Alomina or The Book of Many Journeys Ch. 8

Chapter Eight: Percy And Celeise

Percy looked across the room unseeingly. Princess Celeise was on his mind, and now every time he was even at the palace he started to look for her. She was probably in her chambers, or tending to duties, just in this place somewhere. He rested his chin on his hand dreamily. He could spend all day here, even though she wasn't in sight. It was her estate, and she was here somewhere in this enormous complex castle, so that alone was enough to make him happy there.

"Lord de Blyrwen?", the voice of Queen Constantia broke through the silence of his dreaming.

He looked up. Mina, Aunt Dricynnia and the queen were all looking at him. He lifted his head off of his fingers. "I am most sorry, Your Grace. You have my attention", he said apologetically to the queen.

She laughed. "'Tis nothing, Lord Percy! Our women's talk is surely most dull to you. Why do you not go to the great garden? I know young men often prefer the outdoors to stiff society, and I will take no offense to your leaving if you would desire to go"

"No. Surely I am being most discourteous to start dreaming in your company, Lady Queen, when my duty is to listen and to pay all attentions. My head is indeed far from me today", he answered sheepishly.

She smiled graciously. "Ah, Lord Percy, you needn't be sorry. Such is the habit of youths. You forget, Lord Percy, I was younger once as well, and I know the glory of fancy. You may leave us if you will"

"You are sure I will not pay any discourtesy by such an action?"

"Oh, nay indeed, Lord Percy! In fact, I would command you to do so if it is your pleasure", she said, and Cynnia nodded lightly to Percy.

"Then I will take my leave of you, Lady Queen", he said, bowing. "Mina, Cynnia", he said, bowing to each of them as well in turn.

He then left. The sun was low in the sky, and he could see the faint glimmer of the stars which would soon come out. He walked to the garden. He strolled next to a willow tree, and stood there, gazing at the setting sun. There was suddenly a rustling noise. He looked around. He looked back. Through the willow leaves he could see two eyes, eyes indeed far bluer than the midnight creeping behind the sun. Then they came closer, and through the trailing greenery of the willow tree he could see hair, hair indeed far yellower than the blossoms on the willow itself. He went closer. He knew the eyes and he knew the hair.

He went around the tree, and brushed the willow leaves with his hand. There was Princess Celeise, reading beneath the willow, sitting against the trunk of the beautiful plant. He knelt down and grasped her hand. She started.

"I am sorry if I startled you, princess", he said gently, kissing the hand he had in his grasp and then softly letting go.

"Percy?", she said confusedly. She quickly recovered herself from her momentary bewilderment, and stood up. "How came you here?"

"Your mother bade me to go as I pleased, and so I came out here", he answered, and he smiled at her hopefully. "I must confess though, princess, I am indeed pleasured to find you here as well"

"No more than I am at your finding me, I am sure", she answered, for once returning the smile, and with indeed quite sincere favor in it.

"Princess?", Percy hesitated a moment. He gazed at the stars that had just begun to appear on the horizon.

"Yes, Lord Percy?"

"Have you ever seen such a beautiful sunset?", he asked, deciding not to say anything concerning his daydreaming about her. It wasn't quite proper to speak of such things with the princess.

She too gazed at the sun as it sunk beneath the scarlet sky.

"No", she replied quietly.

"Neither have I", spoke Percy. "And I don't think ever will again", he continued, looking back at her.

She tried to keep her eyes on the sun, but still ended looking back at Percy. "Well, perhaps such a sunset was meant for such a time, then"

"Perhaps", he said, smiling down at her. "If so, would you call it a sunset of glad tidings?", he queried, and he listened quite attentively for the answer.

She half-smiled and looked Percy straight in the eye. "Yes, yes, I indeed would", she replied, the light of the sunset reflected in her eyes.

Percy felt his heart leap. For mere words, they brought joy to him like he had never felt before. He merely continued looking down at her, and said nothing more. Now there was nothing that need be said. He sat down under the willow tree, and she sat next to him. She put her head upon his shoulder, and he stroked her yellow hair as they gazed out to the stars that crowned the sun's last scarlet rays.

***

Alomina had to undergo many more mornings spent at the palace (which aside from Percy being mentally absent were actually somewhat pleasant). But one particularly good thing had come of it. Percy and Princess Celeise, in the way they talked, indicated they had met at a ball. Mina fancied that she had guessed what Percy's secret had been.

She was mildly amused by the prospect of Percy being in love, and, aside from his inattentiveness, she didn't mind at all. In fact, she was very ardently happy for him. She had always dreamed that someday he would find someone else to accompany them in their happy life, someone who would not disrupt it, though, of course. Her greatest dreams were but humble and demanded but little for herself, and all for Percy.

One might wonder why she wasn't feeling sullen at the idea, but she had always thought of him more as her guide and guardian than her equal, someone far wiser who had aided her in her simplicity and inexperience.

She envisioned a perfect life that would be carried out through this vague romance, perhaps in the future years. She pictured a lovely estate, with a mistress who knew how to take charge of it, while the previous Lady de Blyrwen played with a small child belonging to the manor's lord. Cynnia, herself, Percy, and the princess all living together in simple joys, Percy king and head of a family, and she the friend and smile to it. It, to her, in all her innocent fancies, seemed the best dream that one could ever even dream at all.

On the other hand, though, King Edarian, as Mina observed him, did not in the least seem amused. He seemed to look grimmer and grimmer with their every visit, and it worried Mina. It was if something was indeed wrong with this pair, and he was the only who had noticed it. What could be wrong? She didn't know at all, and it worried her. Percy however, did not seem to notice the king's distaste for the attentions to Celeise...

***

One evening, after a banquet at the palace, Edarian took Lord Percy aside. Percy was very surprised, and attempted not to show his unawareness of the cause for this action. The king explained not. This gave Percy a slight feeling that something was amiss, but he still kept his cool and respecting manner, telling himself that it was nothing too serious.

"I want to speak to you, Lord Percy", he began seriously, but kindly.

"Yes, your majesty?", Percy was somewhat surprised, and now he restrained it not in his curiousness to know and perhaps grant whatever the king wished of him.

"I must request that you cease your attentions to my daughter", he said gently but firmly, a commanding fatherly tone.

"Your majesty?", he answered weakly, blown aback and caught completely off guard by the commanding request.

"You must know, especially being so active in the politics of the kingdom, that you cannot continue"

Percy looked at the king in a confused way, sincerely unknowing of whatever the king spoke in reference to.

"I am sure you know an arrangement has been made", the king said plainly.

Percy in his confusion, did not realize what the king was talking about. The king gave him a quizzical look, surprised at Percy's lack of either knowledge or speed in thought, and he began to pace slowly.

"Celeise is officially betrothed to Prince Lothaire for alliance purposes. She has been since the day Vellethia's heir was crowned king and made peace with us. But she has been distracted, and seems to have absolutely forgotten it and all her other duties"

This news knocked Percy completely flat. His heart sank deep into his boots. He had known about this arrangement, but this was before the ball. He had never really thought about it that much, and when he met Celeise, he too had entirely forgotten. Percy said nothing, but just sank down into a chair dejectedly. His entire world had been crushed into desolate ruins as unfathomable as Celeise's blue eyes that he could never look into again in the same way.

The king apparently pitied him, and he sat down next to Percy, and touched his shoulder in an almost grieving way, an almost father-like way.

"I am sorry, lad. It seems you too had forgotten it. I know you to be a good man, and were the stage set in any other way, I would not intercede. I only wish to save you your heart, boy.... I shall leave you now alone then", he said sympathetically, in a manner that sounded as though it was his duty, and so he had to do it, but he regretted it deeply. He stood slowly and strode from the room with a brief, almost ruing look back at Percy before he exited.

Percy, now alone with his thoughts, experienced a very unpleasant sensation. He felt as though his entire world had decided to warm itself by the fire, then when it got too close to the heat, it began to blur and melt before his eyes, cracking like the pillars of a once-great monument and wasting away like candle wax before a blazing wildfire. He fancied he heard splitting noises, like the foundations of his heart, crackling into a charred, forgotten ruin.

When he finally stumbled back into the main room, he sat on a chair in the corner, and when spoken to, he weakly smiled and replied as laconically as possible.

***

Alomina certainly noticed, and she was disturbed by this sudden change in Percy. She looked once more across the table to see him. He wore a contemplative and far off look, as though his thoughts and feeling were beyond that of recalling. Though to any other observer it would probably seem only that he was thinking, she knew him far better than that. She knew Percy probably better than anybody else on the earth, and she could tell he was very unhappy and changed in heart.

What was wrong? Had something terrible happened? She just couldn't riddle it out, and might have kept looking at him worriedly if she had not realized it would draw attention. She so wished she knew why he seemed so dejected, so she could go to comfort him, but she had not the heart to disturb him immediately.

She also noticed the ceasing of his attentions to the princess. Perhaps the events were connected? But her observance was cut short, when Edarian went to have a private audience with the princess. The king and the princess were absent for a small amount of time, but came back not too long after they had left. When they did come back, the princess sat down, and though she wore a mask of pleasure, Alomina thought she seemed just as miserable as Percy.

Mina watched them. For whatever cause, they interacted as little as possible. Even when they left, Percy and Princess Celeise barely even murmured 'good-bye'. For a moment their eyes met and spoke their unheard 'farewell', and Alomina wondered what it could possibly mean. The princess seemed just on the brink of silent tears, and Percy, for a short moment grasped her hand, just barely kissed it, bowed and looked away. Then they left for the carriage, Percy looking into the distance, as though he were avoiding the sight of the princess.

Alomina thought that their 'farewell' looked very final, but she hoped that she was only imagining things, and Percy was not as miserable as she thought. On the way out, Alomina saw the princess look back sadly at Percy, as though she would never see him again.

When they were going, Mina still had not the heart to disturb him, for Aunt Dricynnia was there (though she was thankfully not paying attention, and so did not notice Percy's apparent wretchedness).

But when they would get home, she fully intended to comfort her Percy, and find out what troubled him, so she could heal his every wound as she had done in past days.