Chapter 329: A Silent Tongue
Chapter 328: A Silent Tongue
Lyria’s POV
For a long moment, no one moved.
Every pair of eyes in the chamber remained fixed upon those words.
Pippa was the first to recover.
She looked from the parchment to me before silently mouthing,
"Another language?"
I nodded.
Before Elara and Debbie had gone to meet with Her Majesty earlier that evening, all of my maids had confessed something to me.
They had told me of the task the Queen had given them before they had ever entered my service.
They had been ordered to watch me.
To observe everything I did. To report every conversation, every meeting, every unusual occurrence.
They had also been instructed to attend upon Her Majesty whenever summoned and inform her of everything I had been doing.
To be perfectly truthful... I had not been surprised.
If anything, I had expected as much.
The Queen had never liked me. She had never attempted to conceal that fact. And, for some reason, she feared that I might steal the suitors from her daughter.
What had surprised me, however, was that they had told me.
They could very easily have concealed it.
I would never have known.
Instead, they had chosen honesty, and I still did not know whether they had done so in the hope of making me believe they had earned my trust, or whether they were simply sincere.
I hoped it was the latter.
Because, despite the short time we had known one another, I found myself growing rather fond of them.
Pippa caught my attention once more.
She repeated her question.
"What other language, Your Highness?"
I picked up my pen again.
I scarcely noticed how untidy my handwriting was, something I would ordinarily have noticed.
I simply wrote,
One that does not require us to speak.
Beneath it, I added another line.
It is a sign language.
They all frowned.
Even Phineas tilted his head slightly.
Margery blinked several times before looking towards Elara, as though hoping she might possess an explanation.
Elara merely shook her head.
"I have never heard of such a thing," she admitted quietly.
I smiled.
Then I set the pen aside. Perhaps showing them would be easier.
I lifted both hands before me.
Every eye followed the movement.
Slowly at first, then more naturally, my fingers began to move.
One gesture flowed into another.
Then another.
Years of practice returned with remarkable ease. The movements felt almost as familiar as speaking.
When I finished, silence filled the chamber.
Their expressions were almost comical.
Debbie’s mouth hung slightly open.
Margery looked thoroughly bewildered.
Pippa’s eyes had grown so wide that I feared they might remain that way.
Phineas broke the silence.
"Your Highness... could you do that again?"
I nodded and, once more, repeated the same series of gestures.
My hands moved steadily through each sign. This time everyone watched even more carefully.
Margery suddenly mouthed,
"What did you just say?"
I picked up the pen once again.
I said... this is sign language.
Debbie looked between the parchment and my hands.
"So... those movements have meaning?"
I nodded.
Every one of them.
Margery’s brows climbed even higher.
"You mean..." she whispered, despite herself, "...you were speaking?"
Again, I nodded.
The room fell quiet once more. I could almost see their thoughts racing.
"I do not know about the others," Bridget murmured, "but I am ready to learn this."
The others nodded immediately.
If we could learn this, it would be far easier to converse without the risk of being overheard.
And I had never imagined that the language Patricia and I had developed together would one day prove useful in such a way.
Even though she was no longer with me physically, her presence was still felt.
I considered for a moment before writing another word upon the parchment.
Queen.
Afterwards, I set the pen aside once more.
I raised my hands and slowly demonstrated the sign.
I repeated it several times, making certain each movement was clear.
Then I gestured for them to try.
Margery volunteered first.
She attempted the sign with complete confidence.
She was also entirely incorrect.
I could not help smiling.
Gently, I stepped closer.
"N-not q-quite."
Carefully, I adjusted her fingers.
"T-this o-one h-here..."
She watched closely.
When she tried again, the sign looked considerably better.
Pippa went next.
She required only a small correction.
Debbie struggled rather more.
She laughed quietly at herself as I rearranged her fingers.
"I fear my hands are refusing to cooperate, Your Highness."
I smiled.
"T-they w-will."
One by one, everyone attempted it.
I picked up the pen once more.
Now... King.
Again, I demonstrated the sign.
This one proved easier.
Within only a few attempts, they had all learned it.
After that came another.
Princess.
Once more, I demonstrated it, and they copied the movement until they all managed it correctly.
Bridget shook her head in amazement.
"I never imagined such a language existed."
"Nor I," Elara agreed.
"It is rather ingenious," Phineas observed quietly.
"It would certainly make private conversations considerably easier," Brayden added.
I smiled.
"I-it h-has m-many u-uses."
Margery looked positively delighted.
"I should like to learn all of it."
I laughed softly.
"I-it w-would t-take s-some t-time."
"We have time, Your Highness," Pippa said eagerly.
Our lesson might have continued considerably longer... had we not been interrupted by the cat.
Every head turned the instant they heard the sound.
The black cat was still dangling rather indignantly in Phineas’s grasp.
Apparently tired of being ignored, it lashed out once more with surprising determination.
Its paw narrowly missed his face.
Phineas sighed.
"I believe this creature has developed a personal dislike of me."
The cat answered by hissing.
Debbie laughed.
"I believe that confirms it."
Phineas looked towards me.
"I should remove this troublesome fellow before he succeeds in scratching someone."
I nodded.
"T-that w-would p-probably b-be f-for the b-best."
I paused before another thought occurred to me.
"C-could y-you a-also f-find o-out w-who i-it b-belongs t-to? Or where i-it c-came f-from?"
Phineas inclined his head.
"Certainly, Your Highness."
Brayden stepped forward then.
"I ought to return to my post as well, Your Highness, lest someone discover this meeting."
I nodded.
Both men bowed before taking their leave.
One by one, everyone departed until the chamber had emptied.
I remained standing where I was for a little while.
Then, almost without thinking, I wandered towards the window.
The night stretched quietly beyond it. The palace grounds lay bathed in moonlight.
I wondered who had been listening. I wondered whether they had heard anything.
I had never truly trusted those within the palace walls.
After all, they served the Queen. But there was nothing outside now.
No sign of anyone.
No shadow moving through the darkness.
No sound beyond the faint rustling of the wind through the trees.
At last, I closed the window and turned away.
I climbed into bed, the sheets cool against my skin.
For a long while, I lay awake, staring up at the ceiling as my thoughts lingered upon everything that had transpired that evening.
Then, little by little, sleep claimed me.