Secret Wings

Chapter 17

Hi everyone!

Thank you to @MrDespicableGuy for the great banner!

@IonaBaird123 ships Hailey and Chase as Hase, but @J3sk8ermusic called them Chailey. What do you guys think? ;)

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Chapter 17

Once I got over my initial nervousness, the banquet turned out to be actually pretty fun. After I was formally introduced as the king's granddaughter, people seemed satisfied as to the reason why I was here, and I received nothing more than a few curious glances.

Grandpa, as he had now asked me to call him, made sure that I was never at loss or bored. He introduced me to the middle-aged man with midnight-blue wings at my left, Alistair , and the elderly man on his right, Anselm. The grey-haired man was visually impaired and had a bad case of rheumatism, yet I was surprised by his vitality and love of life. Here and there, his dark grey wings were lit up with a few crimson feathers.

Alistair turned out to be the captain of the military. He was a man of few words, but Grandpa assured me his skills in battle and as a strategist were unmatched. After exchanging a few polite words, Alistair preferred to turn to the man sitting next to him, to whom I had not been introduced, for further conversation. Not that I held it against him, as I perfectly understood the limited interest of talking to a teenage girl for a military leader like him.

Grandpa was glad to keep the conversation going, though, and Anselm told me that I was welcome entertainment for those boring dinners. I learned that he was the royal advisor, but he didn't behave like I would expect one to, sometimes stealing food from Grandpa's plate -how he did that with his poor eyesight was beyond me- and sending me conspiratorial winks. The king shook his head at his advisor's antics, telling him humorously that he should have made him the royal jester instead.

The food was brought to the tables by some Winged, whom Grandpa told me volunteered for the event and took turns serving and eating with the other guests. I noticed that the ones who came to our table to bring food never looked directly at the king, but they seemed friendly enough and a few of them introduced themselves to me, and though they seemed curious as to who I was, their welcoming attitudes warmed my heart.

There were many dishes to choose from, but most of them looked familiar enough, though a bit fancier than I was used to, which was to be expected as this was, after all, a banquet given by the king. I especially enjoyed some of the light, airy pastries that were served, and wondered if maybe I could meet the chef and learn a few tricks from him.

Grandpa and his advisor retired early and Alistair said he needed to go check up on the nightshift -whatever that meant- leaving me alone at the head of the table. Even though I had expected stares, people didn't look bothered by my presence, even when I sat alone at the royal table, which perhaps made the experience all the stranger.

Soon though, Ellie came up to me and asked if I wanted to meet her friends, to which I happily agreed. We were soon joined by Aiden who insisted that I meet all of his and Chase's friends as well. Needless to say, I had trouble remembering all these names thrown in my face. I chatted with different people well into the night, and when people finally started leaving, Lynn came up to me and offered to show me the way to my room, which I gratefully accepted.

Once in my room, I slipped out of my dress and laid down on my hammock. I expected to fall asleep instantly, but I actually stayed awake a bit longer, staring at the ceiling with a hundred thoughts running through my head, before darkness finally overtook me.

*

I was woken up by sunlight filtering through the large window of my room and the sound of knocking at my door.