She did not intend to stay in French court for so long, but it seems that she was going to.
It was because the king and queen of France insisted that she stay for a little while longer. Adèle suspected that it was all due to her little brothers. Mary and Francis both adored Theo and Cyril as if they were their own. Often they would spoil them with gifts, which were something Adèle disapproved of, but she could not refuse, for they were the king and queen of France. They would take the little boys to trips as well, sometimes even to far off lands such as Paris, which made Theo and Cyril come back to her full of stories of the grandeur of the cities they visited. Adèle listened to these stories, and thought how grateful she was for Mary and Francis, because they were such kind people, and how remarkably well they treated both her little brothers and the people of France and Scotland.
But without her brothers, Adèle spent her time in solitude, which was something she was greatly displeased by. But now, she had Theo and Cyril to herself, as the king and queen were occupied by their duties due to the upcoming famine. And so, she took advantage of this time to have a small picnic out near the lake, where she would allow her little brothers to tell more of their stories. They spoke at great length of the sights they have seen, the people they encountered, and the vast lands of France for which they have just known. Her little brothers' stories were a great distraction from the thoughts that constantly filled her mind; these thoughts were primarily of Bash, Kenna, and their upcoming wedding. She was more than grateful that her little brothers entangled her from all the confusion, and all the distress. In the landscape of verdant fields, as sunlight touched their skins, it brought back a feeling to Adèle that she has long known: a feeling of domestic comfort.
"When are you going to come visit Paris with us, Adèle-?" asked Theo, then gobbled into a ripe apple that he had in his grasp.
"Some time soon, hopefully," she replied, as Cyril lay on her lap, fiddling about with a red paper flower that Mary taught him how to make, and slowly falling asleep. "But I have too much to deal with here, Theo. I'm not sure I can come along with you anytime soon,"
"Why are you always busy?" he complained; yet he looked more sad than angry at her. "Is it because you're planning your wedding with Bash? When are you going to marry him, Adèle?"
A feeling of vexation struck Adèle. She was not going to speak of Bash, especially not with her little brothers, but unfortunately, an explanation of their current situation was necessary so it does not cause any confusion between them. "Bash and I aren't getting married, Theo," she said with bitterness in her voice.
"Why not?"
"There were.. issues," she replied, turning away from the face of her little brother and gazed at the landscape of the French countryside. "Issues that stopped us from getting married."
"But you love him, don't you? At least that's what Mary and Francis told me during our trips."
"Yes, I love him," Adèle smiled. "But only as a friend, Theo. I know you're sad that he will not be my husband, and that we have cancelled our wedding, but it's for the best. Once you grow up, you will understand,"
"But I'm already grown up," Theo insisted, stood up, and showed off his sword fighting skills, with his toy wooden sword. "Even king Francis says I'm the best swordsman in all of France!" Adèle giggled as she saw her little brother piercing the air with his sword, and pictured him as a grown man, a real swordsman, and the best one, as he said, in all of France. She thought it strange that her little brothers were to have wives of their own, and children.. but what about herself? Was she going to grow as an old, husbandless maid with a rich fortune in her hands, as her brothers raise their own children?
No, she said to herself. Stop thinking about it too much, Adèle.
On her lap, Cyril began to fall asleep, and so she could not move at all, or she would wake up her sleeping dragon. Theo kept practicing until he began to grow tired, which didn't take much long. He sat with his legs crossed and began to eat his bread, out of boredom, it seems. There was a silence between the three of them, but in this silence they did not feel a sense of awkwardness, for they were grateful they had time to spend with each other in court, within the midst of their hectic lives.
"You ought to take them back to their bedchambers," a familiar voice rung in her ears. "It looks like it's going to rain soon."
Adèle averted her gaze from the lake to the man that stood before her, who was not sitting, cross-legged, near Theo. This man was none other than Bash himself, who thought it funny to come interrupting Adèle's only time of relaxation.
"It's not going to rain," states Adèle. "What do you want, anyway?" she asked, with a grave expression on her face.
"Nothing," Bash smirked. "A piece of bread, if you don't mind." He took a small chunk off the bread that Theo ate, and ate it quickly.
Theo squealed, and rose from the ground, ran up to him, and exclaimed, "Bash!" He then proceeded to wrap his little arms around him and lay on his lap, mirroring Adèle and Cyril.
"Look at us," Bash said to Adèle. "We're like a little family."
"Isn't Kenna looking for you? You must return to the castle soon, or your betrothed is going to be very disappointed in you as soon as she sees us," Adèle warned him.
"Don't fret too much about Kenna. I told her I was going for a ride to the woods,"
Adèle forced herself to smile, turned away from his face and rolled her eyes. She avoided starting any conversation with him, and instead caressed Cyril's hair as he slept quietly under the sun. Theo, too, was falling asleep on Bash's lap, which meant that Bash and Adèle were left to speak to each other on their own. Why did her only distractions fall asleep, she asked herself. She and Bash exchanged a few small smiled now and then, during their terribly awkward silence. His smiles were more authentic, whilst hers were a bit more forced.
"Have you set a date for your wedding yet?" As the question slipped out of her mouth, Adèle soon realized her mistake and tried to hide her embarrassment as well as she could.
"Not yet," Bash replied, and sipped on a cup of milk and honey. "I leave all the wedding plans to Kenna, you see. How are your brothers? How are their find your stay in French court?"
"They're fine, I'm sure. Mary and Francis take them out on trips often, and with them gone, I am left on my own. Being alone has its advantages, I suppose, but I am here to spend more time with Theo and Cyril as much as possible, before they go on another trip with the king and queen of France. Forgive me, I should not be telling you such personal matters,"
"It's nothing to worry about," said Bash with a warm smile on his face. "Besides, we were once betrothed, weren't we?"
Charismatic prick, Adèle muttered to herself, as she tried not to let a chuckle escape her mouth.
Bash and Adèle shared their silence by drinking silver cups of milk and honey, a favourite of hers. The sounds that filled this silence were merely the chirping of birds in the early afternoon, or the sounds of winds blowing through the locks of their hair. Apart from that, they did not speak a word to one another. Adèle was almost eager to break this silence by asking a question or two, but she realized that it would make her seem a bit too excited that she and Bash were left alone with each other, and this would leave a few misunderstandings. Bash's thoughts, however, Adèle was still unaware of. She caught a few small smiles here and there, these smiles she responded with a forced smile and then quickly averted her gaze from his face.
The situation could not have worsened, she thought, but she grunted when several drops of rain fell on to her shoulders. Bash had already stood up and carried Theo in his arms, with his small head resting on his shoulder and remained fast asleep. Adèle mirrored his response and carried Cyril in her arms as well. A light drizzle soon turned into a sudden downpour, much to Adèle's dislike.
The two scurried back to the castle, on the wet, rain-stained grass in soaked clothing, with two boys in their arms. Bash reached a small entrance that led to the kitchens, and fetched a large tattered cloth hanging on the wall of the kitchens. He blanketed Theo with this cloth, and quickly grabbed another one for Cyril as well. In their sleep, Theo and Cyril were heard chattering due to the frigid weather of the rain, and so was Adèle. "We must return them to my chambers, Bash. Their chambers are too far from the kitchen," suggested Adèle. Bash nodded in reply, and they both walked as quietly as possible, to her bedchambers, and avoided being heard by guards or members of court.
As soon as they reached her bedchambers without anyone seeing, Bash and Adèle sighed in relief.