Rifiuto: Non Miriena
A/N: This chapter jumps ahead six months, because something major happens.
Thanks to lizziemagic and Issa(dot)wicked17 for reviewing 3.
Six months had passed, and in that time, she'd risen from scullery maid to kitchen maid. Hard work had become a part of her vocabulary, and she was now able to speak fluently in the Vinkun tongue- which meant conversing with the princess was easier, and eavesdropping on the scullery maids became much more fun when she was able to understand what they were saying.
"Tea, please? Candle!" The girl's head snapped up from the silver she was polishing. "Tea?" She nodded, dropping the cloth and hurrying to fix the tea for the young princess. "No, no, we'll take it in the library." The girl nodded, understanding.
Twenty minutes later, she entered the library and quickly glanced around. The Crown Prince was engaged in a game of chess with his father, while his wife sat in the windowseat, staring outside at the rain as it pelted the ground and windowpane, a forelorn look on her pretty face. The queen, meanwhile, was sitting in an armchair, reading a novel. They all looked up when she set the tray on the table and poured the tea.
"Thank you, Candle." Chelseqa said, accepting her cup.
"Welcome." She whispered, curtsying quickly before leaving and returning to the kitchen. Once there, she took a seat at the table and began shelling peas like she'd been asked to do earlier by Cook. So engrossed in her work was she, that she didn't notice the person come up behind her until they laid a hand on her shoulder. She jumped in surprise and knocked the bowl over.
"I'm sorry Candle, I didn't mean to startle you."
She knelt down quickly to pick up the peas, and once they were all back in the bowl and she'd returned to her seat, she realized that the princess was sitting next to her. Chelseqa watched her for several minutes before speaking.
"You seem to be settling down here nicely, Candle." The girl kept quiet. "I'm sorry for what happened to your sisters."
"Thank you." She whispered, glancing quickly at her mistress. Chelseqa didn't say anything for several minutes, before,
"Come take a walk with me." And she stood. The girl watched her.
"N... now..."
Chelseqa nodded, turning back to the girl. "Yes. Now."
"But I- Cook-"
"Cook may be your boss, but I am your mistress. My word has more weight that hers." She crossed her arms over her small chest. "Now come." Glancing quickly over her shoulder, she did as told, following her young mistress out of the kitchen and up the stairs. They walked down the corridors in silence, eventually coming to a door. Quickly, Chelseqa pushed the door open, and hurried inside, beckoning Candle to follow. Once inside, she shut the door behind her, and then went to the window. It was then that Candle got a good look at the room.
It was small, just big enough for a small child. Which is exactly what it was for- an infant, actually. She saw the cradle, the small boudior, a rocking chair... and then she turned to her mistress.
Was she...?
"I lost it." A confused look came over the girl's face, as her mistress slowly turned to face her. "I lost the baby."
"B... baby?"
Chelseqa nodded, swallowing.
"Two months ago. I... I would have been a... a mother in two months time, if I hadn't lost it. Still..." Candle swallowed, finding it difficult due to the lump in her throat. After a moment, Chelseqa slid down the wall, sitting on the floor and pulling her legs to her chest. "I... I was carrying the heir." Tears slid down her cheeks, and she began fiddling with her skirt. Slowly, Candle moved closer, finally sitting down beside her mistress. "I just knew... I knew I was carrying the heir. I just... I knew..."
After a moment, the young maid reached out and laid a hand on her mistress's arm in comfort. The gentle contact seemed to give the princess courage to continue. Meeting Candle's eyes, she said,
"I didn't mean too... it just happened... I started to bleed, and then..." Chelseqa broke down then, burying her face in Candle's shoulder. The intimate contact startled the girl, and after several moments, she wrapped the older girl in her arms.
Two months ago.
In the back of her mind, Candle remembered waking up to the household in a frenzy; lights being lit, water being boiled, the doctor being called... maids being called upstairs, only to return in minutes with bloody rags and towels. Prayers being whispered in frantic voices; the smell of antispetic permeating the air; the screams that echoed through the castle... and then, the sight of the doctor carrying a bundle of bloodied rags, instructing the gardeners to give it a "proper burial", before handing over the bloody bundle.
Still...
Now she understood.
The chaos of that night had left little time for thinking, and even less for understanding, but now it all made sense.
The bundle of blankets had been her mistress's child.
The screams had been ones of childbirth, the antiseptic for pain.
The child had been stillborn; it hadn't lived long enough to take its first breath.
As she held her mistress close, comforting her with her presence, she prayed with all her might that the next child her mistress would have would be strong and healthy.