White Demon

>> Chapter 2 B <<

The Emperor and Captain Roscoe walk the hall, they leave, and the high dining doors closes behind them.

Duchess Ana walks up to Zea, and she holds her by the shoulder as they look on, blandly.

The Empress, Madame Rovnaxander walks up to them, Ana and Zea.

The maidens also walk up to Ana and Zea.

They walk with Alex, and alongside Duchess Tasia and Duchess Gal.

They all stand together for a moment as if in readiness for a photograph.

They stare blankly at the high dining doors for a moment.

There is this awkward silence.

"Okay, break it up now, all of you," the Empress retorts.

"Duchess Ana, you will go back to your court with Alex, Gal and Tasia, you both will come with me."

"What about me mum," Zea says, she beams an innocent smile with red blushing cheeks.

"You always take care of yourself, my child, you are Momma's big girl," the Empress says to Zea as she inspects her hair.

"Your hair is a mess child," the Empress says. "Have you been running in the bush?"

"Maiden Clara, Maiden Clara," the Empress calls out.

"Yes, Your Majesty," Maiden Clara answers and steps forward.

"Please take this child, and dress her up properly," the Empress says.

"We are only fighting a war, it is not the end of the world yet."

She pulls Zea by the hand and hands her over to Maiden Clara.

"Yes, Your Majesty," Maiden Clara says.

"Come child, let's take you to your room."

Maiden Clara guides Zea out of the hall.

"I will go with Zea too," Ana says.

Ana moves closer and follows Maiden Clara and Zea, Alex tags along with her.

"Okay, you all be good in Duchess Zea's court okay, I don’t want to hear of any fights, okay," the Empress says to the children.

"Okay mum," the children reply in unison.

Duchess Tasia is reading a book, she walks out of the hall with Duchess Gal and their maidens trail behind them.

Shortly, the dining hall is as empty as it all began in the morning.

That's apart from the Royal Guardians standing by the large hall corners like Gargoyles!

These Royal Guardians never move, they just stand there like statues.

They are usually all over the place, mostly at palace corners, hallways, alleys, dungeons, and courtyards, everywhere else, except inside the Duchess' courts.

Legend has it that they are not humans!

They never say a word, or they don't just communicate in mare human languages.

Legend has it that the Royal Guardians are knights sent from the great land of Arthesis, the land of great knights, a land of the Myth gods.

But with all this strength they just stand at corners, holding their swords, or spears, their faces covered with a knight's helmet, and I wonder if they ever have helmet hair, and their body is cladded all over with iron mail!

**********************

The Emperor and the chief captain walk down the palace corridors.

"What is this guard with my daughter, I hear," the Emperor asks Captain Roscoe.

This, the Emperor asks because the Emperor can sense that when Zea spoke about the guard, the maidens and the Duchesses let out a giggle, this may portray to be a sign that Zea may have something to do with this guard in a manner that may seem inappropriate or so.

Could this be so?

The Emperor reckons.

Or could it be that she may have made the honest demand for the guards to be returned to the palace for honest security reasons?

The Emperor and the entire palace know Zea to be a bold and young Duchess.

Outspoken she is, though she is the fourth amongst the Duchesses.

Could it be that she was just being bold and outspoken, speaking on behalf of everyone?

Or could it be that little Zea is developing affectionate feelings for a palace guard?

The Emperor is uneasy in his thoughts.

Captain Roscoe stops in his walk, he takes a military stance.

“I don’t quite understand what is going on, Your Majesty, but I will surely find out about this palace guard as soon as possible.”

The Emperor stops by an arc window.

He looks through the large arc window and all he can see is the smoke rising from the creek bed about a mile away.

The Emperor heaves a sigh for a moment.

"Let there not be any other male guards brought to my daughters or my family again," the Emperor says.

"You hear me?"

The Emperor bellows with some tone of anger in his voice.

"Yes, Your Majesty," the captain answers.

"Yess, because I don't know whom to trust anymore in the land," the Emperor says.

He taps the tips of his fingers simultaneously in thought as he continues his gaze through the arc window.

The Emperor wears a dissatisfied countenance as he gazes across the kingdom.

He sees across the lands that the ‘Greenlands’ are now scorched by fire.

He can see that the beautiful lilac fields across the woodland hills, and the daisy fields, all have relinquished their luster.

"Who is this Omiji, or so," the Emperor says.

His voice depicts some sinister tone that can't be placed either as anger or mischief.

"I don't know yet Your Majesty," the captain says. "But I will surely find out soon sire."

"Hmmm," the Emperor grumbles inaudibly.

He keeps his gaze through the window.

As a good father, the Emperor would want his daughters and his family to be safe and happy.

So the Emperor was not just worried about his daughters' safety, but also about their emotions.

As they are yet still young women, and as a father he has not yet had the time to be with his children for quite a while now, considering the wartime.

The Emperor wants the security of his family to be first and foremost before any other unnecessary social interactions.

Social interactions which his young daughter Zea may find appealing having with a palace guard, but may not see the danger or its negative consequence to her safety, or so the Emperor reckons.

All these thoughts run through the Emperor's mind in a flash.

The Emperor, in this bid of various thoughts, moves to avoid these speculations coming up in his mind.

"Send him to the front lines," the Emperor says.

"Who, Your Majesty," the captain asks.

"This ‘Omijii’, when you find him, send him to the front lines," the Emperor says yet again.

"Let him go and fight like his fellow young men and stay away from palace women, I don't want him or any of his kind young men, taking advantage of young vulnerable women in the palace, replace all palace guards from henceforth with knights and Royal Guardians!”

“From henceforth, assign a special team of knights to see to my family, I would want two Royal Guardians placed permanently at the door court of the Empress, Tsarevich Alex, and the Duchesses, then I want all the knights assigned to strictly obey my orders, no one goes into the courts of the Duchesses or comes out without proper identifications, this is an order captain, understood,” the Emperor says.

"Yes, Your Majesty," the captain answers.

"It is time we change things around here, don't you think," the Emperor says as he looks on at the smoke rising from down the yonder.

"That is right sire, it is time we change things around here," the captain retorts.

The Emperor continues his gaze through the large arch window.

"The meeting sire," Captain Roscoe says.

"Ah yes," the Emperor says.

The Emperor walks away from the window briskly, he walks down the hallway.

Captain Roscoe quickly follows him.

"Can I see the battle strategy scroll," he says to the captain as they walk on by.

The captain hands over a large scroll to the Emperor.

They both hold and open the scroll.

They look into the scroll as they walk down the large hallway to the meeting point.

**********************

In the Duchess' court, Maiden Clara isn't so happy with Zea and her forwardness about talking to the Emperor about Omiji.

Zea is sitting at the tea table.

Ana and Alex are sitting on the bed, while Maiden Clara is standing a few yards away from the bed.

"Why did you do that, Your Highness," Maiden Clara asks Zea.

"Do what,” she says.

"You could have let me talk to the captain about Omiji as I said I would," Maiden Clara says.

"The Emperor is my dad, so why shouldn't he do it quicker for me, than the captain would?" Zea says.

"Oh child," Maiden Clara says. “You seem not to understand.”

Maiden Clara bows her head, she shakes her head from side to side disapprovingly.

"What's the matter, Maiden Clara," Zea asks.

She asks this question because she sees that Maiden Clara is looking sad.

"Nothing child, I just hope the Emperor sees it as so you see, now come Your Highness, let me make your hair," Maiden Clara says.

She takes a comb from the tea table and goes behind Zea, she begins to comb her hair.

"Ouch," Zea shrieks.

"Sorry child, your hair is a bit brittle, have you been playing in the fields?" Maiden Clara asks rhetorically.

She asks rhetorically because she knows where Zea had been - in the woods!

Alex wanders away from the bed to the corner of the court.

He is fascinated by the miniature art displayed on the dressing table at the other end of the court.

The miniature art is made of pure gold.

He wanders to go play with them by the dressing table.

Ana moves closer to Maiden Clara and Zea.

"Tell me more about this...this 'Omiji' I hear," Duchess Ana says to Zea.

Now, they were not afraid to say anything in the presence of Maiden Clara, because they see Maiden Clara as their most trusted maiden that they know won't share a secret, or so they reckon.

"Tell me, tell me, for I sure know something is going on," Ana says excitedly.

She blushes with red cheeks.

"Okay, I will tell you, I met a guy last night, and his name is Omiji," Zea says, twirling her hair shyly.

She spontaneously pushes her head backward to look at Maiden Clara who is standing right behind her combing her hair, this she does, sarcastically.

Maiden Clara gently pushes Zea's head forward and combs it aback.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait," Ana says.

Ana moves even closer, though still sitting on the bed, she comes so close that she almost knocks Zea off her seat.

"You mean to tell me, you had something going on last night...with a man,” Ana says.

Maiden Clara also stops what she is doing, her hands akimbo.

She looks down at Zea, she's looking down because she is standing right behind Zea, and Zea is seated.

Ana and Maiden Clara both wait for Zea to answer the question with a broad spread of suspense and awe written all over their faces.

"Hey, it's not like he's a 'man' like that," Zea says sarcastically.

She throws her hands hysterically into the air as she speaks.

"He's just a boy," Zea exclaims.

She shyly twists her hair up close to her cheeks, her eyes wander away, and it's apparent that she now wears an overbearing expression of affection for Omiji’.

"The palace guard is just a boy, I don't understand, he looked so much like a man when I saw him last night," Ana says.

"No, no, no, he's just twenty," Zea says.

"Aah, now I'm jealous," Ana says.

"I could have asked for him instead," Ana says, she lets out a quirky giggle.

"Oh-uh, too late," Zea says.

Both Duchesses laugh out loud not minding Maiden Clara hearing and listening to their current conversation.

They don’t usually talk about a date, or a boyfriend, or that kind of stuff in the presence of Maiden Clara, this is their first time.

They may talk about how cute a Duke in the palace is, or a Prince at the Ball, all these they will converse in the presence of Maiden Clara, but today is the first day that they have talked about a Duchess on a date or something that looks like a “date”.

But Maiden Clara pays them no mind, she focuses on Zea's hair.

She combs Zea's hair a bit forcefully this time, to reinforce attention.

"Ouch," Zea shrieks.

"So, umm, did you both hm-mmm?" Ana says and coughs.

"Noooo, come on," Zea says.

Zea pushes Maiden Clara's hand away.

"Can't two young adults sit and have a cup of tea," Zea says.

Zea stands and makes a gesture to show her innocence in what she proclaims.

“You see what I mean,” Zea says, making a gesture.

"Ay, you're right," Ana says affirmatively, though she doesn’t quite understand what Zea means by the gesture she makes.

"Sit child, I must finish your hair before lunchtime," Maiden Clara says and holds Zea by the shoulder pushing her down gently to her seat.

She struggles to sit Zea down on the seat, but Zea sits down anyway.

"Okay tell me tell me, tell me what happened," Ana says, she beams with smiles and attentive enthusiasm.

Just then a rattle and a crash are heard across the corner.

It is Alex!

He is at the dressing table toppling things over.

"What are you doing Alex," Zea screams.

"Don't break any of my art, for they are gift collections from the Princess from Paris!"

Zea yells, but Alex is nonchalant.

He plays with the golden miniature sculptures on the dressing table.

"So yes, as I was saying," Zea says, looking at Ana.

She sits properly and continues her narrative.

"I met a boy last night, the palace guard at my court's doorpost, and his name is Omiji," Zea says.

Ana looks on attentively.

Maiden Clara also wears a smile as she listens.

"I was alone and the cannon shells scared me, and I screamed, and he came into my court, then all I remember was...was," Zea says as she leans forward as if in a cramp.

"What's the matter," Maiden Clara asks.

"All you remember was what…what Zea," Ana screams excitedly.

Zea sits straight and continues her narrative.

"All I could remember was that..." Zea says and pauses.

She holds her forehead for a moment.

"All I can remember was that I was unconscious when he was leaning on top of me," Zea says.

"What did you say," Maiden Clara quickly says.

Maiden Clara walks up from behind to stand in front of Zea, she is wearing an angry countenance.

"What did you say, child,” Maiden Clara says to Zea again, looking right at her.

Now she is standing in front of Zea.

"No, no, no, not like it was his fault," Zea says.

"Not like it was his fault to find himself leaning over a Grand Duchess, is he mad,” Maiden Clara retorts.

"Yes, I don't get that part of the story, you saw him, on your bed,” Ana quickly asks.

I bumped my head," Zea says defensively.

"Oh now you bumped your head, eh, I see," Maiden Clara says.

Zea nods her head affirmatively, and Maiden Clara walks back to make Zea's hair.

"I thought something else," Maiden Clara retorts.

She begins to tie Zea's hair into two bunches, twin-tails style.

"I remember bumping my head, then I was unconscious, then I woke up, and then Omiji was leaning on top of me on the bed, with a towel to my head," Zea says.

"Ah, Where did he get the towel then," Ana asks, wearing an inquisitive expression.

"How am I supposed to know,” Zea retorts.

All I remember was that he had a towel to my head," Zea says. "Then I woke up, and I ran away into the woods!”

Zea shrugs her shoulders shyly, as she stares at Ana with a shy look.

"You did what Zea," Ana says.

Ana holds Zea's hand in surprise at what she just heard about Zea running into the woods.

"I went into the woods to get some…some fresh air," Zea says.

Ana looks at Maiden Clara for approval because she is scared to talk about Zea sneaking into the forest, but little did she know that Maiden Clara knows.

Maiden Clara knows that Zea does sneak into the woods.

But Maiden Clara pays them no mind, she's nonchalant, like she just went completely deaf to their chatter.

"I do go into the woods sometimes, but not far, just right across the palace walls," Zea says to Ana.

"You do, I never knew about that," Ana says.

"How do you get past the gates?"

"Get past the gates, you bet, I sneak through a gash in the wall," Zea says.

Maiden Clara focuses on the hair, she still pays them no mind.

"Zea are you crazy," Ana retorts. “You could be eaten by a lion, a tiger, or a bear!”

“Oh my,” Zea yells, she laughs very hard at Ana's bewilderment.

"And you never told anyone," Ana asks.

"Did it matter, I was right across the palace walls, I was just close by," Zea says.

She picks up her mirror on the tabletop and looks at the mirror to see her hair in the reflection.

She can see Maiden Clara from the reflection, she isn't looking so happy.

As soon as Zea stares into her mirror, Birdie will appear on her left shoulder in the mirror reflection.

Only Zea can see Birdie in the mirror reflection.

Maiden Clara can see images in the mirror reflection, but all she can see in the reflection is herself and Zea only, she doesn't see Birdie perching on Zea's left shoulder.

Zea lets out a distinct smile as she sees Birdie in the mirror reflection, Birdie winks back at Zea.

"What's wrong Maiden Clara," Zea asks as she sees from the mirror reflection that Maiden Clara isn't looking so happy.

Maiden Clara ignores her for a moment, she ties the last loop on Zea’s hair.

Ana and Zea keep quiet for a moment.

All that can be heard now is Alex's play noises by the dressing table.

"I have served this palace for twenty-five years children," Maiden Clara begins to say.

"I came to the palace as a child in the year 1893, I was five years old then, I first worked in the kitchen with the older maidens, I mopped floors and did the dishes along with them, it was a very beautiful beginning for me, for I lost my parents in the Russian-Germania war in 1890, I was sent here by the foster home, and I have been here long enough to see the birth of you Ana, and you Zea, and the rest of you all, I have been here that long.”

Ana and Zea remain silent, they listen with keen interest.

"What is going on now children is no child's play," Maiden Clara says yet again.

"The kingdom has never been in such panic since I have been here, so this is not a time to be running off into the woods!"

Maiden Clara speaks affirmatively, almost raising her voice as to a yell.

Ana and Zea look at Maiden Clara surprisingly.

They are wearing a surprised countenance, for Maiden Clara doesn't usually raise her voice to yell.

But Maiden Clara yells at the girls because she knows how dangerous it is to do so, running into the woods now that there is war.

"It is very dangerous to be running off into the woods in these times child, please stop it," Maiden Clara says to Duchess Zea.

Maiden Clara pinches her gently by her cheek.

Maiden Clara drops the comb on the table and walks to Alex who is playing at the base of the dressing table.

"What happened next," Ana whispers to Zea as Maiden Clara walks away.

Zea crosses her index finger on her lips to mean "sshh, silence".

"I will finish the story later," Zea whispers back to Ana.

"Alright, let's go now children, it's almost Lunchtime," Maiden Clara calls out.

Maiden Clara is now holding Alex by the hand.

"I will see you at lunch Zea," Ana says.

Zea and Ana both hug each other.

"I will not be at lunch sister, can you come to my court after dinner tonight, I will finish the story okay," Zea whispers to Ana's ears, as they hug and part.

Maiden Clara, Alex, and Ana make it to the door out of the Duchess's court.

"And who is going to take care of these," Zea says to Maiden Clara as they walk to the court's doorway.

Zea makes a gesture and waves at the mess Alex has made at the dressing table while playing with the miniature art.

She also points at the loose hair lying around the floors.

Maiden Clara looks at the dressing table and the loose hair on the floor.

"Oh, yes, I will bring a maiden to take care of that, but let me take Ana and Alex for their lunch now, are you not coming for lunch child,” Maiden Clara says.

"I'm not hungry," Zea says, she admires her hair in the mirror, admiring the twin bunches.

"Okay, I will send a maiden right away, but I will come to check on you later Your Highness," Maiden Clara says.

They all make it to the door, the court door opens, and they leave the Duchess' court, and the door closes.

*********************

"Phew, I didn't know what to say back then Birdie," Zea says excitedly, looking into her mirror.

In the mirror reflection, Birdie, her imaginary friend, is seen hovering over her head in excitement, o'er the new hair bunches of the Duchess.

Birdie is more like a parallel reflection of Duchess Zea's state of mind.

If the Duchess is upset, or in a calm state, Birdie will be as well, perching quietly on her left shoulder.

If the Duchess is glad and excited, Zea sees Birdie in the reflection hovering excitedly over her head like a fairy.

Birdie shimmer and showers beautiful glitters and crystals of confetti seen in the image reflection whenever something great happens.

The Duchess doesn't tell Birdie what to do, but she observes what it does through the mirror reflections.

Zea had once seen Birdie through the mirror reflection shimmer and shower her with glitters and crystals, but that was once when she won the Most Beautiful Princess in the New World, a Beauty Pageant held in entire Eastern Europe.

Amazing beautiful Princesses came from far for this contest.

Far from the Byzantine empires, Bavaria, Constantinople, Egypt, and Lebanon, came these beautiful young Princesses.

It was an array of the Most Beautiful Princess in the New World, held in the Kingdom of Russia.

Duchess Zea was crowned the Most Beautiful Princess in the New World in the contest.

Although the Princesses from other countries were among the most beautiful young women in the World, Zea came out as the Most Beautiful, and the Emperor, her father, then gave her the title:

'The Beauty of Russia'.

On that day, when Zea was crowned The Beauty of Russia, Zea admired herself in her mirror, and it was the first time she sees Birdie shimmering and showering her with glitters of confetti in excitement.

Zea began to see Birdie as an image in her mirror soon after her Grandmother Empress Maria gifted the mirror to her.

According to Empress Maria, the mirror was given to her by her Grandmother, the Queen of Prussia.

Since the past owners of the mirror, long gone Princesses, Duchesses, and Empresses, Zea is the only one that has seen Birdie in the mirror reflection.

Maybe this is because of the strength of Zea's 'Will Power' and her imaginative abilities.

The mirror reflects what her inner will can muster.

It is believed that the mirror has lots of magical powers, but the will and abilities of its owner will determine the mirror's manifestations, this, the Duchess is yet to discover more.

No one knows where the mirror comes from.

But the first day Zea saw Birdie in the mirror reflections, a few days after receiving the mirror as a gift, Zea thought she was losing her mind.

But not so long, they both got along with each other perfectly well as imaginary friends.

If the Duchess is in love, it is expected by Zea that Birdie will shimmer confetti of Hearts of❤️Love over her head in the mirror reflection.

It is her desire-imagination to see shimmers of love showered on her by Birdie in the mirror reflection.

Zea wishes to see this Hearts❤️❤️and Love confetti shimmered upon her by Birdie someday.

But Zea can't command or tell Birdie what to do.

She can't tell her to “shimmer me with ‘Hearts of Love'”, or appear, or don't appear, or hover, fly, or any other thing, no.

Birdie is not a slave of the Duchess, but more like a sidekick.

If Zea wants to see Heart and Love confetti in the mirror image, it can only happen if the Duchess is with her true love, and they share true love's first kiss.

Then Birdie will get excited because of this expression of love, and she will show that in the mirror as a confetti of hearts❤️❤️

If Zea will hold up her mirror at that moment when she will share her true love's first kiss, Birdie will hover over her head, and shimmer lots of hearts confetti in excitement.

But she still has to wait for this till someday when she has that true love's first kiss.

She has not yet been in love hitherto fore, though she felt that threshold last night.

A threshold of affection, that’s all that was last night, but Zea longs for more!

All she can remember now is that cute face of Omiji in the moonlight, his luscious eyes, and his beautiful hair locks waving in the night wind.

The Duchess wanders away in oblivion, taking her minds-attention away from Birdie's show of excitement in the mirror reflection.

The Duchess has fallen in love.

There's no doubt about this anymore.

And this is her first time feeling this way, for she can't explain exactly what or how she feels.

But she knows she feels some excitement, and that she wants to see Omiji again!

She feels that fire that erupts from that boiling dormant volcano called "passion".

A volcano of passion, burning up inside of her, up to her desire to be with Omiji yet once again.

Their laughs of last night, his funny temper, and his zeal to be her hero all quiver in her inside now, and these thoughts prompt this new surge of emotions within her, but she can’t tell how or where it has begun.

Birdie settles down on the Duchess' shoulder.

This is because the Duchess' mood has changed now, and she is in a state of melancholy.

"Everything is going to be fine," Birdie says to Zea.

Birdie speaks in a tweety voice, which can only be heard by the Duchess.

"I just wish this was just one bad dream, and I wake up and Omiji is back here," Zea says.

She sits on the bed.

Her eyes become glassy, in tears.

Just then a knock is heard on the door, a maiden enters with a broom and a dustpan.

"Good evening Your Highness, Maiden Clara has assigned me the duty to clean your court immediately," she says. "Please may I continue, or should I come back later?"

The maiden speaks to the Duchess, she's standing at the doorway.

Zea pays her no mind for a moment, her eyes are glassy, but not enough for a teardrop.

"Everything is going to be fine," Birdie says yet again to the Duchess to cheer up her mood.

Zea smiles and gives an affirmative nod to Birdie in the reflection.

She tucks away the mirror into her dress girdle, rises from her bed, and goes to stand by the court window.

"You can go ahead," Zea says to the maiden standing by the doorway.

"Yes, Your Highness," the maiden replies, and she goes about her business.

Zea stands by the window, her mirror still tucked in her girdle.

She looks far into the woods from where she ran through last night.

A smirk trails her lips as she watches the grounds beyond the palace walls.

Zea lets out a smirk, for she remembers the encounters of last night.