This chapter is a flashback chapter...I would have been more specific with the time but the only months I remember are in fall...It's March, okay?

Again, I apologize for personality lapses.

Read, enjoy, and REVIEW please.

Mazzie

2: To Fetch a Bride

Earlier: that spring.

It was a measure, Camaris thought, of the king's dedication to his marriage that he sent his greatest knight to bring her to the Hayholt.

The roads had finally cleared of snow enough to travel- and to transport a lady. Camaris and Prester John's honor guard had set out as soon as the roads were passable for Hernysadharc. In reality, the honor guard alone would have been enough, but John had insisted Camaris should go.

"I see you mooning about the castle like a caged bear," he had said, laughing. "I think the journey would be good for you. Get you out in the fresh air."

Camaris had agreed, of course. John was his king, after all. But, he brooded as his horse broke the ice of another frost-rimed puddle, what John couldn't realize was that Camaris longed for the relative warmth of Nabban during the cold winter of Erkynland. Instead, John sent him farther north, to Hernystir, of all places. Perhaps it wasn't quite the Frostmarch, but it might as well be, Camaris though, his hot breath freezing in the air in front of him. Damn this miserable cold!

The weather was little better when at last they reached Hernysadharc. It was drizzling rain, chilly, and damp, and to top it all off, a thick blanket of fog lay over everything. Camaris and the soldiers were happy to be let into the palace.

After he had bathed, rested, and changed into fresh clothes, Camaris was called to an audience with King Llythinn.

"I believe," the Hernystiri king said, "that you have come to collect my niece."

Camaris inclined his head slightly, then said aloud, "Yes. King John sent me to collect his bride."

A young woman entered the room through a side door and joined the king on the dais. "My niece, Efiathe," Llythinn introduced her, "only daughter of my sister. Normally," he added, smiling slightly, "I would send a legion of my own men with you to Erkynland, but I trust her in the hands of the world's greatest knight."

Camaris forced himself to smile. How he hated that title! "I thank you, sir, for your kind words and your trust," he said evenly. "I promise to take good care of your niece."

At his words, the girl looked up at him. Their eyes locked, and the chemistry between them was all but palpable. Camaris was shocked- he had not expected such beauty. Efiathe was struck by the strength of this reluctant legend- and intrigued by him. Realizing that she was staring, she glanced back at her feet, blushing furiously.

After what seemed like an eternity, King Llythinn said, "You should go prepare to leave," and Efiathe left, silently thanking her uncle for rescuing her.

Camaris excused himself, saying that he needed food and rest before they began the journey back the next morning.

The men were up, packed, and prepared to leave with the dawn. Unfortunately, Efiathe was not, and so Camaris was sent to find her.

Irritably he patrolled the gardens. It was still cold and foggy, and he wanted to head back to warmer Erkynland as soon as he could.

He found her by accident. He had wildly turned a corner when he heard her voice. He couldn't understand what she was saying, so he crept closer. Another voice spoke.

"I don't want you to leave, Efiathe!" it said. A younger boy, little more than a child.

"We'll still see each other, Lluth," Efiathe said, laughing slightly. So, Camaris thought, she is with the king's heir. "Getting married isn't dying," she continued. "I can visit."

"What if something happens to you?" Lluth asked, tears in his voice.

"Nothing will happen. Sir Camaris is taking me back to Erkynland, and he has promised to protect me."

Lluth's voice held tones of amazement. "You met Sir Camaris?" he asked incredulously. "What's he like?"

"Well," Efiathe said, then paused as though thinking. "He's very tall, the tallest man I've ever seen. And he looks quite strong, though I don't know about that. And he's very handsome," she added, almost as an afterthought.

"Efiathe!" Lluth scolded gently. "You're marrying the king, not his champion!"

"I know that!" Efiathe retorted defensively. "I'm only stating a fact."

Suddenly realizing that he was eavesdropping, Camaris entered the garden purposefully. Efiathe sat on a bench beside her cousin, but rose when she saw him.

"It's time to go, my lady," Camaris said softly.

Lluth stood too, and the cousins embraced. Camaris was amazed that the prince could look so small when he topped Efiathe by at least three inches. Finally, Efiathe walked to him, then turned back to her cousin.

"I'll come visit next summer," she said, smiling.

Lluth nodded silently and looked at the ground. Camaris thought it best to leave him to his grief. He led Efiathe to where her horse was waiting. She was no delicate beauty: she had insisted on going on horseback instead of riding in a carriage.

"You heard, didn't you?" Efiathe asked suddenly when they were well outside the gates of Hernysadharc.

Embarrassed to have been caught eavesdropping, but unable to lie, Camaris nodded. "I did not want to disturb you, my lady," he said.

She simply watched him, then looked away and spurred her horse on. Camaris watched her go, bouncing slightly in the saddle.

He was doing his duty by the king, wasn't he? Of course, Camaris reasoned. Prester John had asked him to bring his bride to the Hayholt, and he was doing just that. So why did he feel like he was committing an immense betrayal?