Prince Alexis strides in and sits at his father's desk, glaring at his dad while nonchalantly waiting for an answer. "Whose engagement", he asked again.
The emperor glanced at the empress before visibly gulping. They had tried to rush Princess Esmeralda's engagement and marriage so Alexis wouldn't get wind of it. However, it looked like words had gotten to him as he was not due back from his mission to negotiate with another Kingdom till another 3 weeks. Which by that time Esme would have been long married to the Xolotl.
"Esme's engagement", the emperor said.
The second Prince suddenly shot up from his chair at the emperor's answer,
"What have you been up to when I was gone"
"That is no way to talk to the emperor", the Empress said, chiding him. She was clearly not a fan of Alexis. It was clear to everyone in high society that Alexis was a more suitable Crown Prince, much to the Empress's annoyance.
"What has been going on is that Esmeralda's maid was caught going in and out of your room while you were gone", the Empress said hurriedly as the Knight that oversaw Maria’s punishment just walked in and asked for the appropriate lashes to give her.
The Empress had not intended to cover up her activities in Alexis's room using Maria, but if it works well why not. She had been looking for a document, although she tried to make the room look untouched, she knew quite well that Alexis would notice.
"Really", Alexis said disbelieving, "Then why is your Knight punishing her", he said to the Empress.
"Well, you weren't home, so I thought to take care of it since I am in charge of the household affairs", she was practically telling him not to interfere.
"Well, since it is my room and I am home now, why don't I take care of the matter"
The Empress looked at the emperor in support, but he appeared to be immersed in the paperwork on his desk.
"Since that is settled, I will take her with me", he said before leaving the room, Maria trailing behind him. The Empress gritted her teeth as she tried to drink tea to calm her nerves. Alexis was always getting his way and getting in hers. The Empress would not be happy until she finally got rid of him completely. Alexis hurried down the corridor with Maria at his heels. She seemed to be limping and slightly swaying. Alexis noticed too late until she collapsed, falling against his back. It was the only thing that saved her from hitting her head hard against the floor. Alexis startled, turned and managed to catch her before she hit the floor. He was surprised about how lightweight she seemed as he carried her towards his sister’s room. He knocked on the door of his sister’s bedroom and waited. However, there was no reply. As he was about to call for a servant to open the door for him, a haughty-looking maid appeared at the door with a piece of pastry in her hand that she was obviously eating. She scowled up at Alexis about to scold him for interrupting her meal when she noticed he was the second prince.
She dropped into a hasty bow. ‘Your-your highness’, she said obviously surprised and panicked. The piece of pastry was quickly hidden behind, but Alexis had already caught sight of it
Alexis just stared at her, evaluating the scene. It was clear that the piece of pastry she was eating was for Esmeralda has only nobles could afford to eat something like it.
‘What was that behind you’, he asked her.
The maid looked around wildly trying to come up with a credible excuse.
Alexis, who had already had enough with everything that was happening, took a menacing step towards her. ‘Bring Esme to my room right this moment’ he ordered as he turned to go down the corridor towards his room, ‘and be there’.
In Esme’s room
‘Who was that?’, Esme asked the maid who had just gone to answer the knock on the door. Esme knew she was not allowed any callers when she is confined and there were specific servants who attended to her- and they do not knock. So, she is a bit surprised.
‘It was Prince Alexis, your highness’, Esmeralda squinted at the maid's acknowledgement of her title. Something is off, she thought. If she remembered correctly, he was not due back home for another three weeks.
‘What did he want’, she was excited he was back home as there was more chance that Maria’s punishment would be lessened if she told him what happened. Alexis had always looked out for her, so she was sure he would take her side and make sure she and Maria weren’t punished as much for their shenanigans earlier in the evening. ‘He wants us to come to his room right now’, the maid said nervously.
Esmeralda nodded excitedly and immediately grabbed her robe, pulling it on her nightdress. However, the maid just stood at center of the room looking terrified.
‘Your highness, could you please say you gave me the piece of meat I was eating’, she bowed in front of Esmeralda shaking all over like a leaf. There was no surprise at her nervousness, anybody Alexis catches mistreating Esmeralda was severely punished. There has never been and never will be an exception to the rule. That is why even when the empress punished Esme, she made sure the second prince didn’t get wind of it.
‘You should have made sure not to have been caught. I will do no such thing’, Esmeralda looked at the maid at her feet and scorned. ‘Now, let’s go to my brother’.
‘You should have made sure not to have been caught. I will do no such thing’, Esmeralda looked at the maid at her feet and scorned. ‘Now, let’s go to my brother’.
Alexis kicked open his room door and stepped into it. The whole place felt wrong and unfamiliar. It was clear that someone had been there and searched through it. Alexis did not need someone to tell him before he knew that it was the empress. The whole place reeked of her. As a fox Alexis could detect the faintest trace of smell and in the empire, everyone had a distinctive smell, and the empress's smell was a sickening sweet scent (from the scented oil she adds to her bath). When you were born, you would have a unique smell that you would forever be your scent but sometimes your scent would change after a life altering event or due to a particularly evil thing you have done. For example, murderers after their first kill, smell like rotting flesh. Therefore, it is very easy to identify criminals as they smell a particular way. Scented oils are commonly used to mask their scent, so it doesn’t give them away.
Alexis wrinkled his nose as he walked to the bed. What has the empress done for her to need a scented oil as potent as this to mask, Alexis wondered. He dropped Maria on his bed before going to look around the room. It seemed the empress had not found what she was looking for because nothing was missing but it was clear things were touched and were moved slightly.
Alexis sighed as he sat down at the edge of the bed. He was tired of the game of tag he and the empress were playing. She would do something to him, he would then have his revenge, then she would have revenge, and it kept going like that for so long he couldn’t remember what she had first done to him. He had a plan to end it once and for all and that’s why he needed to talk to his sister, Esmeralda.
Alexis is startled out of his thoughts by a knock on the door. He rises to open it when he notices a slight change in the floorboard. Ignoring it he walked to the desk and invited his sister and her maid into the room.
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