The Archduke's Songbird-Chapter 36: Misunderstandings of the Past

The corners of Jessamyn’s lips twitched. By now, Isadora had disappeared out of sight. She didn’t know how Jerrick was so good at controlling his horse, but every time she thought about making a run for it, the horse blocked her.

Jerrick looked at her with a smirk sitting on his high horse, literally.

You are not escaping, she read his thoughts through that smirk. But she was not willing to get on a horse with him.

"Your Grace," she said, politely, her eyes focused on him. "I’ll go with you wherever you want to go. Please, allow me to walk."

She shared hundreds of rides with Joar on his horse. She didn’t want to taint those memories with this ride. This was Jerrick’s fort. She didn’t want to be seen enjoying a ride with Jerrick. She just didn’t.

He saved her life but she didn’t want to compromise on that. He wanted to marry her and she agreed. She wouldn’t mind a carriage ride with him. But not this.

Please, let me have this one thing, please... I’ll do everything else you want me to do...

She saw the joy on his face dissipating. She feared she might have angered him. She bowed her head, not because of fear, but because of that pang of pain in her chest.

"Fine," he said. "Where do you want to go?"

With a gasp, she looked up; the pain vanished in an instant with the shock. The smile on his face was back, and oddly, the mockery on his face didn’t hurt her. Her lips curved unconsciously.

"Fabrics and embroidery essentials," she said.

"Watch out for the poop," he said and guided the horse to walk away.

Jessamyn blinked as she didn’t get what he said and followed him. But just after a few seconds, the horse wagged its tail and only then she understood what he said.

How did he know his horse’s bowel movement?

With each plop and splatter, she performed a comedic dance of dodges and leaps, her facial expressions ranging from horror to disbelief to resignation. The adamant bird on Jessamyn’s head was unbothered as she frantically tiptoed to avoid the smelly dumps of the equine.

Jessamyn pressed her lips to see him shaking in laughter. She didn’t dare to breathe for she dreaded the smell more than her embarrassment or her anger toward the juvenile hooligan.

Finally, it stopped. Relieved, Jessamyn took in a fresh breath of air.

She followed him mindlessly watching the hustling market streets. Everyone was on their foot except for Jerrick. Even those with horses walked on foot. She assumed it must be the rule there. She had heard that some lords wouldn’t allow others to ride horses in front of them as they considered it a slight.

Is Jerrick someone with a fragile ego? Jessamyn wondered.

Back in Rohan, whenever she went out with Joar, people greeted them with a big smile and offered them whatever they could even though Joar was not someone who smiled at everyone. They respected his benevolence and they considered Joar family even though he was their Lord. That adoration extended to her. She too would attend the weddings and other celebrations of the serfs in their fief as she considered them family.

The whole of Rohan wept when Joar passed away. They loved him.

Jessamyn saw the contradiction with Jerrick. When he walked, people avoided looking at his eyes. No one dared to look in his direction and the entire place went silent when he passed.

They were curious about her and couldn’t help but look at her but none of them smiled at her or acknowledged her presence. They didn’t participate in the usual gossip either which was odd. Usually, people love to gossip about everything. Her presence certainly should have created gossip.

They looked suffocated as if someone had put a gag order. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Well, Jessamyn appreciated it that way. She feared hearing people mocking her. Maybe people in Roche mind their business and won’t gossip. After all, everyone had their own problems to deal with. Why bother with other people’s lives?

Choosing not to participate in gossip can demonstrate virtues such as respect for others’ privacy, integrity, kindness, and empathy. Surely, an admirable quality.

Without knowing how the usually nosy people of Roche got their selective "virtue", Jessamyn admired them in her heart. Isadora hadn’t informed her of the fate of the maids who gossiped about her.

They entered the food street when her stomach grumbled as the fragrance of food reached her. She looked around at the stalls with mouthwatering delicacies and it kindled her hunger further.

She looked at his back hoping her thoughts would reach him. After all, he was someone who knew the bowel movements of his horse. Wouldn’t he understand her hunger?

Turned out, he didn’t.

She expected nothing more in a way. Even in the past, he was oblivious to her feelings and the incidents that happened around her. He did what he wanted to do and she had bent over backwards for him, accommodating his needs.

Well, that was what the dynamics between them were. He was not the only one to be blamed. She had a part in that too. She never expected anything from him.

Joar changed her perception of what to expect in a relationship. He was so observant and had a knack for understanding her better than she understood herself. Joar gave her what she always gave Jerrick but never got in return. He showed her what being truly loved felt like.

Jessamyn’s hunger subsided by the time they reached the street with the fabric stores. Truly, the rumors she heard about Roche were true; in fact, it was better than what she expected.

"Get what you want," Jerrick said.

Jessamyn’s face lit up. She went to the different stalls and bought everything that caught her eye. She didn’t even see if Jerrick was paying them or not. She went on a shopping spree.

This one will suit Ethan; she picked up a fabric and already she decided on the design and got the embroidery threads. Isadora looks good in green; she picked a couple of fabrics for her. She also decided to make a shawl for Ethan’s ladylove.

When she saw a green thread matching Jerrick’s eyes, she picked it too. Why? She hadn’t figured it out yet. Without knowing, she picked up fabrics for handkerchiefs too.

Jerrick saw her picking up a lot of things. He had a feeling she was not picking up a single thing for herself.

She was a fool. Even back then too she was a fool. Otherwise, why would she give up all the work she toiled to make and let Imogen take the praises?

A few days into their marriage, when Imogen showed him a piece of lace and told him that she made it, he laughed. He said nothing to Imogen but he knew; he knew Jessamyn’s handiwork.

She left her heart and scent on her works.

Jessamyn was like the flowing wind, with no desire for herself. She made everyone around her happy. That was who she was. That was how she loved.

But he wanted to change it. He wanted to give her a taste of her way of love.

"Come with me," Jerrick said.

When she looked at him with her big blue eyes filled with surprise, he smiled. His heart bubbled with happiness seeing her animated.

Jessamyn looked at the shop Jerrick was pointing at. She let out a deep sigh.