By the time I made it back through the woods, to Thanona, it was dawn. My feet were covered in blisters, from Galien's much too large boots, and were killing me. My pace had slowed dramatically, and I knew there was no way I could parade through town, even dressed as a man, and not be noticed. Between my limp, my still bleeding side, and my bruised face, I would draw too much attention.
So, I made my way home, and I hid in the barn. I passed Sable, who I was glad to see was home safe in his stall. At least Henri had done no harm to my horse. I tucked myself safely behind a hay pile, and figuring it would be a long time before anyone came into the barn, let myself drift off to sleep.
I woke up to the sound of water sloshing into the trough.
"Well, Sable, I guess it's just you and me now... Shame I can't ride," came the soft alto of Petronille's voice. Then she started walking, pitchfork in hand, towards the pile of hay that I was hiding behind.
There is no way she's not going to see me. I might as well just stand up. I brushed my hair, which had come undone during my sleep out of my face, and stood. My legs were numb and cramping from where I had been squatting, my side was throbbing unbareably, and I stumbled forward slightly.
"Pet." I whispered, leaning against the barn wall to steady my spinning head.
She froze, and her eyes grew to an enormous size once they found me. The pitchfork fell from her trembling hands. She took a step back from me.
"How... how can this be?" she asked, her face full of shock.
"What are you talking about Pet? You had to know I'd come home sooner or later," I said, confusion plastered across my face.
"B-but you're- you're d-dead."
"WHAT?! What gave you that idea? I am in no way dead! Do I look dead?" I screeched.
"B-but Henri said-
"Henri said what?" I said, my voice dropping to a guttural level.
"He said- he said that when he made it into the castle he had found, he left the men, and snuck in the back entrance. The men said you came out, but he said that the monster made you, so they would go away. That he was hiding in the courtyard behind you, in the darkness, so that they couldn't see him. He said that when he found you, the monster –
"Don't call him a monster, please, Pet. He isn't one. Call him a beast, if you must."
Her eyes widened, but she nodded. "Anyway, the b-beast had just brought you back in, and when Henri attacked him, the beast threw him across the room, and then he mauled you. By the time Henri defeated him-
"Defeated him? What exactly did he say happened?" I asked.
"He killed him. He said he ran him through with his sword."
She stopped so that it could sink in.
My mind was whirling. Oh, I'm sure the great Henri defeated the evil monster, overcame him and ran him through with his sword. Hah! It's ridiculous, what the people in this village will believe from him
After a moment, I realized she was waiting. "Finish, please, Pet. By the time he had defeated the Beast?"
She swallowed. "You were almost dead, and you died in his arms. He was covered in blood when he came home, and he was leading Sable; said that he took him from the stable of the castle after you died; that you would have wanted me to have him."
"And I would, Pet, if I were dead. But, I'm not, obviously." I climbed clumsily across the hay pile towards her, and grabbed her hand. "If I were a ghost, could I do that?"
YOU ARE READING
The Dying Rose (Completed)
FantasyOnce there lived a girl, who lived in Thanona, a little provential village. Her mother was dead, her father was a ruined merchant turned inventor, and her sisters were babied. They missed the life they lived before their father's ruin, in the city...
