The autumn-haired princess nodded, "If I should be forsworn, then may the sky fall down upon me, may
the earth swallow me, and may the sea rise up to drown me."
The two girls came together, hugging closely for a time, and then began to walk again. Ceinwen linked their
hands together. After a few steps, she peeked up at Ælfwynn from the corner of her eye, "So what kind of
song did you write me?"
The bard's musical laughter rose through the wood, a second, higher laugh quickly joining it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Three years later in the dark of the night, footsteps were heard pelting down the dimly lit halls of the
castle. A door slammed open, and a tall form burst in out of the shadows, skidding to a halt. Black hair
disheveled from sleep and the wild run through the hallways framed Ælfwynn's face. Her tunic, crooked
and unbelted, gave further testament to her having been asleep some five minutes previous. She panted for
breath as she took in the tear-streaked face before her.
The pain in the brown eyes spurred the bard forward in a rush. Ceinwen fell into her arms with a sob,
holding on to her shadowy friend as if her life depended on it. Ælfwynn pulled her closer with soft words,
"Lass, I just heard. I'm so sorry...." Tears were spilling down her own cheeks as she stroked her friend's
autumn-gold hair.
The king and queen had both become ill. All the chirurgeons worked hard to keep them warm in the
damp winter air of the high-towered castle, but soon a rattling of fluid could be heard in the gentle-hearted
queen's chest. She crossed over to the next world in the night. When she had gone, the noble king just
seemed to give up, and he too passed away.
Ælfwynn's parents had both died within the last year. The two women held each other tightly as they
slowly realized that, of all the people in the world who truly loved them, only they were left. The princess
wept harder than before now that the songsmith was there, for Ælfwynn had always provided the path to
the other woman's deepest emotions. The candlemarks slipped away as they sat together on the bed,
shadow cradling sunlight within strong arms.
After a time the king's advisor, Seneschal Emric, entered the room. He was an ancient man who had been
Seneschal to Ceinwen's grandfather and her father after him. Lord Emric was tall and stately with flowing
white hair. He would have been handsome in his age were it not for the frown he always wore.?
If there was one thing Lord Emric believed in, it was absolute propriety. Everyone had a role with certain
duties and ways of acting, and these should be performed perfectly. He was one of the people who made
sure things got done in life but did not much care if fun was had in the doing. Ceinwen's father had
constantly confounded the man with his relaxed method of ruling.
Lord Emric came to a stop out of earshot of the princess' bed. He quickly motioned for Ælfwynn to join
him. The ebony-haired songsmith disengaged herself from her friend's hold, whispering that she would be
back shortly. She approached and bowed her head, "Lord Emric...."
"Ælfwynn. You may leave now," rumbled Lord Emric's barritone voice.
The woman's brow furrowed, "I beg your pardon?"
Milky blue eyes looked down at her, "You may leave. Your presence is no longer required."
Ælfwynn glanced back at the bed which held the crying princess and took a step closer to the Seneschal.
"I'll not be leaving. My friend is grieving, and my presence is very much required."
"The princess will be getting dressed and leaving for the ceremony presently."
"What ceremony? The king and queen just died a few candlemarks ago, may the gods rest their souls. It's
too early for the funeral."
Lord Emric crossed his arms and said lowly, "You don't know what must be done, bard."
Slate-grey eyes flashed with anger, "And you don't care what she's going through right now, Lord
Seneschal. Ceinwen's just lost both her parents for Goddess' sake!"
"What's going on here?" The two looked up at the soft words. Ceinwen's eyes were red from weeping,
but the tears were dried.
Though Ælfwynn moved toward her friend, Lord Emric spoke first, "Your Majesty, the vigil for your
parents will start at sunrise, and as their only child, you must be there. Harsh though it may be, you are
now the queen," he looked at the bard meaningfully. "And duty to your kingdom must come before
personal pain."
The princess gazed at the floor for a few moments. When she lifted her eyes and nodded, there was a
slight hollowness in her voice, "You are right, Lord Emric."
Ælfwynn quickly turned fully to her, offering to be by her side. Ceinwen caught her hands, drawing them
both away from the tall man. She spoke to her friend, "Thank you...but I must do this alone." The
expected protests were forestalled with soft fingers against the bard's lips. "I have to appear strong, not
leaning against someone else. Let me do what I have to. I'll be all right, Ælfwynn."
Pained grey eyes searched the brown depths before them, and what they found caused Ælfwynn a
nebulous unease in the pit of her stomach that she couldn't quite understand. "Are you sure?"
The shorter woman nodded, "I'm sure. Thank you for staying with me tonight. Go and try to get some
rest."
