Chapter 29

**I** turned to glance at Maple—or, rather, Tulip Wisteria, standing next to her me. Her vibrant, pink eyes were haunted, and she didn’t look a thing like herself—her hair was a few shades lighter, and more curled than usual.

My own eyes were darker purple. I couldn’t recognize myself—I shared the same curled blonde hair Maple had.

Aiden and Arden were, of course, brothers, going by the names of Beech and Cullen Amaranth. They had identical tawny eyes and plain brown hair. Unnoticeable.

No elf would recognize us.

“I miss my hair,” Aster grunted, touching her brown locks gingerly. She did look so different without her sheet of blonde strands and brown eyes, now changed to gray-blue.

“As do I,” I murmured. Without my red hair—I felt different. Weaker.

“And me,” Pecan echoed. His brown hair and dark eyes were now raven and blue, rendering him completely unrecognizable by any of his old comrades.

Maple gave us a flat look. “We all do.”

“Come,” Terran grunted.

We broke through the trees, joining the town inconspicuously and making our way to the palace. I could see the others on the street, at a safe distance from Maple, Terran and I.

Terran had kept his olive eyes, only changing his brown hair to blonde. But there was no mistaken the unwavering determination in his eyes.

We reached the palace. I sucked in a breath, gazing not at the stone walls, but at the elves.

Peasants, like us, had formed two lines from the gates of the palace, coming all the way to the streets. Their chatter filled the area. I could only watch. There were so many.

“There were less when my parents came,” Maple murmured, her eyes shifting over the elves.

“So many villages have been attacked, elves are going to the palace for work,” Aiden murmured, coming up beside us casually.

“The pay is good, there’ll be a roof over their heads—it’s the best opportunity,” Arden said, on his other side.

“This is going to take all day,” Maple said, her shoulders drooping.

“We will go there. Boys—that line. Pecan, Aster—wait a bit here before going,” Terran said sharply.

I cast one last look at them—at their disguised selves. Aster and Pecan gave me encouraging smiles. I nodded at the twins, hoping that this wouldn’t be the last time I saw them.

Aiden’s eyes were determined, though, and I let the feeling sink in me as we joined one line, and they walked away to the other.

I looked at the long line, my heart sinking. We’d be lucky if we didn’t have to spend the night outside.

We’d be lucky if we made it through those gates.

“Are you here for work, too?” The girl in front of us asked. My eyes shot to her She was accompanied by a taller boy, who shared her golden hair.

“Of course they are,” the boy said, his tone exasperated.

“I was only asking,” she said defensively. “Anyhow,” she said, turning back to us, “I’m Daisy.”

“Tulip Wisteria,” Maple said, gesturing to herself, “This is my sister, Calla. And our father.”

“This is Jonquil,” she said, gesturing to the boy. He grunted. “He’s very rude, don’t mind him,” she whispered loudly. He elbowed her. She elbowed him back.

My fingers curled as I remembered my own siblings. They weren’t coming back.

Tears burned behind my eyes and I looked away sharply. I hadn’t cried for them in so long.

I could just make out the twins in the other line in the midst of all the other bodies, not talking. Just standing next to each other, watching everyone else.

“I’m hoping they’ll take me on as a cook one day,” Daisy was saying, when I turned back to them.

“We just hope they’ll take us in,” Maple said, pursing her lips.

“There are so many elves, I worry we won’t get in,” Daisy fretted.

“Aye. But hopefully they’ll have pity on us,” Maple said.

“They’ll take me in. They need all the soldiers they can get, now,” Jonquil said, his face hard. I exchanged a look with Maple.

“But we might not be so lucky,” Daisy said, tilting her head to the side and twisting her lips. “I’ve heard that they aren’t taking in many servants,” she sighed.

“Let’s leave those worries until we reach,” Jonquil said, his eyes turning to the line ahead.

“We have food, in case this takes too long,” Daisy said, gesturing to the basket swinging at her elbow.

Maple grimaced slightly. “We don’t. We hadn’t expected there to be such a crowd.”

“I suppose all we can do is wait,” Daisy said, turning to the front.

And wait we did.

***

The sun had fallen by the time it was our turn.

We’d eaten a bread bun each from Daisy’s basket. It felt impolite to ask for more, especially when they didn’t have too many, so hunger gnawed at my stomach as we walked.

Slowly, the line diminished, and we finally reached the gates.

“I hope you get in,” Daisy whispered, right before it was their turn.

“You as well,” Maple said. We waved as they walked up to the guard.

“Don’t shows any signs of nervousness,” Terran murmured, almost too quiet to hear.

I swallowed, trying to hide my nerves. The closer I got, the more likely it seemed that we would caught, though we were disguised.

Daisy and Jonquil went in. The guard waited for a few minutes, looking at the castle, before turning and beckoning us.

Maple grabbed my hand as we strode towards him.

“More servants,” he said, sighing.

“Yes, sir,” Maple said, nodding.

“Your names,” he said dryly. Maple told him, and he wrote on a piece of parchmalest. It was a wonder his hand wasn’t swollen with all the writing he must’ve done.

He narrowed his eyes, looking at us carefully. Finally, he grunted. “Go in.”

We gave him grateful nods before walking through the gates and into the main hall.

I sucked in a breath, struck at once with the familiarity. This was home. And hell.

We were led down another corridor, where several elves were waiting in front of closed doors.

“Wait here,” the guard said, gesturing at a door.

Daisy and Jonquil were standing in front of the door beside us. Daisy gave us a small smile and waved.

The door in front of them opened, and Jonquil murmured something to her before going in.

I wiped my slick palms on my dress, my heart pounding faster. Then our door opened.

“I’ll go first,” Maple whispered. I watched as she walked through, the door shutting behind her.

“Do not worry,” Terran said softly. I nodded, unable to form words. The door opened again—Maple didn’t come out. “Go,” Terran said. I swallowed and curled my fingers into fists as I walked through the door.

It was quite plain, with only a table and a chair. A guard stood at the door I’d come from, one from the door on the opposite end of the room.

Hopefully Maple had exited through that door.

A short, plump male sat behind the table, gesturing for me to sit.

I forced a smile as I sat down, the chair creaking terribly as I pulled it forward.

“Good evening, Miss—” He said, raising an eyebrow.

“Calla,” I croaked.

“Miss Calla.” He nodded. “You are here for work as a servant, no?”

“A maid, yes,” I said, clearing my throat.

“I see,” he said, “Well, Miss Calla, do you mind answering some questions?”

I shook my head.

He cleared his throat again, and began, “Why have you come to the palace for work?”

“My mother was caught in a rebel attack on the soldiers near our village—” I broke off, looking down, “We couldn’t stand to stay there. We sold our house and came here.”

“That girl who just came in, Miss Tulip, she is your sister, no?”

I nodded.

“If you would not mind moving his dirt here,” he said, gesturing to a tiny pot on the desk, brown dirt packed in it.

I swallowed. “I’m not very powerful, sir.”

“Not to worry—take your time,” he said, leaning back.

I closed my eyes, feeling.

When I opened my eyes, some of the dirt had spilled out of the pot, onto the desk.

The male nodded. “Very well. Please, go out the back door. You will be led to your chambers,” he said, gesturing behind him.

I nodded and stood, walking to the back. The guard opened the door, and I slipped through, letting out a breath as it shut behind me.

Maple was waiting beside the door, her face anxious. Her eyes widened when I walked through.

“Calla!” She exclaimed, drawing the attention of the guard beside her.

“Tulip,” I said, forcing a smile.

“I’m so glad you got through,” she said, subtly taking a few steps away from the guard, “Now we just have to wait for father.”

I nodded, following her. The guard didn’t so much as glance at her.

“Thank Nalvia they haven’t realized out appearances don’t change if we use the dirt,” Maple whispered.

“Thank Nalvia,” I exhaled, leaning against the wall.

If Ivy had found out…we would have been caught.

For some reason, our disguises wouldn’t fade if we used the dirt or soil—the kind of magic Ivy was used to. If we did what the rebels had taught, we’d look like our original selves again.

Finally, Terran walked through, giving us a nod. “They have taken me as a soldier.”

I glanced at Maple. If he was a soldier, only Aster would be with us in the castle. The soldiers stayed elsewhere. She pressed her lips together and turned to the soldier.

“We can go now,” Maple said to him. He nodded and led us through the palace.