Three days. Olivia had been stuck inside of her room for three total days. It was both heaven and hell. She could read in peace with Sir Aaron's, the knight, delivery of books. Though, they were all fiction, and she had made a point to tell him that she would need something more historical. However nice any of that was, Olivia was still stuck up in a room and not allowed to go anywhere. She was getting bored. On the bright side, she was feeling a lot better, and knew her escape wasn't too far away.
Upon Sir Aaron's request, Olivia had found a better hiding place for her writing materials and books - underneath her bed. It wasn't the absolute best, but Olivia had been up and down the room searching for a loose floorboard, a discreet nook, anything really. She'd, obviously, come up empty handed.
Olivia closed the book she had been reading, crawling to the edge of her bed, and sliding it under with the tips of her fingers. After almost being caught by Elena once, Olivia decided it was best if she memorized when lunch time was. Olivia sighed, of course, she didn't know the exact time, just the approximate.
She climbed out of her bed, and stood at the window, staring down into the garden. A few days ago, she was getting tired of eating lunch in the garden. Now, a small part of her missed it. She frowned, tapping on the window impatiently. As if Elena could sense Olivia's growing hunger, her bedroom door opened and Elena came rushing in with a tray of food. Behind her was Armoneus. He was carrying a smaller vial now of the medicine Olivia had to take.
"Lady Olivia, I trust you've been resting." Armoneus regarded. Olivia turned around and walked over to the table, eyes glazing over the food before darting back to the wizard. He was setting the vial down on the table whilst Elena set everything up.
"Yes, I just got up for a moment." Olivia said, allowing Elena to pull out her chair for her to sit down. She laid her napkin across her lap, and grabbed her spoon. On her plate was a slice of bread, and a bowl of stew. She was meant to dip the bread into the stew, but Olivia hated how soggy the bread would be, and instead chose to eat both separate. Elena poured her a glass of water, grabbed the vial, and poured in a few drops.
"You miss eating the garden?" He asked. Olivia grabbed her glass, bringing it to her lips. She nodded. "Well, I think you'll be back to eating with the other ladies by tomorrow if you continue to recover from your ailment."
"I hope so." Olivia said, spooning soup into her mouth. Elena had taught her a few manners, though she didn't know many herself considering her station. One of those rules was that Olivia shouldn't slurp whilst she ate soup, which had turned out be a lot harder than one would think. Armoneus nodded, a heavy sigh escaping him.
"I wish I knew what had happened." Armoneus said, "Are you sure you don't remember having any dreams...visions?" He was a smart man, Olivia knew that. Smart men like him were manipulative..observant.
"I only remember going to sleep that night, and then waking up freezing cold." Olivia replied, ripping off a piece of bread and stuffing into her mouth. Armoneus hummed, stroking his beard.
"Curious.." He mumbled. Olivia slurped down another gulp of water and nodded in agreement. Armoneus took in a breath, "Well, I must be off. Be sure to send your handmaiden if your condition worsens."
"Of course, good day Armoneus." Olivia said. Armoneus mumbled a goodbye, and then left. Olivia noted to ask Sir Aaron to keep an eye on him in case he decided to poke around a bit. She was becoming too reliant on the man, which annoyed her. However, at the current moment he was the only one she could trust. Again, something she wasn't too happy with.
"Tomorrow, you must see his highness." Elena said, gathering up Olivia's plates and tray after she had finished eating, "He has news for you." Olivia hummed.
"What about?"
"He would not tell me, my lady." She said, "I will return in a couple hours." Olivia stood from her seat, walking over to her desk. She pulled her hair around her shoulder, and began tying it up into a braid.
"Why so soon? Dinner won't be for quite some time." Elena pulled open her bedroom door, holding it open with her shoulder.
"Sir Aaron has requested you join him for a stroll." She explained, "I only agreed for you so that you might stretch your legs a bit. Though, I wouldn't tell Armoneus that you left your room earlier than he had intended." Olivia smiled.
"I wouldn't dare." Elena winked, and then disappeared from Olivia's room into her own. Olivia finished up her braid, tossing her hair back over her shoulder. She looked out the window again, noticing the table in the garden was empty now. She sighed, walked over to her bed, and plopped down onto it.
As Elena had said, she returned a couple of hours later to clean Olivia and dress her. Considering the amount of thought put into the outfit, Olivia was guessing Elena thought this had some sort of romantic connotations to it. Olivia hoped it didn't. Though, her appearance said otherwise. She was wearing a red silk dress. The skirt of the dress was layered over three times, the top layer cut down the middle. Around Olivia's middle, between the skirt and bodice, she had a golden belt, as to probably accentuate Olivia's curves. The bodice had only two layers, the top layer copying that of the skirt, and being cut through the middle. The edges of the top layer had golden thread leading towards Olivia's middle. Her hair had been pulled up into a braid, and a few jewels poked out from beneath the thick waves. Elena wanted Olivia to wear some sort of heels, but Olivia refused profusely, and insisted on a cute pair of black shoes.
"I don't think you had to go this all out, Elena." Olivia grumbled, reaching underneath herself to pull her skirt under her legs while she sat in the chair in front of the fireplace.
"You never know." Elena said, "I know he visited your room to check on you after the incident the next morning." Olivia opened her mouth to say something, and then let it fall back shut. What could she say? She knew the truth anyways, he was delivering books. They were quiet while Elena gathered up Olivia's disregarded romper and night gown. She stared into the fireplace. Her mind was entirely blank. An image of yellow eyes flashed in front of her, then disappeared. Olivia blinked.
"What.." Olivia began to say, but a loud knock on her door cut her off. Elena scurried over and opened it, allowing Sir Aaron into the room. Olivia didn't move for a moment, staring into the fireplace for a second longer.
"My lady?" Elena said. Olivia jumped, whipping her head around and smiling wearily. She stood up from her seat, approaching the two. Sir Aaron's eyes glanced her over once, and she tried desperately to push down the embarrassment she was feeling. It was an extravagant outfit, was all.
"Elena picked it." Olivia blurted out, glancing at Elena apologetically. She didn't seem to care much, but was instead smiling mischievously. Sir Aaron grinned.
"I figured you wouldn't wear something like this willingly." He remarked, "Anytime I've seen you, you've scarcely worn much at all. I heard you entered the city naked, even." Olivia blushed deeply, letting out a heavy huff, and folding her arms over her chest.
"For one, I'm not going to dress up for you to...to check up on me in my room!" Olivia said, "Secondly, arriving in that state was hardly my fault!" Sir Aaron laughed. Elena had disappeared now, and Olivia was making plenty of mental notes to reprimand her later for the betrayal.
"But you would dress up for me? Like...say, for an evening stroll?" He teased, offering her his arm. She frowned, pushing past to him and into the hall. She could hear the bastard laughing behind her as she stomped begrudgingly forward. He caught up to her.
"If it's any consolation, you look lovely."
"Thank you." Olivia mumbled, smiling a little. Sir Aaron's grin widened.
"You know, with or without clothes."