Beatrice had spent the morning meeting with Louis, the painter gifting her the japanese kite that they had missed the opportunity to fly the day they had met by the lake. Monsieur Caravaque didn't have much time that day, but Trixie had taken his instructions to enjoy the fine weather and fly the kite, and so now she was out on the fields with her friend Ron, as the boy painted the marvelous view of the palace in the distance.
"Look, Ron, it's floating!" The girl said joyfully as the kite took flight.
"I don't know how you can be in such a good mood. You're going to be swimming in manure if they really do get married." Ron told her as he dipped his brush into a new colour, the boy having just learned of the possible marriage between the Grand Duchess and Violet.
"I do not know why it bothers you so. I could care less." Trixie responded.
"You're lying, the Grand Duchess would be you sister-in-law and you would be bringing the pair breakfast in bed." The boy argued.
"Yes, but eventually they would move into the palace and I could stay at the manor. I could turn things around, that is all that matters." The girl said as she ran around happily with the kite.
"You like her, admit it." Ron said, not believing the girl's tale. On the horizon he could see two people riding, a young woman and a royal guard.
"No."
"And I suppose.. if you saw her again, you'd-" The boy trailed off as he reckognized the young woman as the Grand Duchess herself.
"I would walk right up to her and say; Your Highness, my family is your family. Please, take them away." Beatrice said carelessly.
"Good, here is your big chance, she's headed this way." Ron informed the girl, who panicked soon after and ran to hide behind a haystack. The pair rode up to the boy, stopping right in front of the startled common man.
"I am looking for Monsieur Caravaque, we are to go to the monastery. Have you seen him?" THe Grand Duchess asked the boy, who looked to her like a painter's apprentice.
"Monsieur Louis Caravaque, the great royal painter? Uhm.. no, Your Highness." Ron replied nervously, the mention of the painter he so greatly admired increasing his nerves.
"But is that not his flying contraption? Where did you aquire it?" Yekaterina asked. Trixie quickly set the kite free, frightened of the princess looking for the holder of the string.
"From uhm.. the Countess Zamolodchikova. She is a friend of his." The boy spoke, quickly finding an excuse for why he would have ended up with the painter's possession. Trixie wanted to curse Ron out for his statement as she knew it would lead the Grand Duchess to her.
"You know her? Please, I beg you, I must find her. With whom is she staying?" Katya said desperately, the simple mention of the courtier's name making her knees grow weak.
"Ehm, I believe.. Your Highness. That she is staying with a cousin... the ehm.." The boy started.
"No Ron, please don't, no, no, no." The girl whispered as she expected what the end of his sentence would be.
"The Baroness Irina Grigoryevna of House Naryshkina." Ron finished to Trixie's horror.
"Hmm, that does present a problem." The Grand Duchess said with a bothered expression, the thought of dealing with the obtrusive woman exhausting to even imagine.
"But, I do know that she is there. Alone. By herself. At this very moment." The young painter stated, knowing that the Ladies of the manor would be at church.
"Excellent, thank you. Nice painting." The Grand Duchess stated with a smile before riding off towards the manor. When the two riders were out of sight, Trixie emerged from her hiding spot.
"Ron, you horrid, little snipe!" She told the boy.
"Did you hear? She likes my work!" He replied excitedly.
"And she is headed towards my house!" The girl responded in annoyance and fear.
"Then I suggest you run." Ron said with a smirk, the young woman herself breaking into a smile at the thought of spending another day with the princess.
She quickly ran the slimmest forest roads that horses could not travel, sprinting as fast as her legs would carry her.
"Tempest! Kasha! Help quick!" She yelled as she entered the manor. The women quickly aiding the girl in dressing up in a silver blue gown, finishing just in time for the Grand Duchess's arrival. Trixie completely out of breath as she opened the door.
"Your Highness, what an unexpected surprise." The young girl told the princess.
"Countess, do you not attend church?" Yekaterina enquired.
"I believe my faith best served away from the large gatherings of crowds." Trixie responded, quickly making up an excuse, as her true reason was that her station would never have allowed her to attend church with the royal court.
"Yes, it is quite a spectacle, is it not? Which is why I am bound for the monastery, they have quite the astonishing library. And well, since you are so fond of reading, might I interest you in joining me on my journey?" The Grand Duchess asked, feeling oddly nervous as she proposed the idea.
"It is not fair, Your Imperial Highness. You have found my weakness, but I have yet to learn yours." Trixie replied with a smile, the thought of traveling to a library the most remarkable way she could imagine spending the day.
"Well, I should think it to be quite obvious." Katya said as she leaned in a little, a smile coating her lips as her eyes conveyed her undeniable attraction and interest for the woman before her. Beatrice blushed at this, getting lost in the fantasy of the life she was pretending to have.
"Captain Ivan, I shall not be needing my horse or your services." The Grand Duchess told the guard, the man giving her a nod in response. Katya turned her attention back to the unrivaled beauty before her and offered a hand which the other girl took happily, as the princess told her;
"Today, I am simply... Katya."
YOU ARE READING
Ever After ✔~ trixya
Fanfiction"Her name was Beatrice Mattel. And this, was her glass slipper. Perhaps you will allow me to set the record straight?" The Grand Duchess says as she picks a beautiful shoe out of the silver box. "Then it's true? The story?" The writer enquires. "Yes...
