After A Long Day
I finally finished my first day of classes, but I still had one more to attend with the Headmaster, so we headed to the secret passageway in the garden. Derek, who had had his arm around me from when he picked me up from my last class, pulled his arm away from me as we neared the Headmaster’s Tower. I think that he had the thought that the Headmaster could see him and would yell at him again. He pulled the hidden door open for me but winked at me as I passed him. He was really laying the flirting on thick all day, but I just assumed that that was his personality. As I walked through the doorway, I saw Josiah waiting for me at the back door. He had a noticeable scowl on his face, but I couldn’t quite understand why. We weren’t late to meet with the Headmaster, so I didn’t think that was it. He pulled the door open to let me in, “You are right on time, Your Grace.” I walked through and up the stairs to the office. I waited outside of the office for Josiah to instruct me to enter. He went ahead of me and knocked, “Enter.” Josiah opened the door and then beckoned me in.
As I stepped in the room, I saw the shadow of the Headmaster sitting at the desk. He was holding up papers likely reading them. I sat in my seat in front of the screen and waited for him to speak. He looked up from his papers, “How was your first day Ms. Batiste?” I straightened up, “It was a very interesting first day, sir.” He chuckled, “I would say so. It looks like you got the second highest score on your fire aptitude test in the history of the school.” I nodded, “I imagine that Vanessa would have taken the top score.” The Headmaster shook his head, “While she likely would have the highest score, Ms. Tannen is not a graduate here. She was self-taught and famous for her work, so she naturally was extended employment here. I refer to His Highness Prince Blake. He scored a 92 which is the highest anyone here in the kingdom has produced at this school.” I widened my eyes in shock, “Why isn’t he renowned as a magical tool maker then?” I heard a loud unifying sigh from both men I shared the room with, and the Headmaster spoke, “He had…other interests. So, he never learned to make magical tools which really would have helped the kingdom. His Majesty was very disappointed.”
I nodded, “I would imagine His Majesty would have loved to have his brother by his side, helping lessen his burden.” The Headmaster got up from his chair and strode in front of the desk. He leaned on the desk, “And you imagine His Majesty is burdened with his station?” I shrugged, “In Terre, they have a saying: Heavy is the head that wears the crown. It can’t be easy to be King especially if there are decisions in regard to family or friends. You have to be non-partial; I would imagine.” Josiah nodded, “Very wise words, Ms. Batiste. I believe His Majesty would agree.” The Headmaster also nodded, “I believe he would agree as well.” There was a silence that settled into the room, but it was a comfortable one as each of likely weighed the conversation so far. The Headmaster broke the silence, “So, Ms. Batiste, how do you feel about your score?” I drew in a sharp breath that was very audible, “Well, I am conflicted to be honest.” He nodded, “His Majesty said you might be hesitant to be one of the chosen scribes. I believe a young lady with such promising talent could very well serve this kingdom.” I nodded, “That is what I have told anyone who will listen. I am hesitant because I don’t want to be seen as someone who only seeks the crown.” He got up from his leaning position, “I imagine you have heard about the young ladies using the scribe selection to get close to His Majesty. I won’t try to sway your opinion because you are your own person and I like to encourage strong minds here. I will tell you absolutely that not everyone sees the candidates as crown chasers. Please consider that this program could have a huge impact on not only your life but your career. It gives you prestige which puts you in any programs you may be interested in.”
I nodded, “I understand, sir, but I have already made up my mind there.” He stopped his pace and turned on his heel, “You have?” I took him by surprise, he must have heard from Lucien that I had strong opinions on this. I nodded, “Yes, I decided that it would be more prudent and certainly more mature to embrace the opportunity. The only opinions that matter to me are yours and His Majesty’s, all others are negligible.” He returned to his seat, “I am glad to hear you embrace the selection. I will say that the King, the Queen Mother, and the council met today to set the first ranking. I am not allowed disclose the information to you though but expect to see the rankings in the morning.” I nodded, “I look forward to it.” He pulled out a paper and scribbled on it, “Now because you were so proficient in tea etiquette, I am dismissing you for the evening. I will see you in the morning for a lesson on the Elder Council. This lesson will be crucial for the interview portion of the scribe selection. I am not giving you any tips so don’t expect that. I will be going over the customs and ceremony with them that you must go through. You may go now, Ms. Batiste. Have a great evening and see you tomorrow.” I nodded and rose from my seat, “Understood, sir. Thank you for your well wishes and I hope you have a great evening also. And to you as well Mr. Maigny.” I did a quick curtsy and walked out of the room.
As I entered the waiting area, Derek and Jess rose to their feet. Jess crossed the room to me, “That was quick.” I smiled, “Thanks to my mother on years of pounding tea etiquette into my head, I was proficient enough this morning that it didn’t warrant more lessons.” Derek smirked, “I’m sure that wasn’t pleasurable but pounding can be good.” He winked at me and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. Jess rolled her eyes, “Can it, Derek. She’s not going to pound anything with you. She’s been pretty tolerant today, I think. I, on the other hand, am growing annoyed with your in-heat attitude towards my best friend.” He waved his hands, “Okay, first of all, I am not in heat. I’m pretty level-headed right now. Second, I think it’s up to Alexandra to say whether she’s interested in me or not. I think we’d make a good couple.” He smiled at me, and I couldn’t help but smile back, “I’m not committing to anything, Derek. I want to just focus on school for now. Can you understand?” He nodded, “I won’t change how I think I feel about you Lex, but I can respect your feelings. Do you mind my flirting?” I shook my head, “I don’t mind but try to tone down the suggestive stuff. Will you?” He nodded, “I will respect your thoughts. Shall we go now?” I nodded as we made our way down the stairs to the secret passage.
It took us about 15 minutes to end up in the study of Blackwood, one of the bookshelves was the door to the passage. I had wondered to myself if my father knew about this secret passage and what brought on the necessity for one. I walked into the foyer to see Dana who smiled at the sight of us, “How was your first day Your Grace?” I smiled back, “It was rather interesting. I score pretty high on my fire aptitude test.” Jess giggled, “She’s undercutting herself; she scored the highest in the class. From what I understand, it is the second highest in the history of the school and only third behind Ms. Tannen.” Dana gasped, “That is truly amazing Your Grace.” I nodded, “So I’ve heard. I’m going to head upstairs to change into something less stuffy.” Dana nodded at me, “You have a few messages waiting in your room Your Grace.” I got up the stairs swiftly, wanting to get into comfortable clothes and to see who the messages were from. I was waiting for word from Lucien, my parents and Blake. I was actually anticipating word from all. I was hoping my parents weren’t too panicked from hearing about my brush with death. Knowing my father, it took my mom and the whole diplomatic staff in London to keep him from coming back here and burning everything down in retribution. I giggled at the fact that my father was so protective of me when I have enough of that around here. My mother was always the voice of reason there so she likely reassured him that the King would not let harm to come to me. I had just hoped no one told him that Derek was assigned bodyguard.
After I changed into leggings and an oversized shirt, I slipped on my slippers. I walked over to the desk where I usually wrote letters and kept the ones that I received. I had a drawer especially for correspondence with Lucien. I saw the small stack of letters sitting on my desk, there were four letters waiting there. I picked them up but none of them stood out which meant that they all wanted to be discreet. Normally, Lucien would send his golden envelope, Blake would send his dark green, and my parents would send their teal. All of them were white so I read the name on the first one: His Grace Reginald Batiste, Duke of Blackwood. I smiled because I was hoping to hear from him so I could write back to set his worried mind at ease. The second one was addressed: His Grace Blake Doré, Duke of Mesha, I had wondered if that was some sort of update on what he was doing. The third one was addressed: His Honorable Grace, Darren Batiste. In Vellum, when a Duke decides to retire from his official duties, he is addressed as His Honorable Grace. I am sure that he was worried about me when word got to him that I had been injured in an attempt on my life. The last envelope was addressed simply: Lucien. I smiled at all the letters sitting on my desk. I would read and address them after dinner. For now, I wanted dinner and I had a huge craving for a rare steak.
