~The garden by the lotus pool~
Serenity looked at Lani, who had turned her head abruptly to look at the approaching figure. She saw Lani tense and turned to see the approaching figure with her own eyes.
The figure approaching was cloaked, but as he drew nearer, Lani let out her breath, relieved. It was just Yami.
As Yami stepped up to Lani and Serenity, he bowed slightly before the princess. "Good afternoon, Your Highness," he said, gently.
"Good afternoon, um…"
"Lord Yami," Yami filled in for her. "You had a pleasant trip here?" he then asked.
"Yes, it was fine," Serenity said simply.
"Good, good…" Yami turned to point at Lani then and said in a mocking voice, "And how is your servant here? Is she satisfactory?"
"Oh, she's wonderful," Serenity replied. "I couldn't have asked for a better servant."
Yami looked at Lani with laughter in his eyes, doubting that she could really be the best servant in the palace. Lani looked away from Yami's mocking brown eyes. She did not appreciate those eyes laughing at her.
"So," Yami started, "Would you like a lotus flower, Princess?" He walked over to the lotus bush by the pool and picked one off of the bush. Then he presented it to Serenity.
"It's a beautiful flower," Serenity commented. "I've never seen a lotus before." As she turned to put the flower in her hair, Lani scribbled what the note from the prince had said and held it up so that Yami could see. Yami nodded and Lani put the parchment into her sash just as Serenity turned back around to look at them.
"Well, I should really be meeting with the queen soon so I have to go," Yami said. "It was nice meeting you, Princess. I'm sure we shall meet again during your stay at the palace."
Yami was about to leave when Lani cried, "No, wait, Lord Yami!" She ran up to him as a surprising look crossed Serenity's face and an incredulous one on Yami's.
"What do you dare to say?" Yami whispered, furious that she had drawn attention to the two of them.
In a nervous whisper, Lani asked, "Why does the prince want to see me there too? I thought I was just the messenger."
Yami looked quite angry and looked around to make sure that no one could hear him and Lani. "I suppose it's for a safety measure. You know, since I'm a lord, I can't go near him alone. He knew someone would have to come with me and as you're the messenger, he thought you would be the best person to bring along. Now, I really must go. I'll meet you at your room a little before the mark of 11." Then he added warningly, "You just better be there."
And with that, Yami left the gardens and walked up to the palace for his meeting with the queen. Lani stared after him, knowing that he had just threatened her again. She also became aware of the fact that a few people were staring at her. She walked back to Serenity, who was also looking at Lani as though she were hiding something from her.
"Come on, Highness," Lani said. "Let's go back to the palace and you can have your little sleep."
Serenity followed Lani, curious to know what was going on, but at the same time afraid to ask. Finally, she asked Lani, "He didn't come to meet me, did he, Lani? He came to see you."
"Of course not, Serenity," Lani said, using her name since no one else was around them at the time. "He came to meet the princess of Canaan."
"He asked me about three questions, Lani. If he had come to meet me, then he would have struck up a conversation with me."
Lani knew this was true, but she couldn't tell Serenity what was going on. If I tell her, Lani thought, I'll be dead within a day. So Lani made up her mind to say nothing.
"Also," Serenity went on when she realized that Lani was not going to say anything, "The prince also did not talk much with me. It seemed more that he wanted you to get him the piece of parchment. It was some kind of message, wasn't it?"
Again, Lani did not say anything. They had arrived at their rooms now and Lani led Serenity into her room. "Take a nap now, Serenity. I'll wake you up when it's time for dinner."
"I'm not tired now, Lani," Serenity said, stubbornly, but decided that it would be best to do as Lani said, seeing that Lani would never tell her what was going on.
Lani sighed with relief when the princess curled up in bed and when to her own room. She got in her own bed, feeling pretty tired herself from what she had done that day. She rested her head on the pillow and fell asleep almost right away.
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I'm sorry it's been a few days since I last updated. I was reading Harry Potter and the only times I put it down were when I had to do something else such as cleaning my room, going to church, playing for graduation, babysitting, and eating meals. Anyway, I'm done with it so I can update and update and update! All u have to do is just keep reviewing. So, I would like at least one review before I continue. Hope u all liked the chapter.
~Charissa~