Guinevere (Book 1)

Chapter 8

I am awoken by a rustling noise in my room. Bolt upright and blinking into the dimly lit room, I see that it's only Enid. I groan and flop back down onto the pillows, my head pounding and my stomach uneasy from the amount of wine I consumed last night.

Enid hears me and cries; "Ah, you are awake!"

"That's a matter of opinion... I thought I said not to return so early, Enid. That you should enjoy yourself."

"Well, first of all, I did greatly enjoy myself, thank you. And second of all, it's not early; it's almost noon. Therefore, high time you got washed and dressed!"

Her voice resonates harshly in my throbbing head; "Shhh, not so loud! I'll only get up if you stop shouting at me."

Enid laughs at my self-induced pain; "I'm not shouting, my sweet. Last night must have been full of frivolity, judging by your current state. Was it all that I have heard it be?" 

Last night...last night. I rub my throbbing temples to try and recollect what happened at the victory feast; all is a little blurry. Slowly the music from the orchestra begins to repeat in my mind, then the food and drink. The latter making my stomach rumble unhappily. Then I remember the dancing with Arthur and with Lancelot, the laughter and the conversations. Especially with the knight, the memories are much clearer and the closeness between us once again makes me feel a little giddy. Though, that may still be the wine.

I smile at Enid; "Oh yes, it was a truly amazing evening, Enid. Father was laughing and socialising with the men. I danced with both King Arthur and his handsome knight commander...and drank rather too much, it seems."

Enid looks up at the ceiling in thought; "Which one is he again? There are so many of them."

"Sir Lancelot, of course!"

"Tall lad, dark and handsome with those lovely blue eyes?" she coos.

"That's him, yes. It appears he has recovered quite well."

She scurries over and perches next to me on the bed, eager for some gossip; "You say you danced with King Arthur too? What was he like? Pompous I suppose."

"Not at all! We actually have a lot in common and we talked a great deal. He gave me that necklace as a gift in thanks for helping his men when they were brought back here," I smile, pointing to the dressing table; "He even walked me back to my chambers; he was, and is, a complete gentleman."

Enid raises her eyebrows at me, giving me the same look as Father had last night; "This King Arthur seems rather taken with you, my dear."

I roll my eyes; "You sound just like Father! I think he's just overly generous."

"You call that rock 'overly generous'?" she says, pointing at the necklace; "Your mother never had anything nearly as ostentatious as that! You get along well, so you say, he dances with you and escorts you back here. I'd say that was a lot more than 'overly generous', dearest."

I sigh; "He's a King of the mighty Camelot, so I'm sure he can't help it. We're just friends, Enid."

It's now her turn to roll her eyes at me; "I forget how young you are... Think about it, just for a moment. All of these things don't seem a little...much, for the sake of just duty and friendship?"

I backtrack on all these moments from last night, as well as when he held my hand, wiping my tears from my face. Then he kissed me goodnight after escorting me back through my on Keep. Enid was right; no man would give me such attention if he were not...