Under the Oak Tree - Head in the Puffy Clouds: A Collection of Daydreams

Daydream 02: Those Yellow Parchments (Part III)

[Continued from Daydream 02 Part II]

After all this while, it was still her red hair that brought him back to comfort. The fluffy red cloud in the garden breeze, the flaming mane amidst the harrowing blizzard, and now a pathetic red strand left on their bed.

I'll be with you now, if I'm your hair.

Riftan's fingers were trembling as he reached out. 

Fuck.

It was just a fabric thread. A year had passed, and the servants would have changed their sheets with the arrival of spring. Any scent or traces of her would have been washed.

I'm really going mad. Fuck!

Riftan grabbed a pillow and threw it out in frustration. Crushed, he then sank into the side of the bed and diverted his attention back to the parcel. The package was wrapped in the exact colour of emerald when he first met her again in Droix Castle. It was the perfect shade of green that complemented her fiery mane.

At least I have you here.

Riftan's fingers traced the velvet fabric protecting the package. As if it was an infant foal, he carefully untangled the leather bounding the cloth. Lying in its safe cradle was a sealed envelope with his name indicated on it:

Riftan Calypse, Lord of Anatol.

Riftan immediately recognised the penmanship. Perhaps he was really losing his mind, but he could see her face through her handwriting. The alphabets were written petite like her slender body that he could almost wrapped his arms around twice. Her o's was circled round like the pupils of her eyes, her t's looped playfully like the strands of her hair, while her i's dotted charmingly like the freckles on her nose. Even the overall light pressure of her quill felt like the softness of her skin.

Holding his breath, Riftan broke the wax seal and pulled the parchments out delicately. As he unfolded the letters and read the first line, he felt his vision blurring again.

"To my beloved husband,"

A sharp pain stabbed his heart. Riftan closed his eyes and took a deep breath for courage to continue.

"How have you been?"

"Words cannot describe how excited I am to finally relay a message to you. As you'd know, there are many regulations at Nornui so it really breaks my heart that my feelings are confined to the limitations of these few parchments. However, my life at Nornui is going well. The wizards here are treating me kindly..."

Riftan's stomach twisted when he noticed how optimistic her tone was sounding. While he was assured that she was safe and well-adapted, part of him was desperate to hear from his wife that his longing for her was likewise.

I'm really dying here, Maxi. Are you missing me as much as I do for you?

He had to take several pauses to recollect his emotions. In her letter, she briefly explained about the living arrangement on the island, the friends acquainted, and the training that she was going through. Most part of her letters were well-wishes for him and the knights, and it ended faster than he wanted it to.

"I'll be back very soon, Riftan. I'm working hard for it."

His heart ached when his eyes ran through the final lines of her letter. Tears shamelessly ran down his cheeks again as his fingers traced over her name that was bound with his:

"Love, Maximillian Calypse."

Riftan read through the letters repeatedly. Even though there were not many parchments written, he obsessed through every single sentence and choice of words she made. He was prepared to invade the island and bring her back should he sensed any hint of misery in her message.

I'll even wage war with the whole fucking continent for you.

Suddenly, a soft knock on the door broke his train of thought.

"Lord Calypse, the wizard has asked for your dinner to be delivered here."

"Leave it outside."

The commander replied coarsely, attempting to bury his emotions. After some clinking sounds were made outside, the room soon fell into the deafeningly silence again. Riftan sighed and was about to re-read the letter again when he was shocked by something brushing past his ankles.

Fuck!

As he peered down irritably, he noticed a white fur-ball impatiently pacing around him.

"Oh, it's you Rola."

Riftan gently scooped up the cat and placed her over his lap. Since he had not been in this room for a while, the cats had slipped his mind. His heart sank as his hands thoughtlessly petted the feline, remembering Maxi's elation when he first showed the kittens to his wife in the stables. A sarcastic laugh escaped from his throat again as he recalled how he had promised her a life more lavish than Castle Croix, yet their present state was all that he could deliver. He felt his determination hardening with vengeance again.

No, I'll build Anatol so strong that we'll never be threatened again. You'll never have to leave again.

"Me-meow!"

Out of the blue, Riftan felt sharp claws sinking into the back of his hands. It appeared Rola was tired of his mindless stroking, and he did not notice her warning signs.

The jolt to reality however made Riftan realised that his fiery tears were dripping onto the parchments. Afraid that the moistures would cause the parchment ink to run, Riftan quickly pulled his tunic up to wipe his face. He then laid down on the bed with the letters tightly held to his chest.

Hoping for a hint of her sweet scent, Riftan deeply inhaled the parchments. When he realised that there was none, an overwhelming surge of emotions came crashing out from the deepest corner of his soul. His chest began to heave, and his silent tears soon turned into violent sobs that shook his entire body uncontrollably.

Why are you the only one who can make me feel such pain, Maxi?

All the walls that he had built for the past year, no matter what reinforcements he had been fortifying the fortress with, came crashing down when the floodgates were released. Riftan was losing all control that he was already struggling to rein in. He could feel himself sinking into the black void he had grown accustomed too, yet somehow this time round, there was a strange sense of comfort at the deepest end of the tunnel.

Maxi, Maxi...

His lips could not stop mumbling the name of his wife. He could feel Rola curling next to him, and his eyelids soon fell heavy to the rhythm of the cat's breathing.

I really need you. Please return to my side.

***

"What is this involving?"

The wizard of Anatol spoke upon the creaking sound of his door opening. It was already way past sleeping hours and he was desperate for some time alone to immerse in his reports. The last thing he wanted was for his sanctuary in the office to be violated.

"Sorry for the disruption, Sir Wizard. I'm looking for Lord Calypse. A messenger has just arrived from Livadon and would like an immediate audience with our commander."

Ruth gazed up from his documents and languidly assessed the squire standing by the door. Scratching his hair, he contemplated momentarily before shaking his head.

"The lord is engaged for the night. We can arrange for the message to be delivered when dawn breaks."

"But..."

"He is not to be disturbed."

With that, he clicked his tongue to dismiss the soldier and went back to his documents with a sigh.

"Sleep in for the night, Riftan."