Tears Of

Chapter Five

Akhilas walked slowly back to his chambers. The pretty girl was all he could think of. She had found his secret passages. Instantly he became a little nervous. He had secrets hidden away in those walls and he did not need her finding them. Though, there was no way he could keep her out far from blocking all entrances. Then he realized that she only knew where one entry was. He determined that he would block that off when she was out.

In his room he saw the two white letters waiting for him to deliver them. Sighing, he opened both. Which girl was which? He couldn't remember. The dark haired one was Caeollina he was sure, but not positive. He grabbed two new parchments and wrote new letters, different letters.

It was the middle of the night and the whole castle was asleep. Akhilas walked out of his chambers and wandered the hall. He hadn't been able to sleep well lately with the two new guests. With letter's in hand, he delivered each to the girls, they'd get them in the morning.

After the letters were out of his possession he did not go back. Instead he went to the ground floor and into the servants quarters. They were just as silent as the rest of the castle. He went through the kitchen and out a door in the back of the store room. This door led outside to the beautiful castle gardens that were bathed in the moon light. He walked passed the sleeping flowers and to a wall of ivy that was interupted by a thick, heavy, old wooden door. He pushed it open on its rusty hinges. The door groaned in protest but eventually gave and swung wide.

Akhilas stepped into the small enclosed space. It was a courtyard of sorts. A perfect square that was no bigger than fifteen feet wide. The whole thing was surrounded by tall walls. The walls were taller than the room was wide. They were beautiful, clean white marble. A straight, simple path led to a marble bench in the middle of the private courtyard. The strangest thing about this room was was grew in it. Black roses. Black roses grew in neat rows from wall to wall.

One might expect them to have an odor to match their color. They smelled wonderful, better than any other kind of rose. Akhilas sat on the bench and let the scent envelope him. He took off his mask and set it next to his leg. He stared at it as it stared at him. He hated wearing it, but there wasn't much of a choice.

The night was a long one for everyone. Rosewhen awoke with a slight smile upon her lips. She was truly happy for once. She sat up an got out of her bed. Almost immediately after she left her bed chamber the strange girl Janaquette walked through her door. “Oh!” She cried out when she saw Rosewhen. She gave a little curtsy, “I was just about to wake you.” Her eyes looked down shyly.

“Well thank you, but I am up,” Rosewhen smiled, showing the girl she was friendly.

“Yes, I see Miss. Can I dress you now?” Rosewhen nodded and the girl led her behind a changing screen. Janaquette stripped Rosewhen down and went to get her clothes. “We tailored a few dresses to fit you Miss.”

“Thank you.” Rosewhen was a little surprised still that she was being treated as a princess. The maid came back with the undergarments and dress draped over her arm. She dressed Rosewhen in the lady-like garments. She then plaited Rosewhen's hair and left, muttering about how dirty everything was. Rosewhen smiled after her. There was something about the girl that she didn't understand. One moment the girl would be frantically cleaning one area and then the next she would be cleaning another area before finishing the first. And it seemed to pain her when things weren't clean, but she could not focus.

Rosewhen shrugged and left her rooms. Outside her door there was a white letter. Someone in the palace had been writing to her since she had gotten here five days ago. The letters made her a bit excited when she got them. She picked it up and opened it, reading it where she stood.

Lady Rosewhen. You come from a far away land. I'm sorry to here about your trials and that you got off course. I hope that you find yourself comfortable here. Everyone here is at your disposal. You are our guest.

I regret to tell you, you cannot leave. There is no way from this place. Also, I must warn you to never leave the vicinity of the castle garden. Never go outside their walls. Please, make yourself at home here.

Rosewhen expected her initial feeling to be sorrow. She couldn't go home. But, that was not her feeling. She was a happy and even a little excited. At home she was a nobody and she was not treated well. Here she was a lady, someone of title. She liked it and she did not want to give it up. She placed the letter back in her room, noting to write back. It never crossed her mind as to who was writing her the letters, but she didn't mind, she liked the mystery.

Rosewhen walked down to the ground floor of the palace. She found Hannalorra in the kitchen, helping cook breakfast for the castle. Rosewhen smiled at her. “Good morning Love, how did you sleep?”

“Fine thank you. Can I help here?”

“Uh- we have it under control, but if you want to help you can cut up those apples,” Hannalorra pointed at a basket of small, red apples. Rosewhen smiled, happy to help, as she grabbed a seat and began cutting the apples into small wedges. About halfway through the basket a tall blond man walked through the door. Bonevantuer, Rosewhen recalled. He caught her eye and bowed slightly.

“Milady,” he smiled shyly at her.

“Sir,” she nodded her head politely, feeling her cheeks blush a bit.

“Hannalorra, I need some help with-” he didn't have to finish his sentence. Hannalorra stood fast and ran after the young man. Rosewhen hesitated, confused about the urgency. She shrugged, there must be someone sick, she thought and went back to her work.

The two ran to Akhilas's quarters. Bonevantuer through the door open without knocking. Reveiled to them was the prince on the floor, convulsing. Hannalorra rushed to his side and held him down the best she could. This was not an odd occurrence, the two handled it with grace. They smoothing stopped him from thrashing about.

Tears were falling down his face. His mask had been thrown off and was across the room. In a few moments he came back to consciousness. He looked around, a little confused. Then he realized what had happened. Anger began to take over him. “Dammit!” He yelled and slammed a fist into the floor where he lay.

“Calm down dear,” Hannalorra soothed. She put her hand on his face and frowned.

“How can I be calm!” He shouted, “This damn curse is going to kill me.” Hannalorra said nothing more, she didn't know how to comfort him. Bonevantuer picked up the mask on the floor and handed it to the prince. “Thank you,” he said bitterly as he accepted it. Akhilas put it back on and adjusted it until it was tight.

“I'll go get you something to eat love,” Hannalorra stood and left the two men. Akhilas sighed and pushed himself up into his chair. His whole body was incredibly weak.

“I'm going to die,” he said in a matter-of-fact manner.

“No, you're not.” Bonevantuer said, but he didn't sound confident.

“No woman will love me. Look at me! I'm a monster,” Akhilas sighed.

“Don't give up hope.” Bonevantuer left the room, leaving his prince to recuperate. Hannalorra returned with a plate of food which she left with him without a word. He sat in the same position for hours. His breakfast got cold, he did not care. He was beginning to lose any hope he may have had. 

** I don't really like to write authors' notes, I prefer to let the story speak for itself. However, this isn't really about the plot. To anyone reading, I'm going to make a concerted effort to upload a new chapter weekly. I'm thinking Sunday because that usually my calmest day of the week. Anyway, enjoy and thanks for reading.