Betrothed to Trouble

Chapter 19 - Last Goodbye

Sorry for the long wait!

“Oomph!” I gasped, gasping as I felt all the air in my lungs being forcefully released when a balding man in his forties staggered unsteadily against me. Instead of apologizing, the pot-bellied, not to mention, scruffy and tipsy villager merely chuckled heartily down at my scowl.

“Relax, lass,” he slurred dreamily, waving his mug full of beer in front of me; some of them slopping over the rim onto my shoes. “Cheers!” he guffawed before sauntering off to join a group of equally red-faced and drunk men sharing bawdy jokes at one corner of the tavern.

I raised an eyebrow in disbelief and whirled around in time to see Louis returning from the bar carrying two large, tin mugs brimming with beer, not unlike the one the drunk man was holding. He was chuckling at me, no doubt he had witnessed the accident. Well, nice to know he cares.

“Not funny,” I muttered, as I took the offered mug into my hands. “It was really rude of him,”

“That’s the way things are here, Your Majesty,” he mocked me, shaking his head and grinning at my apparent discomfort at being in the middle of a raucuous and noisy tavern, where apparently the villagers were celebrating the eve of the royal wedding. I didn’t even know such celebrations existed!

“Do I have to drink this?” I whined, sniffing the beer suspiciously and wrinkling my nose at its sharp smell.

“It’s the best beer in town, Miss Priss,” he joked, taking a long luxurious slip from his own and smacking his lips in satisfaction. “I’m serious. Just try one sip,” he sobered up at my apprehensive grimace.

“I hope I don’t get diarrhoea from this,” I mumbled before tentatively taking a small sip, whilst holding my breath to avoid inhaling its awful stench. “Oh god,” I gasped, choking and spluttering at the undescribable taste while Louis chuckled and rubbed my back soothingly.

“Come on, it wasn’t that  bad,” he laughed, taking my mug away before I could dump the contents out of the window and placing it on an empty table.

“It was horrible,” I grimaced. “I’ll just stick to champagne, thank you very much,” I muttered dryly.

“Come on, stop grumbling. I  thought we were here to have fun. To enjoy your freedom,” he whispered teasingly against my ear, making me giggle from the delicious shiver it sent down my spine.

“Sorry,” I smiled sheepishly, giving him a quick peck on his lips as an apology.

“So,” he began, stealing a glance in the direction of the makeshift dance floor where a small crowd were dancing loudly and boisterously to the music being provided by the musicians perched on various surfaces surrouding the area. “Can I have this dance?” he asked me with that faux polished accent used by most of the gentlemen in court.

“My pleasure,” I replied with a laugh, curtsying in the dark blue peasant dress I had borrowed from Elisa, one of my chamber maids.

The evening passed in a blur of music, dancing, laughter and surprisingly, more beer. It is a miracle how simply being thirsty and overstrung can change its taste. I must have had more than two mugs of beer and was quite drunk by the end of the night. Our feet were aching from the vigorous, and spontaneous dancing. It was a far cry from the well-choreographed and orderly dance numbers held in the palace ballrooms. Here, dancing was unbridled and a free expression where anyone could join and enjoy. Where tripping and running into one another was a common, laughable occurence, not an act of crime. Somehow, my hair had tumbled out of its braids halfway through the dance, sweeping the floor unceremoniously as Louis dipped me low to the ground while I giggled drunkenly. It was a refreshing experience, to mingle with the people and live through their own eyes. I couldn’t help but painfully notice the stark differences between my world and theirs. My yearning to become a part of their world, a part of Louis’s world burned so strongly within me then, and for a moment, I forgot who I was, and what the future had laid in store for me. That was until, of course, a group of newly discharged soldiers entered the tavern.