Hall of Games [ REWRITE ] | The Varya Chronicles #1

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Sechen wasn't lying about the scenery. It was gorgeous. The evening sun played with the ripples on the lake, glossing them with a layer of gold. Willow trees formed a canopy beside the lake which had turned into a home for the spotted ducks. A few ducks waddled on the banks while most of them splashed about in a nonchalant manner.

Cadence knelt down and touched the grass, finding the beginnings of bluebells. Most of their purple buds were closed, but there were a few early ones that nodded their heads at her.

She smiled and stroked the head of a fully bloomed bluebell. They were lucky plants. Folklore believed if she picked a hundred bluebells, she would be granted a wish. Glancing around, she saw there were not enough blooming bluebells to make a small bunch, let alone gather a hundred. Bluebells may be lucky, but she did not believe killing them just for the sake of ornaments or fulfilling wishes. If they really granted wishes, bluebells would have been extinct since the beginning of time, and the world would be a hot, smoking mess.

A yellow duckling waded up to her and stared at her with its dark, beady eyes.

"I've no bread for you," Cadence said. "Sorry to disappoint."

The duckling quacked, then ruffled its wings.

"I'm not going to bother Sechen just to feed you." Cadence stood up and started walking away. To her dismal, the duckling trailed behind her, waddling so fast it caught up between her shoes.

"Leave me alone!"

Cadence looked up and saw Eli walking up the slope and toward her. Wood thunked, grass crunched as he reached her.

"Oh, thank the Dewas," she muttered under her breath. "A duckling is harassing me."

"It's that Pipin?" Eli said. "That one is a sticker."

"I don't know. They all look the same."

Eli shook his head at Cadence and knelt down in front of the agitated duckling. He pulled out a folded cloth from his pocket and took out a piece of bread. He crumbled a small piece of the bread between his fingers and threw it to the duckling.

"Hail Eli," Cadence said. "Appeaser of ducklings."

"Pipin's brood lost their mother last week. This one, in particular, craves attention. She imprints on everyone who would pay her attention."

Eli tossed the last of the bread into the lake, sending Pipin squawking after and splashing into the water.

He brushed the crumbs off his hands. "So, how are you finding the place? I presume it is up to your comfort?"

"I would say to find it to my comfort is an understatement," said Cadence. "I wonder what it is like to grow up in such a lavish condition."

"It is very quiet, and it gets boring, honestly," Eli said. "My grandfather lives in the Hall of Spirits. Since almost the entire family died, I'm left with my mother and my tutor. Most of the time it's just me as my mother has a difficult time coping with reality. She would spend days, even weeks locked in her room."