Return to Pearlforest

Kingdom of Aruhel, 285 AC.

The preparations for Voek didn't take long and soon enough, Maela found herself getting ready to climb in the carriage which would take her to the neighbouring kingdom. Prince Vale was already sitting inside with Luka, and Hanika was waiting for Maela to finish her goodbyes. Marchioness Elenda was fretting over her like a mother would, and Maela found herself blushing at the attention. The marchioness was usually a calm woman who controlled her every move and word but today, she seemed much more emotional. Maela couldn't help but feel honoured and touched that the marchioness seemed to like her so much. Moreover, it reminded her of her own mother, and it warmed her heart to receive this kind of maternal love. She had missed it much more than she thought she would.

"Make sure always to be accompanied by someone from Aruhel. The Voekans aren't the kindest people. Who knows what they would do to a sweet girl like you?" she said for the umpteenth time.

"I will, my lady", Maela promised.

"Good, good", she murmured as she rearranged Maela's necklace. "Now off you go before I force Rolan to make you stay here", she said jokingly.

"I will return soon, I promise."

With these final parting words, Maela climbed on the carriage and took her place facing Prince Vale. He seemed half-asleep, and his eyes were fixated on the window. For some reason, he seemed quite angry at something. It didn't seem to be the journey in itself, but rather something to do with his lady mother. Had they fought about some matter? The marchioness had accepted his relationship with Ser Luka, though. What else could they fight about? Had Prince Vale started to wish for the throne? It seemed unlikely. Perhaps had he gambled – and lost – a lot of money. It was his biggest vice, after all, the whole kingdom knew about it. Oh well. She couldn't find out on her own like this. The prince would tell her if he wished to; she couldn't pry into the royal family’s personal affairs. It was rude. The saying did say 'curiosity killed the cat', after all, and she wasn't sure that the answer would be satisfying enough to bring her back.

As such, Maela focused on the scenery outside her window. The busy street of the Capital City slowly turned into roads and fields going as far as she could see. The journey to Voek would last two weeks, and they would stop three days at Pearlforest when they would reach the South. Maela couldn't wait. She missed her home terribly, the luxurious forest and the fields where the fruit trees grew. And her brother! Would little Luthael even remember her? He was such a sweet baby last she had seen him, she couldn't even imagine how much he must have grown during the last year. She hoped he would still fit on her lap. Otherwise, she might just cry in disappointment. A small smile appeared on her face as she recalled her baby brother's first words and steps, how his little chubby hands would grab anything he could reach, especially if he could shake it. The nursemaid had told Maela that every baby had a phase when they would shake and throw things. It seemed to amuse them greatly, and a baby could be pleased with a wooden branch so long as they could throw it.

"Maela, should we play a game?" Hanika offered.

"You're right! How about some cards? Ser Luka, Prince Vale, would you like to play cards with us?" Maela asked.

"I would love to, but I’m currently forbidden to touch cards… Or dice… Or anything fun, to be frank", Prince Vale complained.

"My love, you lost three hundred gold coins last night", Ser Luka gently admonished.

"He was cheating!" he exclaimed, outraged.

"The casino said he wasn't, and the casino is always right", the knight chuckled.

"This is not fair."

"Life rarely is."

"Don't patronise me, Luka, or I will sulk for the rest of the week, and you will have to deal with it."

"Are you sure you're a prince and not a child?" Ser Luka laughed. “Take a nap, you've slept poorly last night.”

The prince grumbled something before laying down on his lover's lap and closing his eyes. Blushing, Maela turned back to the window. It felt like she had intruded on something extremely private, and she felt both embarrassed and guilty. She closed her eyes, forcing herself to visualise another scenery, and hummed a song to herself so she wouldn’t focus on the lovers anymore. Thankfully, her favourite stories were easy to focus on, and she recalled the tales of the Snow Kings. Legend said that Queen Baera Harney had once defeated an army of forty thousand bandits who had made their lair in the Blizzard Mountains, a chain of mountains north of the northern duchy. The story said the queen had half the men her opponents had, but she had trapped them in the mountains where most had died of cold. When the survivors had escaped the Blizzard Mountains, her army had crushed them, and she had killed the bandit king herself in single combat. This story used to terrify Maela as a child, especially considering what the Blackstones – a Northern House – had done to the last King of Yggalë. As a nearly grown woman, she knew better. Queen Baera was an exceptional ruler and an even better fighter. Her legend has surely been exaggerated, but it didn't matter. Real life was often boring, and if it wasn't, it was terrible.

For the first three days, they stopped at different inns when the owners fell over themselves in a chance to serve one of the King's sons and a future Duchess. They were given the best chambers and warm baths which did wonders to her hair. If she hadn't had the opportunity to wash them before reaching a lord's castle, she might have gone mad. Her hair was her pride, like every Southerner. She couldn't let it go to waste. Hanika was of the same opinion, and they had taken turns caring for the other's black loose curls. Prince Vale had been dumbfounded when he had realised just how much time and energy they were willing to spend on their hair, but Ser Luka had seemed to find it perfectly normal.

''My hair is long as well, although not as long. Haven't you noticed that it requires more care than yours?''

''Of course, I did. But I can't imagine spending this much time. If it wasn't a tradition, I would say it's masochism'', the prince had joked.

Tonight, however, they would stop at Baron Lanster's mansion. It was a small building covered in ivy, but it gave it a charm Maela didn't dislike. Baron Jon Lanster welcomed personally with his wife and son in tow, all of them bowing deeply. They were country lords, unused to see such high-ranking figures of government in their lands.

''Prince Vale, Lady Maela, my humble manor is yours to command. I apologise for the lack of preparations.''

''It's alright, we should be the ones apologising for intruding without prior notice'', Maela replied gently.

The man's posture and expression considerably relaxed, and he led them inside. The poor man had probably been terrified to be berated. No one in their mind would do so, of course, but ever since she had come to the Capital City, Maela had realised that the world was filled with lunatics and idiots. As she hated this behaviour, she would make sure to be a gracious guest and compliment the lord and his household. Moreover, it wouldn't be completely hypocritical. The Lanster mansion was indeed charming, and the baroness was a gracious host when she led her to her chambers for the night. The baron had taken the prince and his lover to their own chamber a bit further down the hall, with his son trailing behind them like a puppy would.

''My personal maid, Anna, will be at your service tonight, my lady. She's a competent child, I hope you will be pleased with her.''

''I'm sure I will, thank you, my lady.''

''It's our pleasure to receive such important guests.''

After a long and necessary bath, a grand dinner was prepared in the dining room of the mansion. Considering the size of the room, Maela wasn't sure how the Lansters could receive more than four guests at the time as they didn't seem to have a reception hall. Perhaps they had never needed it. She and Hanika took over most of the conversation duties, for Prince Vale seemed lost in his own thoughts and Ser Luka avoided speaking to the nobles whenever he could. He came from the smallfolk and had no family name to boast about. If the prince hadn't taken him as his lover, he would surely be a landed knight for some country lord like the Lansters. Being a lord's guest still seemed to overwhelm him, which Maela thought was natural.

''How old is your son, my lord? You haven't introduced us yet'', Hanika asked gently.

''Oh… Thomas is my nephew, not my son'', the baron confessed.

''The gods have never blessed us with a child and, years ago, Thomas' parents were killed by bandits in an ambush…'' his wife explained, as the boy looked at his plate. ''He has yet to speak ever since the attack…''

''I am so sorry for your loss'', Maela said, her heart sinking at the sight of the boy. ''Even if it has been years, I will remember your family in my prayers.''

''Thank you, my lady'', the baron said. ''My brother was a good man, and I miss him dearly, but we must live on.''

''You are right.''

The conversation thankfully drifted to more pleasant matters, especially since the Lansters didn't mention the succession crisis at all. Perhaps did they not care, or perhaps were they not fully aware of the situation. As far as Maela knew, the Southern lords didn't care enough to remember everything. They followed the instructions they were given by Father, and that was enough. Politics had never interested them, and, like Maela, many Southern lords wished they could have remained neutral. As long as they weren't directly impacted, it wasn't their problem. A fight between House Kale and House Blackstone, even for the Throne, didn't interest or impact them.

After all, everyone would still need the supplies the South had.

Baron Lanster wasn't the only noble they visited, but Maela found it hard to care the closer they got to Pearlforest. All she could care about was her home, her mother, and brother. How she missed them! It was ironic how, the closer they got, the more she missed them. The excitation of seeing them soon exhausted her, and it wasn't surprising when she found herself napping more and more in the carriage. One afternoon, as she was indeed sleeping away the day, Hanika suddenly shook her away.

''It's in sight! Pearlforest is in sight!'' her cousin screamed.

Maela squealed in delight and opened her window, not caring about the disbelief on the prince's and the knight's faces. All she could care about were the high stone pillars marking the entrance of the Yale gardens, with stone wild cats on top of them. Centuries-old trees were growing all around them, and, beyond the walls, Maela could see the trees of her childhood gardens. She immediately yelled at the coachman to stop the carriage and when the man obeyed, although he looked surprised, she jumped outside and turned to Hanika.

''Race you to the gates!''

''Oh, with pleasure sweet cousin!'' Hanika exclaimed as she got out as well.

They immediately took off, jumping gracefully and running faster than the wind. Maela hadn't run like this in a whole year, and she found herself laughing like a little girl as she held the skirts of her dress so she wouldn't trip on them. Next to her, Hanika was the same, and Maela almost wished she had undone her hair to feel the wind in it. Still, feeling in on her skin was enough. She had missed this so much. Even the smell coming from the fields and the flowers. She had never thought she would miss a smell like this, but smelling it again evoked in her such nostalgia she almost wanted to cry with happiness.

Their running was over in a dozen seconds, and the two girls stopped right before the gate, panting and laughing. A guard rushed towards them, mouth agape. Maela quickly detailed him and was delighted to recognise Luke, who had married Lilia soon after her departure. He had become a guard? It paid better than kitchen boy, that was for sure.

''L-Lady Maela! Lady Hanika!''

''Luke! It's been so long! You've become a guard?''

''I - Yes, I have. But that's beside the point! We weren't expecting you so soon! Come, sit, and rest as I fetch Lady Neilina.''

''No, no, tell me where Mother is, I want to surprise her.''

''Well, she must be with Lord Luthael, in the back gardens. He's started to try and capture butterflies from what I gather.''

How adorable. Her sweet baby brother was bound to become such a loving soul. She immediately rushed towards the back gardens, Hanika hot on her heels. The two girls stopped at the entrance, watching a tender scene unfold from far away. Mother was crouching on the ground, extending her arms towards Luthael who was running to her with flowers crudely plucked out in his tiny hands. He was so small, and yet he had grown so much! Maela couldn't stop herself from cooing in affection when her baby brother jumped in Mother's arms. She wanted to hug them.

''Mother! Luthael!'' she exclaimed before she even realised, she was running to them.

Mother turned to her, and her eyes widened immediately.

''Maela! My love!''

She was soon engulfed in a loving, crushing hug which she eagerly returned. Then, she took her brother in her arms as well. His little body was warm against hers, and so, so soft. She planted a kiss on the toddler's forehead, who was babbling words she hadn't listened to just yet.

''Luthael, baby, do you remember me?'' she asked.

Her heart might just break if he didn't. But, blessing her ears and making her heart swell with love, the little boy was happily chanting her name and clutching her collar with his tiny hands. He had more teeth now, and his eyes seemed even brighter than last year. His hair had grown as well, the loose curl now reaching his chin and circling his head like a crown. He and Mother smelled like home, and it made Maela tear up.

''Maela! Maela!''

''Yes, it's me my sweet boy! Oh, aren't you the cutest? I've missed you so much.''

As evening came, a grand feast was thrown in the reception hall. Musicians from the nearest town had been called urgently and would be paid handsomely for their troubles. Maela's and Hanika's favourite dishes were served, and the cousins happily danced together to the happy tunes of the South. Even Prince Vale seemed more relaxed than during the rest of the journey, and he shared a dance with Mother. Ser Luka clapped as the prince did his utter best to dance, a discipline he was clearly not an expert in. It was funny to see how much he had to focus to not stomp on Mother's feet, and Maela found herself giggling. Of course, she took Luthael dancing as well, if one could call it like that. Due to his age, she could only turn around and sway from side to side as she carried him in her arms.

She wished she would never have to leave again.