It was the morning of the great spring tournament, an air of expectation filled the manor house as final preparations were made. Not everyone was in a good mood though.
Lady Bethany strode through the Great Hall, her dark blonde hair streaming behind her, following in her wake was her maid and best friend, Willow. The 16 year old lady of the manor was furious. She had just found out that she was to be married off to the mysterious Duke Mandrake and her own father had not even bothered to tell her.
She stopped in front of he father's chair. She was a formidable sight. Her hair was loose and falling down her back like a great wave. She was petite and slim, the total opposite of her father but she exuded anger, it flowed off her in dark waves. Willow stumbled to a halt behind her, coutesying to the Lord of the manor.
"Yes, daughter?" he said.
"How dare you do this to me!" she hissed at him.
The Lord was nonplussed, he was used to his daughter's tantrums. "It is for the good of the family. You are now at the age to be married and he is the best man for you. Buffy. . ." he used her childhood nickname, trying to put her off guard. It did not work.
"I see! I don't get a choice in this." Bethany's eyes flashed in anger. "Fine! Marry me off to the first rich man who comes along, but don't think, even for a moment, that you will get any heirs from this union. I will not allow it!" Bethany turned on her heel and stormed out of the Great Hall. Her father sighed.
"I must apologise for my Lady -" Willow began.
"No, no," the Lord waved her apologies away. "It is not your fault my daughter is headstrong. Maybe I should have remarried, at least then she would have had a mother. Go now, my daughter will need you." The Lord turned his back and Willow and stared into the roaring fire. She courtesied and hurried out after her Lady.
Willow was a white witch, as had many of her mother's family. She was Bethany's cousin and was learning the ways of court as part of her training. She followed the aura of anger through the manor house until she found Bethany in the kitchen with the son of the Captain of the guard, Alexander Lavelle. Alexander was pouring Bethany a mug of mead and trying to calm her down. The waves of anger pouring off her made Willow feel ill. She took a deep breath to steady herself and walked over to join Alexander and Bethany.
"My fairest Lady Buffy," Alexander was saying. "You know you should not make yourself angry on today of all days. Today is a time of happiness, and I am competing in the joust. How will I be able to concentrate if I know you are upset."
"I didn't know that." Willow said, pulling up a chair.
"Its a secret. I didn't want anybody to know, in case I did not finish my training in time."
Bethany took a long drink of mead. "I'm sorry, my friends. But father makes me so angry. How dare he go behind my back like that?"
"My fairest Buffy, please calm yourself." Alexander begged.
The waves of anger diminished. The three of them had grown up together, running riot in the manor house, climbing trees and getting lost in the woods. They were so close they could almost read each others minds.
The bell tower rang 11 times. "Come now, Bethany," Willow said. "We must get ready for the tournament. Good luck Alexander, we'll cheer for you."
"I will listen for you," Alexander replied with a smile.
* * *
A large pavilion had been erected on the front lawn of the manor house with a huge area fenced off for the jousts. Bethany took her place at her father's side, (who she ignored) she was dressed in a blue and gold gown with matching flowers woven into her hair, Willow was dressed in a plain dark blue druid's robe, indicating her profession. The afternoon's entertainment was just about to begin when the sentries horns sounded.
A knight dressed in black amour on a black stallion approached the pavilion. He reined in in front of the Lord and bowed to him, raising his visor her stared at Bethany. She hid a smile behind her hand.
"My lord," he addressed Bethany's father. "May I introduce myself. I am Angel of Galway. I have travelled across the seas to take part in your tournament. I pray I am not being to presumptuous by arriving unannounced."
"No, no," the Lord replied. "You have travelled far to be here, I would hardly turn you away. I welcome you to my house and wish you luck in the jousts." He turned to the gathered spectators. "May the tournament begin!" a cheer rang out from the crowd and the competitors moved to take their places.
The tournament was fast and furious. All the competitors proved their worth, but soon there were only two left, the mysterious Sir Angel and Alexander. They faced each other from opposite ends of the huge arena of churned earth. Lady Bethany stood up and leaned over the railings. In her hand was a length of blue silk, the same shade as her gown. She dropped the silk, its fluttering to the ground the signal for the final joust to begin.
As the silk left Bethany's hand both Alexander and Angel spurred their horses forward. Willow closed her eyes as they gained on each other, afraid of seeing Alexander hurt. The horses thundered across the arena, the two fighter's lances at the ready. Neither competitor wavered from their course. Bethany followed Willow's actions and closed her eyes. A huge crash of metal filled the air. Both girl's eyes shot open to see Alexander lying on the floor.
Angel whirled his horse around and trotted over to where Alexander lay. He reached down to pull him to his feet and when satisfied that Alexander was not badly hurt, dismounted and knelt in front of Bethany and her father.
"I am very impressed with your valour," the Lord said. "As the winner of this tournament, your prize is a kiss from my daughter."
Angel looked up at this and removed his helmet. Bethany smothered a gasp. He was very handsome. His dark hair was plastered against his head, dark brown eyes looked straight at Bethany, she smiled at him. He smiled back, it lit his face up. She glanced down and picked up the blue silk lying at his feet.
"I think this belongs to you, my Lady." He handed the silk handkerchief back to her.
"Thank you, Sir Knight." She leant towards him and kissed him lightly on the lips.
Bethany's world exploded around her. It was as if she was floating in a white light, the only person she was aware of was the knight kneeling before her. It was a magical moment. Time stood still. She could smell his hair, the oil from his armour, her lips felt on fire. The white light faded around her and was replaced by the jousting arena.
She pulled away from him. "Congratulations, Sir Angel. Would you like to partake in our festivities this evening?"
"I would be honoured." He replied. "Please excuse me, I must se to my horse." He stood up, bowed to Bethany's father and walked back to his horse. The crowd began to drift away and smells of cooking drifted from the manor house. Alexander limped over to where Bethany, her father and Willow stood.
"Well done," the Lord said, clapping Alexander on the back. "You did yourself proud on this field."
"Thank you," Alexander replied. The Lord went back to the manor house.
"You were fantastic!" Willow hugged Alexander.
"Yes," agreed Bethany she gave him a kiss on the cheek. "You deserve that, you proved your valour, as my father would say."
"Thank you, Willow, Buffy." Alexander said.
"Come on," Willow said, taking Alexander by the hand. "Let's get you cleaned up." She led him back to the manor house leaving Bethany alone on the field. A chill wind blew from the east. It was getting late. Inside the house the lights were being lit and within a few minutes the manor house blazed with light. Bethany raised a hand to her face and touched her lips, they still tingled. What had happened? She was confused. Who was this mysterious knight? Her family were not that powerful, or famous, so how did he hear about them? There was more to this Black Knight than met the eye.
* * *
The celebrations were in full swing, the Great Hall was filled with light and sound. Everybody was here, including Bethany's betrothed, Duke Mandrake. She tried to spend as little time as possible with him, he frightened her. There was something about him that screamed 'danger' at her. If only she could work out what it was.
Willow and Alexander were dancing with many other couples in the middle of the hall, Bethany caught a glimpse of her father dancing with Alexander's mother. She smiled, it was nice to see him enjoying himself.
She sensed someone standing behind her. She turned around and was face to face with Sir Angel. She courtseied. "Good evening, Sir knight. I hope you are enjoying yourself." She smiled at him. He was dressed in a maroon velvet shirt and black trousers. A silver cross hung around his neck. He cut a dashing figure.
"I will have an even better time if you would dance with me." Sir Angel smiled at her.
"I would be honoured, Sir Knight," Bethany replied. The band struck up a new song as he lead her onto the dancefloor. She felt so safe in his arms. She could sense his strength. Bethany wished that he was her betrothed, rather than the old Duke. As Angel whirled her around she caught a glimpse of Duke Mandrake standing by the fireplace, his face a mask of anger. She crowd shifted and she lost sight of him. She lost herself in the music and Angel's arms.
After three dances she was out of breath and excused herself. She joined Willow and Alexander. Willow had a silly grin on her face. "What's up with you?" Bethany asked.
"Alexander just asked for my hand in marriage!" she replied.
"Oh, my! That's fantastic news. I'm so pleased for you!" she gave both of her friends a kiss.
"You look to be enjoying yourself," Willow chuckled.
"Yes, I am. Our mysterious knight is much better company than the old Duke." Bethany confided. The sound of raised voices caught her attention, she turned and saw Duke Mandrake arguing with Sir Angel. It looked quite heated. Sir Angel put his goblet down on a table and walked out of the Hall, Mandrake followed still shouting.
"This does not look good." Bethany said to Willow. "We ought to see what is going on." The three friends followed the two men.
They peeped around the main doors of the manor house and saw the two men framed in the moonlight. Mandrake had drawn his sword and was waving it in the face of the knight. Mandrake continued to provoke him until the knight unsheathed his sword and the duel began. The three friends watched in shocked horror.
The knight and the duke were evenly matched. The swords flashed in the moonlight, the music from the great hall drowning out sounds of the fight. Neither duellist looked like giving in, they parried backwards and forwards. Then Mandrake managed to find a gap in Angel's defence and slashed his side, deeply. From their hiding place Bethany could see Angel's blood well from the gash. She ran out and stood between them, trying to stop the fight, trying to protect Angel from the deadly blade.
Mandrake could not stop his downward thrust, the momentum carried his hand forward, the sword slid between Bethany's ribs. Willow screamed and ran out to her friend, Alexander close behind.
Time slowed down for Bethany, she felt the sword slide in, but she felt no pain. She heard Willow's screams which brought her father running. She saw the shocked look on the Duke's face. She felt herself sink slowly to the ground. She saw her father kill the Duke with his sword and the tears running down his face as he knelt by his only daughter.
Bethany felt cold.
"Oh Buffy," her father cried. Willow was on the other side, powerless to stop the mortal wound from letting her bleed to death. She saw Sir Angel bay the side of her.
"I beg your forgiveness, Lady. It is all my fault and if you wish it so I will kill myself now."
"No," she managed to say. She handed him her silk handkerchief. "Pledge yourself to my father, protect my friends." A line of blood dribbled out of her mouth and down her cheek. "Willow, Alexander, you have my blessing, may your lives be long and happy. I will be waiting for you." She was suddenly racked with shivers.
"We will meet again," she whispered. She breathed once more and her chest stilled, her eyes stared blankly at the moon shining uncaringly down on the scene.
Willow's wails filled the air.
It went dark.
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