Andrew Robinson
Stories
4
Chapters
1,142
Words
1.6 M
Comments
0
Reading
5 d, 16 h
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Marcy led us to the room that was used as a cooler of sorts—I had no idea how they got any form of refrigeration to work here—and showed us to the cheeses. I was amazed how much food it took to feed the royal family alone. So much of it probably got wasted. Did the kitchen staff or any other servants eat our leftovers? What happened to all that extra food? Al, who sauntered behind us leisurely with his hands in his pockets looking like he didn't have a care in the world, was less impressed.…-
42 •
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I saw Al briefly at lunch but we didn't get to talk much and I was quickly whisked away by Madame Chalaise afterwards to continue my grueling lessons until mid-afternoon. She was not pleased that my visit with Mariela had lasted so long. The first thing he did when I was freed was lean against the wall in front of me, eyeing me suspiciously. "What exactly did you do?" I frowned, feeling oddly wronged. "What do you mean? I didn't do anything." "I have NEVER seen Franz and Mariela talk so much to each…
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42 •
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"Katie, what exactly is your plan for getting the majority away from Sigmund's side?" Franz asked as he set down his teacup. He and Mariela both looked at me expectantly. This was the tricky part. The idea had come from Marcy in the original novel. How would I explain how I came up with it if he asked? Annalaias had one court and it was made up of nobles only. The lowest ranking people in it were baronets. Wealthy merchants sometimes made alliances with lower nobles to get their interests heard but…
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42 •
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Al and I weren't meant to be. What would be the point of telling him the truth? He wasn't nearly as perceptive as Mariela—I had let so many things slip in front of him, even telling him about doughnuts and hamburgers and he still didn't have a clue. I was leaving soon anyway. I had no reason to tell Al who I really was. Having one person know was enough. "No," I said honestly without divulging the plethora of reasons I had for keeping my silence. Mariela raised a delicately shaped brow at me.…
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42 •
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Mariela was an interesting person to spend time with because on one hand, she was intelligent and well spoken, but on the other she seemed to prefer listening to me talk. We couldn't exactly rehash the events of our days in the typical form of small talk I was used to because our schedules were too similar. Instead, she would talk about a wide variety of princessy topics she was an expert in and I would amuse her with stories from my childhood that were slightly modified so they would fit within the…
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42 •
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The doughnuts and hamburger, though blander than the ones back home, revitalized me so the following day I handled the bridal lessons like a champ. Even the nitpicking Madame Chalaise was impressed. Since I was starting to get the basics down, she had me run what I could only think of as drills from a very sissy boot camp—walking with a book on my head while wearing impossibly high heels, smiling, turning, waving, repeating. Once I got into a rhythm it was a mindless task so I could focus on other…
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42 •
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Crying hangovers were always the worst. Every time I ended up with a terrible headache for the rest of the day. No matter how much my head hurt I wasn't able to fall back asleep so I was stuck alone with my thoughts in my sad blanket nest. The fire had been stoked but I still felt frozen to my very bones. "Katie?" a voice I did not want to hear called softly. "I brought you some hot chocolate and pastries." I wouldn't have responded if he hadn't mentioned hot chocolate. That might actually be helpful…
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Prince Alpheus' regular servants had noticed a change in their master since Lady Catherine began living in the palace. It was even more obvious now that he had reverted back to how he had been before, sullen and miserable. Al was upset partly because he didn't comprehend everything that Katie had said and partly because he knew he was at least somewhat to blame. She was right—he had brought her here selfishly because only someone as alive as she was could snap him out of his natural gloom. She…
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42 •
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After a long, exhausting day of bridal lessons and political intrigue I dreamed of home. The scorching Arizona heat invaded from all sides as I casually strolled down the street my apartment building was on. The smell of sage hung heavy in the air and sweat made my shirt stick to my back. A perfectly normal day. My apartment came into view and once I opened the door I was greeted with all of my bookshelves filled with paperbacks and DVDs. When I was abruptly woken by a maid there were tears on my…
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42 •
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The next two weeks passed in a haze of bridal lessons, tea with Mariela, bridal lessons, entertaining Al, and more bridal lessons. In all that time we only managed to sneak over to the kitchens once and Marcy hadn't even been there! Such a waste. At this rate, I would never be able to convince them that they were meant for each other. In all that time I still hadn't memorized the layout of the palace. It was so huge that I typically followed whoever I was with at the time; Madame Chalaise supervised me…
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