There was a knock on the door and she groggily sat up. Before she could even tell the person to come in, the doors slid open. There stood a girl, probably only a few years older than her. She bowed low to Sun.
"I'm your personal handmaiden, my lady. I am here to help you bathe, dress, and do your hair and make-up every morning."
Suns brows raised. "That's really not necessary. I can bathe and dress myself; I don't wear make-up, and I'm perfectly capable of brushing my own hair."
"We are to style it nicely and in such a way it displays this, my lady," she said, holding out a box.
"What is it?" Sun asked, standing up out of the bed.
The girl lifted the lid to reveal an exact replica of the intricate earring Kalys always seemed to wear. Those were probably real sapphires and diamonds...
"Lord Illusen handed this to me this morning and said you are to wear it whenever you leave the estate or have guests."
"No thank you."
The girl looked a little worried. "He was very insistent, my lady."
Sun sighed, too tired and hungry to argue. "Fine. I'm going to have a shower; we can do my hair after I get out."
She was probably a little harsher than she'd meant to be. It wasn't the woman's fault.
Her handmaid smiled and nodded. Sun grabbed her uniform and headed towards the bathroom that connected to her room. The place was amazing; she had seen it last night and it had actually taken her breath away. There was a huge tub in the corner that could fit in at least four other people comfortably. The shower was behind a tiled wall and came from two heads attached to opposite walls. It felt nice to have the hot water coming from the two different directions; after hours of training that would be heaven on her aching muscles. There was a sink with a huge mirror above it. She had found everything she would need as well: toothpaste, toothbrush, hairbrush, all sorts of creams and washes. But what had really taken her breath away was the roof. It was a mosaic of blue and black crystals and metals in the shape of the Winter Clans crest. A black raven, wings spread, seemingly blending into the waves and glaciers around it, and it all came together to form a circle. It was a beautiful work of art.
Her room was simple but massive and even had its own fireplace. Her bed was a big four poster with its own curtains. She had a desk to do her work at. There was a bookcase against the wall by her desk, with only a few books on it, the ones from her room at Perdition. There was an elegant vanity in the corner by the bathroom door. She had never seen such beautiful things in her life. The closet was a walk-in filled with beautiful dresses, shoes, scarves, and shawls. There was a stand for jewellery and other accessories. Her own clothes had been folded and put into a dresser in the corner. She now had several changes of her uniform, and her old patched and faded one had disappeared. She assumed it had been thrown out. In the wardrobe was also a full-length mirror. There was another set of doors that led out to what she had been told was her personal garden. She was to leave instructions on how it was to be maintained and what plants - if any - she would like to see. The first moment she had to herself she had gone out to have a look at it, but it had been difficult to see in the dark.
Before stepping into the shower, she opened the window, taking a peek.
It was as beautiful as the rest of the house and just as tidy. Leaves raked away, grass cut, plants trimmed. There was a pond with fish in it and lotuses on the surface. Hanging over one side of it was a giant weeping willow. There was a wall that surrounded the entire estate and she could see it past the rest of the garden.
It was truly lovely, with the exception of the wall. And she could already envision what she would do with the garden.
This was perhaps the one perk to being part of this family. Her instructions would simply state to leave her garden alone. She would tend to it. She was going to plant silver lace vines and let them wind up around the posts of her verandah. She planned to attach netting to the roof of it so it could grow through them, instead of the wood she would have a canopy of the little white flowers. She was going to let the weeping willow grow as long as it wanted. She wanted to let everything grow naturally except the silver lace; she didn't want it to get too heavy and pull the netting down. Either side of her stairway into the garden she was going to plant apple trees. She loved the smell of apple blossoms in the spring and having them so close to the door meant the breeze could carry the scent into her room. To her, apple blossoms were spring. She was going to have the beautiful wild garden she had never known she wanted.
The big ugly wall she would cover and hide; no need to be reminded this was essentially a different kind of prison. She had traded the academy walls for Illusen walls. Maybe she would cover it in blue or purple morning glories.
She did plan to trim the grass once in a while so it wouldn't get too long. But she would like to see daisies and buttercups scattered across it more often than not. And dandelions, although they were considered a weed, she loved them.
When she was a child, Zen had found one on the side of the path once and picked it for her. He told her if she could blow all the little white things off with one breath then she could make a wish and it would come true. She was never able to do it but she still liked to try. And as childish as it was, she hoped that her wish would come true if she succeeded.
She got out of the shower and met her handmaiden, who was just finishing making her bed. She felt a bit guilty; she should have done that herself.
She indicated for Sun to take a seat at the vanity and she started brushing her hair.
"What's your name?" Sunny asked.
The girl looked momentarily surprised. "Mika, my lady."
Sun winced at the title. "You can just call me Sunny. Or Sun"
She looked at Sun like she had grown another head. "I couldn't possibly; that would be terribly inappropriate."
"Please?" Sunny asked, looking up at the woman with wide, sad eyes. The title made her feel isolated, and Mika was of an age where they could be friends.
Mika looked hesitant. "Very well, if you wish, but only when we are alone. I could get into trouble otherwise."
Sun gave perhaps her first sincere smile since before meeting with Kalys yesterday. "Thank you."
Mika smiled back. "And how would you like your hair done today?"
"I have to get back into training today; usually I just tie it up with this."
Sun indicated the long embroidered ribbon she usually used as both a hair tie and a headband, depending on the day. It was special to her—the prettiest thing she owned and was gifted to her by the boys. It had colourful flowers embroidered into it, looping and flowing down the length of the blue fabric.
"I can manage it myself though," Sun said, reaching for it.
"Nonsense. I can manage something pretty and practical, and that still displays the symbol of your status," she said, inserting the earring in Sun's left ear.
When she started to take out Sun's other piercings, she stopped her.
"Please don't. I want to keep them all."
More gifts from the boys. They had used their own stipends they received from the academy to buy her earrings, and Zen even pierced them himself. He taught her how to do it so she could do his. He didn't have nearly as much as her, only two in each ear, and Nick just had two in one ear. Each of them had an identical stud to match among their piercings, just another way to feel connected to each other.
She let Mika do what she had to while she read through her notes and tried to cram as much information in there as she could before her after-class lessons today. When Mika announced she was finished and Sun looked into the mirror, she gaped a little. She had just meant a simple ponytail. What she had ended up with was a plait swept to the side with most of her hair tied into the ponytail; the plait itself had the ribbon woven through it. Some of her fringe was left out but swept to the side with the rest of her hair. The ponytail itself sat high on her head and was slightly wavey now, not the dead straight it used to be. And taking pride of place was the earring. This girl was a miracle worker.
"Isn't this a little... elegant for where I'm going?"
"Of course not," she said, leaning down until her head was almost rested on Sun's shoulder, making eye contact with her through the mirror. "You are a noble now, Sunny; you must look your best no matter where you go or what you do. And you are a very beautiful girl; you should flaunt it."
Sun felt her cheeks heat up and could see them turning red in the mirror. She had never been told that before. Well, Zen had called her pretty once, but he meant it as a bad thing since it meant he had to fight off molesters and perverts.
Mika stood up straight, clapping her hands together. "Now, Lord Illusen takes his breakfast at seven and expects you to join him."
Sun felt her stomach sink. She was hoping she wouldn't have to see him until she was handing over the papers declaring her freedom. If that was even how it worked. She blinked; she had forgotten all about it. She was so busy planning what to do with her garden she had completely forgotten about her escape plan. She cursed herself. He had sucked her in with this garden thing. Had he planned it? Did he know about her love of gardens? No, surely not; now she was just being paranoid. It was a coincidence. Damn, she would have to give up her garden if she went through with this.
She mentally shrugged. The garden wasn't worth living with that man and the baggage that came with him. She looked down at the paper, awaiting her instructions for the garden. It stung a little to forget her plans, but whatever, she'd live.
She put on her boots and tightened the buckles. She thanked Mika for everything as they headed out of her room. Mika just smiled and turned to leave. She stopped in her tracks when Sun called back to her.
"Can I ask you a favour?"
Mika nodded. "It is my job to serve you, my lady."
Sun inwardly flinched at that.
"Could you give me directions to the dining room?" She asked a bit sheepishly. She hadn't explored the manor yet, so she had no idea where everything was. Her lessons yesterday had been done in a room just down the hall.
"I will lead you there; I'm going to be passing by it anyway."
Sun fell into step beside her and smiled. "Thank you."
They both walked in a comfortable silence; Sun didn't feel the need for chatter, and she wasn't sure if Mika was allowed to initiate conversation or not.
Mika left her at the door to the dining room and Sun bid her a pleasant day, receiving a fleeting, shocked look from Mika, which eventually became a beautifully sincere smile.
"And you, my lady," she said, before turning and walking away.
Sunny entered the dining room. She had expected a long table that you had to yell across to be heard at the other end, with every member of the Illusen Clan attending and twenty different utensils for all the different types of food. Instead it was a small but ornately carved wooden table, just large enough for three or four people. The room itself was cosy and let in the streaming sunlight from outside. Kalys sat on one side reading a newspaper. There were only two plates; no food had been dished as of yet. There was a pitcher of juice along with salt, pepper, and other condiments in the centre. He looked up as she came in and she remembered her lessons. If she had her way it would only be for one day. She gave him the bow she had spent hours practicing last night.
"Good morning." The words tasted like bitter defeat. 'Just for today' was going to fast become her new chant.
He gave her a nod in greeting and she took her place at the table. Once she was seated, he nodded to a nearby servant, and food was brought out. A hell of a lot more than two people could eat. And it all looked so mouthwatering. She looked around the table again, wondering if other people were going to be joining them. Noticing her confusion he spoke up.
"There is no one else joining us," he told her. "Noda has already returned to the main estate in the capital, and there is no one else visiting at this time. Only you and I live here."
"Isn't this wasteful? There is no possible way the two of us could eat all this."
Kalys ignored her as he poured himself some tea. She huffed and began picking from the platters. Kalys studied her out of the corner of his eye. Mika had styled her hair nicely, utilising the flowery ribbon he'd seen Sun wearing at every interaction they'd had so far. Something important to her?
He noticed Mika had neglected any make-up—probably for the best given what she had on today. She was a pretty girl, as most Illusen women were. Good genes.
She was wearing the earring, the symbol of her new rank. She was second to him now. Should he die, she inherited everything, including the title of Clan head. He had already sent the necessary papers off. He knew once the elders received them they would be outraged. They would try and overturn the decision, but since he had already gone through with it, they wouldn't be able to actually do anything. And his word was final.
She was his sibling; without children, she was next in the line of succession; it was only right. Now he would have to make sure she was prepared for such a task should the unthinkable come to pass. There was already a noticeable change in her. She had a feisty personality, but this morning she seemed much more docile. However, he could see it was just an act. He could see the fire burning behind her eyes, he could hear the barely concealed disdain as she greeted him. She would adjust.
Aside from her uniform and excessive amount of piercings in her ears, she looked like a noble lady. Graceful, mannered, quiet, beautiful. If she took quickly to her lessons, he had no doubt she could avoid tarnishing the reputation of the Winter Clan, so long as she kept that fire suppressed.
She pushed her plate aside, the tense atmosphere and her discomfort causing her to lose her appetite. She stood up.
"Excuse me," she said. "I have to get to the academy."
Kalys stood also. "You have an appointment with the physician. I will escort you."
To make sure she actually went, although he didn't voice it. She seemed smart enough to get the message.
"I have class," she told him.
"Not until late morning; your appointment will be over well before then," he replied.
He saw her eyes blaze before she pushed her anger aside and inclined her head.
"Right," she conceded.
Just for today. Just for today. Just for today...