Chapter 16 #2
Jett fits her name perfectly with long jet-black hair woven into two braids on either side of her head.
Elys blooms have been plaited through as well and my heart warms at the look.
Her overall appearance is incredibly friendly with her wide grin, freckled face and short stature.
However, she has the presence to command a room.
Reminds me of Ma.
Lastly, Isadora is pale with mousy hair. Her facial features are aquiline and she stands above both me and Jett. Her hands are folded behind her back; she’s avoiding my gaze.
“I am excited to get to know you both,” I say, looking at each of their faces. I hope we have not met before. Cedric would not set me up for failure. On that note, I glance around and find no members of court idling around. No judging stares or uncomfortable introductions.
Jett smiles wildly, dimples forming, and steps out the line to grab both of my hands. “Shall we?”
We tour the castle fully after settling my things in my quarters.
The room had been freshened since I last visited.
Fresh elys in each vase, the windows propped open.
The layout of the castle is best understood in four sections: main rooms, courtyards, quarters and working rooms. The main rooms are the Chalice and Throne Room.
There are three courtyards on the second floor, each with a different theme of gardening.
Cedric and I share a common hallway, chambers at opposite ends with a private staircase to the back of the castle where the training field is.
Some members of the court hold permanent residency here just as their families did before them.
Other quarters are reserved for visiting courtiers and emissaries.
Finally, the workrooms are places such as the healing quarters and servant areas.
Since many humans work and live at Demis or nearby, a fully staffed kitchen is always bustling.
And in the middle of it all, is me.
It may be a decadent castle – a far cry from anything at the village – but another question remains: could it ever be a home?
Aside from visiting Avonde and her group in the Healers’ Quarters, the next week is filled with wandering the halls and hidden nooks of what is to be my new residency.
The entire castle is more ornate than I originally noticed.
So far, I have discovered large bathrooms, a room full of sheet-covered statues and a massive collection of tomes in an abandoned space.
Some in languages I do not recognize. Old me, if that is even a valid statement, had exquisite taste in reading.
Perhaps me and Elivienne do share common traits after all.
Some mornings I feel I have to escape my ladies before they wake.
They are so attentive and eager to help me, but I truly want time to myself most days.
The loneliness feels better than forced companionship with people I do not know.
It’s not fair to Jett or Isadora, as they have done nothing wrong, but kingdom-assigned-friendship feels cold.
Jett found me one morning with my nose deep in A Charred History of Duresden. She noticed me behind a curtain on the main floor. Only pausing to nod in greeting, she continued walking along. In a way, it felt like our little secret.
Cedric hasn’t come to see me since he left me in the foyer a week ago. I’m not sure if this bothers me or not but considering our agreement is for us to rekindle, he’s doing a poor job on his own request.
Henry, Percy and Grenn came to my quarters this morning with a test. I was supposed to touch a feather and cause it to float with my magic. After, oh maybe three hundred attempts, the only lift the ivory tendril got was from my sighs of exhaustion.
“We’ll keep testing this skill.” Henry smiled and Grenn took notes. Percy seemed preoccupied. They left little puzzles or word games in the meantime to continue testing my mental capacity.
Well, my mental capacity must be low because boredom finds me often.
I’m walking around the larger courtyard across from the Chalice Room where I watched the two brothers brawl.
Cedric is coming out of the room when he notices me noticing him.
I slightly step behind a large screen, hoping to remain unseen.
Members of the court pass by and pay me small attention, smiles and gentle curtsies.
My presence is that of a phantom or wraith.
Cedric bids farewell to some nobles before pausing and waiting for me to emerge once more. He stands awkwardly for a moment and waves before folding his hands behind his back to continue walking.
“Wait!” I call, picking up my skirts to jog over to him. Why did they make this so gaudy? “Where are you headed?”
Cedric smiles and looks me up and down, as if he can’t believe I’m speaking to him. He slows his pace to meet mine.
“Just a day off. I’m shirking duties, if you can believe it. I’m headed to the stables.” He puts his arm out. “Care to join?”
I laugh. “Me? Horses? No.” Seriously, last time I tried riding a horse, I ended up with a splint.
“No?” he asks surprised. “No horses on the farm, I take it?” Cedric laughs and I realize he rarely does that. Happiness looks good upon his sharp features. His smile compliments his jaw perfectly.
“That is a long story,” I drawl, trying to suppress my shock at his change in behavior. Cedric is looking at me with such curiosity, I can’t help but hide a nervous blush.
He puts his arm further out. “Do tell.”
“I’m not getting on that.”
“That is a horse, Liv.”
“If a horse bred with a boulder, I would agree with you. He’s huge!”
Cedric walks over to the steed and pats the saddle. Somewhere along our walk to the stables Cedric was able to convince me to ride.
The king makes a pouty face. An actual pouty face!
“Fine,” I murmur, dragging my skirts behind me as I attempt to lift one leg into the stirrup. I reach for the pommel but before I reach it, Cedric lifts me up onto the horse.
“Thank you,” I say, straightening myself on the saddle. Cedric hoists himself up behind me. “Don’t you have your own horse?” I lean forward.
“Yes,” he says as he reaches over me for the reins.
“Why not ride yours?” I’m completely caught off guard by the sudden closeness. It’s one thing to link arms but to be flush with him…
“We’re on him.”
“Got it,” I say, sitting upright, trying to not sink completely into him.
“Besides, you think I would trust you to ride alone after that story you just shared?” he says close to my ear. I jump at the vibration of his voice next to my ear.
“You have a point,” I murmur.
Cedric kicks the horse into a trot, leaving the stables behind as we go directly into the forest. The silence of the forest isn’t necessarily silent. Bubbling brooks, the crunch of the forest floor beneath Steele’s hooves—
Steele. Very fitting for Cedric’s horse.
Neither one of us speaks as Cedric steers us through the dense woods. I think both of us are enjoying the beauty of this raw nature. Completely untouched and unfiltered by man.
“How far back is your memory of the farm, the village?” Cedric asks, breaking the peaceful quiet.
“Oh.” I pause, not quite expecting this question. “It’s hard to say. My mind is convinced I was always there. But it’s quite… vague.” I immediately remember the feeling of being sore but no memory of actually working the fields.
“Hmm.” Cedric ponders this. “You mentioned a mother?”
“Ma, yes.”
“What did she look like?” he asks, eyes searching the path.
“She was older with freckles upon her face like a map. Greying, bronze hair and she was short in stature,” I explain as the vision of her feels so clear to me even now.
“Your own mother had a head of dark, soot-colored hair and your father was a pale blonde like yourself,” he replies softly.
I pocket that knowledge and feel an affirmation root in me.
“Yes, she wasn’t really my mother, but she acted like one.
Obviously, I now know she wasn’t mine. I don’t know what her purpose was, in my head, but I have this deep connection to her.
She was the most thoughtful person my mind could have conjured up.
She would bring back trinkets from her journeys to markets in other villages, braid my hair in the mornings and sing with me while we did art. ”
Due to the pain of it, knowing she didn’t exist, I haven’t spoke of her since my first day in Lux. But in my heart, she did. And I miss her.
Steele continues along a dirt road, stepping over a fallen tree. A few posts along the side of the road have hanging lanterns. I wonder who tends to their flame.
“She sounds like someone I know. A rare personality. I’m sorry, you must miss her.”
My heart aches a little at his words. “Thank you, Cedric. You know, it’s nice to have my experiences validated. Truly.”
I can almost hear the smile in his voice when he says, “You’re welcome, Liv.”
“Do you mind telling me more about my accident?” My teeth chew on my lower lip, unsure of the well of emotions I risk opening.
In many ways, I am thankful I do not remember the assault.
But I should know what happened to me. If my healing is important, then I need more information.
To lose your whole life requires so many questions with an equal amount of confusion.
Cedric sucks in a breath and urges Steele over a small creek.
The birds chirp around us excitedly, no doubt feeling the change in temperature.
He adjusts himself behind me, his leather gloved hand lightly resting on the back of my thigh before retracting it.
We dismount Steele by a large hill of grass, Cedric tying him off on a tree.
The grass prickles my legs through my linen dress as I sit and I pick at them haphazardly, the sun warming my face.
“Where do you want me to begin?” Cedric stands in front of me, blocking the sun. His silhouette shades most of his features but he emanates a relaxed demeanor outside of the castle. Deftly, he sits adjacent to me.