Awake

Zhuri's eyes flickered open. She tried to rise from her lying state but the result was an agonizing groan; her body ached especially her face that was partly swollen due to the multiple slaps.

She decided to remain on the bed. Her eyes scrutinized her current environment slowly before she fixed her gaze on the chandelier hanging on the ceiling. The bed beneath her felt very soft and oddly familiar. Was she dead? No, this would probably be a dream.

From what Zhuri could recall, Angus saved her from that ugly incident and then, everything went blank when he hugged her. 

Thereafter, she could feel people touching her and a blurry image of two women submerging her in water. When she tried protesting, her attempts were weak and worthless. 

Zhuri could remember inhaling the scent of certain ointments, herbs and spices which she subconsciously concluded that she was hallucinating. 

The sound of birds chirping alerted her and she turned to the direction of the window. Realization slowly dawned on her, she was in his room again.

She briskly tried to sit up to fully process the environment when she heard footsteps approaching her.

From the study appeared a man with a bold smile on his face and one of Angus' books in hand.

Zhuri clutched the sheets fearfully. She shifted backwards until her head met with the headboard of the bed. 

"Good morning," He greeted, his smile reaching his brown eyes.

She parted her lips to speak but her voice ended up sounding raspier than intended, possibly because of the way she screamed. 

"Who are you, Sir? " She managed to ask.

"Pardon, I'm Jeremiah. You can trust me, I'm a friend of Angus, " Jeremiah introduced himself with words of reassurance as he noticed how tensed she was.

Her chest heaved out a sigh of relief.

"Oh…how did I get here? "

Jeremiah lazily pulled out a chair from Angus' desk and took a seat, "He brought you here. Please do not ask me why, no one knows. I'm supposed to look after you until he returns, "

"Where did he go?"

Now, Jeremiah wished that Angus had been the one to be there for her when she woke up. He was the one with all the answers to Zhuri's questions.

"He's having a meeting with some officers, Milady, "

The last word he addressed her as rung a bell in her head. Lady Diana.

She sprung up to her feet and quickly regretted that decision, she was wearing one of Angus' shirts and her thighs were exposed.

Likewise, Jeremiah rose from his chair and approached her, "Is anything wrong?"

"Lady Diana. How long have I been asleep? I need to go back, I —"

"There is no need for that, " declared a voice.

 They looked up to see Angus leaning at the door.

Jeremiah moved steps backwards from Zhuri, "Okay, he's here… I'll give you room to speak, "

She greeted him with head low, "Your Majesty, " 

Jeremiah playfully tapped Angus on his shoulder before leaving and closing the door behind him. 

"You're awake, " Angus said. He walked up to her calmly with his hands behind his back.

 Unfortunately, he couldn't find the right words to say to her despite being worried that she was unconscious for quite a longer time than he expected. 

Zhuri lifted her head up and tried to cover up her thighs by dragging the shirt down a bit. Her legs were wobbly and it felt like a tonne of bricks had fallen on her head but she needed to pay her respect to him.

"Yes. Thank you so much for what you did that night, I would've been dead if it weren't for you, "

There was no way she could repay him but to offer words of gratitude.

"It's okay, how are you feeling —"

Angus was cut off when she shakily stumbled and he rushed to help her from falling. At least, he got his answer. A fresh surge of rage swam through his blood stream, how horribly did they torture her that her recovery was still slow?

"I'm so sorry, Your Majesty," She whimpered against him.

He ignored her address and helped her on the bed, trying not to pay attention to her thighs as the shirt had drawn up for a much more clearer view which he covered up with the blanket.

Angus sat on the edge of the bedand she nervously looked at her fingers. A brief moment of silence settled in as both parties shuffled through their heads to find the appropriate things to utter. 

Zhuri was fazed by his caring and protective nature. First,he had taken no offence for sleeping on his bed, fed her, sent people to do her job on her behalf and now, murdering those who wanted to hurt her. Now, he's kept her in his room, nursing her as if she wasn't his slave. 

"When would I return back to my quarters, Your Majesty?" Zhuri broke the silence.

She almost died for staying in his room. This time, Lady Diana could the honours of personally snapping her head off. 

Unarguably, Zhuri now feared the woman more than ever. 

She had been whipped publicly, forced to place her feet in a bucket of red ants for harvesting less than the daily quota of potatoes,branded with hot iron, cut with a heated knife, locked up in the dungeon and has undergone diverse punishments but being given away to the guards had to be the worse she encountered.

Who knows what Lady Diana could do to her next if she overstayed her welcome in this room. 

Angus scoffed, "You want to go back? "

'Why would anyone want to go back there? ' she asked herself.

"I have to, Your Majesty —"

"Angus… call me Angus, "

"I'm sorry, I can't do that, " She hesitated. 

"Why not? "

Anyone would take this opportunity, he hated that she was being too official with him. With others it felt normal but hers felt weird, not decent enough to hear. 

"Well, you're the prince and I'm… I'm me,"

"And how is that a problem? "

"I've been taught not to disregard people of importance. People with close relations with you could address you with your name, Your Majesty but I can't, "

"And why can't you? "

"Because it is isn't so. I have to return to my quarters immediately to get started with work, Lady Diana would be furious and my work load would be given to another person,"

Angus caressed his forehead with a sigh, "And I've told you that there would be no need for that, "

Zhuri's brows furrowed in confusion, "What do you mean? Have I been laid off? Would I be executed? " She asked desperately. 

Any slave whose services was no longer needed was beheaded thereafter and left to rot as compost for the soil in the woods. Maybe that was her fate, but why was she kept here and not in the dungeon?

Angus chuckled but tried to stay stern as he didn't want to invalidate her emotions. It was normal to have those kind of fears.

"No. You're now going to serve in the palace, as my personal maid, " He finally announced

Deep within, he wished he could have granted her freedom but that was not in his power for now.

 With the enemies that were against her, letting her loose was not the best option. It'll be like dropping off a piece of meat in a cage filled with hungry hounds, which would be devoured in the speed of light.

However, Zhuri couldn't process what she just heard. Various questions swarmed her head and the best she could summarize it to was, "Why?"

Not because she was ungrateful to him but that she felt guilty. For as long as she could recall, she had developed a strong hatred for the prince with judgement of her encounter with his father. 

Everyday, she'd pray that a plague occured in the royal family and killed them all or that both princes would die in war and their father would pass on due to a heart attack caused by the news. 

Zhuri had never wished him well and as he did these things for her, a pang of guilt repeatedly struck her chest.

"Hmm?" He hummed, giving her room to clarify her question.

"I sincerely appreciate everything you've done for me and this offer too but why are you doing this?"

He bit his lower lip as he adjusted his sitting position.

Then she tried to explain her intentions, "I'm not questioning your order but—"

"Probably because I could've felt guilty if you died,"

"But, you've killed slaves before… " the words left her mouth before she could catch them. 

Regardless, she couldn't make sense out of his reason. He had slain fellow Vallancians right before her very eyes and has gone out to war on countless occasions with multiple slaves as his reward.

Her words pierced his heart, the allegations were true but he had executed slaves on account of his father. Not by his own will.

"Let's just say, you've caught my fancy Zhuri and you did a pretty good job with the cleaning the room, I figured that it'll be good to be have you around as long as you don't sleep on duty," 

For now,he could only provide her with that vague reason just to reduce her battalion of questions and allay her confusion. To his dismay, Zhuri asked another question.

"And that is why you saved me?"

"I don't joke with what is mine, Zhuri." He answered curtly.

His statement had been uttered with no intent of harm but Zhuri on the other hand, read it that way.

 Maybe this was just a means of defiling the wishes of his father and as a mere property, she had found herself playing the pawn on the chessboard of power. 

Using the word "What" only reminded her of her status as an object in the land of Vallancia and now,she has no other choice but to dance to his tune.

When no reply came, Angus rose to his feet in preparation to leave.

"Since you're still unwell, I'll let you rest until you've recovered. Someone would be here tomorrow to show you to your new room at the maids' dwellings, they'll bring some new clothes as well. If you wish to return back to get any of your things from the slave quarters, you have my permission to go after you've fully recovered

,"

"And my duties as your maid?" 

"I'll let you know when you've recovered. The maids would be here with breakfast, please eat well. I'll be back soon,"