Edris sees a catastrophe

Edris found the weight of an extra blanket upon her when she woke, and she saw that the fire had been built up and was burning brightly. She smiled to herself and stretched luxuriously. A servant might have taken it upon himself to build up the fire, but only Cenwulf would have put an extra blanket on her.

She swung her legs out of the bed and gasped as her feet hit the floor. It was no wonder he had! It was dreadfully cold for early October. Indeed, the view across the court was obscured by a film of frost on the windows.

Edris rose and dressed in a hurry, standing directly before the fire. She put on her old blue gown, for it was one of the warmest, if the most worn. She knew Cenwulf had meant to breakfast at the castle with Sigefrith, so it was no matter.

She didn’t even call for her maid to braid her hair, but only brushed it out and then bustled down the cold corridor to the opposite tower, where the children slept. Of course Cenwulf would have made certain that they were warm before he left, but she had to see for herself…

She cried out in surprise as she came into the sitting room and found Cenwulf seated on the couch before another bright fire, his eyes closed and a great weariness upon his face. The children!

“Cenwulf!” she wailed.

He opened his eyes. “Good morning, Edris. The children are well and warm,” he said, guessing the cause for her alarm.

“Oh,” she sighed in relief. “I tought – I thought – I thought you were to go to Sigefrith this morning,” she stammered, patting at her hair now that she realized that the greatest catastrophe was that she had met him in her oldest gown and with her hair unbound.

“I suppose I shall.”

“Oh, I… why… is it still early?”

He stood and came to stand before her. “It is not so early, but I have had a bit of a shock this morning,” he said, stroking her hair down the side of her head with one of his big hands.

“What is it?”

He put an arm over her shoulder and led her to the window. He rubbed some of the frost from the pane and stood quietly while she looked out onto the outer court and the hills beyond the wall.

She began to tremble. Nothing caught her eye at first, but he expected her to see what was wrong without being told. What could it be? The sky was clear and dazzling. The trees directly behind the castle were dun and faded gold, and those on the hill were blackened – but the trees had been the same the day before. What had changed? Colburga would have seen at once, but she… she was so stupid…

She closed her eyes and shook briefly with a stifled sob, humiliated.

“You see,” he sighed, and he rubbed her arm and gave her shoulder a squeeze. “I fear that even we shall not always eat our fill this winter.”

She opened her eyes and looked outside again. Of course. The grass and shrubs of the court were silver with a heavy frost… and so would be all of the vegetables they had planted in September, after the rains had begun.

“What will the people eat?” she asked him in an awed whisper.

“God help us” was his only reply.