The Palace Maid { Slow Updates}

Yearning

Leo was distressed in his spirit. Everything had fallen into place but his heart was still disturbed, yearning for Joanna. For the first time in all his years, Leo felt empty and unfulfilled. If he had not set his eyes on Joanna or placed his lips against hers, he could have been at ease, he could have been somewhere in the taverns celebrating his achievement or wasting time with the town harlots but that was not the case, his body, soul and mind were on the servant who loved to read books. Holding the book Joanna had dropped on their first encounter, Leo brought it close to his nose and inhaled the fragrance it carried. The lavender fragrance reminded him of Joanna but it also made his heart ache because the smell of his beloved was slowly fading away living him with nothing to hold on to. Leo slowly walked towards the window deep in contemplation. For several days he had waited patiently to see Joanna, he desperately desired to make her his but every day marked a new day of disappointments. Joanna was no where to be seen, Leo had searched all over the kingdom for her, he even went to her favourite spot but he couldn't find Joanna. Thousands of unanswered questions travelled through his mind, countless times he questioned whether the spell had led to her death but he brushed off the thoughts immediately they presented themselves, for he had designed the spell to be completely harmless for the sake of Joanna.

Several times he had thought of asking of her whereabouts but something within him didn't allow him to. It could have been his pride or the fact that he thought he was protecting Joanna from an unknown force. He could have maintained his stand but the thorn in his flesh wouldn't allow him to rest, so he decided to finally ask of Joanna's whereabouts. He resolved that he would do anything to have her by his side and if she had gone back to her hometown, he would make sure he brought her back to the palace and make her his queen. He was just about to leave when the queen entered the study room, interrupting his quest.

"Have you questioned the prisoner again?" The queen asked calmly.
Leo stood before the queen with utter disgust but refused to reveal it. He hated the Chester family, he even wondered why he had spared their lives. The woman who stood before him reminded him of the man who destroyed his chance to be raised with a mother. Leo shrugged his shoulders and walked out of the room without uttering a word. He was in no mood to listen to the queen or deal with petty prisoners, there was only one important thing that he had to concentrate on, and that was finding his beloved.

The queen had noticed the sudden change of behaviour in her son but she chose not to question him. She assumed he was troubled as much as she was because of the missing hourglass. Time was not on their side and she knew that the king would soon meet his death but a part of her believed that they could still save him but first she needed to make sure the servant confessed even if it meant questioning and forcing the truth out of her herself.