"Larentia!", Iris cried and fell to her knees, surrounding her little nurse almost completely with her hunched over body.
"My little girl!", cried the other and hugged her fosterling close. "C-congratulations on your w-wedding", she managed to utter between stifled sniffs and hiccups.
"Uhuh", cried Iris.
"How could you grow up on me so quickly!", Larentia scolded sobbing.
"Forgive me for all the troubles I've caused you! You must be worn out!"
"Everything is fine", Larentia whispered stroking Iris' uncomfortably bent back.
"Oh please", clicked Hildred who had just re-entered the room with quick, wide strides that signalled business. She already sounded very annoyed again.
"Please dry those tears and let us proceed with the preparations for tonight. We don't have all day!"
Larentia let go of Iris and smiled her last tears away. "We can talk later", she encouraged.
"Of course", Iris smiled back, knowing that Larentia would stay close to her from now on.
"Come now, the bath is ready!", ordered Hildred strutting by.
At least those two aren't treating me any differently now, Iris thought and giggled to herself.
"You had better follow her, dear", Larentia advised.
"What will you be doing?"
"I will be making sure you get a hearty meal after you come back from your bath!" This said, Larentia started humming a cheerful tune, patted Iris' forearm and quickly left through a door to the side of the room.
Indeed, this was a room. No hall, no main ship of a cathedral, no endlessly stretching hallway nor platform. Just a room filled with damp, warm air that smelled of milk, lavender, jasmine, roses, lilies and so many more aromas unfamiliar to Iris' nose. Her lungs took it all in as if starving. With every deep breath, the fragrances soothed her soul, eased the tension of both body and mind, and invited her to stay. It felt like waking up among warm, cosy pillows. Iris had not even realized just how tired she really was.
Bringing her heavy body back to its feet, Iris hurried to where Hildred had disappeared behind heavy curtains that seemed to partition the room. When she passed through, four voices greeted her from all sides. The chambermaids had gathered.
"Please allow us to congratulate you on your wedding and coronation, Queen Iris", they chanted in unison and bowed down deeply. Holding up their skirts to both sides, their noses almost touched the ground. All of them had animals' bodies just like Larentia, Hildred and the master. Their arms, paws, noses and pointy ears seemed delicate and rather fragile, and yet they were what kept this court running.
Hildred clapped twice and the maids returned to their usual, attentive poses.
"Please allow us to undress you, milady", the youngest maid asked. She had a soft voice and always seemed friendly and cheerful. Iris answered with a smile and nodded slightly.
"Thank you", giggled the girl happily.
It's a shame I'm not supposed to talk to them much, Iris lamented while the maids pulled at the intricacies of her complicated wedding dress everywhere. She could have been a friend.
Iris was used to being undressed and sinking into the bath under the eyes of several other women by now, but she still hoped she would get to enjoy the hot water alone every now and then. Flower petals were dancing on the steaming water's surface, so freshly plucked that their light had not vanished yet. They floated around and had started to gather in the edges of the pool already, making it easy for Iris to guess its dimensions. She entered the water guided by the hands of two maids.
"Please be mindful of the steps underwater, milady", said the one to her right. "They might be slippery from the oils we poured into the bath to care for your beautiful skin."
Remembering what the master had told her about the maids' tendency to pamper people, Iris almost started laughing. Their cautious behaviour had saved her from having her blindness revealed quite a few times by now.
"I will let you stay in the water for a few minutes", Hildred informed her while the other maids left through the heavy curtain. "We don't want your skin to get too wrinkly."
Iris only nodded and sank down into the water to hide her reddening cheeks from Hildred's sight. The bath was wide and deep enough, so Iris took the liberty of floating around a little. The flowers that passed by her ears and cheeks were not the only thing that gave the water its healing scent. Milk and different oils from bark and other plants had been generously mixed into it. When Iris lifted her hands, it slipped from her fingers like smoke. Velveteen. But no, not even the luxurious velvet of her cloak could be compared to this.
This would do Nyx good, too, the thought crossed her mind. They had been separated rather abruptly after the ritual on the pulpit, and she did not know what he was doing at the moment. She could only hope that he would finally grant himself some time to relax as well. If only he could be here with her...
"Is this the queen's bath, Hildred?"
"Indeed. It is yours now", came the short answer. Short, but unusually serene.
Was Hildred trying to pacify her, or were the fragrances getting to her mood, too?
YOU ARE READING
Without Words, Without Sight
Fantasy"And in the distance between these eyes that did not see, and this voice that did not resound, he put the flowers and fruit he had picked to describe the scent she had to him. As he put them all into her arms, she understood with a graceful smile. P...
