The Spark

"I meant nothing by it. I only wanted to check the wound." Persephone pulled her hand back from his grasp.

"You should've considered that before you attacked me like a rabid dog." He scoffed, putting his hands behind his head and closing his eyes.

"Well, Your Highness, you should have considered not putting your hands on a woman however you wish." Persephone retorted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Woman you say." He chuckles to himself, to which the young woman heart skipped a beat. She was unaware that the infamous Ice King was capable of making such a face, but her thoughts were interrupted by her realization of his words.

"Pardon me?" Persephone questioned, her eyebrows knitting into a frown. "If not a woman, what could I be?"

"That's hard to tell. The women I've seen are gentle, elegant and quiet." He argues, giving her a half-lidded glare.

"I think you're mistaking the fear that you've instilled in the women of the palace as elegance and quietness." Her brain began sending her warning signs for her words which spilled out of her without hesitation.

His eyes lingered, but they drew darker and fiercer. "In that case, I prefer the woman in my palace to be fearful of me." The young woman sighed upon his reply, she couldn't understand why everyone feared such a narcissistic man such as the King.

"Must I kill your entire family to make you fear me?" He sat up, casting a moonlit shadow on over her. His eyes held curiosity as if he was trying to figure her out, but Persephone simply watched his expressions.

"A man such as yourself would easily consider such a thing, wouldn't you?" She replied before climbing off the bed.

With no other words shared between the two, Persephone laid on the cold floor and forced herself to sleep. However, Bastille didn't move, he stayed up and stared out the window, while the weight of the maid's words sat upon his chest. He glanced upon the woman who slept peacefully on the ground, wondering how she slept so soundly after putting him in such a position.

***

"Persi!!" Persephone was shaken awake by Ella who loomed over her, however her placement seemed off from how she fell asleep. She had somehow ended up on the bed. This woke her up immediately and she quickly jumped out of the bed. "Persi, are you alright??"

"I am.." the groggy woman replied, wiping her tired eyes. "But why am I on the bed?"

"You don't remember??" Ella gasped, her face filled with concern. "What did he do to you!" She cried out, embracing the confused woman.

"Ella, he did-" Before she finished her sentence, Bastille's voice immediately returned to her head.

'You do not speak of this night to anyone, they will think many things occurred in here and you say nothing to make them think otherwise.' It was as if the words were branded on the front of her brain. Persephone stayed silent and sat back down on the bed.

"'He did' what?" Ella questioned back, wanting her to finish her sentence.

"I do not wish to talk about it, Is Anna mad?" The older woman sighed, worried to even know the time.

"No, she didn't want to overwork you considering the horror of last night." Ella sighed, rubbing Persephone's arm.

"I-I'm fine." Persephone replied, giving her friend a reassuring smile. "I'd rather get to work."

Persephone quickly got washed up and into her uniform before she started her work around the Palace since there wasn't much to do in the King's chambers. "Persi!" Anna called out to her, pulling hot attention away from her task. "Would you be able to open the doors for the merchants outside?" She questioned, her hands occupied with a big plate of food for the soldiers.

"Of course!" the woman ran down the stairs to the big empty corridor with the giant gate. She removed the locks and pulled open the doors with all her might for the men to enter with their horses and supplies.

"Persi??" A distant familiar voice was heard outside but Persephone searched for the owner of the voice until he eyes stopped at Fredrick running toward her with his eyes gleaming with happiness.

"Fred!" She squealed, bracing herself for the man to throw himself around her like he usually does. He embraced her as if he hadn't seen her for weeks. "I wasn't aware you'd be coming!" She giggled, pulling the giddy man off of her to look at his face, which gave her the comfort she didn't know she needed.

"I didn't want to get ahead of myself, in case I wouldn't run into you." He sighed, as he grabbed her shoulders on either sides.

"Well now you know." Persephone rolled her eyes and patted his arm.

"Are you well? Are they treating you well? Is the King kind to you? Do-"

"Fredrick, slow down." The young woman let out a breathy laugh as she patted her friend on the chest, gesturing him to take a breath. "I'm well and Im doing fine here at the palace."

"Are you lying to me?" He asked, his smile fading as he examined her.

"Of course not, why would I?" Persephone nervously replied, not wanting to worry her friend.

"That cut on your lip tells me otherwise." He brushed over it with his thumb as his eyes became sullen. "What happened?" Persephone dreading replying the man because she wasn't sure as to what she should say to him.

"Oh this??" She laughed enthusiastically, "I had slipped after moping the floor and landed on my face, you can ask the rest of the maids, most of them were there to see it happen." She snickered, bashfully covering her face, but it was enough for Fredrick to believe her.

"You've always been clumsy, I wouldn't put it past you." He sneered, patting her on the cheek as if he was proud of her.

"Lad!" One of the workers called out, stealing his attention from the woman. "Ye' got any plans to assist a poor ol' soul luggin' these here crates?" His thick Scottish accent engulfing every word.

"My apologies, Elliot." Fredrick nodded at him before turning back to Persephone. "Will I see you in the workers dining hall for supper?" He asked, caressing her hand in a manner in which Persephone had almost forgotten.

"Certainly." She replied before running off and leaving the man to do his duties.

"Darlin'," Anne called out to the young woman who had been on her way to return to her previous duties of mopping the corridors. "Why don't you just clean the King's bath for today and call it a day?" She suggested, rubbing Persephone's back.

Ever since word had spread about the night before, everyone had been quite wary and gentle with her as if she had been taken against her will and was devastated. She simply gave Anna a smile and nodded before making her way to the King's private bathroom with her cleaning supplies. She kicked the door open with her foot and pushed it open with her back.

"You continue to be brazen, woman." A voice echoed inside the bathroom, startling Persephone into dropping her supplies. The sounds of water sloshing was heard as Bastille stood up from his bath, however he was stark naked. The woman's eyes widened as her sight was pulled like magnets towards his abdomen. His chiseled upper body decorated with water droplets. Before her eyes went further down she slapped her hands over her eyes and turned around, running forwards the door, oblivious to the fact that it was closed. She slammed against the door and immediately fell back on her butt but her hands remain in place.

"Are you aware that spying on the King during his bath is punishable by death?" His voice got closer to where he was night behind her.

"I-I did not mean to! I'm simply here to clean, Y-Your Highness." Persephone was beyond flustered, her face and ears ran hot.

"Well," He started, looming over the humiliated woman still on the floor. "Did you intend on sitting there the duration of my time in here?" Upon hearing this, she got to her feet and raced out the door, things in hand.

A subconscious smile formed on Bastille's face as he pulled his garments on. He had only ever seen one face on that women, which was one of spite. However, it was the first time she made such a flustered face upon seeing him, he found it rather amusing.

He opened the bathroom door to see her standing in one of the far corners of her room, the blush still evident on her face. Her embarrassment drew another smile on his face but he caught himself in the act, clearing his throat.

He left the room, not wanting to share any more words with the woman, knowing she would say something to ruin his day.

***

"Elliot, I think that the last of them." Fredrick set down the last crate by the kitchen entrance and walked back to the horses to pet them.

"This darn back of mine, will be the first to kill me, if not my wife." Eliot groaned as he slumped down on the ground by the wall. "Fetch me some water, would ya', boy?" The tired old man waved his hand at the younger one who wiped the sweat off his forehead.

"Alright, Elliot." He chuckled, and then started for the kitchen. "Ladies, could I get some water for my friend?" The woman immediately came to his aid with a glass of water. Fredrick thanked them and turned around but two woman began talking loudly, the subject of the manner ringing in his ears.

"Did you hear about what happened to that maid named Persephone?" They gasped, as if it was the hottest topic. Fredrick, thought back to the cut on her lip, hoping that it would answer her question, knowing that she wouldn't tell him herself. He set the cup down and began fumbling with his shoelaces.

"She suffered a night of cruel punishment, I heard.." The eves-dropping man's heart dropped once he heard that. He was angry that she didn't tell him, but more than that he was worried for her knowing how cruel the King was and all that he was infamously known for.

"She had been going against him for a while." The other maid said, sighing as if Persephone should've known better. "I heard that she had insulted him on many occasions and he finally took action."

Fredrick no longer wanted to hear anymore, he went to found himself running around the castle aimlessly, in search of his best friend. He stopped in his tracks when he came around another maid. "Pardon me, would you happen to know where Persephone is?" He asked her, desperation in his voice.

The other maid, who happened to be Ella, was taken by surprise upon seeing a strange man frantically wandering the halls. "Persi?" She questioned back, curious as to the relationship between this man and her friend. "She was assigned to clean the King's bathroom. It's at the very end of the corridor." She pointed in the direction for him.

He quickly thanked the young woman and ran toward the King's room. He hastily opened the door and saw Persephone typing a cloth over her head to keep her hair away from her face. "Fred?" A smile on her face upon seeing her friend.

Fredrick immediately pulled her into his arms and held her tight. "Fred, are you okay? What happened??" She inquired, concerned for Fred's sudden mood. She pulled herself out of his embrace to look at his face which was staring down at her heartbroken.

"I heard.." He said, scanning her body looking for injuries.

"Hear about what, Fred?" Persephone asked, confused in regards to the topic of conversation.

"You can't be here anymore, I'm taking you home."