Avalyne Academy Stories

4th Story - Viviane

"Medrauta, Medrauta!"

My knight turned to me with an eyebrow raised. "What's got you so riled up, Viviane?"

"It finally happened!" I gushed. "Someone invited me to a tea party!"

"Is that so...?" Medrauta replied, looking contemplative. I couldn't really tell what she was thinking, but it didn't look like she was as excited as I was. Oh well!

"Mhm! Lady Sandra from House Ascott invited me and four other ladies to a tea party this afternoon!" I couldn't help but giggle joyfully, clutching the letter of invitation to my chest. "It's the first time I've been invited to a tea party ever since I arrived here at the academy!"

"Have fun, I guess..." Medrauta's reply came with a tone that was less than enthusiastic which was slightly puzzling given the fact that we would've holed up in the archives again if I hadn't been invited. But...

"You're gonna have to come along too, Medrauta!"

"Huh? Me?" My knight frowned, clearly confused. "The hell do they want with me?"

Her confusion was certainly justified seeing as knights pretty much never participated in noble-exclusive gatherings like tea parties, but for some reason, Lady Sandra asked me to bring Medrauta along. Since this was my first tea party, I really wanted to make a good impression even if Lady Sandra's request seemed kinda strange.

"I'm not sure, but since Lady Sandra is asking for you to accompany me, it would be rude to show up alone, wouldn't it?"

"Yeah, I guess so... I think I brought a dress just in case, so I'll head back to my room in the barracks and change. Honestly though, this already doesn't sound great."

"E-Eh...? Why not?" I dropped my gaze from Medrauta's, my lips trembling as I choked back the urge to cry.

I was always such a weak crybaby and I hated that, but something about Medrauta's negativity about my very first tea party here just made me so unbearably sad. I mean, I was so excited about it, so the least she could do was pretend to be happy for me!

"'Cause this whole thing reeks of suspicion, Viviane." Medrauta said, clicking her tongue in annoyance. "Has this 'Lady Sandra' ever spoken to you before? I've never even heard you mention her name before today."

"W-Well..." Medrauta was right. Lady Sandra had never spoken to me prior to sending me the invitation, nor had I actually met her in person yet. "I-It doesn't matter, does it!? She invited me to her tea party, and it's the first time anyone's invited me to one, so she can't be a bad person, right!?"

Medrauta sighed, shaking her head. As she did so, I couldn't help but notice how beautiful her hair was when illuminated by the sunlight streaming through the window. "I'm worried that they're just looking to take advantage of your status now that you've actually won a match, Viviane. You're a duke's daughter and just two days ago, you just defeated Lord Bastiche and his knight who are ranked fifth in the academy. Isn't the timing of the invitation coupled with their request a little suspicious?"

"...Now that you put it that way, I guess I can see how it'd be strange, but... You'll be with me, won't you? If anything happens, you'll protect me, right?"

"I'd rather you not put yourself in a situation where I'm forced to protect you, but yes. You can count on me to shield you from harm, my lady."

I giggled as my knight performed an exaggerated bow, no doubt in a friendly expression of her exasperation. "Wonderful! Then let's get ready!"

"I shall return after I am properly dressed."

As Medrauta exited my room, I started going through the four dresses that lined my closet. Even though I was a duke's daughter, my room was incredibly small, meaning that I wasn't able to bring all my dresses from home. It took a bit of time to get used to, but now that Medrauta was a frequent visitor, I vastly preferred the smaller room compared to what I lived in back home.