Monster

What is Your Crime?

Okay, okay, I turn this into a full-blown story because I got stuck in Chess Piece… For my lovely readers I’ll do anything :)

“Don’t forget the lesson I just told you, Princess!”

The Princess’ tutor watched as the young girl ran away after hours of lessons with him, her ringing laughter echoed in the hallway while he could only shook his head. She was so impossible when it came to lessons, she just won’t sit still and listen to him.

“Your Highness,”

Juliette nodded at the passing servants as she took quick steps to the kitchen. She hummed as she looked around, taking a few pastries and a red apple before walking out again innocently. Biting into the crunchy flesh of the fruit, she held the pastries close to her chest with one hand as she walked to the quieter halls, barely anyone came to this wing and she was thankful for that.

Whistling quietly to herself, the eight years old Princess went down the flight of stairs into the dark dungeon. She had found this secret pathway, probably meant for an emergency exit for royals in case of an attack, unguarded and led to the prison when she was five years old, oh how lucky she was.

“Psst!” she whispered, signaling that she was there. “I bought some pastries.”

“Juliette?”

Her smile grew as she went to this one particular cell where the platinum blonde haired woman was chained inside. Sitting cross-legged, she put the pastries she has retrieved from the kitchen on the plate nearby.

“I hope you like it; it’s my today’s snack.”

The prisoner inside smiled as she sat as close as she could, the iron bars standing between them were the only ones separating her from the Princess of Arendelle.

“Why you always do this?” she asked, “By giving me this extra food, you don’t get to enjoy your snack.”

“Well, that’s true.” The Princess nodded as she munched on her apple. “But I get tasty food every day, and I can always sneak into the kitchen to get more if I want. You, on the other hand, can’t enjoy tasty food like I do so this is the least that I can do for you.”

“Thank you.” Elsa whispered, smiling as she took one of the pastries, enjoying the sweetness she rarely tasted in the prison cell. “How was your day?”

“Boring.” The young Princess told her secret friend. “Especially when I go tutoring, I just can’t wait to get out and come here. Oh but I got a riding lesson today, that’s the only thing I enjoyed besides talking to you.”

Elsa watched as the girl went on with her activity she did before she came down here, something she did every single day, just a few days after she looking for her ball, her curiosity was the one that led her back and eventually became Elsa’s only company after Gerda retired.

She has grown so much, her daughter, in care of her sister, not having any idea that she had been talking to her real mother for the past two years and started to give her the snacks she was supposed to eat a couple months ago.

It hurt so much for her to be like this, not being able to hug and kiss her own child. The name itself, Juliette, held so much irony of her forbidden love with Hans.

“Elsa?”

The sudden call taken her by surprise, but she quickly compose herself, a habit she has grown into for being a Queen once. “Yes?”

“Why are you imprisoned?” the girl asked innocently, “You’re a nice person, not like those Helene and Mother told me, the ones that killed and robbed. What did you do?”

I fall in love with your Father and give birth to you…

“I’ve done something your Mother did not find legal.” She told the child gently.

“What is it? What did you do to make Mother angry?”

“It’s something you shouldn’t know now.” A small smile grew when the girl pouted. She reached between the bars and caressed her pinkish cheek. “Maybe later, when you’re older.”

“How much older?” Juliette wondered out loud, leaning her face against the surprisingly soft hand.

“Much, much, older.”

Though she didn’t get the answer she wanted, she knew Elsa would tell her anything if she thought she was ready for it, the kind woman always did that. “Alright then… But I think I should go before Mother sent Helene to search for me.”

“Okay.” Elsa nodded, smiling faintly. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Juliette.”

~O~

“Mother?”

The strawberry blonde haired Queen looked up from the report she was reading, seeing the head of platinum blonde haired Princess peeked out from the doorway.

“Yes Juliette?”

The young Princess chewed on her bottom lip in silence for a moment, debating on what she was going to say. “You don’t go to sleep?”

“I still have many works.” Anna told her daughter. “Why don’t you go to sleep? Where’s Helene?” she was sure the maidservant won’t just leave the Princess wondered around if it was her time to go to bed, she cared for the child she nursed since her birth too much.

“She left after tucking me in. She didn’t know I’m still up so it’s not her fault.” The Princess explained as she walked into the Queen’s study, feet bare and hair let loose with only a black headband to hold her bangs away from her face as she only wear her nightgown. “What are you working on?”

“Political stuff.” The Queen said, putting down her quill. “What is it, Juliette? It’s strange for you to still up at this hour.”

“I have something to ask you.” The girl said, sitting on the carpeted floor near her Mother’s chair, looking up at her. “… Do you think a kind person can go to jail?”

Anna’s brows furrowed slightly at the question. “Even good people sometimes do things no one expected them to do. There are so much that people don’t show to others, things kept as a secret, a dark one.”

“So… people lies?”

The strawberry blonde haired Queen nodded. “Yes, sometimes they do.”

“But you said lying is bad.” Juliette told her Mother, “So lying can get you to jail?”

Lying to your sister and marry a traitor, yes. “Yes.”

The Princess seemed to be deep in thought as she processed what her Mother just told her before nodding. “Okay…” she yawned, getting up from the floor as she rubbed her eyes. “Good night, Mother.”

Anna watched as her daughter/niece walked toward the door to return to her bedchamber before she called out for her, making her stop. “Come on, I’ll tuck you in.” she told her as she stood up from her chair, approaching the Princess and taking her hand as together they exited the study.