That night before Lila entered her room, she promised herself that no gossip the maids or servants came up with would make her leave this job. Now however, she wasn't so sure about keeping that resolve…

"Well, well, if is not the horse faced seductress." Tam greeted with smirk.

Lila rolled her eyes. "All I did was answer the King when he addressed me."

"Yes, but he mentioned speaking to you the other day, which means you are trying to make yourself quite noticeable. And then when the King left your presence you so quickly moved to speaking with the young tutor! Again!!"

Lila blushed more wildly then she ever had before, remembering the night Bartholomew had come to their aid against the guards.

"W-What is that supposed to mean?" She demanded.

Tam crossed her arms. "Oh Lila, it is so obvious that you so desperately wish to seduce the King or his well to do tutor. Poor girl, to think you would stoop so low just for some attention!"

Lila scowled. "I have done no such thing nor do I ever have any intention of doing so!"

Tam scoffed. "Lila, everyone saw you today."

"Yeah Lila, we were there too!" One girl said.

"Why are you trying to hide it now? Just face it already!" Another girl said.

Lila couldn't even believe it! Were these girls honestly choosing this as their gossip topic? Rumors of this nature were even worse than she had imagined!

Tam shook her head. "Lila, no man would ever fall for your pathetic charms or plain looks you know. Least of all someone as handsome and rich as the King or his tutor!"

Lila clenched her hand into a fist, ready to punch this girl as hard as she could. Luckily though, Daphne grabbed her by the arm.

"Lila, just ignore them. They are not worth it!" She said gently.

Lila let out a long sigh and relaxed her hand. Her friend was right, that was probably the best thing to do. There was no point in starting a fight and getting sent home over such ridiculous rumors.

That night the rest of the girls stayed up gossiping about her loudly, making up their own tales and motives and laughing the whole time. Lila ended up putting her pillow over her head, trying to drown out their silly talk. However, over the next few day things went beyond the point of merely being able to ignore her own defaming. Tam personally took pride in leading the gossip to every corner of the castle, spreading it to every and any person she knew. Whenever Lila passed by someone they giggled or started whispering about her. Sometimes the maids shouted foul names or even threatened to throw the mop water at her. She had never been so humiliated in her whole life!

As each day went by something new and embarrassing would come up, but with every fiber in her soul Lila refused to give into the urge to run away and return home. Since her father's health depended on this money, she could not just give up for her own sake. She would just have to continue trying to ignore the gossip as best she could. Daphne proved to be a lifesaver in all this, as she chose to stick by her side and remain kind, despite being dragged into some of the rumors with her.

After one week of rumors the majority of people seemed to move onto other gossip. By week two, most people seemed to forget there even was a mass amount of rumors about her, and by week three it was finally quiet enough for Lila to let herself relax. Despite Tam's best efforts to keep the gossip going it seemed Lila's antics had simply gotten old. New topics and stories were always catching people's attention, and now it was nearly like it had never even happened before. Even so, Daphne and she preferred to continue working separate from the rest of the maids. It was an easy task, and solitude was a small price to pay in order to avoid such embarrassing drama again.

Also, much to Lila’s relief, neither the King nor young tutor had appeared to her again. She still wasn’t sure why she had caught their attention in the first place, but she was glad to be over with it. Never did she wish to be thrown into such turmoil ever again! From now on she just wanted to remain as she always should have been: invisible.

******

"That is enough, I am tired!" Westan snapped, pushing a pile of books off the table.

Everyone in the study room was startled by the noise. Mr. Jameson stopped speaking to gaze at him warily.

"V-very well sire, as you wish. We can conclude for the day." He said with a bow.

"Good." Westan mumbled as he stood up to leave.

Ever since his talk with Zaccheus he decided to give up on his sessions again. If he could not enjoy the company of his tutors, then he felt no reason to make them feel welcome enough to stay. Since he could not sit out in the garden anymore Westan did not even have to fake the frustration he was feeling.

"My Lord, you looked quite vexed today. Is there anything we can do to help you relax?" Bartholomew suddenly asked gently.

He looked at the boy and saw his eyes were full of true concern. He wanted to convey his thoughts, to voice his complaints even, but Westan was not supposed to discuss anything other than his studies with his teachers, so he did not see any point in bringing up the rest. He just turned away and left the room, completely ignoring the boy’s questions. Then he headed straight out to the garden to take a lonely ride with Dark Oak before the sun set. Afterwards he returned to his chambers for the night, eating supper by himself again.

He truly hated being King…