The Last Princess [EDITED]

Chapter 30

We nodded, but before we could say anything more, the clinking of boots filled the hall.

"Oh, wonderful," One of the girls, Jessamine, said.

I turned curiously. Soldiers had come in, without most of their armor, walking around the tables. Why were they here?

"The soldiers sneak in for lunch, usually," Sakura said, eyes twinkling, "Some of them fancy our girls." She looked pointedly at a maid, Poppy, who blushed.

"Oh, please," Poppy said, as we laughed.

"That's quite romantic," Daisy said, before turning around. Looking for Jonquil, I supposed.

I twisted in my seat as well, trying not to look too desperate as I scanned their faces, looking for Aiden. Or Arden, Pecan, Terran.

Finally, I saw the twins, brown hair and brown eyes coming out from the mix of soldiers. They'd spotted us as well. They were accompanied by another, older soldier, who walked straight to us.

"Hello, Poppy darling," he said, coming up behind Poppy.

"Hello, Adair," the rest of the girls chorused, grinning madly.

"Oh, stop, you all," Poppy said, turning around. "Adair," she said, smiling brightly.

I looked at Aiden, at Adair's side, whose eyes shot straight to me. I gave him a small smile, and he nodded, his lips turning up slightly.

"Sit," Adair said, looking at the twins. They squeezed into the bench on the other side of the long table. "Ladies, let me introduce two of the new soldiers, Sparrow and Linden Amaranth."

Aiden was Sparrow. Arden was Linden.

"Nice to meet you," Sakura said kindly. The twins nodded at her.

"Tulip, can I talk to you for a moment?" I asked, glancing at the twins once. Maple nodded and I left my empty plate on the table as we walked to a deserted corner.

A few minutes later, the twins joined us.

"Are you alright?" Arden asked.

"Fine," Maple nodded, smiling at him, "I'm glad you made it."

"We're soldiers. I'm not glad," Aiden said grumpily.

I grinned at him. "And we're maids."

He huffed, leaning against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest, "I just want the attack to happen."

"Aiden!" I said sharply, looking around. Thank Nalvia, no one had heard us.

"Sorry," he said quickly, straightening. "I just — " He broke off, exhaling sharply and looking away.

"I know. But it's necessary," I said softly.

"While you do your duties, try to scout a safe way to the Queen's chambers," Arden said, lowering his voice even more. I nodded at him.

"We get an hour in the evening free — we'll do it then," Maple said.

"We shouldn't spend too much time here," Aiden warned. I looked around. The hall was emptying. "We'll try to meet you later," he said, looking down at me.

I swallowed, suddenly aware of the danger they were in. "Be safe."

He gave me a sharp nod. "You too."

They walked away, following the rest of the soldiers, and Maple and I got back to work.

When our duties were over, we made an excuse about wanting to explore the castle. The others gave us warnings to not go to the West Wing.