8 2.2

The air was a bit chilly with a northeastern wind blowing in over the garden. Leaves were rustling and the petals of the numerous flowers bent towards the pathway, threatening to pull off if the wind decided to pull any harder. A red-violet sunset illuminated the castle from behind, bathing the entire scene in the last light of the day.

Pushing open the door at the end of the hallway, I gallantly gestured for Elenora to go first before following her onto the cobblestones, heels clicking rhythmically as we went. I politely began the traditional duties of small talk, trying to get a basic conversation going to keep me from going mad in the awkward silence.

"So... How long have you been a lady in waiting?" I was tentative with my topics, having been burned by the reactions of my blind dates before. Tact was something I had yet to achieve, and if they weren't offended, they were bored out of their skull. One or two had run away in tears after a comment I thought was innocuous. Three had dramatically slapped me, a reaction I was fairly sure was more for effect and sympathy points than any reply to something I had said or done. Shockingly, none of them were ever available for a second date.

Quinley was my first conquest of offense, back when I was twelve and she was 10. My stepmother had organized a tea party to introduce me to the other kids my age in the higher noble families. After excessive prompts, my stepmother convinced me to at least try and talk with the other kids. No one had taught me about the art of polite lying at this point, which led me to attempt to compliment Quinley's shoes by comparing them to her dress. She was dressed in understated white shoes and a ridiculous shade of pink and orange dress that turned out to be her favorite outfit in the whole world, and she didn't appreciate my prepubescent candor. Her face turned a shade of pink comparable to that of her hideous skirt before she kicked me in the shins and walked away to where her mother was sitting, loudly complaining about my complete lack of manners and decorum.

I tried to be more careful after that, with mixed results. Leading us to today, where nobles would rather send an envoy than take the opportunity to make social connections if it meant they could avoid me.

I didn't pay attention to her answer to my question, mindlessly trading basic information until we were approximately halfway through the garden when I inevitably ran out of material. The only thing I could think to ask about was her book; even if she hadn't been reading it, most of the noble social circle was well trained in the art of creating a plausible lie to mask the horror that admitting ignorance would rain down upon their perfectly styled heads. Who knows, we may even have a similar taste.

"What were you reading earlier?" I tried to make the segway from the weather followed by about two minutes of tense silence that put me on edge as seamlessly as possible.

She glanced up at me from the cobblestones that had kept her interest for most of the walk, elegantly lifting an eyebrow, giving me the sinking feeling that I hadn't been as smooth as I had hoped. An ugly decorative fountain bubbling in the background mocked the silence atmosphere until Elenora sighed and reached into her pocket, pulling out her book as she began to reply to my inquiry.