Serendipity ✔

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"All I have, all I need, he's the air I would kill to breathe."

♫ Breathe Again - Sara Bareilles ♫

♛

Annabelle felt relatively better about the whole situation about a week after the new princess' appearance. She finally accepted the fact that the prince was going to marry that girl soon. That had been what she wanted all along, had it not? She wanted the prince to be happy, and she knew he wouldn't have been if he found out who she really was.

Picking fresh flowers from the garden to take to the Queen, Annabelle found herself fantasizing about a life where she really was a princess. And, in that fantasy, she was the one to marry Alexander. 

"You're daydreaming again," Madam Mary teased the young girl, who was humming a song while picking flowers. 

"It's a beautiful day, Madam Mary," the girl said, smiling up at the bright sun perched on top of the cloudless sky. "Perfect day for daydreaming."

Their conversation was interrupted by the servant Marcus. He seemed to have been urgently looking for them. 

"You two ought to get to the Grand Hall," he said, sounding breathless. "His Highness requested  everyone to come as soon as possible."

Annabelle felt her stomach drop. It was not hard to imagine what the prince could possibly want to tell everyone. He was going to announce his marriage. She forced herself to walk alongside Madam Mary and Marcus until the very end. She could not run away again. 

She needed to face everything with a smile and be happy for him. He deserved happiness.

Prince Alexander and his princess were already waiting in the Grand Hall when Annabelle entered. When Queen Katherine threw a quick glance at the maid, Annabelle thought she imagined the worried look on her face.

"I want to thank you all for coming," the prince said in a tone that signified authority. "I also want to thank my mother for raising me in a such way that I never stopped believing in fairy tales. I owe it to you for standing here today."

The crowd had melted when they saw the prince planting a kiss on his mother's cheek. 

"I need to announce something very important today," he started and Annabelle could feel her heart threatening to come out of her rib cage. Madam Mary saw the look on her face and encircled an arm around her. The brown haired girl saw Alexander and princess Gwendolyn exchange loving looks and that action made it hard for her to breathe. Forcing herself to stay strong, she listened to what the prince had to say. 

"Me and the lovely princess Gwendolyn have decided to marry."

The prince had said the final words and the crowd erupted in cheers and congratulations. Music came from out of nowhere when the people became louder and louder. The King and Queen were smiling as everybody congratulated them. All the people just seemed happy.

Except for one person. 

Madam Mary looked to her left to see the young maid was already gone. It seemed her poor heart could not handle the commotion. For a second, she saw the top of the maid's head going through the sea of people. And from the distance, she swore she saw a mop of golden brown hair going after her. 

Then, the music stopped. The room went silent.

  ♛  

The maid had been running until she felt her feet and lungs hurting. She did not even notice where she had went until she saw the bright moon glistening through the hills. She was in that garden again.    

Her knees had finally given up. Falling to the ground, she tucked them under her chin and started crying. She thought she could handle it but her heart had failed her. It hurt too much after hearing the prince's words. 

He was getting married to someone. 

He was getting married to a princess.

"I cannot be happy for you." She whispered mostly to herself as she hugged her knees even closer. She furiously wiped her tears but they kept coming back no matter how hard she tried. Then, she heard footsteps behind her. 

"I want to be left alone, Madam Mary." The girl's voice was hoarse from the crying as she spoke. However,  the voice that answered to her was not Madam Mary's. 

"I knew I would find you here."

It was the prince.