Gardenias (L. Laufeyson)

Chapter 22

The halls of the Vanaheim royal palace tended to be quieter at night. A few servants scuttled around, and occasionally one of the royal family might take a walk, but on this particular night, they all kept to their own rooms, packing for a departure to Asgard. All of the palace was abuzz with the news of a royal wedding between Prince Loki of Asgard and Princess Maeve of Vanaheim. Many of the servants had watched the young girl grow up and therefore harbored fond feelings for her.

Amidst the gossip and excitement, a young Vanir woman hurried down the hallway, an envelope clutched in her hand. Instead of making the turn to the servants' quarters, the maiden walked toward the royal family's personal wing. Perhaps she should have been worried, but she couldn't find space in her mind for anxiety. Excitement flushed her face when she thought of her destination. In fact, she kept herself so wrapped up in her thoughts that she didn't notice King Frey until she ran right into him.

"Oh!" She exclaimed, her cheeks flaming with embarrassment. She quickly sank into a low curtsey. "Your Majesty. I apologize. I didn't mean to-"

"Up off of the floor, lass," he growled. She did as he said immediately, trying not to seem afraid. "What business do you have in this wing of the castle at this late hour?"

"I- I was just-"

He slapped her across the cheek. "Don't mumble. Answer your king!"

"Hey, what's going on?" The young woman's eyes widened as Prince Corey joined them. She curtsied again and almost dropped the envelope, the piece of paper that had somehow gotten her into so much trouble. Corey saw the terrified look in her dark eyes, smelled the alcohol on his father's breath, and instantly resolved to help her. "Papa, I'll handle this," he said quietly, giving his father a look. The king obliged begrudgingly, and as soon as he was out of sight, Corey stepped forward, concern on his face. "Did he hit you?"

She bit her lip, torn between lying to royalty and unveiling an unpleasant truth about her ruler. "It's not bad," she finally said, although her cheek did ache. After dealing with Maeve's lies for years, Corey saw right through hers.

"Come with me. My brother's a healer, he can fix that." He started to walk down the hallway. After a moment of hesitation, she followed him. "What are you doing around here? Servants aren't supposed to be in royal wings after dusk without permission. You seem smart enough to know that."

She held up the letter. "This is for your brother, Your Highness. There was an error with the mail and it was sent to someone in the healing wing instead of him. I didn't know if it was urgent, so I didn't want to wait until morning to deliver it."

"Oh, you're a healer? What's your name?" He didn't recognize her, which was odd, because Corey spent more time needing healing than the rest of his brothers combined. It was a drawback of being the god of war and commander of the royal army. He also had a tendency to act recklessly.

Once again, she hesitated. Does he know? "I'm Gale Torstendottir, Your Highness."

"Pleasure to meet you. I'm Corey Freyson. You may have heard of me." He winked and gave her a crooked grin, but Gale couldn't focus, not with where he was taking her. "Right up here. Here's his office. I'd bet he's the only one in the entire palace still working at this hour."

He knocked once before pushing open a door at the end of the hallway. Inside, Asmund sat hunched over at his desk, reading through scrolls of parchment with a slightly harried energy. His blond hair appeared messier than usual. He didn't even notice them come in, only looking up when Corey cleared his throat obnoxiously. His head snapped up and his blue eyes instantly fell on Gale.

Her dark waves were tied back into a modest bun at the nape of her neck save a few stray pieces that framed her heart-shaped face. Tall and slender, she wore a simple gray gown denoting her as a servant to the palace, and she hung back near the door, wary of entering. An odd expression crossed Asmund's face.