Wrynn had told me he wouldn't be taking me outside unless I went to put on something warmer. So, I now rummaged through my wardrobe looking for something that might be suitable while I replayed this morning's events in my mind.
Cassian was, well, I didn't really know what to make of Cassian. He seemed distant and cold. And I couldn't really credit him with anything else. I hardly knew the man, although from what I had seen he didn't seem to be the most affectionate of men.
And hadn't he proven that this was purely a convenient arrangement for him? Whatever the reason.
Maybe it was financial, like for Geldery. Or maybe it was political, the kingdom thought he needed a wife. Or maybe, maybe, there was some hidden personal reason that I had yet to discover. But of one thing I was sure, it wasn't for love.
Cassian was what I'd expected, not what I'd foolishly hoped. What I'd hoped for was some handsome, young king who'd heard tales of my unmatched beauty and come to whisk me away to his magical kingdom where we'd fall in love and live happily ever after. A fool's dream. That of a naïve princess who'd never really seen the world. I sighed.
***
Wrynn was waiting for me in the grand entrance. His blue eyes followed me as I descended the staircase, one hand gripping the banister so as not to fall. He appraised me.
"Better," was all he said, before turning away.
He allowed me passage through the heavy doors. Stepping back outside, I took a breath. I felt calmer in that moment than I had since I'd left Geldery. Being back in nature, even if it was covered in cold, cold snow was reassuring to me somehow. It was as close to home as I could be. Breathing in the comforting scent of pine needles, I felt myself relax.
But... maybe a little too much.
Suddenly, I felt myself slipping down, feet sliding out from beneath me as I trod on empty air. Falling forward, I knew I was about to tumble right down the stone steps. I braced myself for impact.
It did not come. Instead, a hand gripped my forearm, steadying me. Wrynn.
"Are you okay?" His eyes searched mine, hair had fallen loose of its tie and hung forward framing his face in silver.
"I... yes, thank you." I tried to stop staring.
Wrynn stepped back, cleared his throat and released me, hand resting back on the pommel of his sword.
He watched as I took another wobbly step, grasping the snow-covered balustrade. Thank goodness I put gloves on, even though them I could still feel the icy cold gnawing at my fingertips.
After a little while, Wrynn sighed, obviously not overly impressed with my progress. "Here." He offered me his arm.
Determination overtook me and I shook my head; Wrynn rolled his eyes but stepped back regardless with a tight nod.
Still holding firmly to the balustrade, I inched my way down the steps. The pathway that appeared to have been made yesterday in honour of my arrival had melted back over, no evidence of its existence remained.
Suppressing a shudder, I reached the bottom, turning to face Wrynn. He was gone. I frowned. After all that and he'd just abandoned me to this snowy wasteland!
"Well, looks like you made it after all." His voice sounded behind me, making me jump and I spun around.
How had he got there? For a second, I was confused, then I remembered my agonizingly slow pace and realised it was plausible he was just very light-footed.
"Indeed. Yes." I tried my best to hide my surprise.
"We really ought to get you some proper shoes. I'll see if Florence can find you some. There's bound to be some somewhere from..." He trailed off, as if remembering that he shouldn't go on.
I frowned but said nothing.
Snow crunched under our feet as we started forward, Wrynn resting his hand lightly on the pommel of his sword once again.
We approached the fountain. It was clearer to see now, up close and in the light of day. There were indeed four statues in the centre of the frozen cascades. Angels. Four angels. Something like unease washed over me as I watched them. There was just something creepy about the scene – they just looked a little too real.
I looked away.
Lapsing into a comfortable silence, we drew closer and closer toward the bridge. I rested my hands on the stone guardrail and peered over the edge.
The waters were fast, the sound of them rushing over rocks and stones reached my ears. Wrynn stopped beside me, though his stiff posture did not relax. He seemed, I realised, always to be on alert. It must come with the territory of being the Captain of the Guard.
"Why has the river not frozen over? Though everything else has?" I mused.
Wrynn was silent for a moment, and I caught him glancing sideways at me.
He frowned. "That is a question I have been asking myself. The truthful answer is, I do not know" — he paused — "and I wish I did."
That was strange. There was something unsettling about his answer, but I couldn't quite put my finger on what it was. Maybe it was the creepy angel statue, standing by the water's edge, worn with age and time. Or maybe it was the rushing noise of the waters, drowning out all rational thought. Or maybe it was simply that fact that Wrynn did not know – and I believed him.
Shrugging it off, I pushed away from the side and continued walking; Wrynn followed me.
"I have questions."
"I am sure you do."
I glanced to him. "Will you answer them?"
"To the best of my abilities, yes, Aure." Wrynn's answer was instant – almost too quick.
Casting my eyes upfront, I studied the huge wall of pine trees in the distance. "Where is everyone?"
"Everyone?" Wrynn hedged.
I stopped, turning to face him. "Wrynn... you know what I am asking. You saw my home. The people. The atmosphere. The courtiers, the life. But here... the palace, it seems empty."
Sighing, Wrynn reached a hand up to his hair, and then, seeming to remember it was tied back, lowered it again, eyes darting from mine to the fallen snow. "The king... prefers to keep himself to himself. It's not so bad once you get used to it, the quiet is... it can be comforting."
I frowned. "Who ever heard of such a thing? A king keeping to himself? No, a king should be for his people. I can think of only one explanation: he must be either be insane or he must be a beast. There is no other explanation!"
I had intended my assessment of the situation to be a sarcastic joke, designed to rose at least a little amusement from Wrynn. Whilst Cassian certainly seemed apathetic and distant, he was far too handsome to be a beast and he wasn't actually insane. At least, I hoped he wasn't insane.
Wrynn went silent, a muscle in his jaw twitched, his grip on his sword tightened, ever so slightly. But I caught it. Not the reaction I'd intended.
"He is simply different, Aure." Came the cool reply.
I waited to see if he would continue. He didn't.
Clearly, then Wrynn was not going to elaborate on the subject any further. I decided to change the subject but made a mental note of the strange comment.
"Can I see the gardens?" I asked hopefully.
"Of course," Wrynn replied, seeming grateful for the change in topic. "Though I warn you they are not much to look at."
Again, I noted his response as odd.
Why weren't they much to look at? Couldn't they afford a gardener? Or a team of gardeners? This was the palace after all. I committed this strange detail to memory, along with all the others.
Wrynn turned us around at the end of the bridge, distantly all I could see for miles around was snow, upon seemingly, fields. Endless snow. The white seemed to blend with the cloud above almost making the horizon line disappear altogether.
But I didn't fail to notice, in the distance, by the roadside, yet another creepy frozen angel statue. Who on earth had insisted upon such unnerving décor? It was weird. A lot of things about Evenspire were weird. Shivering subtly, I followed Wrynn, averting my eyes from the angel.
***
Something wet and cold landed on my face. I glanced up. Tiny flecks of white snow floated down to me, resting on my face, settling in my hair. I smiled – I couldn't help it. It was beautiful.
Out the corner of my eye, I noticed Wrynn watching me.
"Isn't it beautiful?" I held my hands out catching some of the frozen droplets.
The corner of Wrynn's mouth twitched upward, he studied me with his blue-eyed stare as if amused by my wonder.
"Yes, but it's also cold. Now come on. It will only get heavier, maybe your tour of the gardens will have to wait until later."
I pouted. "But won't you be busy later?"
He raised an eyebrow.
"You know, doing Captain of the Guard stuff? Surely, you have to train your men or practice sparring or give the horses a run or something. Surely, you cannot spare anymore of your time to chaperone me around."
Wrynn shook his head.
"No. I won't be doing any of that. Rest assured there will be time later. Now come on, Aure."
There it was that dismissive tone again. The tone that said I wasn't privy to certain information. Well, excuse me, I was going to be queen of this land soon enough and I deserved at least some answers.
I hurried after him.
"Now, hang on a minute... Between you and Darin and Florence and the king, not one of you has given me a straight answer about anything. Why will you not answer my questions?"
Wrynn sighed, picking up the pace. I matched it.
"Wrynn!"
He stopped so abruptly that I nearly crashed into him as he rounded to face me.
"You ask far too many questions."
I couldn't tell if his irritation was serious or half-hearted, either way I stood my ground, waiting expectantly.
Snow settled onto his jacket. Wrynn was right, it was coming down more quickly now, the flakes becoming larger.
Again, I waited.
Another sigh. "I am the only member of the King's Guard, Aure. I have one horse and no men to train. Therefore, I will not be busy whenever it is that you wish to go on another of these wild excursions into the snow."
I stared blankly at him.
"The only member? What? There's no one else in the King's Guard?"
"No."
What?
Frowning, I spoke my next question carefully, "Okay... how many people live at the palace, including all of the staff?"
"Four."
"Four?"
"Well, five now, since your arrival."
To say I was shocked, would be an understatement. Four people lived at the palace. That meant there was me, Wrynn, Cassian, Florence, and Darin... and that was it. Back home, in Geldery, there could be well over a hundred at peak times in the social calendar. Four people was ridiculous.
I tried desperately, "Okay... how many people visit Evenspire Palace? For the social season. There must be a few."
Wrynn held my gaze. "None."
None.
No one visited? Ever?
Wrynn continued, "I told you... the king—"
I cut him off, "Likes to keep to himself. Yes, I know. That's not an answer! There's more to it than that. I know there is. There's something you're not telling me here, Wrynn. Though why I do not know. But I'm going to find out. Believe me."
Morphing his expression into a blank stare, Wrynn said nothing. I glared at him now, through the falling snow. He was really going to say nothing.
Sighing, I started off again through the snow. Beside me I felt Wrynn's silent presence, though this time it was anything but comfortable. It was cold, frosty, even. Maybe Evenspire was beginning to rub off on me already. Unconsciously, my hand snaked up to grasp the silvery white strand of hair. I twisted it between my fingers, thinking.
Through the floating white mist around me, Evenspire Palace came slowly back into view. We passed the fountain – the angels watched me. I hurried past.
Casting my attention back toward the icy palace, I again had the creepy feeling of being watched.
I glanced beside me, Wrynn was still there, but his attention was directed straight forward, toward the snowy staircase.
Still, I couldn't shake the feeling. My intuition was never wrong.
Suddenly, I paused, glancing around. Left, right, behind, up...
There. I had been right.
A lone figure stood in an upstairs window. Cassian. He was watching me. My eyes met his, locked on each other. I was fixed in place.
"Aure?" Wrynn's voice pulled my gaze away from the king's.
"Yes..." I mumbled distractedly, glancing at him.
He frowned. "Are you okay?"
My gaze darted back toward the window. Cassian was gone, melted back into the shadows. Snow continued to fall, freezing my face with it's cold embrace.
I returned my eyes to Wrynn. "Yes. Yes, I'm fine."
**************************************
Thank you for reading!
Hope you are all enjoying!
Love,
Kalli x