Duty

Chapter 2 Debts of honor

The young girl’s eyes went wide with awe as she took in the sight of the large room.
She had never been in the palace before, but her mother had fallen ill and her father had decided that she should come with him today to give her mother some time to rest.

Her father’s job was a boring one. He had to walk around telling other people what to do.
He had given her a chore as well. She was supposed to haul water from the courtyard for the servants to clean the floor. And she had honestly been on her way, but curiosity had  gotten the better of her.
She had placed her bucket on the floor to explore the rooms on the other side of the hallway.

This one was by far the largest.

 

She walked further inside. She knew she wasn’t supposed to be her, but there was so much to see and no one was here.
A few minutes wouldn’t hurt.

There were tapestries on every wall an a large banner above the stone fireplace. She knew it was the crest of the royal family.

 

A large stone table was in the center of the room, but she was too small to see what was on top.
She looked around and smiled when she saw a  small stool in the corner.
With a little effort she managed to carry it to the table an she crawled on top.

 

A  sigh of disappointment escaped her.
There was a large drawing on the table, but she couldn’t make out what it was. It was painted in blue and yellow and oddly shaped.
Little figurines were placed on top. Men on horseback, men on foot, carrying a sword.
She stared at it puzzled and reached out a hand to touch one.

There were voices down the hall and they startled her.

If anyone were to find her here, she would be in trouble.

Quickly she slid off the stool to find somewhere to hide.

 

***

 

“… to send reinforcements to the border patrol, sire.”

 

The king nodded. “That might be a necessity.” He looked at his son that was walking beside him. At age ten, it was about time he learned a thing or two about battle tactics, so he had brought him to the council meeting so he could observe.

 

Cyrus quietly followed his father and the king’s advisors. He didn’t really want to attend this meeting, but his father had insisted he learn something about the kingdom that would one day be his.

A hand fell on his shoulder and he looked up to met his father’s eyes.

 

“Listen closely, son. Tonight I want a report on what you’ve learned here today.”

 

Cyrus nodded. “Yes father.” But it didn’t take him long to be distracted. He wandered around the room while his father was in deep conversation with his council.

He was studying the old tapestries  when his eye fell on something strange, a small hidden form underneath a chair.
Unobtrusively, he edged closer to the intruder.

 

 

Vara flinched when a pair of feet stopped in front of her hiding space.
They had found her.