Moon walked with his hands behind him as he headed towards a house standing just few feet away from where he was. Hearing the hush whispers of the women who had either stopped to admire him or who whispered as they walked, he halted and moved his head to the side to see them all staring at him while blushing when he made eye contact with them. Tilting his head a bit to the side, he could not help but think about how bold and shameless they were, admiring a man and making it obvious. Turning his head back to the front, he cleared his throat and resumed walking again.
On getting to the front of the house, he looked at the two big lanterns that hung down on either sides and just as he was still looking at them, someone opened the door and let out a surprised sound immediately upon seeing him.
Moon moved his eyes to look at the woman of the house, and he broke into a smile immediately.
"You are here," she exclaimed, obviously happy that he came.
"Lady Leia," Moon said her name. "It's been ages."
"I know right? The last time I saw you, you were still very young. Look at how you have grown into a fine handsome man."
Lady Leia moved her eyes away from him to see the women at the corners, admiring Moon and eavesdropping in their conversation. Motioning with her hand, she said to Moon, "Let's go inside."
Moon stepped up and Lady Leia led him inside before shutting the door.
Moon was greeted with the familiar scent of home and he savored in the smell of meat that was still cooking. He entered the sitting room fully after taking off his shoes and he looked around the house before turning to face Lady Leia.
"Is nobody home?" he asked, noticing the absence of the people in the house.
"No," Lady Leia responded. "My husband is out to monitor the affairs of his people for now and your cousin is not at home right now." As if suddenly remembering, she spoke again, "Ah, I heard you already met him."
Moon smiled. "Yes, I have," he answered.
"He was talking about asking you to let him into the palace one of these days but don't give him that free will Moon. He can be a pain in the back."
"I see that he is still the same as before. Don't worry Lady Leia, I won't let him have it easy either."
Lady Leia gave a short chuckle and quickly excused herself to check on what she put on fire. On returning back, Moon already made himself comfortable and she went to take her seat opposite him.
"How is the family over there?" she asked, talking about the people he was staying with before moving here.
"Things are good with them."
There was a brief silence before Lady Leia spoke again;
"When we received that letter that you will be moving here, my heart went out to my husband's brother. He really did not want you to leave his side but still, he wishes you all the best. He wrote that we should take proper care of you as if you were our own son and that he will pay us a visit soon." Her eyes stared into space a little before she continued, "I don't understand your reason for choosing to work and stay in the palace, but you must be really lucky to have been accepted within that short amount of time you made your application. Still, I want you to be careful. There are things going on in there and you can't trust anyone. Just live a simple life there and settle down with someone of your heart later on."
Moon set his lips into a smile and said, "Thank you for caring for me as much as brother does. I promise not to disappoint you during my stay here."
"I trust you that much not to let us down."
It was not too long after Lady Leia was done cooking that Moon made to start leaving.
"You are leaving already?" she asked in surprise.
"I need to get back to the palace. I only took a brief permission so I can't be out for too long."
Moon could see the confusion written on Lady Leia's face, like she doesn't know what to do. He told her, "Don't worry too much. When I make my next visit, I will surely spend more time with you and the family."
Finally relaxing, she said, "Okay. We will be expecting you."
Moon stepped out of the house with Lady Leia behind him and she bade him goodbye before going back inside. As soon as he stepped down from the porch, the women who stared at him as he went in all came to surround him and they started asking him questions as they hover around him.
"Young man, did you fall from heaven's book?" one of the women asked.
"How do you have such smooth skin?" another asked.
"Where do you stay?"
"Are you married or are you looking for a soulmate?"
"Are you related to the Lockwood family?"
"Would you like me to keep you company whenever you are bored?"
Moon couldn't continue walking as the women made it impossible for him to move and he let out a soft sigh, confused as to what to do in a situation like this.
A horse neighed aloud from behind them and they were all startled as they turned to look at who it was. Moon also turned and he saw a man jump down from the horse and instantly, he knew he was from the palace because of his dressing.
"Move out of the way!" the man said and the women who were hovering around Moon all moved away to either sides as they watch the man walk forward while holding the rope tied around the horse. He stopped next to where Moon was standing and he looked at the women before placing his eyes on Moon. He asked him, "Are you heading somewhere?"
"Yes," Moon answered.
"You can walk with me," the man said and they started to walk.
Moon was thankful to the man for saving him from such an awkward situation and he wondered what position he held in the palace as his dressing was a bit unique in a way. Still, he didn't fail to notice the sword held in its sheath that dangled at his side as he walked. Without any doubt, he knows he must be one of the soldiers of the King, one with a higher authority.
"You…are not from here, are you?"
Moon moved his eyes to look at the man. "No, I just moved in here," he answered him and he heard him hum a response. "But how can you tell?" he asked.
"Your sense of dressing, how fluently you speak, and those women," the man answered. "Not all people know how to speak fluently as you do and judging from your dressing, you look like someone from the higher class."
"Ah, I see. And what about 'those women'?"
"They are escorts."
"Escorts?" Moon repeated, finding the word strange to refer to people like that.
The man subtly smiled as he said, "We call them warm service, but you may know them as prostitutes. Mind you, you can't use that language here. They entertain most of the time. Once they set their eyes on a new person, they try to get his attention which is what they did to you."
With a nod, Moon said, "I get it now."
The man let out a sigh and said, "Don't see them like that. They are not that bad but can be very useful in a way."
"I am not looking for that kind of pleasure," Moon rejected politely.
The man, who isn't much older or younger than him, thought he had misunderstood what he meant and he quickly said, "I apologize."
"You don't have to. I never took an offence in what you said," Moon told him and then stopped walking.
The man also stopped and he looked at the villagers before moving his eyes to look at Moon who turned to him.
"I can find my way from here. Thank you for escorting me this far."
He gave a short bow and the man returned it after which he now watch Moon walk away.
"Hmm," the man softly sighed while he moved his hand to rub the neck of his horse. Moving three steps back, he mount the horse and used his heel to kick the side who now started to move.
Sullivan rode his horse to the palace and when the head of the guards outside saw him, he commanded, "Open the gates!"
As soon as he said that, the gates were opened wide and he rode inside, heading straight for the royal court.
"Whoa," he said and pulled the reins on the horse and it halted immediately. He got down from it and a guard took the horse from him.
Sullivan headed straight inside the palace and when he got to the front of a door, one of the guards stationed outside announced;
"The army commander has arrived."
The door was pushed to the side for him and he walked inside. His eyes fell on the King who sat at the raised platform in his royalty and he fell to his face when he got to the front.
"Your majesty."
"Rise," King Otto commanded him and he did as he was told. "How was the place I sent you?"
Sullivan reported everything in details to the king and he received a nod of satisfaction from him. the king soon dismissed him and he stepped outside and out of the court. Stopping at the foot of the stairs, he inhaled the air and let out a satisfied smile.
"It is so good to be back home."