and trading partners. It was far too dangerous for a little boy."

"You've been to the polar regions?" asked Pip, his eyes huge with wonder.

"Yes, Pip. I have travelled the vast frozen tundra, and gone further north than anyone else in Lindensea," said Bernard. "I lived in fear of my life every day, and often wished that my father had not sent me. But by the end, I had become a man, and that was the purpose of my journey. A king must be strong to lead his country. He must know adversity, starvation, and hardship, or else how can he understand the sufferings of his people?"

"Then you're a hero, Bernard," said Pip, the light of worship in his eyes.

"I didn't feel like a hero doing it, Pip, and I still don't," Bernard said. "I felt cold and frightened and miserable and hungry most of the time, but I kept pressing on and trying to do the best I could."

"That sounds like a hero to me," Pip said. "How far did you travel in your journeys?"

"I eventually ended up in the Kingdom of Bjarma, where ruled my second cousin Otto, and became good friends with Dorothea, who is his only child. Unfortunately, Otto suddenly died during my visit, and his younger brother Marcus took the throne. Marcus was very hostile to Dorothea and treated her badly – probably worried that she would try to set herself up as queen. I escorted her to the court of the Emperor Boris in the city of Muscovy for safety."

Just as Bernard reached this point in his story, the avenue came to an end, continuing as a simple track down to the stables. Bernard asked if Pip would like to go for a ride, and Pip eagerly agreed, walking along the line of stables to say hello to all the horses.

Bernard showed Pip his new horse, Arran having to be left in Copenhagen as he wasn't suited to polar exploration. The new horse was a splendid white Andalusian stallion named Cygnus, a birthday gift from Bernard's Uncle Ferdinand, the king of Castile.

Pip asked Cygnus if he was happy in Lindensea, and Cygnus said he was settling in nicely, and adjusting to the cooler climate. The stable hands were positively spoiling him, and he would soon get fat and lazy if he didn't have more exercise.

"See? Absolutely demanding to be ridden," said Bernard with a smile. He tugged his jersey over his head, revealing a navy blue linen shirt underneath it.

Pip chose a grey horse as his own mount, the colour reminding him of his beloved pony Finn. The grey horse said his name was Lloyd, and that he used to be Alice's, until she ended up preferring a jennet given to her by Prince Hugo.

"Lloyd is an Arabian horse with quite a bit of Welsh cob in him," Bernard said, as he looked over Pip's choice. "You couldn't find a stronger, braver horse in the stables, nor a gentler one either. I always thought Alice was a bit of an idiot to give him up. Ready to ride now?"

Pip tugged unhappily at the leather pouch of money Bernard had given him.

"Bernard, I don't think I can ride with this attached to me," Pip said. "It's very heavy, and it will get in the way."

"Never mind, Pip. I'll carry it for you," Bernard said, holding out his hand for the purse. "It is a bit of a weight. I suppose that's what they mean when they talk about the burden of wealth."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

LINDENSEA LORE

Camden is said to be under the protection of the goddess Luna, and long tradition states that the city will never fall as long as she is worshipped there. For this reason, all members of the Lindensea royal family must become members of the Temple of the Moon, and be fully initiated into its rites before their nineteenth birthday, receiving a sacred name from the high priestess.

The centre of her worship is the Great Temple of Luna, which stands atop Oldbourne Hill, the highest point of the city, with a dome that dominates the skyline. First built by the Romans, it is thought that the site was chosen because a moon goddess was already worshipped there by the local population. Its classical towers and columns were designed by the famous architect Sir Phoebus Starling some three centuries ago, and the temple remains one of the most recognisable landmarks of the city.

Worship is Monday nights, high celebrations on the New, Crescent and Full Moons. Donations welcome, and don't forget to visit the gift shop for all your devotee needs.

From A Pilgrim's Guide to the Shrines and Temples of Camden, published by Spiritus Press