The Friends We Make

Upon returning to the Palace, long after the sun had set, Rhea was quick to dismiss her equally tired Ladies-In-Waiting. 

Accompanied by the guard holding her belongings, she finally returned to her bedroom and sank into the cloud-like softness of her new bed. 

The faint ticking of the clock in the outer chamber was the only sound in the room, and it lulled Rhea into a half-asleep state that set her thoughts wandering. 

"The kitchen will be sending out dinner by now," she commented as she rolled over so she could stare out at the darkened sky. 

"I wonder if he is having dinner with Alice," she whispered, staring unseeingly at the lights of the Palace, slowly flickering on to combat the growing darkness. 

Rhea had a sudden image of Alice seated in her usual place at the dinner table: Lonan's right-hand side. 

The thought struck her so painfully it almost felt physical, and she lurched upright as her vision grew blurry.