The Palace Maid { Slow Updates}

Palace

RiverGreen Kingdom

The journey to RiverGreen kingdom wasn't as enjoyable as Joanna had perceived, it was rough and exhausting. The carriage broke down on the way and the short chubby man who Joanna learned was named Stanley made it a proclivity to stop at every nearby tavern. When they finally arrived at the palace, most of the people had already gone to sleep apart from the soldiers who guarded the palace.

Joanna stepped out of the carriage and stood to take in the sight before her, though it was dark, the magnificence of the castle before her was not hidden. The walls were high and well-fortified and the torches hanging on the walls made it look grand and beautiful.

"Come on girl, you won't get paid for being idle, Mr. Stanely said while he shuffled away.
Joanna quickly followed behind as she held on tightly to her belongings. They entered the servants quarter which was big enough to host her and her entire village. Mr.Stanley led her down a small corridor that led to different rooms, he stopped at one of the doors and knocked softly, in seconds the door swung open.
"How dare you keep me waiting for so long when you know we have a busy day ahead?" A plump grey-haired woman questioned.

"My sincere apologies Mrs.Lockwood, there were some slight delays on the way."he said while he fixed his eyes on the floor.
"You better be right, I sure hope you didn't waste precious time in those God-forsaken taverns.'' Mrs. Lockwood remarked.

Joanna stood in complete awe of the woman who stood before her, she was amazed at how the woman voiced her opinions without fear and a part of her wished she had the same confidence and courage.
"Poor girl, she must be freezing to death, that scarf is not good enough to keep a cat warm, let alone a human being." Mrs. Lockwood said as she walked towards Joanna.
Having noticed his presence was no longer needed, Mr. Stanely excused himself.

"Am quite alright Mrs. Lockwood," Joanna said.
"Oh, call me Dotty, you don't have to be formal with me down here, come, I'll take you to your room," Mrs. Lockwood said as she led her down the narrow corridor to the last room.

"You'll be sharing this chamber with Maya, she is still finishing up her chores in the palace but she will be joining you soon. Mrs. Lockwood said before excusing herself.

The room only had two beds and one stool but it felt warm.  Without further a due, Joanna collapsed on the bed and allowed her mind to travel down memory lane. There wasn't much she could think about, but one person adamantly occupied her mind.

Antony was a good friend to Joanna, never once had he failed to mention how he loved and adored her. When Joanna had mentioned that she would be moving to the palace, he was devastated, and out of desperation, he asked her to elope with him since her father would never have allowed her to marry him.

Joanna could not have dared to disappoint her father or ruin her reputation, she regretted leaving without saying a single word to Antony but she had to do what was right. "Disobedience is like a wave of wind that propels you up to only bring you down with a thud." The words of her mother rung in her head.

What was done was done, Joanna could not do anything to change the past but she could work on changing her present. Maybe her stay in the palace would be a voyage of adventure.