"It's a surprise..."
"Another one?"
Snow White's smile was as beautiful as it was incredulous. The people watching the scene were captivated by the serene atmosphere and continued to follow the queen and princess with their eyes until they disappeared on horseback outside the castle. Grimilde had taken an alternative route, moving away from the center of the capital; there was a passage that led outside the walls, passing through the back of the castle. The road was covered with thick vegetation, thus obscuring the passage, which nevertheless remained guarded.
The castle faced a mountainside, an area difficult to attack. The queen and some palace guards had created a safe path to the forest, following signs that were not easily visible or recognizable.
Queen Grimilde was no fool; she knew the risks of a secret passage, which, no matter how hidden, would still be a weakness. The real reason she had created it was to ensure there would be an escape route for the castle's inhabitants, should war ever come.
Grimilde had listened for hours to the old king's concerns and speculation regarding the continent's shifting political dynamics, and he had told her of a future filled with perils and power plays.
Grimilde knew how wise the king was; she had seen him with her own eyes and had heard of him long before she became his bride. If there was something she lacked in him, it was his foresight and ability to lead: at times she wondered if she was enough as a queen, if she would save her country in the event of conflict, and the despair, at times, was so profound it suffocated her. Reigning was tiring, as was feigning eternal security from morning to night: she knew she had to project an image of stability and invincibility, which made her special, worthy of being the leader of thousands upon thousands of people, but this knowledge made the task even more daunting.
That said, ascending the throne had been a long and tortuous process, but now that she had power, she would use it to the best of her ability, doing good and protecting Arran from external and internal hostility, from instability and famine.
She was the queen, she felt it marked in her spirit, she was Grimilde of Arran.
At a certain point, the arms around the queen's waist tightened, and Snow White's face rested against her back. The blonde stiffened, feeling shivers spread along her spine: "Are you all right?"
"Yes... but I feel you're far away..."
"Far away? And yet, our bodies are pressed together."
"That's true, but I'm not talking about our bodies."
Grimilde began to slow down as she recognized the path leading to the small waterfall. She wanted to show it to the princess: she was sure she would be enchanted by it.
The horse's pace became lighter and gradually slowed; when it stopped, Grimilde was the first to dismount, then carefully helped the girl land on the ground. "What name did you choose for him?" the queen asked, taking the reins of Snow White's horse; Snow White seconded the change of subject and replied, following her along the path: "Why don't you help me choose?"
The vegetation was beginning to feel strained by the cold wind but was still vibrant under the rays of the evening sun. The princess looked around smiling, listening to the sound of birds chirping and the sound of their footsteps on the foliage covering the ground. Autumn would soon give way to winter.
"It's a strong, young horse... in my language, we call them straengen. In the north of the continent, animals are respected and sacred; they aren't killed without a reason."
"Then... What about hunting?"
"We do hunt. We simply respect nature's gifts and don't take more than is necessary for survival. We must maintain the balance of the living world, whether human, animal, or plant."
"The more you tell me about your land, the more I want to know. Your roots, your culture, the thoughts of your people, your rituals... I want to discover everything." Snow White stated in a faint voice, thinking aloud. She truly wanted it, and if she could, she would have left right then and there. Grimilde didn't speak for several minutes, until, having reached a more densely wooded stretch of road, she turned to the princess: "We're close."
It seems difficult to converse with her today, the girl thought, with a look of confusion and disappointment. She didn't understand why it was so difficult to continue a conversation with the queen, almost as if the latter had put up defenses as soon as they had changed.
She reached the edge of the forest.
"I'll call him Strae, what do you say?"
"Strae? I like it..."
Before Snow White could continue, Grimilde pushed aside some branches that were blocking the path, and it was then that the princess began to hear a sort of rustling sound... no, it wasn't even that. It was rushing water. The wind hit her in the face, but not aggressively, and in no time she found herself before a wonderful scene. Before her eyes, a waterfall appeared, not very large, but large enough to create a small lake, hidden by the mountainside and the surrounding forest.
"This is..."
"Really wonderful, isn't it?"
Grimilde had tied her horse to a nearby tree, and when she returned to the princess, the latter had already taken off her boots to touch the water with her feet. She was on the edge of the pond, on a large boulder resting in the water, big enough to accommodate three people. The queen didn't hesitate to join her, and this time she also took off her shoes, dipping her bare feet into the clear water. She shivered. "It's not really cold, thanks to the sun, but it does give you the shivers," Snow White whispered, smiling at the queen. She then looked at the woman's feet, admiring their elegance: "One day you'll have to explain to me how you manage to be so perfect."
"What are you talking about?" the queen asked, turning to her. Snow White didn't look up and moved her feet in the water, splashing her a little. "Everything about you is perfect... you are beautiful, elegant in everything you do, always in control of your faculties, you are powerful, decisive and wise, cultured—!" She didn't finish her sentence, because the queen covered her lips with her hand, giving her a very serious expression. Snow White was convinced she had offended her somehow and frowned; she tried to remove her hand and succeeded, but the queen's gaze silenced her again:
"You're idealizing me... Darling, I am human, just like you. I am made of flesh and blood, I suffer, I despair, I am vulnerable, and above all, I can make mistakes. Believe me, I am far from perfect..."
"Ilde..." The girl grabbed the woman's hand, squeezing it and pulling her toward her: "I'm sorry. Forgive me, for I was wrong... I admit that I grew up under the guise of you being a divine creature fallen from the sky." She blushed, and so did the woman beside her. Grimilde remained silent for a moment, contemplating those words that had left her breathless.
She had to admit that she, too, had idealized the princess at first, much like she did the entire kingdom, but no matter how hard she tried to convince herself that it was an abstraction, an unreal construction of Snow White's figure, one look was enough to solidify every thought about her. She was the most beautiful person in the kingdom, even the mirror said so, but for her, she was even more beautiful on the entire continent, and she shone like a star, with her radiant smile and lively eyes. Not to mention her big heart, her kindness and sweetness, her sensitivity, but also her stubbornness and the strength she summoned in times of need.
"Perhaps... I idealized you too. At least some time ago." She admitted at the end of her long internal monologue, in which she had extolled Snow White's virtues.
"In what way, if I may ask."
"You can ask me anything, you know..." She took a deep breath, raising her eyes to the waterfall. "In my eyes, you are the divine creature, but no matter how hard I try to deny this illusion, I can't. When I look at you, the conviction that you are a gift to this world resonates within me."
At that point, Snow White couldn't contain her emotions. She approached the queen with her upper body, taking advantage of her pose to steal a kiss on her cheek before she could turn around. Grimilde didn't move at first, shocked by that quick but affectionate gesture. Was it right to desire her lips again? Could she steal a kiss from her, just as she had done?
"When I spend time with you, I forget many things," the queen revealed, admiring Snow White's eyes illuminated by the sunset. Soon the sky would darken. "I don't know if it's a good thing... I'm used to always being in control, and when that's taken from me, I... I..." her voice trembled, but she didn't continue the sentence, she didn't finish her thoughts, because her desires had taken over, and when her cerulean eyes rested on the princess's lips, their distance had closed even further. Before she knew it, she found herself a breath away from the lips of that beautiful woman with ebony hair and snow-white skin. "Ilde..."
"Snow White..." Grimilde sighed and closed her eyes, ready to retreat and regret what she had wanted.
She couldn't help but try to do something to the princess, but something stopped her. Snow White's hands cupped the blonde's face, her fingers caressing her cheeks, heated by shyness and embarrassment, and she whispered, "Do you want another kiss?"
The queen swallowed, holding back a surprised sound. She tried to interpret the princess's serene expression, reading in that half-smile a truth that also resonated in her own chest, pounding. It was anticipation, desire, passion, the hunger for sensations that she longed to explode and warm her from within, deep within. Snow White was on the verge of crashing their lips together, trembling, warm, despite the cold wind, but before she could abandon herself to that secret pleasure, she heard a noise behind them.