by N. C. Reed
“Please show the ladies to their rooms,” Milton gave her the keys. “I shall be in the kitchen.”
“Yes sir,” the woman smiled. “If you please, ladies?”
The troopers followed with their luggage as Edema and Stephanie climbed the stairs and followed Agatha to their door. A real door, Stephanie realized, and not just slabs thrown together.
“Your suite, milady,” Agatha gave a slight curtsy as she opened the door and provided Edema with the key. “Your other rooms are there,” she pointed next door, “and there,” she pointed further down the hallway in the opposite direction, across the hallway.
“Thank you,” Edema smiled and took the keys.
“Will there be anything else?” Agatha asked.
“Please let us know when dinner is served?” Edema asked.
“Of course, milady,” Agatha nodded. “There is a bell in your room that will ring when meals are ready.”
“Wonderful,” Edema smiled again. “Thank you so much.” She and Stephanie entered, followed by two troopers who carried their bags. They stopped inside the door, waiting.
“There is fine, thank you,” Stephanie assured them.
“Milady,” the senior man nodded. They set the bags down and withdrew, closing the door behind them. Stephanie knew if she opened the door, they would still be standing there.
“Well, I am going to bathe before we eat,” Edema announced.
Bordering on miserable, Stephanie began to undress, preparing for her own bath. She looked forward to washing the dust away.
-
“Looks like the weather is about to make a change,” Karls noted, nodding to where very distant lightning was visible in the western night sky.
“Looks that way,” Parno agreed. “It is that time of year I guess.”
“So, it is, but being in the field like this during a thunderstorm... lots of problems can happen.”
“Also, true,” Parno nodded. “But there are plans for that and there's no way to supervise the entire army so I have to depend on the commanders to make sure their units are squared away.”
“You don't think the Nor will take try to take advantage of this do you?” Karls asked.
“Weather will be just as hard on them as it is on us,” Parno shook his head. “There's no profit in daring it. If they're smart, they’ll stay where they are.”
-
“Is this on the level?” General Brandon Taylor demanded, looking again at the orders clutched in his hands. Taylor commanded the 16th Imperial Infantry Division.
“It does have General Wilson's name on it,” his aide nodded.
“Prepare for march? In this weather?” he rummaged around his desk until he found a map. “Where the hell is this... Unity, anyway.” His aide looked at the map and finally placed a finger down.
“Here, sir.”
“What?” Taylor almost yelled. “Way the hell out there? What's out there?”
“Nothing I can see, sir,” his aide replied.
“That's exactly right,” Taylor nodded. “Nothing. This says,” he shook the written order, “we're to march there, arriving in no more than three days’ time, then make camp until relieved. To be on the lookout for any enemy activity whatsoever. There's no enemy activity out there!”
“Doubtful, sir,” the aide agreed.
“Assemble brigade and regimental commanders,” Taylor sighed heavily. “Thirty minutes. My tent.”
“Yes sir,” the aide nodded and hurried to pass the orders along. A rumble of thunder could be heard in the distance.
“Of course,” Taylor muttered. “Right on schedule.”
-
As Parno watched the storm grow closer, he realized it would be a miserable night for all. He reminded his aide to make sure their tenting was secure and then did the same for those on duty in the tents where the army's command structure was laid out. Staff officers began to gather important documents and maps and store them in trunks for safe keeping until the bad weather had passed.
With those arrangements made, Parno decided on a whim that he wasn't going to spend the night in a tent with the wind and rain lashing at him. Summoning Lieutenant Berry, he told his escort commander his plans and suggested that the men of the escort would spend a better night in a certain barn than they would here. Berry agreed though his agreement was a proforma one since he was being issued an order, polite though it might have been. Parno made the same suggestion to Harrel Sprigs, who agreed that a hard bench in a tavern might still be better than a sleepless night in a tent.
From out of nowhere Cho Feng appeared, a raised eyebrow his only comment. When Parno explained, Cho merely nodded as if he had expected such. It took a few minutes to notify Enri Willard and the rest of the staff where he would be, and then a small column of men started for the Hogshead Inn.
-
“Good evening milord,” Tinker greeted him as Parno, Cho, Sprigs, Berry and two more troopers entered the tavern. “A rough night to be out, or soon will be,” he smiled.
“It is, and to tell the truth I don't want to spend it in a leaky tent,” Parno nodded. “Is there room in your barn loft for my escort to spread their bedrolls? And a room for Cho and Harrel?”
“But of course,” Tinker nodded at once. “There should be plenty of room for your men in the barn, and the roof is solid. There is hay there to soften your beds, as well. And I have three rooms empty at the moment, so accommodating your staff will not be a problem at all!”
Parno was about to reply when Jaelle came from the kitchen carrying a tray of food. She stuttered a step when she saw him, then smiled brightly as she carried on, delivering the tray to a table in back of the tavern.
“I thought... I mean I assumed...” Parno trailed off, looking from Jaelle to the Tinker and then back.
“No, milord,” Tinker answered the unasked question. “She is not one of Rosa's girls. She serves tables and helps in the kitchen and does laundry and mending for the tavern.”
“I... I owe her an apology,” was all Parno could manage to say.
“I don't believe she will see it that way, my Prince,” Tinker grinned at him. “Perhaps you should speak with her? She will be off work in the next half-hour.”
“Okay,” was all Parno could get out. “I would like to speak to her.”
-
“You wanted to see me, milord?”
Parno looked up from his one beer to see Jaelle standing before him, clearly nervous but unafraid. She was still dressed in her serving uniform but even so her beauty was undeniable. He motioned to the chair next to him.
“Please sit with me,” he asked rather than ordered. She did so after only a brief hesitation.
“Jaelle, I want to apologize to you,” Parno said softly, looking her directly in the eyes. “Last night... Jaelle I... I mean I had no right to assume...”
“You thought I was one of Rosala's girls?” she asked with slight smile. “Please don't be concerned, milord. That happens regularly. But as a rule, none of her ladies are ever seen down here. They have their own lounge and their own entrance to the building. But I promise you aren't the first to make such an assumption and will almost certainly not be the last. It is of no concern.”
“It concerns me! Why didn't you tell me, Jaelle?” Parno agonized. “I mean I was drunk… ish… but I wasn't that far gone. I wouldn't have been angry if you... I mean you had every right to... what's so funny?” he demanded, seeing her trying to hide a giggle.
“Milord, here you are the Crown Prince of Soulan and Commander of the Royal Army, yet you are the one man who has ever entered this place who would think of apologizing to a serving girl for assuming she was one of the women who do their work upstairs,” she replied, a genuine smile plastered across her face. “You truly are one of a kind, my Prince.”
“I knew last night that you had no idea who I was or why I was here,” she suddenly found the courage to reach out and take his hand, squeezing it softly in hers. “But... you looked at me not like I was some c
heap woman for you to spend your lusts on, but rather like I was beautiful. As if I were special.”
“You are beautiful,” Parno placed his other hand atop hers. “You're breathtaking. And you are definitely special. More so than I could possibly have realized last night. I am truly sorry that I...”
“But I am not,” she interrupted softly, placing a finger gently on his lips. “I am in no way sorry, nor am I sorry to see you this evening. I assume you are here to escape the storm?”
“Well, yes,” he replied.
“Then may I be so bold as to offer you the warmth and comfort of my bedchamber once more?” she all but whispered her voice was so low. “Where I can prove to you that I am in no way sorry that you approached me so last evening? That I can prove to you how much your kindness meant to me?”
“I...” Parno started to reply but was interrupted by a small ruckus breaking out in the far corner of the tavern as one rather large man lurched to his feet and began staggering in their direction.
“Here you!” the man bellowed. “When I asked you to sit wit' us and have a drink you refused, said it was ag'in the rules and what not. But you're good to sit wit' him? Soldier boy gets special treatment or something? That it? Or is he paying you more? Maybe that-” he cut off as two rather large troopers moved to stand in his way.
“Mind your tongue,” one warned. “You're drunk and haven't the slightest idea who you're talking to.”
“You don't give me orders, soldier boy!” the drunk bellowed and took a massive swing at the trooper. The movement was so telegraphed that the soldier waited until the last second before catching the man's arm and using his own leverage to simply flip him over, the drunk landing heavily on his back.
“Here now!” his two friends came up from their table only to be met with a pair of drawn swords. Harrel Sprigs walked calmly to the two and spoke softly to them.
“The man your friend just accosted is the Lord Marshal of the Armies of Soulan and Crown Prince of this Kingdom,” his statement was short and to the point. “In view of his drunkenness I will allow it to go unpunished this once, but I would suggest you take your friend and go. And warn him when he wakes, just as I warn you now; reprisals against that young woman or anyone else here at this tavern will result in a visit by the Prince's Own. Perhaps you've heard of them? They're known as the Black Sheep.”
The two had been on the verge of challenging the statement until they heard the words 'Black Sheep' and found out that they weren't that drunk, after all.
“Sorry for the misun'erstandin',” one muttered as the two bent to retrieve their friend. “We’ll take him and git.”
“A wise plan,” Harrel nodded. “Please have a safe journey to your destination.”
“Thanks,” the man nodded as he maneuvered toward the door. Harrel turned toward his Prince and nodded once before resuming his place at a table where he was finishing his paperwork for the day.
“Who is he?” Jaelle asked softly.
“He's my aide,” Parno smiled. “He looks after me. It's a tough job,” he added seriously.
“Then perhaps he will allow me to do so for tonight?” she suggested, wondering again where she got the courage. Who was she to be speaking so to the Crown Prince?
“I'm sure he'd welcome the rest,” Parno laughed softly. “And any unmarried man would be a fool to turn down such a priceless treasure as a night in your arms.”
Her face burning at such flattery, Jaelle stood and pulled Parno up with her. She led him to the stairs and then up without a word, the two troopers taking station by the stairwell. Sprigs watched them go and then returned to his work. All three were silently thinking it was surely a great thing to be a prince.
-
“I do apologize for the plain fare, my ladies,” Milton said once again as he finished setting the table for them. “We are not accustomed to visitors of such high station.”
“It smells delicious,” Edema smiled at him. “And you worry too much, Milton. We of such 'high station' as you put it rarely eat so differently from you. I'm willing to bet this will be wonderful.”
“High praise indeed, My Lady, and I thank you,” Milton bowed. “We are serving your escort in the bunkhouse as well. Please, enjoy.”
“Captain, you and the other officers may join us if you like,” she told Winters.
“I doubt such a rough bunch as we are would be suitable company ma'am,” Winters declined gracefully. “Better we take our own table where we can hide our lack of manners,” he smiled.
“Very well,” she sighed. She waited until he was out of earshot before telling Stephanie, “He's quite handsome, isn't he? And very well mannered.” Edema began dishing up food onto her plate.
“What?” Stephanie looked scandalized by the comment.
“Oh, come now dear,” Edema waved a hand. “I'm married and happily so but that doesn't make me blind.”
“Good grief,” Stephanie shook her head slightly as she fixed her own plate.
“Stop that nonsense,” Edema scolded. “There's no law against looking. Or complimenting. So, have you decided how you will approach Parno when we get there?” she asked, changing the subject so quickly that Stephanie was caught by surprise.
“I've actually decided to let you do it,” she finally said, an evil smirk appearing as she thought of it. “This was your idea, after all. Better for you to explain it all than for me to try.”
“So, you want me to be an intermediary for you then?” Edema took the statement in stride, nodding. “I can do that, of course. I have served in such a capacity before, many times. We need to decide what it is you want to say to him, however. I need time to work out just how to present your argument.”
“I was joking, Edema,” Stephanie rolled her eyes.
“Yes, I assumed as much,” Edema's own smirk blossomed on her face. “I take it you still feel there's no reason to do this? To face him and try to make amends?”
“I don't think it will do any good,” Stephanie admitted. “I wish I did. No, if I had a wish, I'd simply wish it away. It never happened and I didn't let my mouth get away from me. That I acted like an adult,” she finished miserably.
“I understand,” Edema was sympathetic. “But reality says that you have to do this yourself. Since you can't make it not have happened, that means you have to make amends for it.”
“You know, it's not as if he will still want to marry me,” Stephanie sighed. “Assuming he ever did,” she added in a near murmur.
“He did or he'd not have said it,” Edema said at once. “No one can talk Parno into anything. Nor can he be bullied. If he said it, he meant it.”
“While that is wonderful to know in the abstract, it still leaves me where I am now,” Stephanie fought to keep the sarcasm from her voice. “I still was cruel to him, and while he may not can be bullied, he can still be hurt by people close to him. To say he has trust issues is the height of understatement, and I had worked very hard to get him to trust me, so what I did had to have hurt.” She looked down at her plate, her appetite suddenly gone. “This won't work.”
“We shall see,” Edema replied. As if in defiance of that statement, the room was brighter for a second as a flash of lightning illuminated everything for miles. The accompanying clap of thunder shook the building. Milton and others began scrambling to go outside and close the shutters that protected the glass in the windows and pull down anything the wind might damage or blow away.
“We appear to be in for a rough night,” Edema said calmly. “Eat up dear. No use in being hungry. This beef is actually quite delicious.”
Fighting not to scream, the younger woman pulled her plate back in place and began to pick at her food, wishing she was back in the palace, even with all its intrigue and shenanigans.
-
“A major storm coming, looks like,” Memmnon said as he stood on the small balcony outside his office.
“I used to enjoy this,” Winnie said from his side. “I used to stand on the poi
nt near our cabin and watch the lightning stretch across the sky for hours as storms moved our way.” Her voice was distant, almost dreamlike as she remembered her time as a girl. “It made me want to be a lightning bolt so I could flash across the sky like that,” she laughed, laying her head on his shoulder as she hugged his arm to her.
“I am glad you are not a lightning bolt, Winifred,” Memmnon said as he rubbed her hand with his. “I would sorely miss you, seeing you merely once in a blue storm,” he smiled.
“I would storm on you every day,” she laughed lightly.
“You do anyway,” he laughed with her. “I suspect you will have to delay your departure for a day or so after this,” he turned serious. “The roads themselves should be okay, but everything else will be a mess. It will make it difficult for horses and wagons alike, not to mention walking.”
“It will just ensure we have an extra day, or even two, to prepare,” she shrugged. “One day more or less will make no difference in this.”
“I suppose not,” Memmnon agreed. This small talk wasn't what he wanted between them, but until they were properly married he was severely limited in how he could interact with her. Propriety demanded that he-
“So, are you going to kiss me or what?” Winnie broke into his thoughts abruptly and he looked down at her.
“What?” he almost stammered. Rather than answer, Winnie raised herself onto her tip-toes and kissed his lips, leaving just a hint of strawberries when she finished. Her eyes were shining with mischief as she pulled slightly back.
“Your turn,” she seemed to be daring him. “Stop being such a stick in the mud. We're already engaged to be married. A little kiss here and there won't hurt anything, right?”
Unable to find an argument for that, Memmnon leaned down and captured her lips with his own, just as a particularly bright flash of lightning lit up the palace and everything around it.
“Still wish you were flashing across the sky?” he asked her softly.
“Already am,” she replied and kissed him again.
-
While not the storm of the century, the line of thunderstorms that rolled across the valley that night were fierce nonetheless. Heavy rain driven by strong winds and accompanied by dangerous lightning battered both armies in their camps. Tents torn from their lashings went flying, exposing their occupants to the elements. Flying debris created great tears in canvas sidings of tents that managed to stay in place, and most everyone lay miserably under leaking canvas tops no matter how large or comfortable a tent might have been.