Terennoaptre

 

III. Country

 

 

Buffy awoke to find her head resting on Giles’ shoulder and their hands entwined.  When she looked up, she realized he had also dozed off during the long flight.  She smiled at him and turned toward the window.  Thousands of miles of forested mountains greeted her eyes.  She touched the glass.

 

Noticing that she was awake, Cezar seated himself in the seat opposite her. 

 

“Is that Terennoaptre?” she asked.

 

“More or less.  You’ll be able to see it better when we clear that ridge.”

 

“How old is it?”

 

“So old that no one can say for sure.”  He smiled.  “At one point, we were a province of Transylvania, back when Prince Vlad Dracul ruled.  Once he turned, however, our royal family broke ties and we became a sovereign nation again.”

 

Buffy turned to face him.  “What’s it like there?”

 

“Terennoaptre is like no other place in the world.  It is a land of vibrant colors.  The forests are the deepest green where white and gray wolves run wild.  The lakes are the blue of sapphires.  The sky is purple at sunset and deep red at sunrise.”  When speaking of his country, Buffy noted, Cezar’s demeanor was that of a man talking about the woman he loved, fiercely.   Unsure about him at first, it was in this moment she decided she genuinely liked him.

 

“And the people?”

 

“As vibrant and colorful as the land.”  He turned from the window and met her eyes.  “We did not have much contact with lands other than our own, and Romania, until flight became common.  In the last twenty years or so, we’ve been catching up with the rest of the world, somewhat slowly I must admit.  Of course, our young people have led the way.  Lilian, our royal genealogist, for example, was educated at Oxford.  Hers was the first computer ever in the castle even though the building had had electricity for nearly 30 years by that point.”

 

“You were isolated by your location?”

 

“In part.  The borders of Terennoaptre are entirely forested.  But geography was not the only barrier.  Because of our history, and I suppose the presence of the Iadgura, our population has always had knowledge of the supernatural realms.  We live with the magical everyday.  We accept it the same as we do planting crops or preparing meals.  This is considered quaint, ignorant and backward by the rest of the world.  Therefore, it is simply easier to keep to ourselves than to pretend to not believe in things we know are real.”

 

“Iadgura?”

 

“Hellmouth.”

 

“Ah.”

 

 Cezar stood and smiled down on her.  “Don’t fret, Miss Summers, our people take to that which is part of them.  His Majesty here is a part of our nation by his bloodline and by his willingness to accept this duty.  You, as his fiancé, are a part of him, and therefore a part of us as well.  You’ll be welcome.  Have no worries.”

 

As he moved away, realization of what he’d said came to her.  Eyes wide, she turned to Giles and began tugging on his jacket sleeve.  He awoke with a start and turned toward the cause of what had disturbed his sleep.  “What is it?” he said groggily.  “Are we there yet?”

 

“No.”

 

He became a little more aware.  “Something wrong with the plane?”

 

“No,” she said tersely.  Quieting herself again, she leaned closer to his ear.  “Cezar thinks I’m your fiancé.”

 

Giles blinked, certain that he must not yet be quite awake.  “P-pardon?”

 

“Cezar is under the impression that we are going to be married.”

 

“Ah.”  Giles blinked again.  He placed his hands on the armrests as if to rise.  “I’ll soon put him right.”

 

“No!”  Buffy pushed him back into his seat.  Cautiously looking around, she leaned toward his ear once more.  “Don’t tell him till we get there!”

 

“Buffy…”

 

“For all I know it’s the only reason they let me come.  What if they dump me out of the plane or…”

 

“Oh don’t be ridiculous!”

 

“Just…don’t?”

 

“Buffy.”

 

“Please?  I’ve just got a weird feeling about it.”

 

He smiled.  “All right.  Not until we reach the castle then.”  He slipped his arm around her shoulders.

 

She grinned.  “What are you doing?”

 

“Keeping up appearances, my love.” 

 

She poked him in the stomach, just above his bellybutton.  It made him jump slightly.  Then, to his surprise, she flattened her hand on his abdomen and settled her head on his chest, her attention focused out the window.

 

“Oh look, we’ve cleared the ridge.”  She could now see places where the green carpet of forest broke into open meadows, lakes and scattered cities.  She could also see a sparse ribbon of what might be highway laced throughout the picturesque scenery.  With all the talk of the castle, she’d almost gotten into her head that transportation would still be by horse and carriage. 

 

They flew past two cities and two rivers before coming upon the largest looking city they’d seen so far.  Toward the center of the city, a large, multi-turreted castle loomed over everything beneath it.

 

“Wow,” Buffy said.  “Quite an upgrade in living arrangements there, Giles.  I mean, I liked the old place but…wow.”

 

“Indeed,” Giles said, leaning forward and looking over her shoulder.  “This must be Pazitore.”

 

Buffy nodded her agreement.  “Yeah.  Home sweet Hellmouth.”

 

******