Innocent

Chapter Twelve

Amaya and I were walking down a corridor that strictly held rooms only for the royal family and special guests. It was even decorated differently from all of the others to help people distinguish the area where they shall not trespass. The carpeted floor was of the color gold in contrast to the maroon carpet of the other corridors. There were also a variety of rare antiquities and newly polished armor lined up against the walls.

Amaya besides me was debating on whether the antiques and armors should be removed and replaced with flowers to add life in the castle. The metals and solids, as she calls them, were too lifeless and ancient that she feels like ghosts were living amongst the place. She stated all of this, laughing at her own opinions.

We exchanged questions all the while walking to her room which was on the end of the corridor to the left. Might I add that this corridor is also very large and lengthy.

Every random question she asked me, from the herbs in the Western Kingdom to the possibility that we are actually magical beings, my palms holding the letter from Greed tightly was starting to get sweaty in my jackets' pockets. I was nervous, trying to find a moment where I can give it Amaya in a discreet manner. Presenting it out of the blue would inflict suspicion and knowing my best friend, she will get to the bottom of things which she deemed strange. In the past, she had caught me taking a few sugar cubes when I was around sixteen once she noticed that they have been disappearing mysteriously from the kitchen's pantry. How she figured it out, it was no surprise.

Amaya loves to cook despite the chef, Mr. Chamberlain's, efforts in telling her that it was his and the assistant cooks' job to do such things. Around midnight in the kitchen where she was fixing herself a sandwich was when she found me stealthily stuffing my face with the two sugar cubes. In the end, we laughed it off and spoke of the incident to no one. It was my little secret that she keeps soundly tucked at the back of her head.

We were a few feet away from Amaya's bedroom door when she sensed my nervousness and the way I kept my hands tucked in my jackets' pockets. "Are you cold?" She asked concerned. I only gave her a small smile and nodded my head. It was a lie, but it was better than not admitting it and having her alarmed at my suspicious behavior.

"The temperature does seem a bit chilly than usual," she pointed out.

"Yeah," I say, trying to not come off too suspicious.

We arrived at her door shortly after and she motioned for me to go in first. Once inside, I examined each and every corner and space of her room. Everything was different from the last time I came here which was almost nine years ago. The color of the walls were no longer painted lavender, but it now had a fresh coat of royal purple. There wasn't much furniture, leaving a bigger space to be barren of nothing but the black carpeted flooring. Her two tall shelves full of books to entertain her were replaced with a shelf full of barbells that had weights of up to twenty pounds and a treadmill. By the look of how the sides of the belt had a few threads sticking out, I could tell that Amaya had been running for awhile.

"Mother made me start training ever since I turned seventeen," Amaya stated with a half smile.

She continued, "It's not that bad though. Of course, I protested because it was never what I wanted to do back then. I was a bookworm who will forever have my nose stuck in between the pages. However, mother had other plans." I only nodded in reply and continued to look over her room, strolling over to her bed to feel the mattress and then finally, plumping my body on top of it. The mattress bounced a couple of times before it finally settled. I placed an arm over my eyes as I heard Amaya giggling. In a few seconds, she joined me on the bed, her back on the mattress as well.

We stayed this way in a comfortable silence before I felt a slight pinch on my arm. I groaned and tried to get even with her, but she stood up to get away from my reach. "Come on silly. Let's go outside to get you warmed up."