At dawn's first light, the next day, Lysandra pushed herself up in the bed feeling terrible. Her dreams had been filled with nightmares of the duke killing her, in many horrifying ways. Every single time she tried to escape, he would catch her. One time she woke up and remembered the man had struck her severed head on one of the pikes out on the front gates. For some unknown reason the duke was shirtless. He had stood there, covered in blood and with an eerie smile on his face. It wasn't the first time Lysandra had had a dream like that. It had been happening for the past four nights. The dreams grew more intense as the nights passed.
Begrudgingly, Lysandra got out of the bed and walked towards the curtains to open them. Snow, yet again. Did it ever stop snowing in this dreaded place? She looked out of the window and spotted a figure coming out of the forest. Did he travel through the forest alone?! How was that even possible?
"Milady?" A familiar voice called as Lysandra turned around seeing Daisy stepping into her room. "Daisy–" Lysandra gasped, almost starting to tear up. She couldn't believe her eyes. When the maid got closer, Lysandra pulled Daisy into a tight hug. "Goodness, you're alright. I was so worried that you didn't make it out of the forest that night. Did they treat you well? How did you get out of the forest? Did you reach the estate yourself? How is your wound?" Lysandra had so many questions she kind of blurted them all out at once.
"Oh milady," Daisy seemed to be at a loss for words. "They have been so kind to me, milady. The chef has been kind enough to give me any food I requested. The other maids are kind too. I don't know how I got here, I just woke up." She smiled. "The doctor, Helan, she treated my wound. It's still sore but she informed me the rest would heal with time. The other maids really pampered me." The young maid smiled and just hugged Lysandra back. "Tara asked me to come dress you to get ready for your visit to the village! How about we pick one of the dresses that makes you shine? Oh and I heard that it got so cold that it's better to wear a fur coat. Are they as cosy as they say?" The maid seemed excited at the prospect.
Lysandra hadn't expected this response in the slightest. Daisy had gotten any food whatever she had requested. Getting pampered by the maids, everything sounded nothing more than positive. Whilst she herself had been struggling, trying to keep her head afloat. She had gone to bed hungry almost every night. Scared at the same time that the duke would barge into her room and drag her out of her bed. Just for him to kill her and be done with their engagement.
Looking away from Daisy, Lysandra tried to figure out how to respond. She noticed the figure she had spotted that had come out of the forest was carrying a saddle bag. It was a man. A postman perhaps? Lysandra saw Tara standing at the gate. There was an exchange between her and the man as he handed her a big stack of papers.
"Milady?" Daisy questioned, sounding a bit worried.
"Ah, right! Yes, erm– the fur coats are indeed very cosy." Lysandra smiled and stepped away from the window. "Let's just pick a dress that's warm. The duke doesn't really seem to be interested in whatever I'm wearing. He is as cold as the rumours say he is. I'm lucky to still have my head. Have you seen the man? He is just a giant prick." She muttered annoyed.
Daisy had her usual kind smile. The one she had when she was inclined to agree with Lysandra but not allowed to plainly say so. "Well milady, let us focus on getting you dressed most comfortably to face the outside cold." Being dressed by Daisy felt comfortable. It was a routine. They had both been accustomed to it and worked together like a well practiced dance. Daisy took some extra time to make sure Lysandra's hair was in a nice updo so the fur coat could shield her neck from the cold as well.
Daisy helped Lysandra get downstairs to meet the duke. With the fur boots and coat, Lysandra was feeling toasty enough. As they made their way to the main hall, they spotted Tara and the duke already standing in the door opening. Tara had a big smile on her face while the duke's expression was indifferent. It was the maid who spotted them first. "Milady! The carriage is ready! I have taken the liberty to add some blankets in it too. It's quite cold." Tara was a thoughtful maid.
Once the two of them had settled in the carriage, Lysandra realised that this was the first time the two of them were in close proximity. The carriage had indeed been stuffed with blankets to keep the two of them warm. However, it also decreased the amount of space there was to move around. Not that the man could actually move around. The duke's head was almost hitting the roof of the wagon as he sat. The ride was awkwardly quiet besides hearing the duke bump his head with every bump in the road. He seemed unfazed by it. To Lysandra, it was awkward to witness. Her legs were pressed together, locked in between his legs, one of his on either side of hers. She was completely trapped.
Focusing on the scenery outside, Lysandra tried to distract herself. Anything would do as a distraction but all Lysandra could see were the same three things as she had seen for days. Mountains, trees and snow. Snow as far as the eye could see.
As the landscape passed by them, Lysandra could have sworn she smelled pine trees inside the carriage, though she was also quite sure that the carriage wasn't made of that type of wood. Looking over at the duke it was obvious that he was avoiding her as much as she was avoiding him. He had a slight stubble and the bags under his eyes seemed to have darkened. Perhaps it was a good thing that the man didn't pay too much attention to her. In terms of what he was wearing, Lysandra noticed that he wasn't wearing his usual peacock outfit today. Just a black set of trousers and a black shirt, covered with what seemed to be a thin coat.
Were all people in the North this unbothered by the cold? Surely they would get cold too. The carriage came to a halt not much later. If Lysandra had wondered how they had gotten in the carriage, getting out was even more of a challenge. Outside the coachman was already standing ready to help. The duke moved one of his legs to the side, making way for her to get out.
Not wasting time, Lysandra got up, threw off the blankets and scooted over to the door. Needing to lean on something, just wanting to get out of the carriage as soon as possible. She used the duke's knee for a brief moment to steady herself. The fabric of his pants had been more slippery than she had anticipated. One moment her hand was leaning on his knee, the next Lysandra had almost fallen face forward out of the carriage. Strong arms pulled her back. Lysandra found herself in the man's lap with his arm wrapped around her waist. She could have gotten injured, if it hadn't been for the duke's quick reflexes.
"Ah– S-s- Sorry!" Lysandra shouted and pushed herself up from his lap, only to bump her head against the carriage ceiling. The couchman made no remark and kindly gave her a helping hand this time to get out of the carriage.
Once outside, Lysandra could feel the cold hitting her face. It wasn't snowing, but the cold remained. She noticed immediately that the houses were buried underneath a thick layer of snow. Yet, even with the cold, the village was busy. The street was filled with people doing all sorts of errants. It even seemed friendly. With heavy steps crunching in the snow behind her, she could hear that the duke had gotten out of the carriage as well. Not wanting to turn around to face him, Lysandra kept facing forward. The street was filled with shops, but one was particularly catching her interest. There were mannequins with dresses on display in the shop window.
Lysandra didn't waste a second of her time. She headed in the direction of the clothing store. Hearing the firm footsteps of the duke following behind her, she didn't bother glancing back.
"Morning, your grace." A passerby said. Moments later another greeting and another followed. Lysandra curiously looked back over her shoulders seeing the duke nodding at each and everyone of the village people that greeted him. Why was everyone greeting him, as if they were happy to see him? Him! the Demon of the North! "Your grace! your grace!" A little boy came running towards the man holding out an apple. "Thank you for last time, my mother was very happy after you stopped by." The boy declared with the biggest smile on his face.
The duke knelt down slowly and accepted the apple from the child. "Thank you." His voice was just above a rumble. Without waiting for a response the child smiled again and ran off as quickly as anyone could through snow, waving back at the duke. The man got up with a sigh and seemingly without giving it much thought, took a bite of the apple.
Lysandra blinked, confused as she saw the child run off. He wasn't even fazed by the scary aura the duke had. But what did the kid mean by 'My mother was very happy after you stopped by'. Watching the duke stand there, she heard a sigh. Lysandra swallowed thickly, her eyes followed him as he passed by her heading towards the clothing store. Quickly picking up the pace Lysandra now followed behind him as he opened up the door of the shop. A bell chimed as they stepped inside.
"Oh my, your grace! I hadn't expected you to stop by." The woman, who Lysandra assumed was the shopkeep, stated. Her hair was dark brown, held up by a hair tie at the top of her head. It was a messy bun. The woman stepped away from the counter so she was in full view. Lysandra looked her over and saw pants. The woman wore pants?! The door closed behind her and Lysandra was utterly confused. A woman in pants was unheard of in the capital! Even when riding a horse it was deemed inappropriate. The apron the woman wore around her waist was dark green and covered with so many pockets, threads, scissors, pins, anything a tailor would need was stuffed into its pockets. It seemed a bit chaotic to say the least.
Looking around the shop the white wooden interior wasn't something Lysandra had expected. Seeing inside walls that were not covered in dark blue wallpaper was a sight for sore eyes. There were mannequins on each side, showcasing the guards' uniforms from the estate on one and that of the maids on the other. There were also some casual outfits. Lysandra assumed those were regular clothes for people in the village.
The woman turned to Lysandra. "Is this her?!" She stood in front of Lysandra in a split second grabbing her hands. The woman's grey eyes were big and shone with excitement. "You are as beautiful as Tara described." Lysandra felt flustered and overwhelmed by the woman's compliment. She could feel heat rising to her cheeks. "Thank you." Lysandra replied softly as the woman let out a small chuckle. "My name is Veerle Rangifer, I am friends with Tara." She let go of Lysandra's hands and turned to the duke.
"How can I help you today?" Veerle questioned.