MASTER SEBASTIAN

Chapter 20

ELEANOR

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Just as soon my father introduced me to every member of his court, he instantly started booking countless lessons while I struggled to keep up. In his haste, I'd pieced together I'd be having riding lessons, fighting lessons, introduction to court, and Abberdian with a tutor specially from his Court.

I'd moved around awkwardly, sticking out like a sour thumb in faded jeans and a t-shirt.

But I wasn't the only odd one. A woman in all black watched me narrowly from across the room, glossy braids falling over a fierce face. The servants seemed to avoid her.

A messenger stopped beside father and whispered something in his ear. He straightened, departing immediately after ordering a maid and a few warriors to show me to my 'bed chambers.'

Without the king at my side, the whispers were made with less caution, openly curious gazes following me as I went up the stairs. Despite Sebastian's words, I tried to stay invisible, shoulders haunched reflexively, eyes to the floor.

"This way, miss," the maid said in a near whisper.

We walked across the Great Hall and into an empty peristyle. I felt my shoulders slowly loosen up. Beyond the countless columns was a sprawling garden. In a distance, strange creatures flew, grazed and trotted about. Surprise had my brows climbing up on sighting one. Was that a unicorn?

Couldn't be, because while the magical creatures possessed a single horn at their foreheads, these ones had a row of them riding down their heads and over to their rumps. How did one even ride it?

The thought only stuck with me for a moment before we came across a wide hall. A regal red and gold rug stretched over the space. At the far end sat a group of straight-backed nobles, sipping gingerly from their tea cups. But that wasn't what had drawn my attention.

Walking into the hall the same moment I did were a bunch of men. Sage men, one would think, because of the floor length robe that trailed the rug, the large beads hanging around their necks with bronze triangles dangling from their ends, and their freakishly long beards.

But their hair... From afar it looked like closely bound locs, but as they drew nearer I noticed they were in fact vines. Moving vines. That slowly twisted and slithered like snakes...

I must have been staring hard because one of the men's gazes drew to me. His face was unsmiling, lips pressed in what seemed like a perpetually irritated line.

Our stare broke when he turned around the corner. All at once curiosity dug into me. I looked at the maid in front of me, uncertain.

I cleared my throat when we came across scant hall, going closer to her so I'd be out of earshot from the guards. I asked, "Who were those men?"

She looked at me, as if surprised I'd be talking to her. Her eyes went to the floor once more. "Those are our Chapters. They pray to Freya for us."

Drawing back, I fell in step behind her, turning the word over in my mind. Chapters...

We strode into yet another corridor and soon everything faded into one, the wide halls we entered, the countless corridors, the numerous curving staircases and the empty rooms and luxurious boudoirs.