Womanish Lady

Chapter 16:

Fuyaiyah resumed her duties to Princess Zyla like nothing happened. She noticed immediately that people would be sent to spy on her - making sure she didn't do anything suspicious.

Princess Zyla was quiet when she first returned, but seeing how Fuyaiyah really wasn't mad at her, she relaxed, and began to enjoy her presence again.

Queen Veronica dropped by every now and then on her daughter. On one of her visits, she saw how the houseplant that was supposed to be dead was green and alive - at the cost of the majority of its big leaves and stems being detached. The Queen didn't visit again for a while after that.

Fuyaiyah, really not meaning to bring trouble, was showing no sign of bad behavior, and the Palace spies were ordered to back down from watching her.

A month passed afterwards, and one evening, the Princess was ready for a bath so Fuyaiyah went out to ask for hot water.

"Okay - you'll have to wait a few minutes though."

"It's no problem." she replied, then waited respectfully outside the corridor.

Minutes later, Fuyaiyah could hear many footsteps, and voices coming her way.

"We failed again!" said Prince Kyuni, frustratedly.

"Of course we did." said an accompanying horseman. "We are trying to find them with almost no information."

He was still very upset.

"There's a large group of people circling the entire Kingdom and the King just wants us to catch one and make him talk! I know those prisoners know something too - because not one of them falsely in prison is trying to get out. We simply need to catch one! Just one!"

"You want to charge after them, brother." said Prince Tuquor. "But the fact alone that we haven't been able to see or catch even one of them means that they're sneaky. Would the rabbit come out of its hole knowing a pack of wolves is waiting? We can't make it obvious that we're looking for them."

"No, but if the rabbit has any fear, it'll show some sign of it. But those villagers are giving away nothing!"

She heard Prince Tuquor sigh.

"We have no proof that we're being circled by the villagers."

"We don't need proof. It's logical: when we were invading their village, even for a village, we captured too few people. There's more out there."

Prince Kyuni said that simply, but hearing it, Fuyaiyah's body surged. Many of her villagers weren't in captivity. She guessed that much, but where did they go before the invasion, and why leave the rest of them to be killed or captured?

"Yeah well, they'd better show themselves before I get upset! Come on, we gotta discuss our next plan."

His brother sighed.

"You're already upset."

Fuyaiyah hoped they would pass by her corridor, but the band of horsemen were headed to a room in the same corridor as her.

Prince Kyuni was the first to turn the corner and spot her. He stopped and frowned heavily. Fuyaiyah bowed, then the rest turned the corner.

Prince Tuquor raised his eyebrows.

"What are you doing here, Fuyaiyah?"

"Yes, what are you doing here?"

Fuyaiyah bowed again at the appearance of the other Prince.

"The Princess wants a bath."

Just then, the worker came out of the room next to her with a safe container of hot coals.

"The hot water is ready and we've transferred it to the Princess's chamber, so all you gotta do is turn on the water."

"Thank you - but, this container?"

"It's for the long wait out in this cold; after the Princess, you go have yourself a hot bath too."

Fuyaiyah smiled wide.

"Thank you for your service."

She turned around, wanting to leave, but having to wait for permission, did so patiently.

Prince Kyuni gave her a look over.

"Did you hear what we were talking about?"

She kept her head bowed.

"It was impossible not to."

Prince Tuquor wanted to dismiss Fuyaiyah, but his brother held his hand up.

"You wouldn't happen to know anything regarding it that you could tell us, right?"

She just bowed.