She could barely stand straight, although her stature was quite petite.

The width was also extraordinarily narrow in certain points; only at the most spacious point of the tiny room she could fully stretch her arms. 

The more the room got longer towards its left, the narrower it got, till a small arch leaded towards some tiny, almost claustrophobic stairs made of large blocks of stone.

She was ready to go further down the stairs, descending into the unknown ( that much was her curiosity that she almost forgot about the fear),when, distractly looking back for one last time, she saw a feeble beam of light come out of the wall opposite the hidden door she entered.

She felt a little uneasy. Slowly she turned back, still both curious and afraid.

Inspecting better, it was a tiny hole in the wall, slightly covered by a rectangular wooden board. To her surprise the little piece of wood could move horizontally, revealing that the small hole had the shape of an eye.

It was an observation point towars the next room, and the light that she saw from afar was somebody else's candle.

Cautiously she approached her left eye, closing the other.

There was someone in the room, a bedchamber similar to hers, and she could see him clearly , despite the weak candlelight.

The moon, in fact, was gently illuminating the room and Amantine could see pretty neatly the young man.

He was comfortably sitting on the chair and had taken some papers from the desk in front of him.

As he was reading she proceeded to observe his features.

He had a pale skin that glowed under the moonlight and a beautiful straight nose. She could see how his full lips moved slightly, probably muttering the words that were written in the papers. His loose white shirt could still reveal a fine, muscular built.

She couldn't detect the exact color of his eyes, nor of his hair, because the moonlight gave it a strange nuance. However she could tell that at least his hair had a dark tone.

She liked his looks very much. 

Then she looked at his big, strong hands.

One was holding the papers but the other one was doing something else.

It took her a few seconds to realize that his right hand was casually caressing his crotch.

Amantine knew instinctively by then what was going to happen, still she couldn't help but watch entranced.

With a slight sigh the man put down the papers and relaxed even more on the chair, joining both hands on his erection.

It didn't take much for him to lower his pants, as his desire grew wider and he soon started moving his hand vigorously and his hips sarted shaking, moving instinctively back and forth.

His head reclined , highlighting even more his Adam's apple, as his tongue licked slightly his own lips. Closing his eyes, he let out a few whispered moans.

*creeeeeaaak*

The rumor of wood cracking under pressure grew up from the hidden room, reaching also his ears. Everything was interrupted.

Amantine had layed her hand on an old wooden pillar of the dusty room, thus the sound.

The young man had stopped abruptly and was listening attentively to the surroundings, all tensed up. 

She panicked.

*Shhhhlk!*

Amantine quickly moved the little wooden board, closing entirely the little eyeshaped hole. 

Then she quickly returned in her room, closing the hiddend door with trembling hands, checking it twice because of her anxiety.

Her heart was pounding like crazy.

She snuck into her bed, prepared to pass a sleepless night. Her mind started to think the unthinkable.

The stress and anxiety of being caught was depriving her of a lot of energy. Contrary to her thoughts, when the adrenaline in her system decreased, it didn't take her much to fall in a deep, profound sleep.

The next morning a maid brought her some black tea and lots of fruit. She was served lots of berries and the reddest watermelon she had ever seen.The taste was so wonderful that she ended asking for more. She gave the first maid the fancy porcelain bowl, effectively communicating her wish through body language. A second maid was called to follow her wishes.

As she took her teacup to her mouth she noticed a thin piece of paper underneath. 

She turned her head to the first maid as if she was questioning her. There was no reaction whatsoever on her face. Only a slight bow of her head and lowered eyes led to realize that the maid, in fact, was a secret messenger.

Amantine unfolded the small note, revealing a very elegant calligraphy. however it was such a small writing that she had to struggle a bit to understand.

She knew already it was from the queen; it was written in her native language.

Amantine gave again a quick glance at the silent maid.

The second she finished reading the message the other maid entered the room.

A bit startled, Amantine quickly hided the note in its original place.

She took the fruit bowl, then ordered both the maids out with a gesture that had learned from watching Milena.

Only when she was left alone, she burned the small letter.

As she walked towards the library, she felt an energetic knock on the door. She already knew who it was by the the sound her hand made on the wood.

Amantine took the first volume of the red books as Milena entered the room.

The physician smiled widely at her; a slight blush was covering her cheeks.

*Cute* thought Amantine at the delighful sight.

Milena sat near her and asked, as usual, how she was feeling. 

"Not bad" said Amantine in apuleian. It was one of the few words that Milena had the occasion to teach her days prior.

Then,quite surprisingly Milena proposed something different than their usual routine. She made her understand, through a very goofy mime acting that she wanted them to go outside for a walk.

Amantine was reluctant to the idea.

After all that happened the day before she really wanted to stay in bed all day and continue sleeping.

She was about to refuse when Milena, bravely opened the curtains and the window. She invited Amantine to take a look outside.

Her breath became shorter, as for a moment she caught her image on the reflection of the window, yet she decided this time to ignore it and follow the young doctors instructions.

As she approached the open window she could take a glimpse of the garden. There were several types of flowers in bloom, full of different colors and a wonderful smell came up through the window. She couldn't help but smile a little.

Although still very doubtful,Amantine accepted.Maybe , even if her instinct was not to take a single step out of that "safe" place, she trusted Milena enough. If she thought a small walk could help her, she was willing to give it a try. she didn't know why she decided that, but deep inside she knew that Milena had somethink genuine and nice in her, despite the fact that, like everybody else, she was a very recent acquaintance.

So she turned at the young doctor and nodded in approval.

At her response, Milena smiled sweetly , then began to help her dress up.

She thought that it was going to be a painful experience.

But then, under Milena's magick fingers, she realized that that hosts body was already used to that type of constriction. Actually, as the corset was slightly tightened, she felt it sturdily embrace her.

Against all of her expectations, wearing a corset wasn't painful at all. And she knew that in France, and in her entire previous world, that peculiar garment had been demonized for ages.

As the closet was still open, she noticed that her dresses were all of a light blue tint with elaborate silver thread embroidery.

She didn't dislike it. Afterall those dresses were unique pieces of art. However, she would have liked something different for once.

It took less than 15 minutes to get her ready. Milena took her by the arm and proceeded to open the door.

To Amantine the corridor was already familiar, but what captured her attention was something else entirely.

Two guards stood at the sides of the chamberbed door, as usual, while a third man, dressed in a formal, highly embellished guards attire, was giving his large back at them. 

Luckily Milena answered her question, calling him with the most indifferent, bored tone she could have. 

"Sir Alexander..."

The tall man turned around causing Amantine to powerfully blush.

A pale skin. A beautiful straight nose. Full lips.

Dark black hair.

This time she could tell that his eyes were clear, cold gray.