A Sprinkle of Stardust

Chapter 14 - Reconnaissance

Lyrani dashed across the landing, once again eluding the pacing guards. Stopping in front of an ajar door, she pushed it open and slipped into the apartment beside King Nash's.

It looked like the king's room might've if someone dumped a palette of pastel colours over it.

Behind the darkness staining them on the outside, the room's walls were orange, like peaches. A swirling mixture of the shades of dawn covered the bed. Two wooden nightstands flanked the bed, white like the gauzy curtains fluttering down from the bedframe.

The room was cold like the night surrounding it, but it must be warm and welcoming by daylight. Lyrani smiled to think of it, gazing around her in wonder.

At a prickling sensation on the back of her neck, Lyrani spun to see a portrait of Queen Rayn identical to the one in the king's bedroom.

That familiar feeling of apprehension clawed at her once again. This time, it had less to do with that look in the queen's eyes and more to do with the painting turning up again, almost like it was haunting Lyrani.

She shivered.

That couldn't be the case, of course, but the portrait's presence in this room was strange, almost chilling. It was one thing to love and miss a deceased relative but something else to worship them as it seemed King Nash and the owner of this apartment had.

Stepping back from the painting, Lyrani nearly tripped over something. Looking down, she saw that it was a wooden chest sitting at the foot of the bed. Lyrani knelt beside it, ignoring Queen Rayn's eyes burning into her back.

It was just a talented artist's recreation of an intimidating queen. No matter the possibilities conjured up by Lyrani's overactive imagination, the portrait couldn't hurt her.

The peeling white paint was rough against Lyrani's fingertips as she grasped the wooden chest's lid. Lifting it, she beheld the treasures inside. Even when she was a lady, she had never had such extravagant possessions.

There were silk purses embroidered with silver and gold, bejewelled hairbrushes, compact mirrors and mismatched crystal-encrusted slippers. Towards the bottom of the expensive clutter, a sparkle caught Lyrani's eye.

A gust of wind blew her hair into her eyes as she reached for it. She pulled out a golden book with stars embossed on the cover.

Lyrani felt bad to open it in case she should smear dirt on the pages. Swallowing her hesitation for the sake of recon, she rubbed her palms on her skirt, swept her hair behind her ear, and flipped the book open to the first page.

The Diary of Princess Livh Astor, read the elegant handwriting.

With a sharp intake of breath, Lyrani reread the words to make sure she had understood them correctly. This journal was from the time of Queen Rayn's rule, when Livh was still the princess. Lyrani gazed around her in wonder. This must have been her room, all that remained of a ruler who had been dead for years except for her son and her diary.

Lyrani traced her nail over the patterns on the book's cover, considering everything she had heard about the Astors since Queen Livh came into power. She and King Nash had been the only two monarchs affected by the Curse of the Crown. Perhaps something in this little book would help Lyrani understand why.

She stood, diary in hand.

It felt wrong to take a personal item from a dead elf's bedroom, but if Lyrani's hunch was right, it could be very useful. Perhaps Queen Livh would forgive her if she extracted some piece of information from it that could save Elvenland, the kingdom she and Lyrani had both served.