'Things went well with the Evgardes. The Baroness, whose name I discovered was Daisy, got along with me very well. She offered to come visit me at the castle whenever she had the time. I'm guessing we will have tea and stuff? I'm not exactly sure what people do for leisure here still but I'm sure I'll figure it out.
I hear that the next city we are going to, Knarendon, is beautiful. It's a port city that is very wealthy. However, the governor is known for being a bit of a tyrant who only cares about superficial things. Getting his support would be a miracle.'
-
The salty scent of the sea was prominent in the woman's nostrils before Knarendon was even in view, and the distant ocean horizon was hypnotic in the filter of sunrise. Calluna's motion sickness fell second to how enamored she felt by the distant glimmering waves, her eye and mind drawn in by each individual sparkle atop the water's surface.
"Guin, will we get to visit the shore?" Calluna asked offhandedly, not bothering to turn her head.
"Miss, you are the highest in power in our nation. If you wanted to go to the beach, I'm sure you could just say, and it would be so," was the handmaid's immediate reply.
"I guess you're right, but I probably shouldn't waste any time on the tour. Maybe I'll sneak out to see it later," the prince mused.
"You'd have to be careful, Prince."
"I know," Calluna responded with a huff, leaning away from the window and pressing her back into the carriage seat.
She grabbed her stomach for the nth time during the tour and covered her mouth with the other hand.
'I hate this body. I hate it. I hate motion sickness. I think I'm going to die,' was a near perfect summation of all the thoughts she'd had on the ride. Calluna curled herself up as much as possible, and forced her eye tightly shut in a desperate attempt to sleep for the rest of the way to Knarendon.
-
"Your Highness, we've arrived."
V's voice tethered Calluna back to consciousness. She blinked a few times to focus on the figure standing before her with the door open. Unfortunately, once fully awake, she immediately felt the pressing urge to retch. She hopped out as quickly as her body could handle, lightly shoving the man to the side. The crown prince collapsed onto the smooth stone and her stomach began to act on its own.
To Calluna's surprise, she felt her hair be pulled back and the warm sensation of a hand gently stroking her back. Though she had hardly eaten anything, the demon in her belly was a very determined one. She dry-heaved for five minutes before her core finally relaxed, nothing having left her at all.
Guinevere handed her a handkerchief which the prince promptly used to wipe the drool from her lips. Calluna then cast a teary-eyed grin at Vincenzo, who had been comforting and supporting her the whole time, "Thanks, V."
"Anytime. We should probably head inside so you can rest. Governor Penrose was traveling and won't get back until tomorrow afternoon," V explained.
"Alright. Could you please ask the maids for chicken congee? I'm feeling faint and I think I need protein," Calluna asked, voice tired and horse.
"Sure thing."
-
As Calluna was being shown around the beautiful Penrose Mansion, she couldn't help but feel in awe. She had lived a pretty extravagant life as Romy, but never once had she even imagined the luxurious golden décor of these estates she was visiting. The maids gave her a fairly quick tour before leaving her to rest in the guest chambers.
Calluna was preparing to lie down and take a nap to recover from the exhaustion of traveling when something caught her attention. From the room next to her she could hear the faint dancing of piano keys. It was a beautiful piece, whatever song it was. She leaned her head against the wall to listen closer, her disheveled blonde hair falling down over her shoulders as she did.
Unfortunately for the curious prince, she was unable to hear much better through the thick stone even with her ear right up against it. She was reluctant at first, but decided to go next door to see who was playing. In her previous life she had been a decent violist, and loved to compose in her free time. Since arriving in Killia she hadn't had any opportunities to indulge in music.
So, to ease her longing for the art, she slipped out of the guest chamber and walked to the door nearest her. Although Calluna didn't exactly want to interrupt, she'd rather do that than spy and get caught, or make the musician uncomfortable. With a few light knocks, she let herself into the room.
It was breathtaking.
In the center of the auditorium-like room sat the piano in question. It was a beautifully crafted grand piano stained with deep red wood. Skillfully playing the piano's keys was a young man that Calluna didn't recognize from their introductions earlier.
He seemed young, roughly her age. He had fair skin and snow-white hair, and round glasses decorating brilliant blue eyes. She was in awe at the beauty of the scene.
In a room filled with the pinkish hues of a setting sun was a man who could easily pass as an angel or some other Heavenly being, playing the piano so passionately that he hadn't even noticed Calluna's presence. She had no other way to describe his facial expression than one raw with emotion, bordering a look of sadness.
The crown prince listened to the melody with great interest, finding it extremely pleasing to listen to. She did, however, feel that something was missing. Calluna scanned the room, which she now presumed to be a music room of some kind, for what she was looking for. Leaning against the wall nearest her were a few instrument cases that looked very similar to the ones she had back home for her violin and viola.
The blonde moved swiftly to the cases and flipped up the metal clips to open one of them. Inside was a strangely shaped instrument that felt both familiar and bizarre at the same time. It was strung like a violin, but shaped as a leaf instead of the usual curved wood that she was used to.
Her hands gingerly plucked each of the strings and listened to the notes, after which she decided it was basically the same as a viola but with a slightly less rich sound. She snagged the bow from the case and tightened it to her liking, then started to approach the pianist with a confident stride. Calluna brought the instrument to her chin, rested the bow on its strings, and began to play an intricate harmony that fit well with the piece he was already performing.
Though he was initially confused, his shock quickly turned to excitement as they crafted an enrapturing impromptu duet. Without any words, the two of them formed an innocent bond through the notes that they played.
Once they had gone for what felt like hours, both finally grew tired. Calluna moved to sit next to him on the piano bench and grinned at the stranger. "So now that we're great friends, what's your name?"
"...Wesley Penrose."