Three Pretty Princesses

Chapter 22- Catie

It was was the night of the Autumn Ball. Wealthy aristocrats dressed in lavish and extravagant finery flocked the palace, all in intricate masks. It was the sort of night when dreams came true, even for Palace maids like Catie. After polishing the entire ballroom, she had raced back into her room to clean herself up. She didn't look beautiful like the noble ladies invited, but she looked nice. She fantasised about being seen and wanted by a handsome nobleman as she collected wine-glasses. She daydreamed of living as a fancy duchess who spent her days frolicking around her estate with her children. She was pulled out of her fantasy when her sister, Emma grabbed her arm, exclaiming, "The Princess is arriving soon!"

The two girls rushed out of their palace basement bedroom to the ballroom. They began to perform some of their duties- cleaning up wine spills while trying to dodge the dancers, assisting ladies with removing their lace cardigans- but all the while waiting for the arrival of the Tilneys. Sure enough, within minutes, the dancing was halted and all eyes were drawn to the wide, giant staircase in the centre of the room.

"Ladies and gentlemen, his majesty, King Thomas with her majesty, Queen Gwendoline!" the announcer cried out as the King and Queen appeared at the top of the stairs, hand in hand. They both looked magnificent, which was unsurprising to Catie- who knew the tailors who had spent countless hours designing and sewing their outfits. It was a little disconcerting seeing the two with the arms linked, though. The King and Queen were so very rarely seen together, and when they were, they stayed a safe distance away.

"Her highness, Princess Ava!"

Catie heard her sister release a wonderstruck sigh. "By Typtris, she's so beautiful."

Emma was right. Princess Ava looked breathtakingly stunning. Dressed in a snow white gown, the bottom decorated with real rose petals, the Princess looked like some sort of angel. Her first dancing partner, King Dominick of Amakario looked to be visibly quivering at having the honour of dancing with the beauty. The two ladies beside her, also looking charming, were led onto the dancefloor by lesser known noblemen. One wore an emerald green gown, while the other had selected a lilac purple one with long, draping sleeves.

The orchestra in the wings began to play. It was a transfixing sight for Catie. She loved seeing the skirts of the ladies' ball-gowns twirl and whirl in synchronisation. Princess Ava was a skillful dancer. She moved from gentleman to gentleman with such grace that one would be forgiven for thinking she was a mythical faerie. For most of the evening, Catie watched her from the balcony, the maid's chin on her hands as she leant forward to get the best view.

"Oi, Catie!" a rough voice behind her called out.

Catie turned around to find out that the voice belonged to Head Chef Christopher, who was marching towards her. "Catie, aren't you supposed to be cleaning up around here. As lovely as the Princess is to look at, you have duties."

"Please, Chris!" Catie wailed, stamping her foot, "This is just one night. I work harder than hard every single day!"

Christopher relented with a roll of his eyes, saying, "Fine. Just don't let anyone else catch you. Most people wouldn't be as generous."

Christopher walked off, and Catie enthusiastically turned back to the dancefloor. She narrowed her eyes. Something was different about the Princess. Despite not missing a single step, she wasn't as graceful anymore. Ava looked almost agitated. Her head was darting from side to side as she was twirled by her partner, a young man in a suit. Catie's gaze shifted to Ava's dancing partner. He looked familiar somehow. Catie couldn't recall the name of the noble he might be, but she knew she'd seen him somewhere before. She glanced back at Ava, whose agitation had turned to pure horror. Catie followed the Princess's eyes to her partner's hand, or more specifically, the black dot on it. Many weeks after the Ball, when Catie finally began to process what happened, she realised that the Princess would have been luckier if she had been looking at her partner's other hand- the one holding the small, iron dagger.

The man seized Ava, pulling her back up against him. He stabbed her in the stomach countless times, finishing with a cruel twist of the dagger, making the girl shriek in agony before she collapsed onto the floor. Chaos in the ballroom ensued. People trying to get away from the man were blocked by the shuffling bodies of the people trying to get to the Princess. More dancers revealed themselves to be armed. As the maiden in the lilac gown tried to reach her wounded friend, a man pulled the maiden's head back and slit her throat. With blood spurting out of her neck, the maiden was dead before she hit the floor.

The King and Queen suffered more harrowing fates. Queen Gwendoline was pierced through the eye by the same man who stabbed her daughter The last thing she saw was her daughter writhing in pain on the hard ballroom floor. King Thomas tried desperately to fight off his wife's killer. Heart in her mouth and paralysed by shock, Catie almost believed that he would survive, but the King was shortly cut down by another man behind him. A knife was thrust into King Thomas' heart and then pulled across his chest. He was dropped onto the floor like a ragdoll by his killer. Palace guards swarmed the ballroom, brandishing swords and dispatching any guest with a weapon. This was not enough to save the guests, who were greeted to a hail of arrows from the balcony opposite Catie's.Princess Ava's other friend- the one in the green gown- was shot through the heart with one of the arrows, and toppled to the ground. Another arrow found its way into the forehead on King Dominick, who had almost reached the safety of the gardens.

"Catie!"

The maid sprung out of her paralysis. Christopher grabbed her arm and pulled her towards the stairs, yelling, "We need to get out of here!"

Adrenaline pumping through her veins, Catie sprinted down the stairs to the ground floor. Christopher and her clung to the walls of the ballroom, stepping over the dead in a race to get out. Most of the traitors had been killed by the Palace guards, but they still had one more trick up their sleeve. Just as Catie made it to the safety of the entrance hall, she watched the ballroom burst into flames. The corpses burned like parchment, meaning that room was engulfed by flames within seconds.

Christopher lead Catie out of the entrance hall onto the patio of the gardens. The patio was marble-floored, meaning that they were safe from the fire.

"Where do we go now?" Catie asked, having to yell above the screams.

Christopher looked around. "We need to find a palace outhouse or shed to hide in so they don't find us."

"No way," Catie cried out, "We need to run as far away from this godforsaken palace as we can."

"They'll be men outside waiting for survivors to stream out, getting ready to cut them down like dogs," Christopher retorted.

The two's argument was cut short by the sound of a soft moan. They looked for the source of the sound, as saw a small girlish figure crawling towards them. She looked like a dying animal. Her entire dress was soaked red, and the puddle of blood surrounding her was only getting larger. In the darkness of the gardens, she was unrecognisable.

Catie and Christopher rushed towards her, turning her over and trying to find the source of the bleeding. While Christopher tended to her wound, Catie stroked the girl's face. The maid asked, "Who are you?"

The girl wheezed, her lungs filled with smoke. "I'm Princess Ava."