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Chapter Text

A long, long time ago in someplace stood the glorious and great kingdom of Lucifenia. This kingdom was ruled by princess Riliane Lucifen d’Austriche, daughter of Arth I, also known as The Conqueror, a name given to him because it was thanks to his prowess that the territories of Lucifenia had expanded in such a way unseen since the nation was born. Arth I was the descendant of queen Riliane Roses, a beautiful and dignified queen who is remembered fondly even to this day for her many accomplishments regarding the kingdom’s government efficiency and political reforms such as... (Let’s scrap this whole part shall we? Note on the corner of the page). Riliane Roses was, in turn, the descendant of king Lucifen I, also known as Duke d’Autriche, who founded this great land; but before that, he formed part of the five dukes of Beelzenia, but fought for the independence of this vast land and imposing territory…. (No way! Stories about the royal family need appropriate context, it has always been like this.). Duke d’Autriche was a descendant of… (I’m sorry, my princess.) 

-The rest of the genealogy is scrapped, though there are a few angry faces drawn on the manuscript.-

Riliane Lucifen d'Autriche was born on the 27th of december (my favorite month) to the sound of the bells of the Levin Church. At the time of her birth, the most beautiful woman in all of the world was not-yet-queen-but-soon-to-be Prim Rozgé; who, even though she had a beautiful face, had a cruel and wicked heart.

She was seven years later surpassed by Anne Lucifen d’Autrice, neé Swee, whose sadness over the death of her husband turned the features of childish glee and the tint of first love into the face of a mature woman wiser than her years. This would infuriate Prim Marlon, neé Rozgé; who had a magic mirror she asked about who was the fairest of them all every day. The day the mirror responded “Anne Lucifen d’Autriche, neé Swee” she became mad with rage and the poison inside her heart started to break free. Not only metaphorically– though there was a good dose of that too–, but also politically,  as a series of mysterious poisonings in Marlon’s upper class started to manifest as well. This ascended Queen Prim Marlon neé Rozgé to the level of Queen Dowager Prim Marlon, which was a title she much preferred as she had never liked her husband that much to begin with. He was always saying other women were more beautiful than her after all.  

Unrelated to the Queen Dowager’s venomous feelings (and to her great rage again), Anne Lucifen d’Austriche would tragically pass away seven years later as a product of contagion of the terrible illness of Gula which, were it not for the modern technologies, would still haunt this land. So when princess Riliane was fourteen years old, the most beautiful woman was once again Prim Queen of Marlon. However, the Queen feared for the daughter of her rival to surpass her once again, so gifted the magic mirror to the young orphan princess with the hope her heart would become as venomous as her own. 

Naturally, princess Riliane knew none of this. Perhaps if she had been a more attentive princess she would have gotten a hint or a clue of this devilish conspiracy at the hands of this evil queen; though really, if Riliane had been even a little bit more observant at all, she would have noticed a lot of important things that were happening right in front of her. This to say Riliane was a very beautiful girl but also a very distracted one, which did not take away from her charm (so mean!). 

In her blissful ignorance, princess Riliane enjoyed all the things beautiful and distracted girls enjoy. She enjoyed sweets, walks on the beach, fancy dresses, expensive jewelry, elegant ballroom dances, horse riding (her favorite horse was named “Josephine”, this is important) and teasing her servant boy. These simple pleasures in Riliane’s life were in their majority a product of the exploitation of the peasant class of her country, who slaved away all day to keep her every need satisfied. Princess Riliane, of course, knew none of this because, as established, she wasn’t very attentive at all and her favorite subjects were literature and history, but she avoided economics at all costs (which is not very good for a princess to do). 

The horse and her servant boy were very loyal to her and did whatever she asked without threat of decapitation, which was how princess Riliane usually got things done. If she told Josephine to jump, she did; same with the servant boy. If she told Josephine to run, she did; same with the servant boy. And if Josephine was able to stand in two legs at her command, the servant boy would stand in four. This all greatly pleased the princess. 

Even though she didn’t need to, she still liked to threaten the servant boy with decapitation as a way of teasing. She’d say “bring me snacks or I’ll have your head” or “help me with my dress or I’ll have you decapitated”. Though she greatly enjoyed his normal obedience, she enjoyed even more seeing him tremble in fear for his life and the nervous response he would give sometimes. Overall, it was her way of teasing the poor servant boy even when she perfectly knew she wouldn’t like for him to die any time soon. 

After all, one can’t exactly tease dead servant boys. 

And despite all this, whenever princess Riliane said “bring me my brioche now”; “clean my stables or I’ll order the guards to take you away”; “don’t tell anyone what I’m about to tell you” the boy responded always and without fail “as you wish”. 

“As you wish” whenever he said those words, sad, or nervous, or tired, or happy; it was always the same when it came to her. “As you wish” and he’d grant any wish she might have. “As you wish” and just seeing her smile was reward enough for him because he knew just from looking at her that “as you wish” was the only thing that stayed the same inside her heart after all those years. 

Idyllic as this was, things can’t stay perfect for a very long time, that is one of the rules of this world. Notwithstanding the malicious plan of one evil queen, what worried princess Riliane the most at this moment was not a big conspiracy or her eventual overthrow, but the two green haired women Elluka had brought into the castle. 

An elphe girl with twintails casually strolled around the castle like she owned the place, filling the halls with her sing-song bird voice which offended the ears of the princess who better enjoyed the silence of her state. She, alongside another– much less annoying– short-haired elphe girl, escorted Elluka Clockworker– the Court Mage– around the castle. 

“What is the meaning of this!?” The princess demanded an explanation for this unjustified trespassing of strangers in her castle. 

The mage just raised an eyebrow “My apprentices, I said they were coming.” 

“That’s-” The princess was about to refute the mage’s claim with a clever comeback before Mariam– the head of servants of the castle– came running to her side alongside the servant boy, alerted by the noise, and interrupted her. 

“I’m afraid it’s true, your highness.” She said. “Elluka notified me about taking an apprentice to succeed her as Court Mage.” Regretful, Miriam bowed to the princess. “Please do not blame Elluka, it was my fault for not informing you correctly.” 

Truth be told, perhaps she had been told about it, it was a rare oversight that she didn’t. But as we’ve said, the princess was not a very attentive person, so she could have been informed and simply forgot about it. 

Either way, the princess had a certain mentality regarding her own mistakes: she simply didn’t make them. Whatever happened, it could be explained away by the faults of someone else and that someone always deserved punishment. 

So she looked around for someone to blame. 

Well the two elphe girls wouldn’t do, though they were intruders in the castle, they both looked as confused as the princess and– if what Mariam said was true– they were under the protection of Elluka. Likewise, Mariam occupied a similar status to Elluka in regards to public affinity and popular opposition to their assassination, so they wouldn’t be so easily dealt with. 

That only left… “Allen. Come with.”

“As you wish.” And he did. 

The princess was Angry, clearly. Capital A angry. And she wasn’t the type to let an offense like this slide. As she turned around, she warned the mage: “Finish your business with your apprentices and leave the castle.” said the princess rather rudely but not definitely threatening, “And ask me directly whenever you want to bring strangers into my land.” 

The mage hid an expression of disgust at the princess’s arrogance with a bow. “As you wish, your highness.” 

As expected, the “as you wish” of others weren’t nearly as amusing as the servant boy’s. In fact, the princess was feeling quite annoyed at Elluka’s attitude towards her. But there wasn’t much she could do now. A good queen also knows when to retreat.

Following her somewhere out of earshot, Allen got a look at his princess’s infuriated expression. He hated seeing her like this, even if a part of him (a masochistic one for sure) thought her tantrums were a bit cute. 

“Who does she think she is… that… that procurer!” 

“Your highness…” though Allen was smart enough to know that telling someone angry to calm down had hardly calmed down anyone in the history of tantrums at all, even less so his dear princess. So he stood by. 

“And those… foreigners she brought her! What is up with them?” Not much, thought Allen as he watched. He thought the girl with long pigtails was kind of cute, but he wasn’t about to say that. “Allen, what if they’re spies?” 

Since she looked at him like she was expecting an answer, Allen tried his best to come up with one that would please his princess: “I don’t suppose lady Elluka would take spies as her apprentices…” 

“But how can we know for sure!?” Riliane despaired again. 

“I suppose we can’t…” Allen shied away from a response. He didn’t really like Riliane’s penchant for hurting innocent people, nor did he want for those two strangers in particular to come into harm's way, but once Riliane had her mind set onto something it was hard to sway her otherwise. 

“That’s it!” The princess cried out at Allen’s bashful expression. “You’re going to follow them and find something– anything– I can use against them.”

“M-me?” Allen pointed at himself, flabbergasted by the princess’s suggestion. 

“Of course you!” Riliane exclaimed. “You’re my most loyal servant, aren’t you Allen? You’ll never betray me, right? So you’re the perfect person to look out for those traitors!” 

“I suppose…” Allen knew he could not change his princess’s mind. And given how many awful things Riliane was capable of, this was a surprisingly tame order. “If that’s what you wish for, I’ll do it.” 

“Good.” The prideful girl smiled like an angel. “Thank you Allen! I knew I could count on you!” 

Allen sighed with a not so unusual mix of resignation and devotion; then he smiled. “Always, princess. Always.”

Chapter Text

Faithfully following his princess’s command, the servant’s investigation lasted about a week or so. In it, he managed to find the following things:

1. Elluka had taken in two apprentices to succeed her as Court Mage. They were both very beautiful elphe girls who had a natural talent for magic. 
2. The day the princess was surprised by one of the girls– Michaela was her name–, as part of their instruction, Elluka had taken her apprentices to see the palace and learn the Lucifenian customs and language so they could be better incorporated as servants to the princess. Though only one of them was supposed to become Court Mage, they both decided to come with. 
3. Michaela was not only very beautiful, but also very kind and had a harmonious and angelic singing voice, as well as a bubbly and sweet personality. Gumillia, the other girl, didn’t speak much and demanded to be addressed with polite language in any occasion a trespassing to proper naming conventions was afoot. 
4. As far as Allen could tell, no treacherous intentions against the country emanated from either girl. The only unusual activity came from Elluka herself, who constantly complained about the princess’s attitude to her apprentices. But if complaining about the princess in a private setting was a crime worthy of decapitation, the kingdom would soon be without subjects, so Allen decided to let that particular crime go.

That said, following the mage around proved profoundly challenging. Not only because beyond the castle walls everything was much more gloom: hunger was ever present and the resentment held against the princess was palpable; but the objective of this task was a formidable one. Allen had done some following around before, mostly to help his princess play pranks on the other servants, but Elluka was one of the Three Heroes. This meant she was highly trained in battle and could detect threats from various directions. 

This made it so Allen had to follow her around in the most innocuous way possible as not to raise suspicion. He dressed up in various disguises and created a myriad of excuses to coincide with the witch's schedule as to be able to casually eavesdrop into her conversations and whatnot. This resulted in various espionage shenanigans that shall not be expanded upon here, but were surely hilarious to the average viewer. 

But as much as one’d like to describe all the trials and tribulations the servant boy was willing to put himself through for his princess, enough was enough. 

“Enough.” Said the mage followed by her two apprentices. “Allen, show yourself.” 

Called by name, there was little the servant could do against the sorceress’s authority. “...good evening, lady Elluka.” 

Seeing right through his disguise, the mage huffed and closed the distance between them while the elphe girls looked. “Did Riliane put you up to this? Wait, don’t answer that, of course she did.” She looked at him with compassion for the stunning devotion she showed to the selfish princess, and motherly taking his face into her hands she softly scolded him. “You’re not bad at this, but you’re no Marie. You better return to the palace and tell the princess what she wants to hear.” 

But the princess wants to hear you did something treacherous, he thought, and I don’t want to tell her anything of the sort.

As if she could hear his thoughts from his pained expression– not an impossibility, but certainly not the case (we hope)– Elluka took pity on the boy and called one of her apprentices out. “Michaela, come here.” The beautiful elphe girl with the twintails stepped forward. “Escort Allen to the castle and apologize to the princess for the intrusion. Do your best to be polite.” 

The elphe girl looked a bit troubled. “I don’t know what I would be apologizing for. I’m sorry, I don’t quite understand what I did wrong.”

“You haven’t done anything wrong, Michaela.” Elluka replied. “It’s just politics. Say you’re sorry and that it will never happen again. I’m taking you both back to Elphergot when you’re done.” 

Elluka— annoyed, but resigned, which was a common feeling among the people who had to take the princess’s whims head on— took Gumillia to finish running her errands and gave her goodbyes to Michaela, who was still profoundly confused about the  motivation for her mission. Truly, most of the time the demands of the princess were absurd and childish, but the princess was still a little girl, and little girls deeply enjoy doing absurd and childish things. The main problem was that most little girls weren’t the absolute monarchs of their own country. 

As much as Michaela looked older than Allen, she seemed a bit clueless about this simple fact of life: “Why does the princess want me to apologize? I don’t understand.” She asked him after a few minutes of walking to the castle.

Allen liked hearing Michaela’s voice, so he had no trouble making conversation. What’s more, he was delighted to. “She’s still very young. My father and Mariam trust she’ll grow older and mature in time. We just have to hold on until then.” 

“Mhmm.” Michaela doubted. “But why? If someone causes a lot of pain, isn’t it normal to want to stop it? Back in my home, when someone was being naughty, Lord He- I mean, my father, would talk to them and if they didn’t listen, he’d tell them to go away.” 

It had been a long time since he had a casual conversation like this and he found that he enjoyed hearing Michaela talk about herself. “Well, I suppose some people are like that. But if you truly love someone, you are willing to be in pain for them, at least a little bit.” 

To this, Michaela was genuinely puzzled. “Is that what love is? To suffer for someone else? That doesn’t sound very nice.” 

“Ahh… I suppose when you put it like that it’s not. Haha…” Allen tried to laugh it off, but he couldn’t say he hadn’t thought about what love meant in depth. Quite the contrary, he often doubted himself and his actions, but when push came to shove, what he was absolutely sure of is that he loved Riliane. “Well, love can hurt a lot, but that doesn’t mean that’s all there is to it. When you love someone you are willing to do a lot of things for them, but what’s mostly about is wanting them to make them happy. And sometimes making someone smile comes with a price. But it’s always worth it in the end, because the person you love is happy.” Allen thought of Riliane’s smile, how it was so childish and cute. About her bedhead when she just woke up and how her eyes shone like the sun when Allen made her laugh. “I’m sorry if I’m not making any sense!” 

Michaela looked at him with her big green eyes. “I think I understand.” She said, “Allen, do you love the princess?” 

“Ah! Well…” Though he expected the question, it still took him by surprise. He wanted to be careful about what he was about to say in case Michaela misunderstood him or worse, he was untruthful about his feelings for Riliane. “Of course I love her! But it’s a sort of… platonic love? Like of course I want to be next to her and to make her happy but I don’t want to… you know…” Oh god he was making even less sense now. He really dug himself into a big hole. 

“I… don’t know, actually.” Michaela was highly curious, but she had never been ashamed of her curiosity until now; though perhaps it was Allen’s reaction that made her nervous.

Allen tried to compose himself. “It’s not like I want to… Marry her or something. Like hold hands or… kiss. That’s off limits to the way I love her— I think— because even though she’s special to me it’s not… like that with us.” 

“Why not?” 

This was getting harder and harder to explain and going into territory Allen never thought to touch for both emotional and political reasons. There were so many social conventions regarding love and Michaela seemed to grasp none of them, so even if he, for some odd reason told her the truth about his lineage, she still would not understand what the issue was. Above all, he was the least equipped person to deal with this sort of conversation (at the very least at this point, later on the boy would have all the time in the world to think about how he felt about her). “I just… I don't think it would make her happy. I’m her servant, after all; she has many things to worry about as the queen and I can’t expect her to… throw it all away for… someone like me.”

Of course, this didn’t seem to please Michaela, but seeing how queasy Allen was, she was kind enough to let go. “I get it… Princess Riliane is very busy, uh.”

And though she didn’t exactly do much around the kingdom– her ministers managed most of the political nooks and crannies– she wanted to be a great queen like her mother. “Yeah, she has as lot of things to worry about. And I want to be there to help her, even if she doesn’t feel the same way about me.” 

“That’s very kind.” Michaela smiled. “I think I love you, Allen.” 

Allen almost fell backwards. “Eh!?”

“Yeah! I want you to be happy and see you make Riliane happy as well!” She said innocently. 

“Ah…” Allen calmed down, but his heart thumped in his chest like crazy. “Thank you, Michaela. I like you too… And I wish you the best, as well.” 

He managed to smile at her as well. Between them shined a spark innocent of complicity. The start of a new friendship. Allen felt a warmness in his chest which he’d never felt before (at least not in recent memory).

Before they knew it, Allen and Michaela had arrived at the gates of the palace  and were taking a nice stroll in the gardens before being interrupted. “So there you were! You traitors!” Princess Riliane’s loud voice resonated through the gardens. 

Allen was shaken at Riliane’s sudden appearance, feeling like he had been caught doing something bad. “P-princess, what are you doing here?” 

“Can I not walk around MY gardens whenever I please? That’s the question I should be asking you. What are you doing at this hour and with her?” Venom hung on the princess every word. This was bad, this was really bad. 

“Y-your Highness.” Michaela stepped forward and bowed at the princess. “I came here to apologize for my intrusion the other day and promise it will never… happen… again…”

Just one look at the princess’s expression told Michaela something had gone terribly wrong. “I don’t want to hear your excuses! Off to the guillotine with you!” The princess screamed. 

“R-Riliane, wait!” Allen physically placed himself between the princess and Michaela to protect the latter. “She came to apologize! She means no harm, you can’t just-“

A slap resonated throughout the garden. “You insolent boy! This is my kingdom and I can have the head of anyone I please! And if you don’t get out of my way right now I’ll have your head too.”

But Allen didn’t move. He was accustomed to the princess’s harsh behavior and being physically abused by her was not exactly odd. Allen’s sense of justice was stronger, though, so he resisted. 

And even though neither the princess nor the servant saw it, Michaela could clearly distinguish the scent of a demon surrounding the princess and taking a strong grip on her heart. Demon influence— like the ones Michaela had known before they were exhaled— ozeed from the princess’s every pore. She could almost hear the demon’s words, softly whispering on the ears of the princess: 

Leave it all to your feelings.

Let them guide you. 

Do not doubt yourself. 

“Have this woman out of my land this instant. If anyone sees her again, she will be tried as a spy. And as for you” the princess addressed Allen, who felt a killer emanating from her figure. He had never been truly afraid of her up until now (though, strangely, he still loved her madly; but he would not reflect on that until years later, perhaps decades or even centuries), “I’ll have a suitable punishment for you in due time. Get out of my sight now.” 

The tension could be cut with a knife, but Allen managed to mutter “As you wish” under his breath and bow to her royal highness. With that, they were both gone from the fuming princess’s royal gardens. 

Allen couldn’t help but feel guilty. “I’m so sorry, Michaela. I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

In turn, the kind girl smiled. “It’s fine, Allen. I’m not meant to be here for long anyways. And as for the princess…” Michaela took on a serious expression that Allen could not really decipher, at least not yet “do you still love her after this?”

As odd as the question was, Allen didn’t doubt it for a second. “Yes, I do.” But before he could ask what was that about, Michaela interrupted him.

“That’s good!” She all but jumped. “That’s really good. With your help perhaps we can-”

”Michaela! Are you done, did you apologize?” Covered by the night, Elluka and her apprentice approached the pair. “How was the princess?”

“Oh! Elluka! I have some news! There’s a demon-” but Elluka quickly cut Michaela off and threw a telling glance to Allen, who got the distinct sense they were about to have a conversation he shouldn’t hear. Allen didn’t really mind. Mages are supposed to have secrets after all, so he didn’t inquire further. 

Though he wanted to give the bad news to Elluka so she could protect Michaela, before he said a word, Allen’s gloomy expression told Elluka all she needed to know. “That bad, uh?”

“It will be best if… Michaela takes a break from coming to Lucifenia for a while.” Allen said finally. 

“Worse than I expected.” Elluka concluded. “Well, it doesn’t really matter, since Michaela’s mission is on Elphergot anyways. We were just tourists here, but now it’s time for us to go.

“…I’m sorry, lady Elluka.”

Elluka sighed. “It’s not your fault, kid. And I don’t think Riliane is pleased with you either.” feeling compassion— once again, this alien feeling to the mage she wouldn’t feel again for a few hundred years later— Elluka attempted to extend an olive branch to the sad boy: “Would you like to come with us to Elphergot until the storm has passed?”

Allen bit his tongue, and he doubted this time. “You know I can’t, lady Elluka, even if I wanted to.”

The sorceress raised an eyebrow. “And do you want to?”

This was a difficult question for Allen. He looked at Michaela and then at Gumillia (whose expression had not changed a bit ever since he first saw her), then at Michaela again. The warmth in his chest and his irregular heartbeat, as well as the pleasant sensation of conversing with Michaela about matters of the heart like old friends, were swaying him in a direction he didn’t knew was possible.

(Or, rather, had refused to think of it as a possibility until then. Until it was Michaela, the incarnation of that olive branch, who presented it to him).

”…I don’t know.” He finally said. 

The mage seemed disappointed, but she respected the boy’s decision. “…that’s okay. Michaela, Gumillia and I will be taking our leave now. Can you tell Marie and your father I said goodbye?”

”Yes, Lady Elluka.”

Before leaving, Elluka approached the dejected servant and patted his head as motherly as she could muster (that is to say, very awkwardly for a woman with not an apex of motherly instincts in her; but it's the intention that counts): ”You’re a good kid, Allen.”

Allen smiled sadly. “I beg to disagree.” 

Elluka giggled. “Then beg.”

With that friendly send off, the three women were gone. And looking at the time, Allen would have to go home soon too. Tomorrow had a big punishment waiting for him, so he had to get a good night’s sleep to be able to take on his big sister’s cruelty. 

He turned around and made his way back home, completely unaware of the blonde girl behind the castle gates who had conspicuously heard the full length of his conversations. 

Chapter Text

The next morning, Allen woke up full of dread. He bathed full of dread and even had breakfast quite dreadfully (not because of breakfast itself though, the breakfast was lovely, especially considering it was made with barely the essentials, maybe even less than that). 

His sister didn’t dare ask what had his brother so upset since for her, that castle always meant bad news. She didn’t understand why Allen had volunteered to work there or why his father still bothered despite it all. 

Well, that’s not exactly true. She understood why her father stayed there, being the captain of the royal guard and all, a post he had held proudly for as long as she could remember; a bratty princess was but a stain on the impeccable military record of the country of Lucifenia. Allen’s motives were the ones that truly escaped her; he never was sincere with her and even if he had been, she would not understand. This was simply because his reason was nothing more and nothing less than that feared four letter word that has no head or heart and has plagued burglars and kings alike for more than a millennia like some sort of disease. 

Overflowing with foolishness and profoundly lacking in logic, Allen loved the princess. Madly, tenderly, brotherly, painfully, senselessly, infinitely he loved her. 

Which is why even when dread took over his whole body from head to toe and was threatening to consume him whole, he was still on time at the princess’s bedroom door with her breakfast and ready to help her get dressed in that beautiful yellow dress with so many frills and accessories she adored. But even though love was more powerful than dread and that simple fact drove Allen to open the door and accept his fate, the princess wasn’t there. Once again, as it was custom now, the princess was nowhere to be found. Not in her bedroom, nor the hallways of the castle, not even in the royal garden (the Heavenly Yard was its name back then) or the Hall of Mirrors. The princess had disappeared without a trace. 

Which meant that she was riding around with Josephine in the beautiful Lucifenian beach, her favorite pastime. 

It was one of her favorite activities because it helped her ease her mind. Lately she had a lot of trouble doing that. It seemed the older she got and the crueler she became to her subjects (but she wasn’t cruel, she told herself, she was dignified, a proud princess keeping her mother’s memory safe) the harder it was to think straight. Nowadays there was always a little voice, speaking softly almost inside of her ears, like a little mouse crawling around in her brains, who did nothing but repeat:

Leave it all to your feelings.

Let them guide you. 

Do not doubt yourself. 

This was deeply distressing, but also very annoying, because the princess could barely hear her own thoughts over the buzzing of the little fly-mouse. Suffice to say she quite liked what she had to think, so this interruption was frankly disrespectful. In a sense it was liberating, because not having to think meant she didn’t have time to reflect on how alone she was— like the sun, like the single North Star who raises every night without intention of finding her other half but knowing she’s going to meet him eventually—, but she also was finding it harder to have wonderful ideas or to enjoy something as simple as a horseback ride on the beautiful Lucifenian beach.

When her morning ride proved unsuccessful on helping her clear her mind, she was greeted at the castle gates not by Allen— who she was regretting being to harsh with yesterday and would probably give a silly punishment because she wasn’t that angry anymore; or at least she would be she didn’t have a demon whispering in her ear— but by Ney. By Ney and an unexpected guest to the castle.

“Good morning, princess.” Ney welcomed her politely.

“Morning, Ney.” The princess replied not as politely, but not as rudely as she could have.

“Meow.” Said the unexpected guest resting on Ney’s apron pocket. 

“Meow.” Said the princess back. “Who is that?”

“I found her yesterday on the castle grounds.” Ney spoke truthfully. “I gave her a treat before sending her off but today she came back and she doesn’t want to leave my side…” 

“And she’s such an odd color too.” The princess noted. “She seems to like you quite a bit.” 

The red cat purred on Ney’s skirt and she looked a little bit embarrassed. “I guess… but I don’t really like cats that much.” 

Getting down from Josephine— who looked at the cat with suspicion, but said nothing because horses can’t talk— the princess got closer and petted its little red head. The cat purred in delight and Riliane’s eyes shone in turn. Little girls like cats and all sorts of cute things too. “Oh but she’s so adorable. Keep her around a bit, will you?”

”If that’s what you wish…” Said Ney, a little bit shy. “By the way, a present arrived for you this morning. We’ve left it in your room.”

Riliane’s eyes shone even brighter, full of delight. “A present? For me?” She wasn’t even mad at Allen anymore, even though yesterday had been so bad, God must have heard her prayers and prepared a good day for her. 

“Yes. It didn’t come with a letter or anything so we were afraid it would be something dangerous, but our experts analyzed  it and found nothing wrong. It must have gotten lost on its way here because it seems to be from Jakoku. If it’s a diplomatic gift then the rest should arrive shortly. Jakoku is very far away…”

(By “our expert” Ney of course meant one expert and her name was Chartette Langley, another maid who was certainly not an expert in anything being a maid entailed but very knowledgeable about weapons in account of her father being a blacksmith. She was also very resistant to any kinds of poisons, as destiny would have it, so she could detect them with minimal harm to her person. She was also, and this was bad— for the princess, for Ney it was amazing luck— incredibly resilient against demonic possession. If Riliane was pure fountain water, Chartette was a spiked cactus in regards to demons. This made it so her analysis of the Venom sword— that was the katana’s name— was quite accurate in regards to the craftsmanship of the blade and its danger and imprecise in everything else).

“Or perhaps it’s from Kyle!” The princess interrupted. “Dear Kyle goes to all sorts of places. Perhaps he found a cute gift from me over there. Oh I haven’t heard from him in so long, I wonder where he has gone. And he’s so sweet to send things my way!”

Humming a traditional Lucifenian song, the princess headed full of joy to her castle while she left Ney to handle Josephine. The cat jumped on the back of the hooved beast to mock it, while Ney carried them both to the royal stable. 

Truth was that Riliane had not been very far off. The gift— a beautiful katana with characters in Jakokuese and shining blade— was a present from Queen Dowager Prim Marlon, Kyle’s mother. She had heard from her least favorite daughter (her only daughter) that the princess was showing a jealous streak regarding her loyal servant boy, which could be used to her favor. And since the devil works fast but Queen dowager Prim Marlon work faster, she had quickly arranged for the sword to be sent from Elphergot to Lucifenia at the speed of light, as well as the red cat, which was no other than her own Court Mage, to look over Riliane. 

Now that Elluka was all but exiled from Lucifenia, at least while she kept those elphe girls under her care, Abyss IR could more closely watch over the princess and make sure her demise was smooth. At least that’s what Prim expected her to do. However, the issue was more complicated than that, mainly because there were a lot of people involved and all of them had different interests regarding princess Riliane’s downfall.

To keep it short, when the Queen dowager heard that princess Riliane had something of a fixation on her servant boy, she arranged immediately for the magic katana to be sent to her. This is because even though she didn’t really care about Riliane all that much, she truly despised her dead mother and wanted to cause her as much suffering as humanly possible (even if the woman was, in fact, dead). To this end, her wicked mind immediately translated the princess’s passing interest to something that would break any mother’s heart because, as Prim and a select few others knew, Allen was in actuality— though the princess ignored this— her full blood sibling. 

And what could be more painful, more humiliating for a mother than for her two children to fall in love with one another? What could most deeply hurt a mother’s heart than to have to witness that abomination? As well as the children too, yes, who would have to suffer the shame of being such unnatural beasts to society’s eyes. Oh how heartbroken and disgusted would Riliane be if she found out she had coupled with her own siblings. The shame was palpable and it was delicious.  

The queen laughed madly on her own, as she usually did because aside from being wicked she was also quite mad— madder the more time she spent with that doll that her Court Mage had given her, every day she grew more deraged—, and screamed at her daughter to get the katana from Keel Freezis on Elphergot and deliver it to Lucifenia post haste. She didn’t need to instruct her Court Mage to follow her, because the evil plan of the Queen dowager was a great risk she had taken on a whim and Abyss IR was frankly tired of those. So to make sure everything went according to plan, she used her magic arts to travel as a cat to the kingdom on the other side of the sea to keep watch over the princess.

…that, and the fact that she was a bit curious, too. You see, a long time ago the mage had not been a mage but a cat, and before she was a cat she had been a full on little girl just like Riliane who had the misfortune of— though with no magic intervention— falling in love with her own brother. So when Queen dowager Prim boasted about the beastly affair that it was for two siblings to fall in love, Abyss IR could not help but feel deeply offended at the suggestion. Offended enough— more for her brother’s honor than her own— to want to leave the Queen dowager for a while now that Elluka was out of the way and see, perhaps, if a feeling like hers had any future at all in a little girl that, she found out, was not so different to how she was back then. 

So instead of following Kyle to Elphergot like she would have done, and using the lust spell on him for her evil whims, a sentimental part of the red cat mage felt compelled to follow Riliane and her little affair and perhaps see it flourish a bit before her kingdom was brought down. A shame, but it had to be done. 

Ney’s plan was to do whatever her mother and Abyss IR told her to do, so she didn’t complain much. Though it had been quite difficult to go to Elphergot in the middle of the night on basically a whim, steal a katana stored in the richest man of the country’s safe storage and come back unscathed. Ney was, overall, very impressive, so she managed to do it all and almost not get caught, all that so her mother would praise her, even a little bit. 

Her mother never did, and that would be of terrible consequence for the Queen dowager, but that’s a story for another time. 

So after Riliane finished admiring the katana and decided to place her in her bedroom to admire it even further, she was Allen for the first time after a while at exactly three in the afternoon with her usual tea. 

Her first thought was that he was more handsome than yesterday, that he looked more mature and serious than he did most days. Her second thought was that she was mad at him still for hanging out with that green-haired loose woman. Her third thought was that she couldn’t reasonably stay mad at him because he was still her most loyal servant and dashingly handsome in a way she hadn’t appreciated before. Her fourth thought was that even though he was, yes, very attractive, she couldn’t let that get in the way of punishing a misdeed against her person. Her fifth thought was…

So on and so on. 

“Allen.” She finally called out to him as she watched him pour tea. “I’ve got a request for you.”

He looked at her stunned, but tried his best not to make it known. He trusted she was mad at him, madder than anyone else had been in their whole lives. That she would whip him or make him do strenuous or embarrassing tasks as a punishment for yesterday’s actions. He swallowed and prepared to take it all in the name of love. 

“…you’re on stable cleaning duty for the rest of the month. Ney is going to take care of the afternoon tea for a while. I don’t want you stinking up the place.” 

Well that wasn’t bad at all. “As you wish, princess.” 

“Now get out, I want to be alone while I drink my tea.” She dismissed him.

He bowed and retired from the room, sensing something different about her but not at all unpleasant. Had she forgiven him after all? Had her heart softened somehow? He didn’t even think to lay eyes on the katana as an influence on her behavior, least of all at the red cat that attentively looked at them from outside the window. He simply walked away and when he was far enough where his footsteps could not be heard, only then Riliane stood up and walked to her royal writing desk, taking out a quill and paper. 

 A devilish idea had crossed her mind. “Dear Allen,” she started to write.

Finally she was thinking clearly. Finally she was going to truly test his loyalty.

“I must say I’ve found myself completely infatuated with your person…” (yes, something like that). “I cannot stop thinking about you as much as I try” (good, good). “We've known each other so little yet my heart yearns for you madly…” (a little bit of this,  a little bit of that). “I hope you can respond and tell me how you feel. That night I wasn’t clear, but I’ve been dwelling on my feelings and I cannot deny it anymore. Please answer this letter post haste.”

And before four o’clock, it was done. Riliane admired her masterpiece and prepared to sign it. All with an innocent smile on her face, surely she would get her way this time: 

“All yours, 

Michaela.”

Chapter Text

"Aren't you overstaying your welcome here, mister hollow-headed mammal?"

"Hollow-headed!? Hollow-horned, please. Miss, I will politely suggest you proceed not with such comments if you want us to get along. The pen might be mightier than the sword, but one cannot say the same about the looking-glass."

"You dare threaten me! You're sexual deviant and haggler of all kinds. You already did your rounds on Asmodean and with that lost your chance at protagonism. All you are now is an uninvited guest to Riliane's and I story, for you have done but suckle on her good graces and kindness. You'd do better to take your perverted epee far away from here and leave us ladies on out own."

"Madam, that is the only thing I cannot do. I'll have you know I've been recognized far and wide, in lands far away from here, as a friend of women and the righteous. So if there's anyone interrupting this soiree between noble folk of royal descent, it's you, Miss Annette. If the lovely little lady of this room knew the things you've been up to, you'd hardly leave this country in one piece, let alone four."

This way bickered the goat and the winged mouse than inhabited the new decorations on Princess Riliane's room among many other treasures. This conversation, of course, couldn't be heard by anyone but the two interlocutors. Not even by the little lady in question, subject of their debate, who was currently resting on her luscious bed and being only partially privy to what both demons discussed. To the poor, tormented princess, the discussing sounded more like the buzz of a fly or some other pest disturbing her sleep and consuming her mind.

"Look what you're doing to her! You beast! She hasn't been able to get up from bed for a while now because two of us is too much. You and I cannot share a host, not only because I personally dislike you, but because your arrival is unwelcome and your stay overdue." The mouse lady argued.

The goat clicked his tongue (correction, swords don't have tongues and even if they did, goats can't click them; Gilles only pretended he did) and addressed his fellow demon. "My doing you say? It's you who hasn't properly dared to make a deal with her to let her collect the fruits of your influence. All you do is eat away at her feelings and cause her pain without anything in return. Had I been the one in your position I would have already made this maiden ripen in wonderful maturity like a paradise flower."

"You are!! So disgusting!!" The mirror on the princess's nightstand trembled in indignation, but was ultimately unable to do anything to harm the sword to her infinite frustration. "If I haven't approached her with an offer it's because she doesn't have need of it. Riliane is fine as she is right now, we both are happy together and we don't need old farts like you to say repulsive things around us."

"I see what's going on here." The goat, sharp as the katana he inhabited, inquired. "You don't want her to end up in the Hellish Yard like the others before her do you? But my dear, that is simply who we are."

"Shut up! You know nothing, you filthy-"

"Furthermore," Gilles interrupted, "she's special, you can tell. She's the live image of that child from that day so many years ago. Have you forgot? The wicked girl who freed us from the forest."

"…I know. But she's not the same girl from back then. We can't be sure something will happen to her if she contracts. She's already so tired… And the girl from that time wasn't affected by Vlad, even when she kept the glass near her. Riliane's different, she had already been taken advantage of once before she came to me… She's not her but she isn't normal either. We can't be sure what will happen to her if she contracts."

"Anything is better than this bore." The demon of lust complained. "She hasn't even called for that boy to come to her chambers. Back in my prime I would witness the most intriguing love stories between my protegees and their beloveds. Surely it is love that makes the world go round! Oh, do you think she'd be willing to make a deal with me if I promised her she could have the love of whoever she desires? Surely just a drop of blood would be enough. Like a princess, she could pinch her pinky and we'd be set."

"Not in a thousand years." Marie Annette scoffed. "It's already outrageous enough you dare to whisper odd things in her ear when she's near that servant boy, but it's another thing altogether you want to rope her in your deviancy and give her the same fate of the duke or the thieves that contracted with you. Whatever you have planned for her, I won't ever let you touch her."

"My cherie, it is not I who whispers things to her, but her own heart who screams things from deep within her. My only power is giving them a voice and a vote. I'm a very democratic demon all things considered. Love is for everyone, equally and regardless of anything else."

The mirror cringed, if mirrors could cringe, that is. "Stay away from me. From us."

"It is already too late for that, I'm afraid. Look at her, she wakes now. Perhaps her prideful little heart has called out to her?"

And even though the mirror could not tell if the katana looked at her, she screeched with disgust. "Don't look at me!"

But the little princess had woken up wearing only a nightgown and a migraine. The two voices confronting each other in her head only a distant buzz among the various directions in which her heart was pulled. How awful she felt.

She checked her pillow once or twice to check if perhaps some horrible insect had made its way inside of it and was sucking her dry of blood, but the arabesque silks and expensive goose feathers gave her nothing but the comfort fit for a queen. Like the day, it offered no monsters, no answers and no advice.

The princess was surrounded by people, and yet she was completely alone.

Her only comfort these past few days had been the ink and paper of her desk. A myriad of poetic letters she had produced from feelings unknown before. Where her soul had been gripped by the pride needed to maintain her mother's legacy, now a seed of a sentiment as deadly as well sweet was bearing fruit. Both feelings struggled in her mind and outside of it— though the princess was aware of this last conundrum— and it caused her a lot of pain.

That's why she could only pour her hear on letters addressed to the person she had met less than a year ago and whom he still felt he had known for a lifetime. The boy who still had so many mysteries she had yet to discover. She liked writing to him because when she finished, when her heart had been laid bare and her most inner thoughts exposed, the comforting thought of resting in his arms surrounded her like a warm blanket.

In a way, Riliane knew, even if she had no proof or reason to, that with him she could have the power to be reborn. And isn't that love?

"Surely, undoubtedly, certainly, assuredly." The goat in the sword spoke to her.

"Even if the reborn part is true… Hey! You dingus! They're not that- They can't-"

"Oh, but dear! Love knows no rules like that. Are you the one to say you've never seen a couple like that? In my many years I have seen everything. Why, I can even admit that myself had an affair with a second cousin twice removed before the crash happened. And weren't the twins on the ship waltzing that song as well? Love is a madness, my friend, first and foremost: the madness for another."

"Shut up!!!" The mouse screeched again with her high pitched voice. But her complains couldn't reach her dear friend the princess. Even though he was annoying, the goat was right that the only language demon speak of is the heart of their wards. But Riliane looked so peaceful writing, so mature; her pen held tightly and tears peeking from the corner of her eyes. In this state, in her nightgown and with her hair down. Like this, she truly was just a little girl; she hadn't been allowed to be that for a long time.

So Marie Annette took pity on her protegee, the girl she had known for so little but had so many ambitions. The girl who was kind in her heart even if the demon's own influence didn't let her show it. The girl who just wanted to eat cake and live the dream of being a princess, just like Marie Annette had back then.

In another life, maybe, Riliane wouldn't be a princess and Marie Annette wouldn't be a mirror. In another life they could be real friends. But as for now, she would do anything in her power to protect her.

The mirror spoke:

Leave it all to your feelings.

Let them guide you. 

Do not doubt yourself. 

And the princess signed the letter, like she had many others:

"All yours,

Michela."

Though this time after she sealed it, she allowed herself a little time to weep before going back to bed. A combination of the headache and heartbreak, alone in the room she shared with two demons.

Chapter Text

"A tragedy has befallen our glorious kingdom!

O pain! O suffering! O sweet death and her eternal embrace!

Everyone! Close shops and mourn! Tell your children they can no longer smile! That the sun tomorrow will be colder and the bread more stale!

Everyone! Get on your knees to weep because our dearly beloved, kind and magnificent, beautiful and magnanimous queen has fallen ill!

Anyone who is seen cheering or celebrating the misfortune of Queen Riliane will be swiftly executed.

.

.

.

Something along those lines.

What do you think?"

Two pairs of identical blue eyes stared in synchrony at the announcements workshopped by the Prime Minister. It was a comical scene, really, the soft rays of the sun entering the royal room where the most powerful woman in the country was bedridden and grumpy while two of her most loyal servants gather around her like moths trying to find the best angle to stare at a light, careful and attentive but not fully concerned. Allen had thought— cruelly, then regretted it immediately— that since Riliane was mostly out of commission (stuck in bed by the doctor's orders and with a headache that had her too angry and annoyed to run the kingdom by herself) perhaps Lucifenia would be in better hands— more adult hands—, at least for a season.

It wasn't.

He didn't consider that the "advisors" of the queen would as incompetent at running the country and blinded by the hunger of power and self assurance as… well, the queen herself. But their uselessness was completely different! Since the queen was the best at cute, when she was bad at running the economy or served her own interests over the populace's that was sort of cute too by extension. When the ministers did it— with all their supposed years of "experience behind them" and with all their fancy titles and big houses—; seeing all these selfish adults run the country similarly or worse than a 14 year old was just grotesque.

Allen had never been close to the ministers or cared too much about politics. He was too busy serving Riliane and occasionally preventing her assassination; but he recalled having made some offhand comments about how badly the princess advisors were. He didn't think it too deeply back then, but it was really staring to bother him what now seemed like a self fulfilling prophecy. After all, even if she was the queen, she still needed guidance that only a responsible adult could give her now that her mother was gone. And beyond the fact that Riliane trusted none of the adults around her, many of her most unreasonable decrees had to pass through someone else to be approved. Someone else who, as it was apparent now, had a bested interest in serving the princess's every whim for personal political gain in spite of the well-being of the country.

A kingdom is supposed to work like a clock (that's what mother always said) with all the pieces in their proper place, all working in unison for a greater goal. But as Allen suspected, Riliane's court was made out of discarded pieces and greedy bureaucrats that could barely think of anything but themselves. "Respectfully, Mister Prime Minister, I think…" he started before being interrupted by the excited queen.

"I think it's amazing!" Riliane exclaimed, "Just add, something about complaining less about taxes, Leonheart has been bothering me with that lately, so if you can make it law that they can't complain that would be great. Also I'm the princess! Not the queen! You hear me? I'll be queen when-"

But before he could continue, the precious words of the precious princess were taken over by a coughing fit. Allen hurried to her side to assist her, as the coughing had gotten worse lately, but she seemed alright, even if a little bit annoyed.

At the very least the symptoms were a clear sign the princess's illness wasn't gula, which calmed Allen greatly. The terrible disease had taken both his parents, as well as threatened to end the princess herself in her infancy, so Allen lived afraid of the pathogen coming back to take what little was left of his family. Riliane's ugly coughs, though they sounded painful, were a comforting sign of something more akin to a simple cold rather than the vicious illness that haunted the d'Austriche family.

After Riliane's coughing subsided, the minister spoke again. "Excellent decision as always, my princess. I'll have the announcement immediately read in the town square." And with a bow he was gone, with his typical duck walk taking his bosom to be incompetent somewhere else.

Allen cringed a for a while more after he was gone at how he'd pronounced "my princess"— grossly, like all selfish adults usually did when they wanted something out of Riliane— but quickly focused his attention on the monarch of his heart again. She was still recovering from the fit from before and slowly caressed her throat; the poor thing was probably terribly sore and bothering Riliane greatly.

Illness does not distinguish between rich and poor, royal or peasant, princess and servant, so even though the princess lived more cleanly than most of the citizens of Lucifenia, nobody was surprised when she caught a mysterious cold-like unease, specially with her constant unannounced excursions to the Lucifenian beach. Beach air was so harmful to a young girl's development!

Riliane looked cold and hot at the same time, like her body couldn't decide which state made her more miserable. Allen wished he could approach her without reparations, as he had done so many years ago, so he could gently connect the pale skin on her forehead with his— identical as they were, the same in everything except work and pain— to evaluate her temperature, maybe to brush her blonde hair out of her face and tell her everything would be alright if they stayed together. He longed to be as close to her as he once had been…

But Riliane wasn't the child that she had been so many years ago. Even if she still looked cute like this, her illness also made a flash of maturity shine through her. A sort of light Allen had not properly appreciated before. Not like Riliane wasn't Allen's cute princess all the time— when she was laughing and when she was angry, when she was being selfish or when she was being kind; even when she was evil, whatever that is, her cuteness always managed to shine through—, but her straight blonde hair without any adornments shined brightly against the morning sun, giving her an halo of light around her head that shined brighter than any crown. The same sun caressing her pale skin had been the sun her mother, Queen Anne, had seen every morning and had guided all her military conquests, the same sun that greeted her the morning after her husband had passed away. Always lonely, Queen Ann, just like the moon.

Under the sun, Riliane looked just like her. Even when she looked sickly and weak, her blue eyes had a burning determination in them which Allen was unable to stop admiring. Ultimately, the pure simplicity of her morning elegance had Allen captivated.

"Stops starring or I'll get grossed out." The cute princess said with her royal twangy voice.

"I'm sorry, my princess." Allen replied. "Do you want anything else? More towels? Maybe something to eat?"

To the suggestion of eating, Riliane made a face. "No! I'm lacking an appetite. I just want…" but it stayed on the tip of her tongue. Like she had been caught stealing cookies from a jar. Before Allen could properly take in the cuteness of her embarrassed face, the princess quickly hid under the soft white covers of her bed and spoke from under the sheets; "Leave me alone! I want to take a royal nap right now."

Allen covered his mouth so his princess wouldn't hear him giggling at the cute gesture. "As you wish, my princess."

Taking the train he had brought for the princess's breakfast, he evaluated the room once more before leaving with a respectful bow just as the minister had done. Though she was Allen's most beloved, she was also the queen of a big country that needed her own space, and as much as Allen wished to be by her side every second, he could be content with just being the person who she trusted most. The person she spent more time with in this entire world, even if not besides her. He would have been satisfied with Riliane having the same affection for him as for her shadow; a simple fondness for what's usual.

Chapter Text

He was sadly mistaken, I'm afraid, because the person closest to her was a little rat who lived inside a mirror in a set of four; second place had a goat with wings who lived inside a sword. As Allen's calming presence left the room, the inhabitant's of the princess's quarters resumed their restless complains about each other's presence.

"I can't quite put my finger on it, but that boy and Riliane being together gives me a bad feeling. I think Rahab mentioned something about people like them… whatever it is, it feels final. And dangerous." the mouse squeaked.

"It's love, my cherie. It's nothing but pure, unadulterated love." the goat bleated.

And the eternal discussion continued between the two objects and inside the princess's head.

Riliane had nobody in particular to complain about her invisible tortures. Even when she tossed and turned in her bead and moaned in discomfort about the battle ringing in her ears, it did not reach the mirror and sword. She thought often about calling Allen back to shut the voices down— a simple task, just ringing a bell and the boy would be at her bed rest ready to hear her every order—, but the pride inside her heart forbid her from doing so. After all, it would be crazy for her to claim her servant— nothing more than a lowly servant— was able to make her feel born anew with just his presence.

Instead, with effort she got up and started writing another letter. It had become a sort of hobby by now, to write sickly sweet words and sign them with another woman's name; like some sort of spy or perhaps a zealous lover. The thrill of trying to imitate her voice and not get caught— not to mention, to fool her most loyal servant— worked as her only entertainment while trapped inside the four walls of the luxurious room.

The room was beautiful but lonely, which incidentally was a nice description of how Riliane's life had been up to now. From a young age she had known she couldn't trust any of the adults roaming around her castle because as quickly as they got behind her, they would stab her in the back. Not that her mother had ever told her that, in fact, what Queen Anne said was that what she wanted most in the world was for her daughter to be kind. But Riliane knew better. In her last days alive, the queen had been sleeping with a dagger under her pillow.

"Do as I do, not as I say." Was a lesson from her father Riliane stored in her heart.

Ever since the death of the queen she had been unable to trust anyone at all. Anyone except… well, she hadn't seen Josephine for a while now… Her beloved horse must be just as bored as her, also trapped inside the four walls of the stable. Except… no, Allen had been dutifully informing her about the daily routine of Josephine— where she had assigned him as a punishment for talking with that vixen… what was her name again?— and the small trips he took her on so she wouldn't get lonely. It made Riliane a little envious, the fact that the horse had more freedom than her. But even if she wanted to complain, her delicate condition would just give her another killer headache that would leave her incapacitated to stand up, let alone ride.

So the only people she talked to was Allen and occasionally Minis, who came to her room to be useless and annoying and tell her things she didn't really care about, like the people on her kingdom being angry about some thing or other that the government had no control over or about how some servant wanted a paid raise. So, with all things considered, Allen was her only true entertainment for the time being— because aside from talking about Josephine, he stayed and played with her some meaningless card games or tried to cheer her up with some books or jokes.

He was very bad at telling jokes, it made Riliane laugh.

Plus… Allen was waking up early, earlier than before and he did so with a smile on his face. A cheery attitude first thing in the morning that — if it belonged to anyone else— would have bothered the bed bound princess so much she wouldn't hesitate to have the source executed. With Allen though, it had become part of a morning routine that seemed oddly domestic, familiar even. Like pleasant memory she couldn't quite recall but held dear in the depths of her subconscious.

Allen would open the curtains gently as not to damage her delicate eyes and then pour some bergamot tea on the tray that contained breakfast carefully arranged to her liking. While the tea cooled, Allen would tell Riliane about the horses in the stables and the servants in the castle. Things normally she wouldn't have cared about, but that, as thing stood now, colored her lonely mornings and gave her something to think about in her claustrophobic afternoons. Now that she was unable to oversee the execution of the traitors and rats that dared raise against her, Allen rarely looked at her with the characteristic fear he sometimes harbored behind his eyes. It was nice, in its own way, because while being looked at with fear reaffirmed Riliane's pride as the ruler of the country, Allen's soft gaze feed… something else that was growing inside of her.

The voice in her head— the low and sweet, the voice of a man that sounded like a ballad— was more than happy to encourage her indulgence:

Let it grow.

Let it fester.

This is what you want.

So as… inappropriate it was for a princess to entertain a servant that much, it would probably be more inappropriate for him to let Her Royal Highness grow too bored. Yes, surely. If the princess became too bored, she would get in an even worse mood and her servants would have to suffer. Allen was being a good servant by being this useful.

Nothing more.

So it was good Allen was her to occupy her thoughts. That was what servants were for anyways, for the benefit of their masters.

So it didn't matter if immediately after Allen left the room Riliane got to writing, or even if she got really invested into it and used her pen as a means to vent about her fears, loneliness and the pressure put over her by others. As long as she signed them with some other name it would be fine. Even if she cried a bit and made her head hurt further in a mix of migraine and melancholy while she wrote them, there was no way Allen would ever know it was his princess's tears that stayed in the paper. (He wouldn't understand the honor bestowed upon him!). Even if she fell asleep writing, taken over by fever or some other alignment, as long as Allen didn't see, it would be fine.

It was just another way her little servant was being useful to her, just the thing they are meant to do.

So then why… why was it making her feel so unsatisfied? Why the more she filled the letters with truthful words the less satisfied she felt? Why did it start to hurt signing them with the name of that… that green harpy!