The Midnight Ball

11

Note: Adelaide
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That night, they were tense before reaching the staircase

They felt uneasy, but even that did not prepare them for what awaited them

Once they reached the clearing, the forest tightened around them, and this time it was a real forest, with greenery and animals

They suddenly felt hunger gnawing on their insides, and a great impulse to find anything to eat

They split up in their frantic search, and they felt the hours stretch as if they would never make it out of the forst

They had to eat..

Some found dandelions, others mushrooms and toad stools. Some caught small animals, or fish and others foraged for nuts and wild berries

Weaker girls even resorted to pulling out grass and eating it, as well as leaves

A thought kept circling through Ismie's mind: This is not real. It helped ground and focus her

She knew all she had to do was relax, make it out of the forest and just wait

She knew come dawn, they'd be all back at the castle

She only hoped the others would realize that soon

She could hear their frantic movements, but couldn't find them

And at first, she'd had trouble holding on to that single thought, that the hunger wasn't real. Then she remembered they'd dined, and they weren't here for that long. There was no way they were starving

By dawn, some girls were writhing on the ground, and had to be helped up the stairs

The Pembroughs were shocked by the state of the princesses

They were taken to their quarters, and the physician checked them one by one

The princes were gathered together in the grand hall

Henry was pacing, and Callum was vradling his head in his hands. Their sisters were some of the worst off

Navid tried to calm them down

Henry: Easy for you to say! Your sister's condition isn't as bad as Marie, he looked at Callum, or princess Bernadette

Navid: Yes, but you still need to calm down.. This isn't helping anyone. Help us think

Nyong'o: All the princesses from the events before, came out fine in the end. Do not worry. They will be fine

Ferdinand: Except the missing girls of course

Nyongo gave him a sharp look

Ferdinand ignored him: The rest come off physically unharmed of course, but do you mean to tell us, that their psyche is unaffected by the loss of one of them. Not all of them are that strong

Nyong'o pranced towards him: That is enough..

Nikolai stood from his chair, straightening to his full impressive height

Ferdinand held him back, smiling like a cat

Kei: Gentlemen, we've strayed from the topic at hand

His gaze was cautioning them from continuing in that lane

Navid: Back at the topic in hand..

Henry: What can we do?

Callum: There must be some way to help

Ferdinand: There's nothing

Henry: How can you say that? Aren't you afraid for your sister? And how about princess Ismeralda, who you've been trying to court all this time

Ferdinand: You think no one has tried to interfere before?

He looked at Nikolai: They did. It did not end well..

Callum turned to Nikolai: What does he mean?

Nikolai: One of my ancestors, he tried to do something. He went after the princesses one night and didn't return. His body turned up at the opening of that room one night. It was torn to shreds

Henry: You were lucky he was the only one taken

Nikolai was enraged: Lucky?!

Nyong'o restrained him

Henry nodded: Once, my ancestors tried to interfere. Almost the whole house were struck dead..

Ferdinand: And you still want to intervene

Henry: Marie is my only sister..

Ferdinand: Whatever you try to do. The result will be the same. A girl will be taken by the end of the alloted time

Callum: How can you be so calm?

Ferdinand gave him a look: A princess will be gone. Why should I ruin my life over something I can't change, no matter what

Henry: But you would not try, even if you could, would you?

He ignored him..

Just then, Lord Alistair entered the hall, followed by Elinore and the physician

Alistair: Your highnesses, good afternoon. The princesses are going to be fine

He gestured towards the physician who bowed

Callum: What happened?

Physician: Their highnesses seem to have been suffering from various degrees of food poisoning. Not all of them seemed affected though

Nikolai looked at Alistair

Alistair, calmly: Before jumping into any conclusions, your highnesses, may I remind you that all of the princesses ate exactly what we all did, and we're all in health

Ferdinand glared at Nikolai

Elinore cleared her throat: Phydician Alles, assures us that by the time their highnesses wake up, they will have recovered

He nodded: Thankfully, their affliction was not very serious