Chapter 63

63 Rejected on Arrival

Alicia covered her tray with fine linen. She did not want anyone to see the disaster she made. Her eyes peeked at the others and they were covering theirs too.

They walked to a long table in front of the podium and placed their trays, each standing in front of the snacks they made.

As they stood in front of the podium, Lady Weslee addressed them;

“We have come to the end of the first test. Lady Beatrice will go on to score your tables, while we wait for the king to arrive.”

She said as Lady Beatrice went to their tables each and scribbled something on a paper.

Daphne couldn’t wait for all of this to be over, so she would go in and sleep.

Not only did she make a pudding that turned out to be salty and terrible, but she also didn’t even clean up her table.

She had failed the test without even starting, her thoughts were caught short when the king walked into the venue with three guards walking behind him. When the audience saw him come in, they stood up and greeted him.

Her heart skipped a beat as she watched him ascend his throne. Lady Weslee walked to him and they talked briefly before she walked to the princesses and addressed them;

.....

“The king is here, you can come forward.” She said to them, but none of them moved, as though afraid of who would go to the king first.

“Princess Alicia! Step forward please.”

Princess Alicia cursed beneath her breath when Lady Weslee called her, how did she single her out from everyone? How much unlucky could she get today?

Emma chuckled as she watched Alicia pick up her tray and Alicia glared at her as she walked forward;

Lady Weslee walked her to the king and took off the linen from the tray in her hands. As soon as the contents came to light, Lady Weslee nearly laughed, but she held herself back.

“Go ahead;” she said to Alicia and Alicia walked forward.

“My king;” Alicia greeted; bowing slightly with the tray in her hands. Zavian’s eyes moved from the tray to the girl’s face and then he waved his hand, motioning Lady Weslee to bring the next Princess forward.

Princess Alicia prayed that the grounds would open and swallow her whole. She couldn’t even lift her head as she walked back to the girls with the tray in her hand.

Some of the Princesses burst out laughing when she returned. They noticed the king did not even touch her snack, but they did not know why until she came back with the burnt offering.

“You must be hilarious to think that the king would put this into his mouth, Alicia,” Lyra said, chuckling.

“Princess Lyra!” Lady Weslee called, wiping the smile off her face. Alicia laughed;

“Let’s see how good your own is now, shall we?” she said as Lyra walked forward.

Lady Weslee opened her tray and on it sat biscuits, well they looked like biscuits.

Zavian stared at it for a second and motioned her to come forward.

Lyra heaved a sigh of relief and she brought her tray to him.

Zavian took a closer look at the biscuits, they weren’t burnt, but they struggled to stay together. Some pieces were even falling apart.

He thought for a minute before taking a bite from one and then he placed it back down and spat it out immediately.

A servant quickly gave him a handkerchief, ad he wiped his lips and waved her to leave.

Lyra bowed and went back to join the others. Alicia was already laughing at her as she watched her come back,

“The king couldn’t even take a bite of it.” She laughed mockingly and Lyra rolled her eyes;

“At least he tasted it; yours was rejected on arrival.”

“Princess Daphne!”

Princess Daphne walked forward with her tray; and returned almost at the same speed Lyra came back with,

“Princess Jasmine!”

Princess Jasmine knew her cake was very hard and burnt on the top, so she sliced it into small pieces and cut off the burnt part.

The king took a piece with a fork and swallowed, then he waved her off.

She came back smiling; at least he swallowed her cake.

Kitana was next. She had made pancakes. It was easy to make so she was done a bit earlier than the rest and cleaned up her table.

When she approached the king, she bowed with a smile. Zavian cut a piece from her tray and ate. He paused and then took another bite.

Her face lit up as the crowd clapped for her. She was the first the king had taken a second bite of her snack.

Kitana couldn’t hold back her excitement as she returned to the Princesses, her head up high.

Princess Emma was next. She made fruit salad so she knew the king would eat from hers. Excitedly, she greeted the king.

Zavian took a few fruits from her plate before waving her off.

Lady Weslee looked at her; she was smart, but she would not win because she did nothing except dice fruits.

“Princess Zelda!” Lady Weslee called last and Zelda picked up her tray and walked forward amidst the low chuckles of the other Princesses.

“Zelda is quite diligent I must say, I thought she would have given up by now.”

Daphe chirped and Alicia laughed;

“I wonder what she made, I hope she didn’t stuff it with some of her fat.”

She mocked and the others laughed. Princess Jasmine was quiet as she stared at them, if only they knew.

When she reached the king, she bowed her head before stretching her tray to him.

Zavian’s eyes took in the sweet placement of the snacks on the tray and the glass cup of orange juice by the side, and it piqued his interest. She was the only one who presented her tray with such etiquette, knowing that a snack should come with something to take it down with.

Zavian took a piece of muffins and bit into it, and he knitted his brows in surprise as the sweet taste filled his mouth.

He had not expected anything special from the Princesses, as they were spoiled all their lives but it was interesting to see that she had taken her time to learn to make something this good.