As the mid-summer sun drew itself across the sky, Hyla of Nikolaos was not all that surprised to find himself wandering through the Palati. Some men in Athenia never had a chance to enter the prestigious building that only welcomed the upper crusts of society into its walls and others firmed believed that its doors should be locked to the likes of him. After all, Hyla was not known within the courts for his pristine behavior as a nobleman. Instead, he was a known troublemaker, a boy who was more fond of pulling pranks on helpless men and women than upholding his own family’s legacy. He was a musician born into a world that had no tolerance for their children making careers out of the arts and his outgoing personality would only be able to lead him as far in life as the charity of the Antonis family would extend. Surely, some of the more of the elite members of the nobility would not have been pleased with the fact that a walking disappointment like Hyla was left unsupervised in the halls of the greatest building in all of Greece.

But luckily for him, none of those who spoke against him were here right now. Nor did they have the same entitlements that he did that gave the boy free access to this building. After all, he was the third son of the first branch of the Nikolaos family, the more prestigious of the King’s few baronies. His family was filled to the brim with scholars, merchants, and politicians who have all built a legacy that could not be ignored nor denied to the youngest son. If this alone was not enough, Hyla was also the young retainer to the kingdom’s next heir, Alehandros of Antonis, which was the main reason that the young nobleman was here in the first place.

With seemingly no direction in life, it had been arranged just over six years ago that the Nikolaos’s youngest son would work for Alehandros, in the hopes of placing the boy on the right path for once in his life. This was a failure in the eyes of outsiders, who still only saw the imp of a twelve-year-old in the young man. What they didn’t see though was that the boy had changed. Over the course of six years, he had matured quite a bit and even though he was still just as much the music-loving prankster he had been at twelve-year-old, he was not a refined courtier who could very easily be on his way to becoming an advisor to the crown, especially given his already strong connections to it.

However, as strong as his connections were to the king and how much he flourished underneath the guidance of Alehandros, there were still certain things he was not to be trusted with. This included being privy to certain meetings between his mentor and the king, which was why the Nikolaos was here in the first place.

These sort of meetings were not that uncommon, given that Alehandros was the Xanthos’s kings closest living male heir. For the most part, Hyla was allowed to attend as well, just as long as he remained quiet and understood that he was only there to observe. However, more often than not, as his mentor was more father-figure than an employer, his opinion was asked to be brought forward on different issues. It was more of a test rather than a serious consultation, but he usually passed with flying colors thanks to both his strong background in the intellectual arts and what he had learned from Alehandros. This was also a brilliant way of guiding the boy in the direction he needed, especially as it allowed for Hyla to still be himself. Not constraining him to fit some sort of mold for young noblemen was probably the biggest reason as to why Hyla was flourishing underneath the Antonis’s wing.

But there was always a point in the meetings where he would have to be sent away as he was still not experienced enough to be welcomed into what was going to be discussed. It annoyed Hyla somewhat as he interpreted it as him not being trustworthy enough to continue listening, but there wasn’t much he could do. When the king said it was a sensitive matter, there was no questioning him. That was what happened this afternoon and it was why Hyla was currently roaming the palati, searching for something to occupy his time as he waited for his mentor to leave the King’s company.

Unfortunately for the young boy, the whole palati seemed to be busier than a hive of bees as countless servants raced from room to room, preparing for some sort of event that Hyla was unaware of. All he could tell was that whatever it was… it certainly needed a lot of green as every room in the palati was suddenly covered in the shade. Hyla may not have been an expert in color theory, but even he had to admit that it didn’t fare well with the black and white it was being accompanied by. It was far too bright and flashy for his tastes, no matter the shade.

As curious as he was for the reasoning for such hurried decorations, no one seemed to be keen on allowing the youngest Nikolaos boy to linger for too long. He was shooed out of every room he was spotted in and his mere presence drove the chief of staff so far up the wall that he had even gone as far as to send Hyla outside of the walls of the building with the firm instructions that he was not to be allowed back inside unless he was accompanied by Alehandros or another member of the royal family. This action insulted him and wounded his pride greatly. After all, he had never been kicked out before, no matter how much he had deserved it when he was younger, and it seemed rather unjust to do so because he was asking questions as to why there was such a big fuss over everything, to begin with. They couldn’t just do this to him. After all, he was a Nikolaos and a ward of the Antonis household to boot. He should be welcomed without question!

However, the chief of staff apparently had enough clout to keep him out and Hyla couldn’t sneak back in, no matter how hard he tried. So, he had no choice, but to wander the gardens and wait for Alehandros to reappear, hoping against hope that the man wouldn’t be too angry with the boy for being sent out. All he could do was grumble to himself as he wandered throughout the gardens, annoyed at his current circumstances.

Though, his frustration softened a bit when the stray notes of harp could be heard, the further into the garden he wandered. As he was a music lover himself and was hardly seen without his Kithara or syrinx when he wasn’t required to be at Alehandros’s side, it was natural that this piqued his interest. His feet turned in the direction of the sound and within a few moments he found out who was playing the instrument out here in the gardens; Princess Emilia of Xanthos.

He chuckled a bit at the mere sight of her, barefoot at the statue of an Adonis who was broken in a few unfortunate places. The princess herself was dressed beautifully, as always, in her light blue chiton, making him feel almost drab in his moss colored tunic. Ah, well he was not one who cared all that much for personal style outside of court events, not when tunics were practically better than those long chitons he was expected to wear. Though, he doubted that she would mind all that much. The connections that their families shared had ensured that Hyla and the Princess had known each other since she had been born. Thanks to their shared interest in music the two of them have had a rather friendly relationship over the years.

Hyla watched for a moment as she strummed at the harp’s strings, both clearly unaware of his presence and struggling with the piece she was trying to play. Hyla recognized it instantly, knowing it to be a fairly popular tune to hear at parties, but a fairly difficult one to play. Hyla himself had struggled with it for quite a while, but within time he could play it just as well as any traditional musician. Perhaps she might be willing to have some guidance with the piece from an old friend?

“Princess Emilia,” He warmly greeted after clearing his throat so that he might not startle her, “I certainly did not expect to see you here.” As he spoke there was a small grin on his face as his naturally sociable nature made it easy for him to speak with his friend with very little trace of the stiff formalities that many people were expected to have with the second daughter of the king.

Without realizing it, Hyla’s friendly nature started to border on the edge of being somewhat flirty as the conversation continued. It was unwise, given the difference in position and if Hyla’s father knew, he would certainly flay his son alive; but it was just as natural for Hyla as it was to play the harp… and besides it didn’t hurt that as a hopeless romantic, Emilia was fairly receptive to it.

He tilted his head to the side somewhat, his eyes flickering between her own and the harp with a slight smile tugging at his lips. He motioned to the harp in her hands, “Neither did I expect to hear you play a bard’s song so beautifully.” It was true, even though she was rusty, he had to admit that the song was difficult enough that even those who were struggling with it could make their attempts sound wonderful. Though then again, he wasn’t stupid enough to say that it was anything less than that, not when it was the princess holding the instrument. “Did someone--” He said, gesturing back towards the palace, “teach you? Or have you learned it by ear?”

Hyla already knew what the answer would be. The song was near impossible to learn by just hearing it, as that was the secret for the bard’s being able to ensure their business, but Hyla was hoping that he could use it as an opportunity for it to be more natural to offer the princess his help.

After all, it would be rather forward and insulting of him to demand that she allow him to help her. Wouldn’t it?