Chapter Six

Reality was dawning on me after that fight. Aurora had watched me get bullied, almost beaten and did nothing but the moment I started to fight back, she was already on my neck with threats. I ignored the more hostile gazes I received as she led me through another walkway. I couldn't help but realize that the slaves here looked anything but like slaves. They weren’t well dressed but they weren’t poorly or shabbily dressed either. And despite their hostility towards me, they all slowly paid their respects by bowing their heads to her.

We stopped in front of a hall and walked into a large hall and with a glance, I knew it was the kitchen. 

The kitchen for cooking was this huge?

“You’ll be working in the kitchen during this period” Aurora informed me as she turned to me and I forced a smile on my face.

“What do I do?” I asked and Aurora turned and beckoned to a guy who looked slightly older than me and he came running towards us, bowing his head slightly in respect.

“Good afternoon Head Slave” he greeted and Aurora nodded her head, “She’ll be working in the kitchen from now on, show her what to do” she instructed him and the guy flashed me a smile that made my face wrinkle. Aurora didn’t let him speak before turning on her heel and walking out of the kitchen.

“Heyy” the guy started flashing me a smile and I finally allowed my lips to spread in a fake smile. “You don’t look comfortable, come with me” he added and I winced, following him around another set of hostile gazes.

“Here, for now, you can join me in washing plates” he said and I glanced at the tall set of dirty plates and the already dirty and smelling water in which the guy dipped his hands in without hesitation and continued washing the plates.

“My name is Juniper, everyone calls me Juni. What’s your name? How did you get here?” He asked and my eyes flickered to him quietly in surprise. It was a surprise that someone didn’t know who I was. Everyone had been glaring at me with hatred and here was someone who was asking me who I was. I found it hard to believe.

Juniper laughed slightly as he paused, “Do you speak at all?” he asked with an amused smile.

“Most times” I finally replied and he laughed, “Well you should tell me your name” he said as he continued washing the plates. I stared at the tall stack of plates again and it suddenly crossed my mind that I had no idea how the kitchen back home looked like, I didn’t even remember ever walking into the kitchen hall and yet I was being tasked with washing a hefty amount of plates. 

I watched Juniper’s repeated motions. He seemed unaware that the water was dirty and stinky and smelly and he just continued washing without any care.

“I think everyone is really dissatisfied with you considering how hard they’ve been staring at you. You should get to work if you don’t want to be scolded. They hate when you drag your feet here” Juniper warned me and I swallowed, moving towards the sink and slowly lowering my hand into the dirty water. The slightly cold water sent sensations down my spine and I sucked in my breadth picking up the ugly looking net and picked a plate scrubbing it clumsily.

Juniper stared at me for a few seconds before bursting into laughter, “You’ve never done this before.” He said factly and I shrugged, “I learn fast” I replied quietly and he burst into another round of laughter.

“You won’t get anywhere with those plates if you spent ten minutes washing one plate” he added and I sighed, “It’s fine” I replied and Juniper shook his head, “Watch me”

I turned to him, watching as he picked up a stack of plates and dipped them into the water, his hands moved deftly and within minutes, the entire plates had been transferred to the rinsing basin.

“See? That way you’ll be faster” he added and I nodded, carrying a stack of plates like he had done before.

“You still won’t tell me your name?” Juniper asked and I turned to him slightly, “Amira, that’s my name” 

“That’s a beautiful name. Can I call you Ami?” Juniper asked excitedly, “That way we can be like a duo, Juni and Ami. That sounds so cool already” he added and I almost scoffed.

“Do not….” I paused, dropping the plates in my hand, “Call me Ami” I finished and Juniper paused, the smile and excitement on his face disappearing off his face immediately.

“Don’t call me Ami, Amira is fine” I replied and Juniper nodded his head slowly, “I’m sorry about that. I didn’t know that held terrible memories for you” Juniper replied as I went back to washing the plates. It had only been a few minutes since he showed me how to wash the plates better yet I was already somewhat used to it.

I laughed at myself internally, if someone had told me that I would be washing plates a week ago, I would have laughed hard enough to make my insides fall out but here I was, washing huge stacks of plates. Even the stinking water I was reluctant to put my hands inside a few minutes ago didn’t look so bad anymore.

“I used to be a member of the pack” Juniper started and I glanced at him from the corner of my eyes. He seemed unable to keep his mouth shut.

“But my parents betrayed the pack and he had them killed” Juniper continued and I didn’t have to ask who he was.  “Slaughtered would have been a better word” Juniper laughed at his statement.

“But I was a boy then, he was a boy then but you know he had already had a fierce temper then. I thought I was going to die too but he said I didn’t deserve to pay for the sins of my parents, so he merely stripped me of my right as a member of the pack and made me a slave. Allowing me to live, it was the greatest grace anyone had shown me in my entire life” he finished and I paused, turning to him with amusement in my eyes.

“He made you a slave and you think that’s the greatest grace anyone has shown you?” I mocked and Juniper smiled, “Yes. I mean, I would have died without that grace. And life is all that matters, that you are alive is the most important” he replied and the words at the edge of my mouth got stuck in my throat.

Being alive is the most important. At least I was still breathing.

I turned back to the plates I was washing without another word. Juniper’s words had struck a nerve in me and I was at loss on what to say or do or think or even feel.

“What about your story? Do you want to tell me your story?” He asked and I turned to him again with a smile plastered on my face.

“No Juniper, I don’t want to tell you about my background or my history so try not to ask me” I replied and he stared at me again, his mouth agape. He didn’t let him respond this time around before turning back to my plate.

I didn’t know why I was taking out my anger on Juniper, he had done nothing but help me and made me feel comfortable but the problem was that I couldn’t feel comfortable here no matter what. My existence should have been erased and Jonathan should have tried to save me when I jumped off that cliff.

Family.

The thought made my bones freeze over. Would Jonathan had gone ahead to massacre my entire family after I jumped? He spared Juniper, why didn’t he spare me? Why did I have to take responsibility for my father’s sins? Unfortunately, there was no one to answer any questions.

“You are done with the plates, that was really fast” Juniper commented and I turned to realize that indeed, I had finished the entire stack of plates that seemed enormous when I first came in but I was more surprised that even after giving him the cold shoulder that Juniper was still willing to talk to me.

“You can wash your hands and let’s go and grab some food. It’s lunch time” He informed me and on cue, my stomach rumbled making Juniper burst into a short laughter and I blushed in embarrassment.

“I’m sorry” I quickly apologized but he was quick to wave his hands negatively, “You don’t need to be sorry for being hungry” he replied as he wrinkled his eyebrows at me, “At least now I have something to blame your feistiness on” he added and I laughed awkwardly.

“Right” I replied, washing my hands and followed him out of the kitchen. Realizing that ever since I had been captured, I hadn’t eaten any food became more obvious when as we entered the huge dining hall, my stomach grumbled again and I was embarrassed to death.

For supposed slaves, the food being served very okay, not too bad, not too good. I used to think slaves were enemies of the pack and they would do anything in their capacity to do otherwise to them but I was being proven wrong with every minute I spent here. I picked up my tray waiting eagerly till it reached my turn.

The lady serving took a glance at me and carelessly served me a spoon, more than half of the spoon spilling everywhere on my plate and on my cloth. 

“Nextt!” she yelled and I blinked my eyes unbelievably at her, “Next? What do you mean by next? You served everyone at least two to three spoons, you served me one spoon and you even spilled most of it everywhere” I complained unhappily.

“That’s your share, please don’t waste my time” the lady retorted with a sneer. I didn’t have to think twice to know that she had done it intentionally.

“So you want to cheat me?” I asked but before the lady could respond, a voice behind me did, “Oh my god. Who would have thought that an highly esteemed Princess would be haggling for a few spoons of food” I didn’t have to turn, I recognized the voice immediately and the moment she arrived in my line of vision, I could see her and my new roommates surrounding me and already causing a commotion.

“I don’t want any trouble” I immediately backed out, “I just want some food” I added.

“Oh here’s some” the first girl said the next moment, the food in her tray was dripping from my hair down to my face and down my clothes.

“I thought you would be packing the food from your head right now and enjoying it” she said and they barked into laughter.

Against my better judgment, against the instructions and warnings I had repeatedly given myself, I couldn’t hold back. I flashed her a grin and before she could ask why I was smiling, I had dumped my food on her head placing the tray on her head as well.

“I told you not to mess with me” I said as a matter of fact and once again, she tried to lunge at me but with one leg, I had pushed her to the ground.

“Just leave me alone!” I yelled at her seeing the way her shoulder flinched. I turned but all I heard was pah and my head swaying sideways with my cheeks feeling really hot. I touched my cheeks to find Aurora standing in front of me.

“Didn’t I warn you not to cause trouble?” she asked with a sneer.

“Well, they tried to sarve me……” I tried to explain but her laughter cut me off, “This isn’t your Kingdom and no one serves you here, you do the serving!” she hurled at me

“Guards!’ she yelled and I panicked, “I’ll do better” I promised as I moved closer to her hoping to hold her hands and get her off my back.

“Take her to the prison, she needs to learn her lesson the hard way”