41 The Funeral II (1/2)
She blinked again. Before Gisela could finish turning and perhaps ask what she meant, Hilde searched her brain for the answer. She was very much relieved to find that there was one. And that it made good sense.
”You know what they say about the women of Lys,” she began before receiving any prompting. ”All of them are flowers, yes, but most are thorny, many are poisonous, and some are… er… some are carnivorous.” As she listened, it seemed Gisela had great trouble figuring out why Hilde was saying these things or where she was going with it. Hilde clarified, ”That is to say, cousin, it wouldn't be the best place for any Arnican woman, much less…”
'Much less for YOU' was the obvious concluding word, but she just managed to stop herself. It didn't matter, though. When the meaning registered to Gisela, it registered in full. She understood even the things that hadn't been said – including the fact that Hilde thought she had developed a liking for the lone Lysean among the Lord General's family. Or that, much like her mother did, her cousin saw her as a sweet and unblemished bloom.
Also, just like her mother, Hilde wanted her to remain that way.
Gisela broke out of her melancholy to let out a brief giggle. ”Silly Hilde,” she said. ”It isn't about that at all.”
”So what is it about?” Hilde asked. Then, despite the unlikelihood given how tightly Lady Ilse would have been guarding her, it occurred to Hilde to wonder: ”Earlier… did anyone say or do anything to you?”
”Just a bug,” drifted a voice from the front. Though Lady Ilse did not look at the girls, Hilde could read from the rigidity of her back how deeply affronted she was by this. She sniffed before continuing, ”It shall never go a-buzzing near her again, rest assured.”
Hilde kept facing the Lady, but her eyes slid sideways. She managed to catch how Gisela's eyelids fluttered, how her own gaze also slid for a moment to once again look in the direction of the bier in front. She then retrieved her gaze and resumed staring at the ground, a small frown between her otherwise perfect brows.
Hilde too frowned. Eyes sliding the other way, she thought, 'If not Leal, then…'
When the answer hit her, she did not quite know what to feel. However, overriding all the jumbled sensations in her chest was the realization that, yes, she did very much want to find out exactly what happened between her cousin and Lothar's younger brother. More importantly, she wanted to know why Gisela was feeling so down about whatever it was – she wanted to know where things might lead to if the situation were to be allowed to develop.
'So…' Hilde thought, now feeling a mixture of suspense, pleasure, and guilt. 'This is what being a gossipmonger feels like…'