9

Father was home, his arrival was a surprise, but at least he had returned, I put the remaining apple in Jupiter's mouth, and jumped on his back, then I held onto the reins, and kicked his side, and with that we were off.

Jupiter could be a bit of a show off when he wanted to be, and this was one of those times, he ran after the other horses with top speed as I held onto his reins, knowing fully well that I would fall off if I didn't.

We arrived not long after the coachman, I had Jupiter to thank for that, I went round back and tied him to a pole, when I returned, the coachman had come down and he eased the door of the carriage open.

I didn't need to see the face of the man who stepped down from it to know that that wasn't my father, and the sight of him stopped me clear in my tracks .

This man, whoever he was, had a kind of aura that I simply could not understand, and call it a hunch, but right then and there, his presence at my home made me anything but comfortable.

He stepped out of the carriage, as noble a man as any, he looked strict, with charismatic features, a square jawline, and an unusually long, but beautiful wave of black flawless hair, his hair was as beautiful as the strides he took, and I couldn't help but be impressed by the man, still, there was something about him that had made the hairs on the back of my neck tingle, and I just couldn't ignore the feeling

As soon as he walked out of the carriage, he took one look at the palace, and from the way he looked at it, one would have easily guessed that he was familiar with the place, then without hesitation, or need of an escort of any sort, he climbed up the stairs and made his way for the front door.

The doorman opened immediately without question, which I found even more strange, and the strange man strolled in, I was behind him in seconds.

His presence had the same effect on almost anyone who saw him, as soon as he walked passed, I could see just how much the maids lost themselves staring at him, a couple of them even smiled shamelessly, they practically gawked at the sight of him, but he didn't even for once turn to look at them, or anyone else for that matter, maybe if he had I would've seen what the fuss was all about.

He seemed to have a perfect idea where he was going to, because he didn't for once stop to ask for directions.

Not that I'm one to brag, but the palace was big enough for anyone to get lost in, and as children we often found ourselves missing the way a couple of times, yet for some reason this man didn't even show the slightest sign of confusion, he intended every door he opened, making everyone who saw him gasp along the way. That made me all the more curious, and I followed behind him.

It was unladylike to follow him the way I did, but I did it anyway, he didn't leave me with much of a choice.

The further he went, the more aware I became of where he was headed, he was going to father's study.

Who waltzes into someone else's home, unannounced, and just barges into their study, I thought to myself, well this man obviously did, he didn't have a shread of shame or regard for anyone. Well, rich people often don't, but this was on a whole new level, and lady or not, I wasn't going to let him take one step further.

" Excuse me, pardon me sir " the words almost left my lips, however, Josse beat me to it, he walked out of another room just in time to find the strange man about to prance into father's study.

Josse saw only his back, as the man had already held the door handle, and was only a second away from pushing it open.

" Excuse me, pardon me my lord, but the Lord of the palace is away, can I help you with anything ? " Josse asked, only he would dare question someone of high authority as this man obviously was, but as soon as the man turned to look at the old butler, I could see Josse's eyes widen with disbelief, fear, and utmost respect.

Josse seemed to have completely lost his composure, and he looked like he had lost a couple of his years as well, almost as if he had seen a ghost.

" Master ? " I heard him call out, more with a tone of utmost respect and joy as unlike before, then a perfectly innocent smile formed on the old butler's face, and what I heard the man say next made me even more confused than I had ever been before.

" Hello Josse " he said, and with what sounded like a friendly tone none the less.

This man wasn't just familiar with the palace, he didn't just know his way around the halls and corridors, but he was familiar with even the people living here as well, Josse knew exactly who he was, and he hadn't lost sight of the old butler either, this wasn't just any stranger like I thought he was, if anything, he belonged here just as much as I did.