Beauty and the Werewolf

"Princess Olivia, where are you?" screamed Amanda, Princess Olivia’s maid, who had followed her into the woods for a hunt. 'Oh my God, I'm so dead', Amanda retorted to herself. Where would she find the princess? What would she say to Prince Morgan, who had hunted deep into the woods with clear instructions never to allow Princess Olivia out of her sight? By this time, the guards assigned to the princess had two missions: to look for her and to reach out to Prince Morgan to break the sad news. Meanwhile, Princess Olivia, the only heir to the throne of the Midland kingdom, continues to wander in the woods. After wandering for kilometers, she was sure she had lost them as she had seen two masked men who took aim at her, forcing her to veer off her track in an attempt to save her own life. Princess Olivia is a soft but firm princess whose glowing beauty, garnished with her blonde hair, lit up both the heart of her father, King Edgar, and the Midland palace. Now, the soft and dashing princess was left alone to fend off attacks from masked men. "Who wants me dead?" she wondered aloud, but this wasn’t the time for such indulgence; she had to go as far away as she could because she knew very well that her enchanting looks seemed not to be enough to save her from men who appeared determined to end her life. In those fleeting moments when she had the two masked men on her tail, she had thought about a ton of outcomes. Would she die and leave her only father, King Edgar, alone? What would be the fate of her father, a man who dotted on her as if his life depended on her? Would he be able to bear it if she died? If she died, who would take over the throne after him? Would it be her cousin, Prince Morgan, or her stepmother, Queen Marylin? The more she thought about that, the braver she became for the race to save her life. She owed it to her father and the kingdom. But where was she heading? She only knew there was one way that seemed to make sense, away from the masked men. By now, Princess Olivia's soft legs were beginning to ache, her shoes torn. She had been raised as a princess, the future leader of her people. She wasn’t accustomed to wandering into the woods, much less being chased by masked men, so she told herself, ‘It is time to slow down,’ gasping heavily. As she tried to steady her breath and calm her racing heart, she was also trying to listen, to be sure she had lost the masked men. When she could hear no footsteps anymore, she settled under a huge tree. She needed to regain her strength and stage a return to her cousin, Prince Morgan, who she thought must be worried sick by now. Once rested, she stood up to decide which way to proceed on her quest to return to him. Suddenly, in a flash vision, she saw her double speaking to her. 'Do you want to go back to Morgan'? 'Are you sure the masked men are not working for him'? 'Who would want you dead'? 'Isn't he the most likely one to benefit from a deceased princess, an only child of the vast and powerful Midland Kingdom'? But she knew Morgan well. He was her confidant. Time and again, Morgan had come to her rescue. He had saved her life many times. In fact, he had helped her so often that she considered him the elder brother she never had. She remembered that the most recent save was graphic and heart-wrenching; she had just returned from seeing her childhood friend Benita and was famished. She and Benita were so close that they enjoyed each other's company and often lost track of time when they were together. They discussed everything that had happened since the last time they met, making up for the lost times. Lord Edwin. Benita’s father had brought countless victories to the Midland kingdom. Because he was always away in battle, whenever he was in Midland, Benita would not allow him an inch of space; she followed him everywhere, including to the palace of the King of Midland. It was during one of those meetings between Edwin and the King that the very close relationship between Olivia and Benita began. One particular occasion, the princess returned to the palace from visiting Benita, tired. As the Princess entered the Palace, she reached out for her maid, Amanda. ‘Amanda,’ called the Princess, ‘I need a favor from you,’ she whispered, as if lacking the strength for a louder conversation. ‘You are so kind, my Princess'' 'You didn’t have to be so polite'? ‘Please, what’s your order, my Princess, and I’ll breeze out as fast as I can to effect it.’ she said. ‘Please, Amanda,’ the Princess asked. ‘Today, I won’t be able to make it to dinner. Could you please bring mine to my room?’ ‘Most dutifully, my Princess,’ Amanda replied as she hurried away to fulfill the Princess’s request, as dinner was just minutes away. What Amanda didn’t know was that there was already a plan by one of the kitchen staffs to poison the Princess. She had been recruited by one of the powerful players in the court to exterminate the life of the Princess to pave the way for a change in the succession plan. As Amanda brought the Princess's meal, the Princess was relieved. ‘How kind of you! I’m so famished. "I am so hungry," the Princess said. "Wait, Princess!" Amanda yelled. 'The meal has to be tested to be sure it is poison free'. 'I’ll fetch the kitchen staff at once'. Amanda said as she quickly went to the kitchen to fetch the staff whose duty it was to check for poison before the princess ate. The Princess wasn’t sure she would have the strength to wait for the arrival of the kitchen staff, as was the rule in the Palace. She thought to herself, Amanda can't poison me. She is my most trusted servant, and she fetched the meal from the head of the kitchen herself. Didn’t she? So she decided not to wait for Amanda. As she prepared to take the first scoop of soup, a hand came in as swiftly as lightning, striking the spoon off, sending it and the plate of food to the floor. It was Prince Morgan's. "Don’t eat it, Princess'. 'There’s poison in the meal'. 'Fetch the head of the kitchen'. 'Bring her here at once,' he yelled, his voice echoing through the hallway that led to the Princess’s quarters. Amanda froze as she heard Prince Morgan's scream: "It’s poisoned." She knew her life would have ended if not for Morgan's timely intervention. Meanwhile, Amanda heard the voice of Morgan as she took the kitchen staff to test the food. 'Poison?' 'The food was poisoned?' She wondered, not knowing what decision to make. 'Are they to proceed to the Princess’s lodge or to return to the kitchen and await summons.' Amanda contemplated. ‘Let’s run for our lives'. 'Let’s leave the palace at once', the kitchen staff suggested fearing might befall both of them if they were found culpable in any way. That day, the Princess thanked God for Prince Morgan because it was he who God used to save the day. The Princess was still deep in that remembrance when she subconsciously replied to her double that had been conversing with her the entire time, with a loud voice. ‘No, it can't be Morgan. Prince Morgan has nothing but deep affection for me. He would not hurt me. Why would he lead me into the woods and have masked men follow me when all he needed to have done to get rid of me was to allow me to eat that poison-laden meal that faithful day?’ so as if to stop her double from suggesting that Morgan could be the brain behind the masked men, she yelled at her double with all her might, 'leave me alone'. It was her yelling that helped her regain consciousness, and she discovered that she had been having that conversation with herself all along, in the woods. But that last yell of hers did more than bring her to consciousness; it showed the relentless masked men just where she was. So, as she began to put her thoughts together and make a decision to reunite with Prince Morgan, she heard fiercely approaching footsteps accompanied by a voice: 'That way,' 'let's move.' The princess froze. Having little or no time to indulge her thoughts, and as if speaking to her brain to release sufficient adrenaline for a vigorous flight, she hit her head and said to herself, 'Run, Olivia, run for your life; the fate of Midland depends on it.' She ran as fast as she could, but the masked men were relentless and already too close for comfort. 'Shoot her now,' one said to the other, who had a bow with an arrow already fitted. looking back and leaping forward, Olivia took the highest and longest leap of her young adult life and rolled down a steep, rocky, and thorny cliff."