BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

I groaned as the sound of the usual alarm clock woke me up in the morning. Rolling over, I saw the time was 8:17. Slamming my hand down on the snooze button, I closed my eyes for a few more minutes of precious sleep. Less than two minutes later Mikasa found me and shook me.

"Alexis!" she exclaimed. "You need to bathe before ten, otherwise you'll be sopping wet when you see Commander Dawk!"

"Lady," I said, "geez, Mikasa, I'm getting up!" And without hesitation I sat up on the bed, and Mikasa dragged me by the arm to the bathroom. Of course, she stepped outside while I cleaned myself off, because not only wasn't it proper to have a maid with you in the bathroom, it was just awkward for me; I never really liked the eyes of complete strangers on me.

Half an hour later I walked out and Mikasa was holding a burgundy satin dress in her hands. Slipping it on after my underwear, I sat still as she put makeup on my face. It felt heavy and slightly sticky; I resisted the urge to wipe it off with the back of my hand. Then I noticed the dagger in a holster on her thigh, and I raised my eyebrows.

"What's with that dagger on your thigh?" I questioned, remembering what I saw yesterday morning when she got Eren.

Mikasa stiffened at that question quite visibly. As I was about to apologize, she shook her head. "I carry it for self defense purposes," she responded quietly. "A few years back I was kidnapped by traffickers in England and was transported to Italy. That's when Eren found me and killed off the traffickers. The Queen of Italy, her name was Karla at the time, felt sympathy and adopted us into her royal family, although only as a servant. When she passed, the new queen had Eren moved to butler status, and a few days ago we were transferred to this palace."

She sighed, and I stared at her, my jaw dropping. "No way," I commented. "Who's targeting you? We need to make sure you aren't targeted here!"

She nodded. "Don't worry about it too much, lady. It's better if you don't know , but, if you insist... The Titans."

After our awkward talk, Mikasa finished my makeup, and I grabbed a tan, cropped jacket, feeling cold. It had two pockets on the chest, one with the royal family's crest, the Wings of Freedom. The wings were also large on the back of the jacket, barely hidden under my heaping mass of hair that was pleated and braided to the middle of my back. Placing on some burgundy heels on my feet, I slipped outside of my room and walked to the conference office, where eren was waiting for me.

"Good morning, lady!" he greeted cheerfully, and I looked at him. "Good morning, Eren," I responded, trying not to show him I knew of the Titan's plans. Even if he did notice, he didn't show it.

Eren pushed open the door, and I entered the round room. It had a tea set on a small table in the center of the room, where Commander Dawk was sitting and waiting for me.

"Commander," I greeted, and he saluted me as she stood up. "Lady Princess," he responded as I nodded at him to sit down once again. "How have you been?"

I sighed. "I've been doing well. And how have you been, Commander?"

He nodded at me. "We've found evidence of a terrorist organization that plans to overthrow the royal family. They already set their targets on two servants from the Italian court."

I narrowed my eyes, immediately knowing who the commander was talking about. "And who would those people be?" I inquired. Dawk sighed and looked at me, bringing his cup of tea to his mouth. "The Titans, my lady," he responded after he had drunken from the cup.

I felt my eyes widen as I heard the name, and the commander looked up at me again after setting his tea down. "Oh, and we have reasons to suspect moles in the royal court to the Titans," he added as he registered my reaction. "Is something wrong, my lady?"

I shook my head. "Set guards on the servants immediately, and make sure that you keep tabs on the suspected moles at all times. And that's an order," I commanded, and Dawk nodded. "If I may, lady, why the sudden order?" he asked, and I glared at him.

"I know the servants who are being targeted; they have daggers on them at all times to protect themselves. Can't get more obvious than that."

His eyes widened as he understood what was going on. "Whatever you say, my lady," he exclaimed, and he saluted me before taking his leave. I sighed, putting my head in my hands, and wondered, 'Am I really cut out for this? Being responsible for an entire palace and country's well being at 16?'

The answer was no, that I wasn't. Giving up, I stood up and walked to my rooms, shutting the door gently as I entered.

A/N I am so sorry for the late update guys! School's literally been a drag and I haven't been able to get anything done. -_- I promise that I'll be writing more often after next week.