Chapter 2
First impressions were everything. When one was vying for a job, one must be at their top behavior, perfect manners and appearance.
Her first impression? She never realized she was already assessed long before she entered the room. She worked so hard to have nice appearance - clothes neat and tidy and she attempted to tame this long, wild black mass she had misfortune to call hair.
It seemed no matter how hard she tried, nothing would have spared her from the queen's fervent disapproval.
She did nothing wrong! Heavens, all she did, at the very least, was look at her... and instantly regretted it. Her majesty's expression was quite the opposite of inviting or friendly. At first, the atmosphere itself was merely uncomfortable, her appraising purple orbs assessing her appearance before gaping at her face. There was the initial shock then the queen's visage was overwhelmed by a silent rage. After that, the girl felt everything go downhill.
'Is it against rules here to try to be courteous to the queen?' After that incident, the king swiftly assured her that it was a common Vivaldi reaction, but she just wasn't sure.
Why did Vivaldi already seemed to hate her so?
'Maybe I'm over thinking these things. I still got the job after all. It's too early to pass any judgment.'
Besides, she needed this job. Even though her mother and she certainly weren't as impoverished as some faceless people, she wanted to make it on her own. She wanted to save enough money for her greatest aspiration.
Her elder sister was able to do it. Why couldn't she?
"Myrina..." A wistful smile danced over her lips at the thought of her sibling, of how she wanted to be just like her. Strong, independent... far, far away from here...
'And I'll keep getting further and further away from my goal if I don't find my way soon.'
A tiny nerve of irritation pulsated from her temple. She slowly ground her teeth the longer she walked around the castle hallways. The king's directions couldn't be anymore plain, but still she found herself completely lost.
'To think, I once thought my sense of direction was rather decent.'
She released a disgruntled sigh, lazily turning her head all around her surroundings. She hoped that she would find something that would guide her towards the correct direction. Even a blinking sign nearly screaming 'Enter Here!' would have been great. Of course, that seemed like it wasn't going to happen, but a girl could dream.
A low cough ripped through her lungs, aching her throat with its usual sting. Her chest clenched, burning her insides with a smoldering pain. She needed to take her medicine, but she didn't want to take it here in the open. That would just supply another reason for her to get kicked out. She needed to find that room before it gets any worse.
'Maybe I'll see another servant. Then I will have some help.' There seemed a greater likelihood she would see a maid or a card soldier anyway. There was probably an innumerable amount of them working here, perhaps some working as replacements when Vivaldi ordered an unfortunate handful to be executed.
The chances of meeting of one of Vivaldi's role holding subordinates?
One in a million.
"Hi there!"
The faceless girl jumped at the sudden emergence of the young man. He had a scruffy mop of brown hair, and his lips were curved into such a mouth-achingly wide grin. What really caught her attention were his eyes - those bright red eyes. Eyes she could never have. Her heart clenched at the thought, forcing it to escape from her mind.
"...hello?" she replied guardedly, staring the frighteningly cheerful man with wary eyes.
"So you're the new girl, right?" She slowly nodded her head. "Welcome then! Allow me to introduce myself. My name's Ace, the Knight of Hearts."
The girl barely repressed a low scoff. Of course she recognized him; everyone knew who the role holders were. Such an introduction was superfluous.
Suppressing another low cough, she brusquely said, "Alright. Nice meeting you." The dark-haired girl then attempted to sidestep him, but he followed her with ease.
"Someone seems to be in a rush." Ace inclined his head slightly, amusement dancing over his crimson orbs. "To think I thought you were lost and wanted to come to your rescue."
If she had eyes, she would have definitely rolled them at the moment. She retorted with evident sarcasm, "Gee, what a gentleman! Well, I'll have you know that I'm not lost. Now get out of my way please. I have places to go, rooms to find."
The faceless girl started to run around his other side, but the infuriating man followed her, anticipating her movements with such a grin on his face.
"Ah-hah! There's no way you can deny it. You are lost! To think, I thought I was the only one with a terrible sense of direction..."
"If that's true, perhaps you should step aside. I'll figure out where I need to go," she stated adamantly, her expression hard and irritated.
Ace seemed not to notice the ire in her words, or at least pretended to. He suggested, "Hey, you know, I can help! I can totally tell you were you need to go!"
The girl before him crossed her arms over her chest, indulging him by saying, "Really? Didn't you say you're directional skills were terrible?"
"But I'm not that bad while here in the castle! Come on. It's this way."
Confident in his words and his guiding abilities, Ace began walking down the opposite direction of the hall.
"Do you know where I need to go?" She asked after a moment.
"Yep! The king told me you need to get fitted for your uniform!"
"Ah. Alright." The young girl watched with increasing bemusement as Ace strode forward, whistling a cheerful tune. "...You do know that way leads to entrance to the castle, right?"
The red knight paused for a moment, slowly rotating his head back towards her. "Huh? How do you know?"
"I somehow ended up there earlier and just trying this way now."
Ace considered her statement for a long moment, mulling over something in his mind. He rubbed his chin in contemplation. "Ah... Maybe it is the other way after all..."
The girl released an exasperated groan and began to walk away. "Just leave me alone already. You're wasting my time."
She hoped with all her clock heart that the knight would just get the picture and leave her be. Of course, she had never met anyone quite like him before. Men like Ace were known for being persistent... as well as thickheaded.
"Hey, wait up!"
The girl completely ignored him, pretending the annoying knight was not there walking beside her. She had to concentrate on happy thoughts. Yes, focus her thoughts on the more pleasant aspects of the day, and not the man beside her. The weather was fairly decent. She had a job. That was certainly an upside, right? She was still alive and still had her head attached to her body. That's a huge plus right there.
"Hey, what's your name?" The faceless girl winced at the sound of his voice, but feigned ignorance.
'Just keep walking... Just keep on walking...'
"Hey, did you hear me?" She immediately leapt away, cringing at the uncomfortable proximity with the knight.
"Do you have any notion what personal space is?" She shouted, cheeks burning at the embarrassing closeness.
"Well, I was just asking a question. Didn't mean to burst your bubble," Ace said rather apologetically, gently scratching his chin.
"Well couldn't you tell I wasn't planning on answering?"
The brown-haired knight tilted his head in confusion, brows knitting together. "You have a name, don't you?"
"I don't want to answer you! Can't you understand that?"
"Why not?"
A tired hand ran through her long locks, resisting the fervent need to shake some sense into him. "Why do you even want to know? There's no point in you knowing. It's not like you'll even remember."
Ace pouted his lips, blatantly offended by such implications. "That's rude to say. How do you know that?"
"Do you know the names of other maids and soldiers?"
"There was never a reason for me to know it." The knight then fell silent. The girl shot him a pointed look before continuing forward. "Well, I told you my name. It would only be fair and polite if you told me yours."
"Since when is the world fair and polite?" She replied harshly, her gaze firmly set on the path before her. "There's no real point for you to know it, knight. Why burden your role-holding mind with the insignificance that is my name? I'm just a nobody in comparison to you. Why does it matter?"
The Heart role holder was unsure how to respond, speechless as he studied the girl. Her features remained stoical and completely serious.
Before either she or Ace could continue with the conversation, a short-haired maid appeared before her, short of breath as a result of scrambling all around the castle.
"Oh, miss! You're the new maid, correct?" The young girl nodded her head. "His majesty sent me to look for you because he heard you got lost. Please follow me."
Without any protests, the faceless girl separated herself from the knight with joy and followed the maid off and away from Ace.
~(o)~
Cynical. Fatalistic. Moody... Certainly not as quiet and demure as Ace once expected her to be or quite like the other maids in the castle.
It was a pleasant surprise to say the least. The new girl certainly proved she was completely different from the other maids.
'Very interesting...' That may be one reason why he kept pestering her about her name.
No matter what the new, little maid did - yell at him or completely ignore him - Ace didn't give up.
But the girl was stubborn as he was persistent.
The red knight sighed at the very thought. Why was it such a big deal? Why can't she just give him her name? It wasn't that hard to do. Then he would leave her alone... for a little while.
'Why is she making such a big deal out of it anyway? It's just a name…' The knight then released a languorous sigh, watching the fire cast shadows over the floor. Ace surely was not the kind of man who gives up, but how this situation is going? It never seemed more dismal.
"Ace? What on earth do you think you're doing?" At the sound of his name, the young knight turned his gaze upwards. The king gazed down at his seated form, his expression curious.
Ace smiled. "Oh, I just got lost so I started camping!"
The king raised a dubious brow. "Really? So why did you set up camp in the middle of the hallway? You're still inside the castle."
"Well, where else would I sleep? I can't find my room!"
The king opened his mouth to retort, but instead clamped it shut, releasing only loud sigh. Ace returned his gaze back to the fire, expecting the conversation to be over. It was rare enough that he even exchanged a few passing words with his majesty. He expected the king to leave him to his unusual business and onto whatever it is the king did, which, Ace thought, wasn't much.
Instead, his next course of action was completely uncharacteristic of him. The king settled himself right beside him, his closed eyes transfixed on the crackling fire. Ace tried his hardest not to gawk at his superior and wonder what on earth had gotten into him. Did Ace do something wrong?
"The reason why I'm still here" – Ace jumped at the sound of the king's voice, partially alarmed to hear the man speak at all – "Is because I wanted to talk to you about our new maid."
Ace blinked. "The new girl?"
"Who else? I'm just checking on her performance and hearing what other people think of her. As your luck shall have it, I'm going to ask you." He turned his face towards the young man, his expression cheerfully unreadable. "What do you think?"
Ace meditated the question for a singular moment. "Well… she's different from the other ones we usually get... incredibly moody as well."
Now it was the king's turn to be confused. "Moody?"
"Yeah! I'm just asking her about her name, and the girl flips out on me! Does she even have one?"
"Oh, I promise you, she has one!" chuckled the king.
"Then I don't know why she's making such a big deal about telling me. It's only a name…" Ace said in a tone the king would have almost categorized as whining.
The king then queried, "So… that must mean you don't think she's that bad?"
Ace then absently replied, "A grumpy, temperamental maid, but a competent worker nonetheless."
"Huh. I see..." The king nodded his head in consideration, mulling over the knight's words in his mind. The knight thought it was just his tired mindset getting to him, but he almost thought the king was smiling at his response.
"Scarlet." The young knight snapped his head towards his superior, a look of inquisition besieging his scarlet orbs. "Well, you wanted to know her name, right? Well, that's it. Scarlet."
Ace repeated the name quietly under his breath, testing the name on his tongue.
The king gradually rose to his feet, stretching his sore leg muscles. "Now, I suppose I should get going now! Got a lot to do. Thank you, Ace!"
As the male noble began walking down towards the hallway, the brown-haired male called out, "Wait! Your majesty, why did you tell me her name? I could have gotten it out of her eventually."
The older male paused and released a tiny burst of laughter, nodding his head in acknowledgement. "Oh yes! I'm sure you would have been able to wear her down.," said the king with a hint of… sarcasm? Ace never knew he had it in him. "Consider it your reward for successfully completing my survey. Goodbye, Ace."
'Wow! The king is full of surprises!' thought Ace as he watched the nobleman wave goodbye and disappear from sight. 'Now's not the time to contemplate that discovery though.'
He gently rubbed his chin, mouthing the name once more. Scarlet. Such an unusual name befitting such an unusual girl. He leaned his head back onto the cold flooring and inwardly smiled to himself.
Tomorrow was certainly going to be an entertaining day, more so for him than her that was for certain.
~(o)~
A large, sharp knife glistened in the golden illumination, its blade casting a dangerous glow. Its tip was ready, poised to attack at a moments notice. Its target was so still, so defenseless, its soft pink flesh so exposed.
The blade finally rose up and rushed down in a large, swinging arc onto its target. Its delicate flesh broke open, split into two even halves. The stabber repeated the motion several times again, tearing its victim into hundreds of unrecognizable pieces.
"Um, Scarlet-chan? Are you sure you want to cut the food?" Her maid companion finally spoke up, slowly stirring the broth in a large, metal pot.
Scarlet sliced through the minced chunks of meat once more before turning her attention to her. "Of course, I'm certain! Why do you ask?"
The maid opened her mouth to reply, but gently sealed it shut. She glanced down at the poor, dead animal meat and sighed. "Just merely expressing my condolences for the deceased."
"But it was already dead," said a confused girl, tilting her head slightly to the side.
"Never mind. I think that's just fine, Scarlet. Why don't you bring it over here? The beef for the stew was supposed to be chopped, not shredded."
Scarlet released a nervous laugh, quickly tossing the beef into the pot. She then plopped a tomato onto the cutting board. The maid watched in silent horror as she watched Scarlet gently pressed the tip of the knife of the blade through the fruit's flesh, allowing a steady stream of watery, red liquid to roll down its smooth, red surface.
The maid suddenly lost the will to stir. "Dear girl, I can't watch this any longer."
The dark-haired maid asked, "Watch what? I'm only cutting food like I'm supposed to."
"Exactly, and I never knew one could make cutting a tomato look like such a violent, illegal act. Are you secretly some sadistic sociopath or something because if you are, please inform me now?"
"Oh, I assure you I'm not!" she replied with such a cheerful smile on her face. "I'm merely expunging all my inner frustrations in the safest way possible!"
As she sliced through the tomato with such frightening force and fury, the maid began to think that it wasn't safe for their ingredients. "But why are you so frustrated? I thought you were adjusting quite well to Heart Castle."
Scarlet scowled, "It's just a certain, irritating someone refuses to leave me alone!"
The maid didn't have to interrogate the young girl to know who she was referring to. "Dear, Master Ace is not still bothering you, is he?"
"God dammit he is! He keeps harassing me over my godforsaken name! Such impudence, such petulance! He's so annoying!" Scarlet exclaimed furiously, releasing her wrath onto the tomato.
Her companion shrugged her shoulders, returning her attention to the stew. Scarlet had liberated her thoughts onto the Heart maid upon several occasions. She learned it was better to allow the young girl to rave as much as her heart desires rather than attempt at offering any words to placate her.
"I still think you are over exaggerating things. Ace is eccentric at times, but he is not that bad."
"To hell he is! I'm just not fooled by that phony innocence. That's all," Scarlet firmly stated, throwing the hashed tomato bits into the broth.
The maid rolled her invisible eyes. "Well, I'm going to look for some more seasoning salts. It seems we're out. Watch the soup while I'm gone?"
Scarlet limply nodded her head, commencing to start chopping once more. The maid plopped the spoon onto the counter and began walking off.
Out of all her duties in the castle, kitchen duty was Scarlet's favorite. It was the only place that provided an outlet. In the kitchen, there was no Vivaldi, no Peter…
'And no Ace!' To Scarlet, there was no place closer to heaven then the kitchen.
A pair of footsteps waltzed inside, pattering in unison to the sound of boiling water.
"Oh, back so soon?" said Scarlet, slowly turning her gaze away from her veggie victim. "That was rather fa-"
All words failed her when she was met with a figure with two bright red orbs. The young maid squeaked in surprise and pressed her back into the counter. "Knight, what are you doing here?"
"Oh… this isn't the dining room?" Ace said, casting his eyes around his general surroundings. "Oops! My bad! It appears I got lost!"
Waves of irritation flowed into her mind as she swiftly turned her back, resuming her chopping duties and ignoring his overall presence. "Well, why don't you get lost right now? You're not supposed to be here. I'm busy."
Even though her back was to him, she could feel his lips upturn into a wide smile. "Oh, what's the rush… Scarlet."
She fell completely still. 'What the-?'
He did not just say it. He did not just say it.
Scarlet whirled around and unconsciously waved her knife at him. "How did you learn that name, knight?"
"Watch were you're swinging that! You could hit me!" Ace exclaimed, taking a tentative step away from her.
"I hope I do! Now will you answer me?"
Ace cheerfully supplied that he utilized his fantastic sleuthing skills and tapped into his mysterious sources. How Scarlet wish she had eyes… she would love to roll them at the moment. Before she could open her mouth to retort, loud, popping noises caught her attention, followed by a sudden pillar of white steam.
"The stew!" Scarlet dashed over and lowered the heat, careful to stir the pot's contents without burning herself. She exhaled a sigh of relief, thankful that the pot's contents were unharmed. "Well, whoop-dee-doo. You know my name. Would you like a gold star or something?"
Ace shook his brown head. "Nope! I believe your frazzled reaction is worth more than a silly, little sticker."
"I am not frazzled!" She shouted louder than necessary. Scowling at Ace's cheerful expression, she cleared her throat and added calmly, "I'm more so irritated than anything."
"Irritated, huh? You know, psychologists have something to say about that kind of hostility and irritation!"
Scarlet regarded him in curiosity, slowly stirring the stew with the knife in hand. "Really? What do they say, knight?"
Ace grinned even wider and edged towards her. "That irritation and hostility are simply sublimated sexual attraction."
She nearly toppled over at such an unexpected statement, clasping onto the counter to retain her balance. Her cheeks heated up. "W…what? Are you serious?"
The brown-haired knight chuckled as he took another step towards her. "Nope! I was just kidding… but it seems like I hit a nerve. Perhaps, I was right? Are you attracted to me?"
The knife dug into the cutting board. Nerves erupted all along her temples. She could not believe what she was hearing.
Waving the wooden spoon towards his head, she shouted, "Can you hear the nonsense you are spouting? I had never heard something so absurd! So far, the most feelings I have for you is hatred!"
"Well, there is a very thin line between love and hate… you're not getting a little confused are you?"
She knew Ace was only teasing her, pushing her buttons to see how she reacted… and unfortunately, those buttons just pushed her over the edge.
A loud crack reverberated in the stillness, creating a large, red mark on Ace's cheek. His scarlet eyes grew very wide, dazedly turning towards a very livid maid.
Tapping the spoon crossly against her palm, she fumed, "Do you want to try saying that again?"
Silence manifested itself and veiled the kitchen air. His face was generally unreadable. The knight gently rubbed his sore face whilst staring at the angry girl.
His mouth then quirked up into a smile and burst out laughing. "Wow! That kind of hurt. Maybe if you didn't have such weak, little arms then maybe you could actually inflict some real damage!"
Something within her cracked. She had officially lost her patience. "Now that is it! Why not you come here, and I'll show you how much damage I can do!"
Just as Scarlet swung at him, he gracefully evaded the assault and dashed outside the kitchen door.
"Hey! You, come back here! I'm not through with you, you stupid knight!" shouted Scarlet. She then released an irritated exhalation, brusquely pushing back an errant black strand of hair.
'Stupid, idiotic fop… Wait until I get my hands on him…'
~(o)~
The dining room was bright with golden illumination, pervading all throughout the room. The general stillness was disrupted by a rhythmic tapping noise.
"What is taking them so long? We are hungry," Vivaldi said irritably, lithe fingers tapping against the elegant tabletop.
"It will be done soon. Be patient," said her current sitting companion, the king. He sat rather good-naturedly across from her, hands folded neatly over the table. "But you are changing the subject. What is your answer?"
Vivaldi released a low scoff. "Isn't saying that 'it was the most foolish notion We ever heard of', enough for you?"
"I just simply would like a reason why not. The girl would make an excellent attendant," proposed the king.
"But not for Us. We will not have her as Our attendant," Vivaldi argued proudly, intertwining her arms over her chest. "And that's that."
The king released a tired sigh. Such adamancy against Scarlet was rather unfounded, in the king's opinion, but he did not press her any further. It wasn't worth the antagonism he was surely going to endure if he did.
"What about the Prime Minister? He could use some extra help," absently suggested Vivaldi.
The king shook his head. "I already asked. Peter refused. Besides, I didn't really think it was wise. He'd probably shoot her dead before she even has a chance to introduce herself."
"And that's a problem because…?" The king's sent her pointed glance, his lips forming a disapproving line. Vivaldi exhaled a curt breath. "Fine! I get it. So then, if you are so bent on assigning her such a job, then who in the world is left?"
The male Heart noble contemplated such an inquiry, rummaging through his brain for possible candidates.
"Hi, guys! So is the food here yet? I'm starving."
Both Heart nobles turned their heads towards the source of the noise. Violet eyes glittered and a grin spread over her lips. She glanced over to the king. "How about him? That knight definitely needs more guidance than the White Rabbit."
The king did not answer right away. He turned his attention to the two Heart maids as they sauntered into the room, wheeling a heart-shaped cart towards the three.
"Good afternoon, your majesties, Master Ace," greeted the short-haired woman, bowing reverently to the trio.
"We had finished preparing the meal, your graces, knight," politely said the newest addition to the staff, stopping the cart and bowing as well.
The king nodded to the two women as they busied themselves, grabbing bowls and placing them before the role holders.
"Master Peter is not joining us today for the meal?" asked the maid.
The knight answered, "Oh! I don't think so. I saw him heading out when I was wandering around the castle."
"Yes, wandering indeed…"
The king turned his gaze over to the young girl, seeing her face containing negligible wrinkles of irritation. Ace retained his usual jolly expression, chuckling at her behavior.
The nobleman turned his head to the young queen. She seemed fairly impassive to the display and feigned ignorance.
"Yum! It looks great!" exclaimed Ace, eagerly taking the spoon into his gloved hands and scooping a large amount into his mouth. The Heart King and Queen followed suit, taking a delicate swallow of the red broth.
The two maids stood patiently beside them, one with jovial optimism while the other watched in almost mischievous anticipation.
"Is it to your liking, your majesties?"
"Passable," was the Queen's succinct reply, spooning another to her delicate lips.
"Quite good actually. You two really did great," extolled the king.
The maid released a relieved sigh and smiled. Scarlet turned her gaze passed her two superiors and over to the knight, watching as he shoveled another generous helping into his ravenous mouth. Her lips upturned into a wide smile.
"How about you, knight? Not bad?"
"It's actually pretty good. Seriously, what did you –" Ace then paused. The spoon fell from his hand. His other hand flew to his lips as the color of scarlet blossomed over his cheeks.
"Oh dear! Sir Knight, why is your face so red?" gasped Scarlet, trying to futilely to wipe the smile off her face. The maid shot the new maid a suspicious look while the two nobles watched Ace in confusion. Despite the alarming color of his visage, Ace kept his cool, calmly reaching his hand out in the air. "Oh? Would you like something to drink? Oh, you should have just said something!"
As the loyal servant she was, Scarlet handed reddening Ace a cold glass of water. Ace promptly snatched it out of her hand and hastily emptied the contents into his mouth.
"Huh… it seems it was chili powder that fell into one of the bowls. I was wondering what that was!" Scarlet gently smacked her head in realization and began to wheel the cart off. "Thank you so much for enlightening me, Sir Knight. Now, if you excuse me, I have a lot of work to do. Good day!"
"W… wait!" Seeing the young dark-haired girl rush out the door, the maid sighed, bowed, and ran after her.
Ace slowly wiped his lips with the back of his gloved hand and stood up. "I think I shall be making my leave as well. I have a word or two I would like to discuss with that girl." With his usual pleasant smile, Ace waved goodbye and sauntered out the door.
That had left two nobles alone, both equally dazed and confused. One had finally snapped out of his trance and said, "Well, I think we found ourselves a winner, don't you?"
The Queen chuckled and fervently nodded her head. "Oh yes! I knew he would be an excellent choice. If anyone could use more help, it would be him! They would simply be perfect for each other, considering how well they get along already!"
The king felt his lips twitch into a smile as he watched the young Queen of Hearts continued to laugh at the very thought of the arrangement. "Good… Good. I'm glad you think so."
A/N Note: Not much to say about this chapter... it's just nice to see that Scarlet and Ace are getting along so well already. lol
Thanks for reading~