Disguise and infiltrate

"Is this real?" Esme curiously tugged at the tiger's fur and his ears. Her eyes growing wide in amusement. It was not everyday that she got to see real tigers.

There aren't any tigers in their kingdom and as much as she knew, they were equally rare in Visteria but still she had never heard of the existence of a tiger with snow like furs.

The beast roared at the audacious woman.

Esme's hair flew back as the tiger's saliva drenched her face. She wiped her face with the sheets on the bed before tugging at his ear again, "This is the last time. You are so beautiful…" She sighed, ''Can I rub my face on your fur?" She glanced at him hopefully.

Leo roared once again. Indecent woman! He opened his mouth to bite her hand.

She quickly retracted her limbs which wanted to play with the tiger a little more. She stood up from the bed, "I want to stay here with you but I have to leave, pretty…" Esme blinked, finding the tiger too adorable, "I will get you some meat before the Prince returns," She patted his head.

Leo, who was ready to act on his Master's orders, to hold her back in the room wagged his tail at the mention of food. His eyes had an expression of 'You human girl, are not that bad after all'. Unlike the man who is starving him since morning.

Esme smiled, looking at his obedient expressions.

She could not say that she was not shocked or scared when she first saw him but a second later, even when he scared her, she just felt like petting him.

Esme escaped from the Prince's room before he could come back and put another crystal cage around her. She went back to the servant quarters. After going inside her room, she closed the door behind her.

The events of the day were still alive in her mind.

She walked towards her bed and sat on it before looking at her ankle from where she had plucked a silver scale out of anger. There were no wounds on her skin which she had initially predicted because her wounds heals on their own….most of them.

While her powers, they come at their own wish. Sometimes, no matter how she tries, she could not use them. And at other times, those powers will awaken inside her body even if she was asleep.

What happened today was just so similar. She pushed herself out of her bed and walked towards the window.

She was so close to knowing the truth and finding her brother if those people did not came over there to the empty ballroom all of a sudden.

All the pain she went through after using her powers were for nothing.

And other that, she lost her reputation. Esme lowered her head as her face turned hot at the thought of how she jumped on Aleister.

''Why is he like the way that he is…?" She mumbled out aloud before shaking her head. He was too unpredictable for her to predict. She still could not believe that he compared her with a tiger and made her his little sister.

When she woke up, she was already on his bed. But she wondered what happened after she fainted in the water?

Esme sighed. Rather than thinking about him, she should be thinking about how to get closer to that woman but how?

She did not even know where she was.

Something came to her mind. Today was the day the Prince would be choosing a wife and the Princesses and noble ladies will be all there in the court along with their handmaidens.

Yes, along with their handmaidens.

That means that woman will also be there.

'Knock Knock'

Her thoughts were interrupted by the constant knocks. Esme opened the door only to be greeted with the Butler standing in front of the room with a woman beside him. From the woman's dress, she concluded that she was also a handmaiden of one of the Princesses.

She politely nodded at the butler, "Good Evening."

The butler nodded back at her, not that shocked by her natural elegance anymore. The first day, he was taken aback because the way she carried herself did not make her look like a servant. But now, he was getting used to her nature.

"Lady Esmeray?" The woman walked towards her.

Esme nodded.

"The butler told me that you are proficient with herbs. Can you help me?"

Esme glanced at the butler questioningly, ''Our guest needs your help. Make sure to look after her," With that said, the stoic man turned around and left.

"How can I help you, Miss?" Esme stepped aside to let her in.

The woman stepped inside her room as she removed the veil covering half of her face, "I have been having a fever since morning and with such conditions, I won't be able to serve or accompany the Princess to the court after some time. I need your help," Only the royals get treated by the the physicians while the servants don't get any of such treatments as they are required to have a strong body and mind to be able to serve the royals.

Even the handmaidens go through tough training for that but in the end they are just mere weak humans, compared to the royals who have a main nerve inside their body and immeasurable powers. Their health is unpredictable.

Esme glanced at her pale face as something flashed in her mind. ''I will get some herbs for you from the garden. They might not work immediately but they will help."

The woman smiled at her thankfully as she turned around to leave.

Almost after an hour, Esme stood in front of the mirror as she glanced at her reflection in satisfaction. She adjusted the veil covering the lower half of her face before running her fingers through the ugly hairpiece on her dry looking black hair. Her wine shaded hair was easily dyed with the help of a paste made of a few flower petals. This should be good enough to not attract anyone's attention.

She walked towards the woman sleeping on the bed. A hint of guilt appeared on her face. The herbs she gave the woman was so strong that she would not wake up for a few hours even though it would work well for her fever. She will be fine by the time she woke up.

Disguise herself as a handmaiden and infiltrate amongst the Princess and their servants. That's what she settled on.

Now that she has a way to go inside the court as the Princess's handmaiden, she hoped everything will go just according to her plan.