"Yer! Lil G'rl! W'ere 'ave yer been?! T'ere is a moun'ain of dir'y dis'es!! Ge' 'o WORK!!"
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgEKF0Vj4Gd
"Sorry, ma'am!" The little girl, alleged Daisy, tip-toed inside, her bare feet tapping against the cold marbeled floor. The kitchens were bustling with life, even at the darkest hours of night, as the Head Chef would be wracking his brains in pursuit of a new dish and his assistants would be prepping ingredients brought over from the Outer World whilst slaves like Daisy would be washing the dishes.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY8wtAodMlP
The dishes were unending because the people were innumerable and their appetite was inexhaustible. The Royal land could be limiting but the Royal demands never were.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuW84jVH5Qs
Daisy sat herself near the washing basin which was brimming with utensils. Her bright red slave mark was visible against the sheer fabric of her dress as she strained her limbs to reach the utensils placed in the center of the large basin.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh26xxzWM4S
She washed and washed as chaos eventually drifted into silence, broken only by the stream of clear tap water bathing the utensils to their finesse. The nights at the castle were never truly silent but if one learnt to focus on only what mattered, they could be peaceful.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhG6EM2EP4D
After washing the dishes, Daisy wiped her hands with her dress and settled in one corner of the kitchen with her jute bag— under the shelves and beside the furthest counter — and picked up its contents in her arms and jumped inside for shelter.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWt76j3tzbj
It was her own form of refuge and the only place she wouldn't be bullied at.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJVdbqdKn8Y
Nights were never long for her inner clock was set to awake with the first chirp of a bird. Laziness was not an option as she'd jump out of her bag leaving its contents inside and stretch her limbs in pursuit of a new day.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmieKifpOUH
The sun wasn't out but the night wasn't high — peeking through the kitchen windows, Daisy knew it was perfect time to make a move; when the human body is compelled into a deep sleep just before it is the time to rise.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxX4uYAquj5
Daisy smiled as she picked up her bag for everything was easier to face with a smile on her face. After making a round to the barn, where she sneaked in from an unrepaired hole at the back — made by the mad rush of a bull in heat, two years prior and covered by a huge haystack — to steal an egg for breakfast.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRENtOkNtOo
Thereafter, she'd beeline to the gardens under the cloak of the night. There were many-a-gardens in the royal premise because there were many-a-castles, inhabiting many-a-people with many-a-contrasting choices.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡckXOAA8yXn
The Queen enjoyed herself Lotuses, Hydrangeas and Water Lilies whilst the Queen Dowager relished her Roses, Tulips and Hyacinths. The Prince's castle were avid on Sunflowers whilst his cousin's castle had fanciful Orchids and Dahlias — to name a few distinctions.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLCavlA8e1N
The bridge which lead to the Great Lake was lined with pink cherry blossoms, the branches of which Daisy had yet to witness go barren and her purpose with these well cherished gardens was to snip flowers. Just enough to remain inconspicuous and reap not-so-obvious profits.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuVbrOXlS6U
Each day she'd snip flowers from a new garden, twenty at most, from different areas so as to not raise suspicion of the Royal Gardeners. Somedays, if she had more time on her hands, she'd snip from at least three gardens to increase variety.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMNCZBWFnSR
The easiest catches were flowers from the Queen Dowager's isolated gardens and the most impractical were from the Queen's ponds. Daisy had only once stolen a Lotus from the Queen's pond and it had raised alarm throughout the castle for the Queen used to individually name her flowers and talk to them on a daily basis. Lotuses and Water Lilies were also hard to store in comparison to Roses or Sunflowers and although they fetched a higher price, Daisy never really regretted the loss of a source.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡISQsE932oD
After carefully snipping flowers from random bushes of the Queen Dowager's garden, Daisy paced towards the Founder's Grave where after she snuck into the forest and headed towards town.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhlOUEOTVZj
Daisy was merely eight in age and her shadow was a scrawny blur on the dark roads. If one were to be awake in those dead hours and look at her from behind — they'd imagine a jute basket was walking all by itself and go back to some seriously needed sleep.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbejKGZePWI
The basket, just like her red and yellowing checkered dress and shabby brown boots, was a gift from the Thomas family.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdSPtxwsClf
Theirs was a small bricked home adjoining a bee farm that was owned by a thriving merchant of the area. The formerly rich Thomas family had sold their farm eight years ago when war required all able men to join the frontline or pay a hefty compensation to be left alone. The war had decreased the consumption of luxury products and honey happened to be one of them; Though, the Royal Medicinal Centre needed honey owing to its herbal properties and Mr. Thomas then considered it a great opportunity to sell his farm for a thousand gardenias.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡStvDTUWTbj
The money eventually dwindled as a consequence of prices skyrocketing after the war and the Thomas' were left to work on their own farm as mere tenants.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡguuif15RFs
Daisy stopped at their doorstep and knocked on the wooden door. The windows were aglow and the faint whistle from a kettle indicated that she wasn't too early. The door was flung open by a little boy with head like a mop of blonde and face grinning ear to ear. He flung himself at Daisy with as much spirit as she flung herself on him, their arms wrapped around eachother's torsos with swift familiarity and they jumped in little circles.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI6HuAUUaEB
"Bran! You're back home!" Daisy exclaimed as the boy pulled away and kicked the door close.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDrzhLPnxuH
"I was so close to running away but then they announced summer break," he informed with a sheepish grin, running a hand through his hair. "Ma! Bring us food! Your girl is here!" He called out as Daisy took off the jute bag and he picked it up to bring it inside.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGFqEjrgVLh
"I missed you! Look at all the flowers I have brought! You can have one!" Daisy chirped as Bran placed the bag on a wooden table. She fished inside its great depth to pick a fresh white rose and carefully handed it to him.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzEnXO77yfF
"It's beautiful! I will treasure it, always!" He smiled, tilting his head just a bit to let her image sink into his mind's eye. It had been a while since he'd seen her, probably six months after he left for school, and she'd grown in the meantime. Not for the better, though, for how much could a castle maid bulk up in between doing her chores and stealing flowers to earn money for a family who abandoned her?
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYyJUK318Jz
Bran sighed as she got away from her bag and settled on the floor, hands behind her back, with a small smile and sunken eyes which somehow shone like the sweetest honey.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqoUlqgfXYx
"You've grown bigger," she complimented, raising a hand to his forehead, "So much!"
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0ElQWIxX00
His only motivation for attending the boring and gruelling boarding school was to be better, to do well enough to earn money for his family and bring her back home. To give her a better future.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwJBbdzJNTU
"I wish I could say the same about you."
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgBSU2uPUWC
"Ah! My little girl!" Aldith exclaimed from the doorway as she wiped her wet hands all over her pale blue dress and entered the room."You're here, great! The food plate is in the kitchen! Where are the flowers from, today?"
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNrzpc3YQjx
"Ah, thank you auntie. The flowers are from the Queen Dowager's castle," Daisy answered as she headed towards the kitchen to get a plate full of food from the slab. She placed the stolen egg in its place and headed out to see Mr. Thomas waving a bunch of sheets.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpxiMyDBCpi
"You're a little late today, my dear," he remarked with a little pat to her head. "Eat well, here's the paper. I need to be at the Flower's market in forty so keep that in mind," he frowned at the flower in his son's hand. His big frame towered over the rest of his family as he pointed out, "Keep it away Bran, roses have horrible thorns."
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Ku5mSVfV0
"It's a gift," Bran rolled his eyes and led Daisy to the wooden table and chair. "Eat up, I'll help with the wrapping."
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUqCiuPgr1L
"Ohh, make it look pretty!" Daisy cheered as Aldith laughed and said, "I'll make you the egg, get that frown off."
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWzHdhwWp2k
Mr. Thomas grunted as his wife stepped out of the room.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvqniTl8LJd
"I always make them look pretty," Bran snorted with a smug smile on his face as he sat beside Daisy, on the floor, and carefully placed the flowers on the table.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiI6tmKFCns
"So that you can give them to pretty girls?" Daisy teased in between her bites.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMCycaqR4Oo
"We only have boys at our school," Bran shook his head as if it was the greatest offence known to mankind.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNtzB6MWs7j
"Tragic, really. What about pretty boys?" Daisy wiggled her eyebrows.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3As7yBymaf
"Bran!" Mr. Thomas said in a tone louder than one would anticipate when the world's asleep. "You should be resting. You will be helping with the farm in the morning, you remember?" He asked in a rhetorically harsh tone.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEKgyomELx3
"I know, I know, I'll do it. Don't worry," Bran shrugged as he folded the beeswax paper around the flower and tied it in a small bow.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzrbtzusWAF
"You don—"
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmDIlLcver4
"Here's the egg!" Aldith rushed inside with a steaming plate and placed it on the table. "Thank you, as always, my dearie," she looked at Daisy and smiled.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb6yDTG4XNV
"Ah! My best egg," Mr. Thomas all but moaned and took a seat beside his son, devouring the plate in front.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSNpop7iMcU
Aldith shook her head at her husband's gluttony but sat down next to him to help fold paper around the flowers.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5QeHG5PVG9
Daisy couldn't help the smile that escaped onto her lips and made her shoulders scrunch up. It made her feel warm, feel belonged, as she sat on the singular wooden chair around the table with food on her lap and people who had so much to give. The Thomas' were the only family she knew and even though she did not look like them or was a real part of them, they did not make her feel unwelcomed.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4wjoObx2K9
They treated her as their own and Daisy cherished every moment she spent with them. The hours of washing dishes which would make her arms sore and fingertips shrivel up, the lack of sleep to sneak around the barn and the gardens to steal so early in the morning, it was all worth the one meal she got to share with them. To sit on a chair, to enjoy the warmth of someone's home, to be looked in the eye and talked to, to be appreciated for her efforts.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6TBjj4frX1
Daisy relished it.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFVWJ2Q0XOX
They kept her little world going.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQmCFnytegs
After she'd finished her meal and washed her plate, Daisy sat down beside Bran and helped fold the paper around the flowers, as prettily as possible, to make them worth a smile.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7nBbRRRl9Q
"I fold the best bows," Bran remarked, eyeing his father's and mother's with a comparative eye.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmsqZuAhopy
"You've learnt from the best," Aldith tsked.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡES5pnzktiq
"And you, my honey, have learnt from the best," Mr. Thomas enunciated, pointing at himself.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN0yCYX9suB
Daisy laughed along with everyone else as the minutes ticked away. Time sure was fleeting.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4d2bL8Q0E2
"Come the day after, okay? I've heard the castle is increasing the number of guards around," Mr. Thomas patted Daisy's head as the family stood in the foyer to bid her goodbye for the day.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp2i1VUx2rR
"Yes sir!" Daisy mocked a salute, smiling.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHCs71cb0ty
"Come early tomorrow, we didn't get to play today," Bran frowned with a big pout on his face.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZgwYfHWVKN
The back of his head received a good whack from his mother.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWPhjZDQ8HC
"She works all day! She needs her rest! You can play with the bees if you so desperately want to!" Aldith shook her head, "Be safe on the way back, okay dearie? I kept an apple to eat for tomorrow," she informed Daisy.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPU1ZhW9jGc
"Thank you auntie! Goodbye Bran!" Daisy chirped as she pulled the door and jumped down three bricked stairs that made up the Thomas' doorstep.
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHysjNsMTTU
The door was kicked shut behind her as she walked down the road with a careless smile on her face and a skip in her step — only for a hand to press against her mouth and the other to hit the side of her neck resulting in total darkness just when the sun was about to shine.
ns216.73.216.82da2
and then Add to home screen.