Down in Flames - Rewritten Entirely

Chapter 8

Chiron was not easily fooled. After living and working in the palace for so many years, very few things escaped his notice if at all. He'd had doubts about the rumoured death of the Athenian princess, but the girl's arrival had cleared away the last bit of doubt. Queen Athena's features were striking and so were her daughter's. There could be little doubt about who was standing in front of him even if Chiron hadn't known her as a child.

From the moment Annabeth had met Chiron's eyes, she knew there was no deceiving him. She might not remember the days she spent in the Atlantian palace as a toddler, but Chiron didn't seem to have forgotten. Fortunately, he waited until the prince had left before turning to her with a slight bow. Despite being alone in the hallway, Annabeth's breath still caught and her eyes darted around to make sure no one had seen the older man's gesture. The last thing she wanted was to make more rumours fly.

"You've grown since you were last here, Your Highness," Chiron murmured. While Annabeth appreciated that he kept his voice down, she still stiffened.

"It has been over fifteen years," she replied. "And don't call me that."

"What brings you from Athens?" Chiron asked. "Last I heard, the Athenian princess was dead shortly before the war broke out."

"She is," Annabeth said shortly. "As I said, I lived with my father by the port."

There was no need to go into further detail and Annabeth certainly didn't want to. On the off chance that someone was listening to them, she didn't want word getting out about who her mother was. Chiron would be the only one to know and that was already one more person than she wanted. If she had her way, no one would know who she was. The secret would die with her.

"Very well," Chiron said, nodding to himself. "Let me show you to your room then."

* * * * *

In the morning, Annabeth was awoken to the sound of dozens of women getting ready all at once. One of the girls shook her awake and with a kind smile, she pointed to the change of clothing resting on top of her bedpost. Understand flashed through Annabeth's eyes and as quickly as the other women, she got changed.

As the women around her filed out of the room, Annabeth hesitated. Chiron hadn't told her what jobs she'd be assigned, but she had the feeling it wouldn't be too long before she found out. Soon enough, an older woman stepped up in front of her and smiled.

"Annabeth?" she asked. Annabeth nodded. "Come with me."

The woman swept down the hall, wiping her hands on her skirt and smiling warmly at Annabeth once again. Although Annabeth didn't say a word, the woman was happy to talk. She explained how her day would go and what time she was expected to be awake. If she ever happened to miss breakfast, she was told there was always fruit available in the kitchen. The woman also told her where she could take her clothing when she inevitably stained her uniform or needed to do some washing.

"Not that you look like a klutz," the woman said kindly. Annabeth smiled.

After the quick tour, the woman guided her upstairs to where Annabeth would begin her training. To Annabeth's annoyance, Chiron had not assigned her a particularly difficult job. He'd implied as much the evening before but it was still infuriating to know. There was no doubt in her mind that many of the other women would have to work hard to be assigned her job, but it had been given to her without question. If she were fortunate, the others wouldn't despise her for it.

"Duchess Rachel is quite kind," the woman explained, pushing open a large bedroom door. "Her room is tidy as is, but there are the usual tasks that need to be completed every day."

The woman showed Annabeth how to strip the bed and remake it. It took her a few tries, but eventually, Annabeth could lay the sheets flat and fluff the duchess's pillows perfectly. Once her trainer was satisfied, they moved on.

Much of Annabeth's morning consisted of cleaning the duchess's rooms. If Annabeth hadn't known better, she almost would have thought the duchess was actually a princess. Her bedroom was bigger than Annabeth's old home in Athens. There was a smaller sitting room that connected the bedroom to what Annabeth could only describe as an art room. Clearly, the paintings were covered up in an attempt to hide them, but Annabeth could see paint on the carpets and brushes poking out from the dresser.

"The duchess enjoys painting," the woman said, looking fondly at the covered art. "Her father frowns upon it, however, so it's up to us to remove any sign of her artwork before he arrives."

To Annabeth's surprise, that was a much more difficult task than she'd anticipated. The duchess had more canvases than Annabeth knew what to do with. Some were completed works, but most were still only partially painted. At the discovery of a loose floorboard, however, Annabeth got an idea.

Most of the canvases fit nicely in the large space under the floor. With a little rearranging of the rug and after carefully covering and stacking the duchess's artwork, Annabeth had created the perfect hiding spot. It would only work if the duchess knew where to find it, of course, but Annabeth didn't need to work too hard to find her. As she turned to tell the woman where she'd hidden the art, she came face to face with the duchess.

"My lady." Annabeth dropped into a low curtsey and glanced up at the duchess.

The duchess smiled. "You must be the new maid."

Annabeth nodded.

"I'm Rachel," the duchess said and although Annabeth knew she technically had the status to call her by her name, she still did not.

"I heard you have to hide your art, my lady," she said. The duchess frowned slightly and nodded. "I think I found a good space."

Moving aside, Annabeth led the duchess into her art room and rolled back the rug. The duchess watched intently as Annabeth lifted up the floorboard to reveal a stack of canvases and a handful of brushes.

"The paints are over here," Annabeth said, getting back to her feet. She showed the duchess where she had hidden the paints behind her dresser then moved to cover the floorboard space again.

"That's a genius idea," the duchess said, staring wide-eyed at the covered floorboards. "How did you find it?"

"Many palaces have hidden storage spaces," Annabeth answered. It was just a matter of listening for a squeaky board and after that, she'd been successful. "I recommend letting your art dry first, but it will be safe down there."

"Can I know your name?" the duchess asked. Behind her, the older woman smiled and nodded encouragingly.

With the hope that this duchess wouldn't know her, Annabeth told her.

"Thank you, Annabeth," the duchess said. "I look forward to seeing you around more."