Iris had never felt so pampered in all of her life. Her stomach was filled with Larentia's love in the form of her long missed cuisine. Her skin was soft and still retained the warmth of the bath under the light silk and velvet of yet another new night gown. Her hair, which had once again been straightened, swayed with every step of her massaged feet and released the fragrance of the oils and perfumes the maids had so generously applied. Her hands and fingertips, scrubbed with oil and salt, were even more sensitive to the touch of her gown's different materials now. So warm and cosy, even though they were passing the same chilly hallways on their way to the royal chambers. If someone gave her a bed to sleep now, she would not wake up for days, she was sure of it.
Iris looked around: Here she was, the new Queen of this ancient country of Beithalgair, surrounded by the four chambermaids, Larentia and Hildred. The guards they passed by now displayed a completely altered behaviour, too. They snapped to attention the moment they caught a glimpse of her, and saluted as she walked by in close proximity, tapping the ground with their halberds once and folding their other arm behind their backs.
When they arrived in the hallway leading up to the royal chambers – one of the highest places of the whole castle – the sounds from the town down below reached Iris' ears. The people were celebrating! Chanting and laughter merged with countless instruments playing everywhere and let themselves be carried far, by this air that smelt of grilled food, pastry and probably a lot of liquor. The hour of the curfew had long passed, but today seemed to be an exception. Iris still had mixed feelings about this people of hers, whom she had been afraid of most of her life. After all, any of them could have meant torture or death at any time. They had been raised to admire strength and able physique, such was their upbringing. No wonder some of them would not bother to contain their violent nature. But then again, Larentia had been part of this society before, too. And she was nothing like these images she herself had conjured up to make Iris stay away from the town or roaming strangers in the woods.
Maybe some of them were not so bad, after all. Judging from the sounds and the atmosphere, these seemed to be peaceful celebrations.
Suddenly, the noise from two heavy halberds smashing into the ground scared away her thoughts and swallowed the merry voices. Iris averted her gaze from the walls' castellation in the distance and came to rest on two mighty guards beside a gate that did not feel familiar. A quick glance to the side revealed to Iris that Nyx' chamber already lay behind them.
"Your Queen has arrived. Open the gates", ordered Larentia in a dignified voice. Iris, however, could not do but notice another nuance in her voice. Her nurse washighly amused about the way she was now in a position to boss around royal guards who were about fifteen times her volume.
Iris took a moment to finally take a good look at the enormous men in front of her. Before her drastic change of status, she had been advised to not look them in the eye, or stare at them at all. It seemed like their bodies consisted of muscles, it was hard to tell where their necks and shoulders ended and where their arms began. They were about as tall as Nyx, their heavy bull horns slightly curved. They shielded their throats and pointed towards Iris and her entourage. Heavy leather armour reinforced by metal plates dangled from their chests as well as the dense cloth that veiled their legs down to the ground, securely tied to their hips by leather belts. These two impressive sights, now in charge of her personal safety, obeyed their queen's lady-in-waiting and with a swift movement pushed apart the door wings as if they weighed nothing at all.
"We will leave you now", Hildred announced and the four maids around her bowed deeply. "We wish you a pleasant night", they chanted as if from a single mouth. "Miss Larentia, we will wait here for you, so please be quick", Hildred reminded her new colleague, who found herself caught in another tight embrace the very moment the wooden bastion made forget the other maids and the outside world with a restrained click.
YOU ARE READING
Without Words, Without Sight
Fantasía"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...
