Unable to do anything, thinking the reason was because he was the Crowned Prince and Royal heir to the throne of Setchra, I could only just stand there and be in his embrace. But really, was that just an excuse?

I was still stopping my arms from reaching for him! I was wanting to close my eyes and taken in everything he wanted to give me…It was really getting quite difficult!

For a while, it seems he had slowly taken down the walls and boundaries we had set for ourselves and he was climbing the stairs or something into my territory!

And…If I was honest, it was really working!

The gardenia’s, his teasing, his smirks and chuckles. His attention and the slow attentive gestures…If I were truthful with myself, he had broken nearly everything down that I had put up!

Yet, at the same time, my head was stating this type of behavior was no good, that I knew I was leaving, that nothing can happen here…It just seems my heart was saying otherwise, yet, how could I let my heart show me the way!?

Why wasn’t I rushing to be released? Why, do I like this so much, when I know I shouldn’t!?

From a long time ago, I had known that he was not a man that I would want to be with!

He was someone that wanted the world and even though he was handsome, I could not give in to him…

I was but a commoner, a tradesman’s daughter.

He was better off being with his second wife…

Just as he put a hand to my face and guided it up, so that I could see his face, I let the words out in a second breath, “You should see your other wife, Your Highness.”

 

There wasn’t much change to him, other then a deep breath that was let out.

He caressed my cheek and then stood back from me, “Very well.”

After he left, I fell down, unable to stand but finally able to breath properly again!

It was like he sucked all the oxygen away!

He was a scary man!

Someone that did not match me at all!

I was…

After a moment of relapse, I then pointed my chin and thought, I was leaving!

I just didn’t know how yet…

Putting my head against the bed, I sighed…I had to find a way to get out of here…I was crumbling…I could feel it!

‘Olivia’

I picked up a pillow and yelled into it, the muffles not making it outside of the room, “Dam you, Warmonger, dam you to hell! I am not going to like you! I am adamant that I won’t like you!”

Yet…I still felt his warmth, I still felt his lips…And, it seemed that him saying my name was not going to disappear anytime soon!

It seemed that I had to become a maid again, that I needed to work and let some of this stress out!

 

***

 

“Please Princess…”

Diane’s normal plea was cute. I touched her nose and then saw a slight graze near her jaw, “Maybe if you stay here, you will get better at sewing and won’t hurt yourself anymore!”

Seeing that the area was a bit red, looking a bit strange even, I turned and gave her some ointment, “This should help!”

I heard her sigh, “Princess…”

Putting on the maid’s outfit, I turned back to her and said, “Practice, make me something for me and I’ll see how much it would sell for!”

For a change, Diane didn’t say anything and nodded.

I nodded myself and happily put on makeup and left, leaving her to do as she normally does.

Thinking back, I wish I had stayed, perhaps I might have seen something different and could have done something, but I had absolutely no idea…

 

All was normal, right up until the afternoon…Then not long after that, my life went crazy…

Diane and I switched, there had been nothing strange about it.

I went to the maid’s quarters and worked, which was normal.

I was busy doing my chores, when I felt like quite a number of people were racing around and acting strangely…

Since I prefer to look after my own business, I kept doing my job, not wanting to put my nose into a problem that would get everyone frantic like this!

I’ll find out later and yes, I was looking forward to it! But finding out in the process where there were so many people scampering about and what not, was not my cup of tea!

I finished my job, normal…And something else was good too! I felt better!

After that…Well, I’m not saying it…After that, I really did need to get up at the break of dawn and work my heart out! My stress had deteriorated now, and I felt much better!

If the Warmonger came up to me now, I’d be perfectly fine…Just fine…Well, I’d mostly be fine!

It didn’t help that his voice saying my name and that kiss was still on my mind, but I felt a lot more stronger now then I had back then…

 

Thinking these thoughts, I did my normal routine of coming back to my quarters, in the Crowned Princess’s residence, and found a lot of people walking around.

Hiding immediately, I checked outside of the hedge that I was hiding in and continued to watch from a distance…

What was going on?

Within five minutes, I was completely stunned!

People started to cry, whether their tears were real, or fake, was another question, but they were crying nonetheless…

Then it came to light the reason why people were here and crying…

Apparently, the Princess, me…Was dead!

 

Being stunned, I had no idea on how much time went by, but a loud booming voice broke me out of it…

“Olivia!”

Widening my eyes, I was surprised to hear a voice so scared and alarmed…

It was the Warmonger…

Stunned into a strange type of silence, I heard his muffled voice and felt something hurting in my chest.

His voice was…It was like…

I didn’t know what to think of his voice, I just knew that the Warmonger was sad, and I didn’t seem to like that…

Seeing people scatter around again, I was able to come out of my thoughts and feelings and started to see how dire this situation really was!

Being unable to get out of my hiding place, especially since I was still in a maid’s uniform, I was starting to get worried that this would become real!

What would I do then!?

I had always changed clothes and makeup in my quarters, but in those quarters, it seems that a body showed the Princess as dead…

If I walked out in Princess clothes right now, it could probably be all settled…After all, it wouldn’t be the first time someone had used a body double for someone that was royalty…But how could I do that?

Narrowing my eyes, I come up with an idea and quickly tried to think of if it’ll work.

I’d have to sneak into the weasel’s quarters, without being seen, and try to take one of her dresses but…

Frowning, I was sure that not only would the dress not fit me, but it might be obvious that the dress was hers and they might have doubts to say that I was the real Crowned Princess, which brings me back to here!

What should I do!?

 

Diane could…

…Oh…Right…

Again, I was stunned. I fell back on my bum, still hidden behind the hedge, and realized that Diane was gone…

Finally, it all clicked, that…I was alone…

How…How did she die? Who killed her?

Thinking of her, I remembered her so clearly from just this morning and felt like I hadn’t seen anything off…Well, except for that scrape upon her jaw…It did look a little bad but…Could it have caused death!?

I…I don’t think I’ve heard of a small scrape of a cut cause something like this ever in my life…

What if she had drunk poison, or she had been assassinated!? Is there any kind of knife injuries? Is there any blackness on the skin like what poison would do?

The doctors, or physicians, really must have thought that she had been fine just moments ago, otherwise wouldn’t they have taken her out of the palace?

Maybe…Maybe she wasn’t dead? But…I doubt this would be a play, even the Crowned Prince seemed to be worried and told to get out of the room…

Was it that they were investigating or were they cleaning up? Was she…

What…What was going on!?

Truly, I had no idea upon what had happened…I really didn’t know what to think…All I knew and was certain off…Was that my only friend could possibly be gone…Yet, I had no way at the moment to find out!

 

Finally, being able to question things, I am brought back to reality and try to peak through the hedge again.

“This is not a place to be peaking into! Go and do your work!”

Looking up, I see a guard looking at me angrily.

Standing up, I bob and quickly turn…

But…

I stopped walking and felt completely lost, where should I go?

I never spent the night away from the Crowned Princess quarters…This was the very first time that I’d been caught in this predicament!

I had never had to come up with an idea for this sudden occurrence!

For a slight moment, I realized how comfortable and how much I took for granted my position of being the Princess…

“Don’t let me say it again! If you refuse to leave and go back, I will bring you back myself and with that, punishment!”

It was the same guard speaking angrily to me and it was enough for me to leave…

Yet, as someone stuck in the palace and dressed as a maid, the only place I could go to was to the maid’s quarters…

That was it! I had no other choice or option…But…It didn’t seem to phase me as much I thought it would. I guess I wasn’t ready to accept my new fate at the moment and I wasn’t even completely aware of the entire trip there, as I was worried and scared about my friend.

 

What if I had stayed as the Princess this day? Would I have been able to help her? Would I instead be the one that might have dead?

Chills went down my spine at the thought of my live ending today…That…I would never find my father. That I wouldn’t know if he was alright. Then…If I had died…

Feelings that I had tried to suppress emerged and I felt a pain flow through me for even picturing the Crowned Prince in my head.

Suddenly, having thought of the potential death that I could have had, I felt like I would leave something behind…That I was regretting a circumstance but was unsure as to what that circumstance was…

Remembering his arms around me and his words, I felt a strange sorrowful feeling overcome me and I suddenly felt immense relief that I had not died today. That I was still alive, that I could still find my father and be able to…Be able to what…

In my thoughts, I guess there was something I felt like I had to do with the Warmonger, making me think that it was to say goodbye and even possibly thank him. Was that what I would regret?

I couldn’t wrap myself around it! And honestly, I was scared!

Had I let my friend down just because I needed to de-stress and had become a maid for the day? Had I been in my own world and been too selfish? What if she had really taken my place and died instead of me!?

I felt terrible…I felt horrible!

I wished I could do what’s right, take my place and have taken the burden of what had happened to Diane instead, but…At the same time, I was very grateful that I was still alive!

 

***

 

Being able to use the other maids being in a scatter, I was able to get into the quarters and hide away near some beds in a corner…

But…

I can’t keep this up all the time…

What am I going to do!?

For the life of me, my curiosity was high over what was going on with Diane, but I knew I shouldn’t go anywhere near the Crowned Princess’s residence at the moment…

But, what…What will happen to me now!?

As much as I cared about Diane, I realized another big predicament!

I can’t go back to being the Crowned Princess! I can’t even go back to being the Crowned Princess’s maid!

I had no master now…I was a maid…Stuck inside the palace…

 

Hang on…Isn’t this something that I could take advantage of? It’s not like I wished Diane to die but since it has happened this way a new idea started to form…

Wouldn’t I be able to leave the palace, now that I wasn’t the Princess? Would I have more of a chance now to find my father?

Blinking frantically to my new-found solution to this mess, I took a deep breath and believed that I should take this chance to try and leave!

Well, I don’t really have a choice now, do I!?

I have no makeup, so I can’t take the identity that I usually take when I’m a maid. I can’t cover up my face, which is the face of the Princess…No, I need to get out of here before I’m found out!

But what am I to do in the meantime then? Something so that they won’t know that I’m the Crowned Princess?

Seeing my hands dirty, I rubbed them over my face, in hope that my identity won’t be found out. It was really all I could do right now!

But, could I really keep this up!? Dirty maids weren’t well looked upon and were given dirty jobs but…It wasn’t like I had any other choice! How many of them had seen me before?

 

…I really don’t know…I can’t remember many of them around when I was the Crowned Princess but, what if one or two of them remembered what I looked like? Then, when I’m out, how many others knew?

Sighing, my hands flopped down, and I felt my eyes go a bit blurry, I really…I really had never ever thought something like this was to happen…

I must have been a lot more comfortable then I had thought…

The life of the Crowned Princess might have been something that I tried not to like but, being honest with myself, I liked never having to go hungry, having soft hair and soft skin. I liked a Prince doting on me and fighting with him like I’ve seen other married couples do…I guess, only in this moment realized how much I liked my life. I was even getting ready to fight back with the vixen and the weasel, I was using Diane and happily being who I was to a Crowned Prince, getting angry at him and glaring at him like he was an evil doer!

Was I a fool? Did I forget that I was a commoner and shouldn’t have gotten used to this life!?

Hearing noise coming towards the quarters, my thoughts seized…

Seeing a few maids come in, I quickly hid my head and pretended to sleep…

 

“It was bound to happen. I just didn’t think it would end like this for the Princess…It was only yesterday that she was healthy!” A maid said.

Another voice sounded, as though it was coming in the door, “How gruesome! Did you hear how disgusting the air smelt? Apparently, it was like she’d been dead for days!”

“Mmm, to die like that would have been terribly painful. I heard that it was too quick for them to even take her out of the palace. As soon as they saw what was happening to her, it was said that it was too late!”

I clenched my fists, trying not to move…This information saddened me…

It seemed that…Diane was really gone…

I didn’t want to believe these maids, because it looked like they weren’t even there at the place of Diane’s potential death scene, but…

 

What saddened me more, is that I should have left earlier from work today, or not been a maid at all…

Wouldn’t Diane still be alive then? She would live a longer life and maybe even have happiness…She might have married and had babies! She might have stopped being a maid and found a great place somewhere!

…I really felt like I had ended her life…

Who killed her? Or…What did she die from?

“His Highness the Crowned Prince put on a fine act, at least it will be known that he had valued her. Perhaps now Her Highness Lady May will produce the next Crowned Prince.”

“Hush, you know you can’t speak like that!” This was a third maid’s voice…

These maids were pissing me off!

“His Highness had been married to his first wife for many years, but she had never given him anything. You could probably say that she deserved to die!”

“Enough! Don’t let the Head Mistress catch you speaking of this!”

A few maids were now here, and I heard them all go silent.

 

It was a minute after that, that I felt a tear fall down my cheek and I rushed to wipe it away.

“Who are you?”

Suddenly I was yanked to the side and I let out a small yelp.

Looking up to the maid in front of me, and another to the side, I wiped my face and nodded briefly, “I, uh…”

Honestly, my brain was not functioning…I was speechless…

Too much was happening and before I knew it, I was looking at the ground.

“Tell us, who are you?”

“I’ve seen her before, isn’t that Madeline?”

“Madeline? Neither of us had seen her for days…”

I didn’t speak to the maids, who were discussing my identity. A short place in my mind started working and thought that this might be a good time to let them answer their own question anyway. Because I had no idea upon who I was now!

Yet…The rest of my mind was still scattered to the wind with endless worry for Diane and what had happened today…

My head was jerked up and I looked at the maid, who looked back at me intently, “Madeline? You…”

To be honest, I wasn’t completely sure who Madeline was…

“She’s just a bit dirty, but I think it’s her.”

“Did she get kicked out from serving Lady Venus?”

Uh? No…Wait, I don’t want to be Madeline anymore!