His words were echoing in my ears as I walked away slightly unsteady, "I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself." His lips tasted like wine and I felt intoxicated when I left his embrace.
While walking down the hall back I kept my hand on my lips, trying to preserve the feeling of Peter's desire. Just on the outside of the doorway to the ballroom, I found both Mother and Ana, Mother was blotting off Ana with a handkerchief when her eyes met mine with pure rage. 'Right, I threw punch on Ana when she tore apart Ella's dress.' I sighed and walked over to face my fate.
Mother stepped in front of Ana and looked at me with a snarl, her nostrils were almost flaring and I thought with her red dress she looked like a dragon about to engulf me in flames.
"How dare you treat your sister this way!
The carriage ride home was silent but the air was heated. Both Ana and Mother were red in the face sitting across from me, staring. I refused to make eye contact with them. I wouldn't look at Ana because I feared she would lunge at me, and I didn't want to look at Mother because I feared rather ridiculously that she would actually turn into a dragon and set me on fire.The carriage finally arrived at the house and Ana was the first one out, she didn't even wait for someone to open the door for her. Mother left next and I was hesitant behind her, taking a deep breath thinking that it may be my last.I finally got the courage to make my way inside. I thought that it was quiet as I approached the door and I hoped that Ana had simply gone upstairs to our room to change. I opened the door and took a step in only to find a lamp being hurled at me. Ana w
*Mature Content*Ana and I had limped our way to the back of the house where we found a half dozen bundles of hay to sleep on. It took some time for us to get comfortable, especially with Ana's foot and my neck both still throbbing in pain from our cuts. Ana complained for a good hour or so when we sat down "Oh shush. At least we aren't sleeping in the mud," I tilted my head a little to point out the fresh mud puddle a short ways from us.I finally came up with an idea for us to fall asleep, "Count the stars.""What?!" Ana brought herself up on her forearm to look at me before continuing her argument. "There's like a million!""Exactly," I chuckled, "It's like counting sheep, but if you did that, you would only count to two
* * *EllaIt has been three weeks since the royal ball and my dance with Prince Charles and not a moment went by when I wasn't daydreaming of the time that we spent together.I was making lunch for everyone when there was a knock on the door. I wiped my hands on my apron and headed to the front to answer it when I saw that Ana had already opened the door. Ever since Ana was put on house arrest she has been more attentive around the house."Good morning madam," I heard a familiar voice greet her and hurried my way to see if my inkling was correct."Mr. Thomas?" I peeked around Ana who was holding the door open."Ah, Ella! How splendid you are here,
*The morning after the ball*Maids and servants started cleaning up the castle from the ball last night as soon as all the guests had left. They found cups and napkins among spilled drinks and lost handkerchiefs. One maid had found a patch of fabric in a light pink color with some golden accents and looked at it thoughtfully. It was too small to be a kerchief so she wondered what it was."Gretchen?" She heard a fellow maid behind her."Good morning, Matilda," she greeted her with a friendly smile."What are you doing out here? I thought you were stationed in the kitchen?""I was just heading that way when this scrap of fabric caught my attention," Gretchen pulled out
* * *EllaDrizella and I were seated inside the carriage across from each other on our way to the castle, each holding a single flower from our bouquets that arrived just two days prior with our invitations for dates; Driz's date was with the handsome palace guard that she hit it off with at the ball, and my date was with the Crown Prince, Charles.We sat in silence for the most part, both daydreaming about what our day held in store. I had never even been on a date before and I wasn't sure about Driz in that, but most of my male friends were elder men who were simply vendors in the village where I would do some needed shopping for food, there was certainly no young man who ever courted me before. I wasn't sure even what to do or say on a date. The way that Anastasia had gotten us all dressed up said that it was a huge de
* * *DrizellaThe greenhouse was at the furthest end of the garden, cleverly hidden by vines that grew up the sides and glass walls that almost made it hard to see."You have your own separate garden?" I asked Peter as we walked closer."Yes, you remember when I mentioned my experiments to create a blue rose?" I nodded my head when he glanced at me and he continued, "this is where I perform those experiments."The term "experiments" slightly frightened me, for some reason the word triggered images in my mind of explosions and mysterious chemicals that made me nervous. We approached the glass door to the greenhouse and stepped inside to see the most colorful array of flowers I had ever seen.
Music suggestion to set the mood:Liszt - Consolation no. 3* * *Ella"I thought that you would appreciate an appropriate dance with the Prince," Charles had said just before we turned into the grand room where the ball was held. It seemed so much bigger now because it was empty, the last time that I was here there were hundreds of guests in attendance dancing or standing around mingling with one another.I looked at the Prince and he smiled before bowing and asking "May I have this dance?" I smiled and placed my hand in his.There was one person standing by a piano who bowed to us before sitting and beginning to play for us. The melody was soft and romantic, and Charles an
As the Prince and Ella danced in the ballroom and were just about to share a tender moment, a maid in the castle had collapsed just outside the doors. Ella and the Prince were the first to run to her aid."Alma, what happened?" It was the Prince who asked this question to the maid who tended to Driz and Ella earlier."I have no idea, your highness. She had said she was feeling warm and so I told her to take the glassware back and then to take a break and moments later she just collapsed," Alma was speaking so fast that it was almost difficult to follow what she was saying, she was hysterical seeing her friend this way.Ella knew she couldn't just stand around staring, she wasted no time rushing to the unconscious maid and feeling her temperature with the back of her hand. "She's burnin