Unexpected

Poppy had been sitting in the same position for what felt like hours. She didn’t notice how bad the crick in her neck was until she shifted her weight and her spine was sent into a painful spasm. Her posture had never been the best, but hunching over the vent like a gargoyle certainly wasn’t helping.

She clicked her tongue and straightened out her back until a satisfying, cracking sound came from it. The pressure in her neck released considerably.

This marked the third day of Poppy watching Prince Rainn. The second son looked similar to his older brother, but his hair was a darker shade of blonde and his eyes were a molten kind of bronze color. Most likely a trait inherited from his mother, the emperor’s concubine.

His chambers were just as lavish as his older brother's, if not more so. It seemed the younger prince appreciated the more expensive things in life, which was saying something as Kai's chambers were by no means economical.

Prince Rainn's sitting room could only be described as gold encrusted, seeing as nearly every trimming and piece of décor was gilded. His taste was far too gaudy for Poppy's liking, and it ironically made her appreciate Kai's interior decorating skills all the more.

The prince had entered and left his chambers multiple times over the past several days, but Poppy had never been concerned with following him. If he were to talk of anything somewhat mutinous against his brother, he’d most likely speak of it in the privacy of his sitting room.

Still, Poppy thought something would have happened by now. All she’d witnessed the prince doing was eating, sleeping, and studying. Once he brought a friend over to play chess but even after that they studied foreign languages for two hours.

Prince Rainn was too perfect for Poppy’s liking. She was waiting for him to get into mischief like any other fourteen-year-old would, but he even woke up at an aggravatingly-proper time. He fried himself eggs with a side of bacon in the morning, for saints’ sake; his life was more put together than hers would ever be.

Poppy yawned and silently chastised herself for getting sleepy. She should have asked Kai to brew her some coffee this morning, but of course he’d been long gone by the time she woke up. It wasn’t often that she was awake before his day began, and she blamed her own awful sleep habits for this. Not only did she stay up far too late, studying Magic for the Predisposed, but when she finally did shut her eyes she’d toss and turn so much that upon waking up she somehow felt even more restless.

When she yawned again, Poppy slapped herself in the face. This job was getting more irritating by the moment, and she was ready for something, anything to happen so long as it made her day more interesting. At this rate she’d fall asleep while spying on someone… again.

The front door slammed open and a young lady walked in. Poppy thought she was imagining it for a moment but, no, the girl stood in the middle of the sitting room with her arms crossed. Her skin was the color of warm sand, and her hair had bluish tones to its inky blackness.

She wore a bright blue dress with pearls sewn into swirling patterns across the lush, dragging skirts. It was sleeveless, exposing her arms which were decorated with intricate patterns of dark ink. If Poppy recalled correctly, this temporary ink decoration was a custom of Zordine, a tropical kingdom far to the south. It was also one of the last remaining southern countries still in good standing with Gorryth.

The girl looked to be around Prince Rainn’s age, if not a bit older. She bit her full bottom lip and swung her long hair over a shoulder as the prince followed her into the room. What Poppy hadn’t expected to see next was the girl practically jumping onto the prince and taking his mouth against hers.

Poppy’s face heated considerably and she felt the need to avert her eyes as the two pressed closer to each other. The Prince held her flush against him as the unnamed girl threaded her fingers through his combed hair, thoroughly sending the fixed pieces askew.

This was Poppy’s job, to watch the prince; however, something told her she definitely should not be watching this. Perhaps it was her own lack of exposure to such things, but Poppy could no longer stay the moment in which the girl’s hand slid past the boundaries of decency.

Ears aflame, Poppy marched back down the air shaft. It seemed the couple had no plans on stopping anytime soon, so it appeared she had time to kill.

At least she now had something to tell Kai. It would certainly be worth mentioning that his brother was hooking up with someone from a foreign nation. Not only that, but according to the luxurious dress the girl had been wearing, Poppy was willing to bet she was a princess or perhaps the daughter of a duke. Pearls like those don’t come cheap, and they certainly don’t become cheaper in bulk.

Poppy shuddered. Kids sure were maturing fast these days. She suddenly felt old and decrepit, which was then followed by a wave of self-pity. Had she already lost out on her years of adolescence? She was only eighteen, but perhaps the ability to feel as care-free as those two had already passed her. Maybe she’d missed her opportunity to simply be young.

She frowned. It wasn’t her fault she’d been living to survive the past three years. Not to mention, her childhood had been no walk in the park either. It wasn’t her fault she never had a boyfriend! Besides, none of the boys she’d grown up with had been much to gander at anyway. They always had either a look of pity or mild distaste on their faces when speaking to Poppy, so she’d never given them much mind.

The stigma behind being born without wings had truly and utterly ruined her childhood, and Poppy had already accepted this. The only thing she could do now was look forward. She no longer had to fight to survive, so there was that. Now she could go an entire day without thinking about the past, and she felt this was a good way to start.

Poppy held her head high.

The emperor was never in his chambers, which Poppy couldn’t claim to be upset by. She had to admit that he intimidated her. He’d also installed wire netting over his vents, which had sent a cold chill down Poppy’s back when she discovered it.

Had he actually seen her that day, several weeks ago? Or had he somehow sensed her and ordered the netting be installed due to his infamous paranoia? Either way, Poppy didn’t like it. It was almost as if he was more aware of her location than she was of his, which defeated the purpose of her job.

She could have easily used her magic to pry away the netting and slip into the room below for some good snooping. After all, there had to be some interesting paperwork in the emperor’s desk. However, Kai had made it very clear he did not want her snooping around up close. She was to remain in the air ducts, out of reach, or else she wouldn’t be paid.

Poppy was going to mention that not only was she paid in advance, but he’d have no way of knowing whether she adhered to his rules. She refrained from saying this, though, because she could always use more ingredients. It’d be bad to upset her errand boy.

She wandered through the ducts for a while. The emperor was nowhere to be found and the prince was preoccupied, so she’d have to find something else to occupy her time. Before she quite knew where she was going, Poppy stumbled upon the princess’s room.

Her chambers were as pink as Poppy remembered, but now there were expensive, frilly clothes strewn across the sofa and coffee table. The princess herself was nowhere to be seen, but it appeared she’d been there just moments prior.

A scuffling, scraping sound echoed from down the vents. Poppy removed the toothpick she’d sheathed into her belt that morning. It was, again, a toothpick, but it was better than nothing. Poppy still hadn’t gotten a new dagger, after all, and at least the pick's end was quite pointy.

She held it out like a sword, prepared to stab whatever came her way. She silently prayed to whoever was listening that it wasn’t a cockroach. Please, don’t let it be a cockroach!

Once the scuffling grew closer and Poppy pinpointed tiny feet pattering, a grin broke across her face. The moment Oak’s furry little head entered the inviting glow of her ball of light, she re-sheathed her mighty sword and got down onto her knees with her arms out wide.

The little mouse accepted her offer and practically ran into her, knocking Poppy backward. She didn’t mind in the slightest and laughed as Oak’s sniffing nose tickled her neck. She buried her face into his fluff and sighed.

There was nothing quite like hugging someone the same size as you.