Forest & Kingdom Balance (11 page)

III

“Ribbit, ribbit.” Dionara awoke to the familiar
sound and felt a painful reminder that too much of any wine has its
consequences. “I’m glad to see that my Lady has finally decided to
wake. Did you rest well?” Froggy asked politely, then ignored the
rude non-verbal response and continued. “So then, I take it that
you’re not quite ready to get up, hmmm?”

Dionara’s fog began to clear, “Would someone please
execute whoever’s ringing that damn bell in my head.” In the dim
light she could just make out Froggy’s silhouette beside her
pillow. “Wait. Where am I? Oh, the Forest!” Her pain momentarily
forgotten as the day’s memories flooded back to her
consciousness.

“Yes, the Forest. Now, if my Lady would be so kind
as to close and cover her eyes, I believe another form would be
much more helpful in relieving your current distress.” Froggy then
waited patiently for his young charge to comply.

Through closed eyes Dionara’s sight was filled with
color of emerald green. “Just one more moment my Lady.” She heard
the deeper resonant tone of Froggy’s human voice and turned toward
him just as he leaned forward to light a candle, his shirt still
unbuttoned. “As you wish, although my Lady should be aware that
here in the Forest it is polite to allow someone a moment to dress
after a change.”

Froggy sat beside her on the bed being careful not
to increase her discomfort. “This will never do. Please, allow me
my Lady.” Froggy placed his hand across her eyes as his thumb and
mid-finger massaged her temples. His mind entered hers. She felt an
instant release of all the day’s tension, every muscle responded as
she gave herself completely to the physical and emotional
relaxation that cascaded through her. The pain drifted away on a
tide of peaceful contentment. “That’s better.” Froggy commented
while he gently stroked the side of her face with the back of his
fingers. Dionara was filled with a profound sense of calm.

She looked around the small bedroom while Froggy
finished getting dressed. “Speaking of etiquette,” she said in a
playful tone, “you do know that sneaking into a young woman’s
bedroom as she sleeps is considered to be a bit shady, do you not?
If one was to consider my vulnerability and complete state of
undress, I’m sure that the good people of the Forest would be
shocked.” Her mischievous smile evident.

He responded with a slow, deep laughter. “Yes I am
fully aware of my Lady’s condition, both the state of your undress
as well as the depth of my Lady’s double standards. May I remind
you that I myself was quite unclothed as I sat next to your pillow,
all be it in a reduced stature, and that you would not allow me
time to dress when I returned to human form.” The two looked at
each other, their dual expressions of mock determination danced by
the flicker of candlelight.

Froggy was the first to give in to a smile, “You win
my Lady. I will retreat. There are clothes in the dresser. I
believe you will find that they are your own from the castle.
Please join us in the kitchen when you are dressed. I would also
ask my Lady to please be considerate of Edward and Danielle, and to
remember that while the pain of losing your mother is great, so too
is the pain of losing a daughter.”

Froggy waited a moment to be sure that his
admonishment was taken seriously, then added, “and if possible,
please hurry my Lady. If we don’t calm Danielle down soon she’ll
feed us till we burst!”

Dionara hesitated briefly as she entered the
kitchen. The warm lamplight mixed with the hearth’s glow to give
the room a close, intimate feel. The Caretaker, Danielle, and
Edward rose from their seats as she entered, they were joined by
John who had been casually leaning against the wall off in the
shadows. The four bowed in welcome to the Princess.

“Oh, cut it out. This is hard enough without
everyone bowing every time they see me.” Dionara’s soft voice and
smile set the tone. She moved forward to meet Danielle’s open arms.
The strong comforting hug was enough to release their tears as
Edward’s arms surrounded them both. After what seemed like just a
moment, the three joined the Caretaker at the table.

Dionara sat with Danielle and Edward close by, each
taking a hand. “Soup’s on!” John said and placed a steaming bowl of
stew in front of Dionara, “If you thought the wine was good, wait
until you taste Danielle’s coveted spring stew.” Dionara breathed
deeply of the wonderful aroma and was overtaken by feelings of home
and love.

“Okay, one of us has to let go or she’ll starve.”
Edward said, then released Dionara’s hand and acknowledged the
silent look of gratitude from his wife. “There is a great deal we
wish to share with you, but first you need to eat.” Edward slid the
cutting board with fresh bread and butter into Dionara’s reach and
raised a pitcher to fill her cup. “No more wine for you tonight
young lady, but some fresh juice will go well with the stew.”

“Thank you,” she hesitated, then looked at Edward
and bowed her head, “Grandfather,” she added. She swirled her stew
with a spoon then raised her head once more, “Please, tell me of my
mother.” Dionara dutifully sampled the stew as her grandmother
began to speak, the delicious mixture of flavors were wonderful and
seemed to embody the essence of comfort.

Danielle relaxed a bit as she remembered the joy of
so many years ago. “We knew that your mother would be special even
before she was born, by the time I was eight months pregnant she
had already begun to send me her thoughts. They were more feelings
than words. One night I was lying on my side and all of sudden I
felt very constricted, I immediately turned over and was rewarded
with a profound sense of relief.”

Danielle paused as the pain of Diana’s loss overtook
her once more. Edward knew well why she had stopped and spoke up to
continue the story. “The next day the Caretaker stopped by to
confirm what we had guessed, our child would have the gift.”

“Not just the gift,” The Caretaker added, “but the
strongest I had ever sensed. My apologies for the interruption.” He
turned to Dionara, “It is important for you to understand that your
mother’s flame was the strongest I have ever known, with the purity
and light of Palinar grown stronger with generations. This is your
heritage Dionara, one that I hope will blossom within you.” The
Caretaker sat back and nodded to Danielle and Edward.

John leaned against the doorway to the side as he
watched the three take turns telling their stories of Diana’s
escapades growing up. Laughter came easily and often, as well as
tears. He felt a bit like an intruder but also privileged to be a
witness. He noted, and not for the first time, how the Caretaker’s
eyes lit up whenever he spoke of Diana. She had chosen to marry the
Prince and had left the Forest before he was born, but the remnants
of her absence could be read easily enough in the Caretaker’s face
by anyone who chose to look.

“I’m glad Catherine isn’t
here.”
He thought, and while it was not his place to wonder
about the Caretaker and Catherine’s relationship, he always
suspected that Catherine had to compete with a ghost for the
Caretaker’s love.

Courses followed stories as stories followed
courses.

“I wonder if this is what it feels
like to be nine months pregnant!”
Dionara thought as she
pushed herself away from the table in awe of just how much she had
eaten. “Burp!” Dionara was aghast at the sound that emanated from
her while the laughter from the rest of the room didn’t make her
feel any better.

“I have never heard a more heartfelt compliment to
my wife’s cooking,” Edward managed to say between the bouts of
laughter, “You are most welcome Princess Granddaughter.” He noted
how red Dionara’s face had turned just as he ducked Danielle’s
glancing swipe.

“Men!” Danielle shouted has she tried to get a
better shot at her husband. “Rude, crude and not very bright.” She
stood patiently and waited for Edward to stop dodging, which added
Dionara’s laughter to the chorus.

“I’m so sorry.” Dionara tried to catch her breath,
“That was so rude of me. Please Grandmother sit down.” Danielle
reluctantly took her seat and sent her husband a stern expression
of future retribution. “Please, how did my parents really meet and
why does the entire Kingdom think she was born there?”

A bright smile came to Danielle as she thought back,
“You know how they first met, don’t you?”

“Not exactly.” John interjected, “I told her that
Prince Stefan was met by a Sentinel, but I didn’t elaborate.”

Danielle nodded. “Well then, I’ll tell it to you
just as they described it to us. When Stefan entered the Forest for
the first time, a sense of wonder overwhelmed him, he could feel
the power of this magical land coarse through him as he looked out
to discover what lain before him.”

Dionara thought back to her entry into the Forest
earlier that day and relived the exhilaration. She felt her
understanding of the world, and of her life, expand as she imagined
her father as a young man sharing the same emotions that she had
experienced. The momentary thought filled her with a sense of
discovery.

Danielle continued, “He turned slowly, trying to
comprehend everything within his view. That’s when his eyes met
Diana’s and his spirit soared. Her task was to welcome and guide
him. Diana sensed his intense emotion and understood his reaction.
The Forest has a powerful effect on the uninitiated. What she could
not understand was her own giddy happiness and lightness of being.
The longer he looked into her eyes, the more her spirit seemed to
float like a feather on a warm summer breeze.”

“Over the next two years your father returned to the
Forest quite often, and to be honest it wasn’t just him, they both
found any excuse they could to spend time together. Then late one
night, I remember finding Diana sitting at this very table with a
look of concern I had never seen from her before.” Danielle’s hand
stroked the table. “I asked her what was wrong and she told me that
she faced a dilemma. She was torn between duty and love. Her heart
wanted to marry Stefan, but that would mean leaving the
Forest.”

Edward picked up the tale, “It would be most
difficult on Catherine who would become the lone Sentinel, and at
eighteen her full abilities were only recently developed. Of
course, John had not even been born at that point.”

Danielle nodded in agreement and continued, “Then
there was the problem that knowledge of the Forest and Caretaker
had been lost to the Kingdom’s subjects. I didn’t know how to
council her, I suggested that she see the Caretaker.”

The Caretaker smiled as he remembered. “She came to
me, head bowed and thoughts completely blocked, she almost seemed
frightened. That my Lady, was a revelation in and of itself since I
sincerely doubted that your mother was even capable of fear. Then
she told me of her dilemma.”

The Caretaker leaned back. “My Lady, are you aware
of the look of total confusion you get when I tell you something
you think you should understand but simply do not have a clue
about?” Dionara nodded. “That was exactly the same look your mother
had when I gave her my answer.

“My love, happiness and friendship for her flooded
her very being. I then chided her for waiting so long and informed
her that everyone in the Forest not only knew of her love for
Stefan, but have waited patiently for their invitations to the
wedding.” Her friend Froggy’s warmth and love then flooded into
Dionara. “Your mother was universally loved and her happiness was
dear to everyone in the Forest, especially me. I assured her that
Catherine and I would have no problems, and if a crisis developed,
I would call on her.

“A date was set for the following spring. I believe
that Danielle, Edward, and Catherine will attest that a year was
barely enough preparation time. The first union of Forest and
Kingdom was a celebration of epic proportion. The trickiest part
was introducing Diana to the Kingdom.

“Instead of making excuses, it was decided to adjust
the ‘common knowledge’ of the Kingdom’s subjects. Over the course
of one night, your mother, Catherine and I sent out thoughts to the
entire kingdom as they slept. In the morning they awoke to find
that they had always known of the young woman who was to marry
their prince. She was an orphan, the last scion of a noble
family.”

The Caretaker rose and put his hands on Danielle’s
shoulders to comfort her. “This meant my Lady, that Danielle and
Edward could not have the life they would have wished with you
until you came of age. Their sacrifice allowed your parents
happiness.”

“You may not have met us until today,” Edward’s
voice broke a bit. “But we were with you always.”

Danielle managed a smile through the tears. “Unless
we got shooed away by that hand maiden of hers.”

“Are you going to hold that grudge forever? She’s
here now, let’s tell her about the wedding.” Edward hugged his wife
as she collected herself. Dionara joined him.

The Caretaker and John quietly took their leave to
allow the family time together. Beneath a star filled sky, flashes
of brilliant white and emerald green lit up the night as each flew
to an awaiting bed and their first full night’s sleep in several
days.

IV

“Almost home.”
Catherine
thought.

The hour was late and her mind still reeled with the
afternoon’s debates. The Kingdom’s councilors could be very trying.
She wondered how Dionara put up with them day after day. For the
last leg home from the gate she had chosen the form of a dove in
hopes that the symbolic gesture alone would help calm her mind. She
laughed inwardly as she realized that she was one angry, frustrated
dove.
“I suppose even doves must have a bad day
once in a while.”
She mused.