Chapter 11
Chapter
Eleven
Any child could tell you that it is not in any way easy to choose one’s friends.
Especially when you’re a stranger and have no idea how the social hierarchy works.
But Ashley knew that the clock was ticking, and if she wanted to have an upper hand and survive in this place, she needed to make friends quickly.
The only problem was Ashley had a bad habit of choosing the wrong people to be her friends.
She always had this huge sense of justice that led her to make bad decisions.
In this case, her bad decision was a small, trembling noblewoman that Ashley couldn’t help but notice sitting alone during the course of their meal.
The young woman didn’t speak to anyone, unlike the other nobles who quietly whispered to each other amongst themselves and tried futilely to avoid Ashley’s gaze as they gossiped.
If Ashley had to guess, they’d already spread the news of her arrival to everyone they knew.
And the Dragon Games? Well, it was obvious that just about everyone everywhere would know about the Dragon Games in a matter of hours.
Even if she still had no clue what they were.
And while it would have been good for her to choose a far more talkative friend, one who was connected with all the nobles, she couldn’t help but feel bad for the girl.
Ashley decided she’d had enough of this nonsense and went to grab the young woman’s hand.
Ashley pulled her along behind her as she left the room.
She didn’t care about the whispers that followed her departure, or if the girl would have to answer to someone later.
She wanted answers and she had no doubt the timid young woman would answer her questions.
Ashley knew her name was Emma because the nobles were forced to wear name tags during the feast. She also knew that she chose Emma because she didn’t seem to be talking to anyone else.
The fact that she was alone and not reacting to anyone else was kind of a good sign to Ashley.
It meant that she was excluded from everything, which meant that she would take just about any friend she could get, even if that friend was the Opal Clan princess.
Though agreeing to talk to Ashley, of all people, probably didn’t say much for her smarts.
All the other nobles had avoided Ashley, making a point of trying not to catch the King’s younger sister’s gaze.
It was clear that they wanted nothing to do with the royal family outside of keeping their place in society, which was good for Ashley.
The closer people watched her, the less chance she would actually have to slip away.
But Emma didn’t watch her and she didn’t seem to watch anyone else.
Instead, she’d simply sat there during the course of their meal, sitting alone while she picked at her food and occasionally stared down at her plate.
She’d very obviously pretended that she didn’t hear all the people talking around her and that she didn’t hear all the gossip that was going on.
It was clear to Ashley from what she’d seen that whoever Emma was, she was an innocent soul.
The other thing that made her certain Emma was the friend she needed?
Well, there was something about her bland brown hair and the way that it sat on her shoulder in a clean plait that was a little bit pleasing.
There was also something about her dark brown eyes and her constantly trembling thin form that melted Ashley’s heart.
It was very clear that she was afraid of the situation she had found herself in because she’d somehow ended up at the dragon king’s banquet. All of this was a good sign to Ashley.
“I’m sorry, Princess, did I do something wrong?” The young woman asked as Ashley swept her along, looking for a place to hide.
“No, my dear. In fact, you may have done everything right,” Ashley muttered, though she wasn’t certain Emma could hear her.
It didn’t matter. Ashley was certain that Emma was one of those people that knew exactly what was happening because people didn’t notice they were there.
She’d no doubt heard all the rumors going around the castle.
Which meant that Ashley needed very much to be her friend.
Emma stepped quickly behind the princess and kept her head up, taking each step with a sort of confidence that indicated to Ashley that she knew her way around the castle.
Ashley decided to take the young woman to her bedchamber, perhaps the only place in the whole castle where they could have some privacy.
Once there, Ashley turned to the woman and smiled widely at her, hoping to allay any fears with that smile. The young woman wouldn’t meet her eyes until Ashley sighed heavily and tilted the woman’s face up with her hand.
“Look at me, Emma,” Ashley said with satisfaction, unable to stop herself from laughing at the fact that she was there, talking to another girl who was supposedly beneath her.
And just like that, Emma’s eyes rose to meet Ashley’s, hesitation showing in her gaze as she looked up at the other woman.
There was also something else in the back of her gaze, a hint of envy that Ashley couldn’t exactly blame her for.
Not when Ashley herself was the Princess, and Emma was obviously a low-grade noblewoman of some kind.
Ashley had hated history in school, but she loved Victorian period dramas, so she knew how to appeal to Emma. She had to make her an offer that would make friendship with the princess seem like a good idea.
“How would you like a promotion,” Ashley asked, unable to hide the excitement in her gaze as she spoke.
Ashley hoped that she would be able to convince Emma that this was for the best, that she wanted nothing more than to be by Ashley’s side forever.
Much to Ashley’s pleasure, Emma blinked in surprise, her whole face seeming to light up at the possibility of something more.
“But a promotion? What would there be to be promoted to, my lady?” Emma stuttered out, practically trembling at the very thought of somehow usurping someone in the power structure. But, in time, Ashley would get a little bit more comfortable with that.
“My lady-in-waiting,” Ashley said, and she could see that Emma was a genuinely good person, considering the way she parted her lips to argue with Ashley. She probably wanted to remind Ashley that she already had a lady’s maid or something of the sort, but Ashley didn’t let her.
“Please?” Ashley asked with an innocent smile, trying to entice the woman into saying yes, and because Emma seemed to be a sensible woman, she nodded in agreement.
“I guess I could do that,” Emma said, and turned to leave.
“Whoa there, hold your horses. Where are you going? I’ve got questions for you, my new friend.” Emma went still, her eyes going wide in worry.
“Are you a shifter?” Ashley asked, cutting to the chase. It would be great if Emma was a shifter. And if she wasn’t, then Ashley would still be able to learn the local customs and etiquette from her.
Emma, however, didn’t immediately pick up on what Ashley was up to. Instead, she frowned. It was clear that she was arguing with herself over whether it was a good idea to disclose that information. After a second, however, she heaved a heavy sigh.
“I’m not, Princess,” she said quietly, “well, I am, but I’m not able to shift, you see. I’m not good for much, really.”
“All of the nobles are shifters, some are just more powerful than others, Princess,” Emma added helpfully after another second, almost like she pitied Ashley for the things she didn’t know. Ashley could only nod in response, glad that she had found someone who was willing to talk.
“And I’m guessing that most of the nobles in this area are all related to me in some way,” Ashley said after a moment. Emma nodded tentatively, still shy beyond belief but eager to please the princess.
“A few of them were bestowed with the order of the dragon with the Opal stone as a thank you and passed it through their lineage, which I know a majority of the servants here are hoping will someday happen to them. But many of the villagers and the servants who live here are human, and they don’t hope to move beyond their stations,” Emma said, not needing to clarify exactly what she was saying.
Ashley knew that there was a separate world that she had existed in until she was brought here where dragons were actually real and in charge of just about everything.
“You know, I was raised in the human world. Actually, I was living in Tennessee, where people don’t exactly think that shifters exist and royalty lives overseas, nowhere near us common folk,” Ashley admitted, hating how vulnerable she felt at that moment, even though she knew that vulnerability was good.
Especially when you were trying to make friends, it showed that you cared about what other people thought.
“I don’t exactly know what’s going on in this world or around this castle, you know, so I would really appreciate it if you would help me. ”
The moment that she said that Emma’s whole face changed, her features softening and a sort of pity showing across them as she looked at the other woman, very obviously realizing how vulnerable Ashley was at that moment.
Emma gave a little nod as she motioned for Ashley to walk further into the bedchamber. Ashley couldn’t ignore how Emma looked back towards the door, as if afraid someone might listen there. And no doubt someone would, so they’d just have to speak quietly.