Chapter 12
ELAYNE
"Your highness, you shouldn't put that in your mouth."
It was the perfect day for laundry. Despite the fact that winter was approaching, the sun still fully came out on some days. Today was one of those days. I brought Prince Miyon out with me and he was having fun playing around with a clean toy. Despite the fact that I cleaned it, the image of it being dirty still haunted my mind so I was skeptical of him putting it in his mouth.
He got bored of that and went off chasing a gecko.
"Don't go too far, your highness!"
I wasn't too sure he heard me. I sighed, turning my attention back to the turbid water bearing a hazy reflection of my face.
What am I even doing?
Becoming the little prince's nurse meant I was isolated. All the maids ran at the sight of me since I was always carrying him anywhere and everyone refused to be anywhere near 6 feet of me. It was becoming ridiculous.
It had something to do with him being called the herald of bad omens. I have only been in the palace for three weeks and not once was I struck with ill luck! It may have had something to do with his poor living conditions and the fact that he was very energetic and intelligent.
I hadn't even seen one wife or concubine! It was fast getting frustrating!
"What do I do now?"
It was very slow and boring but it was much better than what I would face back at the house. The only thing I would miss is Amelia's quirky comebacks. About an hour after letting the prince out of my sight, I hear a loud piercing scream of a woman and the loud cry of a child. Bolting off the ground, I searched for the source, hoping the prince was safe.
I never would've guessed it was the start of my nightmare.
"Who let this dirty thing into my sight?!"
A shrill voice pierced the air once again, their contempt and annoyance travelling in their too high voice. I find them quickly and a heel is on the little prince's head. He was shivering and sobbing, too scared to cry out loud.
"Your highness, are you alright?"
Once he heard my voice, he began to scream, reaching for me. I looked at the woman who had him under her heel. She was dressed in a garish yellow dress with a headpiece that I learnt earlier belonged to the married women of a mountain tribe somewhere in the continent. She was remarkably beautiful but with that attitude, there was no way for me to acknowledge someone like her as attractive.
"Who are you?" there was venom in her voice.
"I am the prince's new maid."
I was treading carefully because I knew she was fairly important. She had five maids around her and most of them bore the same look of scorn as she did. Knowing she could be a concubine or wife, I couldn't sweep her feet off the child, as much as I wanted to.
"Desiree, slap her for me."
Wide-eyed, I watched one of her maids walk up to me and strike me across the face. The force in her arms weren't light, her slap leaving my head throbbing vigorously. Prince Miyon cried harder.
"Shut up, you bastard! Aren't you supposed to look after him properly?! Why would you let such a disgusting creature near me? You should stick to the west entrance, not wander around the palace like an actual human being! What exactly do you want?!"
"I'm sorry. I'll watch over him properly."
I kept my head low, keeping the anger on my face hidden. I knew I had sunk low but this, this was a whole new level. Never mind me, the child under her heel must've done nothing wrong to deserve this.
"Don't let this repeat itself! Now, begone!"
She lifted her heel and turned around in a huff, muttering something about her day being ruined. The maid behind turned around with an uncertain look in her eyes and scurried after her master.
"Ellie." Prince Miyon crawled up to me, sniffing.
"It's okay little one. I'm okay."
No. I'm not okay! How dare she?! How dare she hit me?! I'm... I'm...
"Nobody. I'm nobody."
I picked him up and slowly walked back to the west entrance.
"Ellie, why awe you cwing?"
"I'm not..."
His hands reached for my cheeks and upon contact, I felt the wetness of my cheeks. Blinking a few times, I tried to stop the tears but they kept coming.
"I'm sorry your highness. I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry."
"Ellie, I'm sowwy..."
"No, you don't have to apologize for anything. You're not at fault."
The west entrance came into view. It looked more desolate than ever, the crumbling coat of paint, the moss covered walls and bare floors without a hint of human presence. Just a little to the right was where I was doing laundry. I wasn't even finished. I wiped my face and sniffed.
"I have to finish it. Please don't run off again."
He didn't reply but he stayed beside me till I was done. Eventually, the mundanity of the task whisked away our bad moods and the little prince's hilarious attempt at helping me spread the clothes. Seeing me laugh, he was all smiles too.
Over the next few days, it became apparent that someone was making life harder for us. Someone thought it was a good idea to dump trash near our residence, causing us headaches for days.
Prince Miyon ended up getting his nose stuffed and eventually catching a cold. That brought us to the next problem; getting a royal physician to attend to Prince Miyon. While running a high fever, I had to run from pillar to post in the palace, looking for someone to attend to Prince Miyon. When I finally found someone, it didn't look bright at all.
"Hello. Yes, hello. Please, I need you to look at his highness. He has caught a cold."
"... Really?"
There was disdain in his eyes as he looked upon the child wrapped in my arms. Despite being an older gentleman, he lacked the compassion of one who was willing to take care of the child.
"I've been contracted to attend to her highness and I'm in quite a rush so if you'd excuse me -"
"Wait! Won't you at least give me some medicine?!"
"... Look woman, that child in your arms is better off dead. Everyone in this palace, including his majesty yet no one has the guts to off him. It's better this way."
"You would all leave a child to die?!"
"Maybe it's because you're new but that child is nothing but ill luck. I pity you who has been saddled with taking care of him."
"For something he cannot even control, you would leave him to such a cruel fate? Have you all no heart?!"
"I'm already late. I'll advise you to abandon that child, miss. Good day."
He walked away without a second glance.
"E-E-Ellie..."
He was clearly delirious but he still reached for me. There was no way I was going to leave him like that, no matter who he was. I saddled him tighter, dressed in warmer clothes and left the palace.