章節 11: A Perfect Act
"I said hold my hands." Lily stretched out her little hands.
"Yes." Though confused, Mary still held the princess's small hand in hers.
Lily took a deep breath and tears soon started to pool in her eyes.
"Y-your highness." Mary's eyes widened, the little princess who had been acting older than her age for the last one month was suddenly shedding tears, "Oh no." Mary panicked.
"What if father had taken that poison, Mary?" Lily's eyes brimmed with tears, however, those tears seemed adamant, refusing to fall out or roll down her cheek. Lily sniffed in and widened her eyes, but still, the tears didn't fall out. However, her sniffing and wails had already attracted the attention of passerbys.
"W-what are you saying, Your highness?" Mary hugged the little princess in her arms.
"Wah! Father could have died, someone tried to poison father." Her cheesy act made her cringe internally, "He really could have died." She murmured, the feeling of holding a cold headless body in her arms caused her to shudder in fright.
"Lorain." She muttered; her little brother. His favourite cloth that was stained red, and those shiny blue eyes that slowly dimmed and faded away.
"Ack!" She choked on her breath as the tears that she had desperately tried to let out gushed out of her eyes. Her fake cries soon turned real and all she remembered was Mary's distant voice calling out to her.
* ~ *
When Lily opened her eyes again, it was evening. She sat up on her bed with large puffy eyes; it really was true that kids fell asleep after a long crying session. Scratching her eyes with both hands, she pulled the cover off her and stood up.
The plan she had was to cry in the garden and let the rumour of 'the young princess taking poison in place of her father' spread; that was as simple at it was, but she ended up crying herself to sleep.
"Hehe." She laid back down on the bed, she could only await the king's response at the end of the week. The nobles would surely pressure him to reward the princess so as to end the rumours.
"Haha." She happily flailed around in bed.
Her happiness was short-lived as a shaky voice soon interrupted, "Sister?"
Lily stopped, she pressed her lips in a tight thin line from embarrassment. Then slowly, she pulled the tangled covers off her again and glanced at the direction of the voice, the presence she had failed to notice due to her happiness.
"Franz?"
"Sister."
"Pardon my manners, Second prince." She frowned.
"Ah, no! Sister can just call me by my name."
"I don't wish to." Lily replied in a cold voice.
"I-I'm sorry. Y-you just seemed so happy, so I-I didn't want to disturb you." He stuttered, fiddling with his fingers.
Am I supposed to bow and thank you?
Lily thought to herself, "Well?"
"I-I heard t-that-"
"I'm fine now, Your highness." She cut in sharply, knowing fully well that he was about to bring up the topic of the poisoning.
"Oh." Franz's eyes dimmed; those eyes that were so similar to Lorain's.
Lily bit her lower lip hard and looked away, "Thank...thank you for coming to see me." She murmured in a low voice, causing Franz's eyes to brighten.
"Really? Can I come see you everyday?"
"What? No!" Lily turned to him with a large scowl.
"Ah, y-yes. I'm sorry."
"Stop with that pathetic act." Lily wanted to say but stopped, "I'll like to rest some more, Your highness."
"Hmm." He nodded, "Okay." Standing up as he walked to the door.
"And... please refrain from addressing me as 'sister'." Lily added one last time before laying back on the bed. After a few seconds, the sound of the door closing was heard and she stood up again, she then caught sight of the flowers that sat inside a vase on the table. Walking up to it, she touched and caressed the smooth petals of the white flowers; this flower was the Lily of the valley, a flower that people always mistook her name for.
"Mary!" Lily yelled and as soon as Mary entered, she pointed at the flowers, "Get rid of those things."
"My Princess, but it was a gift from the second pr-"
"Get rid of it!" Lily screamed at the top of her lungs; this was the first time she had lost her temper in the life, and again, it was because of Franz. That child, who took Lorain away from her.
"Hic!" She sniffed, as she slumped to the floor.
Those flowers were as beautiful as that little child.
***
"Sister, Lily of the valleys are beautiful, they go well with your name but peonies suit you more, a red rose would go well with your hair, and a hydrangea will go best with your eyes."
"Silence, Lorain. I'm trying to study."
"Study? Study what?" The little boy peeked over the book his sister was reading and shrank away in disgust, "Yuck, economics. You stay here and I shall go make for you a flower crown and a bouquet." He giggled as he ran off.
***
"Who gave him the right to give me flowers?" Lily bit her finger and stood up, "How stupid of me." She even yelled at Mary who was simply wishing her well, besides, Franz was still a kid, nothing would stop a child from having an evil mind like Camille but Lily refrained from carelessly judging for now.
"Your highness." Mary slowly pushed open the door, probably afraid of another outburst.
"Mary?"
"Your highness."
"I'm sorry." Lily awkwardly scratched her cheek.
"Ah! It's okay, I'll refrain from taking gifts from the second prince from now on." She spoke quietly.
"Thank you." Lily smiled, "Should we go out for another walk."
"What? No! Definitely not!" Mary yelled, causing Lily to chuckle.
"Haha, I was just kidding." She knew how tired Mary was from walking all the way to the garden at the east wing of the mansion. Walking from the west wing to the east wing was no small feat.
"Don't joke like that." Mary murmured with pouted lips, "By the way, Your highness."
"Hmm?"
"The second queen has been released."
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