Chapter 8 - Maiden is Interrogated!

'Ah, what a disappointment. For a moment I thought they'd give me a prize… ' the maiden thought to herself as she was led by the guards out of the Great Royal Hall. Taking a deep breath, she felt apprehension afflicting her chest as she again bandaged her hands with pained 'uhuhuh' sounds. The guards didn't really touch her, as she offered no resistance and, being not inexperienced in these situations, Alexa gave them her best innocent and frightened look that inhibited them from taking any brutish actions against her for no reason.

As they walked through the corridors on that stormy, cold night, Alexa knew she had to think fast to secure her life. She still didn't understand what the rules were that governed this court. Which clans and parties vied for power and how it altered the balance of justice. That being so, she could only count on her hope that justice would prevail.

The maiden realized that as the group walked, more people joined the procession. Alexa still had no way of knowing if this was good or bad. Finally they came into a different corridor, less decorated and looking more suffocating and gloomy. 'Uhn, I probably have to go out by the same door I came in, or…' Alexa figured as she concluded that other paths would only lead to the dungeon or worse destinations.

Torches were lit in the room that smelled bad, out of sweat and blood impregnated on everything. The place was not even very big, and had only arrow slit windows as the only source of fresh air.

She turned to the guards, putting both hands together in sudden display of desperation,

"Masters, I don't know what I did wrong, but please don't torture me!"

The soldiers in unison looked away from her, embarrassed, and each one stepped aside, Alexa rubbed her arms, shivering before everyone, as virginally as possible.

"No one plans to hurt you, Lady, um ..." a male voice said as people pushed their way for him to pass.

"Zaskia," someone said.

"It's actually Saskia," Alexa corrected sweetly. She finally saw the owner of the voice, a man in his thirties, warrior-looking, and in clothes that were a pompous version of the castle guard's outfit. With a look she also noticed the presence of a group of priests, which was a bad sign, and some people dressed in noble clothes. All men.

Someone brought a chair for her to sit on. Alexa thought it should test the strength of her attributes and asked if someone could kindly "bring a blanket, please".

The soldier looked at his captain, and received the nod motioning him to attend the innocent request.

While they were getting her a blanket, the captain began,

"Lady Saskia, do you know why you're here?"

"No! I just saw that the prince was alive! That's all I did!"

Apparently this simple statement made everyone very uncomfortable, but she could understand it perfectly. The captain stroked his blond beard.

"And how can you say that? How can you know that? The doctors couldn't identify… "

"Master, forgive me, but I don't know why the doctors didn't see that a dead person didn't become… hard after a while. And the people who prepared him? Did they not see it? I mean... With all due respect, people here have to be more attentive, don't they? What if they buried him? Or put a heavy slab over him? In the case he could wake up ...?! And then he would find out that he had been sealed forever and no one would hear his voice and…!" she bit a pulse, unable to continue. Alexa looked up at the captain, sitting a few paces from her and surrounded by the people, who were restless now. Alexa watched over the priests; her main concern there, as she did not want to be accused of witchcraft or the like.

"But, Lady Alexa. Where do you come from and what did you do to have this knowledge? What about ... that? You reclined on the Dead Prince and… "

"Supposedly Dead Prince. To you he was dead. To me, who was very close to him, he was alive. Just as still as a rock. He's… so white! "She touched the back of her bandaged hand on her face for comparison. Watchful that they couldn't take their eyes off each of her movements ... It had always been so, and Alexa gradually learned to make good use of it. "If he were dead, he should have been blue or purple, but he is not."

The captain looked at his peers, who raised eyebrows returning the question, with faces that showed that everything she was telling them was very plausible and reasonable. The maiden brightened when she realized she was doing very well. She beckoned with both hands, calling them to come closer and hear something she would tell in secret. Several of them leaned forward at the maiden's request.

Seeing the door open and the soldier with his blanket come in, she continued, in an innocently secretive tone,

"I really am a fool! For a moment, I even thought the Prince was playing a trick! Yes! He was still there, with everyone around him... But he was not dead or sleeping with a calm breath. That's why I asked his father to touch him! I thought he would be scared! But…"

Alexa realized that behind the guard with the blanket, Prince Magnus entered the interrogation room. 'Uhn, what is this person doing here?' She watched as he took the blanket from the guard's hand, but had to stop looking because her listeners were still waiting anxiously,

"...But no. He cannot move. He barely breathed. I don't think he can wake up alone," the maiden said at last, noticing the Firstborn Prince turning around the chair, and positioning behind her. After it, he carefully wrapped the blanket around her shoulders. He was being very deliberate and nothing good could come of that. Magnus leaned over and spoke into Alexa's ear,

"Sounds like you're having fun, but your scam isn't convincing me. Looks like I have to make sure we'll hear the truth of your garrulous mouth."

"Oh!" She exclaimed as if she'd heard something very inappropriate, turning to face him in self-defense.

It was clear that he was very annoyed to realize that she was not in chains or taking lashes to speak. Quite the contrary, Lady Saskia was being treated very well. Magnus just narrowed his eyes in response, and walked away, going to a corner of the room and leaning casually against a column.

"Captain Gunnar, may I ask Lady Saskia some questions?"

"Uhn, of course, Your Highness," the Captain seemed not very comfortable with the idea, however.

"Lady Saskia, tell me something I'm pretty curious about: When you looked at my brother today, lying there on his bier in the middle of his wake, what did you think?"

"Ah, it was a pity that such a young person was dead. And also… I also wondered why the Prince was squeezing my shoulder so much." They both knew he wasn't squeezing her shoulder, but she hoped they would get into the technicalities and make it clear to everyone that he was harrassing her since that she showed up there. From interrogation to confrontation.

"I wanted Lady to see something that puzzled me since I first saw her… without the veil, this morning."

"What?" 'Let me play silly some more…' Alexa playing dumb sure irritated the prince the most. He growled, "Why, Lady Saskia, it is impossible that you have not seen anything about his appearance!"

"Well, truthfully, I found him… hihihi. Well, hihihi, very gorgeous! Such a beau!" she cutely hid her face in her bandaged hands; some men sighed, comments about her grace spurted among the 'interrogation' spectators.

The maiden looked up and faced the Prince, who mumbled something she didn't know whether it was 'sly' or 'salad'.

"So you didn't realize that you and he are very similar in appearance?"

"Oh!"

"Yes or no?"

"Oh, well, I even thought we had similar traits, but ..." she looked back at the group of men as she around her. Alexa knew she was the sweet beloved, little sister, daughter, of most of them there. And she daintily asked, squinting in vain sweetness, "But the Prince is so well formed! I can't be that beautiful!"

"OH YOU ARE!"

"Even more beautiful!"

"You're the most heavenly maiden!"

"So sweetly divine…!"

Were the expressions that came out from the male group.

She sighed with a grateful smile, demurely clasping her hands in her lap, "Does the Prince think I'm very much like his brother?"

Magnus's gaze gleamed, but he replied, even in a bad mood,

"There's no comparison. He's just a boy. You're… so much more beautiful."

"Ahhhhhh!"