Between The Storms End And The Dragons Breath
Chapter Seven
Chapter summary: Lady Callas cannot seem to fall asleep. Lucky for her she is not alone. Is the king softer than he seems?
________________________________________________________________Lady Callas walked to her balcony, her icy hair falling over her shoulders down her back, her fiery eyes tired. She wore a blue night gown, which was out of the ordinary for her-however, by wearing different color clothes she thought (or hoped) to get used to not wearing her house color. The wedding was approaching quickly, multiple lords and ladies had arrived from different corners to attend the royal wedding. Soon she will probably be covered in grey, House Aijima colors, with thunderbirds as accessories. She dreaded that day.
Caroline hasn’t heard from the king in a while. He is most likely busy with keeping Ilandol at bay. She has seen him around though. Most recently she had seen him today, one of his advisors told him something, and the king just poured himself a glass full of whiskey before drowning it in one go. Must have been some bad news.
Speak of the devil. Caroline was resting her arms on the balcony’s fence when she spotted Noel waltzing outside to the courtyard. He wore a white night shirt, which had a couple of its buttons loose from the top, his brown night pants hung tightly around his thighs. His hair was in a mess, although Caroline heard no noise coming from his bedchambers. He must have had difficulty sleeping tonight. Why else would he be here?
Lady Callas stared him down, her gaze not wavering. It seems that he noticed it-felt it, more likely- because soon he turned around and looked up and spotted his betrothed.
“Lady Callas.” He greeted.
“Your grace.” She returned.
“Trouble sleeping?” He smiled lightly, a rare occurrence.
“I could ask you the same.”
“Care to join me?”
That surprised her. He usually avoided her or ignored her presence, speaking to her only when necessary. She hesitated, but decided to come out to the courtyard anyway. Lady Callas was going to spend the rest of her life with him, might as well get on his good side.
Caroline rushed from her room, down the stairs and then down the hall to the courtyard. King Noel was waiting for her patiently, and she graciously entered the courtyard, a robe wrapped around her nightgown.
“Quicker than expected,” Noel retorted as he came next to her, allowing her to hook her arm around his.
This is how most noble woman walked around with others-frankly, it was expected of them, as this walk gave them elegance. Caroline couldn’t deny that she found this stupid. Why can’t women walk as they wish to, she had often thought.
“Aren’t you cold?” He asked taking her appearance and lack of actual dresses in.
“You’re wearing a nightshirt and night-pants yourself, Your Grace.”
“But I am used to much colder weather than this and bigger storms, my lady.”
“Is it cold where you are from?”
“Storms End?”
“Yes.”
“It’s more north than Athedon, so yes it is colder, not as much as the northern part of Ilandol, but still.”
“I suppose it storms much more often than here, or elsewhere.”
“It does, it had earned its name.”
“But why Storms End? Why not just Storm or Stormlands as they are often called?”
“There’s a story involved, but it dates back earlier than the conquerors.”
“I’ve read that House Aijima and Storms End are one of the eldest houses and castle in Illandol’s history, if not the oldest.”
By now the king and the lady had walked out of the courtyard and into the gardens.
“Something like that.”
“Tell me.”
“Huh?”
“Tell me the tale of Storms End, Your highness.”
“We’re alone, you can call me by my name. You do know my name, right?”
“I’m not an idiot, of course I know your name. But if I have to call you by your name, I’d appreciate if you did the same.”
“Very well, Caroline.”
“So tell me, Noel.”
“It’s a long story.”
“We have time.”
Noel Aijima sighed-he had to admit his future wife was stubborn. So he recalled the story in his head first, making sure he remembered it fully, before he spoke.
“It happened thousands of years ago, when the first men started walking Nyre. A clan, with men, women and children, separated from the others as they did not want to follow the rules of the rest. They wandered and wandered from the north to the west, from west to east and from there to south until they had found a large cliff, it was hard to set up camp, as the winds weren’t so kind, but they finally set up after three days of hard work. Sadly, their reign was ran short, as they soon learned that they were at the very end of the storm, where a thunderbird had set his nest. Storms raged on and they seemed never ending for the people, the daylight was greeted by the loud sounds of thunder and heavy rain, the night was no different. Finally, after losing half his village, one brave man had enough, and legend says he traveled to the very edge of the highest cliff, right to the thunderbirds nest. He fought long and brave, until both him and the bird were exhausted. And right at the end, he made a deal - the thunderbird will help them set up their village, and then can reign from the sky as long as they’re safe. The thunderbird helped them build a castle, and the warrior named himself king of the storm, so his sigil became the thunderbird. Later on, the people named the castle Storms End. Legend says, that the thunderbird’s nest is still up on that very cliff, and the very end of the storm.”
Lady Callas listened carefully, taking in every little detail. The story sounded quite interesting, since the legend was new to her.
“But it’s just a story. A legend filled with mythical creatures.” The king shrugged.
“You don’t believe in it?” She furrowed her eyebrows.
“Thunderbirds, dragons and magical creatures don’t exist. They’re stories in books, made up to ease hard and sour reality, help keep children in line.”
“Ah, you’re a skeptic then.” She smiled lightly.
“I’m a realist, my la- Caroline.” He catches himself.
“I’ve read so many books about dragons when I was little, it fascinated me to no end. But I guess you could say I grew out of them. However, I do believe those creatures still exist to this very day.”
“My mother used to tell me stories about thunderbirds and brave knights, to the distract me from my father.”
The king seemed fond of this memory as a light smile danced on his face.
“Distract you from your father?”
“He saw lies and treason in every corner, until all his brothers died. Apparently, my mother, bless her heart, didn’t want me to end up as the rest of the Aijima men, or as paranoid as my father.”
“The Aijima men? What about them?”
“None of the Aijima men have died from natural causes.”
“I read about it, one of the first days I got here. What is up with that? The Aijima women always die from natural causes or sicknesses.”
“That is a long story, for another time. Believe me when I tell you that you may need to sit down when hearing all of the family history.”
“Very well.”
Noel stopped for a brief moment, stopping her with him.
“It seems we are at the very end of the gardens.”
“I had...fun.” Caroline managed out, a little awkwardly.
For a while, Noel seemed to be looking for words.
“Me too.”
They unlinked their arms and looked at each other. Caroline knew she wanted to continue their conversation, but she also didn’t know if the king would like to speak more, because this was the most he had said to her in all her time here.
“This is not going to end well...” she muttered as she got an idea.
But screw it. What was he going to do? Not marry her? So she stood still for another moment and when he didn’t expect it she ripped out the thunderbird button on the left side of his shirt. It was always there whatever he wore, so she assumed that it was something precious to him.
He didn’t have time to react as lady Callas started running towards the castle. At first he was confused, but then noticed his medallion was missing and in her arms.
“Bloody hell.” He cursed. “Lady Callas! Would you be so kind and stop running and give it back?!”
He did not seem to get roped in the chase as he walked his normal pace behind her. It was good for her as she was sure he could catch her very quickly. But she kept running.
“Lady Callas, this is not funny!”
She giggled and made her way down the halls of the castle, the king still walking but quickening his pace.
“Lady Callas, the whole castle is going to wake up to find us in this child’s play!”
“Then don’t yell!” She shouted back.
“Caroline, I’m bloody serious! Stop right now!”
But she didn’t stop. Her laugh echoing though the empty halls. She was finally at her target. She flung the old door open and made her way down the unstable stairs. The king was at the door when she was at the bottom of the stairs. He now knew where she was going - the secret beach behind Asofall.
“For God’s sake, woman! Don’t be a child!”
She stopped next to the sea, the waves almost reaching the bottom of her nightgown. He angrily stormed next to her, snatching the medallion out of her small hand and put it back in place.
“Don’t. Ever. Do. This. Again.” He said though gritted teeth.
She burst into laughter, as Noels face was full of confusion.
“I found a way to work you up, it seems.”
Noel scowled.
“Don’t worry, the only thing I’m going to rip out is going to be Tatiana’s hair, if I hear her voice.” She smiled sheepishly.
“I’d prefer, you don’t.”
“I’d prefer it if you didn’t fool around with her.”
“Touché.”
For a brief moment they stayed quiet, only the sounds of waves could be heard. It was peaceful.
“Are you a good swimmer?” Lady Callas asked out of the blue.
“Yes?” The king answered a tad confused.
“Good, because I’m not all that great.”
“What?”
Before he could ask more, the young lady smiled devilishly at him and bolted right to the sea. She didn’t stop until the water reached her chest. She was still in her night gown, the salty liquid probably ruining it, but she didn’t care, she had plenty of dresses to spare.
“This is ridiculous...” Noel muttered.
“Come on, your grace, you can’t possibly be afraid of water!” She teased.
“If being king won’t be the end of me, then you will.” He sighed.
He looked at the water. The king was a good swimmer, this water and it’s waves were nothing compared to those he swam in at home. Back then he was just a little boy, trying to find something more entertaining than his fathers rants. However, now he was king and everyone back at the castle will definitely ask questions about why both he and Lady Callas were soaked. Nevertheless, he smiled just slightly, one corner of his mouth moving upwards, and walked bravely into the water, right where his future wife was swimming. Their height difference was noticeable even in water. Where the salty liquid reached Caroline’s chest, it was only slightly above his abdomen.
“You’re quite short, I’ve seem to notice.” He voiced his thoughts.
She splashed him in the face with water.
“And you’re a giant.”
“Careful with your words, Caroline.”
“Or what? You won’t marry me?”
He chuckled at that. Noel had to admit that his future wife did have a good sense of humor. In her own snarky way. She swam further away, deeper, until even the tip of her toes couldn’t reach the bottom. Naturally, he followed her, the water rising to his neck.
“Don’t drown.”
“Thank you, I had not thought of that.” She rolled her eyes.
It seemed like hours had passed. They swam around, relaxed in the sea water. By now there wasn’t a spot on either of them left dry. Occasionally, Lady Callas splashed her future husband, aiming towards his face, but he managed to always get away just quickly enough to minimize the damage. He had always responded to this by saying she needed to work on her aim. But after a while, they eventually tired themselves out, and got out of the salty water.
“This was....” Noel had started, but couldn’t find the right words. “Enjoyable.”
“You mean fun? You know you can say the word fun, even if you are king, it won’t bite you in the tushion.”
“And you know you can always say ass or butt.”
“A lady could never.”
“Oh please, you have called me numerous names in Hulan.”
“This, I cannot argue with.”
They had laughed at that.
“We should probably go to bed now. I have an early meeting tomorrow.” The king signed at that.
“Yes. And I have to meet a bunch of tailors, arriving to check what they suggest for the wedding dress.”
“Most of them will make you try on grey dresses, you know. Or at least grey with red accessories.”
“Then they don’t even have to bother to come.” She crossed her arms.
“Stubborn as always, Callas.”
This was new to her. He had never addressed her only by her last name. Of course the king had called her Lady Callas before, but never just Callas. For some reason, it warmed her heart just slightly. He was freely poking fun at her. Not mean fun-just playful banter. This was definitely new; she didn’t even think he had it in him to do that. But then again, this whole night had been full of surprises for her, and the king seemed more human to her now. Maybe in the future she could manage to round up his rough and sharp edges. With sandpaper of course. Lots of sandpaper. And a hammer. A very large, heavy hammer.
“Just as you are, Aijima.”
He smiled again. This rare smile of his had appeared throughout the night more times than throughout her whole stay here. He was satisfied-some may even say happy. The Callas, Caroline, wasn’t so bad. Maybe eventually they’ll get along better. Maybe she’ll stop being so prideful.
“Can I ask you something, Caroline?”
She nodded her head.
“Why?”
“Why what?”
“All of this fooling around. From stealing my medallion and running though the whole castle to swimming in the sea with all your clothes on.”
“Honestly?”
“Honestly.”
“There’s not much time left.”
He furrowed his eyebrows.
“What do you mean?”
“The wedding is approaching fast. Time is unstoppable;an enemy no one can defeat. I lost a lot of my naiveté and innocence the moment I was arranged to marry you-finding you and Tatiana destroyed a lot of it too. But I still have something left. Just a little bit. This made me feel like I have it all back. Because once the doors behind us close during our wedding night, I will never be able to bring any of my innocence back. Never.”
He felt guilt and shame. Guilt that he knows what she’s talking about, he knows what is expected of them. Shame that eventually they will have to do what’s expected. But most importantly anger. He felt anger. Noel may be cold and emotionless towards others a lot of the time, but he wasn’t a monster. He didn’t want to hurt any women; he couldn’t possibly raise his hand against a woman, let alone force himself on one. He didn’t want to hurt Caroline.
“I guess it’s just the way the world works... I just thought I had more time.” She smiled sadly.
“When the time comes I will let you choose. I won’t force you into it. I am not that kind of man.”
“When the time comes we will see.”
He cupped her cheeks and pulled her a little closer to his body. She looked up at him. He couldn’t. Could he? She felt her cheeks burn up and she was sure she looked like a tomato right then. He leaned in, bending down as she was quite short. Caroline just froze. Was he going to kiss her? She wasn’t sure if she should close her eyes or lean in. He leaned to her and kissed the top of her head, the wetness of her hair making his lips moist.
“Goodnight, Caroline.”
He let her go and turned around to leave.
“Goodnight.” She said in a hushed whisper.
She stood there dumbfounded. Her face still felt like it was on fire. The place on her head where he had kissed felt warm, even though it was probably just her imagination. She felt like she was eight years old with a silly crush on a tall handsome knight, who had given her a rose on the tournament day.
________________________________________________________________Big thank you to @lunastarward for editing <3