by S R Ahuja
“Well, my father wouldn’t allow it, for one thing.” Freyr stared straight ahead, not looking at her when he replied.
“What does your father have to do with the king in Avalon?” Jade asked rather snidely.
“He’s the King of Kings. Didn’t you know that?” Freyr did look at her this time like he couldn’t believe anyone would be so stupid. “So, if he doesn’t like how things are being run in Avalon or Midgard or Olympus or any other kingdom, he has the right to go in and make changes.”
Jade looked at Freyr, not sure whether he was lying or not.
He seemed to read the expression on her face. “It’s true. Why do you think he’s here? He visits a different kingdom every few years just to check in on how things are being run, and if he doesn’t like it, he makes changes. The rest of us came this time because he thought we would like your provincial little festivities. And I guess he wanted us to meet.”
This was all brand new to Jade, and she still wasn’t sure whether to trust Freyr. “Why would he want us to meet?”
“Well, he and Mother haven’t told me yet, but I have my suspicions. Father’s been nervous about King Henry’s plans for the kingdom with you being his sole heir. I think they want you and me to be married so that way I can run Avalon the way it should be run.”
Jade’s mouth actually fell open. She stared at him for so long she might have walked her horse right into a tree if Arthur was less intelligent. She hadn’t liked this boy from the start, but every word out of his mouth made her dislike him more and more. And now this. It made her so angry she couldn’t formulate any kind of response. She just sat there, dumbstruck.
First of all, her father, the King, was the rightful leader of Avalon and how dare Freyr’s father question that? And secondly, how dare anyone tell her that she couldn’t lead Avalon just because she was a girl?! It was despicable and so upside down, inside out, backwards that she couldn’t believe there were actually people who thought like that.
Her face grew warm and then hot, burning from the inside out, and she felt the burn creep down her neck to her chest.
Her heart was hammering against her ribs like it wanted to burst right out of her chest at this boy. She wanted to spit. She wanted to scream. She wanted to shout every horrible word she had every known at this foolish little boy. She knew it would do her no good – he was a lost cause – but she couldn’t help herself. She tried to swallow the insults, every retort she had thought of in the sixty seconds of silence, but she couldn’t stop it from bubbling up to the surface.
“Freyr Gunnar Odinson, you are a pompous little asni, just like your people think! How dare you? I am just as capable of leading this kingdom as any boy I’ve ever met, and I know I would do a way better job than some of the boys I’ve met. Sisters save us when you take over for your father. The only reason I would ever even consider marrying an asni like you would be to save the other kingdoms from suffering under your rule!”
Freyr’s face turned as white as snow, completely blank for just one moment, and then the color returned. Freyr’s face burned scarlet and his features contorted into a scowl of pure rage.
“You will not speak to your future king that way!” he shouted at her. “If you weren’t a girl, I would pull you off that horse and teach you some manners.”
Jade brought her left leg over Arthur’s neck and slid effortlessly off her horse, her feet crushing the cold snow beneath them. “Do it then! I could kick your butt any which way from London.”
Freyr tried to mimic the way she had easily slid to the ground, but he was not so graceful. He fell to his hands and knees, getting covered in cold, wet snow. Jade laughed cruelly.
“Your majesties,” Sir Erec said from behind them.
Jade turned. She had almost forgotten he was there.
“This is none of your concern, servant,” Freyr said as he stumbled to his feet. He raised his right fist behind his head.
Sir Erec grabbed his wrist to stop him from moving. “I am not a servant, boy. I am a knight, and you will show me the proper respect I am due as you will to the Princess.”
Freyr’s eyes still burned with fury, but he seemed to realize that Sir Erec was twice as big as he was. He dropped his fist and crossed both arms over his chest.
“Good,” Sir Erec said before he turned to Jade. “And you, Princess. You should be showing your guest more respect.”
Jade’s anger deflated like a popped balloon. She felt her face burn again but with embarrassment this time as she hung her head, examining the snow surrounding her shoes.
“I think it is time to go back to the castle, do you agree, your majesties?” It was a question, but the answer was clear in Sir Erec’s voice. He didn’t want to babysit two squabbling children any longer.
“Yes, Sir. I agree,” Jade said, moving toward her horse again. “Will you assist me, Sir Erec, please?”
Sir Erec helped first Jade and then Freyr back on to their horses and then they started walking back to the castle. Jade was honestly ashamed of her words, but she still felt they were justified. She didn’t see any other way she could have responded. Freyr had insulted not just her, but her entire kingdom and even, if you want to get technical, her entire gender. How could she not respond with anger?
She tried to think of other ways she might have responded, but every possible way brought bile to her throat. The only other way to respond would have been cowardice, proving this idiotic boy right.
The King would tell her she should have held her tongue and known when it was her place to speak and when she should be silent. Menelwen would have told her to let it go too because Princesses never start arguments. Sir Jack probably would have backed her up and maybe even told her to give him a good punch, but he wasn’t here. She missed Sir Jack.
Finally, she thought about how Aunt Anna would have wanted her to respond. It had been a long time since she’d seen Aunt Anna, but she knew as soon as she thought of her what she would say to Jade right now.
“Your anger was completely justified. He had just insulted you, but not because he meant to be mean. He just doesn’t know better. You should teach him, make him understand that he is wrong.”
Jade sighed angrily because she knew Aunt Anna was right. The thing to do would have been to hang on to her calm and explain to Freyr why he was wrong, but it was so hard to stay calm when someone was so clearly, obviously, incontrovertibly wrong.
After they left their horses with Nate at the stables, they began walking on foot east toward the castle. As they approached the steps, Jade knew she had to say something. The King would be furious with her, and her punishment would all hang on what Freyr said to his parents when they walked through those doors.
“Prince Freyr.” Jade stopped walking, letting him pass her slightly. He turned back to look at her but didn’t respond. He still looked angry. “I’m sorry that I raised my voice earlier. It was very unladylike, and I am embarrassed I did it. I also shouldn’t have called you an asni. I don’t even really understand what that word means, but I know it is a mean word that I shouldn’t have called you. We had a difference of opinions, but I handled it badly. Please forgive me.”
She took a deep breath, trying to release with it all of the residual anger she still felt, really and honestly trying to forgive this pompous little boy.
He eyed her suspiciously for a moment. Finally he said, “I accept your apology. It is forgotten.” She had just managed to forgive him before he said one final thing, “I’m glad you finally realized you were wrong.”
Her teeth snapped sharply together, and she clenched her hands into fists. Looking down at his feet, she felt the heat return to every extremity on her body.
He was wrong. He was so wrong. But he thought she thought she was wrong. She felt like the heat of her anger should physically burn him.
“You…” she was about to say something truly nasty. As much as every voice in her head, the King’s, Menelwen’s, Sir Jack’s, Aunt Anna’s, was screaming
at her not to, she couldn’t hold back the verbal punches she longed to fling at him.
Just as she was opening her mouth, two people walked through the castle doors. Her father and King Vidar came towards them, walking in pace, both smiling.
“You two are back early,” the King said, and then he saw Jade’s face. “Are you all right, Amalthea?”
Jade looked at Freyr who was smiling at her. If she said anything, he would tell them she started it. Swallowing her anger was one of the hardest things she’d ever done. “I just have a stomachache, Father,” she said through gritted teeth.
“Well, perhaps you want to go lie down for a spell before the festivities tonight. Everyone will want to see their princess bright and shining. Prince Freyr can come with us,” the King suggested.
King Vidar nodded. “Yes, I think you will enjoy this, Freyr. We are going hunting for meat for tonight.”
“Sir Erec,” the King turned to the knight who was still behind Jade. “Will you please make sure Amalthea makes it safely inside to her governess? After that, you may join us on the hunt, if you like.”
“Yes, sir,” Sir Erec said, nodding. “I would greatly enjoy that.”
“Good,” the King said. “Well, take her inside, and we will meet you at the stables.”
The two kings led Freyr back the way they had just walked.
“Goodbye, Princess,” he said as he passed her, “Thank you for the wonderful tour. I hope you feel better this evening.”
He smiled at her like they had never argued, like he had never said anything heinous enough to make Jade’s blood boil, and he left with their fathers.
Sir Erec walked her through the doors of the castle. “This is fine, Sir Erec. I can find my room on my own, thanks.”
He looked unsure.
“I promise I’m not going to run away again,” she said exasperatedly.
He nodded. “Good, see that you don’t. I’ll see you at the dinner tonight, Princess.” He turned and left too.
Jade took off sprinting up the enormous staircase, around corners, down halls until she finally reached her room. She slammed the door behind her and fell down on her bed. Burying her face in her pillow, she let out a scream of frustration and anger and then starting crying.
She didn’t hear the door open, but she felt the weight when Menelwen sat on the edge of her bed. Without speaking, she began stroking Jade’s hair. She just let Jade cry quietly for a while. Finally, Jade’s tears slowed and stopped. She still felt the heat of her anger coloring her cheeks, but her fury had abated enough that she felt she could speak again. She sat up and rested her head on Menelwen’s shoulder. Menelwen handed her a small handkerchief that Jade used to dry her face.
“I hate him,” Jade said fiercely.
“Hate who, darling?” Menelwen asked, pressing her palm against Jade’s cheek.
“Prince Freyr Gunnar Odinson,” Jade said snidely, elongating the syllables of his name for a distorted effect that mimicked her twisted feelings about him. “He’s a pompous, ignorant asni.”
“Jade!” Menelwen protested. “Don’t use language like that! It’s not ladylike.”
“Is it a bad word?”
“Yes, it is. Don’t let me hear you call anyone that word again.”
“But what if it’s true?”
“You have an excellent vocabulary. Pick a different word. Where did you even learn a word like that? Was it one of the knights?”
“No, Freyr said that his subjects called him that.”
Menelwen was quiet for a moment. “Let’s get back to Prince Freyr. Now, why do you hate him besides the fact that his subjects may not like him?”
“Because he’s a stupid…” Jade trailed off, looking up at Menelwen’s stern face, “…fiend.”
Menelwen pursed her lips. “And why do you think he’s a ‘stupid fiend’?”
“Because,” Jade said, “he said that girls couldn’t lead a country and that the reason he was here for the Solstice was because his father and the King want us to get married when we’re grown up so that he can rule Avalon instead of me because I’m not good enough to rule it.” She took a shaky breath.
“Ammie,” Menelwen said. She meant it to be soothing but it just sounded like a scolding. “You will be the first queen to ever rule Avalon on her own. There are going to be many, many people who tell you that you can’t do it. And you know what you should say to them?”
“Go suck on a pinecone?”
Menelwen pursed her lips again. “And how would that help you?”
“It’d make me feel a lot better.”
“Amalthea,” Menelwen scolded.
“Fine, what should I say, Menelwen?” Jade said with false sincerity.
“’My name has been writ in a prophecy since I was born. I will study for years to prepare myself for this. I will shadow my father, King Henry, one of the greatest kings Avalon has ever known. I will be told over and over that I cannot do this, and I will spend my entire life proving that I can. I was born to lead this kingdom, and I am thankful for every ignorant person like you because your rude comments will give me the anger, the energy, and the strength to do what I have to do to take care of my people.’ That’s what you should say to them, Ammie.”
Menelwen was breathless when she reached the end of her little speech, and there was a ferocity in her eyes that Jade had never seen there before. Jade realized that Menelwen hated what Freyr had said just as much as she had, but Menelwen had done what Jade could not. She had stayed calm, calm enough to use her wits instead of her fists. Jade was seeing another side of Menelwen she hadn’t seen before. She was strong. She was smart. And it didn’t matter that Jade didn’t have a mother or that she didn’t have her Aunt Anna anymore. Jade had Menelwen, and right at that moment, Jade wanted to grow up to be just like her.
Chapter XIV
Meeting
___________________________________
Some time later, Menelwen dressed Jade in her gorgeous Solstice dress, a deep, rich periwinkle with tiny yellow silk flowers dotted across the skirt, which was poufy to the point that it didn’t move when she did. The bodice was snug, but not tight with long sleeves the same color as the skirt.
Menelwen slipped her golden shoes onto her feet and clipped a delicate gold flower into her hair, and she was ready for the dinner guests.
Jade had to pick up the skirt so she didn’t trip going down the stairs. Menelwen gently placed her hand on top of Jade’s to push her skirt slightly lower so it just barely brushed the tops of her feet.
When she reached the kitchen, her father was already there, giving orders. He was still dressed in the clothes he had gone hunting in, and Jade was slightly repulsed to see a dark crimson stain on the right sleeve that looked suspiciously like blood.
“Good evening, King Father,” Jade said with a small curtsey.
The King turned and smiled at her. “Amalthea, don’t you think you’ve been here long enough to drop the King and just call me Father?”
Jade glanced swiftly at Menelwen who nodded infinitesimally. “All right, Father.”
The King smiled wider. “Good. You look absolutely radiant, Amalthea. Who took my adorable little girl and turned her into this beautiful young woman standing in front of me? Tell me, Princess, how many hearts do you plan on breaking tonight?”
Jade forced a smile. She knew that was what her father wanted to see.
“Now, Princess, what job would you like to have in the kitchen? You see, I’m head chef tonight, so what I say goes.”
“Isn’t that how it always is?” Jade asked innocently, standing on her tip toes to peek at what was simmering on the stove.
The King laughed loudly. “So observant!”
Jade smiled although she hadn’t meant to be funny. “Can I help with the cake?”
“Of course! Menelwen, I believe the cake is just coming out of the oven and in need of someone to frost it. Would you help Amalthea with the frosting?”
Menelwen led
Jade over to a small, round, wooden table in the corner and draped a white apron across her front, tying it in the back. Jade sat down at the table as one of the kitchen boys brought over the cake. It wasn’t fresh out of the oven like her father had said because it had cooled to the touch, but it was still incredibly fragrant. Even in the room full of simmering entrees, as the cake was brought over, Jade could still smell Christmas in the air.
Christmases at home were not nearly as big a deal as the Winter Solstice was in Avalon. Usually it was just Jade and Aunt Anna at home. They always had a real Christmas tree, kind of like the one adorning the front hall of the castle, but they always decorated theirs by hand, putting on every ornament Jade had ever made until the branches couldn’t hold anymore.
Jade and Aunt Anna never had a big Christmas dinner like some kids had, but they always had one thing: chocolate cake with pink frosting. They would bake it together and then frost it together. It was always slightly sloppy at the end, but the extra frosting just made it taste even better.
The cake that was set in front of her smelled just like Aunt Anna’s chocolate cake from home. Menelwen brought her over many bowls of different colored frosting, and Jade got to work.
First, she covered the entire cake with white frostings, but when she went to dip her spreading knife into the pink bowl, Menelwen stopped her. She smoothed out the frosting and showed Jade how she could put the pink frosting in a little bag, cut off the tip, and then use it like a pen. With Menelwen’s help, she decorated the cake with pretty pink flowers and wrote on top in yellow frosting “Welcome back, daylight.”
By the time they were done with the cake, most of the other dishes were done as well. Jade gave her now pink and yellow stained apron back to Menelwen and went into the dining hall to sit down.
The King and their guests were already there. Jade secretly wondered how much the King had actually helped cook because he had also had time to bathe and change.
She glanced at Freyr across the table as she sat down. He was looking at her too, but he didn’t seem angry or vengeful; he seemed happy to be sitting down to dinner. None of the children talked much at dinner. Jade for one was much too distracted by all the delicious foods that were put in front of her. Freyr and Sylvi may have been quiet out of respect for the adults or they too may have been distracted by the food. Jade did not pay enough attention to them to notice.
