** "And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don't believe in magic will never find it." By Roald Dahl (goodreads hidden quotes)**
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Lendon had always loved the gardening work as she could be her real self without caring for any scrutinizing eyes. It was a place where she could be alone as no one liked to do that work. She made it a point to pick out some flowers after her work almost every day to send to Princess Mugda's palace which was the main palace that she served.
After she had finished her work in the garden that day and was picking the flowers, she felt as if she was being watched. There was a prickling sensation at the back of her neck which was not entirely bad but made her a little apprehensive. She straightened up from her crouched position in front of the flowers. When she turned, she found King Indicy staring straight at her.
"Had she been so engrossed in her task that she did not hear anyone come in?" she asked herself that question as she stared at her king.
Lendon squirmed under the gaze of Indicy and lowered her head. She wondered why the King was there. It seemed surprising to her because she had worked in that garden for years after she came to the palace and in that time, she had only seen King Indicy about five times in total. And even those were from afar, so seeing him in proximity at the same place for two consecutive days seemed too much of a coincidence even for her. That gaze he had upon her, especially, was also unsettling for her.
Indicy on the other hand, had stood in the corner of the garden for a long while before Lendon had noticed him. He knew that he would find the girl in the garden and that was why he came there in the morning. The day was especially bright with very clear skies. There were some random patterns of clouds which hang sparsely in the sky and if one watched carefully, it would seem like it could be touched.
However, far from appreciating the bright day and wonderful scenery provided by nature and the well-kept garden, the king, Indicy rather enjoyed seeing Lendon so focused on her task. Her hair still obscured her face but that did not stop him from staring at her. He did not feel bored for one bit and was there without noticing the time pass until Lendon had sensed his presence.
"It's about time she did," he whispered quietly to himself as a small smile graced his lips.
Contrary to this, Lendon noticed the disapproving look that the guard, Alan, gave her, so she quickly averted her eyes but did not forget protocol. She bowed to the King but when she tried to return to her duties, she was halted by him as he beckoned her.
She dropped her tools and removed her gloves, then made her way to where Indicy and his guard stood. She kept her head down and stopped a few feet from them.
"How long till you're done here?" Indicy asked,
"Your majesty, I was just about to gather my tools and retire for the day" she replied with the utmost respect in her voice,
"But I have to send these flowers to the Princess' quarters as well", she added.
Indicy nodded and replied,
"I need you to come to my chambers after you're done here,"
"Also, I would like you to bring some flowers along,"
"My vases also need a fresh look", he also added,
Lendon looked at him blankly as she did not know nor understand why her presence would be needed in the king's palace or rather, his chambers to be precise. But as she thought of the events of the previous day, she somehow understood and made no comments. She rather bowed to acknowledge that she had received and understood the command.
Alan was asked to stay and escort her when she was ready, and he visibly looked irked at the task but wisely kept his sentiments to himself.
Alan, for the thousandth time, did not understand why Indicy would not permit the annihilation of the girl which was the easier path for them. He looked at the girl with hostility which he saw that she ignored and that also made him angrier.
Lendon turned from them to continue the flower picking. After which she gathered her tools and left in the direction of Princess Mugda's quarters. She noticed as she moved that Indicy had left after giving out the last command.
Alan who remained, followed Lendon closely as she tried to complete her remaining tasks for the day. This drew what she considered unwanted attention from the other maids. It also confirmed the notion and rumour that she was the 'king's girl' which from Lendon's point of view was not helping much. While she chose to ignore rumours, she preferred for them to fizzle out and not be ignited for obvious reasons. In her mind, she thought that Alan was guarding the secret she had come to know so she swallowed her grievances. She sighed and finished up her duties as quickly as she could.
When Lendon completed the flower arrangements in the Princess' quarters, she went back in the direction of the garden. This did not make Alan happy at all because he was stuck with a girl, he should have killed off a while back and now he had to follow her around as a babysitter as well.
If one critically surveyed the situation, you would realise that Alan was just overreacting, and he could have waited for Lendon at an inconspicuous place instead of openly following her. He now looked like Lendon's personal guard with his actions, but he had interpreted Indicy's command in his own way and could not blame anyone for that. As to why he remained angry at a girl he hardly knew, well… that remained to be seen.
Lendon picked up only blue roses this time and was led into the king's palace by Alan. They used a different path through what she knew as the king's palace but was very different as they veered off into ..., well into a wall, but they passed right through it. Upon entering, she gasped and wondered to herself, where she had originally thought was the palace. It looked as if she had stepped into another world entirely. Everything looked vastly different from whence she had come.
The place she was in now was gigantic. It looked like a columned building of a sort with layers stacked on each other. It was basically a storey building with endless floors, at least as far as her eyes could tell, she did not see the end of the floors. She stood in the middle of the ground floor and gazed at the winding stairs all around. It created an interesting oval-like shape but with meandering edges.
The place was brightly lit with candles in exquisitely carved golden candle holders at vantage points. The walls had interesting artwork on them that looked to be moving but she was not sure of that. In the middle, and directly above where she stood, she could see a large chandelier but did not see where it was attached to the ceiling or even if there was a ceiling, to begin with. Lendon wondered if it was an illusion because, if a storey building this long and big existed in the palace, it should have been visible from everywhere in the kingdom, but this was not the case.
"It's beautiful", she whispered to no one in particular, and in awe.
She moved and placed the roses in a vase that sat in an evident place and could be viewed from everywhere. After she did this, she turned to Alan who now looked impatient as he kept tapping his toes with an annoyed look on his face that had never been wiped off even once since they had left the garden.
Alan led her up the long winding steps. Lendon noticed that even though they had walked multiple floors, she was not tired. She did not even know which floor they were on as they just kept walking so much that she lost count. When they got to one room at the end of the destination floor, Alan knocked and entered with her.
There, sat the king as if he had been waiting for them all along as his gaze greeted them as soon as they entered,
"You are finally here," Indicy said almost as a form of greeting to them, or to Lendon specifically.
"Let's go meet our prestigious guest, " he added and his voice allowed no room for any retorts at all not that she could, taking as he was the highest authority on the land.
Who is this person that his majesty wants me to meet? Lendon thought with another complex look on her face. "I am but just a maid," she thought and then remembering where she was, she wiped all emotions off her face.
Of course, the changes going on her face did not go unnoticed by Indicy.
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