─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
As I caught my breath, the maid placed the black cloak on me. She got on both knees and tied a bow to secure the cloak.
"Take care, Princess." Whispered the nervous maid.
What the actual hell?! Am I going to die? Is this for real?!
One of the knights walked up to us and looked down at me with a nonchalant expression. I could feel my throat tightened from anxiety.
"With permission, I must carry you to the imperial carriage, may I, Princess?" The emotionless knights asked for permission as he got on one knee.
I looked at the maid next to me with fear.
She smiled and nodded gently.
Fuck… this is it…
I nodded while looking down on the ground.
He quickly picked me up. I looked around as we made our way towards the carriage. I could see butlers and maids cover their mouths as they whispered. Some looked at me with concern, while others looked away.
Either way, they all whispered without a care in the world.
The knight gently placed me inside the carriage, where I saw the trashman, looking outside the carriage window.
"D...daddy… is everything okay? Did I do something wrong?" I questioned nervously.
The trashman averted his eyes on me while crossing his arms.
"It will be your first time leaving the palace, isn't it?" The trashman asked in a careless tone.
I nodded my head. My breathing became shaky. My hands started to tremble.
"Hm... Let's get going then. The earlier we get there, the more fun you will have." He said as he smiled, looking outside the window once again.
Okay, now I am shitting bricks. Am I being sold off at an auction? Am I going to my execution place? Wait, at what age do princesses get married off to? Shit. What is going on?!
I can feel my throat tighten up; my heart begins to race at an inhuman pace.
"Make sure the other carriage will be waiting for us halfway. Once we have switched carriages, take this one to duke Lance's estate." The trashman ordered outside the carriage window to the coachman.
I continued to look at him nervously. I can feel my body tense up with the occasional shiver.
Why does he have a cloak on too? The last time I checked, nobles wear cloaks to hide their identity in public. But why are we wearing cloaks? Where are we going that we need to hide from the crowd?
I could hear both of the imperial coachmen talk about our travels. Suddenly, we began to move. I looked outside the carriage window.
It is dead quiet in this carriage. All I could hear are the sounds of the rocks clacking against the metal wheels. I bit my bottom lip while staring at my hands. I would get glimpses of the trashman. Before I realized it, I was observing his facial features. Has he always had such pale skin? Not a blemish or wrinkle to be seen. This is the power of having money.
As I continued to stare at him, his eyes locked with mine.
I quickly looked down in surprise.
"I… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to look at you without your permission. "I apologized with a quivering voice.
"No need to apologize. Do what you want. I cannot do anything if your eyes decide to wander off. We will arrive at our next destination shortly." He said as he looked at me.
"Daddy? May I ask? Where are we going?" I questioned as I looked at him with a concerned look.
"It is a surprise. You will see once we get there." He said in a careless tone.
I nodded and nervously waited for our arrival.
In the course of what felt like hours, we finally stopped. I could hear the coachmen talking. They exchanged imperial ranks as a form of identity confirmation.
"Your Majesty, the carriage is waiting for you. Please come out when you and the princess are ready." said the man's voice as they opened the imperial carriage.
"Ready? Let me get off first; then I will get you out." Said the trashman.
Once he got off, he opened his arms as a sign for me to get off. He picked me up and carried me in his arms. I saw a total of four men. Two imperial coachmen, and two other coachmen by a shabby, wooden carriage. Why are we changing carriages anyway? And why are we getting on this one? Talk about riches to rags. Shouldn't we have knights with us? Oh no. What if he is taking me deep into the woods to kill me?! Fewer witnesses! That explains the lack of security!
"Here, put this over your eyes, like a blindfold." He said as we got inside the wooden carriage.
He handed me a long piece of cloth. I looked at it in fear and placed it over my eyes.
Yeah, I am going to die. I've only seen this kind of thing in movies where the poor victims are forced to blindfold themselves before taking to their place of death.
I closed my eyes and began to bite my bottom lip as a reaction to fear. I clenched my hands into fists. The carriage has been moving for quite some time now.
I could hear many voices all at once all of a sudden. Children laughing, men and women talking. Is this my execution? With an audience?!
"Your Majesty, we have arrived. Please wait while I open the door." Said an unfamiliar voice.
"Before you remove the blindfold, I need you to keep your eyes closed, okay?" the trashman said.
"I removed my blindfold as I began to tremble in fear. As I continued to keep my eyes closed, I could feel my eyes began to water. I started to breathe heavily.
"...Amara, what is wrong? Are you okay? Hey, open your eyes, look at me..." said the trashman in a concerned tone.
I shook my head as I buried my face with my hands.
"I am sorry, daddy. Please forgive me. Please, do not kill me. I will be good. I promise! Please! I want to live." I cried as I continued to bury my face with my hands.
I felt my hands being removed off my face with gentle care, followed by a warm embrace.
The trashman released a light sigh.
"Open your eyes, silly child. You are not going to be killed. I wanted this to be a surprise. We are at the Moon Festival." He explained as he continued to hug me tightly.
I quickly opened my eyes and looked outside the carriage window. All the voices I heard before were citizens of Giodivonia having fun at the moon festival. I quickly looked at the trashman in confusion.
He grabbed his handkerchief from his pocket and began to wipe away my tears.
"What a silly conclusion. Why would I kill you? If I wanted you dead, you would have been killed a long time ago. Listen… Take some time to calm down. When you are ready, knock on the carriage door, and I will open the door for you. I will wait outside." He shook his head in disappointment as he opened the carriage door.
"But… Why did you make me wear a blindfold? I really thought I was going to die. Changing carriages and no security?" I questioned as I wiped the remaining tears off my face.
His eyes grew large.
"If you must know, there is definitely security. They are under an invisibility spell to keep our identities unknown. We changed carriages for that very reason. Any sign of who we are and will bring unwanted attention, good and bad. That explains the cloaks as well. As for the blindfold, I wanted to surprise you, since it is your first outing. Who would have thought a child would over-think such a situation." He explained as he rubbed his eyes in frustration.
I titled my head and froze from shock.
"So you don't want me dead, daddy?" I questioned as I hugged him.
"... I am getting off now. At this rate, it will be dark before we get off this thing." He said in a frustrating tone.
I nodded and smiled.
"You can keep crying and whining like a spoiled child, or we can enjoy the festival. Your choice." He replied as he stepped off the carriage.
I quickly whipped off the remaining tears off my face and nodded.
He helped me get off the carriage and stretched out his hand for me to grab.
We began walking around the crowded streets. The bright, blue sky slowly began to change into a soft orange. As I continued to hold his hand, I looked around with excitement. I could smell the pungent aroma of food in the air.
A gust of wind knocked the hood off of my head, exposing my shiny, black hair.
The trashman quickly placed the hood over my head.
"Keep the hood on at all times. Your hair and eye color will automatically give off your imperial identity since we are the only two with these traits. Understood?' The trashman explained.
I nodded and smiled.
"Daddy, let's have fun today!" I said with excitement.