The Maid and Her Princess - Chapter 45: Chapter 45
You are reading The Maid and Her Princess, Chapter 45: Chapter 45. Read more chapters of The Maid and Her Princess.
Rain poured.
Madoka heard it pounding but she did not feel it on her skin. She stirred then yawned and then stirred again, feeling the softness of the pillow beneath her head. Wait, Madoka sat up and cracked an eye open. Pillow?
Her foot felt a wooden stake and then bumped into a tough cloth. She was in a tent. Was she kidnapped? Or was she actually dead? It did not matter to Madoka since she has not slept decently in a long time. Those stupid voices were gone for now and Madoka preferred it that way. She wanted to lay back down but something interrupted her.
Distant thumping noises boomed somewhere, sending a shuddering wind through the tent. Madoka was naked. She sighed and shivered. At least that was a sign that Elise was somewhere nearby. Her body was full of burn scars and imperfections that surely would be an affront to anyone's eyes. Anyone besides Elise. Madoka could not imagine what Elise saw in her.
More screeches occurred as if they were in a jarring competition with the rain, then a lightning's flash crescendoed down into a coda of rain and silence. Madoka was awake now and she sat all the way up. A neatly folded maid uniform and a traveler's heavy garb with boots rested next to her. Kidnappers would definitely not leave those out for her, Madoka mused as she inspected each piece of clothing.
Another boom attacked the peacefulness of the rain. Madoka guessed the palace was still under siege from all the ruckus. She slipped on each article of clothing slowly and tentatively crawled to the exit of the tent. The wind pushed the walls in like a sail rocking in a storm. Through the gaps, Madoka could see the sky. It was grey and full of stormy clouds that pushed into each other like they were swirled by a wooden spoon. She sat back down with a sudden desire to not get out of the tent.
Suddenly, Elise popped through the tent's folds, startling Madoka.
"Ohayo!" She cheered. "Woman of my dreams!"
"E-Elise!" Madoka fell back. The folds of the tent hid most of Elise's face, but the princess smirked at her successful surprise attack.
"You truly are beautiful," she said. "Now c'mon out! C'mon!"
With that, Elise withdrew out of the tent and Madoka was alone again. Outside of that tent was her worst nightmare, truly. The outdoors and beyond. She remembered Elise's words: The world was only going to get bigger. Madoka pouted. She hated all of this change. However, she hated thinking and dwelling on things the most. With a scoff, she pushed herself out of the tent. The day will be wasted if she does not clean up something. Whether her act or a hallway need some cleaning — either will do.
Ash and rain clogged Madoka's nose as she crawled out onto wet grass. The sight of a campfire's remains sizzled in ashes before her and beyond that stood the princess. She was looking out at something. Her long hair was rain-slick and tussled, but Madoka became distracted by the burning Palace in the far distance. Flames and shattered buildings were seemingly all that remained in that desolate place, Madoka could see the wreckage in full detail even far away. She remained silent but Elise knew she was there. Just what was she thinking? What were her plans from now on?
"No more," Elise said solemnly. She did not turn to face Madoka, but instead her magic ring formed around her heart as the wind beat on her cloak. "No longer am I a princess."
She was going to pull something out of the talisman's portal. Steel flashed in her hand as she raised it upward. It was a knife! Madoka feared the worst and was about to cry out for Elise to stop whatever she was going to do. It was too late. Instead, the blade found its mark: The princess's hair. She turned to face her with strands of her blonde hair scattering in the wind like butterfly swarms migrating among a storm.
Madoka gawked at Elise's new look and instinctively grabbed her own long, red hair. Of all the schemes the girl could come up with, Madoka did not expect her to chop her hair off.
The Royal Aura surrounding her was gone!
"Ah, that feels so good!" The self-proclaimed former Princess of Fiara conjured up a glass mirror with her strange talisman, inspecting her new hairstyle. How much stuff did she have in there? Madoka wondered, trying to distract herself from the fact that Elise gave up her status. Kind gods, does she not know that Royal blonde hair is a symbol of their birthright? She was now just a Noble, in the eyes of heretics.
The former princess gave another stretch and a breath of relief before leaning over Madoka. She offered the knife to Madoka in a gesture to cut her hair, who shook her head vigorously in refusal. Elise deposited the knife back into the portal and shrugged.
"Suit yourself. It's so reinvigorating! No more princess bullshit! How do I look?"
"Ridiculous," Madoka breathed at the sight. Elise's short and hacked hair struck a chord in her heart as a wild attraction kindled within her, though she suppressed it and kept that response to herself. The wild look was a sight to behold; it was a testament to how beautiful a Royal could be. Irrational anger took over though at the princess's declaration, however.
"I know, right?" Elise did a twirl. "I cannot ask you to do anything anymore as a servant, Madoka. Still-"
"Don't you try to get me to leave you," Madoka started to cry, feeling a sudden grief overcome her. Behind her princess was her home, burning even in the pouring rain. And now, her hair flew away to join the ashes polluting the air. "Foolish look or not, I am still your servant. I want to serve you as you are! As a princess! Are you going to give this all up so easily?!"
Elise watched her cry for a moment and stood with a dark look on her face. A feeling colder than the storm washed over Madoka as the former princess knelt to match her gaze. There was ruthlessness, coldness and everything imaginable in those blue eyes. "Elise?"
"What is there to rule?" she demanded to know. Madoka shrunk. "My visions have come true! Everything and everyone we know is dead. The palace is razed and corrupted. Christ's sake, I have no subjects, no missives, and nothing to my name. Only useless prophecies that I failed to prevent in all aspects. All is dead. Dead, dead, dead! I tried to warn Father of my dear brother's betrayal, but look at them! Dead!"
Madoka felt the former princess's cold hands feel her cheeks with a sudden forcefulness. It was not enough to hurt but she directed her gaze to the burned down Palace. Elise withdrew her hands and wiped tears from her eyes. The maid felt that same aura from their last duel back during the Summer of Light.
"I'm not done yet!" Elise's voice shook. The former princess's emotions lowered her killing intent. She must have realized how powerful her emotions were still around her. "I-I have much more to give! So much! But I know one thing, Madoka. I can't live in this world alone. So I must once again ask of you, no, I—"
Elise did the unthinkable and planted her knees and head into the ground. She bowed before a horrified Madoka.
"I can't go on in this cruel world without you. Please, I beg of you to come with me. Anywhere. As a friend, anyth- Ow!"
Madoka flicked her forehead.
"You. Absolute. Idiot!" Madoka said through clenched teeth. Elise stopped her blubbering. It was time to give her a taste of how her killing intent felt like.
"Wha-?" Elise's eyes suddenly grew wide and childish. Even after everything they have gone through so far, she still had a child-like wonder to her beautiful irises. The girl was shrinking under her own pressuring aura. How's that, she wanted to scoff.
"Don't give me that shit!" Madoka sighed. "It's going to take a lot more than that to get rid of me."
A small but growing smile blessed her face. Genuine joy spread its wings in both of their hearts as Elise jumped up and embraced Madoka. Madoka's head swam. Elise was definitely a headache but she was warm and soft to the touch even with her chopped up hair.
"You really mean it?" Elise whispered in Madoka's ear. Her soft hands were tangled in Madoka's hair. She had a sweet fragrance that tugged at Madoka's senses. She could be in this embrace forever but it was time to get going.
"Of course I do, idiot," Madoka finally responded. Elise reeled from Madoka's curtness.
"Eh?" She looked at Madoka.
"I will stay with you even if you started this," Madoka simply sighed, releasing Elise and smoothing her cloak off.
"Nae waaah! No way!" Elise complained. "YOU started it, you work-a-holic maid!"
"Well, if you weren't so childish I wouldn't have to work so hard," Madoka chided her. "Plus—"
"Plus?" Elise said with indignation. "Oh so we're using English now, huh?"
"I am technically no longer a maid," Madoka shrugged. "Now help me with this tent!"
"Don't you 'technically' me!" Elise said as she aggressively tore one stake of the tent out of the ground giving Madoka a glare. "We still have a lot of English to learn, bucko! You are going to be FLUENT."
"Bucko?" Madoka ripped the tarp off the stakes with one hand.
"Yeah," Elise said with fake animosity. "I'm going to teach you all the swearwords. Each and every one of them!"
"What if I don't want to learn?"
"Oh," Elise paused after awhile. She tucked the tent into the portal. At the strange sight of such a large object vanishing into thin air, Madoka decided she no longer wanted to know how much Elise could actually store inside the portal. "One more thing!"
"What is it?" Madoka asked.
"Audrey," Elise said that strange name again, lowering her head sheepishly as if she was revealing an embarrassing secret. "Audrey Dalion. This is... the real me. I guess."
"Audrey Dalion," Madoka said the name, then repeated it in her head. Audrey Dalion. It felt more like an intimate invitation or a friendship deepening their bonds even closer. Audrey Dalion. A name more wondrous than any name she has heard in the land.
"You'll, uh, get used to it. Audrey Dalion," Audrey said, shifting awkwardly before looking at the maid with her pure eyes. "Pleased to finally meet you, Madoka."
"The pleasure is mine, Audrey."
Madoka heard it pounding but she did not feel it on her skin. She stirred then yawned and then stirred again, feeling the softness of the pillow beneath her head. Wait, Madoka sat up and cracked an eye open. Pillow?
Her foot felt a wooden stake and then bumped into a tough cloth. She was in a tent. Was she kidnapped? Or was she actually dead? It did not matter to Madoka since she has not slept decently in a long time. Those stupid voices were gone for now and Madoka preferred it that way. She wanted to lay back down but something interrupted her.
Distant thumping noises boomed somewhere, sending a shuddering wind through the tent. Madoka was naked. She sighed and shivered. At least that was a sign that Elise was somewhere nearby. Her body was full of burn scars and imperfections that surely would be an affront to anyone's eyes. Anyone besides Elise. Madoka could not imagine what Elise saw in her.
More screeches occurred as if they were in a jarring competition with the rain, then a lightning's flash crescendoed down into a coda of rain and silence. Madoka was awake now and she sat all the way up. A neatly folded maid uniform and a traveler's heavy garb with boots rested next to her. Kidnappers would definitely not leave those out for her, Madoka mused as she inspected each piece of clothing.
Another boom attacked the peacefulness of the rain. Madoka guessed the palace was still under siege from all the ruckus. She slipped on each article of clothing slowly and tentatively crawled to the exit of the tent. The wind pushed the walls in like a sail rocking in a storm. Through the gaps, Madoka could see the sky. It was grey and full of stormy clouds that pushed into each other like they were swirled by a wooden spoon. She sat back down with a sudden desire to not get out of the tent.
Suddenly, Elise popped through the tent's folds, startling Madoka.
"Ohayo!" She cheered. "Woman of my dreams!"
"E-Elise!" Madoka fell back. The folds of the tent hid most of Elise's face, but the princess smirked at her successful surprise attack.
"You truly are beautiful," she said. "Now c'mon out! C'mon!"
With that, Elise withdrew out of the tent and Madoka was alone again. Outside of that tent was her worst nightmare, truly. The outdoors and beyond. She remembered Elise's words: The world was only going to get bigger. Madoka pouted. She hated all of this change. However, she hated thinking and dwelling on things the most. With a scoff, she pushed herself out of the tent. The day will be wasted if she does not clean up something. Whether her act or a hallway need some cleaning — either will do.
Ash and rain clogged Madoka's nose as she crawled out onto wet grass. The sight of a campfire's remains sizzled in ashes before her and beyond that stood the princess. She was looking out at something. Her long hair was rain-slick and tussled, but Madoka became distracted by the burning Palace in the far distance. Flames and shattered buildings were seemingly all that remained in that desolate place, Madoka could see the wreckage in full detail even far away. She remained silent but Elise knew she was there. Just what was she thinking? What were her plans from now on?
"No more," Elise said solemnly. She did not turn to face Madoka, but instead her magic ring formed around her heart as the wind beat on her cloak. "No longer am I a princess."
She was going to pull something out of the talisman's portal. Steel flashed in her hand as she raised it upward. It was a knife! Madoka feared the worst and was about to cry out for Elise to stop whatever she was going to do. It was too late. Instead, the blade found its mark: The princess's hair. She turned to face her with strands of her blonde hair scattering in the wind like butterfly swarms migrating among a storm.
Madoka gawked at Elise's new look and instinctively grabbed her own long, red hair. Of all the schemes the girl could come up with, Madoka did not expect her to chop her hair off.
The Royal Aura surrounding her was gone!
"Ah, that feels so good!" The self-proclaimed former Princess of Fiara conjured up a glass mirror with her strange talisman, inspecting her new hairstyle. How much stuff did she have in there? Madoka wondered, trying to distract herself from the fact that Elise gave up her status. Kind gods, does she not know that Royal blonde hair is a symbol of their birthright? She was now just a Noble, in the eyes of heretics.
The former princess gave another stretch and a breath of relief before leaning over Madoka. She offered the knife to Madoka in a gesture to cut her hair, who shook her head vigorously in refusal. Elise deposited the knife back into the portal and shrugged.
"Suit yourself. It's so reinvigorating! No more princess bullshit! How do I look?"
"Ridiculous," Madoka breathed at the sight. Elise's short and hacked hair struck a chord in her heart as a wild attraction kindled within her, though she suppressed it and kept that response to herself. The wild look was a sight to behold; it was a testament to how beautiful a Royal could be. Irrational anger took over though at the princess's declaration, however.
"I know, right?" Elise did a twirl. "I cannot ask you to do anything anymore as a servant, Madoka. Still-"
"Don't you try to get me to leave you," Madoka started to cry, feeling a sudden grief overcome her. Behind her princess was her home, burning even in the pouring rain. And now, her hair flew away to join the ashes polluting the air. "Foolish look or not, I am still your servant. I want to serve you as you are! As a princess! Are you going to give this all up so easily?!"
Elise watched her cry for a moment and stood with a dark look on her face. A feeling colder than the storm washed over Madoka as the former princess knelt to match her gaze. There was ruthlessness, coldness and everything imaginable in those blue eyes. "Elise?"
"What is there to rule?" she demanded to know. Madoka shrunk. "My visions have come true! Everything and everyone we know is dead. The palace is razed and corrupted. Christ's sake, I have no subjects, no missives, and nothing to my name. Only useless prophecies that I failed to prevent in all aspects. All is dead. Dead, dead, dead! I tried to warn Father of my dear brother's betrayal, but look at them! Dead!"
Madoka felt the former princess's cold hands feel her cheeks with a sudden forcefulness. It was not enough to hurt but she directed her gaze to the burned down Palace. Elise withdrew her hands and wiped tears from her eyes. The maid felt that same aura from their last duel back during the Summer of Light.
"I'm not done yet!" Elise's voice shook. The former princess's emotions lowered her killing intent. She must have realized how powerful her emotions were still around her. "I-I have much more to give! So much! But I know one thing, Madoka. I can't live in this world alone. So I must once again ask of you, no, I—"
Elise did the unthinkable and planted her knees and head into the ground. She bowed before a horrified Madoka.
"I can't go on in this cruel world without you. Please, I beg of you to come with me. Anywhere. As a friend, anyth- Ow!"
Madoka flicked her forehead.
"You. Absolute. Idiot!" Madoka said through clenched teeth. Elise stopped her blubbering. It was time to give her a taste of how her killing intent felt like.
"Wha-?" Elise's eyes suddenly grew wide and childish. Even after everything they have gone through so far, she still had a child-like wonder to her beautiful irises. The girl was shrinking under her own pressuring aura. How's that, she wanted to scoff.
"Don't give me that shit!" Madoka sighed. "It's going to take a lot more than that to get rid of me."
A small but growing smile blessed her face. Genuine joy spread its wings in both of their hearts as Elise jumped up and embraced Madoka. Madoka's head swam. Elise was definitely a headache but she was warm and soft to the touch even with her chopped up hair.
"You really mean it?" Elise whispered in Madoka's ear. Her soft hands were tangled in Madoka's hair. She had a sweet fragrance that tugged at Madoka's senses. She could be in this embrace forever but it was time to get going.
"Of course I do, idiot," Madoka finally responded. Elise reeled from Madoka's curtness.
"Eh?" She looked at Madoka.
"I will stay with you even if you started this," Madoka simply sighed, releasing Elise and smoothing her cloak off.
"Nae waaah! No way!" Elise complained. "YOU started it, you work-a-holic maid!"
"Well, if you weren't so childish I wouldn't have to work so hard," Madoka chided her. "Plus—"
"Plus?" Elise said with indignation. "Oh so we're using English now, huh?"
"I am technically no longer a maid," Madoka shrugged. "Now help me with this tent!"
"Don't you 'technically' me!" Elise said as she aggressively tore one stake of the tent out of the ground giving Madoka a glare. "We still have a lot of English to learn, bucko! You are going to be FLUENT."
"Bucko?" Madoka ripped the tarp off the stakes with one hand.
"Yeah," Elise said with fake animosity. "I'm going to teach you all the swearwords. Each and every one of them!"
"What if I don't want to learn?"
"Oh," Elise paused after awhile. She tucked the tent into the portal. At the strange sight of such a large object vanishing into thin air, Madoka decided she no longer wanted to know how much Elise could actually store inside the portal. "One more thing!"
"What is it?" Madoka asked.
"Audrey," Elise said that strange name again, lowering her head sheepishly as if she was revealing an embarrassing secret. "Audrey Dalion. This is... the real me. I guess."
"Audrey Dalion," Madoka said the name, then repeated it in her head. Audrey Dalion. It felt more like an intimate invitation or a friendship deepening their bonds even closer. Audrey Dalion. A name more wondrous than any name she has heard in the land.
"You'll, uh, get used to it. Audrey Dalion," Audrey said, shifting awkwardly before looking at the maid with her pure eyes. "Pleased to finally meet you, Madoka."
"The pleasure is mine, Audrey."
End of The Maid and Her Princess Chapter 45. Continue reading Chapter 46 or return to The Maid and Her Princess book page.