The Art Of Thawing A Frozen Heart

chapter 3

Chapter 3

I was standing across the room, still in semi-shock when the room grew quiet and everyone turned to face prince Hiccup. I hadn't heard his arrival, but his presence was like that of a calm before the storm. It was something that didn't feel quite there, like a dream, yet it was tangible at the same time. He held his head high, somehow, before Aster turned to give him the news. I couldn't hear what he said, but I knew it would be short and to-the-point. Hiccup's face twisted into a look of confusion at first, then dread, and finally of terrible sadness. He didn't shed a tear, though, as he walked over to the table where his mother's form laid still. All eyes were on him as his lips pressed into a tight line. "Someone… send for my father, he should be out in the city with the grand master knight, and when he's been found… have the church bells rung." A few servants exited the room to do as he had instructed while the women continued to mourn in the corners.

The prince lifted his head. "Aster… bring her some lilies, please. Those were her favorite." He charged. Aster nodded, and left to do so, beckoning for me to leave with him. With the prince's last words being those to Aster, he hastened out of the room. I caught a glimpse of his face as he opened the door, finding it to be oddly devoid of emotion, holding back. He was stronger than I would've given him credit for. Maybe it was still just shock, and he hadn't fully taken it in yet, but you could see it in the way he held his mouth closed tight. He was hiding it away, keeping up appearances. I suddenly wondered what his real face was. Was it radiant, like the first time we met, or overly friendly like with the girls, or even awkward and opinionated like when we went riding? Which was the genuine prince Hiccup? I thought about it, and soon realized that this face… that was him.

Gods know why I wanted to, but my arms ached to comfort the royal. It was obvious he had been hurting for a long time. He left the room before I could do anything, though, rushing out the door. I found my way back over to Aster, who led me through the halls and out into the open air of one of the gardens. The sunlight felt stuffier than usual, like it was trying too hard to be happy. We cut the tips off of all the different kinds of lilies, laying them in the crooks of our arms. Their deep yellow and red pollen fell on our shirts like colored flour, leaving small rust-colored stains. They smelled the same as they had yesterday, but now the fragrance was the signal of an ending, with a heaviness that wasn't there before.

"Aster… who do you think it was?"

My senior only huffed, scowling at the flowers with a sadness in the silvers of his eyes. "I don't 'ave the slightest… but whoevah they are, they deserve worse than what any of us on Earth could evah treat 'em to. Vallhalerama was a good woman… above all else, a fine woman, and an even better queen. Lord knows she was a wonderful, if not a little overprotective, mother. I… can't imagine how Hiccup's taking all this. For his sake… for his sake more than anything I hope they find the bastard." I had learned over the past few days that Aster would rant and yell and be an overall grumpy bunny, but right then I saw what it was like for him to be truly angry. He didn't yell, but his voice held a lower growl that made you quiver. Forget looks, Aster could kill with his words.

When we both had large armfuls of lilies, we put them into matching vases (usually reserved for parties and such). Walking back into the room where the dead queen was being handled by the castle physician was difficult for me. I didn't like seeing corpses, especially those of people I had never met. They made me uncomfortable, bringing back unwanted memories of the crusades. Aster asked the physician and two other servants where they would be taking the queen. They said they would take her to an extra chamber to put her in a bed for the king and prince and other royals to say their prayers and farewells. We followed them as they carried the late queen to said room and laid her down. Aster and I placed the flowers on either side of her on the two bedside tables. Unable to contain my curiosity, I snuck a look at the late queen.