Amie released a breath she did not know she was holding, the moment she sat in her carriage. Beth remained silent with her head bowed. One could not tell what was going through her mind. The silence continued throughout the journey all the way to the palace gates. The driver was stopped at the gates where Amie heard him identify himself as from the Krain household.
"What business do you have in the palace? Only those with a pass can be granted entrance," she heard the guard say.
"I carry Miss Krain," the guard said. One could hear his voice shake.
There was silence, then she heard someone approach.
"Pardon me miss, could you lift the curtains?" the guard asked.
"And would you recognise me if I do?" Amie asked without complying and the guard paused. She was right. Very few have ever met Miss Krain. How would he know it to be her?
"A token then?" he asked. Amie nodded to Beth who flashed a token with the Krain sigil out the window. This, he recognised. This was added to the permissions list during the time of the late king. With a nod, the gates opened and the carriage rolled through.
Amie released a soft breath in the carriage when granted entrance. Token? She had found this and many more in her brother's room after finding out he would not be back for a while. She had not been sure it was even real. Regardless of gaining entry, Amie still could not believe how odd things had become. They had a sigil? She, the daughter of a mine hand could not still process this.
The carriage rolled to a stop and Beth stepped out, before helping her lady down. Even though she was curious about the palace, she did not let her eyes linger around while forgetting her job. She was Miss Krian's personal maid. When Miss Krian married the king, she would become the queen's personal maid. She needed to act with a little bit of tact.
Amie stepped onto the palace grounds and saw ahead of her a lineup of maids and servants who seemed to be trying hard to catch their breath. Clearly, they must have raced over from her unexpected visit. She wondered though, how they were informed so fast, to arrive just as she stepped out of the carriage. She stopped herself from looking back at the gate to find out how far the gate was from where she stood. She feigned a calm demure as she approached the attendants. They all curtsied as she approached, but she did not stop nor spare them a glance. She walked into the palace halls as though she had been there before.
"Tell His Majesty I have come to see him," she said to the attendants who scurried to her side. Some left to inform the king as she had ordered and others led the way. Since she did not say a thing, they did not either. The palace was so large, that she was offered to sit in a sedan chair and be carried the remaining way. To this, she complied. The sedan chair was a platform lined softly for comfort, carried on all its rectangular sides by four strong men. It also adorned four pillars tying above soft silks to block soft snow falling into the courtyards from touching her, and falling to all our sides like heavy drapes blocking the cold out. Even though she had not seen a sedan chair before talk more sat in one and was therefore quite nervous, she did not let it show. She had heard that places like the palace which was full of inner courtyards and mini palaces, sedan chairs were often used.
She was carried all the way to an inner courtyard and up some flights of stairs before the large strong men put down the chair for her to step down. She was led towards a rose garden. After, the attendants retreated, so did Beth. But Amie refused to be flustered. She forced herself to stroll around the garden with a calm expression and look at flowers. She soon saw someone's broad back standing quite away under an umbrella tree to shield him from the snow. She would recognise this back anywhere. After all, it would be a shame if a woman could not recognise the man she is said to soon marry.
Prince Adrian turned at the soft-sounding feet approaching. He paused at how Amie fit into the garden quite nicely in her pink attire.
"Come sit under here," he said. Even though she wore a heavy coat, he still thought she was too exposed to the raw snow. She walked before him and curtsied, "Your Majesty," she said.
"Not yet. I only become king in two days' time," he chuckled softly.
"And I, no more a prince's betrothed but a king's?" she asked. Even though her voice remained soft, Prince Adrian still felt the chill from her words.
"Many would be glad to marry a king,"