The Curse of Thir
Chapter 32

She smiled politely as Francis rattled on about being a lady, and how inappropriate her little stint had been yesterday. Mostly she spoke about how she had known the princess would come back to her.

Naveen had wandered the hallways until late, after being heartily lectured by her father, she couldn’t face Xylee, not after what she had said. She had hoped her lie would satisfy her mind, but she found regret streaming in from every cell in her body. In her attempt to fool herself in to believing she had done the right thing, she found herself staring at Francis temporary living quarters door. She had knocked only once when she found herself swaddled in thick meaty arms and ample bosoms.

Now she sat on a small wooden stool, dressed, in her opinion, in a far too flamboyant dress for any occasion. The collar of the dress was like that of a hissing dragon lizard and in the traditional purple of the royal Tyres line. She felt ridiculous as Francis folded and wove her hair into some sort of bun hybrid. But this charade of absurdity was expected, and who was she to go against it.

Her father was already so gracious to all her whims and fancy, she couldn’t bear to upset him further. She was to be excited when Clanece made his announcement to the small gathering today. Her father had invited self made nobles, Lord Humerus and his wife along with Duke Ruiter, his daughter Delvessa and his son. Why they all needed be there was beyond her. She gathered they would have more enthusiasm about it than her. They were probably more interested in the food though.

“Princess?”

“hmm?” Francis had been asking Naveen the same question for almost two minutes.

“Are you excited for the wedding?”

“What wedding?”

“Your wedding, to the most sort after man in the kingdom?”

“...oh....” She had hoped to think about her impending nuptials as little as possible, lest her mood fall deeper into itself.

“It’s alright Princess, I promise not to say a word of it to anyone until it’s been announced.” She chortled to herself, feeling pleased at her knowledge of future events.

“Thank you.” She frowned, confused at how Francis knew, but she swept it aside choosing rather not to dwell on it.

“There my dear, all done and as lovely as a lily. I hope it pleases you Princess.”

She gazed at the reflection in the mirror. Nodding with a smile she praised Francis and her handiwork.

“We should most probably make our way to the hall now Princess. I expect your Father would prefer it if you were there to greet the guests alongside him.”

“Yes, I believe he would.” She got up slowly, worried she wouldn’t be able to move comfortably in this new dress, but found it surprisingly light and easy to move in. At least she wouldn’t feel ill at ease because of the dress.

Today her escort comprised of both Maverick and Seth along with two of her night watchmen. Their armour looked especially well polished and their capes held that extra crispness that was expected for a formal occasion. She couldn’t look Seth in the eyes; if she did she found herself thinking of Xylee and her damned confession. If Seth hadn’t convinced her to say it, they could have gone on being friends and she could have continued ignoring how she felt. Now she was faced with hard choices, choices that would ruin everything. She glared angrily at Seth and found the pain she’d seen in Xylee.

’Dam ‘it all to Thir, I’m a terrible person.’

Walking into the hall, she saw her father speaking earnestly with Duke Ruiter; he seemed to have arrived a bit early, perhaps he was objecting to her father’s intent of removing what Gelnane had done.

“I’m glad you replace yourself here for my protection Duke Ruiter, but arriving this early purely to view the spectacle is a bit unorthodox. You and your children were invited, along with the rest, to attend at two, no latter no earlier.” He looked up as Naveen approached. “Well you are here now, so it might seem a bit rude of me to send you away. You are here to celebrate with us, later. Till then try not to upset anyone in this hall.”

Ruiter bowed deeply expressing his gratitude. Naveen disliked that man and his fancy armour. He bowed as she approached.

“Princess, I look forward to whatever these celebrations, of your engagement may bring.”

“You have my thanks Duke Ruiter,” She curtsied back, “I thank you for your well wishes, though I was under the impression that it was a secret of sorts?” She eyed her father, he simply shrugged.

“Word spreads faster than wind, Princess Naveen. Nothing can remain hidden for long.” He smiled pleasantly but lacked the emotion. Delvessa and her older brother both stood to the side, bowing as they noticed her gaze. She nodded politely back at them.

“If it is acceptable with your Majesty, I have five of my most trusted men by the stables waiting for word to enter.”

“It hasn’t stopped you before Ruiter, bring them in but keep them out of the way... and why on Thir are you dressed in full battle attire?”

“I prefer to remain ready no matter the circumstance King Tyres.”

“Right, whatever you fancy I guess. Carry on.” Ruiter bowed deeply and left to fetch his men. Naveen heard a stifled giggle from where Delvessa stood.

“Are you going to greet them Naveen?”

She glanced again at the two younger Ruiters’, both dressed in a lovely shade of burnt orange wearing smug grins of satisfaction, for what reason Naveen did not know nor did she care.

“I’ll greet them at the proper time. They are two hours early father, I replace that offensive and disrespectful.” She walked up the three short steps and took her place beside her father.

“Do you like my dress?” Her father looked quizzically at her dress and nodded. “Father I truly hope you’re not being serious, I look an idiot.”

“Well it is different from what I’ve seen you wear before but you don’t look bad Naveen.”

“I am dismissing that comment.” She folded her arms and grimaced unhappily.

King Tyres gazed at Ruiters men, striding in, all donning formal military wear.

“Naveen?” He faced her. “You’ve been acting odd lately. Is anything the matter?”

Naveen dropped her scowl and began fidgeting nervously with her nails. Of course there was something wrong, she had feelings for the biggest oddity in the kingdom who happened to be her only friend, she lied to this only friend, lied to herself, was going to marry possibly the most despicable male she has ever known and she couldn’t figure out a decent excuse for any of her actions so far.

“No, I’m just nervous.” She smiled politely at her father putting his mind at ease despite her massive internal self dilemma.

Lemoine made his appearance as Naveens smile faded from her lips. He walked with purpose and was followed by two overly burdened assistants. Stopping suddenly he looked about, noting the unexpected amount of people residing within the hall.

“I was under the impression that it would only be your Majesty, the Princess and one or two of your guards. Not a social gathering.”

“Is it an issue Master Lemoine?”

Lemoine eyed the spectators and frowned.

“Not entirely, but I hold no responsibility for any of these individuals aside from yourself and the princess.”

“Understood, I will make sure they stay out of your way.”

“Thank you, your Majesty. If possible could you get some of these layabouts’ to remove this carpet?”

“Certainly.” King Tyres nodded at two sentries posted near the door. The carpet was soon removed and Lemoine began instructing his assistants on where to place what. A deep violet liquid in a jar was used to paint two large circles within each other. In the centre circle Lemoine knelt down and began tracing an intricate pattern and mumbling aloud about the amount of people in the hall. All eyes were deeply transfixed on his actions so nobody noticed as Xylee slunk in like a scarred cat followed by Sally. She hid behind a pillar and mussed about disappearing whilst watching Lemoine crawl about and mutter. He added a last swirl, stood up and carefully walked out stepping into the opening between the two circles. Closing his eyes and breathing slowly, he suddenly clapped his hands together loudly enough to make everybody in the hall jump. The patterns inside the circles lit up in a multiple array of colours then subsided looking as if it had been etched into the ground.

“That will come off, won’t it Lemoine?” The King stared at his now defaced floor and puckered his brow.

“What?” Lemoine looked up confused at the interruption. “Of course yes your Majesty.” He continued his mumblings this time his words where incoherent to those around him. His assistance placed what remained in their arms carefully on the floor beside them and backed away to safety. The symbols pulsed with movement, shifting towards the edges then bouncing back and knitting themselves tightly together.

The hall was silent save for the mutterings of this old man. Unexpectedly the symbols, who at that point had seemingly completed their metamorphoses, exploded upwards forming a dome shape on the circle lines. King Tyres and Naveen who had been sitting forward to view the magic jumped backwards in their seats with surprise.

It was large and its symbols began to fade away into translucency till it was not visible at all.

“All done... Now where’s that girl.” Lemoine straightened himself and looked about catching her shadow before she could conceal herself completely. “Come now Xylee, it’s perfectly safe.”

She glanced at the individuals she found herself with, did they really have to be here to ogle her. Sighing audibly she walked towards Lemoine who had bent down to pick up a small vile of green liquid and handed to her.

“Drink it.”

Xylee stared at the liquid not quite focusing on its swirling attributes, but using her great peripheral vision to stare at the princess who seemed to be earnestly conversing with that fat creature behind her.

Moving about in her new clothing proved to be a rather difficult thing to do, as the clothes where about two sizes too big, the tailor had explained to Sally that he had followed the instruction given by Lemoine to the final letter, and this overly sized coat, shirt pants and boots had been the result.

Uncorking the vile of green, she quickly swigged it down and handed it back empty. It tasted of rotten leaves and old meat, a somewhat familiar flavour from her times with the Dreagnance. An odd tingling spread through her body but quickly dissipated. She looked up and accidentally caught the eye of Naveen who smiled sadly and looked away. At least her two least favourite people in the castle had decided not to attend.

She thought this to soon as Clanece strode past her, bowed to the king and took up position beside Naveen. Xylee glowered inwardly but refused to allow it to be seen on her face.

“At least Gelnane isn’t- oh for Eltan-ant’s sake!” Her happy thought was interrupted as he paced slowly past her with his new apprentice in tow, Anakal, who glared fiercely at her.

He bowed deeply to the King.

“Excuse our tardiness King Tyres, I wouldn’t wish my apprentice to miss out on such an opportunity. Witnessing such a great wizard perform such a great spell will be useful for his future. Unfortunately it took awhile to locate him.” He smacked Anakal lightly behind the head. “Apologize to King Tyres.”

Anakal bowed semi prostrating himself.

“I’m deeply sorry for my actions your Majesty. I hope I have not offended you.”

“It’s fine boy, but I’m not the one you should be apologising too. You should apologies to Master Lemoine there.”

Anakal looked about and found the eyes of an upset looking old man. He opened his mouth to apologies, but was quickly shot down.

“Are we all finished now? Or is there a troop of travelling performers about to burst through the doors?”

Xylee found herself sniggering nervously at his outburst.

“This is serious business and the fact that so many people have come to observe this like some kind of performance is somewhat unsettling, for myself and most probably Xylee.” He addressed the room but most of his anger seemed directed at the king, which was most disturbing. “I am truly sorry if I am offending you your majesty, but the fact remains. This-is-not-regular-magic.” He emphasised the last part as if talking to a child. The room gasped at his manner of addressing the king. “You are well aware of how long it took to prepare this spell and to see you disregard it in such a manner is downright shameful.” King Tyres’ eyes widened.

“Master Lemoine, I have never in all my life been spoken to in such a discourteous manner!”

“Well then it’s about time!” Lemoine puffed up and pointed heavily at Xylee. “Do you see this girl? Did she not save your daughter’s life? I have heard the stories and her bravery is baseless. Why she would wish to protect the lives of those who kept her merely on a whim is beyond me.” The silence in the hall became deafening. “If you truly wish to reward her for what she has given you, let me complete this spell and let her go.” Naveen looked as shameful as the king.

“You know very well that we cannot do that Lemoine. Whatever her kind maybe, magical creatures cannot roam Thir, for the safety of humans and her kind. I shall forgive your disrespect and allow you to continue this spell. I apologies for all the interruptions but your reaction... is unjustified.”

Lemoine stood silent and nodded curtly. He turned to Xylee. He looked ashamed.

“I’m sorry my dear. I’m truly sorry for everything.”

She shook her head. Whatever had come over him had been shocking and his apology seemed directed at something else, not only this singular event or the actions of a king, though she felt that this was a truly lucid..

“I ask that you all please remain silent whilst I conduct the spell. Xylee could you please remove your coat?” Lemoine took Xylees coat and placed it neatly beside the collection of jars near his side. He chose one jar and handed it to Xylee.

“I need you to drink this too.”

She looked deep into the liquid. It was black and smelt of something ugly and nameless.

“All of it?” The jar was large and almost completely full.

“Yes, it’s for the pain of how ever much you grow and age.”

“What?!” This interruption was from none other than the princess. She stood up ignoring Clanece and Francis curious gaze. “You’re going to make her age?”

“I’ve already explained what is to happen to Xylee.”

“And you’ve agreed?”

“Yes. Besides Master Lemoine said I shouldn’t age more than one or three years.” With that said she began to gulp down the vowel liquid, stopping once to breath and compose herself of the disgusting flavour. Naveen sat slowly back down, her concern far from gone.

“What if she ages so much that she doesn’t have long to live?” Her thoughts were fearful of the potential loss of Xylee. She didn’t wish to lose Xylee, nor was she prepared to set her free. The thought of her selfishness made her cringe.

Xylee had finished her evil beverage and stood staring at the empty jar when a sudden loud belch escaped her. She flushed red and apologised. A stifled giggle was heard from Sally.

Lemoine selected another multi coloured liquid in a jar much like the one she had just drank from. She eyed it suspiciously, unsure if she was capable of consuming another disgusting cocktail.

“Just take one sip.” Lemoine passed the jar on to her. No wonder the instructions had told her not to eat. She was beginning to fill up from disgusting tonics and if she had eaten she was sure she would have thrown up by now.

She decided to refrain from smelling this one and took a sip. The flavour surprised her tasting of sweet grapes and bark, not all too unpleasant, but shocking to her taste buds.

Handing back the jar she felt the beginning of bored mummers stir in the hall. Looking up she noticed Clanece had sat down on his hunches and whispered intensely in Naveens ear. She paid his whispers no attention and gazed intently at Xylee.

If something happened to her, she was certain she would never recover nor forgive herself. Perhaps she should have told Xylee her true feelings, though pointless as they were, it might have eased whatever tension lingered between them. She was full of doubt and panic and Claneces whisperings merely added to the flames.

Had she ever really ever felt anything for this man? Or were those sensations simply the misplaced emotions of a lonely girl?

Before her stood someone important, yet she had cast aside her confessions. Naveen had not changed at all. She was still just a princess with a duty and full of fanciful whims. She had been selfish, swore she wouldn’t be but remained in the same state.

Lemoine noted Claneces whispering and shushed him. He threw the remaining contents of the better tasting liquid into the centre of the circle. It lit up and pulsed slowly.

“Could you please stand in the centre Xylee?”

Xylee looked down at her booted feet and her baggy clothes. She was very near the end of her tether, wishing she could flee but knowing she could not till the necklace was no longer a threat. She no longer wished for this connection to the princess and the fact that this spell could at least remove the threat of dying if she left her side, soothed her thrashing heart. It may not be a cure for feeling as she did, but it was a start. She cautiously stepped forward and towards the centre of the circle, the barrier that had been seen earlier did not hold her back.

“Perhaps when I age, it’ll be as if time has truly passed and I might be less affected by these stupid sensations?”

Lemoine followed but stopped between the gaps. He poured the last jar, filled with a turquoise colour fluid, on either side of him and began to speak in a strange tongue. The liquid flowed with his words and ran the circumference of the drawn circle edging up as he spoke more ardently, forming another dome that encased him in. Xylees eyes widened in fear.

“Are you ready Xylee?” Lemoine spoke, but his voice echoed and became distorted as it reached her ears.

She nodded. It was too late to turn back now.