"Your tea, my lady."
Gilda brought her the tea shortly after Benjamin left to see over the land. He wanted to see the situation of the nearby villages and towns after the thought of winter and the mild spring that had passed. There was no inspection last autumn nor last summer as he was busy trying to get her hand in marriage. Even now he didn't intend to spend too much time away for which Iris was grateful.
"Thank you, Gilda. How lucky I am to have someone like you take care of me," Iris smiled gently at her maid. "How are the girls doing?"
"We found good places for them to work and they're doing fine. Eira is always happy after serving your ladyship."
"That's good to know. I am also content with her. She is such a sweet child."
Iris paused to think about her little maid who would always greet her with a large smile on her face and hurry to complete her assigned tasks.
"If there is nothing else, you may continue with their supervision."
"As you wish, my lady."
After her leave, her other two maids continued to prepare her for the day. It was a warm sunny day so Iris proposed to Elisabeth to go riding. So that day's robes were simple equestrian apparel, beige breeches that were comfortable and large around the thighs and slim around the calf to make it easier to put on the knee-high black skin boots. For the upper body, Daisy brought her a simple white shirt and a warm deep blue wool jacket which 'brought out her eyes' as her maid exclaimed in excitement. Iris didn't want to ruin her good mood by pointing out that she was going out with a friend, not her husband so she let the maid be.
When Daisy was almost done lacing and buttons at the bottom of the pants and Mary was fully into braiding her long hair with a blue ribbon to match the jacket, a soft knock was heard at the door. The first maid went to check it.
"It's the mage, mylady. Should I ask him to wait?"
"No, I'm dressed, tell him to come in."
Mary had just finished fighting with her mistress' hair, the result being a long loose braid which cascaded behind her back, when Ray determined steps stopped abruptly. He stared at her a second too long. Her maid moved from her hair to her neck to fix the stock tie with a sly look on her face and a little smirk.
"What brings you here, Ray? If it's what we talked about last time, it'll have to wait a few days." Iris didn't want to learn any more chemistry until Elisabeth was long gone.
"My lady," Ray recovered with a short cough "it's about a riding accessory."
"I beg your pardon?"
"A pin… for your tie." Ray paused before quickly continuing after seeing the bewilderment on Iris' face. "The knight, the one my lady brought that day for me to heal, came to ask for a safety device against monsters. He told me he is to escort your grace today in the woods and he wanted to make sure nothing will happen. So, of course, I worked on a device to protect you from any evil attempt on my lady's life. It's a tie pin that creates a strong shield, big enough to protect at least five people."
He seemed out of breath after that exclamation and looked expectantly at her.
"Why didn't you make it for Sir Marco if it can protect that many people?"
Ray's face seemed to say that the thought didn't even cross his mind so she decided to just accept the gift. It actually moved her that both men thought and worked so much to protect their mistress.
"It's a nice pin," she finally said, "thank you, Ray."
He gave her a small smile before asking her something probably wanted to ask from the beginning. "When will we meet next because I found some very interesting books that…?"
"Mary, Daisy, you may leave us." Only after the maids' departure did she answer for she did not want anybody to find out about her magic, not yet at least. "After Elisabeth leaves. Probably some days after that."
"But my lady, there are still many things to read and practice."
"I understand, but I am first and foremost the lady of this castle and my duty cannot be left to others. So, in a few days."
"I'm sorry, your grace. I sometimes forget that when the subject of magic is brought up."
She gave him a gentle smile, knowing fully well by then how much he loved magic. And she couldn't blame him as she'd probably love it just as much if she could actually awaken her powers.
"I'll take the pin now."
After getting the magical device, she tried to put it on herself, but it wasn't that easy. The pin was much harder than the ones she usually wore.
"It's a very hard steel so that it won't break upon activation. If I may, my lady."
He approached after Iris nodded and started to fix the little pin.
"Is metal hardness important for a device?"
"Oh yes. In this case, the magic imbuled in it may cause the device to break or even melt, making it useless. The harder the metal the better will hold for protection gear. Of course, that is different for attack devices or healing ones and so on."
"How quickly can I learn to make something to protect myself?"
"If we concentrate on the theory and you practise the spells, probably as soon as we awaken your powers."
"That soon? Will I be able to control it?"
"It will be hard at first, but it can be learnt in time. Done!"
"Thank you, Ray."
The pin was safely in its place and Ray backed a little too fast from her, bumping into the table in his haste. The tea spilled all over, dripping on the carpet.
He hurried to clean up, while Iris called her maids to help. She took her leave quietly, leaving the three to their work, going down the stairs at full speed, a little angry with Ray for spilling her precious tea as well as with herself for not drinking it earlier. Luckly, Gilda could prepare a new one so Iris planned to ask her to do that later, after coming back. It was a long time since she could spend so much time with Elisabeth especially since she planned to stay only 2 days.She hurried even more at that thought.