Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight, or any of the characters in it. This is a nonprofit story.
NOTE. Please read the following text below.
Author's Note: Okay, listen up. I got a review asking if I was plagiarizing another story; in another genre, at that! Simply because they had the same plot. I am offended. I have stated this story is based off of a fairytale. Obviously, some of the same things are going to happen that happened in the fairytale. Sorry. Now deal.
They also stated that they wanted to know what the fairytale was called, so they know I'm not plagiarizing. A little trust would be appreciated. Whoever wrote a story with this plot in another genre does not own this idea. I can use the events that happened in the fairytale on fanfiction. I assumed that people would realize that the same events are happening, not demand to know what the fairytale is called. But you know what? I don't feel like getting anymore reviews about this. The fairytale goes by numerous names, as I stated before. Here you go, mr/miss reviewer who demanded the name of the fairytale but left no way for me to contact you:
-Thousandfurs
-Catskin
-Deerskin
- All Kinds of Fur
It is a Grimm fairytale. Look it up.
Thank you.
I hadn't even realized it, but I had come to a conclusion: Edward was a vampire, along with his entire family. Jake was a werewolf, along with the others from the Black's kingdom. They weren't the only mythical creatures out there. And for some reason I couldn't place, I wasn't afraid, nor did I really mind I suspected that, self-conscientiously, I had been aware of this the entire time. There were just so many things that pointed out it was the truth. How they would casually mention something that referred to them being vampires. How the humans all believed it. But then, why did I never know the truth? Was this Charlie's way of protecting me when I was younger? He never did expect me to leave the kingdom, after all. That did make sense.
I washed my face, removing the dirt from it. I would dirty myself later once more, but I could not stand sleeping with it on or, or as I was doing now, just sitting around with it on when not needed. It was itchy and uncomfortable. I tossed my fur cloak off, allowing it to fall to the ground soundly. I kicked it to the side and continued scrubbing at my face with the rag, running my fingers through my wig. I didn't like to risk taking it off at night time, but it was uncomfortable and at the same time, I so desperately wanted to take it off.
"Hello," a voice said quietly from behind me. I stiffened. It wasn't Edward's attractive, velvet voice. I was capable of recognizing it, however, which is why I stayed with my back to my visitor.
"Hi... Jake," I muttered, lowering my head. He entered my room, crossing it so that he stood in front of me. He sat down, making it so we were face to face. He was examining my nearly dirt free face, a puzzled look on his young face. "How are you?" I asked, lowering my head more. I glanced towards the side to my fur cloak, wishing I hadn't kicked it away so I could pick it up and casually put it on. But putting it on would make him suspicious, anyway. I didn't know what was appropriate to risk anymore.
"I'm good," he told me. "Just glad that I finally found you!"
"How did you find me?" I asked, keeping my gaze on the bucket of water I used to wash my face in front of me.
"I followed your scent," he confessed with a chuckle, but he also seemed a bit embarrassed.
"You... followed my scent?" I repeated him, confusion masking my tone. He laughed. "But... why did you want to find me?"
I could see out of the corner of my eye that he shrugged. "I just... wanted to see how you've been doing."
"I've been doing great. But, I'm about to head to bed," I explained, implying that he should leave.
"Oh." He seemed dismayed. "Well, I was wondering if you would like to go to town with me tomorrow."
"I don't have the proper clothing," was my excuse. Jake seemed rather shocked at the refusal. I assumed he didn't get turned down often, being royalty and all. "Sorry."
"It's okay. I can give you the proper clothing," he offered.
"No, thank you. I shouldn't like to waste your money." I could tell he wasn't really taking the hint.
"Oh, I have too much, anyway!" He laughed, shaking his head slightly. "I would be more than happy to spend some on you."
"I have work tomorrow." I was getting desperate for excuses now. I saw his face sadden and then perk up, and I instantly felt a stab on guilt. He realized I was tossing excuse after excuse after him, after all. He was just playing innocent. I sighed, feeling bad because of my constant refusals. I liked him, and he seemed nice, but I was not interested in a relationship with royalty. Especially not royalty who was friends with Charlie and who practically worshiped Charlie. I sighed. It was just too dangerous.
"I can get you out of work, and I'll give you some money so you can feed yourself without working for the day," he explained calmly.
"No, thank you," I repeated.
He was silent for a long moment. "But... why?"
"Because I... I just can't. I'm sorry, Jake," I muttered. He reached over to awkwardly pat my hand, and I could tell he was trying his best to look like he understood and to hide the hurt he felt. I nearly groaned out loud. How did I manage to embroil myself into this constant web of guilt? I brought my other hand down to squeeze the hand that was patting mine, before I pulled both of mine back. "Sorry, Jake." I really was sorry that I had hurt his feelings. But I did not want him to get under the impression we were in a relationship.
"Yeah, it's... fine. Just fine," he muttered. "You must be really busy." This caused him to perk up. "Maybe another time, then!"
The corner of my lips perked up in amusement, and I decided not to hurt his feelings anymore in one night. "We'll see. But, I really do have to go to bed now." He leaned forward as if to kiss my lips, so I turned my head as if I were looking down at my hand. His warm lips brushed against my cheek before he pulled back, smiling. I sighed loudly. I couldn't be angry, because he was being too nice and not too terribly forward this time. I was sometimes greeted with a kiss on the cheek, so it was nothing new.
"I'll see you soon," he told me, standing up. I nodded.
"Sure. But, Jacob, may I ask you something?"
"Anything."
"Why, um, well," I found that I struggled to find the correct words to say. "Why did you want to take me to town?"
He blinked. "What?"
"Why do you want to take me to town?" I repeated. Comprehension lit his features fairly quickly.
"You seem nice, and you're very pretty, so I thought it would be nice if we got to know each other and become friends." He shrugged, looking down at me. I looked up from the floor and at his face, giving up on the avoiding eye contact. "Do me a favor, and try not to get dirty during work tomorrow. You look very nice when you're clean." He smiled. "Not that you don't look nice all of the time!" he hurried to correct himself, and I couldn't help but laugh.
"But you honestly just want to be my friend?" I asked. He nodded.
"Yes... although, with time, maybe a bit more then friends." He smiled innocently. I just shook my head.
"Please don't get your hopes up." It was bold of me to say that, but I highly doubted Jake would ever send me for punishment. He sighed at my response, but nodded his head knowingly. I was growing a bit irritated, knowing that despite his nod, Jake had not taken me seriously when I said not to get his hopes up. He truly believed, just like most royalty, that just because I was a servant I would be desperate to become his wife. But of course, I could never do that. Charlie would find out and possibly start another war.
"Why not?" he asked.
"Because... because I'm not looking for anything other than marriage." That was a lie. I wasn't even looking for marriage, but most girls were, and I didn't want to seem different.
"Maybe we will get married. If we get along, that is."
That reminded me of Mike, and the fact I still had to get back to him about his marriage proposal. I grimaced, looking back down at my hands. I didn't want to have to continuously reject people for their own safety. I highly doubted any man would want to talk me after I had rejected them for marriage. Maybe they'd be like Charlie, and only become more persistent. I nearly snorted a very un-lady like sound on my part. "I don't think so, Jake. Sorry."
"You said you were looking for marriage," he muttered, his expression becoming a mixture of hurt and confusion.
"You need to marry a princess, Jake," I explained. I stood up, allowing him to see my entire body. I gestured towards the dirt that stained my dress. "Not a servant."
"There's no princess I could marry if I wanted to." He sighed loudly. "I could find a princess from another landmark, I'm sure, but I don't know much about the princesses there. I don't know the rumors about them, and they could be," his face twisted in disgust; "a whore and I wouldn't know it until we were married since they live so far away. Not to mention, they probably wouldn't be accepting over what I am." A werewolf, I reminded myself. "So, I figured I'd marry a princess that lived on this land. But the only one available is Princess Isabella."
I could feel my hearts pace pick up, the sound thudding in my ears. My breathing quickened; became irregular, and I could feel my palms getting sweaty. I wiped them on my dress, ducking my head as if that would stop him from recognizing me. I wanted to try and calm myself, but I knew I didn't really have the time. If I didn't answer, that would cause questions to rise in his head. "Oh?" I choked out. "And why don't you marry her, then?"
He sighed loudly. "I really wanted to. She's so beautiful. I haven't seen her all that much, but I remember. And she's really sweet. We didn't know each other that well, but I really liked her. Our fathers are friends, so that's good, and it would have ensured that our kingdoms stay allies, even if Charlie and my dad got into a bad debate over something. I explained all of this to my dad, and he completely agreed that we would have made a wonderful match." He sighed again.
I taking deep breaths to calm my frantic nerves, and I struggled to take in everything he had just said. I was not enjoying this conversation in the least bit, but I had to continue to act normal for my own sake.
"Why aren't you two wed?" I questioned and my voice cracked. He sent me a puzzled look at that, but did nothing else.
"Dad contacted Charlie about this, but Charlie explained that she was already engaged and sends his," he made quotation marks with his fingers, "deepest apologies for having not informed us earlier. We were rather confused why he didn't send us a wedding invitation and were curious as to whom she was being married to, and we sent a letter asking. He never responded to that one, unfortunately." Jake shrugged. "I'll just ask him when he gets here." That caused me to stop breathing for a moment. "But I just think it's so odd. Charlie is crazy about his daughter from what I can tell, and I thought he would have wanted to send her somewhere close."
I grimaced once more. He really was crazy, in the literal sense, about me.
"I need to go to bed now, Jake." My voice was hoarse, low, and I tried to make it sound more natural. "Sorry."
He seemed confused that I abruptly ended the conversation, but he nodded. He bent down to kiss my cheek once more, and as soon as he turned away from me I turned my back to him.
"Bye," I muttered.
"Bye, Mimi. I'll visit you soon again. I had fun!"
"Yeah," I muttered, and I waited for the sound of him leaving before I started to clean my face once more.
I awoke in the morning with a more optimistic feel about life. Even after that entire conversation, Jacob had not recognized me. And earlier that day, I had a wonderful conversation with Edward that, while it left me with mixed feelings, made me smile at the very thought. I had no reason to be positive about everything. I leaned my head against my pillow and closed my eyes.
That morning, I smiled as I sat up from bed, only to hear something from outside my very tiny room. I frowned, wondering if I was hearing things.
"You're awake!" Edward's voice came from outside my room, and I smiled bigger, standing up from the bed.
"Yes, I am. Can I help you?" I asked, kicking my blanket back. I wasn't exactly what somebody would call neat. I hurried to place my cloak on so it would cover me. While Jake did not recognize me, Edward might. We had danced just recently at the ball, after all.
"Can I come in?" he asked.
"Of course," was my response. He pushed the curtain that covered my room back and stepped inside, glancing around the abnormally small room once before his gaze found more. He smiled and approached me, stopping once he was right in front of me. He opened his mouth to speak, but then abruptly shut it. He was stiff, no longer relaxed or content. He seemed to be... glaring at me, and I was a bit taken back by that. I hadn't said anything at all. How could I have angered him?
"The dog was here." His voice was deeper; low, but calm for the most part.
"Yes, he... stopped by. Last night, I mean." I shrugged.
"Why?"
"Because he wanted to ask me to go to town with him. I said no, of course, because I have work to do." I didn't understand why he was so angry.
"His scent practically coats you," Edward snapped. "Anything else happen? Did he touch you in any way?"
"He kissed—"
"He kissed you?" Edward hissed, instantly outraged. I could see his hands ball into fists at his side, and I hurried to finish my sentence.
"My cheek! He kissed my cheek twice, is all. Besides talking, that was our only interaction," I explained.
"And that will be your last interaction with him from now on."
I took a step back, instantly infuriated by his words. "What?" I practically barked out.
"That is your last interaction with him." His tone came out slow and patronizing, only succeeding in angering me further.
"You can't control whether or not I talk to him." I crossed my arms across my chest, taking a step away from him.
"You know that I can." His voice was much softer now, almost pleading.
I was silent for a long moment. "You will... control who I talk to?" I whispered and my tone was laced with the sadness I felt.
"I don't want to. But it's just not safe for you to talk with him. The slightest thing could anger him and cause him to hurt you. I don't want to take that risk, Mimi. I can't take that risk." He bowed his head slightly in apology, keeping his eyes on me. "I am very sorry, but your protection comes before any... desire you may have to talk with him."
I wasn't about to explain that it wasn't by choice I had talked with him. I knew I should explain that he had found his way here all on his own, and I couldn't exactly deny him the rights to see and talk to me. Not only was he a Lord and could do as he pleased, but that was just downright rude. I'm sure, given a few minutes, Edward would realize I hadn't sought him out, seeing as how he had been in my room. All we had done was talk, so there was no need to have dragged him back to my room. I could have explained this to Edward, but I was much too infuriated.
"Why do you care?" I finally shouted, pushing him away from me when he tried to take a step forward. Even with his shirt on, I could feel the coldness of his chest. "Why do you care so much?" I repeated, and I pushed at him once more. He took a step backwards, but it wasn't from my push; it was of his own choice. I could see that his eyes golden eyes had widened, and that proved to me that he was shocked at my actions. I was shocked as well.
"Because... because you're my servant, and it's my job to protect you," he explained, but he seemed to have to force the words from his lips.
"Do you take me for a fool?" I shrieked. "Servants deliver his food! You allow them to do that, but for all you know he could dislike the food, get angry and attack them!" I stomped away from him after I said that, letting him know that I was furious. I was throwing a bit of a temper tantrum, I realized.
"That wouldn't happen," he calmly stated. "Nobody gets that upset over food when they can have whatever they please. He might get upset over something you say, though. I can't take that risk."
"Why?" I yelled. "Why can't you take that risk with me?" I didn't like this feeling of being controlled; it reminded me of when I lived with Charlie. How he was capable of bossing me around and took full advantage of that. How I had to bend to his will, to do everything to make him happy. I even had to dress as he pleased. He had become unbearably controlling, and I couldn't sit and watch Edward become like that. Not sick and twisted, obviously, but over controlling and without good reason.
My savior; my safe harbor, he was. I trusted him in a way, and I refused to let that change. I, myself, was being unbearably selfish in not allowing him to change from the way I saw him, but I couldn't help myself. "Why!" I screamed again. He was silent, staring down at the ground this time. It wasn't in a sad or even angry way, but as if he was thinking deeply. As if he didn't even know the answer to my question. I waited for him to answer as patiently as I could, my breathing becoming ragged.
"Because I care about you. I don't know the other servants," he finally muttered. My anger almost instantly evaporated, and I felt my shoulders slump.
"What?" I gasped. This seemed to be a repeat of the day earlier, I couldn't help but note.
He looked up from the ground, turning his piercing gaze to my face. "Because I care about you, and I don't want to see you hurt."
I ran my fingers through the wigs hair, trying to form the words I wanted to say. I started pacing, going back and forth on my wooden floor. I didn't have much room to pace, unfortunately, which meant I could not take long strides. There was a strange metallic taste inside of my mouth, and I realized that was happening because I was nervous. "It's just not that easy, Edward. Jacob is a lord, and desires my company. And I... do not want to reject him by refusing him such. He is a sweet boy."
"But he is dangerous!" Edward insisted.
"Perhaps," I agreed, the tips of my lips twitching as a thought occurred to me. "But in case you have forgotten, I am always in danger anyway, unfortunately." Unfortunately, he did not know who my biggest threat was, or that I even had one. "So does it really matter?"
"Yes, because that is one more thing that is a threat to you!" He was persistent on this matter.
I sighed loudly, placing my face in the palm of my hand. I couldn't stay angry at him, but I certainly was not going to give up on this matter. I did not wish to become Jacob's wife, but I did not want to hurt his feelings by ignoring him as Edward suggested I do. It was a bit of a predicament, considering they both had the rights to order me around, more so Edward then Jacob. This was a small problem, considering they seemed to hate each other's guts. "Can we argue about this later? It's too early, and I'm tired. Plus, I have to go to work before I'm too late and get punished."
"Work?" His forehead creased. "No, you're not going to work today."
My mouth fell open. "But... why not?"
"Because I don't trust that mutt to seek you out once again and pester you at work."
I very nearly rolled my eyes. "It wouldn't be the worst thing in the world if he did."
"I don't want you near him."
"Unless you would like to make enemies with the Black's over a filthy," I gestured towards myself, "servant, then my suggestion is that you not try and keep Jake from talking to me. You know as well as I that will make him angry, and we don't need a fight between you two. Fights lead to rivalries, and rivalries lead to wars and plenty of other bad things." I shuddered at the thought. "But please, Edward, do not worry about me, and do not try and protect me from him."
His eyes narrowed even more, but he said nothing else on that subject. "Go and inform Lauren or whoever is in charge that you will not be attending work today. If they have any questions about this matter, they can come straight to me. You come straight to my room after you have told Lauren."
I sighed. "I'm not going to win this argument, am I?"
"No."
"Very well. I'll go inform Lauren now that I cannot attend work." I gave in, deciding that fighting over it was not worth it. If Jake wanted to talk to me, I would talk to him.
I hurried away from him, not even realizing I was bare footed until I was quite far away from my room. With a blush, I mentally hoped nobody would notice that. That would be embarrassing. I used my fur cloak as a way to hide it, lowering it so it brushed against the ground and covered my dirty feet. I ran as fast as I could, the want to get there quickly and inform her before the kitchen really started bustling, and was even more crowded and busy taking hold. I reached the kitchens in a record time, for myself, anyway, and scrambled around to find Lauren.
"Mimi!" Mike called out, hurrying toward me. He grabbed my arm as if to stop me from leaving his side. I attempted a weak smile and then continued to scan the kitchen, looking for Lauren. I honestly didn't have the patience for him at the moment.
"Hi," I muttered.
"Come on," he ordered, tugging on my arm. "We need all of the help we can get!"
"Why?" I asked, swiveling my head towards Mike. "I've been ordered to not attend work today. What's going on?"
"You haven't heard?"
"No."
Mike sighed loudly.
"They are holding a ball tonight, not just a feast, to celebrate the arrival of King James and the Black family. We have so much food to cook and prepare, but hopefully they'll be so busy dancing they won't think of food for some time. I don't want to not be prepared and have someone get beaten. Every royalty in this kingdom, on this land is invited, as well as many dukes and other people that are high in class, so we're going to be crowded."
"Everybody... is invited?" I muttered.
He sighed again. "All those very high in class, anyway. Isn't it terrible? It's rather last minute. They sent out the invitations just two days ago and informed us about it today. Thankfully, since the invitations were so last minute, not everybody will be able to make it." He chuckled. "Rumor is they want to get the ball over with before King Charlie comes and tears their castle up for whatever he is looking for." He sighed again, obviously upset over this last minute decision.
But my mind was elsewhere.
I realized that I missed balls. As much as I hated them before, I missed them now and I wanted them back. I wanted to pretend that my life was like how it was before Charlie went crazy. I wanted to see every man there ogle at me and have the girls whisper behind my back, and be friendly to my face. I thought it was irritating then, but now I realized it was just amusing. I missed being a princess, and I missed the happiness that brought. I missed it so much.
And I realized that I wanted to attend the ball. But not as Mimi; as Bella.
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Authors Note: Ohh, she's going to sneak into the ball as Princess Bella! Yay! And to make up for my previous chapter being short, I gave you a nice long one this time with interaction from both Jake and Edward. And while I love both of them with all of my heart and soul, this IS a Bella/Edward story, no worries. THANK YOU for all of the reviews, and please remember to review! I will put the next chapter out faster if you do.
xoxo