Ashlin smiled in agreement, although she thought he might have another contender if he had seen her stepmother wake her before dawn this morning. Her stomach turned at the memory, and she moved her face to the side so he would not see the frown between her eyes. Her stepmother was not vicious; she was just being thorough. Despite her mind’s reassurances, Ashlin could not quite calm the uneasy feelings in her core.
The day had started out difficult, but Lady Cabril and Stasiya had left at midmorning to go fabric shopping again. Stasiya still had not decided on a fabric for her ballgown. With the house empty, Ashlin had sung her way through her chores, something she would never do if she were not alone.
She was slightly concerned that Stasiya would ultimately choose a dark, heavy velvet and demand a voluminous skirt full of ruffles. Velvet ruffles were quite in fashion but terribly annoying to sew. Now that she was officially the scullery maid, cook, gardener, and lady’s maid to two women during the day—not to mention palace servant by night—she had no idea how she would find time to construct a ballgown in two weeks.
So far, though, working at the palace had been more enjoyable than she’d anticipated. The actual work itself was not difficult, the steward was just and kind, and she loved the nightly rides home on Blossom.
Or was it the small moments with Onric that always made her smile?
“Are you alright?” Onric’s voice broke into her thoughts.
She turned back towards him. “Yes, just a little tired.”
“Daniel,” Onric called down to the steward, who was ensuring that the floor was entirely clean and not slippery at all. “This room is looking better than it ever has. Are you quite satisfied with the plans for decorating?”
“Thank you, Your Highness,” the steward replied, “the plans are quite solid, but we are still searching for the appropriate items that fit the queen’s criteria.”
“Do you mind if I steal Miss Ashlin to the old eastern tower to continue the search? I think I saw an antique tapestry up there that would make a beautiful addition, and she’ll likely have a better eye for ascertaining that sort of thing than I do.”
“That would be most appreciated,” the steward responded.
Onric turned his brown eyes towards her and raised his eyebrows. “What do you say, Ashlin? Shall we uncover this hidden treasure?”
She could not say no to the eager warmth in his pleading eyes. “That sounds wonderful.”
“Let’s go.”
Climbing up the tower stairs, Onric opened the door and stepped aside to let her enter first. She noticed immediately that someone had been here in the last few days. The wall under the windows had been cleared of all chests and crates, creating a long open space on the stone floor.
“What’s this?” She turned back towards him in surprise.
“Well, I have spent some time in the library researching tapestries. And you were right, they were mostly used as a way to pass stories down through the generations.”
She smiled. She had of course known she was right, but it was nice to hear him say it.
“So, I’ve been rather looking forward to unpacking it with you and may or may not have cleared away an area to unfold it in.”
“But what if it is not a tapestry?” she replied. “What if it is another... family portrait?” She dropped her voice to a pointed whisper for the last two words.
He laughed. “That would be most unfortunate, but I must admit I also have ulterior motives for doing this with you.” He looked down, breaking their eye contact.
She raised her eyebrows at him, not wanting to guess what he might mean.
“I, well...” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I have been wanting to talk to you about that needle. To explain myself.”
She waited, not uncomfortable with the silence in his pauses. He had mentioned a few nights ago that he wanted to tell her more, and she had been wondering what he meant.
“So, I learned in my research this morning that tapestries were at their highest point of appreciation during the reign of the Majis queens,” he continued. “So, if this is a tapestry, it might contain a story that would tell us more about the Majis and how to protect ourselves during the Return.”
Ashlin had always felt that she was fairly good at getting to the meaning behind a person’s words. But maybe she was wrong. “You are not making any sense.”
“If it’s a tapestry, it could tell a story that helps us—”
“No, that part makes sense,” she cut in. “How does this pertain to the needle?”
He took a step closer to her, his face serious. “I thought I needed your help because I knew that you could sew well.” He ran his hand through his hair. “I found the needle at the monastery that day, and I thought it might be spelled. I wanted to test it to see if we could learn anything about the magic.”
He watched her expectantly, gauging her reaction.
