Doppelganger

'keep your head down... Don't look anyone in the eyes. No one must know what you look like, it's the only way for you to be safe"

The words of her dying mother echoed in Gwendolyn's head, maybe those words weren't the only thing clouding her head now, her head felt heavy from having to be hanging upside down for hours now.

She could feel her own blood choked up in her head, breathing didn't come as easy as it used to. It was such a miracle that she was alive after hanging like this for that long.

What happened?

Her late mother's worries did. Her mother worries that she would be exposed to danger because of her face had finally come to pass. Here she was hanging upside down in a dark room with no knowledge of if she would ever get to see the light again all because of her face.

Ever since she was a little girl, the picture she had of the world was black and sometimes blue as she had seen the world behind the thick dark fabrics of her face mask. The figure before the mirror always had an obscured head, hidden behind dark sewn fabrics. Apart from the water on the bath floor, no one had ever gotten the chance to see what that face looked like. If it was that of a troll or a human, a boy or a girl. No one knows.

At one point in time she didn't understand why she could only watch kids her age play outside through the window and why when she went out she would have a huge veil over her face. It wasn't until she was grown a bit and then happened to see Greecia's Princess during a royal procession did she understand what her mother's fears what.

She was a complete lookalike to the princess, it was almost like she was her doppelganger, one would think they were twins but how could they be twins when they had completely different parents. She who was born on the outskirts of Greecia had lived her whole life a peasant without even being able to cross the city walls how could she be twins with the princess. Her mother had not had the chance to tell her why she looked like the princess before she died and Gwendolyn too had never understood why but that was just how things was for her. She had to live incognito with her face a secret or risk to lose her live or be used as a pawn.

Now the day she thought she had avoided had finally come. She has been found out and no one's knows what her fate will be not even her

CLANG!

The metal door to the room opened and Gwendolyn could see a pair of leather army boots walking towards her with a bunch of other boots too, she lifted up her eyes to see the face of the person but could not clearly see who it was because she was still hanging upside down. It was a man no doubt.

"Bring her down" The man ordered and immediately she was brought down by the men he had walked in with.

Gwendolyn could finally breath in a sigh or relief, not that she knew she was safe but at least she was no longer in that uncomfortable postion. She could see the faces of the people around her now instead of having to look at their feets.

Royal Guards...

She could tell from their 100% pure cotten vest and black leather boots, their rigid eyes and fierce looks. They were no different from the ones that had grabbed her.

...Early this morning,

There she was sitting at the meadow with her petite build hidden within the dry hay grass. The gentle Ray's of the morning sun did a splendid job of accentuating that ethereal gorgeous face. Rare green eyes, baby pink puckered lips, short ink black lashes, a nose that was just meant to fit her oval palm-sized face and a cute dimple at one side of her cheek.

A smile on her face and a fabric in her hand, Gwendolyn had made up her mind, this morning would be the day when someone in the world would finally get to see what she looked like and she had chosen just who she wanted the first person to be, it was none else than her love. Her knight and shining armour... Axel.

They weren't childhood friends but two years could still be counted as them being best of friends but that was about to change, Gwendolyn had her mind made up, she would show him her face today and tell him of the feelings she has been hiding. Expectantly and anxiously she sat there waiting for his arrival like they had planned. He had something to also say to her and she was very anxious to hear it.

The sound of footsteps echoed through the meadow and Gwendolyn excitedly stood up, waiting to see that explicit face but she was disappointed. In place of that familiar figure there were a bunch of people dressed in the renowned blue coats and black pants. Her heart dropped and the smile on her face flew away like leaves in the wind.

Surprised appeared in those people eyes as they looked at her. Gwendolyn saw the look in their eyes, it was obvious they had seen a treasure, her next move was to run but it was all fruitless, at last she was bundled and taken away in a large sack.

It was all her fault, she shouldn't have been so stupid, taking off her mask was a mistake, she should have known better. Now what pains her the most is that she didn't get to see Axel, didn't get to show him her face before this happened and also didn't get to hear what he had to tell her. She could imagine his disappointed face. What would he think of her? Perhaps he would think she wasn't ready to hear how he feels.

"Clean her up" the man ordered again and only then did Gwendolyn notice that there were two females among the group that had walked in.

The two ladies walked up to her and moved to undress her. She knocked away their hands and tightened her grip around her clothes.

"What do you want from me?!" She asked cautiously. It's a stupid question, she knows. She has heard of this kind of scene before and it shouldn't be going this way, doesn't the captors give a set of offers for her to chose before the dolling up comes up. Why is she getting cleaned up?.

"Want from you?" The man asked jestingly and the other guards guffawed along with him. Gwendolyn can't seem to understand what part of her question was funny.

"You're the one who will be needing something from us" he spoke confidently then turned to walk out, as he did he ordered the ladies "clean her up and get her to the palace"

Gwendolyn's eyes furrowed. 'what awaits her in the palace?'