As I sat on the dais during dinner everything seemed almost the same as usual. Something in the back of my mind bothered me, I just couldn’t place my finger on it. The young man that my mother had sat me next to, Foste, was quite charming and very polite. He had spoken quite extensively about his academic endeavours, I suppose I should say he was still speaking about his academics. He had hardly stopped talking the whole time. The only time I actually seemed to get a decent contribution into the conversation was when he spoke about his ecological studies.
A slight sensation of heat crawled across my shoulder, right across the mark. I surveyed the feast hall, people were talking all over, and many were looking up to the table. It was a feast and we were the hosts after all, nothing too odd about that. I looked down the table and saw, a mere one seat away from myself, my sister’s escort looking pointedly at me every so often. I could see the hint of excitement and judgment that was typical of gossip.
I could hear an incredibly faint gurgling sound, not even close to the volume of a whisper over the boisterous conversation in the great hall. In the corner of my eye I saw the red wine in my goblet bubbling as if it had been set to boil. I gawked at it in terror, was this Pandora at work?
A hand reached across and lifted the goblet. I followed the hand to its owner to see my sister sipping my cup of wine. Her eyebrows were raised at me as she drank, until the cup was drained. She set it back down and I mouthed a silent thank you. She smiled at me and turned back to her escort. As serving staff cleared away the platters and leftovers of food, my father clapped his hands together and conversations came to a halt.
“Lords, ladies, assorted others,” he boomed, his voice echoing around the hall. “I do hope you have all enjoyed the meal, but now it is time to dance!”
The guests moved from their seats and the men moved the tables to the edges of the hall. The rest of my family and their escorts moved from their seats to descend to the floor. Foste offered me his arm as I smoothed down my gown. I took his arm and we waited near the dais as others found partners. Once everyone seemed to be satisfied the players began a lively tune and we set about to whirling around the room.
The music stopped at an odd point leaving all of us a touch confused. A young squire, barely five heads tall, burst through the door and shouted as loudly as his little lungs would allow.
“Please pardon the unmentioned arrival! Prince Orion of the family Eventide!”
My brother strode through the door with his lady wife on his arm. His top men followed much further behind and lingered around the edges of the room. Mother clapped her hands together in delight and other such reactions fluttered throughout the crowd. A group of the younger men shouted greetings at him.
He smiled warmly at us and came over. He greeted each of us with a handshake or an embrace. It was good to see him and I couldn’t hide my grin as he wrapped me in muscular arms. He smelled like the forest, dirt, and trees, and animals. It was wonderful, ever so much my brother. He pulled back and moved over to hug my sister and I could still feel the smile plastered across my face. He finished greeting us and yelled out to the crowd, much as our father had, “Please continue the revelry!”
And continue the revelry we did.
As per usual, the night started out well. I moved all over the room, constantly switching partners. Unfortunately, the others were doing the same. Their hands were trying not to touch me and the laughing conversation I’d had at the beginning of the night had vanished. One man had even turned around to dance with me, recognized me, and turned away.
I worked my way to the edge of the room and walked out into the gardens. I wandered about a bit then sat on the stone bench under the large weeping willow. For all these years it was my spot. No one else was ever there unless they were with me or they were waiting for me. I had gotten quite cross a few years ago when I came out to find two guests on my bench locked in passion.
Stars pierced through the inky blackness that was the night sky. The garden was illuminated only by the light coming from the castle and a single mounted torch in the center of the stone that covered the ground before the garden fully started. Under the drooping branches of the willow hardly any of the little light penetrated its leafy covering. I was shielded under here, locked away in my world.
I swung my feet as I sat, humming a song as I did so. The lyrics echoed in my mind.
Child of darkness, darling dear,
Close your eyes, there’s nothing to fear.
Live the night, scorn the day,
Breath the stars, keep fear at bay.
Let them fall, you will stand.
There’s no one here to hold your hand.
Face it alone, it’s all you own.
The darkness runs deep, straight to the bone.
Child of darkness, darling dear,
Close your eyes, there’s nothing to fear.
Footsteps thudded on the stones outside of my safe haven. I stiffened as the leaves were pushed out of the way but relaxed as I saw who it was. Orion stepped through and sat next to me.
“Some things just never change, do they?” he said after settling himself on the bench next to me.
I shook my head, and replied, “No.”
As much as I was glad for him to be back I realized I had nothing to say to him. I had wanted him to come back for so long and now I was blank. I absentmindedly plucked at one of my ruffled cuffs and Orion shuffled the soles of his boots on the ground. He mumbled something I couldn’t hear but I didn’t press it further. Orion started to chuckle, breaking me from my concentration on my cuff.
“You remember when I dangled Tybalt out of the window?”
A miniscule smile spread across my lips.
“I do.”
Orion leaned back onto the truck of the willow. He recalled numerous other comical endeavors and we laughed in remembrance as memories filled the air. We hardly even had to elaborate on the details, one mention and we knew. I refrained from laughing to hard for fear of being crushed by my corset.
By the time Orion started to discuss the solstice feast from a few years past. I could not stand it anymore. I turned my back to him and arched my shoulders back.
“Unlace me,” I requested.
Orion untied the knot at the bottom of the accoutrement and began to pull the laces. As he pulled on the strings I could feel the ability to breathe returning to my body. He gave one final yank on the lacings and I sighed at the freedom. I started to pull the corset from my abdomen when someone pushed aside the willow hangings and gave an intoxicated gasp.
“Incest!” the man shouted. “Infidelity! Incest!”
He continued to yell the words over and over again. I tried to shush him and assure him that his accusations were most certainly not what was going on. My efforts were useless though, it merely caused him to change his ramblings.
“The bloody witch did it! Spreading her evil to others! I’d say burn her but the fire doesn’t like her kind!”
I stood up, corset still hanging loosely on my torso. A small crowd had gathered outside to see what all the shouting was about. A strong wind gusted across the gardens, sending foliage flying in a small whirlwind. I stormed out from under my rudely interrupted haven and strode through the throng of watchers. Droplets of rain fell from the sky, picking up rapidly, as I returned to the shelter of indoors.
Another yell sounded behind me, “See! She even works the sky!”
Thunder boomed as I stormed up the staircase. It wasn’t the first time I had left a feast far earlier than the rest, and it most certainly wouldn’t be the last. I slammed the door to my chambers and dropped onto my bed, falling asleep almost immediately.
