by R D Blake
“But — but I must see you again. I cannot let you simply walk away from me! I cannot!” Teton roared out in protest.
Erick called back as he entered the verge of the forest. “You say that from loyalty but truly more from friendship, Teton, and I must call on that; for you must let me go. But if I can, if there is a way, I will send word to you. But I cannot promise, Teton. I cannot.” And with those words Erick left his dearest and oldest friend.
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“What is that thing?” Teton asked aloud as he strode over to his horse. “What possibly could it mean to him?” He looked upwards once, but already the vast multitudes of birds were winging away. “But they know. They know well indeed. And it troubles me, Erick. It vexes me to the depths of my soul, my dearest friend, why you will not trust me with the truth of why that inhuman creature born of ill luck or misfortune causes you to forsake all else.”
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Chapter Thirteen
It took not many steps until the animals lurking about in the forest began to gather about him. Wolves, foxes, weasels, hares, stags and elk revealed themselves. And finally the great bear himself rambled out to join him along with another score of others of his ursine kindred. “It is good to see you all, my dear friends. And I am glad that you did not have to fight to save No One back there. But I would ask that some of you follow those men. And if any should turn back — do what love and honour call you to do to protect her. I know you were prepared to risk all. But the giant, if he should go against my counsel and seek me out, do not harm him. Understand that he permitted himself to lose and suffered for it. He too is my friend and a great one at that.”
Many of the animals about him left at the gruff command of the bear, disappearing into the greenery about them. Then the great black animal chuffed out more orders and all eventually left, most running ahead of them, returning to the ruins in the vale hidden below these last vestiges of the foothills of the northern mountains. “Now lead us home, my old friend. I have missed you, our common home and mostly, mostly her.”
Erick looked down to see the edge of No One’s face. She had wrapped her arms about his neck and was once more in silence. If she had need of that solitude, Erick was more willing to grant her that and he hoped far more.
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Some hours later, Teton reined in his horse as he entered the camp. All eyes came to rest on him as he dismounted and strode to his tent. Ignoring those furtive glances, some few minutes later he returned to his steed after having issued a few scant orders to his personal attendant. As he remounted he said only a few words to no one in particular: “I find the stench about this place too unpleasant for one such as I. Think upon that and consider its source.” Then he urged his mount into a gallop and left fully intent on a new mission.
Five followed and found him some miles below the camp and wished to join him. “No,” Teton counselled them. “Return and remain with Connor. Say only that you wished to convince me to return and seek his forgiveness, and that you considered my words and deeds, the rash foolishness of a bull-headed man. If you would, stay close to Connor and convince him of your loyalty. Let me be the lightning rod for both his fear and his anger.” His eyes tightened on each of those about him. “Use that to learn of his plans. We must be prepared for when the blow falls. Now go and go with my blessing and that of God’s. And do not think all lost yet.”
So they left him, coming to have a greater understanding and taking comfort and assurance in the fact that Teton was not the simpleton he had always portrayed himself to be.
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The first stars were already afire in night sky and the first sliver of a new moon had appeared to grace the western horizon, when Erick carried No One into her own chambers and laid her gently on her bed. All during the long trek back, she had remained silent. Only occasionally had she shuddered and tightened her grip about his neck. For the last few hours of their journey, Erick thought she had slept — the long terror of her flight and of the hands of those cruel men upon her finally leading her to a rest of exhaustion.
Only briefly did Erick look down upon her. There were too many memories here in this room — memories of her rage at him — of her accusations — of the pain he had caused her. Those memories had chased him all the way to those southern realms and back here to these lands. Those and the sight of her hand freed from the curse — the fleeting moments when he and the animals here had seen a part of her as she truly was.
But Erick left, not wishing to intrude longer into this last lone sanctuary of No One’s. He went to busy himself in the kitchen, finding things much as he had left them a year ago and took the risk and the liberty to cook — an action that had earned him so much rebuke, that in a manner of thought seemed but a few days ago.
He made a soup from what stock he found, waiting impatiently for it to heat and then simmer for a time. Soon, the animals and animals began to fill the kitchen giving him an eager welcome of return, brushing up against his legs, perching on his head and shoulders, tugging at his long beard and hair, gambolling about the room in a renewed joy in his presence. The great black bear had come and gone but had now returned just as the soup appeared ready. Erick was uncertain. He was back in No One’s abode and the rules proscribed him from entering farther into the ruins beyond here, and he had learned from his sole and last foray, the price to be paid for such an affront. Erick had hoped No One would have found the strength and will to have come to this chamber and accept his offering, but she had not.
The bear approached him, seizing his eyes in his own black beady ones. “What am I to do, great one? She has not come.” In answer the beast caught his wrist in his jaws and began to tug him toward the hallway that led back to her rooms but stopped at the doorway and with his snout pointed at the pot containing the soup. “I took your advice last time, my friend, and we all know how that turned out,” Erick said in warning. But the bear simply grabbed at his wrist again and commenced pulling again, dragging him into the corridor. “All right! But it will be on your head if this goes astray! And I have much to tell you of why I have returned. There is hope for her! Surely you know this.” But the bear seemed indifferent to his words, and only indicated that right now No One needed nourishment and beyond that, nothing else was considered of any importance. Only after Erick had agreed to prepare a bowl of the soup and follow the beast into her inner sanctuary, did the great jaws of the bear release him.
He found No One awake when he crossed the threshold into her chamber; but she did nothing to hide herself from him, only turning away to face the wall, remaining mute. Erick was at a loss of what next to do. She was to speak first, not him, but the bear would not suffer any delay and cuffed him. Taking a breath, Erick readied himself to accept No One’s vehemence as he spoke out of turn. “Please, my lady, I have brought you something to eat. You must needs recover your strength.”
But his words were met with a cold silence. No One moved not at all. Erick waited, for the bear had crowded in on him and would not allow him to leave. Every passing minute, every second that would have ticked by if there had been a clock here in this room, only bruised Erick all the more. After all he had endured, she remained like this. As he had travelled these last few weeks, Erick had imagined all her possible reactions, from a continuing black hatred of his perceived betrayal and mockery of her, to an open welcome but not this shattered condition: the holding in of a pain so terrible sprung from those cruel words of his fellow nobles that confirmed everything she thought of herself. But the bear would not release Erick anymore than she would release herself of her own agony and self-abasement. Yet so much hope was at hand. But she might reject it all. And refuse all that he still stored secretly inside himself.
The bear swatted him lightly again almost causing him to spill the soup. “Please, No One, I cannot…” But Erick could not say the words. Her only reaction was to draw herself tighter into her own arms.
“You should have let the
m,” she finally croaked out from under the shelter of her limbs. “I have been ready for death for so long. What would matter a few hours of ridicule? Of the truth of myself being said in the open air?”
She had acknowledged him — posed a question that by the rules he could answer. “It would have mattered to me,” he whispered in return.
Her bald head moved in negation. “Do not mock me! Do not ask me to bear what I cannot!” Yet her words, though harsh, were filled with more life than he had seen yet in this long day.
But once she had broken her silence she did not wait for him to reply. “Why have you come back? Why after all this time! If you only — ” But she closed herself off to him again.
They remained within the arms of quiet in her chambers until she finally sighed and said: “Leave it. I will eat of it what I wish later.”
Erick was more than happy to comply with her wishes, but the bear still barred his exit. “My lady, he will not allow me to pass.” All he wanted to do was to escape before something else went wrong.
Another groan followed, but No One turned about and sat up taking a moment to cover her head with the tunic Erick had left with her. But before she did, she glared at him and the great bear. “So it is to be this way,” she said with no small measure of annoyance. She attempted to grasp the spoon and feed herself, but her hands proved so unsteady that she found she could not. Then Erick felt the cold nose of the bear nudge his arm.
“He wishes me to aid you.” Beneath her shroud, Erick was certain No One was frowning, but she simply dropped the spoon back into the soup and opened her mouth revealing to him for the first time her almost toothless and mottled gums. It was only after Erick had spooned the last drop of soup into her that the black beast permitted him to leave.
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As the bear waddled contentedly along the corridor to the kitchen, Erick asked derisively, “What did you hope to accomplish with all that?” Hiding none of his frustration, he near shouted out: “Now she is angrier than ever!” But the creature seemed untroubled by the vindictive words No One had sputtered out as they had left together. But Erick remembered her every word and he wondered deeply how he was to accomplish what he must begin with her tomorrow.
He came back into the room finding it more crowded than ever. Birds were on every beam and place upon which they could stand and roost. Even one of the great eagles had managed to settle in among the highest rafters. And wolves and dogs covered every empty piece of the floor such that Erick had to gently nudge them aside, so he could reach the table. All their eyes rested upon him. They were here to receive the story of his travels.
Erick knew it was going to be a long night, so he first helped himself to a large serving of soup and brought the pot to the table nestling it among the cats, mice and martens that had claimed part of it. In between mouthfuls of his meal, Erick began to relate to his listeners the full tale of his travels and adventures and of the great boon that the Pure One had granted him, and most importantly, the role that all those gathered about him had to play over the morrow and the days that would follow.
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Teton returned to the main road by early the next morning. There would be two more days of hard riding before he was back in the lands of his father. And he did not wish a minute’s delay, but he had pushed his horse all night and his mount needed a rest. So he accepted what must be, for he could not allow himself to punish the beast further. He and the horse would have to walk for several hours and then only after that move at a slow pace — unless he found a fellow traveller from whom he could exchange rides or purchase his mount outright.
Teton let his steed drink at a nearby stream. For himself, the giant went to his knees and prayed, thanking God that his dearest friend still was alive and for wisdom; for Teton knew Connor and the house of Westhaven would not much longer put off the seizing of the realm.
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Erick woke to find himself bent over the kitchen table. Light from a high open window revealed that the sun was already approaching mid-morning. Wiping the sleep from his eyes, he brushed his long and unkempt hair back over his head and looked about the room. For the most part, the animals had all left. Only a few dogs and cat remained nearby, and they appeared all to be dozing.
He thought back to the long night before. It seemed with all of their might, the animals had yipped and barked and twittered and peeped after he told them about the ring and had showed it to them within its crystalline case. But they had sobered when Erick told them of what aught had to happen if the curse was to be lifted, and some had shook their heads, doubtful as he had ever been, since the Pure One had told him that the ring’s power depended on more than just itself.
He’d had no idea of what time in the dark of the night he had finished his story only that he had felt weary beyond telling. Now, it almost seemed a dream: just like discovering No One as he had yesterday and having to meet and fight Teton — and of the long journey carrying No One here and feeling her cradled in his arms.
Erick closed his eyes and gave out a silent thanksgiving that God had been gracious to both of them: that she had not perished yesterday before the ring could be used. He was praying so fervently that he heard not the soft music of a lark that had flown into the kitchen. Following her, she led him up to the battlements where he looked out over familiar sights: the hidden fields, the scattered orchards, the long grasses that had already grown sufficiently that the wind could weave its own designs in their movements — and the first flowers that festooned the crumbling hidden walls of the old buildings and stone fences. It did not take long for Erick to understand the reasons why he had been brought out to this vantage point.
After he had adorned the kitchen with flowers he knew No One loved best, Erick cleaned the chamber and prepared a gruel sweetened with honey and then took the pail to fetch some clear water from the well.
When he returned he discovered No One sitting at the table, covered again from head to foot, fixing his poor attempt at arranging the flowers. He went about emptying the pail and busied himself with some other minor tasks, all the while straining his hearing to discern if she would leave again. Erick was about to go out to fetch another pail of water when she spoke and her words gave him all of what he wished for. “Nobody, you gave me no answer.”
Erick knew exactly what she meant by that. And though every fibre of his being wanted to rush to her and tell her all, he carefully put the pail beside the basin and sat at the other end of the table from her; for by her posture he understood she wanted no such familiarity. “There is much to tell you, my lady, and it is a long tale. Would you grant me leave to give you a drink and something to eat before I begin?” She considered and then gave him a slight nod. But Erick began to speak even as he served her. And while he said nothing of what had transpired between them that had forced him to depart from her a full year ago, he began near the beginning and told her of his travels and of the search for a boon that might aid her.
But No One believed not that she was cursed, and she almost left when Erick first mentioned it, for he was loath to tell her what he had seen when he had kissed her hand. He still remembered too well that a reminder of such might drive her from the room.
Still she listened on, asking little, and ate openly before him though he saw little else but her chin below the shroud she only opened slightly. Erick concluded with brief details of his return and said nothing of the day that preceded this, believing to mention it would have her relive again the terror of it.
“Show it to me,” was all No One simply asked when Erick had completed his tale. With a heart beating so hard that he thought it might burst, Erick drew out the ring and gave it into her gloved hands. She studied from beneath her shroud and tossed it carelessly back on the table. “A magic ring?” she remarked, derisively. “As foolish a thought as this alleged curse upon me. Nobody, you are more a dupe and a fool than I imagined. And you must depart once more. I cannot bear such empty hopes. I
should have given up all hope long ago.”
Then she rose up to leave. “Wait! Wait, my lady!” Erick cried out. “If fool I be, will you not give a fool one last wish before he goes? Please, oh, please No One. Wear it but for one day. Perhaps all I have done has been mad — and full of false hope. Listen not just to me but to these all about you. Let them speak their own words to you.” For while Erick had sat and talked with her during that morning, many animals and birds had returned and had sat or perched about the kitchen listening in. “Please, grant them a word with you. And if you will allow, I will leave you to hear them and consider my humble request.”
Erick stumbled his way out to the parapets again and for long hours stared out across the fields to the southern mountains. They seemed as immovable as she was. He thought No One would have at least have tried, but perhaps her hurts and sorrow were too deep for her to risk adding to them. And yesterday had she not endured more than any woman, nay, any human should? Over the long afternoon, no animal came to visit with him and no creature moved about in the fields or above them.
Finally, when Erick could bear no more, he strode back to his old room. When he stepped inside he found himself thunderstruck. For though all had been put away, only discovering the trunk stored under his bed afterwards, the room was filled with flowers. As if — as if — as if it had only been awaiting his return. Bewildered, Erick sat down on the bare bed frame trying to understand what it all meant.
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The sun was creeping toward the western horizon when the bear lumbered into his chamber and by his motions indicated that Erick was to follow him. Led back into the kitchen, he found it empty and the ring still bound within its crystal case: unmoved, untouched. But there was a stew of some sort simmering on the oven. Wearily, gloomily, Erick ladled himself out a bowl and ate it slowly using several slices of fresh bread, washing it all down with a mug of tea afterwards. She had to accept the ring, for it had no power without her permission — just like so much else here. He could not force it upon her.
