I AM SO SORRY FOR SUCH A LATE UPDATE- I AM A HORRID WRITER! I apologize for the delay of this chapter as I have been so involved in my other story for LoZ. I swear I will finish this fanfiction soon, I've just been extremely stressed out lately. I have to inform my parents of something very disappointing and I'm just unsure how I'm going to do it.
Anyways, as always, thank you so much for those who favorite/follow this story, it makes me so happy! All the reviews always make me smile and I'm always eager for more so please do leave some! Please enjoy this chapter and I hope to see all of you in the next.
SIXTY-SEVEN - A Failed Ploy
5 Days Until The Wedding
Shirayuki took a deep breath in and a shaky one out.
She wasn't really sure what she was thinking when she offered Ryu to bring up the wax, but her mind insisted on it. She could have been doing the work she's been slacking on, or spending time with Obi during his fitting. But she felt the intense need to see the Princess once again, remembering as she hadn't since the slapping incident. She couldn't explain the need, but she knew remaining insatiable would destroy her.
The red-haired woman stared blankly at the door before her, with Wistarian guards positioned at both sides of it. They knew of Shirayuki and how harmless she was, so they knocked the door for her and awaited for the Princess. And a few moments later, the door opens and the Princess had been revealed to her.
The young woman was swallowed by a long Victorian dress that had clearly been done just recently. The cerulean blue silks were beautifully woven to have the center of the peace be completely blue. The long sleeves as well as the sides and the entire back of the dress was white with blue decorations ornate all around it. That same pattern was also woven up to cover her neck as similar to a loose choker.
Elizabeth's skin had also been touched up by an insane amount of white powder. Her features were defined by a bit of blush as well as a deep shade of crimson red was lathered all about her slim, small lips. She had enough eye makeup to express the real beauty of her blue eyes. Surely, they were not like Zen's, but with the right lighting, they could be quite endearing. Though, the frown on her face completely beat the purpose of all the makeup.
"Oh, it's you," Elizabeth notices, not a dash of excitement to see Shirayuki. Emerald eyes scan the Princess, looking up to see her brown hair entangled in a big, puffy bun. "Did you need anything from me?"
"Good day, Princess," Shirayuki greets kindly, the words practically burning her tongue. She held the small container in her hand, hoping she wouldn't notice it too soon to dismiss her. "I was hoping we may exchange a few words?"
"Ah," Elizabeth begins, "and why should I allow you such a gift?"
"Because I possess an item you've requested from my mentor," Shirayuki informs her with ease, deciding to use the wax as a trade. She lifts it up before her, allowing Elizabeth to deem her words true. "So I've decided upon a trade: wax in exchange of a conversation."
Elizabeth raised her eyebrow at the girl, clearly unable to trust her before turning around to return into her room. She raised a hand and gestured for Shirayuki to enter, having the herbalist quickly tail after her and closing the door behind them.
Shirayuki quickly noticed how big her quarters were (which made sense, considering that she is a princess). It was ornate with paintings of the Wistaria family as well as their ancestors. There were mirrors around as well as a huge closet to fit all the puffy dresses that Elizabeth wore daily. The woman even had a balcony to herself to see the beauty that was lovely Kingdom of Clarines.
But Shirayuki's mind refocused when Elizabeth sat on her bed and looked suspiciously at the woman, "so what is it you want to speak about?"
"I simply wanted to apologize," Shirayuki began softly, causing Elizabeth to raise her eyebrows in curiosity. "I understand why you don't particularly feel wanted here due to King Izana's rudeness about your blood. It is difficult to wait for a wedding in a kingdom alone."
"You wouldn't understand," Elizabeth took her words lightly, "you're not alone here. Everyone seems to adore you here- even the King is fond of you and he would never approve of a love between his brother and a mere peasant such as yourself."
"But I was alone all my life before I came here," Shirayuki counters with a faint smile. "My parents had left for the forest when I was very young and left me with my grandmother. But as soon as I was old enough to take care of myself, my grandmother unfortunately fell ill and quickly left me alone." Emerald eyes gloss with tears but Shirayuki forcefully subdued them. "It was up until I met Zen that I was alone and fending for myself."
"And so you believe you have the right to speak about him so informally?" Elizabeth hissed, having Shirayuki mentally roll her eyes. "Has it occured to you yet that I am engaged to him?" She shoots her left hand into the air to reveal the beautiful, large rock on her finger.
"I hope you realize that I do not envy you in any way," Shirayuki spewed honestly, having Elizabeth glare at her.
"You definitely do," Elizabeth growled in a hush down. Her lips formed a malicious smirk before she rose from her bed and began to walk around Shirayuki. The sound of her heel clinking down against the polished floor struck the silence as she circled around the young herbalist. "I'm to marry your lover in 5 days and there is absolute nothing you can do about it. The man you love will be my husband and on the night that we marry, it will be me in his bed as his new wife." Elizabeth was behind her right then, her mouth close to her ear so she could emit a taunting laugh. "I am everything you want to be right now, aren't I?"
Shirayuki's emerald eyes wandered around the room, unable to care less about Elizabeth's words. She squinted her eyes when she saw crates outside the balcony. Those were the very same crates she had seen before getting slapped in the face by the 'fair' Princess attempting to be daunting. Mentally noting this down, Shirayuki kept her head forward and smiled.
"I didn't realize that you were betrothed to Obi," Shirayuki begins lightly, "I'll be having a word or two with him shortly then."
Elizabeth felt herself go pale. This woman simply didn't care for her words or her attempt in hurting her feelings. Walking slowly to be back before her, Elizabeth leered at Shirayuki's face. There were no signs of hurt or annoyance anywhere. Shirayuki simply smiled brightly at the brunette, unaffected by her taunting.
"That is not what I meant."
"I know," Shirayuki agreed with the statement. "But you must realize that my lover is Obi and will always be Obi. It is no lie that I did love Zen very much, but that is in the past. He will love you and you are to love him back." She paused. "At least, that is the hope."
Elizabeth gritted her teeth, vexed at how unentertaining Shirayuki was. "But you have nothing, loving a man like that." Elizabeth smirked. "Obi is lucky enough to have such a position, being so close to the Prince and his aids. But that man will remain nothing and you, too, will share that nothing with him."
"At least I will be happy with nothing so long as I am with him," Shirayuki firmly insisted. "That is all I need in life."
"But you could have been a Princess!" Elizabeth hisses harshly this time, unable to contain herself. Shirayuki noticed her progressing anger and remained still, watching as the Princess was losing it. "You could have lived a life of lavish and comfort, with all this gold and jewelry to your name! How could you possibly think a Prince's monkey compares to a handsome Prince?"
"Because happiness is the most expensive thing in all of the land, my dear," Shirayuki worded warmly, smiling gently at the furious Princess. "I am so wealthy with unconditional love from a man who desires nothing but a smile from my face everyday. I am so very fortunate to have met someone who finds that my happiness is enough for him to keep living in this world."
Elizabeth remained quiet, her eyes staring into Shirayuki's. Her face emitted so much pride, with her cheeks full and glowing. Without makeup or any sort of alternation, Shirayuki had a face so vibrant and containing natural beauty that one would believe she truly was a Princess of some kind. Especially with such an eye-catching head of crimson red hair- anyone wouldn't dare leave alone a rarity like her.
"A woman who is content with being poor," Elizabeth sighed. She's boring, Elizabeth thought to herself. Someone of no entertainment is of no value to me. She noticed Shirayuki's eyes wander once more, having her glance back to see her crates. She smiled right then before returning to meet her eyes. "Curious, are we?"
"Just a placeholder for my eyes," Shirayuki excused, "my apologies." Elizabeth waved off the apology and headed towards the one crate. Shirayuki remained still, eyeing her movements as Elizabeth grabbed 2 crystal glasses from the table that sat beside the large crates. "What are you doing, if I may ask?"
"What does it look like I'm doing?" Elizabeth replied dully as she pulled off the top of the crate. Shirayuki walked a bit closer to get a better look at its contents. And to her surprise (and slight disappointment), it was just several bottles of wine. "I'm getting you a glass of wine to thank you for your service."
Eh? Shirayuki just stared, her face clearly expressing confusion.
"You brought up the wax for me," Elizabeth pointed out as she grabbed a bottle of wine from the crate. She seemed to have chosen aimlessly, but it wasn't the bottle she had selected before to have a drink with Zen. Not that Shirayuki knew this information, but she wasn't buying her tip. "And you've exchanged more words with me than anyone in this castle. Even though I would have desired it with another, I thank you for giving me conversation."
Upon my request was that conversation brought up. "Of course, Princess," Shirayuki followed her pace, unsure as to what exactly she was getting at. But it seemed nothing else was occurring aside from having a drink as Elizabeth poured the wine in the two fine glasses. "But you don't have to thank me with a cup of wine-"
"I want to, though," Elizabeth insisted as she placed the cork back on the bottle of wine. She set it carefully back into the crate to divide the two glasses evenly with her two hands. She offers one to Shirayuki, giving her a curt smile. "Although I don't like you very much, you aren't terrible."
"Thank you?" Shirayuki's voice expressed unease, having Elizabeth narrow her eyes on the glass that the herbalist was now carrying. She held it carefully, as though desiring not to drop it but also against drinking it. "But Princess, I am not one who likes to drink much."
"A lady who doesn't care for a cup of wine?" Elizabeth raises a brow. "How are you even a woman?"
"W-well," Shirayuki's cheeks tint red, "I am unfortunately a lightweight, so my tolerance for alcohol isn't particularly high…"
"How about a sip then?" Elizabeth insisted, having Shirayuki still skeptical of the glass of wine. "Come on now- it isn't that strong, I promise!"
Shirayuki was still unsure but knew that she wouldn't relent unless she at least took a sip. So, without much thought, she brings the glass up to her supple lips and allows a bit of wine to enter her mouth. But Shirayuki hadn't been stupid and kept her eyes slightly open to notice that the Princess did not take a sip. Elizabeth simply stared at Shirayuki with a conniving smile and that was enough to not trust this drink.
Swiftly, Shirayuki divided the sip of wine in her mouth and placed both halves in the back of mouth where her teeth ended. She used her tongue to wall them against the inside of her cheeks, hoping she didn't look like a chipmunk. It felt comfortable enough, though, to talk without seeming like she had anything in her mouth. But, to keep up her facade, she gulped.
Shirayuki pretended to taste the wine with her tongue before nodding, "it's a bit dry."
Before Elizabeth can reply, a harsh knock could be heard from her door. But she didn't need to go open it as it was soon kicked open by an unknown source. Both woman looked over to spot Kiki and Obi, seeming to be panting and out of breath. Shirayuki guessed they rushed over here, seeing their breathlessness and the fact that Obi's amber eyes were dim. He was clearly worried. And honestly, there was reason to be.
"Princess," the two aides greeted in sync, bowing before her. Elizabeth nodded, watching as they straightened up again. Obi's eyes were on Shirayuki alone, hoping that nothing happened to her. But it doesn't seem like she had been bruised or hurt in any way physically. As far as he's concerned, at least.
"Is there anything you two need?" Elizabeth asked quietly as she set her glass down.
"We were looking for Shirayuki," Kiki began, her breath already caught. It was amazing how swift Kiki was as the sweat that glistened her skin a moment ago completely evaporated. "She's required by the medicinal staff immediately."
Elizabeth wasn't buying the lie. "Why?"
"Are you questioning the requirement of Shirayuki's position as a court herbalist?" Kiki challenged, her eyelids lowering as she narrowed her sight upon the Princess. "She is still under authority, seeing as she's still a practicing court herbalist. You cannot ask why when you don't know how the sections of this kingdom functions."
Elizabeth wanted to press more but she knew that Kiki wasn't the type to give in easy. She had been one of the smartest people in the Kingdom, so challenging her would have Elizabeth meet directly with her stupidity. So she tightens her lips together and nods, allowing Shirayuki to go.
Shirayuki nods in response, offering the Princess both the wax and the cup of remaining wine. Elizabeth took them both with ease, watching as Shirayuki bowed before her. "Thank you," Shirayuki emitted her final words before Obi wrapped his arm around her waist and escorted her out. Kiki tailed right behind them as they fled from the Princess' quarters and towards Shirayuki's office.
"What happened? What did she say to you?" Kiki began to question, looking worriedly at the young woman beside her. Shirayuki shook her head, keeping from speaking as they all walked through the corridors of the castle. "Shirayuki?"
"Miss?" Obi began in a hush tone, concern flooding his expression as they walked to her office. Shirayuki was trying her best to keep the wine in her mouth; she didn't want to spit it out without a specimen cup. She just wanted them to trust her as she rushed them downstairs to find Ryu and Garak.
Finding themselves in the office, Shirayuki quickly escaped Obi's hold and began looking through her drawers anxiously. The two just watched, Obi's eyes full of horror as he watched his lover impatiently make a mess of her desk. Ryu escaped from his bed and quickly got on his feet to check what Shirayuki had been seeking.
"Shirayuki?" Ryu tried, "what are you looking for? I can help." Shirayuki turned to look down at the boy, pure relief washing her face. She attempted to shape the object with her fingers, making turning gestures with her hand to indicate that it had been a container with a spinning cap. "Oh, you're looking for a cup."
Ryu rushed over to his side of the office, finding a fresh and clean specimen cup and opening it. Quickly giving it to her, Shirayuki spat out the sip of wine she had been holding in her mouth. Ryu watched as Shirayuki began properly breathing once again. She handed Ryu the cup to hold so she could grab a glass of water from the pitcher they always had in their office. She took a large sip of it and went to the window while swishing the water in her mouth, trying to remove the taste of the wine from her mouth. With the window open, she stuck her head out and spat the water out on the grass, mentally apologizing to Mother Nature.
"Shirayuki, is everything alright?" Kiki quickly rushed to her aid, holding onto her shoulders. "What was wrong with the wine?"
"I don't know," Shirayuki finally said, her voice weak as she was desperate for as much air as possible. Obi also rushed over, taking over for Kiki as he held her at her waist. She turned around in his hold, looking up at Obi with her lips glistening with water. "She poured the same wine for both of us but she didn't take a sip."
Everyone raised their eyebrows. "Not at all?" Obi asked curiously.
"She didn't even pretend to," Shirayuki informed as she finally regained a proper breathing pace. "She just watched me take the sip."
Ryu looked down at the wine, seeing the bubbles due to the combination of Shirayuki's spit. He retrieved the lid and shut the container quickly. "I'll take it to the lab to analyze. Come in soon when you've recovered." With that, the young boy left the office with the wine sample.
"Do you think…" Kiki began quietly, her eyes widening, "...she tried to poison you?"
The very suggestion made Obi inflate with anger. The Princess was about to have everything that a Princess could ever ask for. A kingdom full of servants and guards who are willing to risk their life for her. She'll be in the walls of a beautiful castle with a handsome husband who happens to be the Prince of Clarines. She's about to accept eternal wishes and royal treatment. And yet, she wants to mess with someone as defenseless as Shirayuki?
"That's what I'm not sure about," Shirayuki sighed, leaning against the wall with Obi beside her, allowing her to rest her head against his shoulder. "But I noticed that all those crates the day she slapped me were in her room. I always figured packages that came in and out of the castle were inspected before anything happened to them."
"They are definitely checked for its contents," Kiki confirms her thoughts. "What were the crates full of?"
"I didn't get to see into all of them," Shirayuki began, "but the one she had opened been full of many bottles of the same wine she served me." Everyone's thoughts quickly clicked as Shirayuki looked down worriedly to the floor.
"It's impossible for her to be keeping that much wine for herself," Obi pointed out, furrowing his 'brows' as he met eyes with Kiki. Kiki was holding her chin between her fingers, attempting to figure out what the Princess' objective was exactly with that much wine.
"Unless…" Kiki started on a thought.
"It's not just for her," Shirayuki finished the thought, her emerald eyes dimming due to her thoughts, "it's for the wedding."