Kingdom of Alba...
Helga's pov;
My head was still spinning when I woke up. Weirdly , the surface I was lying on was hard rock, very uncomfortable .
When I finally open my eyes to see what where I am , I am at loss of words. Where did I land?
I am seeing plantations and many villagers dressed in an old fashioned way , the area seems isolated so I don't see many houses.
I stand on my feet and walk a little bit , as I walk towards what seems like the central city , I notice the buildings that remind me of the Victorian era in England but older if possible, there are marchands everywhere on the street, the dress code looks ancient as well , Lenin dresses with corsets on the waist area for women and long dress shirts with tight pants for me.
All this is strange , the villages in the states don't look like this , so , where am I?
"Excuse me miss" someone taps my shoulder and I look behind to see a young man who was selling some sort of bread.
"Yes . Can I help you?" I ask
"No actually, you seem to be the one who needs help , you look quite lost and confused. Maybe you need directions?" He says , I would definitely need that .
"Sorry . Where am I exactly? I don't recognize this part of the states" I ask and he looks at me confused,
"The states? I never heard of that place . Maybe it is a foreign land . I am but a mere peasant, I wouldn't know" he explains, he doesn't know the United States of America? That's odd.
"If this is not the United states then where the heck am I?" I ask as I start to panic, this place must be very far from home, by still how come this guy doesn't know the most popular continent to exist, it's like he is backward or something.
"Miss?" He asks
"Helga" I tell him
"Right. This is Alba , the kingdom in the North of Scotland to be exact." He tells me proudly . Alba? That's where grandma mentioned , the place where our magical ancestry begins. But how?
"Miss? Are you okay? You seem a bit puzzled" the young man inquires worriedly.
"No , I am okay. Thank you for the information" He nods and wishes me good luck on my journey.
Now this is some adventure.
Alba be ready , here I come.
Ethera's pov;
"Ethera" Heizel calls as she enters my room,
"Yes , what is the matter?" I ask
"I was just informed that the king wants to invite you to horse riding this afternoon" I jump out of the bed when I hear this , the king wants to spend time with me? Out of all his concubines? Ah what an honor .
"Really ? Me ?" I ask to make sure
"Yes , you , why are you doubting it?huh?" I shrug
"Look , I think the king wants to spend more time getting to know all his consorts because he will at some point have to start staying over to begin the stages of marriage consummation" I blush at her words ,
"No need to be so blunt Heizel , I didn't need to know those specifics" I say and cover my face with my palms . Honestly I have never involved myself in sexual activities, this is a norm in our society . Ladies should abstain from it until marriage. Now that I am married I have to deal with it and on top of that it is now a duty of mine to produce an heir to the throne . Talk about pressure.
"You know you should be happy , you are the first one he decided to pick , after all you are the youngest among the concubines and wives of the king so you normally should go last . That is a good sign you may already have the king's favor" She smiles and pats my hair , I still pout because I am absolutely nervous to go on this date with the king , being alone with him seems very intimidating.
"Are you coming too?" I ask Heizel and she shakes her head no,
"It is a private date and he only wants you there , which is logical . Give the man a chance will you. How is he supposed to make a move if I am always by your side huh?" She argues .
"You are right , I am sorry . Help me get ready at least and give me some advice on how to be lady like and presentable for him" I ask with my puppy eyes.
"You don't need to try hard Ethera , if he is not a fool which I can assure you he is not , he will learn to appreciate the real you, not the trained version of you , okay? Just act natural" I nod and she starts bringing in outfit options for the date.
Once I am ready , Helton , the king's advisor I met a few times came to escort me to the horse field where the king was waiting for me .
We entered the carriage and I bid good bye to Heizel.
"Might I say you look ravishing my lady" Helton says with a calm tone and mischievous gaze that he tends to walk around with , it makes me awfully nervous sometimes.
"Um thank you Helton" I reply timidly , I don't like talking to strangers , to me Helton is a stranger as I don't know much about him apart from his position as the king's advisor.
"Uh does the king ride horses often?" I ask to break the uncomfortable silence that installed itself in the carriage.
"Oh yes , his majesty has a passion for horses , has been riding them ever since he was very young. If I may let you on a little secret , it is one of his favorite hobbies" he says and winks at me.
I nod and after that I opt to keep quiet as he really starts to make me uncomfortable.
The carriage stops and Helton helps me down , he then escorts me to where the horses are let free in the field .
There I see his majesty riding a white horse and doing rounds around the fenced field. Helton excused himself and I stay there for a few minutes without telling anyone to announce me so that I can admire the king doing what he loves.
He is smiling so much more than I have ever seen him , he looks very carefree and not like he is a king of a whole kingdom . This is a different side of him and to think that he wants to share that with me is just unreal.
When the king finishes his round , he goes down the horse and looks up and he sees me on the other side of the fence and motions for me to come closer .
I bow to him as I reach his presence,
"Your grace"
"You May rise Ethera" I look up and smile at him ,
"That was amazing your grace! You and the horse make an excellent team , you seem to enjoy yourself out there a lot , it was nice to see" I say and he smiles fondly at me,
"Well I have always loved horses and this activity helps me relax a bit" he explains
"Would you mind joining me , Ethera?" He asks
"Of course your majesty" I reply and he nods and gestures for the servants to bring the white horse to him.
"Is it your first time riding a horse?" He asks
"Not exactly. When I was younger I took classes but of course that was a long time ago , I don't have that same knowledge anymore." I reply and he nods taking me by the waist and setting me on the horse's back , then he goes behind me.
"One important thing you must keep in mind is that , the horse can feel your nervousness so calm your heartbeat , take deep breathes in and out and just trust the horse . Okay?" I nod and hold onto the horse halter.
"I will lead you from behind and help stabilize you , so no need to worry" he reassures me which I appreciate. He is so nice .
He then holds my waist which makes me blush and he says "Focus in front of you" It is kind of hard to do so with his hands there though. Ugh.
Once we are settled , he gently taps on the horse and it sets off.
The ride last for a good 30minutes before we decide to get off and let the horse rest. I also needed rest , I was feeling dehydrated and slightly dizzy because of the amount of turns we did.
Thankfully the king was holding onto me because I am sure I would have fallen off the horse a couple of times , yeah embarrassing.