Other than all the servants in the residence, there was one more person whose sharp ears didn’t fail to catch the music coming from the flute. It was a familiar melody that he had heard when he was a kid and he could never forget it.
In the past when Drayce’s mother was still with him, he once heard the same melody coming from the flute somewhere. At that time Drayce had insisted his mother get a flute and play it for him but unfortunately, his wish was left unfulfilled.
Drayce rode the horse towards the Queen’s residence as he was sure from where this music was coming from. Immersed in the memories from the past, he rode as fast as he could and even forgot that he could just teleport there.
While riding, his ears were still focussed on the music and he didn’t even spare a glance to anyone who bowed to him on the way. No one existed for him but that music.
Drayce’s horse stopped inside the surrounding walls of the residence and the moment he stepped down from the horse, everyone bowed to greet their King but when they lifted their heads to look at him, he was gone and there was nothing but the strong gust of wind left behind.
Drayce reached the floor of Seren’s bedchamber where all her servants were standing outside of the study along with Lady Tyra.
Seeing Drayce they all bowed but he looked at no one and strode towards the study from where that music was coming from. Lady Tyra signaled everyone to leave and they all followed her.
Drayce slowly opened the door, not willing to disturb the person who was playing the flute. He stepped inside the study but no one was there. He followed the music and went towards the greenhouse, not making even the slightest of sound.
Reaching the door of the greenhouse, he saw Seren sitting on the swing and was immersed in playing the flute with her eyes closed. Several colorful butterflies from the greenhouse had gathered around her and were moving in a circle forming a whirl, which reached the dome-shaped top of the greenhouse, making it look like a colorful painting on the glass.
Her entire self was emitting visible energy as she was elegantly playing the flute. She looked like a goddess, whom nature was ready to greet. She looked so immersed in her own different world that she was not even aware of what kind of effect she had caused by simply playing this flute.
Drayce couldn’t help but continue looking at her in a daze. The view in front of him was so enticing that one could not take their eyes off it.
His wife was not an ordinary person, even the music played by her had turned everything into a pleasant dream. A dream that looked too good to be true.
After a while, Seren finally stopped playing the flute, not being aware that someone had been here for a long time, admiring her and the music she played. The moment she stopped playing, all the butterflies around her dispersed all over the place, and the energy emitting from her disappeared in a moment.
Finally feeling at peace, she opened her eyes, only to see Drayce, who was standing in front of her but there was some distance between them.
Not knowing what to feel about it as he had seen her playing the flute, she stood up silently and bowed to him, “Greetings, Your Majesty.”
Drayce was still looking at her calmly which worried her, ‘Did he not like that I had touched what belonged to his mother? Have I committed a mistake? Is he angry about it? Have I just reminded him about sad memories from the past? Lady Tyra said his mother couldn’t play it for him. Have I hurt him?’
When she was busy thinking all this, Drayce stepped towards her and stood facing her which worried her even more and she lowered her head.
Drayce raised his hand to tuck the loose strands of hair behind her ear as he called her, “My Queen.”
Seren looked at him. His eyes carried gentleness and affection only meant for her.
‘He is not angry,’ she concluded by reading the emotions in his eyes and heard him praising her, “My Queen, I did not know you can play the flute so beautifully.”
She felt happy that he praised her as her eyes turned bright with it, “Did you like it, Your Majesty?”
Drayce nodded, “You should play it often.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.” She felt unexplainable happiness hearing his praise.
“Did you like it here, My Queen?” he asked again and she immediately nodded, “Yes, Your Majesty.”
Drayce held her hand and took her towards the glass wall of the greenhouse and looked outside. “When I was a kid, I used to spend an entire day here.”
“Did you like this place too?” she asked.
“More than the place I liked the person who used to be here,” he replied.
Seren understood who he was talking about. ‘Will it be fine to mention about his mother?’ she wondered.
Just as she thought, she heard Drayce, “My mother. Everything here still reflects her existence. Everything is still the same.”
Seren was still holding that flute in her hand and realized she had touched his mother’s things without his permission. “This flute…I”
As if he understood what she meant, he said, “You can take it as a gift from my mother.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty. I will make sure to take care of it always,” she assured, knowing how precious it must be for him after knowing the entire story from Lady Tyra.
“But, in exchange, my Queen has to play it for me whenever I ask you to.”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” she agreed easily.
He was always so good to her and took care of her but she could never do anything for him, so she thought she could do at least one thing for him.
After a short pause, Drayce asked, “My Queen, may I know who had taught you this particular melody?”
“No one,” she replied.
It surprised him, “No one? Then have you learned to play the flute on your own?”
“Martha had taught me how to play the flute but this melody came out on its own,” she replied.
“Maybe you must have heard it somewhere?” Drayce suggested.
“Not sure but as long as I remember, I never heard or saw anyone playing flute in front of me other than Martha, who always played a few simple melodies,” she replied.
Though Drayce had so many questions in his mind, he didn’t insist on her remembering it. He was sure she was away from the rest of the world to know anything from outside the tower she lived in, but playing this same melody on flute without listening to it even once, raised a lot of questions in his mind.
“Do you wish to stay here, My Queen?” he asked.
“No, I have to read all those books sent by Your Majesty. I should go to my study,” she informed him.
Drayce cleared his throat as a light smile was painted on his lips but he didn’t wish to tease her about anything right now. He didn’t wish to make her conscious about anything so soon.
“Let’s leave then,” he suggested and the two left the greenhouse.
Seren went towards the shelf to carefully keep that flute back in its place while Drayce sat on the cushioned sofa kept in the study, a few feet away from her study table, as he observed her.
Drayce remembered the sight from earlier when Seren was playing that flute. A lot of questions were raised in his mind, for which he still had no answers.
‘What is her true identity? She sure did not look like the woman who I had known all this while. How can she play the same melody that she never heard of and I had heard a long time ago? I have searched for every musician who is an expert in playing the flute but no one could ever play this one melody. That woman in the forest…..”
Drayce remembered those memories from the past when he heard that flute melody for the first and the last time in his life. He and his mother once went to the forest to get some rare wild berries that she loved to pick on her own. Accompanying her was Drayce’s favorite activity to do.
“Mother, these berries are so sweet,” little Drayce said to his mother.
“Do you like them?”
“What mother likes, I like it too,” he replied happily.
“But we are not here to get berries only. We need to get some rare herbs that can be only found in this forest,” she replied.
“Yes, mother,” he agreed and started to search for the herbs that his mother always used to search and he was aware of how to find them.
While searching, he stepped a bit far away from his mother. Just as he realized and was about to return back, little Drayce heard the sound of the flute that made him stop in his tracks. He liked that pleasant melody and followed the sound without thinking much about it.
After a while, he saw a woman in a beautiful long white dress sitting on the fallen tree trunk and was playing the flute. She was sitting with her back facing him and he couldn’t see her face. All he could see was her long red hair moving along with the breeze and her entire body emitting strong energy. Birds and butterflies gathered around her and even the animals around turned calm and looked dazed by the music coming from the flute.
“Dray, what are you doing here?” His mother called him and he turned to look at her. “Mother, who is that woman?” he questioned.
“Who?” his mother asked.
“The woman playing the flute?” he asked and looked at where that woman was sitting but there was no one. “There was a woman…”
“She must have left?” his mother replied.
Drayce nodded disappointingly and asked, “Mother, did you hear the sound of the flute?”
“Yes, I did.”
“I liked it. Can mother play it for me?” he asked, his innocent eyes, full of hope.
“Anything for my son,” she said, smiling pleasantly.
The sound of the wooden box closing brought him back to his senses and he looked at Seren who was walking towards him.
‘She looked the same as that woman when she was playing the flute. Is there any relationship between the two?’ he wondered.
