Under the bed

Caroline found herself curling into a ball under the bed. The footsteps drew near, and her heartbeat heightened with the elongation of a shadow inside the room. Sweat formed beads on her forehead and fell as drops down her face. The invader was heading to the room where she was now.

She closed her eyes, falling into a mental conflict as she battled with her mind for stability. Now with all soft mutters, she prayed God be so kind to save her soul and forgive.... ' Oh dear Lord, forgive, I pray you my sins and grant this selfish desire of me '. Her wish of not going to the festival was fulfilled though not directly. She regretted it. If only it had not been taken...

The world stood still as the shadow under the door increased. Those few seconds of twisting the handle where she in profusion let down those salt water, her thoughts strayed to the night creatures... Was she going to be killed now like her mother?.

The door opened.

Under the bed, she saw the glow from an oil lamp reaching the floor. The red to orange light brightened the ground, she pushed herself a little to the edge to see the intruder. Vampire or not.

The light had shifted from the floor to rest somewhere else, leaving the most important details out of view. The length of full hair rested on shoulders. The intruder was a lady. Thankfully not a vampire

She saw the lady walking to Primrose's desk and reaching for the hood over her head. Her beautiful blonde hair cascaded down as she flipped it over her shoulders. Caroline's breath hitched. The hair- blonde as Primrose's, about the same length also. Why...

" Achoo! ". A rat ran across her face, carrying with it a pungent smell. Dammit. What the hell was a rat doing there?

Annoyed, she stretched to kill it, but the annoyance turned to panic as she remembered where was. Her body froze with fear as the person turned in her direction.

Each movement turned slow, the hair went sideways, lashes next- long and thick. Nose- straight, full round lips.. her eyes widened with each feature. Primrose. What was she doing here?.

Confused, Caroline failed to notice that Primrose was steadily looking in the bed's direction until she stalked to it. She scurried to the head of the bed, hiding in the dark.

Primrose came close holding firmly in her hand the oil lamp. Caroline pushed her body further, getting buried in the darkness. Whatever was the reason that brought Primrose with a hood was not good?. Getting caught by her would-be disastrous. She closed her eyes and waited in the silence.

The light from the oil lamp crawled under the bed. Gradually she opened one of her eyes to see Primrose's blonde hair sprawled on the floor as she searched under the bed. Her face lit with a smile, an unstable one, but it was manageable as she saw that no matter the side she placed the oil lamp to search, the light did not get her.

Caroline watched as the young Mistress of the house carefully looked in the space. After a while, she heard her sigh and saw her heading to the table.

" Phew! ". She let out the breath she had been holding in. Fortunately for her, the light rays were unable to get to the darkness where she hid. Her heart beat loudly in her ears as she thought of the possibility of Primrose shifting the bed. She stayed there until she heard her dropping the lamp on the table. The clarity in the air made her go back to her former spot where she could see everything.

The room turned silent again with the chirping of insects outside. She saw her remove the clothing that served as a hood, draped over her shoulders, and tossed it aside. The light shone brightly on her face, highlighting the freckles on her cheeks. Her dazzling beauty stunned Caroline for a bit as she saw Primrose lift the mirror by her side. She watched with interest as she wiped at it with the hem of her cloth.

She angled it at her face and adjusted her hair. Caroline kept watching as she wondered if the young Mistress came home from the festival just to look up at herself in the mirror. Was there a man, so handsome, that had captivated the young Lady Elvin?. Had her Master and Mistress allowed their daughter to roam the streets of Haloria, unsafe, just to be sure of her beauty.

A purple light, so bright, graduated from the mirror and filled the room. Her eyes widened as she saw the young Mistress holding it to her, her eyes turning somewhat to the color that filled the room.

" My Queen ". Caroline saw her bowing slightly, the purple light dissipated from the room and the mirror, revealing the image of a woman appeared in it. She moved another bit to get a better view.

An epitome of evil beauty- her hair as black as the night with long lashes longer than that of Primrose's fanning against her milk-white face. Her emerald eyes as a black hole sucked her breath.

" Primrose ". Her harmonious voice resounded in Caroline's eyes as she saw her long nails painted black, drawing at her face. A witch!. A witch Queen!. That woman with all her natural beauty was a witch and Primrose was tendering her salutations to her!. Only witches bow to a woman like her and call her Queen. Her brows knitted as she tried to understand the situation. Primrose.... she was a witch!.

" My Queen, I have done what you asked me of. Lord Elvin and his wife are currently at the festival ground. I am left with maidservant. I will have the maidservant head on a plate for you tomorrow ". Primrose's promise sent goosebumps on Caroline's skin and made her shiver with fear. Slowly, she weighed the confusion and concern on her face.

" Primrose ". She called in a whisper.