Chapter 1 - The palace
Finding myself lost I was relieved when I heard some footsteps.
"Um...excuse me?" I asked.
The footsteps halted.
"What is it?" a man's voice asked, sounding irritated.
"Now, now, Eugene, that is no way to speak to a guest," another voice chided the irritated one and then addressed me.
"How may I help you my lady?"
His voice...was so beautiful. It had a melodious rhythm that I've not heard before.
"Er...I'm sorry to bother you, but would you mind telling me what direction the guest rooms are in?"
There was a bit of silence.
"It is right in front of you," the man said sounding like he couldn't believe someone could ask such a stupid question. It was the irritated one that spoke.
"Eugene..." the other person said with a sigh, "My lady, it is as he says. Just straight ahead."
"Do you mean I am facing it right now?" I asked just to make sure. Molly had walked with me yesterday and the day before so I had a vague outline of where it was that I wanted to go but I somehow got myself disorientated when I followed a bird call. It was so unusual that I couldn't help myself. It took me a while to get out of what seemed to be gardens and eventually I made it to this paved area.
"Yes," the gentle man said.
"Do you need to ask my any other stupid questions or can we go now?" the irritated voice asked.
"I am grateful for your assistance, thank you," I said bowing my head respectfully and then brought the thin walking cane in my right hand forward to help me judge the terrain as I walk and set off straight ahead. I heard a sharp intake of breath and muttering.
"Even a blind one...now I've seen it all..."
"Eugene, you really need to learn to control your temper. Sometime it will..."
Their voices became softer as they walked away.
I was used to getting treated weirdly by others. I had lost my sight not long after I turned 6 years old. Since then I had learned to walk with a walking stick and usually had Molly around to assist me but she was currently receiving a crash course from the palace ladies on etiquette and such around the palace. It would be useful since the 'fair' people as I called the elves could easily get offended. I was supposed to wait for her on a bench by a fountain, but then ended up chasing after an unusual birdcall. I wonder if the men I spoke to were elves? The gentle one had that melodious tone, so I judged that he most likely was. I would have loved to be able to see them. I remember how I used to look at pictures of elves and other fairy creatures for hours as a child.
My sister Marie was one of the many hopeful ladies who gathered at Darkwood palace in hopes of being noticed by the crown prince Estel. I had heard that he was extremely beautiful, apart from being a very capable right hand man for his father, the king. An unusual proclamation went out saying that the prince wanted to find himself a consort and invited all single women from royalty or nobility to stay at the palace for a week. What made it even more unusual is that it was extended to humans as well. I knew about the royal family wanting to improve the bad relations that existed between humans and elves for so long, perhaps the prince would take a human girl as his bride?
I eventually made it back to my room after asking a maid and was quite exhausted. Not long later Molly returned bubbling over about all the wonderful and unusual things she learnt. Then my sister Marie came with her lady in waiting and told me about the other girls.
"Oh, they aren't much competition," she was saying, "talking about the humans that is. The elven girls obviously are more beautiful, but I think prince Estel is wanting to take a human bride. It's so exciting!"
"We'll, how do you explain a human girl being the winner yesterday then?" Molly asked and I could hear Marie huff.
"That was pure luck! She's as ugly as night! If the prince saw her he'd run a mile! Besides, her family doesn't have half of the wealth ours does."
After a while of listening to them I asked Marie a question that has been weighing on my mind.
"Marie...why did you insist that I come along? It's not like I am a candidate or anything?"
"Mother and father are worried about you, you know?"
"They are?"
"Yes. You are always just having Molly read to you or you do things that isolate you from others. They wanted you to experience the world a little and this was the perfect opportunity. Besides...there is a rumour that the crown prince possess unusual magical abilities...if that is true, once I have stolen his heart and become the crown princess I will ask him if he can heal your sight."
"What?"
I was very surprised. I never thought that there might be someone other than the one who took my sight that could return it. I didn't want to hope only to find disappointment waiting.
"Don't worry about me Marie, you just do what you want to do," I eventually said in a jovial way. I felt touched that my sister was thinking of me.
"Yeah right, the day she will do something without ulterior motives cows will fly," Molly muttered when my sister and her lady-in-waiting left.
"Do you really think so Molly?"
Molly had been with me for 6 years now. I met her one day in town and we just really hit it off as friends. I eventually learnt that she was an orphan and struggled to get by working at a local store selling fruit. I asked father and made her my assistant. We had grown very close even though she was 4 years younger than me.
"I don't like the way she looked at you when she talks...I think she brought you along for some selfish reason."
"Oh Molly, you mustn't always think so badly of my sister. I know we've never seen eye to eye very much, but she is family you know?"
"I know...it's just I can't take it when people try to take advantage of you...even though you are older than me you are so naive sometimes that it hurts. Anyways, just enjoy your stay here. I'll make sure nothing bad happens to you."
"Thank you Molly, you are a dear friend."
"Don't think buttering me up will make me overlook the fact that you didn't stay where I told you to!"
Oh boy, I knew a scolding was coming...sigh...
There were all sorts of events arranged to entertain the women and it soon became a competition amongst them to see who could excel the most. According to Molly's description it was a battlefield, especially since the winner every day would be granted the privilege to eat with the royal family. The first day an elven noble won and the next day a human noble.
"He-he...that must make them even more aggressive towards each other, right?" I laughed.
"You have no idea Ayane, I've never seen nobility and royalty behave worse than common people from the slums and you know coming from me that tells you something."
"Gosh... do you really think the prince would want someone at his side who pushed and trampled others? That seems a bit odd to me..." I mused.
"Perhaps this whole thing is just a farce to make fun of them. I certainly wouldn't marry any of them if I was him."
"Hmm...but I think that is because you have very high standards Molly...I actually doubt there exists a man who would be perfect for you."
"I...I don't know...perhaps if he was someone like you I might reconsider."
"Oh, come on!" I said, "who would want to be with someone who is as helpless as I am all the time?"
"You should stop using your blindness as an excuse, then you will see you have plenty to offer."
"Is that now supposed to make me feel like suddenly joining the royal-noble wars?" I asked teasingly.
"Hell, no. I promised his lordship I'd look after you and make sure you'd come back in one piece."
"Did you now? Father has always doted on me..."
"Too much I'd say, as much as I hate to agree with your sister for once I think this is a good thing for you to get out for a bit. You need to learn to stand on your own feet."
"If that's the case, why'd you scold me for walking off the other day?"
"Hey! That was your fist day here! You have no idea how worried sick I was! There are several flights of stairs and fountains and lakes and such. My imagination was telling me horrible things!"
"You...should have more faith in me Molly...I can manage to find my way as long as I can ask directions and have my walking stick."
"Yeah...I'll try...I guess I've become a mother hen even though you're four years older than me...what has the world come to?"
I always enjoyed Molly's company. She had lots to say and a very straightforward way of thinking.
The next day the winner was a human princess from a neighbouring country. Marie was very upset and said the only reason she bested her was because she was fat and used her weight to her advantage. I couldn't help but giggle.