A Royal Sacrifice Ch. 07

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"I will take my leave of you, my Queen, until the morrow when I shall see you again for your lessons." Muriel stood and curtsied, and before the younger woman could respond, she disappeared from her chambers.

* * * * * * * * *

Muriel had wanted to confront Benedict right away. However, chores kept on popping up, and there were messes to clean. It wasn't until the day that Evelyn defied convention and rode into the village with Prince Drest that Muriel had her chance. The castle was quiet, all chambers had been cleaned. The house keeper was a very nervous woman as she approached Benedict's door. Just as her hand was extended to knock upon the door it opened, revealing an expectant Benedict on the other side.

"Now you listen here..." Muriel began loudly. Before she got to finish what she wanted to say, his hand was placed over her mouth.

"Would you be quiet? Now come with me." His tone was harsh. Before she knew it, he had grabbed her arm and drug her into his office, shutting the door behind him.

"I do not know what this is about, but whatever it is had better be good. I have business to attend to." He let go of her as he spoke, and stared into her eyes. Something about the look in them made him seem almost cold.

"What is wrong with you?" sputtered Muriel. "First you are harsh, then you start to break through and be a real man, and now you are again acting like a self-righteous bastard." She knew she had to be forward and thus she was, her hands on her hips as she met his eyes.

Benedict blinked a few times, the man more than shocked that Muriel would have yet another outburst. He knew she could be bold, but something like this he thought was beyond her. Apparently the man was wrong. A none too soft sigh escaped his lips. His head then shook; he wasn't too sure what to make of this situation.

"Muriel, I can explain." He spoke in a monotone voice, trying not to be harsh but at the same time trying not to let his emotions get the best of him.

"You had better explain, Your High Excellency. You may be of position in this castle and ranked higher than I, but your cold behavior is getting just a little bit old and outdated." She spoke quickly; her lines had been rehearsed.

"You would do well to remember that, my dear, and treat me with the respect my position dictates I receive." He lifted his hand to touch her cheek. Muriel did not stop him.

"It is not the Chancellor that I am interested in, it is the man beneath the robes. The man that I saw in your room that night, the man that..." Muriel was cut short by his chuckle and the shake of his head, her cheek grew red as she became flustered because she wasn't being taken seriously.

"That was a mistake," said Benedict. "I should not have let him out, and he will not come out again." His hand came down from her cheek, his glare stone cold. "Now please leave, I have matters of importance to tend to." While his tone was harsh, his eyes told a different story, a story of pain and loneliness.

Muriel simply sighed, her arms folded across her chest as she tilted her head down. She didn't know what to think, or do. She knew what she had been thought of, but apparently her thoughts had been wrong. Defeated, she turned to make her way out of the office, but paused.

"To think I thought you a real man with feelings. I could not have been more wrong." She whispered as she walked to the door. She had just started to open it when Benedict spoke in response.

"I can be, it is just..." He began, but they were interrupted by one of the castle guards.

"Come quick, Your High Excellency, there has been an incident with the queen..." The guard didn't even get to finish before both Muriel and Benedict ran out of the office, their own drama replaced with concern for their queen.

* * * * * * * * *

"It will be alright my poppet, I promise no one will hurt you." Muriel sat with Evelyn, her arms around her to hold her close.

On the other side of the queen's chambers, Benedict questioned those involved, learning what had happened. The murder of Michael and Sarah, the queen's 'parents,' spoke of an attack upon the queen herself. Benedict wanted to speak with Evelyn, but any time he would try, Muriel just give him a glare. The queen didn't need his harshness; what she needed at the moment was tender loving care. The older maid was the one to provide it in the form of whispered words and comforting touches. Her body rocked with the young woman in her arms.

"I saw it... My parents... they..." Evelyn tried to speak, but when she couldn't Muriel would shush her and continue her comfort.

Everyone knew it was going to be a long night, but still, things needed to be done and Benedict set an investigation into motion. Muriel saw personally to the care of the queen, and though she was only a housekeeper, she knew that she was needed. She did all she could, and while not a mother herself, she could not help but to feel for the young woman. Her goal was to comfort her like the daughter she never had.

"Come, my poppet, let us get away from here." Still holding on to Evelyn she rose, lending her strength to her queen as the younger woman had not much left.

"Where are you going with her?" Benedict's head snapped about so that the two women were in view, a slight glare in his eyes as if he still wanted to question Evelyn.

"She is going for a bath and to lay down, she needs her rest." Muriel did not hesitate in her reply to the Chancellor, her tone told him there were no questions to be had about the situation.

Muriel had essentially defied him in public, and that made Benedict more than a little mad. However, he had other matters to deal with. Later, he figured, he would speak to her on the subject. As he turned away from the two women, Muriel escorted the queen to her bath. She wanted nothing more than to comfort the girl and get her to relax. So that's what she did, bringing her to her room to give her a nice bath and rock her in her arms until the young woman fell asleep.

* * * * * * * * *

The older woman spent many days with the younger one, the two of them bonding along with the queen's lady-in-waiting, Rebecca. Muriel had no issues with the young servant, though she did see Rebecca as a younger version of herself. One that needed guidance, one that needed to be shown what to do in difficult situations. So the older woman acted as both mentor and friend, her years of experience around people showing through.

A reticent Benedict did not bother her during this time, leaving the women to their vices. The truth of the matter was that he had no idea how to deal with his feelings for Muriel. Doing so would mean bringing out his softer side, and it had been too many years since he had done so. At the same time, he could feel something being drawn out of him. As he carefully watched Muriel from afar, he would notice a few things about himself, about how he responded to her movements. Things that he had long since thought dead.

He paced in his study one night as he thought about it, wondered what it was about this woman that brought about these feelings. He had felt this way once before, however his duties had gotten in the way of him taking the chance. He still had those duties now, but the circumstances were different. In his younger days, he had the chance to take advantage of a woman with more questionable morals than Muriel. The house keeper was no such woman.

"Damn it, get out of my head! Leave me alone and stop doing this to me!" He stopped in the middle of the room, glaring up to the ceiling.

He'd had outbursts on more than one occasion, using it is a ritual of cleansing his mind . It did not help, in fact it only seemed to make him think of Muriel more. He could not help but wonder if she thought of him in such a manner, or if her earlier words of his character were all that was on her mind when it came to thoughts of him. Benedict needed to know... however, there was a ceremony to prepare for. The queen's insistence upon reestablishing the Knights of Vix bothered him, but ultimately, it was her decision alone to make.

* * * * * * * * *

Benedict found her in the halls late that evening, after the ceremony. "Come with me, woman, we have words to exchange, and I will not do such here." He took a hold of Muriel's arm, then proceeded to guide her to his study.

She noticed something different in his touch; his hand did not grip her flesh as roughly as it had before. He was much more gentle. If she did not know better, Muriel would think that perhaps he had a heart after all. The thought made her own heart flutter. The idea of his apparently stone-cold heart warming because of her was something that pleased her much more than she expected.

As the two silently made their way to his study, Muriel sighed and shook her head, chastising herself for her thoughts. She knew she was mystified by her feelings for Benedict, and sensed he felt the same way. She had no idea what he wished to speak with her about, she had no idea what was on his mind. The longer it took to get to his study the more she found herself curious, something Muriel had not expected at all.

As soon as they entered his study, he closed the door behind them, then motioned over to a comfortable chair for Muriel to sit in. There was something about Benedict that seemed odd, but she couldn't place her finger on it. Was it about the Knighthood? Benedict had opposed the resurrection of what he considered an outdated order, especially considering her choices. A cobbler's son and a stableboy? Had Evelyn chosen them to vex Benedict on purpose?

"Your High Excellency..." Muriel began. However, as Benedict sat down, he held up a single finger to hush her.

"I can keep silent no more." He spoke softly, almost as if he was afraid that he'd be heard.

Curiously Muriel tilted her head, she could not help but wonder what he spoke about. His manners were all off, he seemed withdrawn. He watched her, of course, to study her reaction to what he would tell her. His manner piqued her curiosity, forced Muriel to think.

"I am worried for the kingdom," Benedict said. "Since Bagdemagus came to the queen. I do not know what his plans are. I fear for Evelyn, which is why I am speaking to you."

Muriel nodded and Benedict continued to speak. "I know Evelyn trusts Cedric and John, however, I myself am not so sure. They are but newly trained knights, how could we trust the future of our kingdom to common men?"

She could tell that Benedict was worried, though Muriel knew information that he did not. At the same time, while she had never seen something affect Benedict as this did, she was more concerned for the fact that the mage had come to see him. That thought made Muriel shiver, her arms folded uncomfortably across her chest. "I trust the Knights with Evelyn's life," she said softly. "After all, they are the only ones that we know of to wound the wizard."

Benedict shot up from his seat, his words more harsh as he questioned her. "They what!? Why was I not told this before? Why has no one brought this information to my attention? And here I thought the man immortal!"

"Calm down," Muriel answered. "We did not tell you because we were not sure. Both Cedric and John claim the wizard had been wounded, but given his reputation, Evelyn did not want anyone getting cocky. But Bagdemagus showed her the scars, though they were supernaturally healed." She shook her head and let out a sigh, though Benedict could tell that something else was going on with her. Something that bothered her deeply.

Once more his whole demeanor changed, his features becoming much more soft than they had been before. Certainly, he was concerned for what had happened with the queen; at the moment, however, he was more concerned for Muriel. Walking over to her, he knelt in front of where she sat, placed his hands gently upon her knees while he looked up to her.

"Something else is on your mind, Muriel, and there is also something on my mind. It is of a greatly personal nature, if my guess is correct. You may not wish to speak of it, but I do. I need to." This time when he spoke, she noticed a difference in his tone.

Perhaps, had his tone of voice had not changed so drastically, Muriel would not have been caught off guard, but when she heard him speak with care in his voice, she was startled, touched. She did not know what to say. She went to look down to her lap so that she could perhaps get a moment to think, however his hand came to her chin and lifted her head ever so gently so that she now looked to him. That is when the strangest thing happened: Benedict's lips curled up into a gentle smile.

"I have noticed things happen when I am around you," he said. "I find myself once more starting to feel. I have been around many women, I have even been with women." He chuckled as if it was ironic, if one took stock in the rumors that surrounded him. "This has only ever happened to me once, but this thing that I feel..." It was Benedict's turn to withdraw. His hand dropped from her chin as he looked down to the floor between the chair and his knees.

"Is not something you expected." Muriel spoke softly, his sentence finished by her words. "It came out of nowhere, took you by surprise. The last thing you expected was to feel something for a little old housekeeper."

Benedict looked up as she spoke those last words, his surprised eyes went wide. Without any words being spoken, he shifted on his knees, placing his forehead against hers as he let out a sigh. He wondered why she thought so lowly of herself, then he realized that at least some of it had to do with the way he had treated her.

"That is not entirely true, it may have been the last thing that I expected after so many years of nothing. It is not because you are some house keeper, you are not just some old housekeeper. You are a wonderful woman, Muriel, one that has captured my attention and made me wish to explore these feelings a little more." He slipped back as he spoke and gave her a smile, his eyes intently watched her because he wished to know just what she thought of his words.

Her cheeks turned red, and a soft smile crossed her lips. Muriel's heart skipped a beat as he would not only call her a wonderful woman but also speak of his desire. She had not expected this from Benedict. Hs confession was strange enough, but for him to open up like this was not something she had imagined would happen in 100 years.

Benedict would have been worried, then, had it not been for that smile of hers, the smile that always struck his heart though it had never been meant for him. But unlike those times, this one was for him. This time, the smile had come out because of the man he was and who he wanted to be again. Benedict rose and offered his hands, hoping that she would take them and rise with him.

Muriel gingerly placed her fingers upon his. She rose on her own, but was touched by Benedict's gentlemanly offer. She kept her eyes on his; the woman had no idea what to expect from him, as at this point, he had become totally unpredictable. Not that she minded the chance to see this side of him, of course.

"But you must go to bed, and so must I. We both have work to do in the morning, and it would be improper of me to keep you up for any longer than I already have." He spoke softly; apparently Benedict was full of surprises today.

Slowly, carefully, Benedict lifted each of Muriel's hands to his lips, kissing them softly in turn. He then looked to her with a smile, offered his arm and waited for her to take it. Carefully her arm was placed in the crook of his elbow, and the pair of them walked toward the door of his office.

Muriel spoke softly as they made it to the door, reluctant to go. "Good night, Your High Excellency, I shall see you on the morrow."

"Please, call me Benedict." He hesitantly opened the door for her; he had no desire for her to go, but neither could he ask her to remain. After so long, the idea of wooing a woman was a daunting one.

"Goodnight, then... Benedict." She spoke those words as her hand slipped from his arm. Benedict watched as Muriel began her walk down the hallway. The two of them had much to think about, much to think about indeed.

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5 Comments
rosamundirosamundiabout 13 years ago
Wonderfully tender

I wish you would write more here, you are brilliant.

DarkniciadDarkniciadover 16 years ago
Ahhh...

So there doth lurk the heart of a man beneath Benedict's iron hard exterior. Well done, you've really brought these two out into three vibrant dimensions.

AnonymousAnonymousover 16 years ago
Sweetest chapter yet

Left me really wanting to know what will happen with those two. Hey, I might even lend a hand :)

Maharat

slyc_willieslyc_willieover 16 years ago
The beginnings of romance

Though i was privy to an advance copy, I enjoyed reading this again. The effort you made to detail who Muriel and Benedict are is commendable. I anticipate the relationship that develops between these two.

RedHairedandFriendlyRedHairedandFriendlyover 16 years ago
Very nice...

You wove a sweet tale, in the end linking all the chapters together to give us the history on our Muriel and Benedict. I am very glad you decided to write in the Chain and I look forward to seeing this particular relationship between our maid and our "High Excellency" blossom - unless old Bags has somethin' up his sleeve! Thanks again for telling a great story. ~ Red

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