Crown of Smoke

Chapter 12

        The rest of the afternoon Harry filled the silence, singing songs and cracking jokes that made Gwen laugh despite the thoughts whirling through her mind. The sun was just beginning to make its descent into the tops of the forest that had begun closing around them as they arrived at Briar’s estate.

            The woods surrounding the house had unnerved Gwen a little, the trees towering above her and creating a dark shadow over the already barely visible path laid out. Hayden had made some remark about Briar’s family and their obsession with privacy being the reason for the vast nature of the forest, but it still seemed strange to Gwen that nobles desired to live so far out of the village.

            An array of lights like fireflies in the distance told the trio that they had finally begun to near the great house. Gwen sighed with relief, earning a chuckle from Hayden behind her.

            “This forest didn’t frighten you did it?” He chided.

            “Not at all,” she replied, glad he couldn’t see her face. “I’m simply relieved to be getting off this saddle. It’s made my legs awfully achy.” She waited for a beat to see if Hayden would say something but he didn’t, “I do hope Briar has a bath I can take.”

            “Oh Gwen,” Harry said from in front, a cheeky smile in his voice, “I don’t think your arrival will be quite so warm as it was at mine.”

            Gwen opened her mouth to ask why, but Hayden could sense her ready to speak and hushed her.

            The house in front was huge, even bigger than Harrison’s had been, and that had taken Gwen aback. Briar’s home seemed to tower over them as they approached, the lights ablaze in all of the windows, bringing it to life. Gwen couldn’t hide her awe, her mouth agape as she examined each of the carvings on the window-sills and balconies of the upper floors, the stunning stained glass pieces in the lower floors. She paused, halting her horse at one that was covered in fire colors, flames with a bird flying above. It was made up of yellow and orange and red. The bird swooped low over the flames its long wings outstretched in a glide, calm despite the storm of fire below it. Gwen was speechless looking at it, time slowing for just a moment as the faint smell of smoke curled through her. She shivered.

            “We need to go.” Hayden whispered to her, his horse coming right next to her. His eyes held something in them that Gwen couldn’t place, his brows slightly furrowed and a frown that wasn’t his usual displeased scowl, but was sad instead. Sympathy? Was that what sympathy looked like on him? She shook her head, as the smell of smoke faded from her mind and she followed the two boys around to what she had to assume was the back of the house.

            This side of the house was significantly less grand than the other. There were still the lights coming through the windows, but somehow they felt fainter. There was no neatly trimmed shrubbery this side of the house, or grand driveway or arched door. This side was not meant to be seen, this was where the servants came in, where the stables were hiding. Gwen was suddenly incredibly conscious of the noise that they were making on the stony ground. Each hoof that her horse let down, every slight turn of the wheels of their carts seemed to echo off of the walls. Hayden looked equally anxious and despite the situation, Gwen felt a small pleasure in seeing him just a little squeamish.

            There was a small black door with light streaming onto the ground from underneath. Gwen could smell the familiar scents of the bakery, bread being baked ready for the morning, and the faint scent of cocoa that came from making a chocolate cake. She couldn’t help but feel a little calmer with those familiar smells encasing her.

            The door burst open and along with the waft of all the smells coming out, there was a tall, dark figure of a woman who came through. She was dressed in a velvet red dress that hugged the top half of her figure before exploding into a poof just below her waist. She was thin but shapely, with high cheekbones and dark curls that cascaded down her back. Everything about her seemed like it was planned out and done to perfection, the ruby color of her lips matching that of her dress and even her nails. Gwen couldn’t help but stare at her calculated beauty despite the fact that the girl’s expression was a firm scowl directed at Harry.

            “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming? Hayden what the hell were you thinking?” She hissed, ushering them all inside, not even giving Gwen a second glance as they all discarded the horses and trunks and rushed in as servants passed them and began to take care of those for them. Despite her tone, she was clearly fond of the boys, giving them each two kisses on the cheek and chastising them as they came through the door. It reminded Gwen of the way she often would greet Blaine when he had come in the early hours of the morning after being down the brewery with his friends.

            The inside of the was like a bigger version of the backroom of her mother’s bakery, with huge ovens and trays on trays of different cakes, pastries and loaves of bread. All the surfaces were much cleaner than her mother’s bakery. None of the wooden table tops here had the remnants of flour and icing sugar. Gwen suddenly craved the lull of her mother’s humming as she would knead the bread.

            “So this is her?” The girl asked, a pointed brow arching as Gwen was pulled out of her daydreams and back into the moment. The girl was watching her, her eyes tracing up and down, making Gwen squirm just a little.

            “Guinevere,” Hayden sighed, “this is Briar Hardy.”

            “Nice to meet you,” Gwen mumbled, curtseying but bumping her arm on the counter and cursing under her breath. Briar smirked, shaking her head in amusement.

            “I like her,” Briar said, clearly not only surprising Gwen but also Hayden whose eyes widened. Harry winked at Gwen, making her blush and return his grin. “Come on, I’ll show you where you’re staying.”

            They were led through a series of corridors, all bleak and painted white. The occasional servant would pass them, but not give them too much notice. It was obviously not the first time that Briar had preferred to escort her guests through the back entrance of the house.

After what seemed like miles of corridors, there was a small abandoned servants quarter.

            “Most of our help sleeps at home these days, it’s not quite so normal to have them sleep here as it was years ago so I find it unlikely you’ll be disturbed down here.” She opened a few of the doors to the rooms, revealing small but functional spaces with a small closet and bed with a single pillow and some blankets folded at the bottom. “I’d have you upstairs but you pair know what my parents are like.” Briar addressed Hayden and Harry who nodded with a knowing look that continued to leave Gwen clueless. Gwen proceeded to plant herself on the bed, testing out the springs by gently bobbing up and down whilst the others continued to have a conversation. It reminded her of school when she was forced to work with a group who had already been friends and she was sat on the sidelines, left with the work that they hadn’t wanted to do. The boys retreated into their own rooms after a few minutes of hushed chatter and Briar finally turned her attention to face Gwen.

            “Darling, Guinevere-“

            “Oh please, just called me Gwen.” Gwen smiled pleadingly at Briar who began to ease her cold façade when she saw Gwen’s expression.

            “Gwen,” she continued, “I’m afraid I have to go and appease my parents by appearing upstairs for dinner, but my cook will prepare something for you and I’ll be back down here once dinner is over… maybe we can have a chat without those two? I adore them to pieces but really, they do have their moments of idiocy.” She smiled, but like the expression was unnatural to her. Gwen nodded eagerly, glad for the female company more than anything else, and with that Briar swept off, a light jog down the corridors that made the sound of her heels echo off the walls.

            Gwen didn’t change for dinner apart from taking her shoes off, letting the cool tiled floors tickle the bottoms of her feet. Dinner was modest, chicken and vegetables and gravy, but it was warm and filling. Hayden was quiet, his head buried in a book for the majority of the meal, but Harry was his usual charming self and entertained Gwen with idle chatter. He seemed quite eager to learn more about her upbringing and the parents who had raised her, but she put it down to his polite nature and chattered back eagerly with stories of her family and of her school and friends and dreams of traveling.

            “You wanted to travel?” His brows raised a little in surprise before he could stop them.

            “I’d never left Eldun before, I had wanted to go all over the country… maybe even to some of our surrounding islands and such. I suppose in one sense I’m getting to.” She shrugged, taking another bite of chicken as Harry continued to ponder to himself.

            “Be careful what you wish for.” He muttered, clearly amusing himself.

            Briar kept her promise and came back down not long after the trio had finished eating. She sat and chatted with all of them for a while but Hayden soon retired to bed with his book and Harry followed not long after him, getting the message that the two women were to be left alone for the remainder of the evening.

            There was only a beat of silence once they were left alone before Briar dove into her interrogation.

            “So, Gwen…” She fiddled with the name as she spoke, like it was unfamiliar in her mouth. “I haven’t really been told too much about you, but I suppose you know why you’re here?”

            “I’m here to take my place on the throne,” Gwen replied dutifully, “to get rid of the king and to try and fix the kingdom again.”

            Briar sighed.

            “How many times did Hayden make you practice that one?”

            “Only a few.”

            “We’ll fix that.” Briar smiled. “Why do you want to fix the kingdom, Gwen?”

            “Well the trade wars are a mess and-“

            “Darling no, you’re not hearing me.” Briar’s hand reached out, gently touching Gwen’s shoulder so she understood, her dark eyes were looking at Gwen with such intent it was difficult to look away. “I don’t want to know why Hayden wants you to fix the kingdom, I’ve heard that plenty of times. I want to know why you want to.”

            “Honestly?”

            “Please.”

            “I didn’t have much I wanted to fix before he showed up.” Gwen laughed half-heartedly, burying her face in her hands. “I didn’t see anything wrong because I was in my own little bubble. I didn’t know anything about the world past my front door.” She felt the blush rise to her face, the heat of tears threatening her eyes. She felt so stupid next to Briar with her perfect posture and purposeful enunciation of every word. “My brother would probably be called to war, my family could be torn apart and so could my village. I’ve known what it’s like for most people and… it’s not all bad but the way things are going they’re going to just get worse.” She pressed the heels of her palm into her eyes, pushing the tears back in. Briar’s warm hands took hers and looked at her with a new kind of trust. She reminded Gwen of Hayden a little, where the switch between clipped and kind was so simple and could change so quickly. Perhaps it was something the nobility were taught.

            “I think that’s a very good start, darling.” She said, rubbing Gwen’s hands with her thumbs. “I think you’ll figure things out more when you see the rest of our little world.” Briar yawned but pushed it down.

            “Why do you want to get rid of the king?” Gwen asked her.

            “That’s an awfully long story for tonight, my dear. We’ll certainly get around to it though.” She patted Gwen’s hands once more and stood up. “I must retire, but my parents will be heading to the palace tomorrow and you’ll be able to come upstairs and have some real-time with me.” Briar cupped Gwen’s face gently in her hands, so familiar and easy almost like Harry. She could see why the boys liked her so much. “Promise me you won’t lose that reason for getting rid of the king, won’t you? We’ll all try and fill you with our reasons, but keep true to yourself if you can.” She smiled sadly, before once again turning away and fleeing away from Gwen in a flurry of red velvet.