The Swordswoman of Arden

Wistful

"This is beautiful," Lex exclaimed in wonder as the lake gradually came into view.

There were a few swans gliding gracefully in the centre, and the sunbeams glittered upon the surface of the water like diamonds.

"I know," I smiled to myself, wondering how the scenery managed to take my breath away every single time I visited. It never struck me as anything other than magical, almost like a fairytale.

"Tie the horses up here, there's a fence post."

Lex ran her fingers over the the carved out letters in the top of the post, a perplexed look on her face.

"Mine and Lancelot's initials," I answered, reading her mind.

"We used to come here all the time..." I trailed off, looking over to the lake. Somehow I was still able to envision him skimming stones by the lakeside, he was always very good at that. The wind whistled in the air, carrying his harmonious laughter through the trees. I visited this place an abnormal amount of times after his passing, the memory of him was what made this place so precious to me, I hadn't shared it with anyone other than him... and now Lex.

I turned to her, and she was gazing at me, a sympathetic expression written into her face. My mood hadn't been altered by the forest's gentle reminder of Lancelot's passing, and it seemed neither had hers. Her compassionate stance as she tenderly held my hand and looked upon the lake with me was peaceful, and I closed my eyes, taking a long breath.

"I miss him too, I will never be half the protector he was, but I will try for you Princess," she affirmed, and almost brought a tear to my eye, she was as sweet as the very air in this forest.

She billowed the picnic blanket out for us and continued to rifle around in her saddle bag whilst I took a seat, reaching into the basket and pulling out the goodies Pat had kindly prepared for us. She's packed rye bread, my favourite, and a few options to go alongside it such as honey and jam, and a lovely looking cherry pie to finish with. It appeared she'd also heated the leftover venison stew from last night's supper and poured it into separate bowls for us, to say I was delighted with this spread was an understatement. I turned my attention to the bread, tearing myself off a piece and drizzling honey on top. 

"Two apples picked straight from the orchard," she announced, pulling them out the saddle bag. I grinned and took one.

"You're not supposed to pick them," I taunted in a sing-song voice, and she reached into her cloak for something else, a devilish grin on her face.

I gasped as she pulled out a bottle of mulled wine, snatching my canteen. She pulled the cork out with her teeth, clearly enjoying the dumbstruck look on my face as she tipped the water from my canteen out onto the ground, refilling it with the burgundy liquid.

"Did you steal that?" I enquired as she finished pouring, moving onto her own canteen.

"No!" She replied, taken aback that I'd suggested such a thing, and plugged the cork back into the bottle.

"Pat gave it to me and told me to tell you that she wants you to drink yourself silly," Lex snickered, and I laughed too, that sounded exactly like something Pat would say.

"Well I can't deny her wishes after she's slaved away to prepare this beautiful lunch for us can I?" I suggestively spoke, raising my canteen to hers.

"I'll drink to that," Lex agreed, bumping the canteens together and we both took a swig. The tangy and fruity drink always elicited a happy feeling inside of me, and I lay back, squinting my eyes in the bright daylight. The fluffy clouds formed different shapes as the winds moved them across the sky, and I lazily took small bites of my bread and honey.

When I sat up to get myself some venison stew, Lex was busy making a flower chain. The vision of this masculine yet feminine form delicately handling flowers instantly put a smile on my face, and I observed her quietly, tucking into my stew. I never thought I'd see someone with such huge biceps and callused hands try to fit one flower stem into another, I almost laughed but luckily stopped myself, I could watch her for hours. 

She'd weaved a mix of daisies, gypsophila and buttercups along with some fern and fashioned it into a flower crown. It was absolutely beautiful, she was so skilled at virtually everything she did, I couldn't stop staring at her creation. She finally looked up from her work, a satisfied look upon her face, and moved towards me. She knelt in front of me, and gently nestled it into my hair, bringing the blonde front strands forward gently and running her fingers through them. 

"You remind me of vernorexia when you wear this," she disclosed, and I frowned, absolutely perplexed.

"Who?" I asked and the knight burst out laughing at my confusion. 

"Not who, but what," she couldn't stop chuckling and I folded my arms with embarrassment. I was very well educated, but had never heard of this term before.

"These flowers are almost as pretty as you," she cooed, trying to ease my awkwardness and I shoved her with a stupid smile plastered all over my face. I failed miserably, she didn't budge an inch, and instead made herself comfortable next to me, eating her own portion of venison stew. I leaned into her side and ate the apple she'd mischievously pinched from the orchard. It was crisp and cool, a refreshing treat compared the warming and hearty stew.

I alternated between the wine and the apple, by the time she'd finished her portion, my head was starting to swirl, the spirits were finally taking their course in my body. I lay my head down in her lap, looking up at her as she snacked on her slice of cherry pie. I could only see her sharp jawline and dark hair, but I kept my eyes open anyway even though I was feeling lazy, she was easily more enticing than sleep. Some crumbs fell down into my face and I giggled, causing her to glance down at me. I opened my mouth, signifying I wanted a bite, and she shook her head fondly, bringing the pie to my lips. Pat knew this was my favourite desert, I loved how sugary it was, she always put extra in her recipe just for me.

Lex dusted her hands off and gently lifted me by my shoulders to sit me up. She walked over to the wine bottle and put the last remnants in her canteen.

"Hey," I protested but she cast the now empty bottle aside, ignoring me. 

"You're tipsy, and I'm jealous because I'm a lot bigger than you and so, I need more," she concluded, taking a long drink.

"That's not how it works, we have different tolerance levels" I complained, sadly looking at the glass bottle on the grass beside her.

"Evidently," she replied, a mocking tone in her voice.

"Whatever," I sighed, drinking from my own supply. I hadn't finished yet, so she was definitely right to take the last of the wine, but I was never going to admit to that.

"Don't tell me you're the one in a strop, I think I deserve that much," she sniggered, and I gave a her a confused look in response.

"Wasn't my finest of images, seeing you kiss Mattheus today," she grimaced, taking another sip of wine.

"We're betrothed, what did you want me to do, say no?" I sarcastically responded, but she shot back almost immediately.

"Of course."

She said these words in a jokey manner, but there was some seriousness in her voice, it caught me off guard, and my teasing smile faded.

"I can't..."

"I'm only fooling about Morgana, now come, let us adjourn back before King Creon sends out a search party for us, the sun's setting."

She was right, I hadn't noticed it starting to dip in the horizon, I had been enjoying this day all too much. As she packed away all the picnic supplies, I pondered the seriousness of her last comment. Was she really joking? I came to the conclusion that I wasn't sober enough to judge this, I would review it another time. I mounted Raven using the fence post as she tied the basket onto Hera's saddle, and set off back through the trail with her following closely behind me.