17. A NEW HANDMAID

Chapter seventeen

A NEW HANDMAID

Amira

I thought I would sleep fitfully in a strange place, but the sheer exhaustion must have dragged me down into a deep unconsciousness.

I woke gradually to the scent of food and soft swishing of dresses moving around quick legs. I turned over on the alert only to be met with the sight of three female griffins ferrying plates of food to the table in the circular cubicle of the window. I almost panicked that there were people in my room while I was sleeping, but the servants were under the supervision of both Princess Rhea and Helena.

The women were the perfect opposites of one another. Rhea was poised and dressed beautifully in a green silk dress with her dark hair pinned up elaborately and a gold chain draped across her forehead. Helena stood right next to her with the ready stance of a warrior, still wearing that beautiful gold armour.

“Breakfast,” Rhea announced when I sat up to stare at the massive spread being laid out for me. I didn’t know all of the food, but I was astonished to recognize some from dumpster diving behind Greek restaurants at home.

“I have also selected a handmaid for you. She will be able to attend to your comforts. Sofia,” prompted Rhea, looking to one of the three females who approached and curtsied first for the princess and then for me. Which felt just a little ridiculous whilst I was still sitting in my bed with my hair messily braided.

Helena made a cluck with her tongue as she began to circle Sofia.

“I will confirm her appointment with the king. She will need to be interrogated,” Helena told Rhea who stiffened while Sofia glanced at her in alarm. My new handmaid did a good job of not outwardly cringing from the warrior stalking around her, but Helena would make anyone in their right mind a little nervous.

“Are you implying my carefully premeditated choice of a handmaid is insufficient? Do you suppose that I have ulterior motives for my decision or that I am not qualified to make a choice in this matter?” Rhea demanded.

“I am implying that the king will have the final say on this matter,” Helena insisted.

Rhea looked flabbergasted and then frustrated.

“She cannot go without a handmaid. Unless you wish for her to become the fool of Riordan’s court! Allow me to be frank,” Rhea declared, turning her fiery attention to me suddenly. “You are a witch, Amira. Your reception here will not be an easy thing, but it can be helped if you adhere to as many of our customs as possible. This is not just a matter of having someone here to draw your baths and help you dress!”

“I know,” I assured her. Even Riordan had mentioned appointing a handmaid, so I knew it would be important.

The princess looked surprised at first that I agreed with her so easily, but then she raised her head a little haughtily as she glanced at Helena.

“What exactly does a handmaid do?” I asked her.

“She will manage your staff, coordinate what we can only hope will become a very busy schedule, and she will maintain your personal hygiene as well as your wardrobe. She will learn your favourite foods, as well as any aversions you may have, to ensure your meals are healthy for you and always to your personal taste. It will be important for you to dress right, to style your hair in the current fashion, and to behave with the refinement and dignity expected of the king’s mate. But a handmaid is not merely a person who will care for your needs. She is also of noble blood, and she is trained in politics and social etiquette. She will make sure you always know to whom you are speaking. She will read your cues to know when you are bored or uncomfortable with a conversation, and she will rescue you from it. She makes sure that you are always the most informed person in the room and will screen anyone who wishes to engage with you.”

“Whoa. All of that sounds very helpful,” I admitted, especially since Helena and I couldn’t even figure out how to put on my nightdress. I didn’t have much hope of navigating Riordan’s court without some serious help.

Rhea was pleased she’d made her point.

“Then I shall leave you in Sofia’s very capable hands,” she said before signalling the other two maids, including Kassia, her own handmaid, and they all left the room.

Sofia waited until the door was closed, and then she turned to me with a smile that seemed a little uncertain.

“You should eat while your breakfast is hot, my lady,” she advised me, approaching to peel back my covers before she placed a pair of slippers on the ground for me. “When you are finished, I’ve arranged for a seamstress to take your measurements so we can begin work on a new wardrobe. I was informed of the impracticality of the current style for you, and I have some ideas on how to adjust the dresses. In the meantime, I did acquire several articles from the fey market in the Rookery which I hope will be more suited to you,” she informed me.

“Really?” I gaped as I slid my feet into the slippers. “Thank you so much!”

Sofia moved behind me with a floor-length, long-sleeved dressing gown which slipped over my skin like silk. It had to be one of the articles of clothing she’d already acquired which had a full back. And it was perfect for the slight chill that was in the room from the open balcony where my breakfast had been laid out.

Sofia guided me over to the table where I sat on one of the stools which would be better suited to someone with wings and drew in a deep breath of the delectable scent. The only thing missing was a cup of coffee since I burned my pack with the instant stuff while protecting Riordan on our way to the Vale.

“Allow me to taste it first,” Helena suggested to me.

“I always taste the food the moment all the other staff leave the room,” Sofia reassured her.

“I was assigned to Lady Amira by the king . And I take my job as seriously as you do,” Helena maintained.

“I have never had a lady poisoned in my care! I would not tarnish my career now by allowing the king’s mate to become the first,” Sofia maintained fiercely.

And weirdly enough, the fact that Sofia’s first concern was for her reputation actually made enough sense to me that I believed her. A heartfelt profession wishing for my health and happiness would have come across as disingenuous, but Sofia was a professional.

“Will the both of you not join me?” I asked them.

“I am on duty,” Helena declared.

“I ate hours ago,” Sofia said at the same time.

“Oh, come on! You should both know that I am not a fan of all the… classism. If we are all to spend this much time together then I would like for us to be friendly.”

“Then you are like his Majesty. You believe in equality for all griffins,” stated Sofia as if she were filing away this information about me. Learning her new charge.

“Absolutely! And fey too. But it would make me very happy if we could do away with the formalities. Even if it is just behind closed doors,” I added when I recalled all of Orion’s concerns about how I would disgrace the king.

“I shall note that for future,” said Sofia, looking a little uncertain of this request, but she was clearly determined to try and please me.

Helena was far easier to convince.

“I should taste it regardless,” she muttered as she sank into the seat opposite me and began to survey the table.

Sofia had seemed like she might still resist, but when Helena sat, she went across the room to a table near the door to retrieve two extra plates. She set one in front of Helena, who grunted her thanks at her, and then took the seat on my left.

The three of us dished up our plates in relative silence. Sofia had eaten already so she only took a small portion of every dish, but Helena spooned heaps of food onto her plate and then insisted I wait while she tried everything.

“So, Sofia, tell me about you,” I suggested when the silence became overbearing.

“I am an árgoesi who moved to Kórinthos with a goal of working on staff for Princess Rhea,” she began.

“árgoesi must be from árgos,” I guessed, recalling the names of the five city-states that Riordan had recited to me the night before.

“That’s right,” said Sofia before she bit tentatively into a pastry. I could tell she felt strange about eating with me, and she eyed Helena’s enthusiastic indulgence with raised brows. “I will arrange for you to be tutored. You should know about our world,” she told me.

“A wise choice,” Helena observed approvingly around a mouthful of her food.

“Have you been a handmaid for long?” I asked Sofia.

“Three decades. I served many ladies in árgos and a couple in Kórinthos before coming into Princess Rhea’s employment,” Sofia informed me.

A knock at the door had my new handmaid looking confused and concerned, but then she rose quickly to her feet at the same time that Helena did.

“I will answer,” Sofia assured my guardian.

“Then I shall protect you as you do,” Helena retorted.

Sofia was far too polite to roll her eyes, but I could tell she was tempted as she went to crack open my door.

“Your Majesty!” she gasped in shock, opening the door just a little wider as she swept into a deep curtsy before rising elegantly. “Her ladyship is not yet dressed.”

“Sofia, it is alright,” I called, which seemed to further confuse and distress her, and the poor thing froze.

“No formalities,” Helena reminded her as she gripped the door to open it for Riordan.

Sofia stepped back as my mate walked into the room with Orion who eyed my new handmaid with a distrustful glower on his way by her.

“I thought we would eat together,” Riordan advised me as he leaned over to kiss my forehead sweetly, but I was rather distracted.

He was wearing gold armour like all the other soldiers with that sinfully detailed breastplate and a kilt of leather pleats that exposed his tanned, muscled thighs. The red cloak swept back over his shoulders, so I could admire the bands of muscle in his arms, and I was right. He looked so good with a bit of charcoal smudged under his eyes.

I realized too late that my physical reaction to him was probably embarrassingly obvious to the Ktínos who could sense it. I glanced up and quickly confirmed my suspicion when I saw Orion frown and Helena smirk at me.

“You tasted all of the food?” Orion asked Helena who inclined her head in affirmation.

“Is poison really that much of a concern? Ares insisted on sniffing all my soaps and creams before I used them last night,” I told Riordan as he took the seat on my right. Being close to him was always enrapturing, but in that armour, I couldn’t help it when my eyes traced over him.

“I am glad he is being thorough. It is not… unheard of for poison to be used here,” my mate answered.

My handmaid seemed to regain her composure and retrieved two more plates from the table at the door.

“Apologies, your Majesty, I was not expecting you or I would have had more food brought up,” she said softly as she set one plate in front of him. Then she hesitated next to Orion who had insisted on sitting in the seat next to Riordan despite Helena’s full plate of food already being on the table across from me.

Helena snorted at him moodily as she shifted her plate down the table and then went to grab a fifth stool while Sofia set another empty plate in front of Orion. My tiny breakfast table could really only sit four winged people comfortably, but I was not about to displace anyone.

“Sofia, please sit,” I invited her. I scooched my stool closer to Riordan and gestured to her seat next to me when it looked like she meant to step away.

“Oh, I could never presume to—” she began to protest with a nervous glance at Riordan.

“Sit,” Orion ordered her, sharp and unconditional, and I knew instinctively he wanted the opportunity to assess her for himself. And while I did understand the need for caution with my new handmaid, I wouldn’t wish Orion’s attitude on anyone. So I glared at him.

“She was selected and appointed by Rhea so just leave her alone,” I ordered before softening my gaze to look back up at Sofia. “It is alright,” I tried to reassure her.

Thankfully, my handmaid was no pushover, and she was already narrowing her eyes at Orion. With another cautious glance at Riordan who smiled at her reassuringly, Sofia sat back down next to me. It was a little crowded on our side, and I frowned at Orion who was freely lounging across from us, but he didn’t move over.

“How did you sleep?” Riordan wanted to know.

“I slept well, actually! And I woke up this morning to this wonderful meal and a new handmaid,” I answered.

“And who are you, exactly?” Orion demanded of my handmaid, completely disregarding my earlier assertion for him to leave her alone. He had not taken his eyes off her since she sat back down at the table.

Sofia bristled again at his tone but maintained her cool surprisingly well. I wondered if handmaids were subject to a lot of abrasive behaviour and whether that made her more tolerant than most of the other Imítheos.

“I am Lady Amira’s new handmaid,” she answered as if this were rather obvious, and I could not help smirking. But Orion growled at her tone. An actual fucking animal growl that rumbled alarmingly in his chest.

“You know what I meant,” he muttered at her with a deadly seriousness.

“Riordan—” I began in exasperation.

“Enough,” my mate ordered his skiá who only coiled himself tighter as if he might leap across the table at my bristling handmaid.

“She needs to be interrogated. What if she is a spy?”

“A spy, Orion, really ? What is she going to tell people? My cup size?” I scoffed at him, although I realized too late that no one at the table could appreciate my joke.

“She will be in proximity to you and privy to sensitive information,” Orion argued, looking only at Riordan as if the opinions of the rest of us didn’t matter.

“I am not a spy. I’ll gladly answer all his questions,” Sofia assured us without a flinch of concern. “But you will wait until after my lady has enjoyed her breakfast,” she informed him sternly.

I was starting to really like this woman.

“An excellent idea, Sofia,” Riordan cut in when Orion opened his mouth to protest her declaration.

“What are your plans today?” I asked the king in an attempt to have a nice, normal conversation with him.

“That is why I’m here now,” he admitted with a wince. “I have a great many meetings scheduled.”

“Ah,” I grunted in deflated understanding. “So this will be my only opportunity to see you.”

“You will join me for all of them soon, but I want you to focus on becoming settled for now. I hope Sofia can help you with that,” Riordan added to my handmaid.

“I have a seamstress coming after breakfast and a tour of the Metropolis planned, your Majesty. Would you like me to plan for these breakfasts to be a daily occurrence?” Sofia asked my king.

“Thank you, please do,” he replied.

“I would actually prefer to see the Rookery,” I spoke up which earned me several shocked looks and a moment of silence around the table. “Is that a problem?” I asked.

“Not in the least. I am glad to hear it,” Riordan told me with a smile.

“But why would you want to see it?” Orion demanded in evident disgust. “There is nothing to see but rundown buildings, dirty cobblestone streets, and homelessness.”

“That is untrue,” protested Helena.

“It sounds like I will be right at home then. That is just how I grew up,” I retorted to Orion.

He and Helena hesitated with their forks half raised to their mouths and eyes on me, but Riordan merely put his hand over mine on the table and squeezed it.

“Is it safe for her to go?” asked Sofia with caution

“I will send Ares with you,” Riordan advised us both. “No one there would attempt to hurt you if they knew who you were, but they might overwhelm you.”

“And try to keep Ares out of your bedroom afterward,” Orion suggested, earning him a frown from Riordan.

“There will be no males permitted in this bedroom! Aside from yourselves,” amended Sofia with a deferential nod to Riordan who looked pleased to hear it.

“Fantastic,” muttered Orion as he used his fingers to pile crepes onto his plate until Helena slapped his hand.

“ Ilíthios ,” she chastised, sliding the serving fork across the table at him.

“I suggest that you see Ergastiri while you are down in the valley,” said Riordan. “I am sure Helena and Ares will have plenty of stories to share about our time there.”

“Indeed,” Helena responded with a snicker.

I smiled at them teasing one another, but I could not help looking at Riordan wistfully.

“I think I would rather see it with you and hear you tell me all those stories,” I admitted, sobering him right away, and then he smiled at me warmly with a nod.

“Then we shall plan for that soon. Perhaps once all the oligarchs are reassured of our—”

He was interrupted when a shadow abruptly obscured the sunlight streaming in through my window.

Orion and Helena were on their feet in the blink of an eye and drew their blades, but it was only Theo landing on the outcropping of stone just outside my floor-length window. He could not pass through the opening because of the wards which Riordan had erected the night before, but he could still speak to us from outside.

“Riordan! Fuath attacked a northern Winter Quadrant village in the night!” he shouted.

Riordan and Orion were moving before I had drawn my next breath.

“Amira, there is no cause for alarm. The northernmost villages are very far from here,” Riordan assured me with a kiss on my forehead before he turned to follow Orion.

“Wait! You have a meeting with—” Helena tried to intervene with their departure.

“The council will have to understand,” Riordan said, wings flaring as he prepared to join Theo outside.

“Riordan Vasilikós, you stop right now!” yelled Helena with a surprising authority that brought the younger males to immediate attention. “You are no longer our general but our king . You cannot rush off like this,” she insisted more patiently once he looked back at her.

Riordan hesitated, clearly torn, and I knew this was the exact reason that he hated this new role.

“I do not want to be the kind of king who sits back and allows others to do his job,” he told her honestly.

“And that is a commendable aspiration, but the attack is over. You have more important things to attend to now,” Helena insisted firmly, although her words seemed to only cement Riordan’s intentions.

“Barring my mate and her happiness, what could ever be more important than the lost lives of my civilians who trusted me to protect them? More important than the crops and homes that have been destroyed?” he demanded.

I was awed by his stance and looked at Helena in the hopes that she agreed, but she shook her head sadly.

“Riordan—” she sighed, but the king turned with an apology and followed Orion and Theo across the dais to dive off the end into the air. “Fuck!” snarled Helena.

“Are his priorities wrong?” I asked her in confusion.

“They would seem very noble,” Helena muttered and began to pace the room clenching her sword pommel.

“I don’t understand.”

“I believe Helena is concerned how the king’s enemies on the council will undoubtedly use this absence against him in their meeting. Today was his first day attending his official duties, and he is gone,” Sofia explained.

“But… surely this is understandable—”

“There will be a hundred skirmishes every month, thárrosi. The king cannot attend them all, nor can he drop every other responsibility each time there is any trouble,” Helena tried to explain.

Unfortunately, that made sense to me too.

“Perhaps he will not feel the need to go once he has appointed someone he trusts to go in his stead,” I mused, although Helena did not look convinced. Honestly, I was not convinced of it myself. Riordan had been clear about how he felt about going from an active role to what he considered to be a passive one.

“Riordan is not…” Helena seemed to rethink whatever she was about to say with a glance at Sofia.

“I still want to see the Rookery,” I said in an attempt to redirect them, and Sofia nodded quickly in agreement as she pulled herself up from the table.

“I will let the seamstress know that we are ready.”

“Helena, I will… talk to him,” I reassured my griffin guardian once Sofia had stepped out the door.

The gods only knew whether the stubborn warrior king would actually listen to me, but I would try nonetheless.

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