Lily of the valley

39

Katherine spent her days alone, in the grips of a panic, everything had moved so quickly. She was lost in the clutch of a tempest, she dreaded war even if it paved the way to peace. Deep down she knew that Isolde could not be reasoned with and that they would have no choice but to fight. There was always hope she reminded herself. Lily had been mostly absent, swept up in the heat of her whirlwind romance, soon the gentle days of summer would be over. Soon it would be time to brace against the cold winter wind.

The castle was nearly rebuilt, the day was nearly upon them. Time raced forwards and soon they were saddled upon white mares and riding north. Katherine wore her peace lily gown and rode sidesaddle. Lily and Thea rode either side of her. They would arrive at the seat of Kings a day before the council was due to be held to prepare and inspect the finished building work. They rode through the dunes, the sun was violent in the south. The canyons offered some shelter, there was a whistling wind that blew down the stony corridors. It relieved the hot sweat that stuck to their skin and hair. The travelling troupe consisted of a group of ten soldiers, the King of Maequil, Prince Solomon, the King of the sunlight city, Agathe, Ixia, Thea, Lily and Katherine. Gustavo had been made to stay in the desert city, though Lily had begged Thea for him to come. Their journey had no room for romance.

The travellers stopped for lunch in the shelter of twisted red rock, they sat beside the racing river and bathed in the warm midday sun. Katherine refreshed her face in the water, it was the same river she and Lily had raced down. The troubles of those days seemed so far behind. Lily remembered nothing of that ordeal, only searing pain followed by awaking in the city of sunlight. They ate meat sandwiches and drank sweet wine, there was dried fruit and spiced cakes. Katherine muttered her worries to Lily, who had not been around to hear them.

"What if Isolde has set a trap? I don't like this Lily. I'm afraid." Lily nodded, she had been wondering the same things. Queen Thea underestimated the spider woman, she had heard tales of her poison and her addictions and thought of her as some desperate junkie. The ladies of the mountain had seen how dangerous she could really be.

"It probably is a trap, but we don't have a choice." Lily took Katherine's hands and squeezed them. Their stress distracted them from the beauty of the day, the sun cast a rich yellow light over the rock faces and sand. The river was rapid but crystalline, through the bubbles and swirling, the rocky bottom was visible. The sky was perfectly clear and shining blue. The heat was offset by shadow and a cool breeze. They were walking into the eye of the storm, with blind hope that they could beat back at the hurricane. As was the nature of war. They had no choice. "This are fated remember, we cannot fail." Lily's words were comforting, but not comforting enough.

Agathe had overheard their conversation and went to sit beside the ladies of the mountain. She too had her fears about what lie ahead, the journey had been rife with omens. The sunrise had been rich, bloody red.

"Do you truly believe that Isolde is a danger to us?" The ladies of the mountain nodded.

"I don't think there's anything that she wouldn't do." Katherine replied.

"She thrives on war." Interjected Lily.

"The grove keeper and her army will be waiting just over the horizon should we need them. Have you any advice for dealing with Isolde?" The ladies of the mountain stopped a second to think.

"Eat nothing she offers you, she laces food with that drug to make people her slaves." Lily spoke of the horrors they had been witness to. "Try not to rile her up."

"It may be difficult to convince Thea to stick to that rule, but I will try."

Soon they were mounted again and trotting up a sandy incline, they were coming to the end of the canyon lands. The sun did not beat as violently where sand turned to rocky wasteland. The air was fresh and mild. Heather grew through the cracks. The moorland was vast, it would take them until sunset to reach the castle. The landscape was unchanging and bleak, though the sky remained dazzling blue. They had to move slowly though the thick bushels of heather, the earth beneath the flowers was soft and wet. The knights began to sing a song of heroism and victory. Their deep voices echoed around the fells. Like the ringing of steel colliding with steel. There was a soft breeze that blew through the women's hair. The later it got in the day the colder the air became, Katherine wrapped a green and black woollen shawl around her shoulders. The chill made her miss the tundra of her old home. At least she would see her family soon.

The sunset painted the sky with orange and pink, ever shifting to reveal new forms of beauty. Turrets became visible on the horizon, white flags with the peace lily painted upon them flew high. They arrived at the foot of the castle just as darkness fell. The seat of kings was far removed from the ruins Katherine and Lily had witnessed only a number of months previously. It stood grand and proud. An employ of servants were waiting for them to see to the horses and lead them to the dining room where a modest feast was laid out.

The tapestries were all white and the vases were filled with lilies. The hearth was roaring and warm, dozens of candles illuminated the scene. They ate heartily and drank merrily. Their cheeks were rosy with the heat and the wine. They tried not to think of the troubles that would come in the morning. No doubt some monarchs were already travelling towards them. The elves and the sailors would be wandering through the night.

As the night drew later the knights retired to the castle barracks, then the nobles went upstairs to their bedrooms. Katherine was expected to share a bedchamber with her husband, Lily shared with Thea's handmaidens. Katherine's room had been decorated with paintings of the mountain, a gift from Queen Thea. The fourposter bed frame was of silver, the curtains were white and green. Everything had been designed to emanate peace.

Katherine lay down beside her husband in this strange new room and stared into the darkness, Solomon's snoring was the only sound. She knew that she would not sleep that night, there was too much pressure pressing down on her. Katherine feared the dawn. She spent the night time hours with terrifying thoughts racing about in her head, time dragged by. Eventually she fell into dreaming and the morning came.