Read Online The Flame of Wrath by Christene Knight - Free Book Online
Authors: Christene Knight
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unable to act.
The stillness of the moment rose as the beginnings of awkward tension. Finally, awakened by the choking silence, Aurea blinked rapidly. She shook herself from her fog then graciously took the pillow into her arms, unaware of how that human act had granted a fearful Autumn permission to breathe once again. She held it close as she stared into the young woman whom she guessed to be no more than three years her senior. She was grateful that the majority of her face was concealed behind her mask because in that moment her emotions were all too clearly written upon her face.
“Thank you,” Aurea spoke at last. Her voice was a throaty rasp. “Thank you... Lady Autumn.”
Autumn flushed darkly. Slowly she rose to her feet. As she slipped her arm into her father's and her family gracefully dipped their heads in a final bow, her heart raced with the realization that Aurea Queen of Pyros knew her name.
*******
When other nobles reveled in their fineries, Autumn appeared to be humbled by their weight. Her wealth was plainly visible as the ornament running the length of her back. The luxurious wings made from Djidjiga petals had easily cost a small fortune, but to Autumn, their cost could never amount to the worth of Djidjiga’s story itself. The dreamy legends she loved were alive inside her eyes. She wished with all her might to be at ease within her fineries the way that her brother reveled in his, but it was simply not her way. She longed to be within a soft linen chiton, her feet bare as she raced through the cool sweet grasses of her home. She desired nothing more than to stare up at a star-filled sky. Those were the diamonds she yearned to be in awe of and not the jewels obscenely coveting attention. As she sat among the throngs of people, she realized that this was her brother's arena not hers.
Sensing her disquiet, her father's hand came to lie supportively atop her forearm. Autumn graced the General with a tender smile. Her love shined brightly inside her eyes. She leaned close to gently bestow a kiss to his cheek.
He was so like her. He was a simple man of simple pleasures. She knew that he was more at home on the battlefield than while lost amidst political joisting.
“You seem to have made quite the impression,” Angelos III said. He spoke quietly into his daughter's ear, attempting to remain discreet.
Autumn frowned with uncertainty. She was about to ask what her father was referring to when from the corner of her eye, she caught sight of someone looking in her direction.
Aurea stared through the portals of her mask to the woman in white. She sighed heavily.
To Autumn's side, three druids sat. They called her attention, engaging the young woman in conversation.
The Queen turned her head in the direction of the siblings now addressing her at her right. She could not think of Autumn. She could not allow herself to ache for something so beyond her capabilities. What did she know of love or the feelings which accompanied it? It was clear that Autumn understood them. She conveyed them in her every expression.
This life, this world of customs and politics, of status and power, these things made sense to Aurea. She understood these matters. Ambitions were not so far from her mental grasp, but to gaze into the eyes of another and yearn for understanding threatened to disrupt all she knew.
Leave me , she commanded her thoughts of Autumn. As they begrudgingly fell back into the dark recesses of her mind, she was allowed to return to the conversation at hand.
The siblings were idealistic, but in them Aurea saw a yearning for a purpose. They were ships in need of a beacon to guide
The stillness of the moment rose as the beginnings of awkward tension. Finally, awakened by the choking silence, Aurea blinked rapidly. She shook herself from her fog then graciously took the pillow into her arms, unaware of how that human act had granted a fearful Autumn permission to breathe once again. She held it close as she stared into the young woman whom she guessed to be no more than three years her senior. She was grateful that the majority of her face was concealed behind her mask because in that moment her emotions were all too clearly written upon her face.
“Thank you,” Aurea spoke at last. Her voice was a throaty rasp. “Thank you... Lady Autumn.”
Autumn flushed darkly. Slowly she rose to her feet. As she slipped her arm into her father's and her family gracefully dipped their heads in a final bow, her heart raced with the realization that Aurea Queen of Pyros knew her name.
*******
When other nobles reveled in their fineries, Autumn appeared to be humbled by their weight. Her wealth was plainly visible as the ornament running the length of her back. The luxurious wings made from Djidjiga petals had easily cost a small fortune, but to Autumn, their cost could never amount to the worth of Djidjiga’s story itself. The dreamy legends she loved were alive inside her eyes. She wished with all her might to be at ease within her fineries the way that her brother reveled in his, but it was simply not her way. She longed to be within a soft linen chiton, her feet bare as she raced through the cool sweet grasses of her home. She desired nothing more than to stare up at a star-filled sky. Those were the diamonds she yearned to be in awe of and not the jewels obscenely coveting attention. As she sat among the throngs of people, she realized that this was her brother's arena not hers.
Sensing her disquiet, her father's hand came to lie supportively atop her forearm. Autumn graced the General with a tender smile. Her love shined brightly inside her eyes. She leaned close to gently bestow a kiss to his cheek.
He was so like her. He was a simple man of simple pleasures. She knew that he was more at home on the battlefield than while lost amidst political joisting.
“You seem to have made quite the impression,” Angelos III said. He spoke quietly into his daughter's ear, attempting to remain discreet.
Autumn frowned with uncertainty. She was about to ask what her father was referring to when from the corner of her eye, she caught sight of someone looking in her direction.
Aurea stared through the portals of her mask to the woman in white. She sighed heavily.
To Autumn's side, three druids sat. They called her attention, engaging the young woman in conversation.
The Queen turned her head in the direction of the siblings now addressing her at her right. She could not think of Autumn. She could not allow herself to ache for something so beyond her capabilities. What did she know of love or the feelings which accompanied it? It was clear that Autumn understood them. She conveyed them in her every expression.
This life, this world of customs and politics, of status and power, these things made sense to Aurea. She understood these matters. Ambitions were not so far from her mental grasp, but to gaze into the eyes of another and yearn for understanding threatened to disrupt all she knew.
Leave me , she commanded her thoughts of Autumn. As they begrudgingly fell back into the dark recesses of her mind, she was allowed to return to the conversation at hand.
The siblings were idealistic, but in them Aurea saw a yearning for a purpose. They were ships in need of a beacon to guide
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