"Hello? Is anybody home?" A woman's voice echoed through the entrance hall the same night. Vlad was sitting in the dining room with Dmitry. "Did you hear that?"
Dmitry slowly stood up to see who it was. At the end of the hall he saw a young woman looking into the reception room. "Hey! What are you doing here?" He yelled.
She gasped and started to run up the stairs and down the corridor. "Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop. Hold on!"
Finally, the girl stopped running. "Are you Dmitry?" She asked out of breath.
"Perhaps, depends on who's looking for me." She looked very familiar to him. He couldn't help but compare her to Anastasia. The same wavy, strawberry blonde hair, those sparkling cornflower blue eyes, this fine nose, these lineaments, the same voice – exactly like the Grand Duchess.
She rolled her eyes and said, "I need travel papers. I've heard you can help me."
Dmitry crossed his arms and walked towards her. "Hmm, so you need travel papers?"
"Yes, I'd like to go to Paris."
"Mhmm … Come with me." He led her to the study and took a piece of paper. She sat down.
"Do you want something to drink?" Vlad asked her.
"Yes, please."
Vlad sent Dmitry to get a glass of water. "This is not a soup kitchen, Vlad!" He murmured.
When he came back with some water, the young woman turned away and drank the whole glass in one go.
"Who are you?" Dmitry asked.
She turned around. "I don't know."
The young man nudged Vlad in the arm and laughed, "She doesn't know!"
"They gave me a name at the hospital. Anya." She didn't like how Dmitry laughed at her. "They told me I had amnesia."
Dmitry shook his head and sat down, putting his feet on the desk.
"The nurses said they found me by the side of a road. The first thing I remember is being in a hospital. It was somewhere near Yekaterinburg, I think... Anyways, it was about six years ago so I don't remember it exactly. Well, I don't know a thing before that."
Dmitry's eyes widened. Could it be?
"After they let me go, I walked across half of Russia to find out who I am, and I still don't know. But I believe the answers to all my questions lie in Paris. I have a feeling my family lives there – if I ever had one." He could hear how hard she tried not to cry while continuing on. She seemed to have went through a lot in those few years.
"Anya, do you have a home?" Dmitry asked her when she finished.
"No. I work all day, but I don't have enough money to rent a room."
"You can live here." Vlad offered.
What? Dmitry was confused. He couldn't let a stranger live with them! But on the other hand, she could be useful for his scheme …
"Are you serious?" Anya asked.
"Yes, you can live with us. There's enough room for three persons," Dmitry agreed grinning.
"Oh, thank you so much!" She exclaimed, tears getting into her eyes.
After they had dinner, Dmitry and Vlad led Anya to her room. In the corridor hung a framed photo of the Romanov family. "Who are they?"
"It's the Romanov family in 1913. From left to right: Olga, Maria, Tsar Nicholas II, Tsarina Alexandra, Anastasia, Tsarevich Alexei and Tatiana," Dmitry told her. "Have you heard of the rumors?"
"Sure, everyone has!"
"You kind of resemble Anastasia."
"Do you think?"
"I've seen thousands of girls all over the country and not one of them looks as much like the Grand Duchess as you!"
"Have you ever thought of the possibility that you might be Anastasia?" Vlad asked.
Anya stared at the picture. "It's kind of hard for me to think of myself as a duchess. But sure, I guess every lonely girl would hope she's a princess."
"Since you don't remember who you are, it is possible that you could be Anastasia. You want to go to Paris and her only family lives in Paris!"
The girl kept looking at the photo of the young Anastasia and touched it warily. "How old would she be now?"
"She would become 23 in June."
"We want to reunite her with her grandmother. Do you want to try it? If you're not Anastasia, it's just an honest mistake. But if you are the princess, then you'll finally know who you are!" Dmitry explained.
"Alright, I'll try."
Dmitry opened the door to Anastasia and Maria's bedroom. "That's your former bedroom. You shared it with your elder sister, Maria."
Anya looked around the room. "It somehow looks familiar to me …"
"Dmitry and I will teach you how to be the Grand Duchess Anastasia tomorrow."
"Meet you in the Mauve Room!"
I hope you liked this (short) chapter! Leave your thoughts on the story and tell me what you like/what I can do better.
