I take no credit whatsoever, this is my spin onShondaRhimes' and Catherine Wilson's amazing imagination and creations. If you haven't already read the When Women Were Warriors trilogy go and do it now.
I'm not quite sure about this story but I'll see how it takes with you guys.
I will miss you old friend, she thought to herself as her fingers pushed their way through the earth beneath her; closing her eyes she allowed the gentle sounds of the forest to engulf her as she leaned on her favourite ash tree. Opening her eyes she looked down at the mud on her hands and wiped it on the dark brown fabric of the dress her mother had made her for her eighteenth birthday, a day short of three years ago. Turning her attention to the woven basket she had placed beside her, she brought it onto her lap and looked through its contents "Nettles, lavender, fever-few, aloe vera…" she listed off the herbs and plants making sure she had gathered a sufficient amount of supplies for her mother before she made the journey back home. It wasn't that her mother was incapable of tracking down the ingredients in the forest, she simply wanted to make sure her mother had a strong amount of supplies before she left in the morning, now that she would be alone.
She didn't know exactly how she was supposed to feel. Both her mother and her grandmother had prepared her for this moment her whole life. As the only daughter of Emmahlia, daughter of Tamra, her twenty-first birthday meant the journey to the House that all the women in her family had gone to before her for the preparation of war. By the time her mother had gained her shield and become a warrior, an uneasy peace had been made between the tribes, a peace that so far remained unbroken. It wasn't that she was afraid of going to Lady Regina's House, or the possibility for war for that matter, but with her older brother Timarion choosing to join the male aids of the Lady's House only two summers ago and the death of their grandmother four winters prior, her departure made an empty household for her mother.
The sun, weak from its descent into the west brought an amber glow as she made her way back home, tall grass brushed against her knees as she walked briskly through her village, thanking those who congratulated her on her journey to warriorhood.
"Arizona!"
Please Goddessand Mother, don't let it be-her thoughts were cut off as low and behold Kia, daughter of Kiamra, pushed open the wood of her front door and made her way down to the Arizona. She had tried with all of her might to pass Kia's house without being seen however the auburn haired girl was heading straight for her.
"Hello Kia" she said nervously whilst giving her house only a few stones down. Smoke danced from the chimney which meant her mother was still cooking her dinner. If I have not passed through that door in the next few moments my mother will give my dinner to the goats,and that's happened too many times this week already.
"Congratulations" Kia offered as she stood in front of Arizona tugging at the long grey sleeves of her top, "are you excited?" The amber light bounced onto the taller girls face and the way that her green eyes shone through her eyelashes made Arizona liken her to Yannah, daughter of Iona's cat that she regularly saw hunting for mice on her daily journeys to the woods.
"Extremely, I am actually on my way to have my last dinner with my mother so I am unable to speak with you for too long" she offered, trying intensely to make it home before the sky turned red.
"I just wanted to wish you farewell… well farewell until fall when I join the Lady's House myself" she said with a small smile across her mouth, Arizona witnessed the flash of hope dance across her eyes as she looked down at her. Kia had been her friend for many years now and her mother had joked that they would be betrothed after they both returned with shields, she knew that Kia had feelings for her, but other than a singular kiss Arizona had no intention of making Kia her betrothed. She found the girl to be like every other girl or boy in her village, settled and comfortable.
"I'm sure you won't waste any time seeking me out on your arrival" she said only half joking.
"That I will not" she said with a mischievous smirk that did not go unnoticed by the blonde, "please thank Emmahlia from my mother, she hasn't had a headache since your mother came to see her three days ago."
"I will, I'm glad Kiamra is feeling better, I hope both her her and your father well, my mother values their friendship… I must say goodbye as I'm worried my mother will value nothing but the nearest thing she can throw at me for arriving so late" she said with a laugh before turning to follow the stone path to her home at the top of the small hill. Before she could put one foot in front of the other Kia had taken hold of her hand and Arizona was met with glossy emerald eyes.
"May your journey be safe and your arrival prompt. I will miss you Arizona, daughter or Emmahlia" she whispered before planting a soft kiss on the smaller woman's lips. It was over quicker than it had begun and within seconds she watched as Kia closed the door behind her.
Please don't make me deal with the aftermath of that in the fall… pleaseshe asked silently to the Goddess whilst looking up to the sky. "Shit" she sighed as her eyes dropped to her mother standing at their front door on top of the hill, whistling down at her daughter who was almost, no always, late for everything. Placing her free hand over the top of her full basket for security she sprinted up the hill before coming face to face with her disgruntled mother. "I know, I know, I'm sorry. I ran into Kia and-"
"Say no more" Emmahlia cut her off with a smirk and before Arizona could tell her mother that for the millionth time she did not want to pursue Kia, Emmahlia lifted her finger and pointed to the basket of wood to her right, "Bring some firewood in my love, the fire is dwindling and we have a lot to prepare."
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Full from rabbit soup and exhausted from packing the rucksack that Emmahlia had woven especially for tomorrow, Arizona sat on her bed and took her shoes off. She looked down at the stone cold floor and wondered when the next time she would be sitting there doing this again would be. Standing up she took the fire lantern from her wall and walked through to the main room of the house. The fire pit was placed in the centre of the main room and her mother sat to the left going through the basket that she had brought home from the forest. She watched as she took a handful of basil seed and stood to walk towards the shelves that were behind her, underneath the closed left window. The light from the fire shone onto the bottles and produced beautifully coloured lights across the walls and ceiling. She watched as her mother gently moved the grinders, bowls, books and other items onto the table beside her. Her mother was a healer, as was her mother before her and so on, Emmalhia had passed on to her daughter everything she knew however the blonde had never shown much interest in following the footsteps of the women of her family and becoming a healer.
"I will miss you terribly" her mother sighed, her back still to Arizona, putting the objects she had moved back to their designated spot.
Arizona watched her mother, tears begging to flow freely, dressed in a blue gown she had had since she could remember. Standing at the same height as herself, her mother's long blonde and naturally straight hair was tied into a singular braid. Turning around and walking up to her only daughter she took Arizona's hand and brought them both to the ground where she had previously sat. "I have been writing to Lady Regina more frequently this past year in preparation of your upcoming birthday, and she has done nothing but reassure me that she will treat you as if you were her own".
"I can't wait to finally meet her and put a face to the stories once and for all" Arizona laughed as she looked down at her hands that her mother's thumbs were soothingly stroking. Lady Regina had been a known name in her household since before her birth and it had been present when she was not yet a lady but Regina, heir and daughter of Lady Cora, and the shield sister of her mother. "You will not be disappointed in the face that you will find" her mother replied with the smile that reaches her eyes every time she spoke of the Lady, coughing and letting the glazed look from her eyes disappear she leant forward and kissed her daughter on the forehead. For years Arizona had wondered why her mother would go into a dream-like state whenever she spoke of her shield sister. Her brother once dared her to ask their father about it when she was of the age of nine and the then title-less Regina was planning on visiting, he had told her not to mention that name around him or her mother. As it so happened, the Lady had not visited and her name was never mentioned again around her father, right up to his death when she was thirteen.
Shuffling so she was now laying on the floor with her head on her mother's knee, she stared into the fire and watched as the embers fought above the flames. "I don't want to leave you here alone" she sighed.
"I am not alone Arizona, I have the village, I have my books and herbs and most of all I have you and your brother. All I need to do is send a kiss or a cuddle to the wind and the Mother will bring them straight to your heart." She said with a loving smile looking down at her daughter who was the image of her younger self, although Arizona's hair had a slight wave to it, the shade was almost identical to Emmahlia's, she bore the same dimples in her cheeks as her own and her eyes were similar in shape and colour, with Arizona's being just a couple shades darker of blue. "You best go to sleep my daughter" she said as she traces her fingers over Arizona's features, trying to memorise every curve of her child's face. Not that she needed to of course, "we have a long journey ahead of us".
"Please tell me one of your stories Mother" she pleaded, her eyes drooping, tired from sleep.
"You would think you were too old for stories Lady Arizona" she joked as she played with the blonde hair that was sprayed across her lap.
"I'll never be too old for your stories" she replied with her eyes now closed.
"Fine, but you're only getting a short one. In ancient days, when only women were warriors…"
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On the fifth day of travelling Emmahlia and Arizona reached Lady Regina's grounds. They had travelled through country that Arizona had grown alongside and she knew well, it was not until mid-morning of the second day they had left behind the world that she had known. They had walked through meadows, gentler hills and grass, passing through neighbouring villagers and grazing cattle. Travellers to the Lady's House had for century's been welcomed by all they passed, meaning they never went hungry or lacked a place to spend the night as they had been welcomed like they had welcomed travellers in the past.
"I never imagined it to be so big" Arizona said, her mouth open in amazement and her eyes wide. She looked over to her mother for some sort of approval or comment and found a furrowed brow and glazed eyes. I never thought of how hard this place would be for her;Arizona thought to herself, I always forget she lost her three older sisters to these grounds when the war was still in its height."It's just like you described it… but I still never imagined size" she whispered touching her mother's arm. That seemed to take her out of the spell that she was under as she looked into the darker eyes of her daughter, giving a small smile she took her daughters hand and began walking to the gates of the castle.
"In ancient days, when only women were warriors" Emmahlia began, causing Arizona to tilt her head towards her, "lived a queen whose lands were rich and whose people were content, and under her protection lived in peace". Arizona had heard this story countless of times in the past, yet every time she did, she listened with wiser ears. "One dark day, the queen's daughter, a young woman skilled in the hunt, rode out with her companions. All day they rose, past the time they should have returned home, but they found no game, and the queen's daughter would not turn back. At last they saw a red deer at the edge of the wood, and they loosed their hounds to run it down. The queen's daughter, her hunting spear in hand, rode after it as it vanished amongst the trees. The wood belonged to a tribe with whom the queen had once been at war, although many years had passed since there had been strife between them. On that dark day, the son of the queen whose forest it was also hunted there. He saw the red deer bound from between the trees and sent his spear after it. The deer leaped aside, and the spear struck the woman who pursued it. Late that night her companions brought her body home, ties across her horse's back where they should have tied the body of the deer. For nine days the queen gave herself to grief. Then she prepared to ride against her neighbours, to take the blood that her daughter's blood demanded. On the morning of the tenth day, the queen armed herself and called together the warriors of her household. As they made ready to set out, a young woman rode along into their midst. At first they thought that she was one of their clan, come to ride with her queen, but no one knew her, and she bore no arms. She dismounted and approached the queen and knelt as one of the queen's warrior's would do. When she arose she lifted her cloak, and by her clothing all could see that she was of the tribe that had taken the life of the queen's daughter. Her golden necklace marked her as the daughter of the queen against whom the prepared to ride. As swords were drawn, the girl stood still, never taking her eyes from the queen. "I have come to replace the one you lost" she said. "My mother sends me with this message: If your child's blood demands it, take the blood of this child of mine, but if you need a queen's daughter to succeed you, take my daughter for your own." The queen drew her sword and set its point against the girl's breastbone and in her eyes saw fear and courage. Seldom has it happened that wisdom will conquer anger or that grief will yield to compassion, but that day the queen's heart was satisfied. To spare another mother the grief she knew herself, the queen put away her sword and took the daughter of her enemy as her own, and both tribes lived in safety and in peace forever after." Emmahlia paused and looked at the young woman that was her daughter as they reached the gates of Lady Regina's House. "So it is custom that a free woman leave her mother's house to bind herself and those of her blood to a neighbouring clan, either by sword or by cradle."
Looking into the light eyes of her mother, Arizona took a shaky breath and squeezed her mother's hand. "Happy twenty-first day of birth my daughter and may you become the woman and warrior you are destined to be. This is your new home".
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Inside the fortress a stone walkway led the pair past pens were numerous animals were kept. Sheds scattered around, Arizona noticed one was a pottery shed when a chicken which has escaped from the pen somehow managed to knock down a bronze chalice, breaking it into pieces. A low chuckle left her mouth as she saw an older woman shooing the animal away, screaming over her precious pottery. She looked around, taking in the scenes that unfolded around her. She had never seen so many women in her life; she saw the odd male dotted around however there were at least ten women to every man she saw. She looked around, noticing women sparring, eating, drinking and working on the grounds, all wearing similar attire. Pulling her out of her thoughts she felt her mother's hand on her arm. "That is Regina's House" she said looking over to the largest house Arizona had ever seen. The timber walls towered over everyone there and Arizona couldn't help but compare it to the walls of the stone cottage she grew up in. The massive door of hewn planks stood open and walking through it they reached the great hall of the house where many of the household had gathered for a meal.
Women and men filled the benches and Arizona noticed the fire in the open hearth at the far end of the hall. Weapons decorated the walls, swords, axes and spears covered them, the blonde couldn't take her eyes from them, especially the shields. Arizona felt her mother stiffen up against her and heard her breath hitch. Quickly scanning her face for trouble she followed her gaze, where she found Lady Regina at the high table that was situated at the high table at the far end of the room, only a few feet in front of the fire. Although it they were a good few metres away from each other, Arizona could see the same glazed over eyes staring back at her mother. Regina was as dark as her mother was fair and equally as beautiful. Her skin was slightly more tanned than hers or her mother's yet she could see it had flushed since her silent interaction with her mother. Regina's eyes and hair were as dark as each other, her hair pinned up from her face and she could see a gold necklace which represented her title sitting across her collarbones. She wore a green gown that Arizona assumed was floor-length, accompanied by a purple sash and a baldric for her sword. It wasn't until the Lady shifted her eyes onto Arizona that she heard her mother exhaling. She watched as the Lady stood, beckoning to one of her servants before whispering in their ear. She noticed that during the Lady's interaction that she did not see dark eyes leave light blues once.
Arizona and her mother were brought to the high table; hand in hand they walked through the aisles of benches. Arizona could feel all eyes on her, she felt them burning into the back of her head as she surpassed them all and with her mother in hand reached the table where the Lady was now standing to greet them. Slowly bringing her eyes from her mother and resting them onto darker eyes, Regina smiled as she looked down at Arizona. Arizona set aside the nerves and embarrassment she was feeling as she stood at the top of the great hall taking in every feature of the Lady's face, right down to the small scar on her top lip and placed them in every story she had ever heard her mother tell that involved her once faceless shield sister. Her eyes held Arizona's and she drew her sword. Her mother had gone through this part with her since she was a little girl, even practicing it with trigs she'd bring home from the woods. She was more than ready for this. Arizona stared into her dark eyes and watched them stare back, however she realised that it was not her eyes she was staring back at, only the Lady knew what her gaze rested on. Arizona's stomach fluttered and it took all of her strength not to jolt as she could have sworn she heard the ding of a battle, how would she have even known what that sound was? The smoke of burning homes and fields drifted before her eyes and the smell of burning reached her nostrils on a sudden breeze. Regina withdrew her sword and placed it in its home at her hip, she smiled down at Arizona and the sounds and smells of the hall were they only sounds and smells she experienced.
Taking her eyes from Arizona she looked over to Emmahlia whose face was bursting with pride and whose eyes were full whilst staring into her daughters face. "Emma… it has been too many summers" she sighed. Emma? Arizona thought to herself, she had heard no one, not her father or her grandmother ever refer to her mother as Emma before.
Ahhhhhh, so what do you guys think? I know it's slow and Callie hasn't come into it yet but I just wanted to see if this story would take! Thanks!