The stupid dress finally gets done drying, twenty minutes after I was supposed to have brought it to the queen. I sigh loudly and for the first time since my mother’s death I consider swearing aloud, but of course I don’t, instead contenting myself with a barrage of silent swears that coat the inside of my head in thick layers of filth.

If the world only knew. I think in amusement as I run from the room, the beautiful yet ridiculous blue gown folded neatly in my arms.

The hallways are miraculously clear, or at least they are for the first half of my journey, however as soon as I round the corner that will lead me to the stairs I need to take to reach the royal bedchambers, my luck runs out.

Maids rush across the floor in waves as they finish up their preparations for whatever dumb event the queen has planned for tonight. Probably another tea party. I drawl morbidly as I have to dodge a chain of servers on their way to the kitchens.

I make it halfway down the hall before the shoving really starts. Wave upon wave of elbows furiously jutting out to stab whoever is unlucky enough to get in their way. Someone slams into me hard and I stumble to the side, nearly falling over from the force of it.

Another body shoves its way past mine and I feel myself being shoved with enough force to knock the wind out of me. Someone jabs their knee into me from behind and I turn around to glare at them, which only earns me a sheepish grin from the young women who perpetrated the attack.

“Oops sorry.” She says sarcastically before continuing on her way.

I may tower over most of these women, could probably even throw most of them into the air, but against all of them at once, my muscles might as well be soggy bread. It doesn’t matter how strong I am, in this situation, my only chance is to find another way to the stairs.

If I don’t tread carefully here I could end up as a pancake. Women can be very scary when they are all behaving with mob mentality and I know for a fact if I so much as touch one of them without their permission, there is a good chance all of them will turn on me.

Believe me, I watched it happen once. You should never mess with a horde of women on a mission. Not if you value your life.

I weave through the crowd as carefully as I can until I come to an open doorway.

The balcony. Thank The Gods. I think as I make to move through the archway.

Before I even step foot through however, a sharp voice pierces the air. I turn around just in time to see a young woman carrying a heavy load of plates come barreling towards me. It's obvious that she is about to fall, but before I can make a move to help her, three women who are attempting to get out of the way of the crashing dishes, slam into me and I stumble backwards.

My foot catches on the heavy curtain that covers the doorway to the balcony and I fall backwards. I feel myself slam into someone as I fall and hear a startled yelp before I hit the ground. I have just enough time to glance up, my eyes locking with the person I crashed into, before the banister they were shoved into gives way and they tumble off the balcony.

I am on my feet in an instant, heart in my throat as I look down at the ground and the body that lays crumpled at the bottom. Oh Gods, oh Gods, oh Gods. My mind races and I stand completely frozen, unable to do anything but stare.

Of all the stupid clumsy sons of Kings that could have been standing on the other side of the curtain, why did it have to be the flipping spoiled prince of the Cremora Empire?