[Two days after King Oscar’s approval, Caelia and Cassian ride a carriage down to Kingsley which is about an hour’s ride from Everhart. In the fancy and gilded carriage, they sit across from one another. Her expression is pensive looking outside the window.] 

CAELIA - INNER MONOLOGUE: 

I can’t believe that my idea worked… I was thinking on the fly. But now heading towards there makes it feel too real… 

[Glancing over, Cassian notices her pensive expression.]

CASSIAN:

“Something wrong, Caelia?” 

[She looks back at him, feeling nervous.]

CAELIA (honest):

“Nothing serious, it all just seems too real so I’m a bit nervous. I wonder what Kingsley is like.”

CAELIA - INNER MONOLOGUE:

In the original story, I don’t remember Kingsley being mentioned… But I guess I don’t really remember too much in general…

CASSIAN (explaining):

“Kingsley used to be a trading hub because it's in the center of other neighboring towns but after the war 15 years ago, the town became poorer.”

CAELIA (curious):

“What happened in the war?”

CASSIAN (explaining):

“The Kingdom of Gale started the war to try and overtake Kingley from Everhart as Kingsley was generating a lot of money from visitors. The war only lasted for two weeks and Everhart won. After that, people stopped going to Kingsley because they were scared it was still an active war zone.”

CAELIA (down):

“Oh… I see.”

CASSIAN:

“I’m surprised you didn’t know about it.”

CAELIA - INNER MONOLOGUE:

It was never mentioned in the original story!!

CAELIA (completely lying out of her ass):

“T-The North is pretty isolated compared to other kingdoms!!! The news gets to us pretty late!!”

CAELIA - INNER MONOLOGUE:

That was a complete guess… In every story, the North is always isolated from everything else…

CASSIAN (confirming):

“Ah, makes sense. It is far away from everything else.”

CAELIA - INNER MONOLOGUE:

LUCKY GUESS, NORMA!

CAELIA (curious):

“Where are you from, Cassian? Are you from around here?”

[He pauses, not necessarily wanting to answer and his expression is unreadable. He looks down at his hands and starts to fidget with his fingers.]

CASSIAN (uncomfortable):

“I’m from Incara, it’s actually close to Kingsley. It’s a town known for agriculture.”

CAELIA - INNER MONOLOGUE:

He looks uncomfortable. Let me not pry.

CAELIA: 

“Oh, I see.”

───── ⋆⋅⊹⋅⋆ ─────

[Caelia and Cassian arrive at the town of Kingsley. It is a barren town with little agriculture and many abandoned stands from the days it was a trading hub. Even so, there were people outside making the most of it with small businesses and farm stands still open. King Oscar prepared a guest house for the duo to stay in while they were working around the town.]

[On their way there, the people of Kingsley were not happy. From outside the carriage, the people were looking at the royal, gilded transport with shock, terror, disgust, confusion, or a mix of emotions.]

“I can’t stand these damned royals.”

“Why is there a royal carriage here?!”

“What the hell is happening here??”

[Caelia looks outside the window and notices the many varying expressions of the people in Kingsley, not necessarily good ones.]

CAELIA - INNER MONOLOGUE:

It really seems like they don’t like any royals. It makes sense, though. The Royal's politics interfered with their livelihood.

───── ⋆⋅⊹⋅⋆ ─────

[After Caelia and Cassian make it to the guest home, they drop off their bags, and get back on the carriage to their first project. It was supposed to be a short ride, but on the way there, the same varying reactions and expressions are given by the townspeople to the royal carriage. In particular, a man with short, blue hair and dark purple eyes, around Caelia’s age, looks at the rolling carriage with pure hatred.]

───── ⋆⋅⊹⋅⋆ ─────

[Caelia and Cassian arrive at the Kingsley Library and get out of the carriage. The library from the outside was quaint and small, made out of dark wood. Definitely run-down but still has its own charm. They walked into the establishment- inside were bookshelves that surrounded the small building, as well as lined up in the center of the room. Books and papers are stacked in a disorganized fashion, some tables and chairs are scattered throughout the place where people are sitting and reading. A front desk welcomed the engineers with an old lady behind it. The old lady, hunched and with white hair and dark purple eyes, smiled at the duo coming in.]

OLD LADY (endearing):

“Hello, dears. I’m assuming you’ve come to help me fix the library?”

[Caelia and Cassian both bow to her at the same time.]

CASSIAN:

“Hello, I’m Cassian Welsh, Head Engineer of the Everhart Palace. Pleasure to be here.”

CAELIA:

“Hello, I’m Caelia Ardent, I’m-”

CAELIA - INNER MONOLOGUE:

Wait, what do I say here?!?!?! 

CAELIA (continues, trouble finding words):

“I-I’m uh… uh….”

CAELIA - INNER MONOLOGUE:

This is so awkward!!! I can’t think of what to say!

Do I say Princess of the North? 

Do I say Prospect of Everhart???

All of it sounds so pretentious! 

[Cassian notices Caelia pausing and is scrambling in her head to find the right words.]

CASSIAN (finds the words for her):

“She’s the Head Designer. We work together.”

[Her face fell after hearing that.]

CAELIA - INNER MONOLOGUE:

Since when did we establish that??!?!?

CAELIA (clarifies): 

“I-I’m from the Ardent House. Nice to meet you.”

[The old lady looks at Caelia with a subtle shock but then warmly smiles.]

OLD LADY (smiles):

“Thank you, my dears. I’m Ophelia but everyone calls me Ms. Poppy. Welcome to our library.”

───── ⋆⋅⊹⋅⋆ ─────

[Ms. Poppy brings Caelia and Cassian around the library, noting all the damage on the bookshelves and furniture due to age. As they’re walking around, people inside the library look at the engineering duo as if they were a zoo attraction. Ms. Poppy stops at one of the bookshelves, presenting an antique furniture that was very old and the shelves are bending due to the heavy weight.]

MS. POPPY (requesting nicely):

“All of the bookshelves here were made when this library first opened long ago. They’re basically falling apart. If you could build me new ones, that would be very nice.”

CASSIAN (confident):

“Of course. This is something we can easily do. Would it be okay if the library closed for a couple days while we build and install everything?”

MS. POPPY (nods):

“Yes, that probably would be the best course of action. I’ll close it right now as you guys are working.” 

───── ⋆⋅⊹⋅⋆ ─────

[Ms. Poppy walks away to tell customers inside the library that it is closed for the time being for renovations. She approaches a table where two girls are sitting who are still looking at the engineers in shock. They notice Ms. Poppy arrives at their table and gets startled.]

MS. POPPY (gentle):

“Hello ladies, I’m sorry but the library is going to be closing right now.”

GIRL 1: 

“Ms. Poppy, why are those people here?”

MS. POPPY:

“They’re helping me to fix the library.”

GIRL 2 (confused):

“But isn’t that Lady Ardent from the Ardent House in the North? Isn’t she known to be really mean?”

GIRL 1 (gossiping):

“Yeah! I heard that she curses people if they don’t do what she wants!”

[Ms. Poppy looks at Caelia from a distance, Caelia wears a gentle expression while talking to Cassian.] 

MS. POPPY (ignoring the girls with a smile):

“Now dears, they’re helping me fix the library! Please finish up quickly!”

[The girls and other customers overhearing start to pack up and leave.]

───── ⋆⋅⊹⋅⋆ ─────

[After a little bit, the library becomes more empty and suddenly Ms. Poppy hears the bell ring continuously at the front desk and so she slowly makes her way over.]

MS. POPPY (calling out):

“Yes, yes, coming!”

[A young adult male with blue hair and dark purple eyes is continuously ringing the bell. Ms. Poppy arrives at the front and sees him, immediately feeling disappointed.]

MS. POPPY (sighs):

“Jack? What are you doing?”

JACK (angry):

“Mom! Why is the royal carriage outside of the library?!”

MS. POPPY (shoos Jack away):

“Jack, the library is closed. We can talk later.” 

JACK (angry):

“But Mom! Don’t tell me those damned royals are here right now!!!”

[Caelia hears this off in the distance and looks over. She notices Jack angrily talking to Ms. Poppy. Cassian sees Caelia look over to them. Ms. Poppy starts to push Jack away from the building.]

MS. POPPY (annoyed):

“Now, now, son. We can talk about this later.”

[Jack quickly scans the entire library with his head, searching for anything suspicious.]

JACK (yelling):

“MOM! ARE THEY IN HERE OR NOT?”

[Cassian walks towards the entrance, meeting Ms. Poppy and Jack. Caelia lags behind Cassian, following him. Jack notices a royal is walking towards him.]

JACK - INNER MONOLOGUE:

Black hair… Gray eyes… CAELIA ARDENT? Why the hell is she here???

CASSIAN (kind):

“I apologize for coming over here, but I couldn’t help but to hear your conversation.

[Cassian bows to Jack.]

My name is Cassian Welsh, nice to meet you. I’m helping ar-”

[Jack rudely points his finger at Caelia.]

JACK (interrupts):

“WHY IS SHE HERE?”

MS. POPPY: 

“Jack! 

[Apologetic, Ms. Poppy looks at Caelia.]

I’m sorry, Lady Ardent, my son is being rude right now.”

JACK (furious):

“Mom, do you even know who she is??”

[Ms. Poppy continues to shoo Jack away, successfully driving him out of the building.]

MS. POPPY (annoyed):

“She’s the head designer at the Everhart Palace and she’s helping me out. Now, please go away for a bit and let them work! We can talk later at home, now PLEASE!”

[Caelia felt thankful at that moment as Ms. Poppy also unconditionally supported her.]

JACK (angrily confused):

“What do you mean, head designer?! Caelia Ardent?!”

[Ms. Poppy doesn’t answer him and Jack has a twisted expression on his face as he’s leaving the building, staring directly at Caelia. Ms. Poppy closes the door of the library.]

MS. POPPY (apologetic):

“Lady Ardent, Sir Welsh, I apologize for my son’s behavior. I just closed up the shop so you guys can work freely now.” 

CAELIA - INNER MONOLOGUE:

His hatred runs deep. It makes sense.

CAELIA (empathetic):

“It’s okay Ms. Poppy, I completely understand. 

I also understand if you feel uncomfortable and would like me to leave.” 

[As she was proposing to leave, Caelia was visibly upset. Seeing this, Ms. Poppy warmly smiles at Caelia.]

MS. POPPY (trusting):

“Why would I feel uncomfortable? You’re the head designer! I trust you!”

[Caelia, surprised at that response, felt a quiet happiness in her chest. Feeling touched at Ms. Poppy’s unconditional support, Caelia suddenly thinks of her mother in her past life. Not because Ms. Poppy was acting similarly, but she was acting the complete opposite of how her mom was. She doesn’t remember much about her mom, even forgetting what her face looked like. But the feelings of betrayal and sadness never erased from her chest.]

CAELIA - INNER MONOLOGUE:

Why am I suddenly thinking of her…?

[Caelia looks at Ms. Poppy who still is fully adamant and trusting her, looking at her with intent, trust, and content.]

Maybe it’s because I’ve always wanted to see that look from my mother… Just once… If I had ever seen that, I would never forget her face… 

[Seeing Ms. Poppy like a mother figure she didn’t have, makes Caelia’s heart swell and she smiles at her brightly with tears welling up in her eyes.]

CAELIA (grateful & honest):

“Thank you, Ms. Poppy.”

[Noticing her teary eyed, Cassian looks at her with soft, empathetic eyes.]

───── ⋆⋅⊹⋅⋆ ─────

[Just a bit after that, Caelia and Cassian start measuring the bookshelves. Ms. Poppy sits at one of the tables, watching them work. He measures one bookshelf with a measuring tape and Caelia documents the dimensions in her notebook.]

CASSIAN: 

“Luckily, all of the bookshelves in this building look to be the same design. It makes the work a lot easier for us later.” 

[Caelia ponders as she sketches and writes notes.]

CAELIA (proposing):

“Hmm… It would make it a lot easier but I think we should have different sized bookshelves.”

CASSIAN:

“You mean like kid bookshelves?”

CAELIA (bright and rambling):

“Yeah! We should have a kid friendly section for them so it’s easier for them to grab books. I also think we should make stepstools to grab books, especially for Ms. Poppy who might need more help in grabbing them. OH! AND I think we should find materials similar to the original bookshelves, maybe and try to preserve as much material from the bookshelves as we can?”

[Caelia jots all of her ideas down in her notebook, also sketching in the process. Cassian listens intently as she brightly explains her thought process. A bit surprised that someone could be this passionate about engineering but still claim that she’s “just okay” with it. He slightly laughs to himself and smiles.]

CASSIAN (laughs):

“Yeah! I think those are great ideas! Definitely doable! Although, I’m not sure if we can find exact matches to the old material used.” 

[Noticing he was laughing as she rambled, she pessimistically thinks that he was laughing at her, reminiscent of how she was treated in her past life.]

CAELIA (irritated):

“Why are you laughing? Are you making fun of me?”

CASSIAN (smiles):

“No! I think I can take things too literally sometimes, but your thought process feels very fresh.”

[She looks at him and feels flattered that he complimented the way she thought. And also feels a sense of embarrassment since she immediately took it negatively.]

CAELIA - INNER MONOLOGUE:

He complimented the way I think…? That’s… very nice.

[Ms. Poppy watches the wholesome conversation happen, and she chuckles to herself.]

₊ . ⊹  ݁ ₊‧ . ‿⊱༻✶༺⊰‿ . ‧₊ ݁ ⊹ . ₊ . ⊹  ݁ ₊‧ . ‿⊱༻✶༺⊰‿ . ‧₊ ݁ ⊹ . ₊

[End of Chapter 4 Part 1]