I Promised You - William and Ophelia (2 page)

“Tis the art, practices, or spells of a
person who is supposed to exercise supernatural powers through the
aid of evil spirits; black magic; witchery.” William said as if
reading from a book he knew well.

“What would a witch look like? Just so I
know.” Ophelia asked.

“They are old and ugly with hairy lips and
broken teeth. They more likely than not will be carrying around a
cat.” William told her.

“Well then, thank thee, William, for lending
me thou ear. For preparing me what to watch out for. I am sure I
will be just fine. Thou wilt lay eyes again. I am sure Gertrude
will be coming back home soon, if only to retrieve her
clothes.”

“Until then.” William said.

“Until then.” Ophelia answered, smiling shyly
at William as he helped her down from the wagon.

Ophelia filled her mother in on all she and
Gertie had learned at the Palace. Her mother listened carefully,
both to the words her daughter was speaking and the tone of her
voice.

“This William,” her mother said, “you feel
that you can trust him after only meeting him one time? What power
does he possess that makes you feel this way, daughter?”

Ophelia blushed, “He seems like a good man,
tis all, mother. Very kind and respectful.”

“These are dangerous times, Ophelia. You take
heed in my words, now is not the time to go soft in the head over a
boy.”

Ophelia found herself becoming angry. “Tis
not like that at all, mother!”

“Thou
art a pretty,
little maiden, Ophelia, I worry tis all.”

Ophelia sat down and picked up her mother’s
hand. “I don’t know what it is, mother. I cannot deny that I felt a
special connection to the boy. I have never had these feelings
before.”

Her mother smiled and squeezed her daughter’s
hand. “You have a good head on your, shoulders dear daughter. I
trust you. I worry more about Gertrude. Such beauty belies her
innocence. Did Gertrude also express interest in this William?”

Ophelia laughed and said “Not once she found
out that he was merely a stable boy, there to help out the King’s
cousin.”

“That is for the best then.
This William could be of great help to us, but he could also be the
source of unimaginable pain. We must be very careful. Now, pour me
a smidgeon of tea and tell me more about the Palace. D
ost
thou knowest when we can expect to see your sister again?”

“Gertrude could not say, but she has no
clothes with her. I will wait several days and then venture back to
the Palace to see if I may speak with her. I shall take some of her
clothing to her then as well.” Ophelia said. “At that time I can
find out what, if anything, is new that Gertrude has learned about
the purification.”

“Ophelia, superstitions run the daily lives
of many people. We are able to relate to people of different times,
such as these, but it's unlikely we’d ever feel a real part of
these times for very long. Your modern education and upbringing
will make you always feel a bit of a stranger, no matter how long
we stay here. The time is coming where we will have to leave this
place forever. For our own safety as well as for the safety of
others. Know this, Ophelia, and promise me that you will always be
prepared to flee, with or without me and even with or without
Gertrude. We will always be connected, we will always find each
other again. As long as we draw breath.”

“You are scaring me, mother. I admit that I
have found it hard to speak the local dialect on occasion. I do
find myself forgetting sometimes. William seems to have a very
unusual speech pattern himself. I wonder about him.”

“It is dangerous, daughter, do not fall into
that trap.” Ophelia’s mother warned her. “If you start showing off
your knowledge, you risk being considered insane, or a
heretic.”

Ophelia found sleep hard to come by that
night, and also for the next couple of weeks as she looked forward
to seeing William and Gertrude again.

When the storms of the prior two mornings
ended and the sun came out to stay again, Ophelia decided to make a
return trip to the Palace. She was up very early and had bundled up
a good supply of her sister’s clothing to take with her, as well as
her hairbrush. She hugged her mother good-day and set out on her
way.

About twenty five minutes into her journey,
Ophelia sat down on a rock to rest and to also collect her
thoughts. She looked up when she noticed an old woman approach her.
The woman was bent over and used a larger tree branch as a
makeshift cane.

“Good tidings, Alma.” Ophelia greeted the
older woman.

“Good day, Alma answered. “Tis a young man in
the forest a day or two ago twas lookin for ye.”

“Looking for me? Did you know this young
man?” Ophelia asked.

“Naw. He’ in be pretty enough to the eyes,
wert polite in tongue.” Alma said.

“What did he say? What did you tell him?”
Ophelia asked her.

“He asked if I’d be knowin ye and if I knew
where thine be. Is ye hos around here. Of course, I dinna be tellin
him nothing.”

“Of course not. Thank ye, Alma, tis a good
friend you are.” Ophelia told her. Ophelia wanted to inquire more
about this young man. She wanted to determine if it had been
William who was looking for her, but she could not let her guard
down around anyone. Not even Alma.

Ophelia reached into her pocket and withdrew
an apple and handed it to the old woman. The woman took the apple,
smiled at Ophelia with an almost toothless grin and was on her way
again.

When Ophelia finally came to the clearing
where she could approach the Palace, she stopped to look around
her. She could understand why her sister would want to live in such
a grand place, but Ophelia worried greatly for her. Gertrude was
not known for her patience or ability to hold her tongue.

“Hello there, Ophelia, are you looking for
me?”

Ophelia had been so deep in thought she did
not see the young man until he spoke. “William, good day. I have
brought my sister her clothing.”

“I have heard sisters sometimes think alike.
Gertie has sent me on a mission to retrieve her garments. Mathew
and the King have departed and all is well with both Julia and your
sister. Come, you will be able to visit with her.”

Ophelia was very thankful that she did not
have to interact with the King or that dreadful Mathew that she met
on her last visit. She let William lead her into the Palace and she
was able to have a moment alone with Gertie when William said he
would announce her arrival to Julia.

“Tell me, sister, has there been any talk of
the purification? Are you sure you are safe here?” Ophelia
whispered to Gertrude.

“The King and Mathew have left the Palace,
along with some other men. All is well here except that there is to
be a new arrival shortly. A man they call the Great Evil and he was
paid a great deal of money to rid all of England of witches!”

Ophelia looked around here to make sure no
one else could hear. “But sister, should you not leave now with me,
before this Evil man arrives?” Ophelia asked, fear and concern in
her voice.

“I am fine and will be fine. I have nothing
to fear. The King was called away unexpectedly, so I am sure that
when the Evil comes that he will not want to stay. I do not want to
leave Julia. We brought forth a little man-child. Julia has named
him Hugo and he looks nothing like his father. I have grown rather
fond of Julia and I don’t think I could tear myself away from Hugo
if I wanted to. Come see, sister, come meet this beautiful little
boy.”

Ophelia spent a pleasant couple of hours in
the garden with Julia, Hugo, William and Gertrude. It was Ophelia’s
first chance to see the inside of the Palace and her sister gave
her the grand tour.

“Don’t be getting too used to the
accommodations, sister, hopefully you won’t be sticking around here
all that much longer.” Ophelia said, looking around at the
beautiful bed chambers that was assigned to her sister.

“I admit that it is a beautiful place to
spend my time, sister, but only until the King and Mathew return. I
feel very uneasy in their company. I feel that there is something
amiss with Julia, for she seems to prefer her time away from her
husband to her time with him. He does have eyes that cut right
through you. As soon as I am sure that Julia and Hugo are safe and
can manage on their own I will come back home. But as long as the
King and Mathew are away, I am not in a great rush to do so.”
Gertie told her sister jumping on her big comfortable bed.

“William mentioned the Great Evil’s arrival
will be soon. Be careful sister.” Ophelia said, giving Gertrude a
hug.

Ophelia and Gertrude walked back into the
garden where Julia, Hugo and William were finishing the lunch of
bread, tea, cheeses and fruits they shared. Before Ophelia said her
goodbyes she asked if she could hold Hugo for a moment. Ophelia
loved children and this little boy was a beautiful child and smiled
easily.

Ophelia put the baby over her shoulder to tap
his back to allow him to burp.

Gertrude smiled at the sight of her sister
with Hugo. She knew that Ophelia always wanted to have children and
she knew that she would make an excellent mother someday. Gertrude
saw Ophelia’s eyes grow wide and Gertrude looked to see if she
could determine what Ophelia was looking at that was causing such a
reaction. Ophelia looked as if she had seen something shocking.

“You are welcomed here any time, Ophelia.”
Julia told her as she took Hugo from her arms. Ophelia stammered
and said “thank you.”

“William went to bring around the wagon, he
will take you home.” Julia said. “Gertie, could you help me
upstairs? I have suddenly grown very tired.”

“Of course, Julia. God speed, sister. Thank
you for bringing my clothes. Commend me to our mother.”

Ophelia did not have another private moment
with Gertrude. William took her arm. “The wagon is around front,
are you ready to depart?”

Ophelia was still watching the staircase that
Gertrude, Julia and Hugo were ascending. “What? Oh, yes, thank you,
William.” She said, walking to the wagon.

William spoke of many things on their way
back into the forest. Ophelia could not concentrate, for her mind
was elsewhere.

Ophelia was puzzled and she wished she had a
few minutes with her own thoughts. She very much wanted to get to
know William better, but she was confused.

“Tis something bothering ye, Ophelia?”
William finally asked her.

“What?” Oh, no, why does thou ask,
William?”

“I have asked ye twice now if we are still on
the right path to your house, thou have not answered me.”

Ophelia looked around and then said “William,
we are very close. I would like to visit a friend of mine who lives
hither. Would thou mind very much if I left ye here? Thank you for
the ride.”

“No problem to do that, if you wish, but I
would be happy to take you to your friend’s house and even wait
until thou are ready to leave again.” William said hopefully. Even
though she was not in a talkative mood this afternoon, he was
enjoying their time together. “I am not needed back at the Palace
any time soon.”

“Thank you, but no. Could you let me off
here?” Ophelia asked, forcing herself to smile.

“Of course. I hope to see you again soon,
Ophelia.” William said, stopping the wagon and helping Ophelia
down.

Ophelia stood there and watched as William
turned around the wagon and headed back to the Palace. She sat down
on a rock and tried to gather herself. She was positive something
was not as it seemed in the Palace.

“Hello, Ophelia, we be meetin up agin!” Alma
called out, breaking Ophelia’s concentration.

“Good day, Alma.”

“Could ye help out an old woman, luv? Me
branch broke and tis hard on me bones to walk.” Alma said.

“Oh, of course.” Ophelia said. “Wait right
here, I think I see a nice sized branch over there. I’ll be right
back.”

Ophelia walked a bit into the forest away
from Alma, turned to make sure Alma could not see her, then pointed
at a tree while speaking a few words.

“Here you go, Alma, I think this limb will
suite you just fine.” Ophelia said, handing the sturdy but light
weight tree branch to the old woman. “Come, I will walk with ye the
rest of the way.”

Ophelia and Alma walked slowly and talked of
many things. Exchanging pleasantries to make their time on the path
enjoyable. As they came to the fork in the road where they would
part company, they bid each other good day and continued on
alone.

“Ophelia! I am so glad to see you back home.
Tell me, how is Gertrude and what did you learn during your visit
to the Palace?” Her mother asked, giving her daughter a big
hug.

“Gertrude is well, mother. The King’s cousin
Julia has given birth to a male child.” Ophelia said and then
stopped speaking, taking time to make her and her mother some
tea.

“Go on, child.” Her mother prompted her.

“Well, it’s just that…”

“Just that what, Ophelia? Is there danger
near?”

Ophelia sat on a stool across from her mother
and said “I can’t imagine how to begin to tell you.”

“Tell me what, Ophelia?” What has your
tongue? Is it Gertrude? Has she gotten herself into trouble yet
again?”

“No, mother, not Gertrude this time. Right
before I left, before saying my good-byes, I asked if I could hold
the little boy. Such a beautiful child he is, mother, so
intelligent too.”

“The boy cannot be more than a month old,
Ophelia. Don’t tell me that he has you now yearning for a young one
of your own!” Her mother laughed.

“What? No, mother, but it was so strange.
When I held the child, his name is Hugo. When I held Hugo and when
I burped him and had him close to my ear, I could swear he thanked
me.” Ophelia said.