You Are The Reason ( Prince x Reader )

Chapter 17: Punishment For Another

You awoke in the morning feeling joyful about your meeting in the garden. As you dressed, a smile was on your face, and it seemed that nothing could ruin your day. You were mistaken. When you stepped out of your room, a maid grabbed your shoulders and squeezed them tightly.

   " Y/n, we have to go. "

   " What? Why? "

   " The king, he wants to meet with the maids and butlers. We must go to the throne room, where he waits for everyone. "

   " We're getting whipped again? For what? "

   " I'm not sure, but every servent was ordered to go to the throne room. Let's go."

You ran alongside the maid towards the throne room. The halls were bare from life, and your smile faded while your heart thumped against your chest the closer you came to the doors. You opened the doors and stepped inside the throne room to see the maids standing in front of the butlers, waiting for the king. You joined the crowd with the maid by your side and waited for the king.

   " Why are we here? I didn't do anything wrong, did you?"

   " I didn't do anything either. "

   " It's probably a small detail we missed. "

   " I'm already bracing my back for the whip. "

Everyone started talking and speculating what could have happened, but no one could reach an answer. You wondered what could have happened, to have convinced the king to whip everyone this morning, but soon your question would be answered.

   " Now presenting, King Francis Harding. "

The king walked into the throne room with his head held high. He stood in front of the servants instead of sitting on his throne and glared at everyone. You curtsied with the rest of the maids while the butlers bowed. After that, everything was silent until the king raised his hand and waved his fingers towards himself in Quintin's direction. Quintin nodded, opened the doors, and two guards entered the throne room. A maid was with them, and the knights sat her in front of the king.

   ' That's Sarah. '

Her short blonde hair was tangled, and her blue eyes contained fear. The guards held her to the floor, and she couldn't move. Finally, the king picked up his whip, and you felt your heart hammer in your chest.

   " It seems, one maid cannot follow the rules. Sarah Flemming, where you not wandering around the halls, during the night? " The king asked.

   " I. . .I was. . . "

   " But you must know that servants are not allowed to wander at night. "

   " I do know. . ."

   " Then how come you disobeyed? "

   " I. . .I cannot say. . ."

   ' That's right, if she tells the king that Quinn and I were out last night meeting, he would kill me, and probably lock Quinn back up. '

The king raised his hand and threw the whip down at Sarah. The whip hit her back with a crack, and she screamed in agony. You cringed along with the other maids while the butlers grimaced at the sight.

   " It seems that you and your fellow low lives need to be taught a lesson. I'm going to whip you right in front of them until your back is red, with blood. "

   " No! Please! Stop! "

   " Begging now, are we? Fine, then you will take her place! " The king yelled, pointing towards one of the maids. 

The maid jumped, and her body started to shake. You felt a shiver journey through your body as the guards let Sarah go, and they began to drag the maid towards the king. She screamed to the top of her lungs and cried, buckets full of tears. 

   " Stop! I'll take her place! "

Your heart was rampant in your chest as all eyes turned toward you. The guards had stopped pulling the maid towards the king and looked towards you. The king's eyes were set on you, and his glare frightened you. You swallowed your fear and continued to hold the king's stare.

   " Brave one eh? I'm going to make sure all of that bravery is whipped out of you. Guards! "

The guards let go of the fearful maid and took your arms in their grip. They dragged you towards the king and forced your knees to meet the carpet. They held your arms, and you couldn't move. You looked up at all the maids and butlers to see Sarah crying as she watched the whip come down on your back. You held your scream when the whip had connected to your clothes. Your clothes would protect you until he broke through them and connected the whip with skin. And after seven lashes, you started to feel the pain as it touched your skin. Finally, you couldn't hold your scream anymore, and you let the sound erupt from your throat. Tears started falling from your eyes, and you were desperate for the punishment to end. 

   ' This, is torturous! I can't, sit here for much longer! '

You wanted to give up and beg the king to stop, but you couldn't open your mouth and scream for him to stop. You never did, and he continued to whip you. At one point, you couldn't even feel the whip's sting connecting with your back. You couldn't feel anything but the blood pouring from your back. You suddenly felt sick and closed your eyes for a second to find your body fully pressed against the floor. Your head hurt a little, and you felt dizzy.

   " She fainted! "

   " She needs to get to the medical wing! "

   " I'll take her! "

It was brief, but you saw all the maids and butlers gathered around you, and the king was gone. There were no guards around to hold you down and be whipped. You closed your eyes again, but this time, when you opened your eyes, you were being carried through the hallway. You looked toward the person holding you, but the sun from the windows blocked your vision of their face. For one final time, you closed your eyes, but you lost yourself in the darkness. The butler carried you to the infirmary, where the doctors started looking at your back. While you were unconscious in the medical wing, Quinn was walking around the town, looking at the preparations for the festival, and doing some minor shopping.

If he had only been at the castle when you were whipped. 

Things could have been different.