Future Warnings from Midnight

Chapter Seven: The Handmadien

Soon the dancing and the laughing had to come to an end. The whole themed party went ongoing into the wee hours of the morning. King Finn and Princess Anastasia were having the grandest of times. Father and daughter were getting along just as they had done when the queen had been alive. Everything was merry. All the guests were enchanted and enthralled by the circus performers and the animals. Why the greatest of the acts were the clowns, especially ordered by the king himself to amuse and delight his only daughter. It was one of the happiest times in the memory of the courtiers and nobles of King Finn's rule. They hoped the joyous attitude of the king would carry on forever, even when they returned to their own kingdom. (Gin was ever so grateful for the nicer king.) And linger did the brighter attitude and happiness did in King Finn and for all the kingdom.

The whole court of Yena returned back to their kingdom from the city of Katio come the next day. It had seemed Princess Anastasia could not wait to return to her people and start the process of finding a suitor. King Finn was overcome with glee at the more flexible and welcoming nature of the princess. She had matured and put aside her childish notions of not wanting to rule or not wanting a husband. Yes, over the next several weeks in the kingdom of Yena it seemed that suddenly Princess Anastasia's warmth to her father had made King Finn just peachy. The rule of King Finn was suddenly less frightening for the nobles and the peasants were seeing a lot of reforms in their favor. King Finn no longer sat brooding and ignoring the kingdom in his study. His highness was ruling in a very just and kind fashion, unlike anything before in his reign. It was like magic what Princess Anastasia had achieved.

Yet something was off about the fairytale like kingdom. The problem came from Princess Anastasia herself. The Dukes of Upland Yena knew better right away. Gin knew. Princess Anastasia was not Princess Anastasia since she was found by the royal guards. No longer did Princess Anastasia interact terribly with King Finn. She claimed to forgive her father's short temper and cruelty toward others. (The whole sensitive topic about Princess Anastasia's mother and the death of her pet were left aside.) 

The princess did not even bear the same anger over the unjust treatment of the peasants as she did before. This is when Gin understood. She would just smile and point out her father had changed. No longer did Princess Anastasia practice her footwork for fighting and acrobat training in the courtyard. She hardly spent any time with the court jester as she loved to do. She was singing all the like as a nightingale. Her wit was sharp as ever. 

Still it did seem however she had a small problem of repeating herself, when she would get confused. No longer did the princess select to wear riding clothing of a man all the time or was content to be dirty after a rough hunt. Princess Anastasia refused to be disarrayed in her appearance and wore dressed all the time. Everyone knew she did not like dresses, because the king always pushed them on her. Princess Anastasia was just not herself. But how to prove it?

The Dukes and Gin wrote to the closest person to Princess Anastasia, Lady Sophia. Lady Sophia knew most certainly Princess Anastasia was not herself, when they were in private at last together. The handmaiden was not a traditionally beautiful woman. She was simple and had a hardness about her. All of her dresses and ribbons could not hide the sharpness of Lady Sophia. It was not in her nature to be meek, particularly since she had been assign to Princess Anastasia. Lady Sophia was her unruly black hair and dark skin was not the soft and gentle woman of the court. She had been welcomed into the royal court of Yena by the queen and befriended by Princess Anastasia at age five. Lady Sophia was a child as well back in those days.

The handmaiden approached the princess as she was in her room reading books on the history of the kingdom, about agriculture, economics, and courtly behaviors. Hidden among the stack Lady Sophia could see a simple book she knew as the princess's journal. Princess Anastasia had dressed refined in a purple gown with pearls sown in it. Her brown eyes peered up from her book and she turned another page. Her pink lips spread into a warm smile and she picked up her head with ringlets of brown curls. All very sweet and well thought out was her motions. Princess Anastasia closed her book and bowed a little to the entering handmaiden. Lady Sophia frowned. For all her memory never had the princess allowed herself to look like a doll.

Lady Sophia scanned about the study for words. Her hands ringed together for a few minutes. It was hard to express her worry and her consider. She cleared her voice, "Listen ... I understand you have been changing yourself to benefit the kingdom... But I am beginning to worry you are losing sight of what is important here."

"Good day to you, too, Lady Sophia," the princess answered cheerfully. She stood up and paced about the study, "What am I not seeing?"

"You know I dislike when you ignore me. You know I cannot stand when you refer to me so coldly," Lady Sophia said heavily. She came on the edge of tears, "My friend, I keep your secret and see you suffer as you. Why did you come back? How did the plan fail so poorly? Why do you do what you do now? Did I wrong you so much that night?"

"Excuse me? Excuse me?" Princess Anastasia said with the shake of her head. She seemed to have her feathers ruffled by the handmaiden's outburst, "I have not wronged you, Lady Sophia ... I am just trying to become formal. You are my friend... I am just a little confused. Are you referring to when I ran off? I had my time to think and I thought of a new plan."

"I-I cannot believe you did not leave as you desired. You were going to leave and not come back. You knew what your father was going to make you endure. You knew you could not stand marriage. It is not for you! This is not you!"

The princess placed her hand on Lady Sophia's shoulder. She smiled, "But it is me! I am most pleased with the change in the kingdom. I want to see it become a happy and rich place. It is only right of a rule to do so."

"You wanted to desert everything. You only wanted me to come away with you. You told me that you loved and I refused you. I refused to leave the court. I could not leave Edgar to face the upcoming troubles alone," Lady Sophia lowered her voice. She drooped, "I did not want to think you wanted the hidden rebels to overthrow your father. You wished for a republic to take his place as a ruler... It was a selfish choice that night. I just thought my best friend should me happy."

"I am happy. The kingdom is doing better. The people are pleased. There is no word of rebels. I will be able to assist with a good marriage and political alliance," She beamed, "It is best to forget whatever nonsense I spoke of on my birthday. I am thinking much clearer now."

"Drake! You know you are not like this!" Lady Sophia shouted, "Who are you trying to please!? Are you trying to prove something to me? Are you trying to be a better man than Edgar? You know cannot continue to live this lie!"

"What-what!" Princess Anastasia blinked at her, "Lady Sophia! You are speaking very much out of place! I understand since we are childhood friends, you may feel entitled to speak openly with me. But do not forget I am the princess!"

"Drake you never wanted to be the princess! You wanted to be free! You wanted to run away! You wanted to be yourself," Lady Sophia sobbed, "You are a man. You have always told me how you felt. Why are you acting like this!?"

"Lady Sophia-" the princess paused, "During my time at the circus I came to realize I was being self-centered, immature, and blind about my choices and actions. It is true I may have various opinions and ideals about how I should like to live. I may have confessed my feelings for you. I understand now in all my haste to end my ill relationship with my father I was clearly confused about my understanding of myself. I clung onto false feelings of being in love with you as you were the only one who knew me as Drake. I must admit the whole affair of being Drake was a coping idea for dealing with my loss of my mother. I was just so overwhelmed with the whole situation I had to feel like running away," She became very somber, "I still think it is important to support others and after their wellbeing."

Lady Sophia dropped her mouth open, "You made the plan to see the Scarred Man. What did he do to you? What did he change?"

"I am perfectly fine. Thank you," The princess huffed, "Lady Sophia, I do believe we are finished here. If you do not mind, I wish you to find your way out of my study."

"Drake..." Lady Sophia gathered herself. She flushed in her cheeks.

"I am Princess Anastasia," She declared with pride, "Now please leave me."