Thibalt walked down the sunlit corridor nervously. He laughed as he wiped the perspiration from his forehead. The last time he was this anxious was the night of the hunt in Miirvk. His anxiety seemed to increase every time he made this trip.
He passed the fourteenth door and then stopped at the next one. Yes this was the door. He recognised the minor flaws in the timber. He had memorised them during the many times he had waited in front of the room, building up the courage to knock. He took his hands from of his pockets, a nervous habit, and composed himself. He then knocked gently three times. A few seconds later the door swung inwards and Thibalt was embraced in an warm hug.
Thibalt was taken completely by surprise, but was delighted by the show of affection. He wrapped his own arms around the girl that he had come to adore and rested his head on her shoulder. "What would you have done if someone else was at the door?" asked Thibalt.
Miera giggled and drew away from Thibalt. "I would have embraced my new lover with an open heart, and taken him for a walk," she answered playfully.
Thibalt laughed as he always did in her company, which since their meeting had been frequent. Miera and her family had been invited to stay in the Bastion estate after the skeletal bridge had appeared over Lake Moonsong. Estallion had at first claimed that the invitation was purely out of gentlemanly courtesy, but they all knew he had done it specifically to give him an excuse to see Miera. And no one was more grateful than Thibalt when Miera brought her mother and three younger brothers with her to the gates of Estallion's home. From that day Thibalt had spent every spare moment in her presence and when away from her, his mind was filled only with the thought of seeing her again.
"What shall we do today?" asked Miera.
Before Thibalt could answer an elderly woman replied, "Get married and finally be done with this game."
Thibalt swallowed through a lump in his throat as Miera's mother, Evelyn, appeared in the room behind. She was wearing a simple brown dress and had her greying hair tied back behind her head. Her face bore the mark of many years of hard work, but still held a warm smile that made Thibalt feel at ease. In her eyes he could see the same spark that shone in Miera's own, and he imagined that in her youth she would have looked almost identical to her daughter.
"Young Thibalt, when are you going to marry my daughter and place the mind of a troubled mother at ease?" she asked with a stern look, causing Thibalt to blush.
"Mother, you embarrass him so," laughed Miera.
"Off with you two then, and you best be betrothed when you return," replied Evelyn with a wave of her hand.
Thibalt and Miera hurried off up the corridor before Evelyn could get in another comment. They rushed through the building, down several levels and outside into a small garden of flowers they had spent most of their days in. Thibalt lay down on the grassy carpet and Miera followed by laying her head on his chest.
They sat in peaceful silence watching the clouds drift by on the cold eastern breeze. The sun slowly arched over them bringing temporary bouts of warmth to their skin and Thibalt smiled. In the time that he had spent with Miera he had become smitten and now he found himself dreading moments without her.
She was unlike any girl he had met. In Miera he had found someone to whom he could open his heart. He found no hesitation in expressing to her the feelings that he had always held locked up inside. They had relaxed amongst the estate's many gardens and strolled through the city together, sharing secrets and talking of their pasts. Not even the chaotic state of the people fleeing the city had brought concern to their minds as they walked at a leisurely pace through the streets. When they were together the problems of world around them seemed to fade away.
After several moments Miera broke the peaceful silence. "So are you going marry me, Thibalt Steelfist?" she asked with a childish grin.
Thibalt again felt the lump rising in his throat but then embraced her hand in his own. He knew that the only answer was yes, but he had never been good with words. "There is nothing that could stop me from marrying you," he replied.
"Then let us marry tomorrow," said Miera excitedly.
Thibalt looked up into the blue sky and smiled. Despite the turmoil in the city around him, he was joyful. Nothing other than his beloved Miera mattered anymore.
Dawn of the Valiant (The Valerious Chronicles: Book One) Page 61
