Grey and dull was the sky above the city. Not like it lessened the masses of people flocking into the port, gathering around the various stands of the merchants, inspecting their goods with sometimes more, sometimes less interest than the others. A trading country like Meirao never slept, that much was sure. Even if this was one of the dreaded ports of the Kou Empire, the people still swarmed to it for its jewel market and the fine fabrics of the rich. There were imported goods from all around the world and even some, which were highly frowned upon, were still sold high on the market.
Sure, this land has its good and bad traits, which one doesn't? As part of the Kou Empire and being highly active in trade, it has had its fair share of slave trading, pirates, and prostitution. Then again - at least in the broad daylight - it was clean and beautifully structured, drawing in the customers and rich people who wanted to make the most out of their money's worth. Every day there were hundreds of people coming in through the sea and land way, keeping the atmosphere up and sociable. And in between them, there was Chaima.
"That's a bit too much" she said, staring at the merchant. It marked the end of the conversation for her, as she gently squeezed Naaji's hand, signalling that they'd move on. The youngest son of the family she worked for nodded quietly, giving her a questioning look. "No shoes?" he asked, cautiously biting his thumb while fixating his nanny with his eyes. "Not today," she explained. Only if they were cheaper, she thought as she let her grocery basket rest in the crook of her elbow.
Chaima - a tall, pale woman with origins from Balbadd - was no stranger to the people here. Known for her natural appearance, though never considered as a beauty as she didn't care enough, people of the same social standing envied her for her position, having gotten quite lucky with her employers. It gave her an unofficial fame among the population, as the merchants she worked for were the ones at the top of the ranks with their products. And yet, Chaima was so different, stinted both with her money and her smiles. A hard-working woman, but not someone people liked talking to.
There's always a fresh breeze going through the streets, the sea giving the air a slightly salty taste to it. Chaima enjoyed the tender humidity, though she didn't appreciate the wind messing up her ash blonde hair, which she had previously put up in a bun. Now there were stray strands poking out on the sides of her head, which she quickly tucked behind her ears and sighed.
The two of them strolled through the many stands, coming to a halt every now and then to see the different wares on display. Chaima had the boy point out things he liked, already making mental notes for his birthday which was soon to be due. She sighed inwardly, knowing very well, who would be in charge of buying all the presents, groceries, decorations and more. Sending invitations, organizing a party, and then serving drinks, only the thought of it made her sigh already. Her mind only slipped for a moment, as another thought crossed - What kind of theme should she arrange the party to be? - in which Naaji suddenly slipped out of her grasp, turned and stormed off.
Not being able to snatch back to reality fast enough, Chaima couldn't turn around in time, as the little shadow of the child disappeared in the masses. She left the basket with the merchant and pursued him immediately, apologizing profusely for bumping into the people in the streets, as she yelled Naaji's name again and again. It was the first time the boy ever did something like this and it made her nervous. The children of the family were holy to them and ever since she started working there she had been in charge of taking care of the youngest ones. And yet, here she was, lost in the crowd - and an even bigger problem was just about to reveal itself.
"Naaji!", she shouted once more, feeling a sharp pain as a tall man rammed his elbow into her back, making her tumble forward from the force. Chaima turned around - half of her ready to apologize and half of her in pain - though the man didn't even acknowledge her presence, let alone what he did. All she could hear were the loud and commanding voices of authorities, shouting to move out of the way. Their voices were accompanied by the sound of metal armor in movement and horses which pulled a carriage over the stony path, bringing a feeling of helplessness over the maid, as she still couldn't make out her fosterling.
Desperately pushing through the masses, Chaima got rocked back and forth ungently between the people, some of them rudely commenting at her behavior and giving her dirty looks. Suddenly the admiring cries stopped and turned into a variety of shocked gasps. The sound of the carriage coming to a halt and the horses neighing made Chaima stretch herself, trying to see what was going on. She felt a small rush of relief when she could finally make out Naaji, but the sight turned bitter very fast when she noticed the situation he was in.
Huddling on the floor, the little boy found himself surrounded by soldiers, the gravure on their armor marking them as imperial guards. Even though their weapons were drawn, they didn't make the impression to be very cautious around the child. Though, looking even grimmer than the soldiers under their helmets, was the man standing in front of Naaji, his expression cold, his clothes gracefully adorned and bright in color. His face was hidden behind a splendid fan and the yellow of his garment seemed to sparkle in the few sun rays which passed through the clouds. From what Chaima knew about fabrics this man must have been nobility to be able to wear something like this. Snapping back to the urgency of the situation, she quickly readied her elbows again to push through the crowd, squeezing through it in a rough manner and reaching the end just in time to hear the man speak.
"What insolence, a child stopping the carriage of His Majesty. Do you even know what you have done, you brat?", the man spoke, shutting and pointing his fancy fan at the young boy, who by now trembled and teared up in his position, scared about what was going on.
Chaima found herself stopped by a wall of guards who blocked the citizens from barging into the way and they certainly weren't pleased by her curves pressing through them. Their hands outstretched, as Chaima spoke up, directing her words at the man in the yellow garment. She stumbled over her feet and fell to the ground, feeling the burn on her skin from the stone rubbing against it, right before crying out, "Wait! Please, wait!"
Barely, she managed to get to Naaji, whose expression turned relieved at her sight - his big green eyes looking at her widely - before she kneeled down, taking him behind her in a protective manner. "He didn't…", the words got stuck in her throat, the adrenaline pumping through her veins, as she bowed down deeply, her forehead barely touching the ground. "He didn't do that on purpose, he was just lost!" she tried to explain.
Even so, her words fell on deaf ears. The man's mimic growing darker as he gave her a look over. He could certainly make her out as a servant, the little vine-adornments on her blue vest being impressive enough to show how she was situated in life. However, the combination of a white shirt, a vest, and a black skirt just wasn't enough to indicate wealthiness for him to show her mercy.
"And now we have the careless woman, who couldn't take care of that frivolous child. Do you have any excuses?"
She swallowed hard, knowing very well that this question did not serve any purpose other than to embarrass her in front of the crowd. "N-No, Sir. I am sorry, I should have been more careful." There was a short tsk coming from him, indicating that her words were not to his liking. The corners of his mouth dropped and his gaze became even more intense. She felt it going through her bones and flesh as he labeled her as incompetent and thus formed his next words accordingly.
"Fine then." The fan swung open, gracefully hiding his face behind the feathers again - not that she had the time looking anyways. "Then I will take it that you will be the one to receive punishment for his action?"
There was no way she could get out of this. A slight panic rushed through her body, causing small pearls of sweat to form on her lowered forehead. That was until she felt Naaji's tiny hands scaredly taking a hold of her clothes, the little one still trembling. Her left arm reached behind herself, giving him a tender, calming pat, making sure he was alright. It took the worry from her. Even if she was to get punished now, as long as he was safe, she'd be okay. That's what she believed.
"So, what will it be?" the man asked, impatience in his voice, as he smirked behind his fan, already coming up with a fitting punishment for her.
"I'll take his-!"
Chaima's words were harshly cut off by a loud crash, wood banging against more wood, as the crowd fell back into surprised gasps and squeals, a sound of amazement swinging in it. The motion of the man standing before her, as he turned around, made her look up for a split second. But right in that moment, a ray of sun blinded her, hiding the happenings before her. "Y-Your Majesty!" the man stuttered, surprised by what he saw. Chaima felt another cold rush run down her back at the spoken words. She returned to her lowered position, as changing it was no option, now that an even more important person seemed to have appeared. Only the thought about the consequences that a change would bring made her sweat profusely.
"What's the hold-up, Ka Koubun?" a deeper, more gruff sounding voice rang out, making the man who previously had talked come to his own senses abruptly and making him bow too, before straightening his back again and explaining the situation. "W-Well, this child here jumped right before the carriage and we had to stop. And this woman here is responsible for it!"
Even though Chaima couldn't see his movements, she just knew he was pointing his finger at her. If this wasn't such a serious situation, she would have rolled her eyes but she just remained still, waiting to be asked before speaking or moving, just like she was taught to do. The atmosphere had yet again made a full turn, no one was talking, even if the crowd was watching in awe at the appearance of a royal person. It was an incredibly uncomfortable moment for Chaima, who was still stuck in her lowered position, unsure if this was going to be better or worse for her from this point onward.
Certainly, she wasn't able to see what was going on, as it felt like an eternity of silence washed over all of them. She noticed herself holding her breath at the tension and was caught off-guard by the time someone spoke up again, making her flinch. "I still don't see why we stopped," the man who joined the scene spoke, his voice coming from much nearer than before and having a certain high-class vibe to it. She hadn't noticed him coming closer, but now that she had heard him, she could also feel the piercing gaze she got from him, his red orbs looking her up and down before moving over to Naaji for a second, the child grasping on tightly to his nanny. For another moment he must have been trying to piece the two of them together, Naaji certainly giving off a higher-ranked appearance than she did, but as the conversation continued, he seemed unbothered by the facts.
"W-Well, as Your Highness may have noticed, I was just about to give them their proper punishment," the subordinated man spoke, bowing respectfully. Instantly a small snort was to be heard, followed once more by silence before the royal voice rose up again. "If you would have just made them take their leave it wouldn't have taken so long." Chaima heard pebbles squeaking against the stone path beneath his feet, as the prince turned around, directing his next words at her, "Woman."
There was a somewhat strange break in his sentence, long enough to make her think about saying something or getting up, but too short to actually do it, before he continued, "Take your child and be on your way. Make sure this will not happen again." The sound of his footsteps when they started to distance themselves again, made her raise her body slightly while her view remained at the ground. Out of courtesy, Chaima thought about raising her voice once more, giving him a quick, "Yes, Sir. Thank you very much, Your Highness!"
When Chaima finally lifted her gaze from the ground, she only saw a long, black cape moving inside the carriage again. There was not enough time for her to stare back at the man draped in yellow before her, as she quickly picked up Naaji and hurried to the masses, the guards letting her pass. This way she avoided his harsh, disapproving eyes, but not the clicking of his tongue, right before she left, making her sigh.
It was not pleasant, having the people stare at her this much. Though at least they opened up a path for her to move through. Chaima hurried back to the merchant from before to get her basket, while the march behind her continued on its way. She didn't know if she ever felt this eager to go home as she was in that moment, while at the same time was very much afraid to do so, not wanting to know what her employers would say when they would hear about the commotion she caused that day. And yet, Chaima reminded herself of her duties, as she quickly made her way up the streets, the boy on her right hip, the basket in the other arm.
As the two of them reached the short forest path, Chaima bent over, to set the little one down. But instead, she felt his tiny arms wrapping around her neck when he softly whimpered, "I am sorry. I didn't want to make you feel bad…"
His words sent a small smile on her face. She set down the basket and patted the boy's back reassuringly, rubbing over the dark blue clothes to give him the warm feeling he needed. Holding him in her arms, she gave him time, figuring it must be the shock from before that was bursting out now before she picked up her groceries again and continued walking with him in her arms.
Chaima really liked the forest path to the mansion. There were birds singing their songs in the high crowns of the trees and every now and then a small rabbit would scurry through the thicket. The sun finally made its breakthrough, sending warming graces of light against her skin too, as if nature itself was trying to lift her mood. She took a deep breath, feeling how the youngster sank into her. Apparently, after all the trouble, he must have felt exhausted, dozing off on her shoulder, while holding on to her tightly.
Somehow, even with his childlike behavior, Naajir always knew what was going on and even though he was raised differently, he still had the decency to apologize to her. No matter what she went through before in her life, he gave her a little bit of the hope she had long lost in other humans. The two of them made their way to the estate, Chaima humming softly, as she appreciated her surroundings. When the two finally reached the entrance to the mansion, the gates were wide open, surprising her, considering that they'd normally be closed and guarded.
All blood drained from her face when her eyes laid upon the extravagant carriage that was parked at the end of the stone pathway leading up to the front door, where two indifferent looking soldiers guarding the entrance to the mansion. A slight fear trickled through her, as she identified them as royal guards and not the ones that belonged to the family. Suddenly the guards eyes met with hers. Chaima quickly shielded her face with the basket, bowing slightly and rushing to the side entrance where no one would see her so quickly. If this really was what she feared it was, then it would get her into trouble for sure if anyone were to notice her right away.
She brought the boy back to his room, her co-maid already waiting for their return, murmuring at Chaima as she took the young child over, "You've taken way too long, the head maid is already upset with you. You better hurry."
Chaima gave her an apologetic look, nodding lightly, before leaving the two of them behind - not without smiling at Naaji once more - and walking down the servant hallway to the kitchen.
There were many thoughts in her head. The first one being that she really had to deliver the groceries she was sent to pick up, as dinner needed to be prepared. Right after that, she thought about what she would tell the head maid about her delay. Chaima could only sigh, the sight of the carriage remaining in her head, as she feared being faced with her previous encounter too. This day didn't seem to want her to rest any minute.
"Where is she?!" a deep, loud voice ran through the hallway. Presumably, it was the one of the chef. She was done for, one way or another, that's what she was sure about. Taking a deep breath, she straightened her back as she approached the entrance to the kitchen. Something was about to change in her life, that much was already obvious to her. Even though she couldn't make out what was awaiting her just yet, the very least she could do was to hold her head up high and approach it with the last bit of courage she still had. When she opened the door carefully, all the heads present turned to her, their looks a mix of relief and displeasure.
Oh mother, Chaima thought, now I've really done it.
