Chapter 4

A Chapter by Lady Grayish

When Sera woke up, she spent a long time just lying in bed remembering all the strange things that had happened the day before. But not too long, because there were chores to take care of and breakfast to eat. When that was finished Sera trotted off to Tolerable, hoping that Phina would be there. She did say she was going to see her family, after all.

Even so early in the morning there was a shimmer of heat on the road. The bright green trees that bordered the road gave little shade, and Sera could feel herself droop more and more the further she walked. The feeling did not entirely come from the heat however. Sera’s fears were confirmed when she saw Swan Stemley sitting primly in “her” spot beside Tolerable's hedge, surrounded by a gaggle of town girls. In spite of the long hot walk, Sera very nearly turned around and went straight back to the farm.

“Oh, it’s you, Dippy. How was your visit with Lady Seraphina yesterday?” Swan fanned herself daintily with a painted paper fan. The four girls around her giggled into their soft white hands and Sera felt her cheeks redden when she remembered that she hadn’t even worn shoes.

Biting her lip, Sera walked forward firmly, trying to ignore the taunts. Swan stood up and moved to stand in Sera’s path. The other girls stayed seated, still laughing quietly as they watched. “Why don’t you just tell me, Dippy? It’s not as if such a noble lady would have shared any great secrets with you. What on earth could you have to hide?”

Sera swallowed hard. Swan avoided being outright evil, but she was certainly nasty and unpleasant and determined to get her way. And now she had decided that Sera was going to tell her exactly why a lady of the court would show so much interest in a village girl with bad luck. Even if Sera wanted to tell her the truth, she couldn’t.

So she bent it. Swallowing a second time, Sera squared her shoulders and faced Swan. “She asked me to become her apprentice, Swan, not that it’s any of your business.”

Swan wrinkled her nose in confusion. “Apprentice what? How can you be an apprentice lady of the court?”

Sera shrugged. “I’m not really sure. She hasn’t been very clear on what exactly I'll be doing.”

“Maybe she’s being trained as a servant for the new princess,” one of the gaggle said.

Shocked, the entire group turned to stare at the gaggle girl, and she shrank for a moment before realizing the power she held over them. Sitting up proudly, she said, “Didn’t you know? Princess Ruby of Lanmura is arriving in a few days. My father was sent out two days ago to help escort her to the castle.”

“Princess Ruby? Who’s she?” Swan asked imperiously, clearly doubting that such a person existed.

The girl sighed dreamily and said, “Princess Ruby is daughter of King Alric of Lanmura, and she’s supposed to be beautiful and intelligent, just like a princess is supposed to be. And she has red hair, of course,” she added quickly, with the other girls nodding solemnly. Even if they had never heard of the country of Lanmura they all knew that proper princesses were supposed to be named for some aspect of their appearance.

Once Swan recovered from not being the first one to know something, she began bossing around her friend for more information. Seeing that Swan was occupied, Sera took the opportunity to slip on past and into the village. Even if Phina wasn’t there, it was a chance to visit Tolerable, and someone else would probably know more about the princess who was coming. Before Sera could even think about searching for the best gossip there was a terrific noise down a nearby street. She hurried to see what was happening.

“Let me go!” The voice was vaguely familiar. Sera was puzzling through where she had heard it when a grimy figure burst from the shaded alley into the much brighter street. The man was almost unrecognizable under a covering of dirt but the purple eagle on the back of his cloak was unmistakable.

Whipping a flimsy sword out of its sheath, the young man yelled, “You can’t make me go back again! I refuse to go back again! I’m not marrying anyone!”

Sera clapped her hands over her mouth and shook as she tried to contain her giggles. She should have guessed. Prince Kennard usually managed to escape from the palace once a month, more frequently when King Bertram was threatening marriage with a princess. At least there hadn’t been any explosions this time, Sera thought.

Skipping to the side of the street, Sera clutched at the nearest fence post and watched the prince race through Tolerable’s main green, the pasture that the townsfolk shared. Four palace guards gave chase, their red faces showing exactly how long they had been running after Prince Kennard. They were followed by the stubby man who served as the king’s messenger to the people of Tolerable. He was much despised and Sera had to bite back more giggles when she saw the purple berry stain all over his front.

“Sire, wait!” the man yelled, staggering to catch up. Sera leaned forward onto the fence post, curious about how long it would take to capture the prince this time. The prince circled the green and charged toward the street Sera was on. Watching excitedly, Sera leaned forward even farther and felt something splinter in the wooden fence post. She fell onto her back, trying to keep the fence intact, but the post tipped over and dragged the next five lengths of fence with it.

Sera pushed herself up on her elbows just in time to see Prince Kennard trip over the posts and fly forward into the road where he lay stunned. Her heart in her throat, Sera staggered to her feet and shrank back against the house behind her as the guards tackled the prone royal. It occurred to her that the prince might not feel kindly toward someone who tripped him up so spectacularly, and Sera decided it would be a good idea to leave Tolerable quickly and by a side alley.

Racing home, Sera hoped that no one noticed her knocking over the fence. The villagers would probably guess she was the one who did it because of her long history of doing such things, but if no one knew for sure then she probably wouldn't have to set it back up. Sera knew from experience just how hard it was to set a fence. She decided then and there that it would probably be best to wait until Phina got back and not hang around the village. In her experience it usually took a week or so for this sort of accident to die down.

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