1310 A.D.
Feast and Frost
Perched atop the old mound in the Warwick Castle courtyard, shivering in the cold February air, sat two young girls of twelve, each one covered in black woolen cloaks. Katherine Whatley, the skinny one with knobby knees and bright copper hair, was quaking underneath the hood of her cloak, hiding her face from view. Evelyn Byrne, the gentler, more feminine one, with dark hair that swept over her tiny shoulders, listened with curiosity as the sounds of a great feast echoed from the castle’s great hall.
The red-haired Katherine Whatley suddenly gave a heavy sigh that was muffled underneath her hood.
“What is it, Katherine?” asked Evelyn. “Do you want to go inside?”
“No,” muttered Katherine, “not the slightest bit,”
“Why?”
“Because the reason for all the festivities is silly to me.” snapped Katherine, poking out her face and shooting her friend a glare. “And I just wish everyone would be quiet and go to sleep.”
“But the Earl and Lady Alice are celebrating their anniversary. I think it’s really wonderful,” said Evelyn dreamily.
“Well I don’t.”
“They were married one year ago today.” said Evelyn. “I can still remember the wedding in the church. Didn’t you like the wedding?”
“Pshhh,” spat Katherine, quickly retreating back under her hood.
Evelyn looked thoughtful.
“When we were younger I had to coax you to come out of your chamber and play. You were so troubled. You thought everyone was going to harm you.” She glanced at Katherine for a reaction, but the red-haired girl’s face was still covered with the hood. “Well, anyway, you used to hate feasts and celebrations —”
“I still do,” Katherine interrupted, grumbling.
“I know, but years ago it was even worse.” said Evelyn. “You thought anyone that smiled at you was mocking you in some way, and when the Earl first taught you about the church and to attend mass, you made it your mission to disrupt the service any way you could. I remember it so vividly.”
Katherine poked her face out once more.
“I still don’t see the point in going to mass. But I do it anyway. Because now I know the Earl isn’t evil, so I don’t mind doing what he tells me to do.”
“To be honest, Katherine, I think at first he was very skeptical about you. He didn’t know how to handle it.” Evelyn said.
Wiping her runny nose with her sleeve, Katherine replied, “Yes, after the first night I came, he was scared of me. But when I finally adjusted to this prison, he wanted me around all the time.”
Evelyn nodded quietly, shifting her gaze up to the top of the south-eastern wall, where a few of the guarding archers were resting lazily between the parapets, their longbows slung behind their backs.
Katherine glanced in the direction Evelyn was looking.
“Do you think they wish sometimes that a huge army would just march up the hill and attack the castle so they would have something to do?” asked Katherine.
Evelyn gave her a questioning look. “I hope not, because that would be really tragic if that ever happened.”
“Just think about it for a second,” Katherine insisted. “They hang around on top of the walls, pacing the battlements all day long, and watching in the distance for anything out of the ordinary. What if they saw a hundred men with weapons advancing? I bet they’d be really excited. They could shoot their arrows and everything.”
Rolling her eyes, Evelyn scooted closer to Katherine, shivering from the cold. The grey, cloud-filled sky showed no signs of opening up and letting the sunlight pass through, and the slight yet brutally chilled wind came from the west and blew against the girls’ faces until their cheeks became bright red.
“Do you think the banquet has begun yet?” said Evelyn, shaking so much that Katherine finally had to put her arm around her.
“I was actually hoping it would be over by now,” answered Katherine defiantly. “I’m not even tempted to join everyone. I’m not hungry at all.”
That had been a small lie, because Katherine was in fact extremely hungry, and longed for something warm and hearty to eat. But admitting that to Evelyn would pose a danger, for Evelyn would suggest they go inside and eat — and she would persist adamantly until Katherine gave in.
“You may hate banquets, but I really enjoy them. It’s a time when everyone can forget about their concerns and be happy.” said Evelyn frankly.
There came a moment of silence, where the only things the two girl’s could hear were the howling of the wind between the leafless trees, and the sounds of great merriment coming from inside the castle. Katherine had secretly wished to be part of the festivities, and to see the people in their wonderful clothes and made-up faces, but she found it much easier to act indifferent and hollow, like she’d acted most her life. Katherine couldn’t really help her attitudes and feelings toward things relating to happiness and joy. The memory of eight years ago haunted her many nights . . . the day she arrived at the castle . . . and she couldn’t seem to get away from it. . . .
Evelyn let out a puny cough, and broke the silence. She huddled even closer to Katherine to get warmer, and said kindly, “You’re my best friend, you know.”
“I suppose you’re mine too . . .” said Katherine.
There was another lull of silence, and suddenly Katherine felt strangely awkward; there it was again, the honest promise of friendship, something that also related to happiness. And without thinking, Katherine suddenly jumped up, threw off her hood, and poked Evelyn playfully in the ribs.
“I know who you want to marry!” she teased.
Evelyn’s face went scarlet.
“What are you talking about?”
“You want to marry Daniel, don’t you?” said Katherine, jumping in a circle around Evelyn and poking her. “I see the way you look at him! It makes me sick to my stomach really — but I can tell he fancies you!”
“Stop — it —” Evelyn giggled, trying very hard to suppress a smile.
“I know how you are,” said Katherine, “you’re always shy and quiet around him, more than you usually are. I really can’t imagine you marrying a kitchen boy, but I guess you wouldn’t mind if your husband’s always greasy with chicken fat —”
“Good evening,” interrupted a sly, intimidating voice. “You must be freezing.”
A middle-aged man with dark, curly hair, cold listless eyes, pointy chin, and a haughty air about him was standing beside a tree, smiling, though the tone of his voice made him sound slightly irritated.
“Father,” exclaimed Evelyn after a moment of shock, “I thought you were —”
“—inside? Indeed, the festivities are very accommodating. But how could I enjoy such a celebration without my only child by my side?” said the man, his voice slick as ice.
Katherine’s blood writhed inside of her veins at the mere sight of this vile, cunning man, who just so happened to be one of the Earl’s head advisors. His name was Wesley Byrne; he was Evelyn’s father — to Katherine’s great disappointment — and he had a very powerful influence on the castle. On an unusually ugly day in springtime eleven years ago, Byrne came to Warwick, bringing his wife and baby girl with him. He was already grossly wealthy and a prominent nobleman, and easily swayed the earl to appoint him as his head advisor. Soon after, his wife passed away from a terrible fever that had slowly gotten worse since the day of Evelyn’s birth.
As the years went on, Evelyn grew up without a mother, trying to live as best she could in the confines of the castle. Katherine couldn’t imagine how Evelyn came out a perfect child, compared to her father who was so unpredictable. She liked to think that it was her positive influence on her friend . . . even though she knew that wasn’t the case . . .
But now, as though by some sort of magic, tiny, beautiful snowflakes started to fall from the gray sky, and spotted the ground with soft white sprinkles. It hadn’t snowed for at least two weeks, and this was a nice surprise to Katherine. Her spirits rose as more snow fell.
“Well isn’t this the perfect winter day? Come, Evelyn, we’re going inside before I catch cold.” said Byrne, pulling his lavish blue robes closer around him; magnificent gold rings on his fingers clinked together as he did so.
“Yes, sir,” Evelyn replied obediently, rising from the ground.
“And as for you,” Byrne continued, turning toward Katherine who was now shaking in the freezing air, “may I suggest you attend the feast tonight? I daresay that skinny frame of yours needs fattening up.”
Katherine stared, not knowing what to say to Byrne’s rude comment; but before she had time to think, he had grabbed Evelyn’s wrist and dragged her rather roughly down the now snow-covered mound, to the doors of the Great Hall entrance. A couple of half-asleep guards opened the doors as majestically as they could; they were shaking violently from being drenched from head to foot in snow that had melted on their red tunics, through the joints of their armor.
The sky was gradually growing darker, and the warm light that radiated out of the windows in the Great Hall seemed extra inviting to Katherine. She couldn’t really remember how long the celebration had been going on; all she knew was that she’d escaped the feast with Evelyn as soon as she could, and ran up the mound to sit and wait out the whole thing.
Just as Evelyn did, Katherine remembered the wedding that had taken place one year ago very clearly. She remembered dreading the wedding for months. The planning for it had been going on since the autumn before, and she had to hear the chatter of the ladies-in-waiting, the servants (who also seemed to be dreading it), and the bride-to-be, Lady Alice, swarming through the castle like an annoying nest of bees. Katherine mainly escaped by studying her Greek and Latin, Philosophy and Religion, which the Earl, whose proper name was Sir Guy de Beauchamp, insisted that she learn. At first Katherine hated the fact that she was the only girl she knew who was studying the things that only boys learned — but later on she started to appreciate it when she tested some noble boys who were at the castle, and they managed to answer all her questions with either “Er . . .” or “Mumgft. . . .” All the knowledge she was gaining started to make her feel powerful . . . and she soon realized that even though she was in fact a noble girl, practically a lady, her opinion did matter.
But if escaping the dull life of a lady through reading wasn’t going to work, Katherine would try and escape the castle grounds completely, though she rarely succeeded. There were always so many guards at every corner of the castle, especially near the gatehouse, that she’d end up getting caught and sent back to her bedchamber. There Katherine would sit on her bed, and sullenly stare out her tiny window, daydreaming about running through open fields, riding horses, and getting into sword fights.
At the moment, however, the noise coming from the castle was distracting Katherine as she tried to lull herself into another exciting day dream. She shivered underneath her cloak, and looked down at her leather shoes to find them soaked through, and her toes were beginning to freeze.
“That’s it,” Katherine said angrily to herself, “I’ll just go inside, and if anyone stops me from leaving the feast, I’ll punch them hard in the gut.”
The inside of the castle’s Great Hall was more elegant than Katherine had ever seen it; the stone floors were covered with clean rushes, the tabletops were dressed with silver plates and goblets with many colored stones sparkling around the brims, in every window a set of lighted candles, all the tapestries that covered the walls had also been dusted, and the greatest sight of all were the dozens of people in nice clothes, sitting together, eating wonderful-smelling foods. Each person had a smile on their face, and a few even started to get red noses from drinking a little too heartily.
For Katherine, it took every ounce of self-control in her skinny body to not plop down in a chair and indulge herself in the remarkable feast. She was standing idly by the front doors, half in a daze, looking in every direction. Her eyes found the Earl and his wife Lady Alice sitting together at the head table, engaging in a conversation that consisted of smiles, laughter, and even some blushing.
“Oh bother,” Katherine murmured under her breath. “Just wait two more years. They’ll be sick of each other by then,”
It was true that the Earl and Lady Alice were only married one year, but they had known each other for years before. In fact, Lady Alice had been staying at the castle for a long time after the Earl’s first marriage to another woman ended in divorce. And while Lady Alice had taken residence at Warwick, she had become mysteriously pregnant and had a baby girl some three years ago. Katherine had never witnessed a child being born, and since she was nine she was considered old enough to lend aid to the midwives. And it turned out to be one of the worst things Katherine had ever seen. It made up her mind that she would never bear children. Not even if her life was at stake. But the castle rejoiced because the baby girl was healthy; and days later she was baptized and christened Maud de Beauchamp, taking the Earl’s name. So then everyone had known it was his child…
A strange movement from a person at the table farthest from her caught Katherine’s eye. She saw it was Evelyn who was waving like mad to get her attention. Evelyn seemed to have been enjoying herself — she was grinning from ear to ear. But what was the cause of this glee? Katherine edged to the left and a tall boy who was standing a few feet from Evelyn came into view. He had sandy hair, and he was wearing a simple tunic, one that would be much to thin for the cold weather. He was holding a platter that had what looked like a swan made out of almond butter perched upon it.
Finally out of her trance, Katherine walked briskly over to the table, threw the kitchen boy a blank smile, and stocked up to Evelyn’s chair, her hands on her hips.
“Well, well, well . . .” said Katherine acidly. “No wonder you wanted to come inside . . .”
“I didn’t really want to . . . I wanted to stay outside with you and talk some more,” replied Evelyn, turning pink. “But you saw my father; he forced me to come in.”
“Oh, right. So that bit about you asking me why I didn’t want to join the wonderful feast earlier was your father’s fault,”
Evelyn frowned, a little annoyed.
“Look, I don’t care at all if you want to be so dreadfully sour about anything that is even the slightest bit nice, but would you please stop teasing me?”
This caught Katherine off guard, and she shuffled her feet, feeling a little guilty.
“Fine, but I don’t want to catch you and that kitchen boy kissing. If I see that, I will vomit — violently, I might add.”
Evelyn rolled her eyes.
“All right,” she sighed. “You know, you can sometimes be as stubborn as my father.”
Katherine’s mouth fell open. “What did you just say?”
“Well, not just like him,” said Evelyn quickly, then seeing the look on her best friend’s face, added, “You’re much kinder than he is, though.”
“I’m not anything like that tyrant!”
“He’s not a tyrant, Katherine. He’s just . . .” Evelyn trailed off as lively music suddenly filled the Hall, and everyone’s heads turned to the western wall where there was a group of musicians playing their lutes, trumpets, flutes, and tambourines with as much enthusiasm as though they were playing for the king.
“What wonderful music!” exclaimed Evelyn, clapping her hands, “I wish I was allowed to dance . . . even for just one song. . . .”
Katherine was about to ask Evelyn why she wasn’t allowed dance, when suddenly all the peoples’ attention shifted to the head table. The Earl and Lady Alice had stood, and holding hands they stepped down to the floor, and began to glide across the room, dancing in perfect time with the music. Katherine’s eyes were fixed on the Earl who suddenly seemed so young . . . she hadn’t seen him so happy. Something was very different about him; his dark eyes that always sparkled were somehow even brighter, his face was alive with expression. . . .
After the first song was over, the musicians played a softer tune, and most of the lords and ladies who had finished their meals got up to dance along with the Earl and Alice. Katherine’s mind jolted back to earth, and she suddenly turned to Evelyn and whispered, “This is when I make my escape. No one will notice I’m gone.”
“But —”
“I’m going to my chamber.” interrupted Katherine, with a determined yet slightly disappointed look on her face. She didn’t really want to leave, but being in such a cheerful environment almost made her want to scream at the top of her lungs. It wasn’t what she was used to; it wasn’t what she knew from childhood. Katherine felt that being happy was living in denial — like living a lie and pushing away the real things . . . the gloomy things . . .
Without another word, Katherine made her way through the Hall, winding in and out of the crowds of people all standing up to dance. Her heart raced as though someone was chasing her. All she wanted was to go where she felt most comfortable, in her chamber.
Once out of the Great Hall, she strode down one corridor, up a dark flight of steps, down another corridor, and through a small wooden door with an iron lock. Katherine shut the door behind her, and with a running leap landed on her hard bed. She sighed contently as she heard nothing but the soft calls of the snowy owls outside in the trees. Finally she could dream and not be disturbed by anyone or anything . . .
“My lady Katherine . . .?”
Katherine jumped, and spun around on her knees.
“Matilda! You half scared me to death!” said Katherine uneasily.
Lying on a small, stuffed mattress in the corner of the room was a rather plump woman of forty, her pudgy face scrunched up as she squinted up at Katherine. She was Katherine’s head maidservant.
“Katherine, have you gotten taller since this afternoon?” said Matilda, tilting her head left and right.
“No,” said Katherine, still in a bit of a shock.
“Oh . . . but your head didn’t touch the ceiling before . . .” mumbled Matilda, looking utterly baffled.
“You know you can hardly see at night,” said Katherine.
“Oh . . . yes . . . must be my eyes . . .”
“Say, Matilda, why didn’t you attend the feast tonight? I’m sure you were invited?” asked Katherine, slumping down and resting her head in her hands.
“Of course I was. I just — I don’t know — seeing all those lovely people, those couples dancing and being together . . . It makes me miss my dear old husband.” she said with a great sigh.
Katherine wondered why she hadn’t ever asked Matilda about her family before. As far as she knew, Matilda was alone, as she was.
“Where is he? Is he . . . dead?”
“Oh no,” said Matilda, her eyes widening, “I’d be a wreck of a woman if that were the case. No, he’s off in Scotland, in some city, defending it . . . from the Scots actually . . .”
“The Scots are attacking our strongholds up there?” said Katherine, aghast.
“Well I heard Margaret talking about it with Eleanor the other day. She said there’ve been some fights up in Scotland over those cities we have under our control . . . Seems like they’re itching to get back what was once theirs.”
“They are?” whispered Katherine. “I mean, I know we’re at war with them, but I thought England was overpowering the enemy . . .”
Matilda smiled and shook her head. “Don’t be worrying yourself, Katherine. It’s just rumors I’ve heard from the folk here in the castle. It’s most likely just a load of old gossip . . . you know how Lady Alice’s maids are . . . the moment things start getting dull around here they start making up outrageous stories.”
“Oh . . . right . . .” said Katherine, slightly nervous. “Well, I guess I’m going to bed now . . .”
“Yes, and so will I,” Matilda agreed.
Matilda stared into space for a moment, then rolled over and pulled the covers up to her neck. In doing so, she exposed her feet at the bottom, and they stuck out of the blanket like two large hams. Katherine smiled to herself and told Matilda to have a good rest. Matilda replied with, “Bless you,” and she immediately fell asleep.
The snow had stopped, and some of the clouds had gone, for now the moon was greatly visible in the sky. It was shining into the chamber, creating a dim, bluish glow. Katherine once again nestled up to the small stone window, and gazed out of it looking onto the moonlit countryside beyond the castle, and she silently prayed the vast hole in her heart that had appeared the moment her own mother had left her at the castle would be filled; that somehow, if God had any mercy at all, her broken life would be renewed, and the sparse memories of her haunted past explained. But what could possibly happen that would finally give Katherine the peace of mind she so desperately craved? Would her life suddenly change now, after eight years of living the same routines over and over again?
Katherine feared above all else that even if change was coming, that someone would try and stop her — someone that wanted things to stay as they were. But as Katherine watched the distant hills and trees over the castle walls slowly grow darker and darker, she made a promise to herself that no matter what happened she would fight for herself. She would fight for her friends and the only family she really knew, the Earl. For time would most definitely show what the outcome of her life would be; and she was going to do everything in her power to make that outcome a happy one.
I'm a sucker for these kinds--especially the kind you've set up here (sounds kinda like something I would write--and am writing, except...oh never mind, I won't get into it here). The young lady living amidst other proper court women longing to run off and become a knight...which is what I'm guessing by your story's title (which I 
This is what catches your reader's attention, it's your hook, so it needs to be strong. The easiest way to fix this is to use big dashes (--) in place of two commas and tweak the second half of the sentence, as Luv has already pointed out: 
Only...I think you could add more to his 'you must be freezing' line, something like 'It's quite chilly out here' maybe. *shrug*
^^; This can definitely be broken up into at least four or five sentences. You can even expand upon it, as this is obviously an important character.
Big time info-dump! Slow it down a little, 
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