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Strangers in a Strange LandChapter ThreeJune 16, 1457
Rhemuth Castle
Kingdom of Gwynedd
Close to noonAs the Haldane family and retainers gathered in the upper bailey, preparing for the procession to the Cathedral of Saint George, Princess Alixa found herself being presented to the King of Gwynedd. Rendered almost completely mute with anxiety, she curtseyed deeply as the Queen presented her to her new sovereign and father-by-marriage. To her relief, King Uthyr gave her a smile that, although brief, appeared to be warm and welcoming as he bent to kiss her cheek and give her a quick greeting before handing her up into the waiting carriage.
Madame Dardenay had started to enter the carriage with her, but to Alixa's great relief, her chaperone had been swiftly intercepted and ushered back to her proper place in the procession alongside various other honored retainers of the Haldane Court. Alixa's attention thus distracted, she only noticed the arrival of the carriage's other intended occupant when she felt him take his seat on the bench beside her. Alixa swiftly turned and found herself looking up into the steady gaze of a dark-haired young man with light gray eyes and a slight smile. A moment later, she realized he was the man in the portrait contained in the locket she wore, sent to Joux along with a signed copy of their betrothal contract.
"You are Prince Cinhil?" she asked tentatively, stumbling a little bit over the name as she belatedly realized she ought to have rehearsed it. She attempted something like 'keen-heel' and hoped she had not caused him any offense by some mispronunciation of it.
His smile grew, reaching his eyes. "It's a difficult name, especially for a Jouvian, I imagine. Even some Gwyneddans have a little trouble with it. The 'h' is only slightly pronounced. If you have trouble with it, something like 'kin'll' should serve. And you are Princess Alixa? Am I pronouncing that properly? 'Ah-lik-sa'?"
She dropped her gaze, not certain how to answer. "If that is the proper way to say it in Gwynedd, then that is what I will use here.
Ma mère used to say it like 'Ah-lee-sa,' which is how one says it in
la Vezaire where she was born, but
le roi mon père pronounces it as 'Ah-leek-sa.' Either is considered correct in Joux, but I am no longer in Joux, so I am
satisfait with whatever works best here in Gwynedd. I do not wish to be a bother."
"I can't imagine it would be a bother to learn any pronunciation that you prefer, my lady," he assured her with a quiet chuckle. "At least you don't have a Llyrian name; I can assure you
those get butchered quite regularly here!"
Alixa had only met one Llyrian, to her knowledge, but given that she had seen his name written as 'Tadhg' but pronounced more like 'Tige', she had no problem imagining the difficulty.
"Are we getting married again?" Alixa asked, a little confused since it had scarcely been a full day since she stood on the Cathedral steps in Trebaçeaux, exchanging her vows with the Gwyneddan ambassador standing in for Prince Cinhil.
"No, not exactly. We are already legally married, but since it is more usual for a royal bride to marry in the bridegroom's kingdom so his people can see their new princess and future queen for themselves, we are providing them that opportunity by attending the noonday mass at the Cathedral of Saint George. Instead of exchanging vows on the cathedral steps, there will be a simple proclamation that we have already been wed by proxy in Joux, after which we will all go inside to partake of the Mass together. From my understanding, the liturgy here in Gwynedd should not be too dissimilar to what you are used to in Joux."
That was a relief. Alixa could not truthfully say that she was all that accustomed to the Jouvian form of service either, given that Renier only bothered to go to Mass on the obligatory days when he and his family needed to be seen in attendance. But she did have a confessor in Joux, a gruff old man who was mostly deaf and who she suspected couldn't hear even half the sins she had confessed to, but who had routinely absolved her of them anyway as he assigned her a Paternoster as penance. She far preferred that over having to kneel on a pile of rock-hard beans! As she had yelled her sins at the good
Père only the previous morning and had prayed her required Paternoster, she hoped she was still in an appropriate state of grace for this day's post-wedding Mass.
They processed through the main gatehouse of the castle and proceeded down the King's Way through the City of Rhemuth towards the Cathedral, her new husband pointing out various landmarks along their route. Alixa felt slightly overwhelmed by all the attention they were receiving from the people of Rhemuth. There had been a few people standing and watching along the route when she had made her way to the cathedral in Trebaçeaux the previous day, but for the most part, the people of Joux had seemed mostly indifferent to the fact that one of the King's daughters was getting married. Here, there was an air of celebration throughout the city as far as the eye could see, and all of it appeared to be genuine.
"Your people love you," she whispered, awed by the throngs of people waving at them as they passed by. Cinhil turned to smile and wave back, causing a cheer to erupt around them.
"Yes," he said as he faced her again. "As we love them also. There are some who do not, of course. It's impossible to please everyone. But for the most part, our people know we cannot lead them without serving them. If we should forget, be assured they are very swift to remind us."
"It is a thing
les habitants de Joux would dare not say aloud, for fear of
la mort, but I imagine they must be thinking it anyway. What will happen if
le roi mon père finds he can no longer keep
les gens dutifully obedient out of fear?" Alixa looked thoughtful. "Is it possible that a kingdom can fall if enough of
ses sujets fight back? And what would happen to
le roi if they did?"
"I don't know, but I certainly wouldn't wish to find out," said Cinhil somberly, though as he considered the matter, he realized it would not surprise him in the least if such a revolt should happen someday in the Kingdom of Joux, at least if Renier continued to rule over his people with such a heavy hand.
#
June 16, 1457
Rhemuth Castle
The courtyard garden
Mid-afternoonAfter the celebratory Mass, the royal family and entourage had returned to Rhemuth Castle to prepare for the wedding feast later in the evening, giving the newlywed couple their first minutes of relative privacy to get to know each other better without anyone gawking at them. Anyone aside from the bride's chaperone, that is, for Madame Dardenay would not allow herself to be dissuaded from keeping a close eye on her charge until she was satisfied that the girl was well and truly married, which in her opinion would not happen until later that night. At least Cinhil hoped the proof of a consummated union was what the batty old witch was waiting for, and not proof of Alixa's first pregnancy!
He had at least managed to convince the woman to follow them around at a short distance that was, if not quite distant enough for his liking, at least more distant than she had initially been willing to allow. Cinhil was already starting to dream up ways to diplomatically send the woman packing at the earliest opportunity. He might have felt otherwise if his new bride seemed genuinely fond of the woman, but thus far he had seen little sign of such an attachment. Still, it was possible that she was fonder of her chaperone than she had so far let on, and if that should be the case, Cinhil would feel awful about depriving his new wife of the one familiar face in Rhemuth's Court nearly as soon as they'd arrived. So he was willing to put up with the annoyance of the woman's hovering presence for now.
Of course, that did not mean he intended on having her eavesdrop on all of his private conversations.
Looking down at the girl he was leading through the castle gardens, he covered the hand that was lying on his arm and whispered, "Would it alarm you if I use Mind-Speech?" At her sharp look upwards at his face, he added, "I don't have to if you are uncomfortable with the idea."
Alixa slightly turned her head as if trying to catch a glimpse of her chaperone out of the corner of her eye. She looked very nervous at the prospect, although she whispered back, "If you wish,
Votre Altesse, but why do you wish to when I am right here?"
What Cinhil wanted to say was
Because your chaperone gives me the creeps, but instead he simply joked
Maybe I would like to be able to flirt with my wife without her chaperone slapping me.Alixa blushed, a quiet giggle escaping her, quickly silenced. Cinhil appreciated how her face lit up in that brief unguarded moment. Camber was right, his bride
was pretty, at least when she didn't look frightened of her own shadow.
You don't have to address me by my title, you know, Cinhil added.
At least not in a private conversation such as this one.She glanced back up at him timidly.
Merci, mon mari. I do not wish to overstep.Would you prefer to practice saying my name a few thousand times in the mirror first? he quipped, flashing a quick grin at her to make sure she understood he was joking.
Alixa coughed, fighting down a laugh.
Je suis désolée! I would laugh, but I am afraid Madame would think I am not treating you with the appropriate level of dignity and solennité.Ah. In that case, I wish I could pick you up and run through the gardens with you, just so she'll think I'm barking mad. He sent a mental picture of himself doing that into her mind, making his wife teary-eyed with suppressed laughter.
Please, M'sieur, I do not wish to make her angry with me, Alixa finally managed to think coherently enough for him to Mind-Read.
And you should know, she probably suspects we are talking in this way, and might wish for me to tell her what we said later.Cinhil stopped, staring at his bride before pointedly looking over his shoulder to give her chaperone a very measured look. "Will she now?" he whispered back, his eyes narrowing. He guided Alixa off the main path, leading her to the shelter of a small, vine-covered arbor. "You are entitled to your privacy, Alixa, and for that matter, not only am I entitled to my own, I absolutely
require that some things I share with my wife must remain confidential. So I will need to place some safeguards on your mind to prevent her from accessing any secrets. After all, as my Princess and perhaps someday my Queen, you will be privy to matters of State, so your mind will need to be protected from anyone's attempt to violate it." He took her hands in his. "May I do so now?"
She swallowed nervously, trembling slightly. "If you think it best, my lord."
"I do," he said, reaching up to stroke her hair and making the necessary adjustments to her mind as he did so. "That's better. Alixa, tell me truly, are you afraid of your chaperone?"
Her eyes filled with tears. Alixa nodded.
"All right, then. We'll send her back to Joux right away," Cinhil assured her.
Alixa's eyes widened with alarm.
"Non! Oh, Mon Dieu, s'il vous plaît, ne renvoyez pas Madame à Trebaçeaux!""But...." Cinhil was utterly baffled by her request not to send her chaperone back home, not to mention the surge of fear that had accompanied her plea.
"Pourquoi pas?"His bride fought to contain her emotions. "My sister...Cécile...she is only eight. If Madame goes back,
mon père would only assign her to Cécile instead. She is not ready. She is not strong enough. She is only
une petite fille, she does not yet require a chaperone. She is not wicked like me."
Bloody hell! Cinhil felt completely out of his depth.
Like you?
Why in the world would you think you are wicked?Because.... Alixa turned scarlet, unable to meet his eyes.
Because I am headstrong and rebellious. Because I am une femme. Because I share the curse of all women. Because we have immoderate carnal desires.Of all the things Cinhil had thought he might hear his innocent young bride say, that was nowhere near the top of the list. He struggled not to laugh.
How lucky I am, then! Alixa, do you even know what that means? She shook her head.
I thought not. Let me add that to the top of my growing list of things to teach you when we're not standing in the middle of my family's garden. Shall we continue on now?Alixa nodded, trustingly slipping her hand into the crook of his elbow as he continued to lead her through the garden and into the lower bailey.
#
Cinhil puzzled through the dilemma as they continued to walk through the parklands. Clearly he couldn't simply send Alixa's chaperone packing, if his bride was going to be so terrified by the very notion, but he could hardly allow her to remain so much underfoot either. He supposed that meant they would need to figure out some other sort of role for the woman, one which would keep her close enough for him to keep a watchful eye on her, yet not close enough to allow her to interfere with Alixa.
He wondered if he could convince his mother to make Madame Dardenay one of her ladies-in-waiting. It would be a form of confinement disguised as an honor, for it would keep the woman tethered to the Queen's presence for at least many of her waking hours, where she presumably would be unable to get into too much trouble, and it was also the sort of invitation that the chaperone was unlikely to feel able to decline. But Cinhil was not certain his mother would be able to endure more than a few days in the Jouvian woman's company without flying into a homicidal rage. Granted, that would be a permanent solution to the problem, but his father the King would hardly be likely to thank his heir for the Queen ending up in his court charged with murder.
#
Madame Dardenay watched with dissatisfaction and growing disquiet as her charge walked through the gardens and parklands with her new husband. The King had been very specific in his orders–the disobedient young chit's marriage was to be no bar to her continuing to receive the proper discipline required to ensure she would say or do nothing injurious to the reputation of the House of Buyenne-Furstán.
At first she had thought the long silences between the young couple were due to Alixa's shyness, as properly befitted a modest young maiden, but after a while she had realized they were communicating mind-to-mind. The conversation had to have been initiated by the Gwyneddan Prince, for Alixa was unable to communicate in proper Mind-Speech, although like other humans she could engage in a form of return communication simply by thinking what she wished to say clearly enough to be easily read by a Deryni who was making the active effort to hear her thoughts. So the chaperone had quickened her steps, attempting to close the distance between herself and the princess, because her own Deryni powers were not quite strong enough for her to manage making the mental link between them from much of a distance. Just as she was beginning to reach the outer limits of the range that would have made it possible to link minds with the girl, her husband had looked back over his shoulder at her and then pulled her into the relative privacy of a small arbor, no doubt to attempt to take liberties with the maiden. While Madame might not approve, she grudgingly had to admit that was his right now, so she had waited for them to emerge, hoping it was merely a few kisses the young man intended to take, and that he was not planning to consummate the marriage then and there. Had it been the young master,
le dauphin, she might have settled herself in to wait, but instead it had been only a minute or so before the couple emerged again. At last her charge was within range, but to her chaperone's extreme consternation, she now had shields! What was this?! That was a complication Madame Dardenay had not counted on.
She continued to follow them, frantically trying to recall what the young man was likely to find in Alixa's mind if he went poking around in there where he didn't belong. He would detect her inner shields, but ought to think nothing of those. After all, she was a daughter of a royal house, so surely the Gwyneddan prince would expect that Alixa would have been exposed to the sort of information Renier would not wish others to know. Those shields did not contain many of Joux's state secrets, of course, if they contained any at all, for King Renier was hardly stupid enough to entrust such confidences to a daughter, knowing she would only end up married off to a foreign house. But they
did conceal other secrets which must be kept in the strictest confidence, so at the earliest opportunity she would need to make sure those secondary shields still remained intact, though how she was meant to do that now that Alixa had a set of Haldane-imposed shields around the inner set, Madame Dardenay had yet to work out. Perhaps she could somehow manage to catch the
jeune femme at an unguarded moment, such as while she was sleeping. It would be a little harder to gain access to her at night, now that she was married, but surely the Prince would not wish to keep his young bride in his bed the entire night, no matter how ardent a bridegroom he was! No, he would eventually wish to sleep and would send Alixa back to her own bed, and once that happened, she would be ready. Or maybe he would wish to consummate the marriage in Alixa's bedchamber and then withdraw to his own bed afterwards, but even if not, Madame was certain she would figure out some way to gain access to Alixa.
#
June 16, 1457
Rhemuth Castle
The Great Hall
Early eveningAlixa, formerly Princess of Joux, but now a Princess of Gwynedd by marriage, sat at the High Table at her wedding feast. It was a rare treat for her to be allowed to sit at High Table, for in Trebaçeaux the only times she had ever been allowed such an honor had been at Christmas, Twelfth Night, and Easter Courts, when the royal children had been paraded out for the Court of Joux to admire. Even on such occasions, she had not been allowed to remain through the entire feast until she had reached her fourteenth birthday. Before that, she was only permitted to remain for a few minutes before being sent back to the nursery.
Granted, after she had turned fourteen, she had swiftly come to realize that being allowed to remain for the feasting and festivities was not the wonderful privilege that she had hoped for, since a feast at her father the King of Joux's
Palais was likely to be filled with increasingly more drunken and unruly courtiers as the night went on. At some point, she would inevitably be shepherded out by Madame Dardenay to return to her chambers, after the courtiers grew too rowdy and immoderate in their behavior to be trusted to be in the presence of the King of Joux's maiden daughter. Madame would give her the cue to leave with a none too gentle tug on her arm and a scolding admonition to stop stirring up her father's men by staring at them so wantonly.
Thus far, this feast was not shaping up like any of the others she had attended previously, so after several long minutes, she began to relax. Her new husband had been so kind thus far; surely if the revelry became too raucous, he would be willing and able to protect her.
Alixa also felt a sense of relief that Madame Dardenay had not been seated right next to her, or even anywhere at the High Table, but was at one of the nearby tables below the dais. She could still feel the woman staring at her, but the usual prodding about inside her mind was blessedly still. Alixa had grown so accustomed to the sensation of Madame helping herself to the privacy of Alixa's thoughts, the absence of those intrusions felt strange.
As the bride and the night's guest of honor, Alixa was seated near the center of the table, between her new husband and the King himself. Alixa recognized this as the honor that was meant, but she was also quietly terrified of making some major
faux pas that would bring dishonor to her House. Fortunately she did not appear to have disgraced herself too badly yet, for the Gwyneddan King was still smiling at her as he asked the occasional question or initiated some other form of small talk that, quite fortunately, she was able to understand and reply to.
Still, she felt a keen sense of relief as he turned his attention back to his Queen, seated on the other side of him. She glanced shyly up at Cinhil, finding him watching her with a smile. She blushed, dropping her gaze to her plate.
"I hope the food is to your liking," he said. "We didn't know your preferences, but I've noticed you've only touched your fish and chicken. Would you prefer that I ask the servers not to bring you beef or lamb in future?"
Alixa glanced back at him, confused. "Am I permitted to eat such things? I didn't know."
Cinhil stared back, equally baffled. "You're allowed to eat anything you like. Why wouldn't you be?"
She toyed with a dark morsel of meat she thought might be
bœuf, curious about how it might taste.
"Le roi mon père does not approve of
les femmes eating dark meats. He says they are meant for men, to keep them vigorous, but that women are meant to be docile, so we must only have milder foods." She touched the tip of her knife to the dark brown chunk. "Does it taste good?"
Cinhil smiled. "That's a matter for personal opinion. But I have no problem with you subverting your father's expectations if you wish to try some."
Alixa took an experimental nibble. At first she was not sure, but then she dipped the remaining half of the morsel into the gravy again, fully coating it, and tried another bite.
"C'est délicieux!"#
June 16, 1457
Rhemuth Castle
The Great Hall
Late eveningTowards the end of the evening's festivities, Queen Soraya rose and quietly left the High Table to make sure everything was in readiness for the newlywed couple's bed blessing ceremony, after which they would be left alone while the rest of the wedding guests continued with the evening's revelry. The Haldane princesses had left shortly before that, for they had wanted to decorate Cinhil's bedchamber with flower garlands for the happy occasion.
Madame Dardenay, sensing that the moment of consummation was likely close at hand, also slipped out of her seat, wondering if there might be some opportunity to get a swift peek at the layout to the Prince's apartments, to help her better determine where she might be most likely to find Alixa later in the night or early morning hours. Or would it be better to wait a night or two until the newlywed husband's ardor had some time to cool, for surely once the novelty of having a bride had worn off, he would be more likely to leave Alixa alone? Then again, there was some risk in waiting for that to happen, and at any rate, she needed to know where Alixa would be spending her nights so she could work out some way to gain private access to the girl.
It had occurred to her during the wedding feast that having the girl safely married off would free up her own time, for she would no longer need to be as vigilant to preserve a maiden's virtue. She would simply need to continue to ensure that Alixa made no major missteps that could bring dishonor to her father's House. The additional freedom would allow her more time to carry out the other missions King Renier had laid upon her, not having anyone else whom he could send to carry them out without drawing too much scrutiny and suspicion.
To her chagrin, the Queen spotted her before she could get too close to the Royal Apartments. She beckoned Madame Dardenay to her side.
"Has Alixa already been informed about what to expect in her wedding bed tonight?" the Queen asked the chaperone.
Madame Dardenay nodded. "She has been told everything she needs to know."
"Good, that's a relief. We should have the chamber ready for the priest and wedding guests shortly, if you could go back and let Cinhil and Alixa know."
#
Ah, well. She would have to wait until she could enter the apartment with the other wedding guests, then, but if the Gwyneddan bed blessing ceremony was anything like the Jouvian tradition, she would have a few minutes to have a discreet look around. Hopefully that would yield some useful information.
Madame Dardenay approached the High Table from behind, nearly making Alixa jump out of her skin as she leaned over to whisper
"La reine says
ze chambre de mariage is almost
prête."King Uthyr gave her a sharp glance, but said nothing. Perhaps he did not wish to cause his new daughter-by-marriage any public embarrassment, or perhaps he thought matters were done differently in Joux, the chaperone wasn't sure, but it belatedly occurred to her that she ought to have approached Alixa from the front of the table and made a curtsey first. Ah well, she would remember next time. At Renier's Court, it was well understood that the princess's chaperone was to be allowed ready access to her young charge. Why these Gwyneddans were so deficient in such understanding, she was certain she had no clue.
"Merci, Madame," Alixa responded, shrinking away slightly.
"Souvenez-vous de ce que je vous ai dit!"
"Oui, Madame!"#
Cinhil, overhearing the whispered exchange, wished he could find it as reassuring as it should have been. He supposed he would discover soon enough if his bride would receive the consternation she was expecting. Hopefully his mother would return soon and would be able to sort the situation out.
Glancing to his other side, he saw Camber watching him with a slightly raised brow.
Please tell me Maman
has had a few minutes with her? Camber asked via Mind-Speech.
Not that that was exactly his brother's business, but then again it had been Camber who had warned him that his bride might have no clue what to expect, so Cinhil could understand his concern.
I don't think so, but as soon as she returns, I'm hoping to ask her to spend a few minutes alone with Alixa if I can get the chance.Looking back at his bride, he found her nervously poking at a chunk of lamb on her plate. That action put him in mind of sacrificial lambs, but before he could continue down that unwelcome line of thought, the Queen returned to the Hall, catching his eye with a slight smile and a nod.
Maman, I don't think Alixa has any notion of what to expect tonight, Cinhil Mind-Spoke.
Could you have a private word with her before we all head upstairs?Soraya gave him a reassuring smile.
I spoke with Madame Dardenay earlier. She has assured me that Alixa has been told what she needs to know.Cinhil gave her a very dubious look.
What Madame Dardenay
thinks a young bride ought to know? Or what she actually
ought to know?The smile slipped off the Queen's face.
Oh. You're right, I should probably make sure of that. Laying a gentle hand on Alixa's shoulder, she bent to whisper, "The girls and I have a little something special for you, and then we'll walk you to your new rooms."
#
June 17, 1457
Rhemuth Castle
Prince Cinhil's private apartment
MorningAlixa awakened just a little after dawn. She turned over to find Cinhil still asleep beside her, a peaceful expression on his features and the faintest hint of a smile lurking at the corners of his lips. She watched him sleep as she pondered over everything that had happened the night before.
What had happened after all the wedding guests had left had seemed very strange, although not nearly as frightening as Alixa had originally expected it to be. In the end, it had even turned out to be not all that unpleasant, like she had worried it would be, at least after the initial awkwardness and embarrassment of being undressed in a bed with a man who up until that morning had been a complete stranger had passed, though she was still trying to work out how she felt about it all. It had greatly helped that the Queen had taken her aside to explain what would be happening once she was alone with her new husband. If it hadn't been for that private conversation, Alixa would most certainly have been quite alarmed, because as it had turned out, she was already somewhat familiar with the basic process, having discovered her brother a time or two in random dark corners engaged in similar activities with whatever women at Court had happened to strike his fancy at the time. But on those occasions, Alixa knew there was nothing at all pleasant about those joinings, at least for the women involved. She would have been terrified if she'd thought that was about to happen to her also.
But what the Queen had described, while somewhat similar in terms of the anatomical workings of it all, had not sounded all that terrifying, just a bit odd. So with a bit of trepidation but not outright fear, she had finally been given enough information that her new
Maman seemed satisfied she would know what to expect and could get through it without bolting for the nearest door or window.
As he had been throughout the day, Cinhil had been just as kind to her once they were alone as he had been in public. That was another thing to get used to also, the idea of a man treating her the same way in private as in public.
"Maman told me that she explained to you what to expect tonight," he had told her after the last of the guests had left. "But if you don't feel ready and would prefer a little more time to get to know me first, I'll understand if you'd rather wait until you are more comfortable with the idea. The last thing I want is for you to feel frightened of me."
She had considered the option, but there was something else that frightened her far more than the thought of anything her new husband might require of her.
"I do not think I am afraid of you," she whispered. "I am more afraid of being sent back to
mon père in disgrace if I am not a proper bride as he expects of me."
"Ne t'inquiète pas, we won't send you back to Joux if you feel the need to wait a few more days,
cherie. I promise you are safe here."
She had buried her face in his shoulder, shaking her head. "I will never be safe from Renier until I am bearing a child. And that cannot happen until we...." What was the word the Queen had said? It wasn't 'consternation' they had to do after all, but it was something similar.... "I think we have to have consumption first."
Alixa had felt his shoulder shaking and looked up, worried he was having some sort of spasm. Instead, he had burst into helpless laughter, falling back onto his pillow with tears streaming down his face as she'd stared at him, baffled.
"Is that...not the right word either?"
"No, little sweetheart, it is not." He'd finally managed to rein in his laughter enough to speak coherently. "I already have an incurable heart ailment,
ma columbe. Let's not add an incurable lung disease to my troubles." He grinned. "'Consummation' is the word you are looking for."
"Oh." She'd tucked the word away in her memory, hoping she could remember the proper word for future reference. "Can we do that instead, then?"
Cinhil had pulled her into a gentle embrace. "Instead of catching consumption together? Yes, my sweet little dove, if you're certain you are ready, then let's try that instead."
He was sleeping now, and Alixa didn't wish to wake him, so she slipped out of bed quietly, looking around for the nightgown her new
Maman and sisters had made for her. It had such beautiful handiwork, and she didn't wish to lose it, but more importantly just at the moment, she felt she needed to put it back on before doing anything else. She couldn't imagine what Madame would have thought of her, falling asleep without one. She'd likely have been beaten severely for such wantonness.
Ah, there it was! She finally caught a glimpse of the gossamer-fine fabric peeking out from under the rumpled sheet. Alixa slipped it on and crossed the room to stand before a silvered glass mirror, very curious to see if marriage had somehow changed her appearance.
She had always been told that she was a gawky, scrawny thing no man would ever want (and yet also that she was clearly a licentious harlot bent on seduction because she had developed a few womanly curves), and that her red hair was frightful, her skin the color of a dead fish's belly, and her features hopelessly blemished by the light sprinkling of freckles that she had regularly tried to bleach with lemon juice to little avail. But Cinhil had seemed to see her differently somehow. He had admired her hair, comparing it to fire-colored silk, and told her it was beautiful. Her weird color eyes that couldn't seem to decide if they were meant to be a dark blue or some shade of gray, he had compared to dusky twilight. He had likened her skin to fine imported porcelain from exotic Eastern climes. And as for the hated spots sprinkled across her nose and cheeks, he had called them "angel kisses," joking that as a mere mortal, he could hardly hope to compete for her affection, seeing the evidence of how much the angels must love her.
To her eyes, she still looked exactly the same as she had yesterday. She was not sure which version of herself was to be believed. Yet she desperately wanted Cinhil's version to be true. After a minute's deliberation, she decided that he was the one who would spend the rest of their years together looking at her now, not her father or Madame, so if
he thought she was pretty, that was good enough for her also.
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I agree with Judith, I do like these Haldanes too, especially Cinhil. Alixa will need to learn to accept and enjoy the kindness offered to her by the Haldanes. I have a feeling the chaperone was instructed to do a little spying for Reiner. I hope she gets caught, punished and sent packing soon. She is a nasty piece of work.
I can certainly see why you fell for Cinhil, any woman would. So sad that we had to lose him so young. I think he was a very good king and would have become a great one except for his illness.