Chapter Six – Reunited
Fergus, the almighty bear king had fought countless battles in his time; his body was testament to the invasions which he faced and conquered however there was one powerful foe that even the robust king could not elude nor defeat, the mistress of sleep was an omnipotent adversary that Fergus refused to surrender willingly but the beckoning clutches welcomed the exhausted king despite his silent protests.
While Fergus had secretly craved the luxury of sleep, he simply refused himself to rest as he was bound by duty, loyalty and love to remain vigilant at the bedside of his wife until she was reunited with him, in the conscious world and until that moment when she opened her eyes, he would remain by her side as protector. His heavy eyes stared intently upon her slumbering form as she remained motionless, oblivious that she had been rescued from an unknown assailant that had specifically targeted her but now she had been returned to the safety within the tall, stone walls of the castles, known as home.
Fergus observed his queen, drinking in her image as if he were a man deprived, obsessively he wanted to permanently etch and commit her features to memory as the reality of nearly losing his wife had provoked a hidden fear that he could have potentially have lost her, it was too close to his heart. The mere notion of Elinor, his beloved wife, stranded alone and lost in the forest as someone cruelly played a game of cat and mouse when in fact, he should have been there, he should have been there to protect her, to shield her from all of this.
The unrelenting thoughts swirled magnificently in a chaotic maddening vicious circle that depicted 'what if' scenarios despite the fact that he sat comfortably in their royal chambers with Elinor still resting from her injuries and ordeal, still offered no peace or comfort for Fergus as he obsessed with the events of that day perhaps the mysterious assailant had been stalking them or had befriended the clan previously or was truly the enemy of a rival clan?
The questions seemed to increase without answers which fueled his growing paranoia, deep in contemplation and steadily approaching a darkened abyss, he teetered on the edge of falling into the darkness, there was a fine line between sane and insane, if not careful then Fergus would fall and lose everything. Slowly, his heavy eyes began to waver and eventually closed despite his determination to fight the invisible foe that now conquered him and rendered him powerless.
As King Fergus finally succumbed into a peaceful slumber in his chair, his stressed features relaxed and soon a gentle snore emanated from him, he fell into a dreamless sleep which was a vast improvement from the recent nightmares but as Fergus slept, he was unaware that Elinor eventually stirred.
She blinked several times and tentatively pushed herself from the bed, she frowned at the colorful material, unable to remember when she acquired this pattern. A sudden wave of nausea momentarily caught her unexpectedly; the fresh taste of bile provoked further another way of nausea. Her throat was painfully dry and the goblet on the bedside table was empty.
Fergus grunted in his sleep before he jerked himself awake as his elbow slipped off the arm of the chair which caused him to be awake and alert before he realized that he had fallen asleep. He cleared his throat and glanced over at their bed which was empty minus ruffled bed linen, his heart fluttered with fear that his precious wife was gone and while he was suppose to have been guarding her although her steady breathing and chest movements were hypnotic enough to relax him to sleep.
He stood from his chair perhaps his eyes were deceiving him, his mind disorientated from tiredness and the abrupt awakening; a giant hand reached for the bed and confirmed that his eyes were not lying, "Elinor!" his voice bellowed and thundered throughout the castle which caused the inhabitants to awake, some guards assuming they were under attack and awaited for further orders.
"My lord?" asked a guard, who managed to sidestep the frantic king, "My king?" he continued and followed him down the corridor
"Dad?" asked Merida as she yawned sleepily
"She's gone! Gone! Elinor, where are you?" he shouted in maddened state of mind
"Dad!" she said more clearly and watched as he impatiently threw open doors to room, searching endlessly for her
"Go back to bed...nothing for you to worry about."
Maudie had settled the three menacing brothers for the night however cleaning up after them was another story, she was convinced they were testing the limits of her saint like patience and what little sanity she had left, "Those mucky wee devils..." complained Maudie until she noticed someone standing in the doorway, "Oh my goodness, apologies my queen..." she paused, "You shouldn't be here...you need your rest...is...is everything alright?"
Elinor crept further into the kitchen, fidgeting with hands; she remained close against the wall and nodded stiffly.
"Perhaps some warm milk or herbal tea will help whatever is ailing you? It will only take a few moments." Stated Maudie as she guided Elinor over to a small wooden chair
Maudie was distracted which gave Elinor the opportunity to regain her scattered thoughts and attempt to settle her humming bird like heartbeat. She watched Maudie with intrigue, there was a feeling of déjà vu and familiarity that began to stir slowly within her thoughts, Elinor was certain that she could trust the older woman with her life.
"Here you go...a nice warm tea to help settle you for bed." She smiled warming
Elinor graciously accepted and sipped on her tea, she forced a polite smile.
"I do hope that my queen does not mind about the bandages...oh! How is your head?" inquired Maudie
"My head?" replied Elinor as she reached at the temple of her head and winced
"Yes, you took a rather nasty knock to the head," she paused, "Along with some other injuries."
Elinor pushed away the cup of tea, she remained silent, her mind raced in a frantic search for a plausible explanation, everything seemed new and foreign to her but at the same time there was an odd sense of déjà vu perhaps she was asleep and this was all a dream or some bizarre nightmare, soon she was awake.
"Elinor!" called the boisterous voice
Maudie went to greet the other half of the royal couple, to settle the panic which was evident in his voice but Elinor held tightly onto her arm, "Allow me to summon the king...he'll be grateful that you're here."
"No, please...he's after me..." she practically begged at Maudie, her features contorted into terror as the fast approaching king neared
"But, he's the king."
The door swung open and clattered off the wall, Fergus stood in the doorway, his chest heaving, "There you are! I was beginning to...well, you're here...that's the main thing." Exclaimed Fergus
"I...I can't." Whispered Elinor harshly at Maudie
Fergus brushed Maudie to the side and wrapped his massive muscular arms around his wife's slender frame, taking extra care as to avoid the heavily bandaged ribs. He inhaled deeply on the scent of her long hair and momentarily closed his eyes in order to regain composure and not display any signs of weakness in front of Maudie.
"I missed you lass...I...we honestly thought you were lost..." the words tumbled from his trembling lips when he suddenly realized that Maudie was still present in the room and witnessed a rare display of love between the royal couple.
He cupped her face in his callous hands and admired her grace and beauty. Her eyes stared back up at him; Fergus noticed her discomfort after all they had been married for decades and he had picked up on a few visual clues and hints, "Are you alright, Eli?" he asked softy, afraid that he might have been the direct cause of her discomfort
Elinor remained silent and managed to free herself from his intimidating hands and stature before standing beside Maudie who was equally confused as Fergus by her behavior. "I cannot do this...I cannot pretend..." she choked
"Elinor, speak to me...please." he was practically begging
"My queen, what ails you?" added Maudie
"This...everything...who are you...what have you done to me?"
Merida and the triplets arrived at that precise time to witness their mother, completely overwhelmed with confusion and emotions that Maudie comforted her broken queen in her own arms.