Morning came, and we prepared ourselves for our journey back to the capital. We said our goodbyes to Rosalinda's servants, who were tearful but dignified. With each bow and good wish, my head flew everywhere, trying to find an idiotic priest with two strange lilac eyes. I had no luck.
When most servants had expressed their heartfelt goodbyes, Juliette came forward, a letter in her hands. Next to her was the butler, a young man with plump cheeks. He carried, with Franco's help, the ebony box delivered by Lord Fridh. My eyes were stuck on it until the head maid pushed the letter to me, bowing when I took it from her hands.
"Lord Emmanuel wishes for my lady to have a good journey back home. He hopes as well that you are careful with your special hobbies and have always a responsible adult by your side whenever you perform them. Like the duke." said Juliette.
My lips almost quivered at such ridiculous statement. Almost. Coward. Idiot.
I took the letter and clenched it in my hands, causing the paper to wrinkle. Juliette let her brow kirk partly up, yet she said nothing, deciding it was best to retire.
"He hates goodbyes." said the duke behind me.
Me and Jenni, who had been by my side, turned to see him. He stepped back to give instructions to Franco and the butler. And when they moved past him, he came to our side again, patting us both on our heads.
After ruffling our hair a little, he let it go, taking our hands in his and leading us to the entrance hall, where Lady Sargosa and Eloise were waiting, watching the huge silver tree.
The sunlight came from the windows up, striking the silver leaves with its glow. It warmed the room and the ladies' faces. As we walked to them, I put the letter in one of my pockets, retrieving instead a less conspicuous, small and square, paper from it. It fit in my palm and it itched a little; it was also the ticket to my freedom from the beautiful chain they called bracelet.
We approached them and said our goodbyes. As ladies, me and Jenni bowed while the Duke took Lady Sargosa's hand. When he was chatting with her, distracted, I scooped Eloise for a hug, hearing Jenni's loud gasp behind me.
I whispered into Eloise's ear while I pushed the paper in her hand. "Show this to your grandmother, and only her. Help me."
I dropped the hug and looked into her eyes, happy to see some semblance of understanding in them. Still, my breath was erratic, since I was unsure if my plan had worked.
"Lulu. That behaviour is not proper." called Jenni, though she didn't seem angry, only curious. She shared her puzzling attention between me and Eloise.
The girl betrayed nothing. Instead, she smiled widely and joyfully. "It was a pleasure to meet you, lady Lucreatia. I am sure, however, we shall see each other rather sooner than later." She bowed and my breath returned to normal.
We soon left for our extravagant carriage, which had the Mountnero symbol and its blue and white colours painted on. Through the windows I looked and waved at the people who were my family during my stay, wishing I could have stayed a little longer.
***
Our trip back was longer than the one sending us to Aerabitina. We took more time to rest and appreciate the views. There was time for leisure and fun. I swam with Fanny in the great lake of the Rose forest, picked up exquisite flowers with Jenni at the Bell fields, and overlooked the small mountains on the Giant Corcunda lands with Gobbie. It was pleasant, yet I felt a little reckless as I had yet to open Emmanuel's letter.
I had been too angry and too exasperated to feel like it. Besides, I knew what he had written, and I was too tired of his excuses. But the day before we arrived at the capital, the exquisite envelope called me at all hours, and no matter how much I tried to pretend it didn't exist, I was thoroughly unsuccessful.
By night, its pull had won, and I stared at it under the soft candlelight, in the room Gobbie had rented for me on that night. Sealed by a rose stamp, which belonged to the Benedicto's coat of arms, it was easy to open. From it, I pulled out a thick paper. I got surprised as I had expected several pages, since the envelope had felt fuller. Instead, there was only one page, written front and back.
The first part was his message to me.
Lady Lucreatia,
Apologies for not saying my goodbyes as I should. I am sure your father must have remarked on it, but I shall own up to that, at least. I do not do well with goodbyes... One of my many faults, I know. Yet I am truly terrible on those and I would make things all so much worse for everyone. And I do not wish you sad memories in Aerabitina, or at the very least, not more than I can avoid.
I know you want answers, and I understand your frustration in not getting them. But sometimes answers bring more questions which cannot be answered, or worse, can lead to terrible problems. In the end, if you are not careful, it would cause too much pain for one as young as you.
I do not intend to shield you forever. However, I do wish you to live your childhood unconcerned and happy. My promise yesterday is still valid and I will tell you everything, but until then, please wear the bracelet. It will protect you, more so than alchemy.
There are things magic cannot help you.
Signed by an idiot,
Emmanuel.
I read it carefully, turning the page to see the instructions for the "blessed protection" he had taught me before. In anger, I crushed the paper into a ball and threw it far away. It said nothing, as I had expected, yet it still frustrated me. How could they believe I would be alright knowing nothing? How could I walk in the dark and believe their empty words... I couldn't.
And there was no way back from my decision.
Yet... I had hoped. I was turning into an idiot because I hoped for the truth, because I believed in him. My frustration stemmed more from my ridiculous beliefs than because of Emmanuel. And from the realization that I probably would have done the same if I was in his position.
With effort, I left the chair I was sitting in and went to pick up the paper. I straightened it and looked once more before returning to my place.
Jenni and the duke had stolen glances at the letter during the trip. They didn't comment on it, but their stares were obvious. They were waiting for me to open it. Emmanuel was no idiot (no matter how many times I called him that) and had sealed the letter with a blessing of his kind on top of the wax. It had Rosalinda's rose and his power. Only me, its intended recipient, could open it. Well... there was another way, but that meant spending a lot of holy power.
So they waited for me to open the letter to take a peek.
But that would not go well with my plan. Maybe Emmanuel had told the duke of our talk, or maybe not. I was betting on the latter. In the end, it didn't matter. Either way, it wouldn't help if they saw it. It would ignite their suspicions and turn things harder for me. So, with that in mind, I approached the candlelight and let the paper burn slowly. When it was nothing more than ashes, I finally went to sleep.
***
We arrived at the capital on the afternoon of the next day, though we didn't pass through its gigantic golden barriers. Instead, we went around in a more direct and less crowded route to our home. From afar, we could see the enormous palace of the Mountnero family that seemed bigger and even more glorious than before we left, so many months ago. At our awestruck looks, Franco told us the manor had suffered some improvements.
Jenni's face paled, and she stole a glance at the Duke, who, while still listening, decided not to intervene in the conversation. He kept himself quiet, a hand covering half of his face, as he fixed his eyes on the scenery outside.
I took Jenni's hand, who sat beside me, feeling her grasp tightening on my hand. Her tunnels much likely had been destroyed. We all kept quiet except Fanny, who was too excited about the recent changes, and Franco, who had to answer all her questions.
We quit the carriage at the grand entrance of the Mountnero palace, being greeted by several servants, all with mist eyes and kind smiles. Like us, they were happy with our arrival. We had finally returned home.
The first days were of discovery. So much had changed. Rooms got completely shifted or enlarged, new pieces of decor added, and beautiful paintings hung on every wall. And the gardens? Those were now from a different world altogether, unrecognizable. But most important, my room had been upgraded too!! Like before, pink was still the colour of choice, though now there were also silver and golden details spread in every corner. I would have never thought these colours would have worked well together, yet I found it more tasteful than the full-on pink room from before. And that was not everything. I also got my own waiting room attached to it. For what? Not sure... maybe hide and seek.
Jennifer, too, received a bigger room, though a little further away from me. Her position in the family had grown as well, with a study room specially prepared for her. It was a signal from the duke of his expectations. As the oldest Mountnero lady, she would now take on more tasks and do decisions that affected the estate. And when the Duke was away, she would be the one responsible. She would be the head of the family.
A position she was excited to take. Her first challenge as the lady of the house would be the ball the duke had announced in Aerabitina. It would be her first time planning a social gathering, and a ball, for that matter. Nothing could be bigger than that. And she took it seriously, already planning things the moment the Duke gave her the task.
I was happy for her.... until she told me that as the second lady of the house, and as HER SISTER, it was my duty to help her plan everything.
When she put it like that, I had no choice but to help her, yet... I had not expected to suffer like hell because of it. Together with me and Jenni, Fanny and the head maid were part of the discussions, and I passed my days hearing questions upon questions. What food to serve? What kind of drinks? And appetizers? What kind of music? What kind of activities? Dress code? The fucking dress code was suuuper important.
But nothing (really nothing) was as important as the theme for the ball. Goddess, were there long discussions about it, and all with the same questions almost repeated in loop. My head became perpetually dizzy from it, though I did my best to give ideas and input. However, if I was fair to myself, I was not even aware such a thing could be a logistic nightmare.
Jenni, like always, had the best ideas and could get everything sorted out rather quickly. Soon I was off from planning duty, happy as a free woman, until I realized planning had been the simplest part. The true hell was yet to come. Dresses.
It was a pity, since I loved dressing up. Except this was not dressing up. This was something else I couldn't describe. The thousands of gowns I tried on, all from high-end boutiques and all very much the same, were torturing my soul.
They came in carriages with dressmakers ready to make alterations, and together with them came shoes and jewellery. And all for me and Jenni to try on.
By the fifth day of this madness, I was done with that and declared chosen, to a dismayed Fanny, the dress I would wear. Then I went to Jenni and begged for fresh air. To visit the capital, maybe go to a boutique to see more pins for my hair (something easy to try on). Just a simple excuse to help the decision go my way.
Thankfully, she and the duke accepted my proposition. The late intending to join us as well. But like usual, he was unable, as the royal secretaries, whom if I am honest, looked more like armoured guards than people employed by the state, dragged him away to have an audience with the Emperor.
In the end, it was just me, Fanny and Jenni (and, of course, the sea of knights tasked with protecting us). I wouldn't have minded if Gobbie and his loud self came with us. As long as I was away some hours from the house and the chaos that fermented inside. However, to my unpleasant surprise, I found out that all boutiques in town were as chaotic as the Mountnero manor.
Anticipating an invitation, the young ladies of the noble families had taken siege of the boutiques and their dressmakers, causing the stores to look like battlefields. Jenni decided we should just keep our visit restricted to the Lamoure Boutique, and I had never been so happy with one of her ideas.
I had little strength to face another clothing hell. If I was lucky, I would find the pins in less than five minutes and leave as quick as a warm breeze in winter.
But I was not lucky, and Fanny had found an exquisite gown, that she was sure would cause my eyes to pop. Yet I didn't want them to pop! I didn't want more gowns or need them! I mean, how many gowns could I wear during a ball?!
Jenni, however, agreed with her, and they threw me into a dressing room to wait while they talked with the head dressmaker. Great. Bloody Fantastic.
With no escape in sight, I sat on a cushioned chair, waiting for my doom. It was with my head on the wall that my ears picked up the conversation in the dressing room beside mine.
"I cannot believe the Mountnero family has invited her." Said a nasal voice, with flashes of grandeur mixed in.
"Unfortunately, they have to. She is the daughter of the East." said another, more relaxed.
Daughter of the East?
With my attention peeked, my ear almost touched the wall where the voices came from.
"But she is weird!" said the first voice. A sniffle and some ruffling noises stopped the conversation. She was most likely putting on a dress. "I heard she tortures her maids and drinks their blood."
What? Not possible.
"My lady, please do not say such things. You cannot be caught saying bad things about the family of the east. About the Castello's."
My heart froze.
"But... she is weird. That Amelia is not normal! I hope she doesn't talk to me!"
The rest of my body froze.
I had heard that name before, Amelia Castello, The Bloody Dame. The villain of the book.
And with that realization, my soul froze.
The girls have arrived at the capital!!
What did you think of the chapter? There was not much dialogue, but I hope it was still fun to read. Did you like Emmanuel's letter (and the tidbit about the holy seal)?
Some exciting things are waiting for them. The first... the ball!! I have written it, yet I am still struggling with the theme for it. I need to search for it a little.
Also, I gave insight into Amelia Castello. She will be important.
Hope you guys are excited!! By the way, the ball starts next week (no time to lose XD).