Chapter 4 – The Jester and the Castle
Dead silence. Except for Selene’s breathing.
The blond gave a pitying smile. “You never guessed?”
“Uh…um…no?” Alye stammered, her eyes widening until they looked like they would pop out of her head.
“Although that explains a lot!” I exclaimed (condescending voice and all).
He gave a laugh and held out his hand. “Well then, I ask that you come to my castle and spend your time there. It is far more spacious than this…” he searched for a nice word, “…hut.”
Good thing Selene was still asleep. We backed away a few feet and held a whispered consultation.
“I think it’s a good idea!” Alye insisted. “Huge meals away from creeps and people trying to kill us!”
“Yeah,” I sniffed irritably, “but we don’t know this guy, and his actions like buying us food could all be a conspiracy!”
“Tanya, we need decent lodgings,” Philipia sighed. “A hut is not going to cut it, and what’s going to stop the villagers from attacking us again, even if Selene does terrify them?”
“Fine,” I growled. “But I still don’t trust him.”
We turned back to Aubrey, who was standing nonchalantly and waiting.
“We accept your offer,” Alye said quickly.
“Good.”
We walked slowly down the muddy roads, passing through the village. The villagers were milling about, fearfully whispering, but when they saw Aubrey, all speech stopped. He raised his hand unnecessarily for silence.
“Let it be known that anyone who harms these three maidens shall first receive forty lashes and then be branded on the hand. Anyone who bothers them a second time shall be burnt at the stake.”
Well THAT was good for our popularity. As we walked down the streets, all the villagers backed very far away. Not exactly sticklers for punishment.
Whatever I thought about Aubrey, his castle WAS impressive. A drawbridge led us over a high moat (I expected to see sharks swimming the bottom). Large stone walls towered over our group, and I spotted guards with longbows pacing at the top. Comforting.
But when we got inside the walls, it was like entering another world (oh, wait, we WERE in another world…whatever). Trees grew tall and colorful fruits blossomed amidst the treetops. As we walked around, Aubrey pointed out certain flowers that peeked out from the fallen leaves while Alye hung off his every word. Philipia and I prickled and ignored his chattering about gardens and things. Then, in the ultimate act of gentlemanliness, he bent down, plucked a particularly beautiful blossom, and with a bow presented it to Alye.
We nearly had to pick her up off the ground.
“And this is the main hallway where most of the traffic occurs,” Aubrey told us as we walked on the lush carpets. He pointed to various old portraits, his ancestors apparently. “This is my great-grandmother, the countess of…” Insert long drawn-out family history here.
I guess Aubrey sensed our (Philipia and I) discomfort (Alye was in happy love land) and gave a charming smile. “Perhaps you maidens are in need of nourishment?” Well how could we say no to that?
So he turned and led us down another wide hallway with portraits and expensive decorations. After about five minutes of slow walking, we arrived at a massive dining hall with crystal chandeliers hanging above and candles in every corner. Several candlesticks lit up a long, rich brown table with velvet cushions. As we sat, servants decked in fine clothes brought in food…and lots of it.
However, as I watched the stuff being dumped on my plate, I realized just how…gross this food was. Soups with God-knows-what kinds of vegetables and about fifty different meats nearly canceled out the liquid that made it soup. The fruit was good, sweet and juicy, but the meats were mostly chunks of fat with no actual meat. With an effort, I gulped down one piece and swallowed about half of my drink. I nearly spat it back out. Wine. Strong too.
Philipia noticed my reaction and carefully sipped. I grinned with sympathy as her face puckered and barely kept the wine in. She gulped with an effort.
Aubrey was watching us; Alye was happily chewing and gazing at him. The man laughed. “Have you never partaken of wine before?”
“Where we come from,” I said with an effort, “minors can’t drink alcohol.”
His eyebrows arched but he motioned the servants to replace our glasses with water. That I happily consumed. But I noticed that Alye’s glass was still full of dark liquid. Not good.
“Alye, your drink?” Philipia asked. Alye waved her off.
“I’ll be fine. I have a good head for stuff like this.”
Aubrey chuckled silently and the meal continued in silence.
As the dinner (I could only see the sunlight fading through the windows) ended, Aubrey clapped his hands. “Now we shall have some entertainment. Would you care to join me?” As if we had a choice.
“Sh…sure,” Alye replied with an effort. Aubrey gracefully helped her out of the chair and she limped at his arm. Philipia and I rolled our eyes and followed.
Aubrey walked us down another corridor, this one more private and less furnished, until we reached a large open space. Chairs lined the sides and a tile floor was the only décor for the center. An arena, almost.
Our companion rang a silver bell three times, each time louder than the last. After a brief wait, someone walked in. Little jingles marked his presence. We stared in amazement. A real-life court jester, garish colors and all, stood before us. His insane hat, sleeves, pants, and shoes all had tiny bells attached. His brown hair peeked out beneath his jester cap and his eyes were a bright blue. He grinned happily.
“THREE people tonight, sir?” he laughed.
“Yes, Jester Redmond. Amuse us with your usual acts.”
As the jester prepared his stuff, Aubrey turned to us. “His name is quite ironic.”
“Why?” I asked. “What does it mean?”
“It means ‘wise protector.’”
You have to admit, that is rather funny.
Regardless of whether he was a ‘wise protector’ or not, Redmond could put together a great act. He juggled, told hysterical jokes, and generally acted the fool. Aubrey (jokingly?) made several scathing comments about his mental abilities, but the jester always turned them into another routine. But even so, this guy was not dumb. In the brief moment before his act started, I caught a gleam of high intelligence. Definitely not a mental deficient. Maybe he just liked feigning stupidity.
As the performance continued, I sneaked a peak at Alye. She was quivering slightly and her eyes weren’t their usual clear green and hazel. Finally, she gripped Aubrey’s arm.
“Need to go to room…” she whispered unsteadily, slurring her words.
He understood. With no effort, he halted the act and gently held Alye, beckoning us to follow. Redmond silently departed with a sympathetic glance at our drunken friend.
After several minutes of trek through the passages, we stopped at a single room. Inside, it was large and full of lavish furnishings, including silken tapestries and stained glass windows. Three beds showing obvious signs of previous preparation lined the far wall. Aubrey had to pick up Alye and shove her onto the bed. He summoned a maid to fix her for sleep (she was really out of it by this time) and departed with a courteous good night. Philipia and I undressed ourselves and tumbled under the soft covers. We were asleep before the maid came in.
“God,” Alye muttered when we stirred very early in the morning. “Was I drunk last night?”
“Yep,” Philipia answered. The three of us had headaches; Alye was hung over, while Philipia and I had eyestrain because our eyeglasses had broken.
“Wasn’t his fault,” Alye insisted feebly. “I should’ve shown more self-control…”
“Shut up,” I groaned, and pulled the covers back over my head.
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