Tea time was not a thrill for a certain trio. There was Ace, a short auburn hair girl, and a girl with thick curly hair who all sat awkwardly, sipping their tea, with King Oliver and the other elites, laughing about mindless topics. "Did you hear her cries?!" A plump elite named Kiki, who always keeps her black hair tied up, laughed obnoxiously as she talked about Beth's and Madalyn's burning from earlier today.
"Foul beings. Serves them right, wouldn't you say Persephone?" Another young elite said, trying to catch the attention of the girl with the thick curly hair.
"Hey Perce." Ace said tapping her shoulder to bring her attention back from the private garden's beauty and into the conversation.
"Oh, sorry. Yes, it does." She said, smiling at the young man while talking and took a sip from the porcelain cup.
"Lady Gwen, wasn't that servant Annie late to wake you this morning?" Kiki asked as she smiled into her cup before taking a sip from it. This piqued the interest of the king.
"A servant late to their duty?! That will not be tolerated." King Oliver scoffed.
"It's okay, I dismissed it due to the circumstance." The short, auburn hair girl said fearing that they might plan to harm Annie.
"No. It's quite simple." The king said as he deliberately tipped his cup, emptying its contents on the floor. He looked smugly at the pale servant in the corner who walked over and started to clean the purposeful mess. "Thank you, Gracelyn." The king said as he looked over to Gwen.
"Father stop it. If Gwen or any other elites choose not to treat the servants with disrespect then leave them be!" Ace stated firmly as Oliver grinned.
"Oh, you cute little boy." Kiki said as she looked over to Gracelyn and shook her empty cup. The pale servant was instantly flustered by the actions of the plump elite. She could feel her heart pounding fast, like it was ready to jump out of her chest and run away. "The lower-class scum needs to learn their- OW!" Kiki screamed as the hot water splashed on her.
"I-I'm so so-sorry Kiki." Gracelyn stuttered as she grabbed a rag and tried to pat the water away, but Kiki grabbed her by the wrist and stood up from her chair.
"You wretched girl." Kiki scowled as she grabbed her metal fan and hit the pale servant repeatedly. Gwen and Persephone flinched in their seats looking away from the beating Gracelyn was taking where multiple, audible 'sorry's were coming from. Ace clenched his jaw wanting to speak out, but bit his tongue.
"Excellent demonstration!" King Oliver clapped as everyone except for the trio, joined in on the applause.
"That wasn't necessary at all." Persephone said under her breath.
"You know, Ace," Oliver said, gaming his son's attention, "Lady Persephone would make a fine queen. What do you think?"
"Ohh King Oliver, always the matchmaker you were!" Kiki squealed as Persephone and Ace looked at each other with disgust. Not only were the two disgusted with everyone moving on from what had just transpired with Gracelyn, but they were also disgusted that Oliver thought they would be a good couple.
"Hahaha, I'm just playing, my boy. You need to find a lady from another kingdom to help fortify Findara's relationship with them." King Oliver mused, thus prompting everyone else to join in.
"Speaking of fortifying relationships with other kingdoms. I would like Asterin to receive a formal invitation to the ball." Ace said, with a strong tone laced in his voice. All the elites fell silent. Before anyone could retort, the clock tower struck, indicating that it was one in the afternoon.
"Very well. I'll send some guards to go." King Oliver said as he dismissed everyone from afternoon tea.
Separately the trio left the private garden and entered the mysterious library before having to stop by the servant's quarters. "Did you hear the way they talked about them?!" Gwen yelled, curling her first in a tight ball and pacing back and forth. "And Annie! Poor, poor Annie! Her sister is gone because of... because of..." She stopped herself and looked at Ace apologetically.
"It's okay Gwen. This is why we need to try to get other kingdoms on our side. What happened to Madalyn was completely my responsibility." Ace said, sitting upright on a dark oak sofa.
"No Ace, don't say that. Madalyn knew the risks. I still don't believe that an elite just walked in on her and Beth. Someone must have tipped Oliver off." Persephone said as she ran her finger along the spines of books that sat patiently on the shelves.
"Perce what do you mean?" Ace asked as he shifted his attention to Persephone who opened up one of the books and let her eyes wonder from word to word.
"What I mean is, have you seen how Xavier, Felicity, Kiki, Mary Nita, Lilith, Maddie, and Gracelyn are always around Oliver?" Persephone asked, looking up from the book, closing it and putting it back to its rightful place on the shelf.
"Yeah, that's just his personal staff members." Ace said.
"No, you dunce." Gwen groaned. "They're always around. Xavier is around Oliver every day and night. Felicity can hide among the servants and learn all the secrets. Kiki, that wretched woman, knows everything. As for Lilith and Maddie; they're in a troubled state of mind. They both lost everything to the witches during the extermination. Lastly, there's Gracelyn, the poor girl. I still don't understand what Oliver is trying to accomplish." Gwen finished explaining as Persephone joined them by the only fireplace within the whole library with a new book in her hands.
"Father is trying to convert her thinking." Ace mumbled looking at the ground.
"Convert? Convert what?" Persephone asked looking up from her book and switching her confused gaze between Ace and Gwen.
"Well, you see..." Gwen began, turning to Ace with prodding eyes.
"It's okay, I'll explain it." Ace breathed out, took a breath in, and repeated this process while trying to piece together his next words carefully. "I was trying to convince father to leave the people who love differently alone. Or, at least he would go about treating you all differently. He wasn't registering what I was telling him. He now thinks that by changing sexual preference that he could represent himself as some sort of saviour to the Findarians." Ace finished watching Persephone's face scrunch up in disgust.
"Yeah, that was my reaction too. That's why I am trying to help Gracelyn as much as I can." Gwen said as Persephone was still trying to process the information.
"But Gracelyn loves Kiki." Persephone said in a hushed tone.
"From Kiki's actions during tea, it is safe to assume that the feelings are mutual." Gwen said sarcastically.
"Is Kiki manipulating her?!" Persephone asked.
"Unfortunately," Ace sighed, rubbing his temples. "There's no way of snapping her out from that trance. Anytime Gracelyn shows a little crumb of emotion she disappears for a few hours and comes back completely new. It's like they're trying to turn her into a blank canvas."
"It's ridiculous. I hate it here." Gwen huffed crossing her arms. "Speaking of which, I have some news." Gwen added as she leaned in on the two sitting across from her.
"Please say it's some good news. Please?" Persephone pleaded as she and Ace also leaned in.
"I'm going to escape." Gwen whispered as her eyes twinkled. Persephone and Ace stared in awe. "And after I escape, I'm going to go to all the kingdoms of the nation, big or small, and get them to side with us!"
"Wait, really?! When?!" Ace asked.
"During the ball, it's going to be me and at least another twenty people. I know it's during your birthday but the kingdom helping us is really excited to know that I'll be joining. Plus, I think I can convince them to help us." Gwen whispered enthusiastically.
"Please darling, you don't have my charms to do so." Persephone winked as she flipped her curls over her shoulder.
"Oh whatever, just say you're happy for me!" Gwen said as the other two nodded their head simultaneously.
"Of course I am very happy for you! On that note, I have to go. I'd like to check up on Gracelyn after what had happened. Hopefully she is still in the kitchen." Persephone said hopefully. She hugged her two companions and headed off to find the pale servant.
"I'm so sorry that I will be leaving on your birthday." Gwen apologized as Ace stood up from his chair.
"Hey, don't be sorry about anything! Your happiness is all that matters!" Ace smiled, stretching his hand out to Gwen to help her stand. "Now can you help me find Cain and Silas. They should be back by now. I would like to talk to them about the tunnels. We cannot risk this many people getting caught, now can we?"
"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea." Gwen smiled as the two left the library in search for the two guards.
"Ace!" A voice echoed down the hall. The young prince turned around and saw Cain and Silas running toward him.
"Good afternoon, lads!" Gwen said happily as Cain smiled towards her.
"Silas, Cain! I was about to go down to meet up with everyone. Walk with us?" Ace asked as the two guards nodded their heads.
"Good news. Asterin accepts the invite." Silad reported as their group made a turn for the basement, "Although the bad news is the prince of Asterin is opposed to attending the ball."
"Wow. I give them an actual invite and that's how he reacts?! At least the king was happy to accept the invite." Ace huffed, stopping in his tracks. As eager as Ace was to make a big deal about the invitation, he dropped the whole situation and turned around to face the two tall guards. "Continuing on the subject of the ball, another escape is to happen that night!" he announced. The guards' eyes lit up.
"Wait, what's happening?!" A short, thick girl said popping from around the corner and adjusting her bangs so she could see better.
"Hi Felicity!" Gwen greeted with a condescending tone, earning a bow from her. Gwen never trusted Felicity from the beginning. For some reason if anything was planned around her, it would end very badly. Gwen first noticed this five years ago with a dear friend of hers named, Lilith.
"We are just talking about transporting some flowers from the gardens." Ace lied, as he mentally face palmed himself. 𝘊𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘱 𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘢𝘮.
"You're talking about transporting flowers with the guards?" Felicity asked uncertainly as everyone nodded their heads. "Alright." She said shrugging her shoulders but remaining very suspicious.
"Aren't you supposed to be with the other servants preparing dinner in the kitchen?" Cain asked looking down at the short servant.
"Aren't you supposed to take over Sebastian's guard duty?" Felicity mocked, owning a scoff from him as he trudged toward the kingdom's gates. "That's what I thought."
"Okay, thank you Felicity for the information, but we have other matters to take care of." Gwen said as she continued to walk with Ace by her side and Silas following behind.
"Like transporting the flowers? It is true that the castle's greenhouses and garden flowers are due for a change." Felicity said, following them.
"Please Felicity, we would like to be alone." Ace urged.
"I would but 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 to the three of you. So, if you could please stop walking away." Felicity requested, causing the three to reluctantly follow.
"Well what would you like to tell us?" Ace asked, softening his tone so his annoyance wouldn't peak through. Ace was behind schedule with meeting the castle staff and was rather putting up his most diplomatic face.
"Lady Gwen, Kiki is looking for you." Felicity said as Gwen and Ace looked at each other with a mutual expression of confusion. Kiki was, more or less, the top of the Elites. Always making sure everything is going as it should and 'suggesting' stuff, such as who to ban from the kingdom or who has a devil within them. Apparently, her opinions matter more to King Oliver than his own son's happiness.
"What could she possibly want?" Gwen asked as Felicity smiled at her.
"She would like to go over the Elites placing at the ball." Felicity informed as Gwen excused herself and ran towards the grand staircase.
"Well thank you, Felicity. If you don't mind, Silas and I will be on our way." Ace said and began to walk towards his original destination with Silas following close behind him.
"I said, I wasn't done talking." Felicity huffed as she stepped in front of the two angerly.
"I'm sorry Felicity. Please continue." Ace forced this apology knowing that he wouldn't be able to talk to Sebastian, Chester, and the rest until late at night (if that was possible).
"Oliver wants you to do another fitting before the ball this coming Friday." Felicity added with a smirk as she bobbed her head from side to side.
"That's King Oliver to you Felicity." Ace reminds her for what seems to be the thousandth time.
"Oliver and King Oliver are the same person." She smiled.
Not wanting to entertain Felicity's allusion of how 'great' the king is, Ace looked over to Silas rolling his eyes in the process. "I will get back with you and the gardeners late today. Please let them know that I will be wanting to see all of them." Ace said, hoping Silas would get the message he was trying to get across. Silas simply nodded and walked away from the two.
Ace and Felicity walked silently down the dark, dingy corridor together in uncomfortable silence. Ace wished there was something he could talk about with her but he knew she was out to get information from him. After making a left at the end of the hallway, it immediately led to two dark oak double doors. As Ace raised his arm to knock on the door before entering, Felicity shoved her way past Ace and opened one of the heavy doors.
Beatrice De Alzata, a personal seamstress for the royals, stood alone in her room filled with fabrics from all over the world. Textures and colours of all different nations. Some were gifts and some were treasures discovered in kingdoms that King Oliver won over battles. "Ah! There is my favourite prince!" The tall seamstress humbly cheered as she looked from her manikin to Ace who smiled brightly at her. "Felicity, leave us." Beatrice ordered.
"You have no authority over me." Felicity scoffed making Ace uncomfortable from the tension between the two women.
"As a servant you have no reason to stay, unless you are here to clean, in which case I don't need any cleaning. So leave." Beatrice mocked returning the same attitude and tone to Felicity. This took Felicity a step back. She was at a loss for words. She didn't say anything but rather glared at the tall, empowering woman and left.
"Wow. Talk about tension." Ace chuckled nervously.
"Darling. Want to talk about tension? Let's talk about you and your father's relationship." Beatrice laughed as she patted the bench in front of her.
"Hahaha, I'd rather not." Ace laughed sheepishly as he sat down.
"There's something on your mind. Want to talk about it?" Beatrice asked as she walked from one dresser to another, collecting Ace's ballroom attire.
"Not really." He answered by twiddling his thumbs. "How have you been today? Has Silver City been treating you well?" Ace asked trying to change the subject, but it was a failed attempt. Beatrice was a personification of a lie detector. Nothing can get over her head.
"Nuh uh, mister." Beatrice huffed, passing Ace his clothes and pointing towards a tri-fold screen.
"Okay fine. I'm nervous about the ball. So many things are going to take place but the major one is that I have to find a wife to marry. A WIFE! I've never been romantically involved with someone. I was always so busy being mad at father, trying to protect or defend everyone, or taking care of the meetings and now I have to find a woman to marry?! What if I can't find someone I'm interested in? I know I have until I'm 22 to make my final decision but it's still nerve wrecking." Ace ranted as he changed behind the tri-fold. Once he had finished, Ace stepped out from behind the screen and Beatrice stood in awe. Ace stood under her gaze, one hand holding his other arm, and she smiled like a mad man at the red and black finery.
The attire was a simple outfit; a black coat, black pants, and dark red shoes. The shoulder had three silver chains connecting from the front to the back and it dripped down the side of his arms. A red sash, with silver outlining it, laid comfortably from his right shoulder to his left hip. His white, fluffy, untamed hair seemed to pull the outfit completely together.
"Well, what if you don't want a wife?" Beatrice asked as she tightened the stash on Ace and made some markings to his pants.
"What do you mean?" Ace asked as she started to pin the marked areas.
"Ace, you ever stop to think that you might be into men?" Beatrice smirked. The statement itself made Ace move away from the seamstress, making her prick Ace in the process. He was too shocked to even feel the prick of the pin.
"Beatrice! Keep your voice down!" Ace exclaimed in a hush tone making her smile even more.
"So, you are!" Beatrice goofily smiled.
"No! I just don't know. I haven't been in a relationship at all. Maybe. AGH! I just don't know and I don't have the freedom to know. I feel so confused and mad and suppressed all the time." Ace frustratedly rambled on as he sat back down on the bench with his head in his hands. Beatrice walked over to him, joining him on the bench as she took out the pin from his leg.
"There's no need to stress over your feelings, darling. You will know when you know. Whether that be a him or a her or a they. You will know. Nothing is accomplished when it's forced, so continue doing your thing, Ace. You have no clue how much you have helped us out and I know you have bigger plans in that head of yours than you are sharing. So please, let love come naturally." Beatrice said, giving Ace the comfort he needed as she rubbed his back.
"Thank you, Beatrice." Ace smiled.
"No problem. Now let's finish you up so I don't have to see your bummy face again!" Beatrice quipped, making Ace laugh lightly.