Crown Princess

Truyi had asked her for the seventh time already how she was barely breaking any sweat from carrying the full water bucket from the well to the gutter.

It took everything in Esme not to scream that her sword was the weight of two of those filled buckets.

But she just smiled again and again and said she was used to hardwork.

After they had washed their share of the dirty bowls. Truyi took Esme to the servants kitchen where they were supposed to get the food to be sent to the guard house.

'It's the guard house so sometimes the men can get a little handsy and demanding. This is the shift that covered the last lap of night watch so they can also get pretty cranky, be careful'.

Handsy men, Esme hated that sort of news. Especially when she couldn't stick her dagger into anyone's handsying hand.

They were welcomed into the kitchen with service aprons and baskets full of food and diluted wine.

Esme couldn't help but notice that the guards meal was a bit more decent than what they had for breakfast.

She could smell roast rabbit and her stomach grumbled.

'If the guardsmen like you they would usually leave you some of their meat'.

Truyi said.

Esme shook her head. 'Somehow I don't think the acquintanceship would be worth it'.

Truyi nodded looking proud 'You are catching on fast'.

The main guardhouse where they were headed was a good distance from the servants kitchen. The walk was silent with the occasional information about locations passed and landmarks.

Esme took the opportunity to map as much of the palace as she could in her mind. There were other busy people in the many courtyards too. Truyi took time to nod to some people and Esme followed her lead.

They had just entered a large public courtyard with well groomed trees and bushes and Esme was admiring some of the flowers when something else caught her eyes.

Something in her brain clicked and she couldn't peel her eyes away.

Across the courtyard a maid was hurriedly gathering fresh flowers in a basket.

But it wasn't the maid or her activity that made Esme stop, it was the pattern in the maids uniform.

A pattern Esme had struggled to make out in the dim candlelight from her place up in the tree on the outside of the palace walls only two nights ago.

The uniform was bright blue in color with slanted straight lines drawn over shapeless swirls. It was an odd pattern. It was specifically unique.

'Ria?' Truyi who had discovered the absense of her disciple a couple steps forward called.

Esme took the few steps to stand beside her then motioned with her head to the maid still picking flowers.

'What is that pattern? I like it very much'

Truyi looked for a second and shrugged.

'I've seen it around. It's pretty indeed'.

'Do you know what corner of the palace wears this pattern?'.

'I can't say exactly but the bright blue tells you that the master or mistress of that pavillon is high up enough for you to reverence their maids. Let's march before she orders us to fill her baskets for her'.

Truyi continued walking.

Esme lingered for a minute she wished the maid would order her to fill the baskets and carry them for her then she could follow to the pavillon and see who the master or mistress was.

But wishes weren't horses so she tucked that duty away and wondered how she might handle handsy men without a blade.

Serving the guardhouse was not as bad as Esme had feared.

The men were cranky but were also clearly very tired. They bossed the girls around a lot, making them pour wine and cut meat and redress the food to their liking over and over again. Thankfully no hands strayed further than wrists, elbows and lower backs. Truyi let her know that the men notorious for such composure were not present.

As they made their way back to the servants kitchen about an hour later, they passed through the open courtyard once again and Esme was surprised to see the maid still picking fresh flowers...no it was another maid this one was blond not brunette but she was wearing the bright blue pattern from before.

Truyi noticed her confused gaze and offered an explanation.

'Some nobles like to gaze upon the freshest of flowers always and usually have their flowers change every couple of hours. Ridiculous isn't it'?

Esme nodded slowly thinking about what that could mean for her next move.

She would wait till after lunch when she would be assigned to Delphi. Delphi would know whose maids those were.

*************************************************

Esme was no novice to the feeling of a hard day's work yet her bones were screaming. It was a different kind of feeling. Usually after a long gruelling training, the burn of her muscles left her feeling powerful, accomplished. It was a beautiful adrenaline rush and she usually would require certain kinds of foods to help her sleep.

But the burn of service work was different. Instead of feeling accomplished she felt thoroughly used. Stretched in several different directions in everybody else's favour but hers.

It was now dinner time and Esme's last task of the day was preparing the dinning hall for dinner.

Delphie was beside her at the serving table, handing out bowls. Esme was by the serving lady assisting with the side dishes.

It was difficult work because dinner was a big pot of leftovers and everyone wanted the meat leftovers.

Despite that Esme was greatful for the job because Delphi had hidden a large batch of roast duck leftover when the food had first been delivered to them.

Warm roast duck and salted corn was exactly the kind of meal that should wrap up a day of constant abuse.

After everyone else had been served dinner, including Nalette who had been served a large portion of pork from the kings table, Esme and Delphi had been allowed to take their meals and retire for the night.

They returned to the sleeping quarters which was mostly empty as most servants were taking their dinner or beginning their night shift.

They sat in Delphi's corner sharing the food and casual talk and that's when Esme decided to ask about the maids in bright blue patterns.

'Our uniforms are the dullest patterns and color in all the palace', she said as an introduction.

Delphi immediately shook her head looking at the dull dirty brown of her apron.

'The laundry girls have it worse. They wear a plain murky gray color even up till their highest matron. They are always elbow and knee deep in water so any other color they wear would eventually fade anyway'.

Esme nodded 'I see. So there's a color hierarchy too. The brighter colors are for those with less menial jobs'.

'Yes exactly'.

'What colors do the queen's attendants wear'?

Delphi's face seemed to light up 'The most gorgeous color of shinning purple. The uniform is almost worth all the anxiety of the job'.

'Oh I thought it would have been the bright blue. I saw two maids in bright blue uniform of swirls and slanted lines. It was the most gorgeous color I saw today'.

'Oh those are beautiful too. They are the Crown Princes servants colors. The blue is as clear as the sky and shines in the sun but it's nothing compared to the colors of the Queens attendants at all. The Kings attendants simply wear gold. There isn't much of a color to it than a shine but the queens colors are impressive. The colors of the crown prince's servants were a boring silver before until he married the crown princess and she changed them'.

'The crown princes house', Esme muttered.

'Yup' Delphi said excited to educate her more. 'The Crown Prince's house but the Crown Princess's colors everyone knows that'.

Even as Delphi spoke the wheels turned violently in Esme's head. There was an information she seemed to he forgetting about the high houses of North Chedii.

She listened to Delphi ramble on about information she already knew and some inconsequential things she didn't know all the while trying to remember what seemed to be missing.

That night she retired to her blanket with an intuitive migraine pounding in the back of her head. After much massaging and breathing exercises she finally began to slip into a much needed sleep but just as her eyes closed a nasty pang to the back of her skull triggered an information she had been searching for all evening.

Her eyes flew open in new shock.

Eighteen months ago the Crown Prince pledged himself to the Prime Ministers daughter.

Lady Mareena Saksin was Crown Princess.