The War of Queens

Chapter 24

Asha

 “Is it always so dark?” Asha asked her handmaiden.

 The girl was no more than thirteen, a slim maiden with orange hair and pale blue eyes. “In winter, yes,” she replied.

 Asha looked out over the snow covered lands, the steep mountains and evergreen woods. Somewhere far away, a wolf howled. A dim grey background served as background. She could not even see the sun for clouds. “And when does winter end?” she asked.

 The handmaiden finished the straps on Asha’s gown. “It depends, milady.”

 “Tonight is the night of the new year,” she mused. “Surely, it has to end soon.”

 The door opened and Hiram entered. He smiled widely and Asha smiled back, dismissing her handmaiden. “Happy New Year,” he said.

 She sighed. “It’s not even a tradition of ours,” she reminded him.

 He shrugged. “It’s a reason to be happy, is it not?” His hand caressed her face as he leaned in and kissed her softly. “Besides, we are in the north now, and have been for more than a year. We might as well embrace it.”

 “And forget about our own traditions?” she asked.

 “That’s not…” He looked at her as if just realizing something. “I’m sorry. You are in a bad mood. I will leave it.”

 “I am not,” she said. “Why would you think that? Because I am past thirty years old and I do not believe one year spent in the North is enough to make me forget who I am?”

 His hands fell to his sides. “I’m sorry.” He walked to the window and looked out. “Sometimes I just do not understand what we are doing here?”

 “What?”

 He looked up at her, almost apologetically. “Why are we here? All we do is wait for this supposed Queen in the east, why did we not wait a little longer?”

 “We need to show our support of Caterina,” she explained. “It’s political.”

 With a groan, he pushed away from the window and began pacing the room. “That is what you say whenever you do something you do not understand,” he exclaimed.

 “Excuse me?” Her eyes were wide in disbelief.

 He stopped pacing. “You know I did not mean it like that.”

 “Oh.” She laughed sarcastically. “You did not mean to tell me that I did not understand? You did not mean to imply that I am stupid?”

 “No,” he all but shouted. “I did not.” He drew in a deep, calming breath. “It’s just… sometimes you say words, but they come out with Caterina’s voice.”

 He walked to her, his steps slow and a little calmer. He brushed her hair out of the way and kissed her forehead. “I’m sorry,” he muttered against her skin. “I did not come to fight. I just wanted to ask you if you were free tonight.”

 His scent was all around her and she breathed it in. “Why?”

 “There are to be festivities held in the town,” he told her in a whisper. “I wanted to ask if you would accompany me?”

 Pushing him away, she shook her head. “I am so sorry, but I cannot. There is a meeting tonight, and I need to attend.”

 “It is the night of the new year,” he said. “Surely, you can stop to have a bit of fun just tonight.”