Deceive not my love-The prince and his maid II

It’s wet and fall from the sky

*Pearl*

“Please make them hurry, Rhina”. I say hugging myself, as I shiver slightly. I am still waiting for the hot water for a bath.

I am not used to the cold weather of my new country yet, as my home country is very warm all year around. I miss it sometimes, but only the weather. Here I often find myself freezing.

She hurries out the room and I watch my other maid, Adiah fiddle about. She smiles at me. “I will get your scented oils, mylady”.

“Where is the light... in the country there is no light”. Everything has seemed cold and kinda gloomy, especially my husband.

Adiah turns to me. “It is you my lady.. you are the light”.

“I am happy you were chosen to be my lady maid, Adiah”. I say gratefully and she bobs me a small courtesy. At least she seems to care about how I feel.

It takes about 5 minutes before Rhina returns with a tail of footmen, all carrying buckets of water. “This way, this way. My lady wants the water hot”.

I give her a grateful smile as they start filling the tub. When they are done, Adiah drips in my scented oils.

“Thanks”. I say, as Rhina helps me out of my robe and Adiah offers me her hand, supporting me as I step up into the steaming tub.

With a sigh I let myself sink into the hot water, breathing in the calming scent from my oils. Finally my body will feel warm, at least for a while.

After my bath I am wrapped in a clean robe and sit in front of the fire while Adiah cares for my hair. It needs oils and powder to keep the braids fresh.

“The velvet one, it is the warmest”. I say, when she goes to get me a dress.

“Yes my lady”. She hurries off to fetch the right dress.

When I am dressed I decide to go for a stroll through the castle, trying to kill some time. I know my husband is not at home, he left this morning to go hunting with his father.

The castle seems a bit cold and empty, but it is just that I compare it to my childhood home. Everyone here has been nice enough, but I still feel like a fish out of water.

As I see the two horses approach through a window, I hurry outside to greet my husband and his father, the king.

“Oh hi Pearl”. King Finn calls out, with a wave.

Will gives me a small smile. “Hi Pearl”.

“My brave hunters”. I say, trying to break the ice, as they dismount. “Hello Will”. Then I notice the rabbits tied to the saddle. “Oh rabbit stew it will be”.

He looks embarrassed. “Dad shot them… I hesitated”.

“Well, you are merciful to save a life, when others are far too quick to take one”. I tell him.

“Will !” The King says softly.

My husband looks at his father. “Yes dad ?”

“What about I take the horses and the rabbits, and you go do something with your wife ?” He looks at me, smiling warmly. “You would like that, right Pearl ?”

“Very much your highness”. I say with a small curtsy.

He shakes his head. “Please say Finn… Will, your wife would like to spend time with you”.

He suddenly seems very nervous, but manages to ask me to come for a walk with him. To be honest it is not what I want the most, I am tired and cold and it has started raining a bit. But he is my husband, and I want us to get to know each other better, so I say yes anyway.

“I am glad to finally have a chance to do something with you”. Will says he gives me a small smile. “Sorry I have been so absent”.

“And I want to spend time with you”. I look up at the clouds, why does it feel so awkward to talk to him. “But it rains... I would like to go inside… can we go inside”.

“Oh no this isn’t raining ''. Will makes a motion with his hand. “It is drizzling”.

I shudder slightly against the cold. “It is raining”.

“Drizzle”. He looks at me like I am the weird one here, then his voice goes soft. “We have many different kinds of rain... downpours... drizzle… mist… spitzing… dancing dollies… it is why our gardens are so green”.

“It is water from the sky... it is wet”. I know I am complaining a bit, but I am freezing. “It’s rain”.

He leans closer and lowers his voice. “We cannot be alone if we go inside. If we go inside, people can hear us..”. He makes a face. “Too much family and too many servants… The only option would be to lock ourselves in a room. I like the fresh air”.

We walk in silence for a moment, and then he says firmly. “I will try hard to be a better husband… to be a good husband to you… I… I will always listen to you...to your concerns... and I will be attentive to your… to your needs”.

“My need is that I stay out of the rain so that I do not catch a chill”. I mumble. “You are already breaking your promise”. He stares weirdly at me and I continue. “You said you would be attentive and listen, but you are ignoring that I want to go inside in the warmth”.

“Oh sorry”. He looks sheepish. “I just wanted to talk, to tell you I feel bad for the way I have acted. My predicament is not your fault”.

I hug myself against the chill. “Thanks”.

“Come, let's go inside”. He gently takes my elbow, leading me back to the castle. “We can play chess in front of the big fire in the main room”.

I breathe a small sigh of relief. “I would like that”.

And he is actually sweet, ordering the warm apple cider with cinnamon that is a tradition here and getting a footman to get me a blanket, before we start playing our game.