The dark sky of the Moonlight Pack was clear, but the air felt remarkably tight around the palace walls. Azure stood alone on her bedchamber balcony, her hair catching the cool evening breeze. She stared up at the glowing crescent moon, a small, calculating smile resting on her lips before her gaze drifted down to the stone courtyard below.
A few guards were rotating their positions across the gravel, and near the far edge of the grounds, two young servants, a boy and a girl—were working together to carry a long wooden board toward the kitchen quarters.
"You two," Azure called out, her voice cutting smoothly through the quiet air.
The children froze, their heads snapping upward in unison.
"What is that board being used for?" Azure asked, leaning slightly over the stone railing.
The boy glanced nervously at the girl, then back up at the balcony, shifting the weight of the timber in his small hands. "It is for nothing important, Lady Azure. Just repairs for the storage room."
