Ascension (21 page)

Perfect, I thought, that might
distract them even more while we are moving everyone from their
colonies to the city. I kept my ears open for the rest of the
night, but I didn't catch much else.

As much as my ears were open, so
were my eyes. I couldn't help but look for the Prince and Croxley
as soon as I entered the room. I found Croxley sitting near the far
end of the table, quite a few chairs down from Prince Erik. He was
engaged in conversation with his neighbors, and I thought he was
enjoying himself until he caught my eye and pulled a face that
indicated otherwise. Prince Erik, on the other hand, was seated
next to Lena at the end of the table, fully absorbed with her
presence, holding Lena's hands in his and leaning towards her, as
if he were disclosing some scandalous secret. I turned my eyes
away, trying to focus on something else, but that didn't stop me
from hearing his melodious laughter fill the hall. Before I could
dwell too much on the way it sent sharp pangs through my stomach,
an unhappy bark brought me to attention.

"Hush! Serving girls don't talk when
they are on duty!" Mathelda berated a group of giggling girls
nearby before continuing on in my direction. "Oh, Fara, how are
you, my dear? I'm sorry you had to work today, but we needed all
the girls on staff." She reached out and tweaked my hair around
until she was satisfied, while I stood completely still, holding my
breath, as though she were a snake that would attack should I make
a wrong move. She frightened me more when she was like this,
wearing a mask of kindness, than she did as her regular, dictating
self. "Jean, why don't you take Fara's next plate out for her? I'm
sure she is getting tired from all this hard labor," she said,
apparently having just noticed Jean for the first time.

“
It's alright,
Mathelda, I can carry it," I tried to argue, but Mathelda shushed
me with a stem look. I gave Jean a quick sympathetic look before
she left, but she wasn't facing me.

"Now that that little minx is gone,
I'll tell you something important," Mathelda said, turning to face
me, her eyes sparkling. "Even though the Prince's bride has come,
and let's be honest, no amount of work put into you will ever get
you close to her beauty, I refuse to let our most important
customer back out now. I want you to get as close to him as
possible. Do everything you can to seduce him. Your gowns came in
today, so you don't have to borrow from Lacy any more. Oh, and
speaking of Lacy, you are going to move into her room. She has the
largest closet, so

you can put all your new gowns in
there. Lydia seemed excited to have you as a room mate anyhow. This
way you don't have to deal with that Jean girl any
more."

Horrified, I could only watch her
back as she walked away, leaving me standing alone with a polite
refusal stuck in my throat.

This was bad. Not only was I making
enemies with Lacy, which is bad enough in itself, but I'm also
leaving Jean behind. I knew that she was growing tired of my sudden
rise in Mathelda's little hierarchy, and this would certainly push
her over the edge. I needed her on my side, especially since I was
going to need her help get to the colonies.

"What was that about?" Jean startled
me, returning from her last shift.

"Um, well," might as well get it
out, "Mathelda is going to move me to a different room. Into Lacy's
room." As expected, Jean's face hardened.

"Oh. Okay."

"Jean, please don't take it that
way. I honestly don't know why Mathelda is being so nice to me.
Okay, I do know why, but that doesn't mean that I enjoy it. I mean,
it's really not what you think. I wish I could just tell you ...
"

"Tell me what?
That you are sick of me and all the other girls? That we aren't
pretty enough for you, especially now that you got all close and
personal with the Prince? Yeah, we all know about that.
Mathelda
’
s been
bragging about it nonstop. Well, you know what? Good for you. Looks
like you don't need my help anymore."

"No, Jean, you have it all wrong! I
do need your help, more than you know. I just can't talk about it
here. But listen! I don't want Lacy's wardrobe or fancy clothes, I
don't want any of this. I just want us to be free!" I shut my mouth
before the last words could make it all the way out, worried that
someone had overheard us, but everyone was too busy rushing in and
out with dishes. Jean looked at me strangely for a few moments
before shaking her head, closing her eyes and putting her hand up,
as if she were giving up the entire situation.

"What are you even talking about?
You know what? I don't even care anymore. I'll see you later. Oh
yeah, I guess I won't. So long, Fara. Enjoy your new life." With
that, Jean stomped out of the kitchen, while I stood there
motionless amidst the bustle of the kitchen, not even trying to
stop the tears from falling down.

!

Jean wasn't in the room when I came
to move out. Then again, it wasn't like I had very much to move. I
folded up my clothes, noticing that the ones I had worn on my
journey here weeks ago still smelled faintly of the forest. I
wished that I could just rip off my gown, throw on these clothes,
and escape back into the forest, where everything was easy.
Grabbing those and my boots, the last thing I had left to take was
my plant. It had grown quite nicely. The stalk had shot up and a
there was a thick head of leaves at the top, as well as a small
white flower bud. I had no idea what it would grow into, what it
would become. All I knew was that it had grown with me, something
from Cethin that flowered in Ahrenia. With all of my belongings in
my arm, I turned around and left my room.

When I reached Lydia's, or, I guess,
our room, Lydia was sitting on her bed, apparently waiting for me.
She squealed with excitement as I entered, jumping off her bed and
pulling me into a tight hug.

"I am so excited! You know, I knew
that you and I would get along the moment I saw you sitting at our
table. I thought, 'Wow, that girls is pretty, in a weird, colorless
kind of way.' And I have a lot of color! So, we are like twins, but
opposites! Plus, you won't complain as much as Lacy did, or get mad
at me when I want to borrow your clothes. Right?"

I glazed over during her monologue,
thinking back to Jean and what she must think of me. She probably
thinks that I'm a traitor. First I leave my home, then I leave my
first true friend. Is this all really worth it? It took me a few
moments to notice that Lydia had stopped speaking and was looking
at me expectantly, excitement lighting up her face.

“
Um, yeah. I'm excited
too. I guess," I offered noncommittally. I stood there awkwardly,
holding all of my belongings in my hands, not knowing where to set
them. I don't know where I belong anymore.

Lydia must have noticed my exhausted
expression because she grabbed some of the things in my hands. She
set them on a desk, informing me that now, it was my desk, and
motioned for me to sit on my bed. I put my plant in on the
windowsill, noting that this room had an actual window rather than
just a hole in the wall. Lydia was looking over my shoulder, and
when I turned around, she asked about what kind of plant it
was.

"To be honest, I don't really know.
I brought it with me as a seed when I left."

“
Left from where?"
Lydia asked.

"From my home, from
Cethin."

"Oh. You're from down there."
Suddenly, Lydia didn't I seem too talkative. My curiosity sparked,
and although I knew it was a risk, I just couldn't help but
ask.

"Are you from a colony, Lydia?" I
asked her quietly, as if I might spook her away should I ask
anything too personal.

"A colony? Oh, you mean underground.
Yes, I was born down in the dark. But I'm up in the light now, and
I don't have to think about that anymore." What does that mean?
Most girls talked about their home either with longing and
homesickness or with scorn and a "good riddance". Lydia seemed to
be frightened of her memories in the colonies.

“
Lydia, what happened?
How did you get up here?" I asked, gently prodding. Apparently, it
wasn't gentle enough, because Lydia abruptly shook her head and
jumped off the bed, a smile plastered on her face that didn't quite
meet her eyes.

"Come on, let's look at your new
wardrobe. They put all of your dresses on this side of the closet.
I promised myself I wouldn't peek at them until you arrived, but
now that you're here, I can't wait any longer!"

After Lydia dragged me to the
closet, I lost all sight of the timid personality she had shown me.
I made a mental note to try and get her to open up about her past,
but for now I allowed her to dive into my new selection of
clothes.

Chapter
21

Early the next morning, I awoke to
find Lydia staring at me, unblinking. Once my heart stopped racing,
I quietly called out, "Lydia? What do you need?" To my surprise,
instead of answering, she let loose a loud snore and rolled over.
She sleeps with her eyes open? Weird.

There was no way I could go back to
sleep now, and besides, the light of the moon shone through the
large window, brightening the room more than I was used to. I rose
from my bed and left to relieve myself. Other than a few early
risers, the quarters were eerily quiet. I took my time strolling
through the tunnels, reflecting on everything that had happened in
the past few weeks. Perhaps that's why I didn't realize that
Mathelda was walking straight towards me until it was too late to
hide.

Honestly, did this woman ever sleep?
She approached me with a sense of purpose, and I could only imagine
what she had planned for me this time.

"Oh, Fara. I'm
glad you
’
re
awake. I have an important day planned for you. I thought it would
be nice if you accompanied the Prince and his new fianc
é
on their errands."

"Are you sure? I wouldn't want to be
in the way. They must have a lot to get done."

“
My naive Fara, that is
precisely the point. We don't want the Prince to get too far ahead
in his marriage. He still has some time before they tie the knot,
and I would like to milk all the profit we can out of this little
arrangement we had set up so nicely."

"But what of the King? Surely he
wouldn't allow a slave girl to accompany the royal couple on their
duties." I honestly didn't know why I was arguing with Mathelda,
because she would undoubtedly win.

That's not true, I admitted to
myself, you're arguing because you don't want to see Erik and Lena
together.

"What the King thinks is none of
your business," Mathelda reprimanded, and I caught a glimpse of the
familiar, uptight woman I had known her to be before all of this
madness began. "Now listen here. I will only say this once. I own
you. I don't know why you think that suddenly you have a say in
what you do. Perhaps I have been too easy on you. Need I remind
you, I am in charge of what you girls do, and like it or not, you
have no say in the matter. You do what I tell you, and you don't
ask any questions. Otherwise, I might just send you back to the
stalls to work for the horses, and let all the other customers who
are demanding your attention have their way with you. I can promise
they will not have the same sense of, how should I say, civility,
that you have become accustomed to. Do I make myself clear?"
Mathelda's eyes glowered, and I knew that I had overstepped my
boundaries.

"Yes, Mathelda," I replied, my head
bowed. I would have to be more careful if I wanted to avoid a
repeat with the merchant.

"Good. Now I want you to go to your
room, get dressed, and come back here by the time the sun rises.
The royal couple is planning on enjoying a quiet breakfast in the
garden. I assume you know where that is?"

"Yes ma'am," I curtsied, then turned
around and headed towards my room.

!

When I got back to my room, Lydia
had woken up and was sitting in the bed, rubbing her eyes and
quietly complaining that they were dry. I wonder why, I thought
dryly, thinking back to the lovely sight I had been greeted with
earlier.

"Good morning," I said, rummaging
through my closet for something to wear.

"Mmmm....hello, Fara," she said,
stretching her arms over her head and then sliding out of bed,
sitting at the desk in front of a mirror. "What are your plans for
today?" She asked as she combed through her long, blonde
hair.

"I'm, ah, supposed to be
accompanying the royal couple," I admitted, knowing she would find
out sooner or later. I waited for her to let out an excited squeal,
or some other Lydia-esque reaction, but all I got was a murmur of
recognition. Turning around, I looked at her to see if anything was
the matter.

"Lydia? Is everything okay?" I asked
her, wondering if she was still upset about what we talked about
last night, but if so, her face didn't show any emotion.

"Oh yes, I'm sorry. I'm just tired.
Not much of a morning person, I guess. What about you? You are up
pretty early. You were already gone when I woke up."

"Something woke me up and I couldn't
go back to sleep," I purposely skipped the part about her strange
sleeping habits, not wanting to embarrass her, "so I decided to
walk around the tunnels." Hoping to lift her spirits, I did the
only thing I thought might help. "Lydia, could you help me pick out
something to wear for today?"