Crying is all that Kenna seemed to be doing lately. Lamenting her current situation, cursing the king, and wallowing in self-pity. She was married to Bash, on the whim of a mad king, and she was quite bitter about it. When she had gone to the king and asked for a marriage with a good suitable match, she was not expecting this. To be fair, neither was Bash. Bash, with his hopeless love for Mary, Bash with his woeful big eyes, the same eyes that looked into hers and proclaimed he hers before God and king.
They had been married for a little over a week, and the marriage had not gotten off to a great start. Their marriage had yet to be consummated, seeing as how they both preferred separate sleeping arrangements, Kenna on the bed and Bash on the chair. They hardly saw or spoke to one another unless in a group setting and it seemed now that even their friends were keeping their distance from them, for fear of upsetting or angering them in some way. In all, Kenna and Bash were miserable. Quite miserable.
Hearing footsteps approach the door, Kenna turned her back towards it, focusing her attention on her hair, brushing it rather roughly, hoping Bash went straight to bed and didn't want to talk. The past day or two, she noticed he was trying to make conversation, in an effort to be civil, seeing as how they had to now share their lives together. Kenna wasn't having it. By making an effort with her marriage, she believed it was showing Henry that he won, and that is not what she wanted. She was hoping he would see was a disaster this union was, and he would dissolve their marriage. Problem solved. As she sighed, Bash entered the room, breathing quite rapidly. Kenna turned around with curiosity, expecting him to have returned from the woods, she would mumble something to herself about his strange extracurricular activities, and leave it at that. But what she saw worried her, immensely. Bash was covered in blood, bruised and cut, his lip bleeding profusely. He staggered to the bed, falling on it pain. Kenna jumped up, running to her husband.
"Bash! Bash, tell me what happened to you," she cried, looking at her husband with concern. Bash looked at Kenna briefly his eyes scared. He grasped her hand tightly, asking for some water. She got up quickly, getting the pitcher of water, and brought it to his bleeding lip. He drank quickly, gulping it down. When he was finished, he closed his eyes, pausing before speaking.
"Kenna, I need you to lock the door. Hurry." She went and locked the door without question, hurrying back to her husband's side. She looked at him with worry, waiting for him to begin.
"I was in the woods walking. I was thinking about you, well I was thinking about us, about our marriage. Everything really," he started, as Kenna blushed. The thought occurred to her that even though she spent most of her time now thinking about how miserable she was being married to someone she didn't love, something that loved another, she was still thinking about him, all the time in fact. And he thought about her. Perhaps that was some progress-no, Kenna didn't want progress. She regained her thoughts, and waited for him to continue.
"And suddenly my attention was diverted. I hear a noise, a rather deafening one, something akin to a howl. I grabbed hold of my sword, prepared for a wolf or bear, or something of the like. What I saw Kenna, was anything but. It was darkness, a figure of dark magic. I don't know how else to describe it. I just knew that it wanted me dead, wanted something that I could offer. Immediately I started running. I fell and hit my head, and got caught in some branches. The darkness was close to getting me, but I got away and I ran straight here. I'm not sure what it wants with me and why, but all I know is we need to stay together. It could infiltrate the castle, I'm sure it will, rather soon. We need to be prepared," he stated, Kenna looking at him with worry and confusion. "What is it?"
"You said we need to stay together. Why would you say that, when for the last week we have wanted nothing to do with each other?"
"It's obvious. We might not like our current situation, but you are my wife and I vowed to protect you. I will always be by your side against any foe, certainly I owe you that at the very least," Bash exclaimed, gently squeezing her hand. "We live in dark times Kenna, it is time we start acting as a team, rather than enemies."
She smiled, before wiping the blood gently off his face with her handkerchief. "Of course, my husband. What should we do?"
