The Debt Of Fate
Chapter 68: Befriend her

Chapter 68: Befriend her

The two got along well and went to eat their lunch together. Anastasia and Rosalind discovered that they had similar tastes.

After eating, Rosalind led the way to her music room. Anastasia smiled when she saw the different musical instruments.

"The last time at the party, you played the virginals so well. Do you play any other musical instruments?" Rosalind asked as they entered the room.

"Yes, I play the viola da gamba and also a little lute," Anastasia answered. The reason she had decided to play the virginal that day was because Elizabeth had just finished performing. While she wanted to shine, she did not want a direct comparison between her skills and Elizabeth’s. So playing a different instrument was the better choice.

"Wow, you are amazing," Rosalind praised.

"You have five musical instruments here. I’m sure you know how to play them all. You are praising me too highly," Anastasia said.

"I just know a little of everything," Rosalind replied, feeling embarrassed. She loved music, so she had learned different musical instruments.

"Oh? Then how about I have the honor of listening to you play?" Anastasia said. She did not believe Rosalind’s skills were as basic as she claimed.

"Then, what would you like to listen to?" Rosalind asked eagerly.

"How about your best piece?" Anastasia answered after a short pause.

"Alright, I play the virginal best," Rosalind said and took her seat behind the instrument.

Anastasia looked for a place to sit and listen to Rosalind play. Rosalind ran her hands over the keys and adjusted them to the tune she wanted. Then her fingers glided across the strings with familiarity, playing a simple yet beautiful melody.

Anastasia closed her eyes and listened with a smile. She had been right, Rosalind’s playing skills were excellent. She even felt they might be better than her own.

When Rosalind finished playing, Anastasia clapped with a smile.

"Listening to you play, I almost want to become your student," Anastasia said.

"You praise me too much. I also thought of becoming your student after hearing you play at the party," Rosalind replied.

"Then how about we teach each other?" Anastasia suggested.

"That’s a good idea! You teach me the tune you played at the party, and I will teach you my favorite piece," Rosalind agreed.

"That’s great!" The two were just about to start sharing ideas when there was a knock on the door.

"My lady, Lady Williams and your sisters are here to see you," the maid outside announced.

"Tell them I’m—" Rosalind was about to refuse the visit when she remembered Anastasia was still present. No matter how unwilling she was, she had to act properly. "Okay, I will be out shortly," she said, forced to agree. But Anastasia could still tell she was reluctant.

"You go ahead, I’ll just stay here and play," Anastasia said. She was not interested in watching other people’s family drama.

"Alright, I’ll be back shortly," Rosalind said and stepped out of the room. Anastasia smiled and decided to play the viola da gamba while waiting.

Meanwhile, Rosalind walked to the receiving room and saw her stepmother with her twin daughters.

"Lady Williams. Sisters," Rosalind greeted.

Lady Williams smiled and nodded. "I heard you have a visitor today," she said.

"Yes, she is the new friend I met at the party last time," Rosalind replied.

"Oh! I heard she is the future crown princess," Lady Williams said with a kind motherly smile. In truth, she had never done anything to harm Rosalind, but a stepmother was always different from a real mother. It was impossible for her not to be partial toward her own children. Whenever conflicts arose between the girls, if her daughters were at fault, she would try to settle it as simply as possible. But when Rosalind was at fault, she would always make things difficult.

"Yes," Rosalind answered. She had long accepted that she had no mother, so she had learned not to compete with the twins. This way, she could live a more peaceful life.

"Ah! Such an important guest; why didn’t you tell me? I should have arrived earlier to welcome her," Lady Williams said.

"Well, she is here today as my friend. I didn’t think it was that serious," Rosalind replied. She never invited anyone home and she did not think her stepmother would be willing to meet her friend.

Lady Williams continued to smile. The relationship between her and her stepdaughter had never been close, but there was no hostility between them either.

"Even if she is just visiting as a friend, we should still follow proper etiquette. Besides, you have two younger sisters at home. It would be good for all of you to be friends with the future crown princess. That way, you could become her ladies-in-waiting at court after her marriage. This would be a blessing to the entire family," Lady Williams said.

Rosalind smiled. She had not become friends with Anastasia in hopes of joining her court in the future. She simply felt they had similar personalities and could get along.

"It’s not me standing in their way of making friends with Lady Anastasia. They also attended Lady Augusta’s party. They were the ones who looked down on her. I wasn’t sure they would want to be her friends," Rosalind said. She knew how much her step sisters liked to compete.

Whenever her sisters brought their friends home, she never tried to join them, nor had they ever invited her.

Lady Williams smiled awkwardly. At that time, no one had known that Anastasia would marry the crown prince. Perhaps her daughters had not considered her worthy of their friendship then, but things were different now.

Just as Lady Williams was thinking of how to smooth things over, they heard Anastasia playing the viola da gamba.

"Such skill! How about we go watch Lady Anastasia play?" one of the sisters suggested, seizing the opportunity to meet her.

At the party, they had believed the rumors about Anastasia and had not tried to befriend her. Now that she was at their house, of course, they wanted to.

Rosalind had no way to refuse them, so she allowed them to follow her back to the music room.

Anastasia, lost in the music, had her eyes closed and did not notice when more people entered.

"She plays the viola da gamba even better than the virginals," one sister whispered, and the other nodded in agreement.

The tune was so beautiful that they stopped talking and simply listened.

Anastasia struck the last note, and tears slipped down her cheeks. This was the piece her mother had taught her before her death.

Her eyes remained closed as she tried to calm her emotions. Just then, the people in the room started clapping. The sudden applause made her open her eyes, and she felt slightly embarrassed that she had not noticed others entering.

"You play the viola da gamba so well," Rosalind said, feeling that she had chosen the best person to be her friend.

"My skills are getting worse. It’s been a long time since I played," Anastasia replied.