ஜ۞ஜ

ஜ۞ஜ

*𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫'𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐯*

The clicking of shoes resounded throughout the deserted hallway as moonlight streamed in from the locked windows, the creamy-white curtains still in place as they blocked out the scenery from outside. Candles were lit, strewed across the painted walls, providing seldom light to the surrounding atmosphere as the only thing that they were favorable with was dramatizing the portraits of their former ancestors, their posture displaying grandeur and authority. Everywhere she went, a painting of one of her departed family members could be seen lingering secretly on the walls, their eyes tracking her every step as she made her way towards her last classes of the day: Science and History.

With her hands lightly clutching the textbooks against her chest, (Y/n) heaved a sigh of weariness as she stopped in her steps, her head moving upwards as her (e/c) eyes scrutinized the recognizable portrait of herself, rising in front of a garden as a pamphlet was held in her left hand with a sword balanced on the ground with her other hand. Her eyes were steely, staring onward as her posture was straight—teemed with honor and sophistication, as no signs of vulnerability could be detected. Staring at the portrait of her for a moment longer (Y/n) glanced away and continued moving forward, the moonlight falling on her form as it highlighted her features—concentrated and delicate.

Pausing in front of the broad double doors (Y/n) tapped on the wooden surface three times, delaying for a few seconds before a mellow voice shouted: "Come in.". Opening one door just a few inches (Y/n) speedily stepped inside, the door closing behind her as she graciously curtseyed in front of her replacement teacher, Sir Jabbar.

Turning his body to face his newly arrived student, Sir Jabbar grinned. "Lady (Y/n), what a pleasure to meet you once more. Please, take a seat anywhere—the class will begin shortly." Bowing her head once more as she rose from her curtsey, (Y/n) responded: "Greetings, teacher. May the clouds and stars protect you." Without a second to lose (Y/n) strolled towards her seat as she set down the stack of records that were stockpiled up against each other on the hulking table, her gloved hands not showing a single crevice as she professionally sat down on the chair, her dress gliding along with her actions as she appeared like a sinking flower petal.

"Now, I hope you remember what both you and I had talked about last time. So, Lady (Y/n); may you please give me a recap?"

"For science, we observed the process of mitosis in an onion. In history, I learned about the birth of our culture and the very beginning of roots-"

"Incorrect. Lady (Y/n), you did not grasp the very beginning of the Oden roots, for there are none. What I had just lectured you about was given to me by books, not by personal self-learning. So, please relay that once more."

"Yes, Sir Jabbar. In history, I learned a definitive explanation of what others surmised our roots of Oden began and developed." Nodding his head in satisfaction, Sir Jabbar commented: "Very good. History is the personification of legitimacy and knowledge, but what others have been teaching you have been nothing but past-down tales you should only take with a grain of salt. Tell me; why do you think was the reason our first emperor—King Judas—selected to battle alongside the other forthcoming kings?" Not considering too much of this question (Y/n) answered with a straightforward tone. "I believe the reason is that of their universal wish to deliver prosperity and harmony among the lands."

Stepping closer to the lounged (Y/n), Jabbar leaned against the edge of the table, his long jet-black hair stretched up in a high ponytail as it swayed along with his every movement. Piercing grey eyes stared down at the fixated (Y/n) who was too busy investigating a copy of Oden's mapped empire to care. "As your history teacher, all I will say to you is this: Always seek your own truth and never allow others tales to shadow your way. The truth is your foe, but also your ally." Now done with her brief inspection (Y/n) stared straight up towards Jabbar's eyes, both of them gazing intensely into each other as if challenging the other to say something out of line.

"Don't worry, teacher, I have always—and will always—endeavor for the truth." Humming in achievement, Jabbar leaned away from the girl, walking backward as he stopped once his body almost reached the chalkboard. "Good child. Now! Open to page 367—we have much to discuss. One of the very first duchies went to war with the royal family of Oden for control over the first coal mines..."

˜"*°•.˜"*°• ---- •°*"˜.•°*"˜

Curtains knotted closely against each other, barring out any excess light that yearned to invade the darkened room as the morning sun shone outside of the locked balcony doors, the flowers already beginning to gradually bloom in vibrancy as the early birds already sang their songs, stumbling away from their homes and flying throughout the skies in pleasure and gratification as they hunted for their next hard-earned meal. With the singing of the morning birds trickling into her ears, (Y/n) body lurched around from under the silk covers of her bed as a low groan eluded her parched lips, eyes struggling to open as her sprawled out hair moved alongside her head once she shifted it away from the closed windows.

Knocking on the other side of her bedroom door didn't stir (Y/n) awake as she only remained silent underneath her covers, head far away from her perched pillows as it rested somewhere further down the mattress, the rest of her body following custom as she stayed coiled in a loose ball, her breathing steady and hushed. Hearing no answer come from the other side of the door, Abdul drew out his pocket watch, only to see that they were a little behind schedule. Finding there was no reason to keep on knocking until he would have awoken his then cranky lady, Abdul instead opened the door, quietly stepping inside as he shut the door behind him gently. Making his way towards the closed curtains, Abdul untied the string that connected the two as he swung the two wide open, separating them to be further apart as the morning light quickly streamed in, brightening the once dark room as it now burned with splendor.

Glancing over at the rising and falling part of the bed Abdul wasn't surprised to see that his master wasn't yet awakened, for this was a regular occurrence whenever (Y/n) would infrequently spend an entire night finding her way further down the bed, settling her place there as no light could penetrate the beddings thick fabrics. Looking away from his sleeping lady, Abdul trudged back outside, hauling in a trolley cart as breakfast was covered by cloches. Rolling it closer to his lady's bedframe, Abdul stepped towards the languishing figure of his lady, leaning his head down as he stared at the rising figure for a moment longer. Snickering at the rather childlike display that was unbecoming of a noblewoman, Abdul softly shook his head as he whispered faintly: "My lady, it's time to wake up. Breakfast is served." Quickly backing away as the dazed figure of his lady shot up, Abdul bowed his head in reverence as he stepped back, allowing for (Y/n) to fully take in her surroundings until he could finally talk.

Scanning around the recognizable room with groggy eyes, (Y/n) huffed as she pulled back a long section of hair that made its way to the front of her face. 'I'm still here...'

"Good morning, my lady. I was ordered to caution you that Duchess Aimi and General Luke cannot escort you for breakfast this morning, and so they wished to give you breakfast in bed as an apology." In queue, Abdul pulled open the covered meal as it showed a simple dish constituting three eggs, traditional oatmeal coated with honey, whole wheat bread dressed with guacamole, a bowl of fruits, and a cup of lukewarm green tea—just the way you enjoy it." Hearing the debut of her breakfast, a pleasant smile appeared on her face, clapping her hands. "Well! Don't you know me well, Butler Abdul—you even know my favorite dishes for breakfast! I think it was the right thing for me to hire you as my personal butler." Watching as Abdul fixed the dishes on the bed tray, said the butler held back a grin from forming on his face as he immediately finished his task, backing away as he watched his lady grab the utensils and begin eating with hunger.

"Thank you very much for preparing these dishes, butler Abdul—I just knew it was you! The other chiefs, all of them, have a unique way of cooking, so when I saw such a foreign one I just knew it had to be you who has done such an extraordinary thing! Oh, you must have worked very hard. Come, sit with me—I don't wish to dine alone." Staring up at his lady in shock, Abdul closed his mouth, already knowing that there was nothing he could say or do to change his lady's orders. "Yes, Lady (Y/n)—as you wish." Stepping closer to (Y/n), Abdul softly sat on the chair across from her, his posture straight as he awaited orders. Studying the poise movements of her personal butler (Y/n) smiled, finding his actions silly. "Here, I have some extra cutlery. Take some of my food. I am sure that you're famished."

"I'm sorry, my lady, but this butler has already eaten."

"Don't be shy—all I wish is for you to taste your cooking and love it as much as I do. Just one little, that's all I'm asking."

Finding there was no reason to continue pleading with his lady, Abdul bowed his head and reached out his hand. "Well, if you wouldn't mind, Lady (Y/n)..." Taking the extra dinner fork from her hand, Abdul picked some of her egg as he brought it up to his mouth, digesting it. Though he didn't wish to show it, he was very much pleased with the progress in cooking that he has shown in such a short amount of time.

"Butler Abdul, if you wouldn't mind, could you perhaps cook me breakfast every morning? Don't tell this to the chiefs, but I much rather prefer your cooking over theirs any day." Saying this in a comfortable voice, (Y/n) giggled upon seeing the sight of the charmed butler, her eyes closing as a bright smile danced on her sweet lips. Watching her smile in such a sweet way, Abdul looked away from her as he placed down the dinner fork, neatly placing it away from the others, for then his lady wouldn't accidentally mix it up with the other unused ones. Just imagine his lady eating from the fork that went into his mouth—extravagant and improper.

Taming down her laughter, (Y/n) looked back over at Abdul as she took a bite from the fruit using the fruit fork. "Well," Gulping down the strawberry, (Y/n) continued. "today will be rather busy, wouldn't you agree?" Nodding his head in agreement, (Y/n) sighed. "Bring them all in."

"As you wish."

Leaving the room quickly, Abdul came back with only one-quarter of a stack of papers that needed to be looked over and signed as it towered over him, almost falling as if it wasn't for the perfect balance that the butler had. Calmly eyeing the stack of towering papers, (Y/n) sighed as she motioned for him to set it down on her desk.

"Call in the maids and tell them to prepare my morning bath. Inform them to be quick with it as well—as you can see, I will be busier than usual with time more cutthroat than other normal days."

Bowing his head down, Abdul responded with a confident tone: "As you wish, my lady."

So, (Y/n) spent the rest of that morning until evening balancing housework and education with the help of her loyal and trusty butler. All whistle four figures watched on the sidelines with mixed emotions. 

(ɢᴏᴏᴅ ᴅᴀʏ/ɴɪɢʜᴛ ᴍʏ ʟᴏᴠᴇꜱ!)