If Things Were Different

Chapter 8

Risette stood in front of the mirror, braiding her hair "I needed that bath," she cooed. "It's been a long few days." A knock came at her door.

"Come in!" Risette called out.

Agnes, the maid from earlier, scurried in. "Ma'am, I was sent to tell you that dinner is prepared."

"Thank you!" Risette replied. Agnes excused herself, and Risette thought to herself, "I hope Suki's alright. Not only is she learning a new job, but she's also serving the one person who betrayed her."

Risette made her way to the dining hall. She wasn't any level of nobility and didn't know anything about formal manners, but she was both beautiful and charming, and before long, the nobles were jesting, laughing, and talking with her as if she was of their station.

As dinner went on, Risette made note of something. She very politely asked, "Is Queen Cherisa going to be dining with us tonight?"

"Queen Cherisa prefers to keep to herself, especially during her time of mourning," Lady Irene replied. She looked a little older than Suki, but not by more than five years. Her dark brown hair was put up in an elaborate updo. A string of shining pearls were strung about her neck and she wore a reddish-brown sleeveless dress with a low neckline that teased her twin breasts. Her blue eyes sparkled alongside her perfectly white teeth. She wore just enough makeup to accentuate her round cheeks.

"I see," Risette replied, taking a bite of the salad that Agnes delivered to her.

"You are from Huston village, is that correct?" asked Lady Irene. She dabbed at her face with a napkin.

"I am. I inherited a shop from my family," Risette replied, "and so I run it."

"What brings you to the Manor then?" Lady Irene asked. She took a sip from the glass of wine in front of her.

"I was requested to bring some fabrics for Nataleigh to examine," Risette explained. "She needed some materials for a maid outfit."

Lady Irene chuckled. "Nataleigh is very dedicated to her job. Queen Cherisa made a wise choice in making her the Head Maid a few months ago."

"Really?" asked Risette. "I would have thought that she had more experience than that."

"She does have a dominating presence," Lady Irene replied, blushing.

"I can tell," Risette replied. "I hope she doesn't scare my assistant too badly. She wanted her to serve Queen Cherisa as a personal maid."

"Only if she's a bad girl," Lady Irene giggled.

"What does that mean?" Risette asked, growing concerned.

"If she is a bad girl, Nataleigh punishes them," Lady Irene explained. "It's not appropriate table talk." She leaned over and whispered to Risette, "If you want, I'll explain later if you come to my chambers."

Risette nodded in response. At that moment, she heard the talk at the other end of the table pipe up. "Those savages in Jormunga Jungle are making things worse," one noble said. "All we want to do is set up a few mines."

"Have you heard about the new commander in Ghaccio Village?" another noble added. "They say she's a very talented commander. She's managed to intercept some kidnappers that were shipping girls across the border."

"Queen Cherisa is doing great things for this country," another noble agreed.

Lady Irene stood up. "A toast!" she said. "To Queen Cherisa! May her reign be long and prosperous!" The nobles clinked their glasses with hers, before everyone drank. "And let us not forget about our dearly departed princess!"

"And to the health of whomever ended her life!" another noble said. Glasses clinked together again, as laughter ensued.

"I wish I could've seen the brat's face when the bandits ran her through," one said. In a very twisted impression of Suki's voice, he said, "N-no please don't kill me!" The nobility, including Lady Irene fell into fits of laughter.

Risette was shocked. These nobles hated Suki with a passion. She excused herself from the table. "Risette, where are you going?" asked Lady Irene, heaving with laughter, "We haven't even had dessert."

"I lost my appetite," Risette replied as she left the room. She angrily wandered the halls of the Manor, where she almost ran into Henry again. "Oh -I'm sorry," she said.

"It's perfectly alright," Henry replied. He looked at Risette's face. "Something tells me that you are distraught about something, Miss Risette. Is there anything I can do for you?"

"Those nobles are despicable," Risette fumed. "They just drank a toast to celebrate the murder of Princess Suki! This is -mmph!" Henry clamped his hand over her mouth.

"Hush," he said. "Wait until we're in a more private area. If they found out you talked about them like that, they're liable to have you sold to the savages in Jormunga Jungle." Risette nodded, and Henry released her from his grasp.

He led Risette to a quiet room and locked the door. "They are a despicable lot," Henry agreed. He sighed. "I tried to warn of the treason in the ranks, but the Princess was still butchered like an animal." The hint of a tear rolled down his cheek.

"Then why doesn't Queen Cherisa do anything about them?" asked Risette.

"Politics are always more simple to the individual who doesn't see them," Henry explained. "The nobles play a grim game of power. To them, it's merely a game, so the lives of the people they kill or ruin don't matter to them."

"That doesn't help anything!" Risette shouted.

"Queen Cherisa is handling things slowly," Henry explained. "Minor changes here and there are reigning in their power, but even the queen can only do so much to curb these finery-wearing rapscallions."

"What are we supposed to do?" asked Risette, dumbfounded.

"We can only watch, wait, and hope that the gods will smile on Cherisa," Henry replied. "And keep our eyes and ears open for any plotting that could be done. Believe me, when I started into my knighthood, I had a rosy idea of a perfect kingdom that I would protect, but as I watched, I saw that the nobles and even my fellow knights were not always in the right. I vowed that I would serve the kingdom in whatever way I could in order to prevent further spreading of corruptions. And when my lingering injury left me unable to work, I gave my all to serving the nobles, learning each and every dirty secret they had, while gaining their complete trust. One day, when the time is right, they will all enjoy a long stay in prison." He glanced out the window.

"That helps a lot," Risette replied, "but I really need to hit something."

Henry nodded. "It's understandable. I did promise to teach you fisticuffs, so perhaps that might lessen your anger."

Henry patiently waited for Risette to make the first move, holding his fists up in a defensive stance. Risette's mind ran through the lessons her cousin taught her. "Stay on guard. Look for a weak point, and drive it home," Risette remembered Esther telling her. As she did, she remembered Henry's words earlier. "I took an arrow to the knee."

Risette swung out with a kick to the right knee. Henry winced, then stumbled backwards. "Well done. You picked the right knee," he grunted. He regained his balance, then returned the stance.

"Time to drive it home," Risette thought to herself. She attempted to make another swing at Henry's knee, but Henry landed a powerful blow across her jaw before she could, throwing her to the floor.

Henry attempted to subdue her, but she gave his knee another sharp kick, causing him to fall again. "I yield," he said through gritted teeth. "I yield."

Risette wiped her brow. "Thank you," she said. "I feel a lot better."

"I'm glad you do," Henry replied, rubbing his knee. He attempted to stand, but a sharp pain from his knee caused him to collapse. "Would you mind unlocking the door?" he panted.

"Of course," Risette replied. She walked over to the door and unlocked the door.

"Agnes!" shouted Henry.

In a moment, the black-haired maid reappeared. "Yes, sir?" she asked.

"Could you help me to my quarters?" he asked.

"Are you alright, sir?" Agnes asked, as she took his arm and helped him up.

"My knee's acting up again," he replied. "I just need to lie down for a bit." Agnes helped him walk out, with frequent wincing and expressions of pain on Henry's face. As they did, Agnes turned back to Risette.

"Miss Risette, Nataleigh is prepared to see your wares. She finished interrogating the intruder," Agnes replied, "so she is prepared to talk to you. Also, Lady Irene was asking for you to speak to her in her chambers."

"I will see Nataleigh immediately," Risette replied. "I don't want to see Lady Irene right now. She might make me mad."

"I will guide you there as soon as I finish getting Henry to his room," Agnes said.

Risette looked out the window and began to think. "Does Henry know that Cherisa betrayed Suki to become queen? He speaks of her as if she's the hero of the story. Suki says that Cherisa sold her off to the kidnappers. Was Henry in on it?"

Around that moment, Lady Irene entered. "Someone's deep in thought," she said.

"W-what are you doing here, Lady Irene?" asked Risette, startled.

"You're really going to take visiting Nataleigh over me?" Irene pouted as she shut the door.

"Nataleigh's the whole reason that I'm here," Risette explained. "I'm selling her fabrics and materials."

"I think you can wait on her for a bit," Irene replied with a smile. "I was just wanting to spend some time with you."

"No, I'm not just going to spend time with a traitor," thought Risette. "I'm sorry. I really must go."

"Come on!" Irene pleaded. "I just wanted to get to know you better. Come back to my chambers and we'll talk."

"Fine," Risette replied. "I can do that later."

"You know, you're pretty cute," Irene replied as she walked with Risette to her private chambers.

Risette smiled meekly, but internally she was screaming. "Thank you," she replied. "If you weren't a traitor, I'd compliment you too."

"By the way, how much do you know about rope?" asked Irene.

"It's not that expensive to buy," Risette replied.

Irene shook her head. "No, I was curious if you knew anything about being tied up."

"I've been tied up too many times over the last three days," Risette replied.

Irene opened the door to her room. "No reason," she replied.

Risette stared at Irene. "So, what did you want to talk about?"

"I was thinking that we would have a few refreshments first," Irene replied as she shut the door behind her. She filled two glasses with water and handed one to Risette.

Risette drank from her glass. "Why are you looking at me like that?" she asked.

"I was just admiring how perfect you'll be," Irene replied.

Risette suddenly felt tired. "Perfect for what?" she asked.

"My slave," Irene cooed. She opened a trunk and pulled out a coil of rope.

The room began to spin around her. "N-no!" Risette shouted. She stumbled to the door but it was locked.

"Struggle all you want," Irene stood over her, smiling menacingly, "but don't get too tired. You'll need to serve Mistress soon." Risette's world faded to black.