Prince Caspian -Jung Yoonoh NCT

9. The Newcomer

Chloe's mother welcomes me, saying, "So this is Yiseul. Ah, you're so pretty."

Compliment indeed, from the beautiful, elegant woman. I have come a long way since my Ravenscrag days! 

My room is in one of the towers and is filled with massive old-fashioned furniture, including a large four-poster bed. 

"I am sorry that it looks like an antique shop," Chloe says, "but everything we have is old and shabby. The place looks like a morgue."

"I think it's lovely,' I say, and I mean it. 

Chloe is looking slightly embarrassed. 

"I did not tell you before," she says hesitantly. "I didn't want Madame to know, but ... well, the truth is ... we let accommodation during the summer. It helps, you see, and this big house,"she spreads her hands, "so much of it is empty most of the year."

"Why not?" I exclaim. "It's a thing lots of people do nowadays. Have you some guests here now? I hope they're nice people." 

Chloe perks up at once. 

"Two guys, my mum says. They are studying forestry. I haven't seen them, but I hope that they are nice. At least, they are guys. Last summer we had some old women, tourists, who asked such boring questions."

"Forestry? Wouldn't that be boring as well for you?" I laugh. "They'd be talking about forests all day."

We won't be able to see the lodgers until the evening, for it is their practice to take lunch with them and stay out all day. 

I have lunch with Chloe's parents. Mr. Lee is a gentleman, courtly and aristocratic. 

"Once we possessed the finest chateau in the country," he says, sighing, "but times change, and I can no longer afford the upkeep of the place."

"It's a beautiful place," I say. 

"It will have to be sold soon. Chloe does not care about it, she is all for life in the town, and I have no son to inherit it." 

I think of Ravenscrag. If only I had been a boy, it would have come to me, and I could have loved, and cherished it. 

And suddenly I think, perhaps Mark, like Chloe, would not care for life on a country estate. 

The thought chills me.

But he can't sell it without my consent, and I would never agree to selling it. The thought is comforting, and I cling to it, and after a while, my anxiety abates.

Evening comes, and I find Chloe going through her wardrobe in her room. However bad the family circumstances have become, her parents have continued to indulge her, and she has plenty of clothes. 

She is deciding what she should wear to impress the foresters. 

"It's the first impression that counts," she grins. "I wish to appear irresistible."

"You may be wasting your efforts," I say, smiling. "Very likely they'll be plain and very dull, and only interested in trees."

Chloe's eyes gleam wickedly. 

"When they see me they will forget about trees."

She finally selects a scarlet dress with transparent sleeves, the skirt reaching her ankles. With her black hair piled on top of her head, long dangling earrings, and a gold necklace around her slender throat, she looks more than striking. She has made up her eyes with long lines from the outer corners to give them an extra slant, and on her feet are delicate silvery high heels.