We were currently standing outside the Queen’s private meeting hall. According to Laura, it’s a place where the queen meets people privately, away from the eyes of the others. It was different from her private office which was located in the palace; someplace I was yet to see, someplace I was curious to see.
I have been asking myself, since the meeting had been over fifteen minutes ago, this particular question- If the hall had been so carefully designed, then how would the palace be?
“You can come in now.” A lady said to us, gesturing that we come in after she opened the door. It turned out that the queen was available to see us. It turned out that when she had said that Laura should bring her family, that had included me.
I had tried to wait back in the hall, till the queen was done meeting with Laura and Peter, but Laura had touched my shoulder, and told me that I was part of her family; that she was sure that the queen wanted to see me too.
It was probably to know who I was and what I was doing in their community. I mused as I walked into the private meeting room.
This one was a smaller hall, much smaller, but nonetheless still beautiful. There was a large round table surrounded with chairs. But two of the chairs were bigger and fancier than the rest. The royalty seats. I presumed.
The queen was talking with a girl around my age, who was a spitting image of her, except that this one had raven black hair.
Her daughter surely. I thought, taking a seat that Laura had pointed me toward.
It was obvious that we would wait until they were done.
As they spoke, I couldn’t hear what they were saying, no matter how hard I tried to eavesdrop. The masking scent I supposed, admiring the queen and her daughter. They were too beautiful.
Suddenly, I was aware that they both were staring back at me. Had they read my mannerisms?
The queen must have told her daughter to excuse us, because the next minute the girl strolled out of the room through another entrance door which I was just seeing, which could lead to the palace then, but not before she gave Laura and Peter a nod. Me? She just gave me a blank stare.
Quite understandable, I was the new face.
When she left and shut the second entrance door, the queen now walked toward us, and sat on one of the fancy big seats.
“What is your name, dear?” She asked me, with such a keen look that I almost feared she could see into my mind.
“My name is Maya.” I answered tentatively as if counting my words. I wished that she wouldn’t go further than that, that she wouldn’t ask questions like where I was from and what I was doing here; because if she could read off mannerisms, then she would be able to tell that I was lying. She was the queen, and I was sure she had a large dose of the psychic gift.
But the goddess was not on my side this time around.
“Where are you from? How did you come to pass the chasm that separates us from the outside world? How did you enter our community?” She asked me, her hand clasping each other on the table, very attentive to what I would say.
Well, I would be saying nothing. Because If I did, she would know that I was lying, except for my story on the chasm. I didn’t know about any chasm.
“I am sorry my queen, she has lost her memories. The only thing that she remembers is her name,” Peter spoke, and I almost heaved in relief but for the queen’s stare that was still boring holes in the particulars of my face.
Could she just stop staring even for a minute?
“I am sorry if I am making you nervous. As the leader of this community, it’s my duty to protect my community from intruders. So, I have to know if you are a spy or not. You have no hold on your memories, no? I trust Laura will take care of that. How long have you had her? In what condition have you found her?” The woman asked Laura, finally taking her gaze off from me.
It was then that Laura told the story of how Peter had found me, and had brought me to the clinic. When she mentioned how long I had been out, in coma, the queen had turned to me, stared at me for a few minutes, before returning her attention back to Laura, who had been talking all this while.
What did that look translate to?
Laura also told her that I had the magic trait in me, and that I hadn’t known of it till she had spoken of it, but that she wasn’t sure if it was because I had lost my memories or that I wasn’t even aware of it in the first place. She thinks though that it was because I had lost my memories.
How wrong she was.
“Maya, you would be the same age as my daughter and son. So, you should still be in school. Are you sure that your name is all you remember?” The Queen asked, and for a minute I was tempted to tell her my age and my grade, but then thought better of it.
She might find it ludicrous that I could remember my age, and class when I couldn’t remember where I was from. It was already suspicious that I remembered my name.
I shook my head finally in reply, after acting like I was trying to crack my head for an answer. I even held my head with my two hands, as if trying to remember was upsetting my head, congratulating myself a few seconds later when it achieved its dramatic effect.
“Don’t stress yourself, dear. I am sure with time, and Laura’s medicine, your memories will be back soon.” The queen said, and I nodded, relaxing against Laura’s shoulders, when she flung her hand over my shoulder and pulled me to herself.
“You will be fine.” She whispered.
“Well, since she will be staying here for a while. Let’s make her comfortable. Have you gotten an abode for her yet, Peter?” The queen asked, her attention drifting to a prepared Peter.