Gazing at the dancing Siopao. She thought of how much the Siopao resembled a round fluffy marshmallow, dancing, glancing and glaring at the music as it stopped in repeated succession. It was cute, or so she thought. Of course, this is only in her imagination, after all, the dish she's serving in front of her was a weird combination of a gelatinous bouncing dish in a shape of a Siopao. It was oddly remarkable in a way, so remarkable that she even imagined the music she composed in her mind to groove and move with the gelatinous dish.

Silly her, she did it again.

Sighing, she focused her attention in her feet, moving with speed but with feathery steps. Her gaze was oddly fixed on her path from the kitchen to the dining hall. Maybe it wasn't that odd at all. After all, not every maid in a palace can gaze directly upon their master's visage, much less a kitchen maid. Arriving at the dining hall, she bowed her head and bent her back slightly without glancing up as she waited for any sign of approval.

"Serve."

As she heard the strict order from the head butler, she straightened her back once again before blankly staring at the path ahead. She moved her feet as she arrived by the master's side. As she served the odd dish, her hands never once trembled as she placed it upon the dining table. In an efficient manner, she placed it noiselessly before moving two steps back, out of sight from her master. Her eyes cast down to her feet as she assumed a polite air and countenance that befitting of a servant. She waited before she heard the voice of the butler announcing the dish's name.

"Your grace, this dish is called Gel Ball. It was crafted meticulously by our head chef as per the lady's order. Please, have a taste."

Her eyes contracted a little as she prevented her lips from twitching. A befittingly odd name for an odd dish. Her hands tightened in front of her as she stared straight ahead, unmoving, as per the instruction given to her. She couldn't see her master; She��s never seen him. They were not allowed to glance at him, much less look at him. So secretive, but it's alright. He has nothing to do with her except the source of her income and livelihood, for now.

"Patience is a virtue." She chanted inside her head as her pinky finger twitched with an impulse to move. She waited for what seemed like an eternity before she heard his voice.

"Dismissed." His baritone voice resounded in the large empty hall.

Letting out an imaginary sigh inside her head, she turned her back before lightly marching forward in measured steps to leave the dining room. He's never liked it, people's presence when he eats. It was a wonder, of course, but it was not something a mere maid such as she could question much less hope to have an answer for. She assumed of course, that he likes peace and quiet. But you never know, it could be more than that.

As she left the dining hall, she lifter her gaze to the ceiling of this monstrous place. She moved her head left and right as she heard tiny little cracks while she rotated her neck in a slow pace. Working in this palace sure is hard. Her eyes dimmed as she remembered how her life was like in the past. Sighing in weariness and exhaustion, she trudged towards the east wing where the door leading to the maid's quarter is located.

Letting her mind wander, flashes of memories greeted her as she blankly moved forward.

Unbeknownst to her, the silhouette of a person could be seen peering at her from a high vantage point. In his eyes, a cunningly vicious light could be glimpsed before it was gone, and so was he.