The King's Bride - Book 1 of The Queen trilogy

Chapter 2 - Woman in the Mist

Chapter 2

     The soft lilt of morning birdsong roused her from her sleep. Her eyelids drifted open despite themselves, and she lay staring at the ceiling as though it would somehow get her out of this mess. It was time to say goodbye, she realized, for the last time.
    A lump welled in her throat, and she wished she could burry herself in the bedclothes and never be found again. Morecliff had been her home as long as she could remember. It was here her mother had died; here she felt protected and safe. Closing her eyes, she determined not to cry. She could be—no, she would be—strong. She had to be. She had to uphold her father's name and station, not weep like a silly child.
    Drawing a shaking breath, she sat up. The wolfhounds at the end of her bed lifted their heads, but she ignored them and allowed her gaze to shift around her room, absorbing everything and committing it to memory. The drafty casement that never kept out the weather, the smoky fireplace that never seemed to draw correctly, the smooth, oakwood wardrobe with the dainty woodland scene etched into its surface. They were all hers, and she was going to miss them.
    Composing herself with some effort, she slid out of bed. She couldn't let herself mope; she had to keep her emotions in hand, or she might never get control of them again. As she set her bare feet on the cold, stone floor, her eyes fell on the neatly stacked bags and boxes that held all her worldly possessions. She had never hated anything before, not really, but the feeling, that rose within her chest at the sight of the luggage, surely bore an incredible resemblance to hate.
    Outside her window, a lark announced his exuberance to the world and gritting her teeth, she spun into action. Without waiting for Maria, she pulled on her favorite dress. She wouldn't let her departure ruin her last morning at home. Leaving her hair as it lay, she gave a quick sharp whistle, that was hopefully too quiet to wake anyone else, and slipped out of her room, her dogs close behind. She padded carefully across the floor in her soft slippers until she reached the hall, and the need for silence could be safely forgotten.
    Skirting the table, she made her way toward the large door on the far side of the room, pausing suddenly when she reached it. Did she want to step into the garden beyond and feel in her heart that this was the last goodbye? Tsallin pressed his gray body against her, his back reaching to her hip, and whined softly as he looked up at her with his large soulful eyes. He could tell there was something wrong with her. Resa drew closer as well, her mournful eyes full of understanding.
    Rose smiled at them. "We can't let them get to us. We have to be strong."
    With fierce resolve, she threw her weight against the heavy, oaken door, grunting as it reluctantly swung open. Tsallin and Resa slid out the door ahead of her, their snouts held aloft to the breeze. Sliding out after them, Rose closed her eyes for a moment, relishing the feeling of fresh air in her lungs as the door swung shut behind her.
    There was a thick blanket of mist hanging over the gardens, dancing and shifting around the trees and bushes and beckoning with long spectral tendrils for her to come join in its dance. Moving further into the chill, she reached out a hand and tried to capture the mist in it, but the swirling whiteness could not be taken captive. No human could enslave it or injure it; it belonged to no one and obeyed no one as long as the clouds hid the sun.
    Tsallin growled suddenly, his hackles raising, and Resa followed suit, crouching low in the damp grass. Rose frowned, reaching out to place a reassuring hand on their heads, but before she could, both dogs bolted into the mist, barking fiercely.
    Whistling sharply, she called to them, but their barking continued to grow fainter. With an exasperated sigh, she plunged into the mist. In this mist, there was no telling where the animals had gone, and she wanted to keep them with her, so they would be ready when the time came for her departure. She certainly wasn't going to leave them here. They would lend comfort for her in her strange new home, and without them, she wasn't sure what she'd do.
    As the minutes slipped away with no sight of the dogs, she began to grow worried. Where could they have gone? Had something happened to them in the thick mist where she could never hope to find them? She tried to reassure herself that they were only chasing a rabbit, but even a rabbit had never tempted them to disregard their mistresses call.
    Rounding a carefully trimmed hedge, she came to an abrupt halt. There was an old, bent woman standing near the fountain bench. It wasn't one of the gardeners, she was too old, and besides, Rose knew all the grounds-workers by heart. Slowly, as though it took a great deal of effort, the woman turned, and Rose drew a sharp breath. A pair of eyes that were all at once dark and light, narrow and wide, young and old stared at her, and in their orbs, it felt as though she could see all of time slipping beneath her feet. Bloody wars and joyous celebrations or peace seemed to be happening all at once, and the sigh made her head ache, and dizziness flooded her until she looked away.
    "Not many can hold my gaze long, child." A voice said, and though the woman was a stranger, Rose somehow knew it was she who had spoken. "Come closer." Unsure why, Rose closed the distance between them, keeping her eyes trained on the grass. "Such a beautiful girl you are."
    Swallowing around her suddenly swollen tongue, Rose cleared her throat. "Thank you." She whispered hoarsely.
    "Let me look into your eyes, child." A gnarled hand grasped her jaw, and Rose lifted her eyes, staring into the woman's mesmerizingly haunting gaze, and then the woman was speaking. Her words danced around Rose's ears, and Rose wasn't sure if the woman were actually speaking or if the words were only in her head.

"Destined to love a man not her groom.
Fated to live life wrought with gloom.
A dance her feet to perform,
Binding her within Love's storm.
Perchance happiness find a way
But not long can it stay.
Doom and death a shadow bring,
A husband's choice into sorrow fling.
A queen fair and regal,
A king, her husband tall,
But order though they might,
Men-at-arms storm and calvary fight,
Non can change maiden's plight.
A Rose spinning among thorns,
A crown of gold her head adorns.
Her hands weak and small
Cannot sorrow's specter stall.
For love is pain
And bound to wane.
Though through fierce flames it pass,
Is there yet a sweet repass?
A heart that's dead, beats no more,
Trampled in the throes of war.
But light will come with dancing feet,
And if through all the lovers pass,
Their trials shall be complete,
And end will come at last."

    Tsallin's fierce barking broke through the silence, and Rose spun into action faster than she had thought possible. Meeting the enormous wolfhound halfway, she grabbed his woven collar, holding him back with great effort as she got a better grip on him.
    "Sh, it's all right. It's okay." Tsallin stopped struggling, but he remained stiff and growled sharply, pressing against her as though that would protect her from harm. Couldn't he see that the little, old woman was harmless? At the thought, Rose looked up, and then she blinked. The woman was gone. She quickly searched the surrounding area with her eyes, but there was no sign that anyone but herself had set foot in the gardens this morning.
    With a final growl deep in his chest, Tsallin relaxed against her, whining softly. When she didn't respond, he licked her face and whined again. She patted his head absentmindedly, straightening to get a better look. Resa was behind her, rubbing against her leg in a request for equal attention to be lavished upon her, but Rose couldn't focus on them right now.
    Old women, who leaned on crutches, couldn't get away that fast. It couldn't have been more than a few moments that she'd looked away. Yet, the woman was most obviously gone, and there was no trace of her presence in the thinning veil of mist.
    "Lady Rose! There ye are! I've been lookin' all over fer ye!" Maria's sharp voice caught her ear, but she couldn't take her attention away from the bubbling fountain. Come to think of it, how had the woman gotten in here in the first place? Her father's guards should have stopped her. "Lady Rose! Do ye even hear what I'm sayin'?"
    "I'm sorry, Maria." Rose said softly. "I must be going out of my mind."
    "Well, never mind that now, child, yer to be leavin', and soon. Ye must come back up to the Manor house in a hurry. Yer father wants to speak to ye before ye tell him 'goodbye'." Maria grabbed hold of her arm and began dragging her back toward the house.
    "Goodbye? What do you mean? He's going with me." Rose was suddenly jerked back into reality, and the old woman was forgotten for the present.
    "Nay, child, I shouldna have said anythin'. He wanted to tell ye himself." Maria said evasively as though that would terminate the subject.
    "Maria! He was to go with me. Why did he change his mind?" Panic threatened to overwhelm her. How was she to go to a new place alone? There wouldn't be anyone there for her. She would be completely alone.
    "Things have changed. Now, hurry!" Maria said firmly.
    The sun peaked over the horizon, and the swirling mist melted into nothingness alongside Rose's fleeting desire to dance. Through the golden light, she saw a dark, hovering shadow that threatened to drown her in its darkness, and she was powerless to stop it.

Yay! I finally got around to updating! I kinda got caught up in writing other stories and working out plots that I forgot about this little thing, but I'm back on it now! What do you guys think? I know, the poetry isn't the greatest, but what can I say? Poetry isn't my forte.