Cabbages, cabbages, cabbages, Jess is rubbing off on me.
I duck quickly back inside our cottage.
"Rose? You okay?" Gurty calls to me.
"Yes, I just forgot I need to do something." I call back.
"You are a strange one," I hear her say, chuckling.
"I know," I call back, trying to make my voice sound normal.
I always knew that there was a chance that the Golding's could turn up at the hunt but seeing them in person is so much worse than I could imagine. Their uptight figures riding up the drive, imprinted in my mind and sends shivers down my spine.
They don't know you are here, I remind myself, and even if they ask after me I am known as Rose not Novella. I take a few calming breaths, all I need to do is stay out of sight, easy peasy right? I laugh at my own optimism, this is going to be hard.
Leticia did not lie to me though, we spend the entire weekend up to our elbows in flour and vegetables, ideally not at the same time and I can count the amount of times that I emerge out of the kitchen on my hands. She was right about the maids too, we would constantly have to be sending them out of the kitchen for they would come and take up room squealing about the handsome knights that are walking around, completely unfocused on their tasks at hand.
Finally Sunday comes and goes leaving me flopped out on the stack of blankets laid out on the floor in the corner of the kitchen.
"You sleeping here again tonight?" Leticia asks me as she collects her things.
Everybody else has been dismissed for the night now that the final banquet is over.
"I am too tired to move," I groan, my whole body aching from being on my feet all day.
"Fair enough, you did good this weekend."
I smile, "You too, I would not have survive without you."
"Well, goodnight Rose, feel free to take any leftovers back to the cottage tomorrow morning, they are too good to be wasted on the animals this time."
"Thank you, goodnight."
"One more thing, if you remember could you please go to the hall in the morning and retrieve my serving pot? I want to cook soup tomorrow in it."
"Of course," I nod, "but are you sure you want me to get it?"
"Why ever would I not want you to get it?"
I wrack my brains trying to think of a reason to get out of going into the main manor for I know there are still a few nobles around who didn't leave last night.
"Umm, I do not know how to interact with the nobles well."
"Is that what you are worried about?"
I nod, "Yes?"
"Then that is easy, do not worry, nobles will not interact or even acknowledge a servant unless they are doing something exactly to them so do not worry, you will most likely not be in their line of fire."
"Okay, I can get it for you tomorrow. Goodnight,"
She bids me goodnight then closes the door behind her leaving me alone in the kitchen to fall asleep with the fire churning out warmth throughout the night.
~~~
I wake up to the loud sound of the cockerel outside torturing my ears with his morning greeting. With a groan I stretch and rise, wiping sleep from my eyes.
"Good morning to you too," I mutter at the sound before grabbing a hunk of bread and cheese off the table and stuffing it into my mouth in a very unladylike fashion.
Time to start the day.
I wander out of the kitchen to find only a few servants sleepily walking around, the rest of the manor still asleep.
Perfect.
I make my way towards the hall, making sure to duck my head when the occasional more noble looking person emerges out of a room but no one stops me. The hall itself is also empty when I arrive and I quickly spot Leticia's pot is sitting on the table.
A noise startles me and I turn around to find the door opening and Lady Golding walking through it with her head down. With my blood pounding I slowly turn my back and walk slowly over to the pot, hoping that Leticia is right and Lady Golding will just ignore me.
I carefully start placing other pots into Leticia's large one, wasting time and trying not to make any sudden noises.
Suddenly I hear Lady Golding's voice, "Servant girl, I dropped my ring in here last night have you seen it."
I pause in my stacking but stay facing the wall, "No, I am sorry m'lady, I have not seen it."
"You must have!" Her voice rises, "I know I left it in here,"
"M'lady, I'm sorry I really haven't seen it."
"Did you steal it peasant?" I hear her footsteps coming towards me.
"No, no, I only just got here too,"
"I don't believe you, I know you peasants are always trying to steal from us," Lady Golding's sharp tongue cuts through the air.
"I swear I have not seen it, I do not even know what it looks like,"
"Lies, it is a gold ring with a dark red ruby embedded in it, valued at a very high pri— look at me when I am talking to you! You should have respect for your superiors!"
I slowly spin around keeping my gaze firmly at the ground.
"I said, look at me when I am talking to you," Lady Golding says slowly, emphasising each word.
Finally I raise my eyes to hers, and for a moment I think that I am fine until her expression changes.
"You." She gasps.
Cabbages.
I barge past her, running straight for the exit.
"Warin!" She shrieks at the top of her lungs, "I found her, the runaway scum is here!"
As I sprint out of the door I collide with the hard body of a man who is sent tumbling to the ground, I quickly apologise but don't stop, adrenaline rushing through me as the screams of Lady Golding urge me to go faster.
From behind me I begin to hear running footstep coming after to me, spurring me to go harder, I dash around corner after corner, shutting doors behind me as I go, trying to lose my pursuer but they keep on coming. Within a minute I reach the kitchen door and pull it open, knowing that there is a cast iron bolt behind it that will drastically slow the person behind me down.
As I am closing the door I hear a very familiar deep voice call out, "Ell wait!"
I hesitate for a fraction of a second before slamming the slightly rusty bolt across, leaving Killian on the other side of the door.
A/N:
Knights, lords, maidens - everybody is coming together!
Hope you all enjoyed, please vote and comment!
SouthernAlps over and out...