Palace Walls

Part Twenty-Two

"So Calliope lent her the  lacy scarlet mourning gown, the one with pretty roses on the shoulders, knowing full well what would happen to her."

--Grand Historian Penelope Oltu

Lady Keturah Djere de Djere wasn't banished from the Palace. Yet. She tried to make it up to Her Majesty-- she wrote letter after letter, until her hand hurt. She cooked dinner after dinner, gave jewel after jewel, only to be rejected. As tough as Her Majesty was, she could never hide her feelings.

"You are an Oracle, Lady Keturah," the Queen advised, her voice thin and sour. "Why don't you focus on that?!"

"Not until you accept my apologies. We were together, once upon a time, remember?"

The Queen crossed her legs, blushing pink.

"Get to the point, Milady."

" I should never have slept with your husband; I know I...we loved each other once. It was...I hit you where it hurt...and...you decided to change sides."

"I still like women," the Queen said sharply, "But I love my husband. We were done years ago."

Lady Keturah staggered forward, wrapping her hand around the Queen's. Her pink lips parted slowly.

"Please, Clotilda...we had such a fine time together!"

The Queen jerked away.

"Let it go. You will find someone better than me, if that's what you want."

"I need your peace and forgiveness."

"Well, what am I supposed to do, play a harp in the woods?!"

"No, I just...."

"And how dare you wear my mourning dress in my presence!"

"But Calliope told me...!"

"You are nothing but dust in my world."

Lady Keturah rushed upstairs, tears streaming down her cheeks. She felt like such an idiot, expecting the most powerful in...well, the world...to forgive her for such wrongdoing. Queenie is right, though, I am an Oracle, I can see the future before anyone dreams of it! She swayed into her lavender chamber, closed her eyes, and lifted her fingers in the air. She sifted it for spiritual threads, for a wisp of a wisp of a being. Yeoch! The scent of an icewax candle drifted through the wind, and it hit her...a smile! A smooth, white one shrouded in full red lips. Lady Keturah's heart thundered in her ears-- this could either be the best thing, or the worst the world had ever seen.

She tumbled back into her couch. The candle went out, so all that remained was thin, musty smoke, and her eyes opened to a vision of swirling light. The world shivered and screamed like a parrot on her shoulder. I will find someone, she told herself, Just not the most beautiful woman I have ever known.

XXX

Hatcher Chu stuffed the last of his fluffy slippers into the suitcase, shoving the zipper shut with a hard, shrill zhriiiif! He panted and checked his watch. Twenty decahours, two halfseconds! Glancing at his small blue bed and stiff wire headboard, he knew he would never sleep here again. Never look at Calliope's face again, and definitely not execute any more trembling prisoners. He squeezed his eyes shut, jumping at the memory of their long, hoarse screams.