Sorry I haven't kept up with this… I was on vacation and I couldn't get to my stupid computer files for this story. Hope I didn't make anyone who's reading this (which is like one person) waiting! Oh, just FYI: Yes, the money is "KC"s on purpose, because now Charmount is king! Thought I'd let you know. Hooray! The eighth chapter! NOTE: I had to add the end to the seventh chapter (stupid computer), so those of you who have already read the seventh chapter, you're going to have to read the end of it before reading this. It's not very long or important, but I thought I'd let you know. I'm very depressed. I need reviews! I don't care if you don't like it; just give me ways to improve it (or compliment it, I don't care… although compliments are always appreciated)! PLEASE REVIEW! Enough rambling. Here it is.

tayk: Your review made my day (YAY)! Thank you so much! I really appreciate it!

I woke up the next morning, very early, to Amelia standing over me, mid-way through "Wake up!"

I sat bolt upright, making Amelia jump backwards. Emma had heard the command, too, and she sat up (if it is not directed at one of us, then we both respond to the command).

"I am sorry, Emma, you may go back to sleep. I need to ask your sister something," Amelia said in a sweet voice.

It wasn't an order, so Emma did not obey it. She asked in a tired voice, "And just what do you need to ask my sister?"

Amelia smiled, but did not answer. "Go back to sleep Emma, dear."

Now, this is a hard command to obey if you can't get to sleep immediately. However, it was early enough that Emma could lie down, close her eyes, and fall asleep almost immediately, though reluctantly.

Amelia looked slightly surprised. "Well, Elisa, I-"

"Go away. I'm trying to sleep. Unless you want this bed now and I can return to my own?" I growled.

She grinned evilly. "Get my clothes out for when I wake up in the morning-"

"You already are awake," I pointed out. I wasn't going to make this easy.

"You will not speak until I say you may speak, understand? Now, as I was saying, you will get my red dress with the rubies on it, and lay it out neatly at the bottom of my bed. When everyone is down at breakfast, you will make my bed neatly and wash my nightgown thoroughly, then hang it out to dry. After that, you will wait in my room until I come back up to give you more instructions."

Usually, I can find loopholes in any order. But I could not find anything where I could mess up her beautiful plan. She really knew how to order people around! Then I thought, Why didn't she bring her own servant's down here? She could use them!

Amelia seemed to have read my mind. "I do not take servants with me for short visits. But for now, you are my servant."

More like a slave, I thought.

She continued, "You need to learn some manners, Elisa. This is the perfect way."

I rolled my eyes and said in sarcastic astonishment, "Really? Wow, Amelia, that's great."

"Isn't it? I'm glad you think so. Now, I shall go back to bed. Do what I asked you to do. You will not go back to sleep this morning," Amelia strode out of the room, leaving me alone to think about how it feels being a slave of a person who didn't understand sarcasm.

I decided not to wake Emma up, because that wouldn't solve anything, since I couldn't speak anyway. So I obeyed her commands, and waited until she got up to continue. After two minutes I was bored. I couldn't resist the temptation, so I poked Amelia on the shoulder hard several times until she woke up. I grinned. "It's been almost 10 minutes. Are you getting up yet so that I may continue to obey your wishes?"

She gave me a venomous look. "Stand over in the corner of the room until I wake up, Elisa. And don't move from that spot until then."

I had expected it. So I did as I was told, against my will.

After about an hour of immobility, Amelia yawned, stretched luxuriously and said, "Put my slippers on my feet, Elisa."

I took my time walking over to her bed, stretching sore and stiff muscles. I hastily shoved the slippers on her feet, not trying at all to be gentle. Disgusting, I thought.

"Now hand me my dress."

It's two inches from your hand, Amelia, I thought.

"Do it now!"

Then Robert got up, stared at the two of us, and then walked out of the room. Emma burst in.

"Amelia, honestly, she's not a slave that you can control like some sort of puppet! I knew I should have stayed awake and seen what you were going to do to her! Now leave her alone and let her come downstairs for breakfast!" Emma shouted.

"Emma, please don't shout. She is merely helping me because she wants to. She says she feels like she wasn't a good host yesterday, and wants to make it up to me," Amelia lied in a coaxing voice. Emma would never fall for it. She knew me.

"Be serious, Amelia! She is not like that and you know it!"

"Well, it's too late. I've already given the command, and she has to obey. Don't you Elisa?" Amelia turned to me, and I glared at her. Then she turned back to Emma. "Now wait for me until I'm dressed, then we'll go downstairs together for breakfast. Oh, and it would be so nice if you wouldn't tell anyone about this."

Emma gave a deep, long sigh, but said, "Fine. I'll wait for you, but this servant thing has to stop, or I will tell! I suppose she told you that you can't talk and you can't have breakfast?"

I nodded. Emma opened her mouth to yell again, but promptly closed it and said nothing.

"Continue with your work, Elisa. Emma, I'm ready. Let's go."

"But-"

Amelia shooed the annoyed Emma out of the room, then left herself. It was now my turn to give the deep, long sigh. Then I made her bed, rather sloppily (my version of neat is pathetic, as Emma informs me), and washed her nightgown (not so thoroughly as anyone would've liked, but enough for the curse to leave me alone). I didn't dare go downstairs past the dining room to hang her gown out to dry, so I stuck it on pins, hanging out the window. It was fine with me, and worked for the curse.

When Amelia came up after breakfast, she inspected her bed and nightgown.

"Tsk! Tsk! Tsk! Elisa, a good servant makes the bed perfectly. Redo it until it is perfect to me. Then wash my nightgown again, then you shall do your regular morning chores."

"Amelia…" Emma stormed into the room. I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh, for heaven's sake, Emma, stop it!" Amelia whined.

Emma stopped dead in her tracks. A light seemed to go on in Amelia's head. "Emma, you obey commands, too, don't you?"

"And just what makes you think that?" Emma asked, hands on her hips.

"You stopped when I told you to," Amelia smiled. "Pick up that shoe on the floor, Emma."

I could see Emma struggling, but after a few seconds, she obeyed.

"Fascinating," Amelia murmured.

"Amelia, it's not like some miracle, or something," Emma said hastily, slightly nervous now.

"I now have two servants," Amelia gave her widest smile; a smile a small child would have if given a treat. "No, no, not two servants. Emma, you look too…" Amelia paused. We both waited, dumbfounded. "…too royal and elegant to be a servant. Too polite. And you hold yourself higher than a servant would. Yes, you shall be my lady-in-waiting. Much better for you, don't you think? Yes, I like it much better…"

"No, I don't like it at all! If you'll excuse me, I'm going to have a word with my Mother." Emma said quickly.

"Oh no you won't! You will not tell your mother, father, your brother or your cook about this. Neither of you will talk to anyone about this except, if you must, you may talk between yourselves."

There was a long silence. "Now," Amelia continued elegantly, "Emma, massage my shoulders. They ache so! And Elisa, continue with what I told you to do before. I don't want a servant touching me!"

I rolled my eyes and muttered, "This servant wouldn't want to touch you anyway."

Emma growled at her in Elfian, "Curse you, Amelia!" I blinked. To be cursed (in Elfian) was a terrible thing (so much so that I'd rather not give the words that the Elfian language uses). Emma was really annoyed. She had only done that once before, when Peter (one of the "town boys") smacked Emma's horse, making Ginger rear, almost throw Emma off and gallop away in fright with poor Emma clinging to her back. You could hear her for a long time cursing Peter in Elfian, until she finally got control of her horse.

Then Emma began the massage while Amelia stared at her, surprised at the sudden outburst in a different language. Our chores then truly began.

That night, tired and sore from obeying all kinds of tasks, I crawled into bed. Emma was already there, because a lady-in-waiting needed her sleep (the way Amelia put it), but she was sitting up in her bed.

"Well, that wasn't too bad, was it?" Emma said brightly. Her voice was strained.

"Oh, no, not at all, Emma, lady-in-waiting of Amelia," I said sarcastically.

Emma laughed. "All right, it was bad. I really didn't expect her to, well, to treat us that way."

We laid in thought, then I asked Emma, "Want to have some fun tomorrow and confuse the heck out of Amelia?"

Emma laughed a little. "I don't know… Well, a little fun won't hurt. Let's do it."

I sighed. "So, what else can we do?"

Emma shrugged. "Nothing but count the days until they leave, I suppose."

I groaned. "Oh, joy."