A Peasant and A Princess

Chapter Three: Smile

At the palace, when someone asks you if you would like a cup of tea, they bring you a variety of different teas, with variety of cakes, cookies, little sandwiches, and other goodies. In the real world, apparently all you get is a cup of mint tea. The tea itself wasn't that bad. Mrs. Huntson told me that they grew the mint last year where I saw a little flower. She also brewed it fairly well.

I also learned a fair bit about Mallory and her family. Her older sister, Catherine, reminded me a great deal of Louisa. She was engaged, and I was told that when I arrived, she and her mother had been looking through their things for a pearl necklace for her wedding. They also had an older brother named James, who was married, and had a one year old daughter. The two younger kids who I'd seen were thirteen year old Matthew, who apparently wasn't exactly the most polite of kids, and ten year old Alice.

It was interesting to hear about Mallory's life. I had known that there were people who couldn't afford servants, and had to do their own work, and people who wore the same clothes all the time to save money, but to meet these people was totally different. I was so interested in hearing about their lives, that I didn't realize I had already finished my tea.

"Would you like some more tea, Your Highness?" Asked Mrs. Huntson.

I would very much like some more tea, but I knew that it was stretching their supply to have this much tea in one day.

"I'm good, thank you." I replied.

I looked at the time. It was five thirty. I wasn't sure exactly how long it would take to get back to the palace, but usually I started to get ready for supper around six. I stood up, and brushed my hands on my skirt.

"Well, I had better be going." I took a couple steps backwards.

Mallory stood up and pushed in her chair. Realizing that I should probably do that, I pushed in my chair too.

"It was very nice of you to visit, Your Highness. Allow me to escort you out." She walked over to where I was standing. I nodded in reply.

I walked out the door, with Mallory right behind me. We walked out the door in silence. as we walked down the street, guards right behind us, she looked at me. Her expression seemed neutral, but her eyes spoke of what seemed like something I hadn't ever seen in a human. Curiosity. What Al's eyes had spoken of when he first met me in the menagerie. Her eyes were green, strikingly green, like sprawling vines in the menagerie. Why, all of her eyes seemed to make me think of that of that place.

"Um," She muttered under her breath. Apparently, I had been staring at her eyes for a bit too long.

"Sorry." I muttered, embarrassed.

As we walked, she talked for a bit about little things. A book she was reading, Catherine's wedding dress. I nodded my way through her small talk. It was admirable how she wasn't intimidated by my title, and just acted like she was chatting with an old friend, just babbling.

"And I don't believe that Sebastian is-"

"Mallory," I cut her off. She looked at me, worried.

"I don't suppose we could do this again?" I asked.

She looked relieved

"Yes, Your Highness. Feel free to visit whenever you like," She said with a smile.

When we got to where her little road met the bigger street, she bid me farewell. When she turned around to head back to her house, I smiled. And it was wasn't a false smile, trained to accompany me speech to make me seem more likeable, and be a little more than invisible next to Louisa. The kind princess, with her voice constantly chipper, and her seemingly natural smiles. No, this time my smile was real, like I couldn't move my muscles if I tried. Although I barely knew what I was smiling about, it was a real smile, and it felt amazing.