Thanks to everyone that's still reading this, and thanks again to for being my most avid reader, your insights help me immensely in writing this.
You guys know the drill, R&R!
Medea was able to catch about a half hour of sleep before Matron shook her awake and forced her to get dressed. She guessed Nasuada was likely still asleep, or at least attempting to be, so she changed into a pretty green dress that she wouldn't have to worry about getting dirty since she'd be taking the long way through the corridors instead of crawling through the dirt- and dust-filled passageways.
She ran into several royals on her way up, avoiding most of their looks, all except Lord Cedere, whose hand brushed brushed her hip. She rolled her shoulders back and kept going, trying to fight off the deep red blush that had begun to climb up her neck. Poor Brigit, didn't know what she was walking into.
It took another twenty minutes before she finally reached the staircase that lead to Nasuada's floor, which usually would've been teeming with servants but was only occupied by the queen, who preferred her personal space. All the rooms except for Nasuada's were empty.
Medea stopped just before the door to the queen's rooms and listened for any movement on the other side. All she heard was relaxed breathing, which meant Nasuada had somehow fallen asleep after the night before. But something was...different. Not wrong, or off, but definitely...different.
Medea unlocked the door and twisted the knob only to find that the queen had locked the door on the other side. Which left only one option:
Climbing through the dust and dirt in the Labyrinth all the way to her highness's rooms.
Medea twisted her curly red hair into a tight braid and slid out of her dress, standing in the empty corridor in only her under-breaches, which only fell to her mid-calf, and her white blouse. She dumped the overdress and her shoes inside one of the empty rooms and took off into the Labyrinth.
Dirt clung to her clothes and the damp air had turned hot and musty as the sun beat down on Uru-baen. She stubbed her toes on the stone floor.
Finally, after nearly ten minutes of winding around the floor she found the door to Nasuada's rooms, the one just outside the sitting room.
Medea pushed at it, but this passage hadn't been used in decades and the wood had swelled in the hot, moist air and it didn't budge. She pressed her shoulder against the door and dug her feet into the ground to keep her steady, but the door still wouldn't move.
She stepped back several feet and ran full speed at the door and slammed her left shoulder hard into the door. It flew open and she hit her now bruised and likely dislocated shoulder on the ground. Medea cursed colorfully in her native tongue as she tried to breathe through the pain.
Finally she was able to open her eyes, although the pain still shot through her entire body. Nasuada came running from the bedroom in her bare feet and stopped a few feet away.
"You locked the door, I couldn't get thr-" Medea froze and the words lodged in her throat as a dark red blade hung in the air directly between her eyes. Only then did she realize the two bare feet in front of her were too big and pale to be Nasuada, and most definitely male.
"What are you doing in her highness's rooms?" he asked gruffly. Medea stared at the blade that still pointed menacingly at her face.
"I'm the queen's servant, the door was locked from the inside." She hissed through her teeth. Her fingers dug into the plush carpet and her fingers curled as she prepared to strike.
He lifted her chin with the blade and she glared up into his fierce gray eyes. "No maid would be climbing through the passageways in her underclothes. Now tell me who you really are."
Medea smiled darkly. "Murtagh Morzansson. You must have snuck in during the night, how romantic."
He glowered down at her and the point dug into her throat, nearly breaking the skin.
"Alright, fine. I am legally obligated as her highness's only servant and confidant to break down the door if I think she is in danger. I am also the only person in this castle that knows about you and her highness."
Then she sprung and slammed him against the wall with enough force to send the sword flying from his hand. She bent in close to his ear and hissed, "I am better known as her Highness's Black Hand."
R&R if you have any suggestions/complaints/have specific things you liked about this. And don't worry, there will be more Merric soon!
Sic semper tyrannis
Circe King