by Lynn Hardy
“Milady, your bath is ready,” Crystal utters from behind me.
Is it daybreak already? “Thank you. There are some correspondences on the desk. Will you see that they get delivered this morning?” With one last look at the walls to make sure the privacy field has no gaps, I murmur, “Sight” before moving to the door.
Crystal follows me into the bathroom. I nearly jump out of my skin when she reaches for the collar of my robe. This is going to take some getting used to. I’m not a prude, but I am used to getting out of my clothes by myself!
I pull up the nightgown as the soles of my feet make contact with the tub’s first step. The water is lukewarm. I slip off the gown, sinking down until I am up to my neck. Reexamining the shape of the bathtub, I see how the contours represent a flame, the marbling adding to the impression.
“I have some additional hot water when you are ready.” Crystal indicates the two steaming buckets as she hastens past the door leading to the new toilet.
I drop my temperature shield with a thought. “A little warmer would be nice, thank you.” I discern confusion pass through her as she empties the steaming liquid from the closest bucket into the tub.
“Ahh, that feels much better.” I lean into one of the curves of the flame’s base, trying to relax as Crystal hustles to the cabinet. Sure. Relax while a strange woman hovers in the room and you’re in a tub without even so much as bubbles for cover! Relaxed or not, I am desperate for information. “Are you familiar with the protocols of the nobility?”
“Familiar? Yes, milady. I’m somewhat familiar with the protocols of the nobility.”
Placing a towel on the floor, she kneels. I start as her hands gather my hair out of the water. She reaches for the clip I forgot to remove.
“Crystal, I’m not sure how much you’ve heard, but the land I come from is much, much different from this one.” I explain as she begins stroking my hair. “Because of this, some of my ways might seem strange. I have no wish to offend someone with my lack of manners or to be thought less of because of an error in etiquette. I need your help. I realize this is probably a strange request, but I must know what is proper here.” This isn’t so bad. I’ve always loved having my hair done. With the warm water, this is heavenly!
“I understand your predicament.” I sense confusion as he continues. “I am here to assist you. I will gladly do anything you require of me.”
Suspicion springs up from somewhere deep inside. Something tells me “anything” is not referring to lectures on protocol. Is it that I’m naked while she’s combing my hair? Or is it my heightened intuition?
“First I need to clarify a couple of things. We don’t have chambermaids, such as you, in my homeland.” I use the Cuthburish title, referring to her position as head of my personal quarters. “I apologize if my assumption is incorrect, but you and the four women assigned to us aren’t here to simply clean up and fetch things? You would literally do anything you thought would make us happy, including things of a…” Just be blunt. “Of a sexual nature.” I manage to spit the words out.
“Yes. We are the best at providing services within the entire castle staff,” she replies, unabashed. “Therefore, it is our privilege to be assigned to you and your men. Not all chambermaids provide all services, but there are a few who have fully dedicated themselves to the care of others. Because of your status, only the best have been appointed to see to your personal care. If you aren’t inclined toward me, I can arrange for your companionship with someone who will be most discrete.”
“No!” Her hands pause in their work. I realize I nearly shouted the denial. “I mean no offense, but I have a husband waiting for me back home. I won’t be requiring any of your ‘special’ services.” Again I sense confusion rise. “The second thing I need, besides information on protocol, is to know what behavior of mine is causing you such bewilderment. Please be frank.”
“How could you know of my confusion?” she mumbles. With a shake of her head, she reorganizes her thoughts. “Of course, you are a sorcerer. Milady, you have a husband? It never occurred to me.”
Clearing her throat, I sense resolution slide into place as she begins to explain. “I am unused to the courtesy you have shown me since your arrival. At first, I took your kindness to be a proposition, but now you have stated otherwise. For the first time since I have taken a position here, I’m unsure of the needs of the person to whom I have been assigned.” Crystal wets a sponge, lathering it with a fragrant soap. She hands the bubbly mass to me.
I struggle to form a reply. “Oh, I see. Well, the kindness I have displayed is known as ‘common courtesy.’ Anyone raised with any amount of upbringing on my world extends this to all they interact with. I’m sorry my behavior is confusing to you, but I am afraid it is something I will not change.” I pause as she takes the sponge to wash my back. “Do you understand?”
Crystal empties the contents of the second pail, reheating water that has grown tepid. Retrieving a metal ewer, she fills this with liquid from the tub. Pouring the water over my head to wet my hair, she asks, “But you are nobility, and I am a servant. What difference could your behavior toward me possibly make?”
“You are just as much a human being as anyone else. Why should I treat you with contempt?” I perceive the confusion abating as she mumbles assent.
Our conversation pauses while she puts something into my hair, lathering it like shampoo. The floral smell is pleasant, even relaxing. There’s no sign of the allergies I had back home.
I reiterate the original question. “Other than my treating the castle staff with too much kindness, what are the other rules of etiquette? I will be meeting with the War Council this morning and having lunch with Princess Szeanne Rose this afternoon. I need to know what is proper.”
“I have never been trained in proper decorum, but I can tell you what I have observed.” Crystal starts the rinsing portion of the salon treatment. “Almost everything is determined by the position one holds within the monarchy. The person of lower ranking is always presented to the upper-classed noble. Even though two may be of the same lineage, therefore equally entitled, their favor with the king may be noted with an introduction. The higher-status nobles will dip their heads when bowed to by someone of lower status if they deem them worthy of recognition. You should always address someone by his or her full title unless you wish it to be known you are on intimate terms with the individual.” A creamy conditioner is stroked through my tresses. “Also the lower-ranked personage always waits until the other has taken a seat, with ladies assuming their chairs first. This goes for eating as well.”
“Would you like me to inquire about other key issues?” She wraps my hair in a towel.
“No, that will be sufficient, thank you.” I’ll have to watch the sitting thing…
“Milady, if you are ready, we should start on your hair,” Crystal suggests.
Since the water is lukewarm again, I immediately assent to her proposal. I rise, snapping my protective shields back into place. Crystal hands me a thick bath sheet and passes me a robe after I am dry.
While my attendant answers a knock on the door of the reception chamber, I wander back into the bedroom. Seeing a vanity on the other side of the bed, I move in that direction. Alone for the first time, I have a chance to take a closer look at what has been assigned as my chambers.
Light streams in around thick curtains covering almost a third of the wall on my left. Noticing a loose tie at the edge, I pull back the thick, velvet material. That’s better. Even though I can see in the dark, the light will help me make out more details.
A set of French doors, leading to a balcony, lies behind the curtain. Glass partitions, so foggy they are opaque, are set in delicate cherry wood. The doors add illumination, but the view is obscured. Turning back toward the bathroom, I spy another door next to the lavatory, opposite the vanity. Ah, Crystal’s room.
Now that I have better light, I find myself even more impressed with the room. Thick, cream-colo
red rugs blanket the hardwood floor. The wood furnishings are the same color, or colors, making a beautiful bedroom set.
Each piece of furniture holds to a general theme: flames. Take the bed, for instance. The base of all four posts is a deep mahogany. About a third of the way up, it changes to a more honest cherry red color, and the tops are the same amber color of the leaves on Prince Alex’s dining room table. Lines have been carved into the posts, weaving in, out, and around the poles in no discernible pattern. Everywhere I look, I see a blazing design. How long have these rooms been waiting for me?
Crystal returns, carrying a load of hanging clothes. Are those mine? Mixed in with a stack of garments are my silver robe and black leather outfit. “Milady, you said you will attend the War Council this morning?” As I dip my head, she continues. “If I may make a suggestion?”
My lips twist in a wry smile. “I would appreciate any aid you can give, especially if it is concerning those. I don’t have the greatest fashion sense, even on my own world.”
“Since the council is made up of men,” a hint of mischief tinges her voice, “if you were to wear your original outfit, it may remind them that you are more than a mere woman.”
“That sounds like an inspired idea. I believe I will.” She puts the other clothes in the armoire, laying out my cleaned garments. I finally dare to ask a question I have been curious about since we got here. “Tell me something, Crystal, and I again encourage you to be forthright. Is there some kind of foretelling about my arrival?”
The chambermaid comes around to my side of the bed, gesturing toward the vanity. I take a seat. She begins hesitantly, “I believe I will speak plainly with you, milady. You are… different… than any of the other nobles I’ve encountered, and with them, I wouldn’t dare. But I think I have figured out what it is you need from me. I believe this is part of it.
“I don’t know the official version of the Prophecy of the Flame, for I have no proper learning, but everyone knows it in a general sort of way.”
She applies ointment from a jar on the vanity to my combed hair. “When someone is faced with what seems to be an overwhelming task, it is often said: I don’t see the Flame, so I’d better get to it. There is no help coming. Or when a new law is passed that someone disagrees with, they often say, ‘Where is the flamed-haired one? His rule is bound to be better than this.’ I’m sorry but that is all I know.”
Mary, Holy Mother of Jesus! They can’t really think that I’m here to take over, can they? I inhale long and hard, trying to catch my breath. “Thank you, Crystal. That was very helpful.” I cock my head to one side as a revelation dawns. “You guys weren’t expecting a woman, were you?”
“Most quite taken aback by you being a woman.” She pauses for a moment. “Many don’t believe it yet. They think it’s a rumor. Our savior can’t be a woman, they say. I was one of those until I got my first look. It’s not merely your hair. There’s something about you that says you’re what we’ve been waiting for.”
“Crystal, thank you for your candor. I hope you will always be open with me.” A wry twist tweaks my lips. “At least that explains why everyone is so shocked.”
She sets the pearl hairpiece back into position, pushing it forward to create a loose look in the front. Without warning, the locks behind the band flare outward, giving my mane an untamed look. Before I am able to probe for more information, a knock sounds at the reception chamber door. Crystal goes to answer the summons while bells ring in the distance.
That must be the guys. I hope they’ve found out more than I have. The ruling class can’t be happy to see the revolutionary usurper to the throne. Unless the laymen’s interpretation is off by quite a bit, I’d say we are standing in a swamp surrounded by quicksand and the clouds are gathering on the horizon.
Chapter Ten
Hastily I struggle into the cotton underwear I arrived in. I am starting on the bra when Crystal reappears. With her help lacing up the strings in the back, I am into my clothes in a few minutes. She confirms the arrival of the three gentlemen from last night. Since she doesn’t mention Jamison, I am not too worried about being late.
“Milady, shall I serve breakfast directly?” Crystal inquires with a curtsy.
“Within the mark will be sufficient, thank you.” As I smile, she hustles toward the doorway past the bathroom. There must be a back door out of her room.
Entering the reception chamber, I hear Charles’s low whistle. “Man, check it out. This room has got some serious bling, just like that prince.”
“We sure got the short end of this stick,” Allinon grumps.
Crystal squeezes past us, rushing to answer a knock at the outer door.
“Sorry I’m late,” Jamison offers. “You guys are a ways from the barracks.”
“No worries. I was running behind too.” I stride to the dining room. Jamison rushes to open the door for me. Crossing into the ensorcelled walls, I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding.
“Has your day been that bad already?” The healer slides up beside me.
“If only you knew.” Taking a good look at the room’s furniture, my patience evaporates. “And would you look at this place? Look at it? Flames! Everywhere I look, it’s blasted flames! I swear it’s gonna give me nightmares.”
Predictably, the table and all ten chairs have the same coloring theme as the bed. The tapestries on the walls are every bit as detailed as the ones hanging in Alex’s dining room. These, however, show the castle in various stages of construction.
Charles grins from ear to ear. “Hot Momma, I take it you finally got a look at your hair?”
I point back the way we came. “And my bedroom set and my dining room—”
“Oh, you poor thing,” Allinon interrupts my tirade. “Stuck in all this splendor while we’re living in servants’ quarters.” The elf takes possession of the chair at the head of the table.
“Come on, Twigs. Our rooms ain’t all that bad.” Charles raises an eyebrow, adding silkily, “And hey, I sure like our maids.”
I bet you do! There’s so much they need to know. Where do I start? “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’ve discovered some things that are making me question my sanity. First, Kyle dragged me to that hotel, thinking he’d found the perfect gift. Then I got suckered into pretending to be a mage to defend the hotel from some fake gremlins. The next thing I know, we were here and I’m shooting laser fire from my fingertips. My head feels like it’s on a supercharged merry-go-round and I can’t get off. Can we start this day with a reality check?”
My shoulders knot up as Allinon puffs up his chest while shooting me a glare. “Let’s go around the table, telling something about ourselves, our real selves.” He acts like the idea was his own brilliance. “Make it unique or special. It should help reassure us that this is our new reality.”
“I’m not having problems with reality. I’ll go first,” rumbles Jerik as Jamison examines Charles’s shoulder. “Back home I was an architect, out of school less than a year. Been married for three years. We don’t have any kids.” The dwarf looks quarrelsome. I sense a mental frown. “Our D&D group stayed at the hotel for our senior break. I had never LARPed before, but man, playing as your character to defend a castle, that was the most fun I’d had in years. This was my second visit. That’s all there is.” He’s holding something back… something painful.
Jerik the Dwarf
“It looks like I’m next in line, but at least I know I don’t have a hard act to follow,” Charles ribs Jerik. “I’ve got nothing special either. My boy’s five and I get to see him every other weekend. There’s a girl I’ve been dating for a little over a year and a job I’ve had for a year and a half. I’ve been gaming since high school.”
Charles the Prince Charming
“I’ve got the two of you beat,” Allinon boasts. “I’ve been gaming for fifteen years, since my senior year in college. Allinon was my first and my favorite character. I have two kids, a boy and a girl, and a marr
iage headed for divorce. We’ve been separated for two weeks. I needed a break from life, so I took off for a weekend at the Renaissance Hotel and Gaming world.” A divorce? Big surprise – It’s taken all we have, and Kyle and I are just hanging on by a thread… The elf gives a depressed chuckle, “Guess I got way more of a break than I signed on for.”
Allinon the Druid Elf
“Allinon, you got me beat too, thank God.” Retaking his seat, Jamison gets a chuckle from our little band. “Not even a girlfriend, much less a divorce or kids. I was a third-year med student when some guys invited me to a party. Everyone had on medieval costumes. I thought it was so cool. We talked about gaming all night. As the party got going, the Jamison Whiskey I was pounding loosened me up. By the end of the night, I earned the Ren-name ‘Jamison the Good.’ The following summer, when I met my parents in Hawaii for summer vacation, I mentioned my new interest. Instead of the usual week’s stay at the Club Med Golf Resort, I got the Renaissance Hotel trip for Christmas.”
Jamison the Healer
Jamison gives the warrior an approving nod before adding. “Charles, that shoulder looks better than I expected. I wish all my patients were paladins. You should be okay for light practice today, but no rough-and-tumble stuff ‘til tomorrow.”
“So far you guys are getting a ‘D’ for creativity.” I take my turn at shoveling a little camaraderie crap. “But I guess if it were my dream, I’d make up something a lot more dramatic. Let me give you a serious reality fact, though. I’ve never gamed. I went to a Renaissance faire once, played on the computer, and read some books. And you’re gonna love this: I’m an identical twin. We used to look more alike before I got this transdimensional makeover.”
“No way!” Allinon bristles with the usual sarcasm. “There are two of you? You gotta be kiddin’ me.”
“Oh really? Ya’ think so?” I’ve had it! “And if I can prove I’m a twin, will you cut out the pessimism for the rest of the day?”
