The castle loomed, growing bigger and wider, its spires taller the closer we got to it. The bitter wind blew, and I hoped the inside of the castle would not be as cold.
Then again, Winter himself lived here, so I didn’t know why I was hoping for something different. I guess, when it all got down to it, I did like the summer season more. I’d rather sweat than shiver.
A kernel of unease settled in my gut when I saw the castle’s magnificent front door. Everything was made of some kind of white or light blue rock, the glass panes frosted over with ice, like frozen spiderwebs. The door, which seemed to be inlaid with gold and silver, opened of its own accord when we neared.
All very beautiful, of course. More beautiful than I could ever have imagined, when this castle was nothing but a tiny thing in the distance. Standing here, beneath its tall towers, it was almost unbelievable, so inspiring and grand that there was no way human hands had built this. This whole place… magic had erupted this castle and its grounds out of nothing, transposed it on the side of this mountaintop, overlooking the valley, the kingdom Winter ruled over with his brother.
I’d never heard of a human marching up here, though I bet many had tried. If I had to guess, I’d say Winter’s magic kept any wandering humans—or marching armies—steered away from his castle, his fortress in the middle of nowhere. I would bet the only humans Winter ever allowed inside were his brides.
Me, I had to remind myself, because all of this was starting to feel less and less real. Ironic, since I was now closer than ever to Winter himself, to meeting my future husband and marching forward into the next twenty-five years of my life.
The messenger tugged on the horse’s mane, stopping it just before the open door. He slid off first, helping me down, and after rubbing the horse’s backside and giving it a small smack, the horse trotted off in the snowy courtyard, looking as relieved as I felt for no longer having to carry two riders.
Riding a horse for days on end? Turned out it wasn’t too comfortable, especially in a dress, especially if you weren’t used to riding horses. I’d ridden before, but only for a short time. Never for days. I’d never left the village before, so there was nowhere to ride a horse to.
The messenger walked ahead of me, and I struggled to keep his pace, too busy taking in the castle around me after we walked in. Just like before, the door to the main hall shut on its own, magic laced in every single thing here, it seemed.
If the outside was gorgeous, the inside was even more so. You could definitely tell not many souls had ever stepped foot here, but it was clean. No dust, no cobwebs, everything spick and span. It was still a little cold in here, but nowhere near the chill the outside air held, no random snowflakes falling from the ceiling or anything like that. The candelabras on the walls, where there should be candles lit with flame, held what looked like icicles that glowed with an otherworldly magic to light the area.
Of course, because fire was a summer thing. An Ishan thing.
I assumed I had to follow the messenger, so that’s what I did. He led me through the main hall, to an adjacent hall that held rooms on one side and tall, towering windows on the other. From those windows, you could practically see the entire kingdom spanning the land at the foot of the mountain. I slowed my pace for only a moment, wondering where my village was. From here, the kingdom appeared huge, much bigger than I ever thought it was.
After a while, the messenger dropped me off in what must be a bedroom. My room. As I studied the large, spacious area, the messenger spoke for the first time since the village, saying, “You will remain here. Food will be brought to you. When it is time for the wedding, you will be notified.” With a bow of his armored head, he exited the room, closing the door behind him and leaving me there alone to wonder about it all.
Such as, how did this place get its food? And I had to remain in this room, all by myself, until the wedding? I wouldn’t even see my future husband before the ceremony? That didn’t feel right to me.
The room was large with its own windows and ice-covered candelabras. The bed held a translucent canopy of the thinnest fabric I’d ever seen. Dressers of every size, chests of all kinds, littered the room, making its grey stone walls feel a bit warmer. A fireplace that appeared as if it had not seen use in years sat across the bed, the only thing in this place that was covered in dust.
A small washroom sat adjoined to the room. A bath level with the floor, along with a full-length mirror and what looked to be a chamber pot attached to the tiled floor. There were these weird contraptions, levers that looked out of place, and with a little fiddling, I realized what they were: some kind of moving mechanism for the water. To take a bath here, all I’d need to do was turn the lever near the bath and water would come out of its mouth. No multiple trips to a well necessary.
That was… that was quite extraordinary, and I wondered if magic had anything to do with it.
I discovered the same thing with the chamber pot, which meant no lingering smells or having to empty and clean it myself. Huh. Imagine all of the time something like this would save if it was prominent in every house in the kingdom.
Wandering out of the washroom, I sat on the edge of the bed, sighing as I gazed down at my dress. No longer white, in spite of the many times I had tried to keep it clean. I doubted this would be my wedding dress; in a big, fancy castle like this, there would surely be a ballgown I’d wear, or something.
Then again, come to think of it, as I’d followed the messenger through the halls of the castle, we hadn’t crossed paths with anyone else. It was almost as if this castle was deserted, which didn’t bode well, in my eyes.
Eventually I got up and wandered to the dressers, checking them out. I found clothes in every drawer, along with more dresses in the tallest one, hanging there, as if waiting for me to put them on. Waiting for me to arrive.
I pulled one out, studying it. Shiny and silver, like the messenger’s armor. Pretty, though, and it looked more comfortable than the dress I’d been wearing these last few weeks. I ended up changing, finally getting out of the dress my ma made me, along with changing my underthings and pulling on new boots. You’d be surprised at how dirty things could still be, even after washing them in a river.
What I should do was take a nice bath. Soaps of all kinds sat in the washroom, some with immaculate scents, but I felt the need to investigate this castle. I felt the need to do anything but sit here and listen to the messenger like a good girl.
I stared at myself in the floor-length mirror resting in the corner of the room. Wearing this silver gown, I appeared paler than I knew I was. My blonde hair was a bit dirty, but I didn’t care. Right now, this would do. As I decided that, I spun around, my intent to spend some time getting to know the halls of this castle, but I found I was suddenly not alone in my room anymore.
Ishan sat on my bed, his tunic open near his neck to show his collarbone and the smooth, muscular, dark skin on his chest. His brown hair was a bit ruffled, and he wore an easy smile that made my stomach do a few flips.
He was a devastating kind of handsome, I’d give him that. He also would always have surprise on his side, apparently, able to miraculously appear to me whenever he desired. I should be annoyed at that, but as I gazed upon him, as I worked to calm my heart and my stomach down, I realized I wasn’t.
I think I liked that I had his favor, even if I was set to marry his brother.