A Battle of Pride and Desire

Chapter Eight

With their lessons cut short, Brigette wandered the castle for a while. It had winding hallways with doors leading to any type of room one could imagine. There was a drawing room, three dining rooms, more lounge rooms than she could count, a board room, and she hadn't even gone upstairs. The stairs mocked her inability to climb them so she ignored them for the time being. All the guards in the castle seemed to know who she was because they let her go about her business. Perhaps she could wander around the castle grounds if she asked nicely enough. She knew her way to the front door now, so she gathered the remaining scraps of her courage and walked to the guard at the door.

"Excuse me."

He didn't even react.

"Pardon me, but I was wondering if I could go for a stroll around the garden. I would be no trouble," she asked in what she hoped was her polite voice.

The guard nodded sharply, not looking away from right in front of him. She supposed that was a yes. She undid the latch of the door and walked out. The warm air hit her instantly and she basked in the warmth of the outside. She wanted to see the flowers she could see from her bedroom window. She knew they would be even more spectacular up close and in daylight. She ambled leisurely across the grounds nodding at guards as she went. She turned around the side of the house and there the flowers were, in full bloom. She went over to them all, grinning like a fool, as she inhaled their scent. There were flowers of every type, some that Brigette didn't even recognise. She crouched down to a bunch of particularly beautiful red flowers and sniffed them. She closed her eyes, utterly calm. She stood up and continued to do the same to almost every group of flowers in the garden. When her nose became immune to the smells she began to walk back towards the front of the castle. It looked different in the daytime, brighter, less scary. Perhaps that was because she knew she wasn't going to die anytime soon, or at least she hoped. There, in the middle of the grass, was the archery board she spotted last night. She walked over to it and examined the target. It was well-used, by whom, she didn't know. Where were the bow and arrows kept? She walked up to the closest guard she could see.

"Would I be permitted to do some target practice?" she pointed to the board behind her.

The guard seemed to deliberate for a moment and then said, "Ask his Lordship."

Brigette groaned internally, perhaps archery would have to wait. As she continued her walk around the grounds she tried to understand why they called Taran his Lordship. He was the prince, would your Highness not be more appropriate? Perhaps they had different formalities here, everything else was different. After two laps of the castle Brigette decided it would be worth her while going up to the gate to see what was going on outside. The guards at the gate remained as still as a mild night as she reached them. She acknowledged them with a smile and glanced out through the gate bars. She could not see much of the town but in the distance she could hear children screaming and playing. A joyous sound that always filled her heart. Brigette stayed there for some time, just listening to people being. This world was a strange one, but that sound would always bring her comfort.

Eventually, she tore herself away from the gates and walked back to the castle. She hoped the queen would return tomorrow so they could get on to figuring out why Juno's necklace was in her hometown. She was no fool; she knew there were things Taran and the queen were not telling her. Secrets they were keeping. She just needed to know what they were. She got one of the guards to open the door for her and when she looked into the hallway, Taran was standing there. The castle was as big as a small town and Taran had managed to be in the same place she were in. His back was turned to her as he spoke to someone in hushed tones. He stopped when he heard her walk in however.

"By all means," Brigette said. "Do continue."

Taran excused the woman he was speaking with and turned to face Brigette. He looked tired and his tunic that was perfect this morning, now had creases running along it. Brigette gave him a once over and sighed. She wasn't in such disarray because of her, surely.