Mornings were slow at the estate. The sun would rise later than Lysandra was used to compared to the capital. Tara, so far, had come to wake her every morning. The maid often came in with some form of breakfast. It had been a few days since Lysandra's arrival to the North. Settling in had been more difficult than she anticipated. It hadn't been for a lack of her trying, but the people were just different than Lysandra was used to.
This morning, Tara knocked and came in with some eggs and fruit. "I noticed you didn't eat the meat yesterday, Milady. So I added some fruit." The maid had been paying attention to Lysandra's habits, but she wasn't at Daisy's level yet. "How about a tour of the estate, Milady?" Tara put down the breakfast tray for Lysandra. She then walked over to the heavy curtains to open them up. As the curtains opened, soft light entered the bedroom. Her outfit was very clean, albeit a little outdated. "There's a lot to see, Milady. Anything you would like me to prioritise?" It made Lysandra think.
"Prioritise? Not really." Lysandra answered honestly. She hadn't seen anything besides the dining room, her own bedroom and only had a glimpse of the Duke's office. She had no clue what there was to see.
"Perhaps a full tour of the estate, Milady? Whatever piques your interest we could elaborate on." The maid suggested. Seeing as Lysandra had no preference she easily agreed. Lysandra finished her breakfast and changed into a proper outfit. The tour of the estate started off with Tara showing Lysandra most of the wing she had been staying in. The place was quite somber, to say the least, with the dark blue wallpaper as far as the eye could see. It wasn't necessarily ugly, but in combination with dark curtains barely any light made it down the halls. Her own wing consisted of several bedrooms, not one but two different tea rooms and to top it off, a sunroom. Lysandra felt stuffy.
After having seen most of the wing Tara led the way towards a massive room. It was surprisingly bright. The walls and floor of the room were all white. The curtains were a dark blue and as tall as the ceiling.
"A ballroom?" Lysandra questioned turning to Tara. The maid smiled with a quick nod.
"Of course Milady! There's multiple actually. This is the main one and is used each year for the Autumn Ball. This year I will arrange it with some maids as you and the Duke are busy." Her smile didn't falter as her steps came to a halt. Busy? Busy with what? Reading the same set of books and her grandfather's diaries in her bedroom? Did the Duke think she was not capable enough to arrange a ball?
"Would you like to view the ballroom, Milady? Have a closer look?" There was a hint of excitement in Tara's voice. "It's dark inside now, but I can open the curtains! You can see its potential!"
A ball, here? In the North? They had balls? The people in the capital would have a stroke at the idea that the barbarians of the North knew how to dance. Noticing how eager the maid sounded to show the room, Lysandra gave her a small nod. "I'd love to see it."
With each curtain opening, the grandeur of the ballroom revealed itself. A few pieces of furniture were still covered with a cloth to keep the dust out. There were three chandeliers hanging low as if they were being maintained. They had a size that would make the Emperor jealous. The chandeliers looked grand, something only seen with royalty or in a museum. Contrary to the rest of the estate, the walls were lined with soft pastel coloured wallpaper that would probably glow when lit by candle light. "It always takes a while to get this ballroom ready. Before your arrival we had been polishing the chandeliers, but we have yet to finish them, Milady." Tara explained. "Oh and at the end there's doors opening up to the garden! From there the greenhouse is only a short stroll away." Tara said, still smiling.
With each step Lysandra took inside the room, she would notice more and more details. There were large mirrors that enlarged the space. The floors were richly patterned. The entirety of the floor was made of multiple marbled colors. It was the kind of marble that was still fashionable in the Capital. It sparkled wherever the soft light hit it. The room was probably worth a small estate. "How do you like the room, Milady?"
Lysandra took a moment to look around the room. She wondered just how it would look with all its decorations for a ball. "It's quite stunning." She said softly and looked over at the door "You mentioned a garden? And a greenhouse? " She was intrigued, she had always found much joy in being outside and to stroll around the parks at the capital or to just enjoy one of her books.
"I can show you the greenhouse and the garden, Milady." The maid said gently.
"Alright, lead the way." Lysandra got excited from the idea of actually stepping outside again.
Tara quickly nodded. "Of course Milady. Please wait a moment, I will get you some warmer shoes and a good coat." Without giving Lysandra a second to respond the maid walked off to fetch the items. Lysandra took this moment to have a closer look at the chandeliers. Each crystal hanging from it was carefully and skillfully cut. The ones that were already cleaned sparkled even in the limited morning light. Her curiosity sparked as Lysandra touched one of the crystals. The stone felt smooth unlike any crystal she had ever touched.
"Here we are, Milady!" Tara happily announced. The maid had brought a fur coat with matching fur boots. "I erm—I took the liberty of getting you something warmer, Milady. Your coats are too beautiful for outside." Too beautiful? More like too thin, seeing how it had been snowing almost every day since Lysandra arrived in the North. Tara had done well to redirect it to something else. She could only be happy that the maid brought her a coat that wouldn't let her freeze to death. "Please, let me help you, Milady." She put the boots in front of Lysandra so she could step in and held open the coat for her too.
"Thank you, Tara. It's lovely." Lysandra happily accepted the coat. All dressed up in the black fur coat and boots they headed outside. The garden was covered in snow. Some of the staff members walked in the far distance wearing thick coats. Turning to look at Tara , Lysandra realised something. "Wait, aren't you cold? We should get you a coat." Lysandra got worried as the maid wore nothing besides her uniform to protect her from the freezing cold.
With a few short blinks Tara shook her head. "Oh no, Milady, I'm very used to this weather. I don't get cold that easily." She smiled. "The gardens are covered in snow this time of year, but the greenhouse is still in full bloom." Tara had a small spring in her step as they walked. "The paths are cleaned every day so you can walk whenever you would like, Milady." When observing the garden closely it was striking that all paths had been cleared of snow. The small manicured hedges had a soft layer of snow. Tara walked ahead a bit so Lysandra could leisurely follow. Lysandra noticed that the cold, despite being out longer, didn't sting as much. The maid led her to the center of the garden. There was a grand fountain. Statues of different animals surrounded the waters. Lysandra spotted a cat and leopard sitting together on the edge of the fountain. The centerpiece was a raven. Its wings were spread evoking strength. The sculptures were beautiful, even when covered in snow. Whoever designed the gardens clearly had a vision.
"Down this path is the greenhouse." Tara was still walking just ahead with a spring in her step. Lysandra's trance broke. She stopped looking at the fountain and caught up to the maid. Within minutes the hedges would make way for a huge glass structure. That had to be the greenhouse! "Please this way." Tara held open the ornate door to the greenhouse.
Stepping inside was like walking straight into a wall of heat. It was warmer even than Lysandra's bedroom. As Lysandra stepped inside, she was surrounded by greenery as far as her eyes could see. She saw exotic flowers of which the names were unknown to her. It was so colourful compared to the estate. "Would you like to take off your coat, Milady? Perhaps have some tea here?" Tara offered gently.
Captivated by the amount of greenery surrounding her, Lysandra allowed Tara to take her coat. She had read about the term greenhouses in her grandfather's diary. Her grandfather had written that it was a place where non-native plants could be grown. Lysandra had never expected that the greenhouse would be so overwhelming. Some of the plants were bigger than herself. The leaves of one of them were almost fifty centimetres wide. None of these plants grew in the capital. She did recognise a few of the flowers at the back but the rest were unknown to her.
"Milady?" Tara asked as Lysandra turned back to her. "Ah yes, tea. I would love some." She said as her attention went back to the plants. Lysandra spotted a butterfly flying about and landing on a flower. She walked over towards the flower. Lysandra wanted to look at the butterfly up close. She noticed the edge of its wings shimmered. There was a strange, opal-like effect on the wings. The colours kept shifting from blues and greens to reds. Whilst the rest of its wings were deep blue. Reaching out with her finger towards the butterfly, she froze.
In one swift moment, the flower closed itself with the butterfly trapped inside of it. "Ah! What— That flower just ate the butterfly?!" Lysandra yelped, turning back to Tara who was clearly trying to hold back her laughter.
"That's alright, Milady." Tara said, sounding reassured. "This is just a plant that eats insects. I don't know much about plants. I do know that the gardeners take good care of it. There should be plenty of butterflies left. They are taken care of too." Tara looked around for a moment. "There! With the bright white wings." The maid pointed to a butterfly that Lysandra had only seen in the books in the attic. It was a butterfly native to the south. Its icy white wings were striking. "Oh look more!" Lysandra was pulled from her thoughts and walked over to another flower. Not ten, not twenty, but at least fifty butterflies were resting gently on the cluster of flowers. Lysandra reached out to try and touch them. Her intrusive thoughts got the best of her. The second her finger touched one of the wings, all fifty of them awoke and flew right at her. She yelped and stumbled back only to trip over her own feet, landing on her butt. The butterflies had rushed off except for one that landed on her head.
"Milady, I don't think butterflies like to be touched." Tara walked over and helped Lysandra back on her feet as the single butterfly flew in front of Lysandra before returning to the others. "How about you take a seat at the table? I'll arrange for the tea." Tara guided her to sit down.
A little later another maid walked in with tea and biscuits. Tara took over and poured Lysandra a cup of tea. Taking a sip, Lysandra reflected. The estate was nothing like she had expected, the greenhouse, the ballroom and the garden each one more unique or lavish than she imagined. "Thank you." Lysandra held the cup of tea in her hands enjoying the warmth.
Sipping the tea Lysandra suddenly heard loud cheering. She turned her head towards the direction of the sound. It sounded like a horde of men shouting. It got louder with each passing second. "What— Where's that coming from?" She noticed how Tara was unfazed by the shouting.
The young maid turned her head slowly in the general direction of the sound, "Oh—" Tara started. "That's either K— the Duke and my brother bickering or a soldier getting his ass whooped by either." The maid, noticing her cussing, covered her mouth quickly. "Please excuse my language, Milady." She blushed slightly.
"What?" Lysandra's eyes widened. Getting their ass whooped? Putting down her cup the cheering continued. "Wait, you have a brother?"