The Last Warrior Queen

Chapter 29

I regained my composure as I made my way to the infirmary. I quietly entered and saw Rohl sitting at a desk near the door. He stood and bowed to me as I entered.

I quietly asked him how Diana was doing. He gestured towards her bed and replied “She is much better today and seems to be resting comfortably. Her fever has gone down as well.”

I smiled and said “I’m glad” as I looked towards her bed. I realized there was no one with her and I frowned. “Rohl, why isn’t there anyone at her bedside?”

He sighed and said “Her father is too embarrassed of her to come here openly and so he only comes at night for a couple of hours. Her maid is only able to come in for a little bit during the day before she has to go back to her duties.” I nodded and made my way over to her bed. I leaned over her and felt her forehead. She wasn’t burning hot, but she still felt warm.

I wet a cloth in the basin by her bed and placed int on her forehead. I then undid her dressing to check the wound. I didn’t look infected, but it was definitely swollen around the stitches. Probably from all the numbing medicine being injected. I turned and walked over to the shelves of herbs.

“Can I help you find anything my Queen?” Rohl asked, suddenly appearing beside me.

“Yes, I’m looking for witch hazel. It can help inflammation. Diana’s wound doesn’t look infected, but it is a bit swollen which can also cause pain.”

Rohl nodded and said yes, I’ll make a poultice right away. I nodded and returned to Diana’s bedside. She stirred a little and was frowning. I heard her mumble “mother” in her sleep. I grabbed her uninjured hand and held it gently, which seemed to calm her. Rohl returned with the poultice and began applying it.

“Rohl, where is Diana’s mother?”

“Oh, she died a couple of years ago in battle.” I sighed and began to realize that Diana and I weren’t so different, having lost our mothers.

“I think that’s why she was so obsessed with becoming the best female warrior. She didn’t want to perish like her mother did, leaving her father to deal with the aftermath.” I nodded and stood up. “I’ll be back in a few hours.” Rohl bowed and I left the infirmary. I decided that I should stop by and visit Ann while I was out.

Ann was cheerfully humming to herself as she hung up the wash outside the little house. I called to her and she immediately rushed towards me, greeting me with a hug. “Please come inside!” She said happily.

We sat at a small table and chatted. I told her about Diana and how sorry I felt for her, especially seeing how she suffered with her wound. Ann nodded and said “You have a good heart Sylvia. I think you were meant to become a great queen and protect your people.” I smiled at her. After a moment I asked “Do you think it would be weird if I brought some books for Diana to read aloud to her? She just must be so lonely.” Ann laughed and said “Well, she might reject you, but I think it’s a fine idea. You could always leave them for her to read at her leisure as well.” I smiled and said “Thank you Ann, I think I’ll go find some books then.”

I left Ann and went back to the castle to look for some books. Olga had shown me where the library was, but I never actually went inside. I was pretty sure I remembered how to get there. When I arrived there were a couple of guards posted outside the doors. Only certain people were permitted to enter and to remove books. As the queen I assumed I was on the list of people allowed entry.

The guards bowed and stepped aside to let me enter. I smiled and thanked them. I walked inside and was amazed at the size of the library. It was packed wall to wall with books, which was quite impressive for a warrior kingdom. It also looked like no one had even touched a book in a few years. I sneezed from the amount of dust floating through the air.

I wandered around, perusing the various books. I came across one with a familiar looking title. It was called The Wind in the Trees. I pulled it off the shelf and opened it excitedly. I suddenly was hit with a memory of my mother reading it to me as a child. It was about a prince and a princess who fell in love, but went through many trials to be together. It was my favorite book and I recalled my mother reading it to me almost every night. I felt tears prick my eyes at the memory. It was the only true memory I had from when I was a child. I remembered little else except this story and our brief time together at Lord Regan’s estate before she passed. But I never forgot this beautiful love story. I thought of it often after I arrived at the nunnery and every so often I would think of it still.

I found a couple other books that I thought Diana might enjoy and returned to the infirmary. When I arrived Diana was sitting up in bed. It looked like she had just finished eating some broth. I took a deep breath and walked over to her.

She scowled at me and said “What are you doing here? Come to gloat over your victory?”

I shook my head and replied “I’m sorry about your hand. I’m glad to see that you’re doing better now.”

Diana scoffed and said “Oh so you came here to see if I’ll forgive you? Don’t hold your breath.” Rohl heard Diana’s agitated voice and came over to us. He bowed and addressed me. He then turned to Diana who was still fuming. “Queen Sylvia was the one who showed me how to make the numbing medicine for your wound. She was here earlier helping tend to your wounds as well, but you were asleep.” Diana frowned and looked away. I smiled at Rohl as I sat down in the chair by her bed.

“It seems that you’ve been alone much during your time here, so I thought I’d bring some books to read aloud.” Diana’s head whipped towards me and she looked at me skeptically.

“Of course I can leave them here for you to read on your own if you prefer” I quickly added. Diana scowled and replied “Well what are they about?” I pulled out The Wind in the Trees first. “This one is about a prince and a princess who fall in love, but face many obstacles that prevent them from being together.”

Diana snorted, “You brought me a children’s love story?” I looked down at the book and said softly “My mother used to read it to me when I was little.” Diana’s face softened a bit and she said “Oh.”

After a moment she said “You can read it to me if you want.” I nodded and opened the book, setting the other two aside. I began reading and I instantly remembered why I liked this book so much. The writing was poetic and the main characters were instantly likable. I began to weave the tale of this epic love story with each word I uttered. Diana had relaxed and after a while she had fallen asleep. I quietly placed the book with the others and left to go back to the castle.

When I was almost to my room a maid approached me and said that the tailor was requesting an audience with me. I had completely forgotten about apologizing to him. I told the maid to show him up to my room at once. I quickly went and grabbed the gown I had ripped. I examined it and even though the hem was a bit dirty and obviously the seem was torn apart, it looked in good shape.

The tailor knocked on my door and I showed him in. His assistant was behind him with the other gowns that had been commissioned. Before the tailor or his assistant could bow I went over to him and clasped his hands. “I am so sorry about ripping that beautiful gown you made me. I made sure to rip it at the seam so it can be easily repaired I think.”

The tailor looked at me wide eyed and shook his head. “My Queen you have no need to apologize to me. These gowns are for you, to wear as you see fit.”

I smiled at him and grabbed my coronation gown off the table. “You make such beautiful gowns that it is a tragedy to ruin them. If you could please fix this one for me I would be very grateful.”

“Yes of course my Queen. And here are the others for you to try as well. We have gowns for meeting emissaries and others for formal dinners. And we also made one for a banquet, which has a shorter train for dancing.” Oh right, I forgot about dancing at banquets. My mind wandered to what it might be like to dance with Halvor. But I just couldn’t imagine it. He probably just sat while everyone else danced anyways.

I tried on all the gowns and they fit like a second skin. They were also surprisingly comfortable. I thanked the tailor and he said that he would have my coronation gown returned in a day or two. He and the assistant left and I was once again alone in my room.