7. SERAFINA

SERAFINA

Hera Castilione, I have heard about her, the Lycan King's famous mistress. A magnificent beauty with a contrasting attitude; proud, devious and sly. Ornate jewelry adorned her flowy brown hair, just as a severe hatred and envy for me evilly adorned her unfeeling heart.

It was clearly written over her, the acute jealousy she harbored for me. The fact that I refused to let down my poise as a princess, the fact that even amidst my bloodied body, injured skin and tattered clothes, my carriage never faded or wavered. It angered her deeply, and that was an off–putting indication that she would make my stay here even more hellish than it ought to be.

It didn’t matter that she was clothed in gold and silk. I knew where she stood in her world.

Her lips curled downward into a displeased frown, her eyes staring at me with severe intent. "I don't know why the King doesn't want me to torture you, you really need some discipline and to ne inclined to a path of submission. Who do you think you are to still be all high and mighty?."

A princess. Something she would never be. Something she could only dream of but my lips were too numb to let the words out. I was too worn out to even glare at her. I was thirsty. Hungry. Dying.

She took slow steps closer to where I kneeled and then she bent forward, those intense eyes of hers were now inches away from me and it felt like the wicked gleam in her cold gaze was shooting icy daggers into my skin, it penetrated in and sent messages to me in loud volumes about how this woman would be a painful thorn to me here.

"I will break that pride of yours. I will trample upon it and make sure you're completely reduced to nothing. Absolutely nothing!" She hissed furiously, her tone sharp and ardent.

Next, she yanked my leash and pulled me by it out of the throne room. My eyes pinched shut as I wallowed in pain. At this point, I had lost majority of my voice and my strength to even scream in pain as my feebly body moved against the floor with an agonizing friction.

Hera dragged me down the hallway to a room at it's very end. As she paused to open the door, I took the opportunity to stagger up to my feet, barely being able to stand erect. She stepped into the room and tugged me behind her with the leash.

It was a confided room, and five girls I knew were slaves from their short hair, collared necks and sackcloth, were in the room. The moment Hera entered into the room, they got up from their seats and immediately bowed before her.

"Greetings, Mistress Hera." They chorused.

She gave an acknowledging huff to their greetings before proceeding, "Change her into sack . And show her where she would shower. She stinks, we can't have her foulness ruin the air in this palace."

"Yes, Mistress Hera." The slaves curtseyed and one of them beckoned on me to follow them. Hera let go of the leash and it dangled behind me as I strainedly trudged behind the five slaves.

The bathroom was in that same confided room, demarcated by a small door that was almost falling off it's hinges.

"You have to bathe quickly, Mistress Hera doesn't like being kept waiting. While you're bathing, we will prepare your clothing." Another slave said to me. I nodded and made my to bathroom. I took a moment to digest the sight in front of me—it wasn't exactly bad or unusable, but it was nothing compared to my personal bathroom back in my father's Kingdom. Nothing like it at all. Who would've thought that I would be reduced to this? However at this point, I have no choice.

I stripped myself off what remained of my gown and removed the leash from my collar. I turned on the shower and the water hit my skin, delivering a burning sting to my fresh wounds and it hurt like hell, it was like reawakening the pain in threefold. Yet I endured as I had to wash myself clean.

I was quick with it and washed off the blood and grime from my body thoroughly. Next, I took out the small stones and whatever object that had bore holes into the sole of my feet from all the walking and travelling bare footed.

I tuned off the shower then stepped out of the bathroom, carefully opening the door so as to now further take it out of its barely existing hinges. Once I came out, the five slaves were outside waiting for me and one of them held my sack clothing.

"Here. Change into this." She said and handed the apparel to me. I collected them — a short skirt made out of sack and the upper part was also a short top that was way too revealing for my liking. Nevertheless, I put them on hastily.

There was a broken and dirty mirror adjacent to where we stood and I took a moment to stare at my reflection. My shoulders slacked looking at myself dressed in an horrendous thing I never thought I’d see myself in. This would be my life for the best few years and I would be no better than the slaves who have been here for many years.

When I was done, the slaves led the way and I followed behind them as we went back to where Hera was; her arms were crossed and her lips pressed into a thin, irritated line as she impatiently tapped her feet on the ground.

"You call yourself a princess yet you know nothing about being prompt and not keeping others waiting. So disrespectful and uncouth!" She rebuked, the shrill of her voice shattering the quiet before it.

I said nothing.

She glanced at me with a frown as she fully took in my presence now and she seemed utterly displeased. Was something wrong? There was no way I could have worn a dirty sackcloth wrong, was there?

She gave a snort and angrily looked away, "Training starts tomorrow." She stated gruffly before turning around and walking out, slamming the door behind her.

As the door shut, the slaves immediately rushed to my side with an urgency that monetarily startled me.

"Are you okay? You're so injured!"

"Don't worry, we will take care of your wounds. We have a healing balm and we can wrap them up with fabric."

"Mistress Hera was obviously jealous, I saw it in her eyes. She envies how beautiful you look even in a sackcloth!"

Was that really what Hera thought when she looked at me that way? It was hard to believe someone like her cared about how I looked despite having the power to use me as she wished.

The other slaves didn’t get me time to think.

They were all over me, offering care and treatment, repeatedly asking of my well-being. But I couldn't possibly accept anything from them, if Hera hears about it she would definitely get angry with them.

"Thank you so much. I'm very grateful, but I'm fine. You don't have to worry about me." I tried to dismiss their goodwill but they were unrelenting.

"No, we insist. We have to help you. Come with us." One of them said and without giving me the opportunity to decline, they had already started looking for fabrics to tear apart and wrap up my wounds.

-:-

I was able to talk them into not wrapping up the wounds on my body and instead opted for them to wrap the injuries on my feet, as they were in very bad shape. However, they stood their ground and insisted that I allow them at least put some healing balm on the wounds on my body.

The girls talked on and on about their kingdoms as they helped me.

They were each from the five kingdoms and treated me still like royalty.

"And we're all done. We would be working the fields from tomorrow and this healing balm would also repell flies from coming around it." One said — her name was Pam.

"Thank you. I'm really grateful." I decided to simply say and leave out the part of telling them that I was the King's personal slave and wouldn't be working the fields.

"We're very sorry about all that has happened to you, we heard about it; that you travelled fot two days without food and water and you were publicly humiliated by the townspeople." Another one stated —her name was Rahab

"I'm fine. Don't worry about all of that."

"But we're so excited and privileged to be in the midst of a princess like you. You're so beautiful, my princess." Pam elatedly spoke with an ear–to–ear grin.

"And strong as well, not everyone can go through what you went through and still be strong enough to stand on their two feet. You haven't even eaten or drank anything." The third one said, and her name was Yully.

I gave a small smile, "Thank you. But you can't refer to me as a princess anymore, I relinquished my title the moment I was collared."

Pam waved it off, "That's not true my princess. Once a princess is always a princess. You can never be like us lowborns. You will always be royalty; the way you walk, the way you stand and even the way you talk. It's all royalty, my princess."

Before I could give my thanks to Pam's kind words, the door opened and the other two slaves—Gerta and Urla, entered into the room with six plates of food and then they set it before everyone.

It was the most unsightly food I have ever seen, stale bread and obviously near–mutilated cheese. A disgusted lump formed in my throat as I mentally gagged, it was repulsive.

"It's always the same thing everyday my princess. A morsel of stale bread and almost spoilt cheese. We eat it twice a day, everyday." Rahab said as they all collected their plates.

I looked at the meal again, it was unsettling and I wasn't in the mood to even eat anything. I then turned to face them with a smile. "I will eat tomorrow, right now I'm very tired and want to go to bed. You all can have my portion."

Smiles lit up their faces, "Thank you so much, my princess!" They all beamed and I gave them a small nod before I stood up and went to my assigned spot on the floor as slaves had no bed, and curled up, hugging myself to warm up the coldness that the bare floor sent.

I stayed in that position feigning sleep until everyone was done eating and went to sleep as well and when they were all fast asleep, I cried silent tears knowing I’d never get used to this life.

Knowing I’d probably die before I can take what the Lycan King has in store for me.