Lilly woke up to the sound of birds chirping outside her window, her eyes opened and she let out a stretch. she carefully got up to walk to the bathroom, for a nice morning shower. Her stomach was growing and she felt a little discomfort this morning. The sun shined through the bathroom window as she turned the water on and hopped in. She felt some relief from the warm water running down her body. Just as Lilly finished her shower, she heard some commotion outside making her peak outside. She saw Zeal getting ready to head out. Another war campaign again... Lilly wondered a dark thought, if he got killed in battle then it would make her job easy, she couldn't help but smile. Lilly finally broke away from her thoughts and finished up in the shower. She put on a simple white button-up shirt, that gave her plenty of room and a soft stretchy pair of black pants. Lilly tied her hair in a ponytail and walked back to the bed. She continued to read one of the books she didn't get the chance to finish before she passed out. She was reading about the history of the finances of the Kingdom. Lilly was surprised that this massive Kingdom didn't have as much money as Maybelle, the kingdom was also going into doubt and fast, thanks to King Zeal's spending habits. Lilly wasn't surprised about this information in the least. He was either going off to war or throwing parties. He was a very greedy King, a bloodthirsty one too. Lilly finished with the books and brought them back down to the records archives in the Library, she had to walk to the back of the library and enter through the restricted area, where the librarian would let her in and out before locking the door.
"Good morning my Queen, The King seems very busy with all his.....Adventures...." The middle-aged woman said in a disapproving tone. Lilly looked at the greying hair woman that still had some strawberry blond, she had greyish blue eyes, and her hair was in a tight neatly kept bun. She had naturally tan skin and she wore glasses that would slide down her nose. She always saw the chubby tall librarian wear black dresses that went passed her ankles. This time the sleeves of her dress stopped at her elbows, rather than ending at her wrists, She was a beautiful woman but she was always so serious. She always spoke sternly and always seemed tense. "Yes, well he's a very foolish King," Lilly replied dryly. "Indeed." The Liberian replied. Lilly put back the books from where she had grabbed them and walked out of the restricted part of the library. "I don't know how you could bear his child but just know if his father or brother were alive and well, you would never be Queen!" The librarian said full of anger and disapproval. Lilly felt pride in the woman's words turned to look at the middle-aged woman and replied. "And if they were here I wouldn't be forced into an unwanted marriage and carrying a child with someone I'd never would have chosen. I'd be the Princess of Maybelle not Queen of Veiltest married to a blood-thirsty tyrant with a control problem. So I assure you, we're both unhappy." Lilly said in a dry tone before walking out of the Library leaving the woman lost in her thoughts at the Queen's reply.
Lilly felt pretty proud of her response to the woman, as she walked down the halls of the palace. She noticed Zeal had a pattern he was home for a week then went to war for a month at most before he would return home throwing massive parties and blowing through money. He didn't know much about what it took to be King, Zeal cared less about his people, and his people began calling him "The Blood King" behind his back, Lilly also had a nickname by default thanks to her marriage to Zeal and that was "The Vengeful Queen." Lilly thought it had a good ring to it. She boldly walked through the halls with no fear when Zeal wasn't around, she acted like a Queen and repaired any financial damage the King caused, making sure that the people of Veiltest never went without. Lilly would spend the time preparing for her role as sole ruler once Zeal was no longer in the picture, along with gathering supplies and bringing them to her room so she would be well stalked on the off chance she couldn't safely leave her room once her nightmare of a husband returned. Lilly began to carefully bring up a small bassinet and supplies for the baby once it was born. Lilly decided it was better to bring what she needed for the child while she was still small and could move around easily before she got big and had more limitations. It took a couple of days before everything was brought up and put where she wanted it, since she had no help and couldn't afford anyone to find out her location it was hard having to sneak around the servants, they were the eyes and ears of the castle, so Lilly always made sure to have her ears to the ground so to say. Needless to say, Lilly was pretty good at it too.
Lilly then decided she was going to need to get certain documents, to document her child's birth, a clock so she would know what time the baby was born, and supplies she'd need for the birth. She got a bag for the placenta, some gauze, pads, towels, a cord clamp, and, a pair of scissors to cut the cord. Lilly put the blank birth certificate and the other documents she'd need on top of her dresser and placed her birthing supplies next to it. Lilly planned on doing this all on her own and was refusing to put Zeal down on the birth certificate. Legally Zeal was not going to be the father if she had anything to do with it. She was feeling about delivering on her own but she preferred it that way, she felt like she couldn't trust anyone around her. She didn't want anyone knowing she delivered much less knowing when she'd be in labor. She was going to be vulnerable during that time. She needed to manage her pain during that time because she couldn't start screaming from the pain. She couldn't take anything for it, so Lilly started taking lots of pillows and blankets. In the worse case, she could muffle her cries into the pillows and blankets. The sun was going down when she finished gathering everything and finding places in her room. when she heard a commotion outside. Lilly was surprised to see Zeal and only under half of Veiltest's army. Zeal had even been injured during battle, she was surprised to see him back so soon. He had only been gone for two days.
She watched as the soldiers made their way towards the castle. "Looks like they took quite the beating," Lilly said to herself in a numb tone. Lilly was sad for the lost soldiers but felt disappointed because Zeal was alive. Lilly felt a flash of anger strike like lightning through her, she turned red in the face and began throwing things around her room, she was angry that someone like Zeal existed in the world with no repercussions to his actions. Lilly got herself pulled together sort of before she fell to her knees crying, unable to bottle things up she couldn't control her rampaging emotions, the tears quickly turned to hatred towards her unborn child. "It's all your fault! You are doing this to me! I hate you and I hope you die!" Lilly said in anger as she punched her stomach. She hated being pregnant without her consent, she hated everything about it, the father, her situation, her not having a say she hated everything. Lilly finally took several breaths and calmed down for a brief moment, before feeling an enormous amount of guilt for attacking her unborn child. She hated that she couldn't get a grip on how she felt about her pregnancy.
Lilly broke down crying from the guilt as she began cleaning her room, putting everything back in its place. While the tears continued to fall down her face, her chest was aching from regret and all she could think about was how was she going to feel once the child was born? Or was she just going to drop it off at an orphanage? Lilly quietly picked everything up thankful no one heard her or found her hideout. Lilly laid on the bed and placed her hand on her growing belly, thinking about her options. She still didn't know if she wanted to keep the child, it wasn't going to be born out of love, she had no love growing for it, just anger. She began to hear commotion through the castle walls, out of curiosity, Lilly got up from her bed and went through the corridors leading down throughout the entire castle. She followed the sound of an angry man yelling and throwing things. She recognized Zeal's voice, she finally reached the room where she heard the yelling voice. She peered through the hole in the wall, listening to Zeal vent. "How could they have gotten the drop on us!? Wiped out over half of my army! Where the hell is my Queen!? She should be in here comforting her husband! That damn crazy woman! I know she is still in the castle walls, she's good at hiding, I don't care where she is I'll find her, and when I do I'll make sure there is nowhere for her to hide!" Zeal threatened. Causing Lilly's heart to race.
"I didn't expect such a small secluded Kingdom to be so strong. They seemed prepared like someone warned them...Or maybe they're always prepared because they're so small?" Zeal thought to himself out loud, Zeal looked at the maid that had just changed his bedding and picked up his room, he walked towards her full speed and grabbed her by the throat slamming her down on her back. The poor maid hit the floor hard letting out a scream. "Your kind is always gossiping, do you know anything about this?" Zeal asked accusing the maid of being a spy. "N-no sir I-I don't know anything." The young lady replied, her blond curtly hair was now tangled in Zeal's hand as he began ripping hair out of her hand, causing her to cry out. Her blue eyes showed fear. "I don't believe you, your kind always hears everything!" Zeal said as he grabbed a knife and was about to start stabbing the maid. Lilly rushed out of the walls closing the secret door behind her. "Stop!" Lilly screamed Zeal froze his hand in mid-air knife pointing at the maid. Lilly grabbed a sharp object and pointed it at her stomach. "You kill her and your precious heir dies!" Lilly threatens. Zeal turned to look at Lilly and found a sharp letter opener in her hand. "And where were you hiding!?" Zeal demanded. "Let her go!" Lilly demanded ignoring his question. Zeal got up allowing the maid to get to her feet. "Go now! Keep your distance from him next time." Lilly warned. The maid nodded and rushed out of the room in tears. "You have the rest of the night off," Lilly told the young lady and she seemed grateful for Lilly's words. "Since when do you make those choices!?" Zeal snapped. "When you made me Queen against my will! When you stole from my home when you stole my innocence, and when you decided to attempt another innocent life!" Lilly shot back.
Lilly glared at Zeal who was currently looking like a mad man standing in front of her. "I've heard a Queen is supposed to show the more softer side of a King, make him seem more....reasonable or merciful. So I guess I'm not going to be mad with your actions, where did you come from?" Zeal said in a frightening tone. Lilly raised her head high and turned her face stone-cold to his words. "I was in the garden until I heard you had came crawling back with your tail between your legs, causing a scene demanding where I was. I of course took my time making my way to you, I'm just glad I made it here before you killed some unfortunate soul." Lilly replied coldly. Zeal smiled "I see, well as you can see, I've let that bitch go so how about you remove that letter opener away from our unborn child since it can't defend itself." Zeal said in a cocky tone while holding his arms out in front of him like he was saying some inspirational speech. "I don't care what happens to this thing inside of me, you put it there, I'm just forced to incubate it! So don't think for a moment that there is any emotion to pry on." Lilly replied coldly. "I'm sure that will change, you can't fight your instincts. Zeal laughed. Lilly turned red and out of anger, she threw the letter opener, hitting Zeal in the eye and storming out. "That's proof, my beautiful Queen! You wouldn't hurt our child just because I'm its father! You're growing to love it! there is no use in fighting it!" Zeal screamed at Lilly while bleeding from his eye.
In a huff Lilly stormed off as fast as she could, feeling pissed that she didn't just go for her stomach, it was like something was stopping her from harming it, it was only making Lilly more frustrated every day. Lilly wasn't sure why her anger led her straight to the kitchen but she didn't care, she opened the fridge looking for food to cram in her mouth. "My Queen?" Lilly heard a voice from behind her causing her to spin around angrily. "Would you like to try this?" The chef asked staring at the young expecting Queen curiously. Lilly walked up to the chef and accepted what he was handing her. "Thank you," Lilly said in a frustrated tone. Making the chef smile. "Of course my Queen." The old man beamed happily since he could serve the new Queen and finally meet her. Lilly ate the food quickly and asked for more. She really didn't care if it seemed like she was being unmannered, she was hungry. The chef just smiled and gave Lilly seconds. "What is this anyway? Lilly asked. "Tropical Chicken Soup, the broth is made with pineapple juice and cherry juice, the chicken boils in it overnight, then I remove the bones, and add salt, lemon pepper, some lime, and garlic powder. The white rice gets put in with the chicken and broth once it has been washed and boiled. I add red, green, orange, and yellow bell peppers, green onion, and finally some carrots." The chef replied. "It's delicious." Lilly said complimenting the chef. "Thank you." The chef replied.
Lilly had no idea that Zeal had followed her to the kitchen, much less that Zeal was standing in the doorway of the kitchen listening to the conversation and watching her eat. He had a smirk on his face watching the whole scene play out. His eye had a bandage over it and he was wearing a grey button-up long sleeve shirt, with black pants and boots. He had his first three buttons undone exposing his bare chest. "Glad you liked the food." Zeal said in a low tone before leaving. Zeal was heading to his office hoping to plan to reattack the small Kingdom. Once Lilly was finished eating she was able to sneak away without getting caught by anyone. She made her way up to her room locking the three doors behind her and laying on her bed. She was unaware that her hand found her stomach again and it rested comfortably on top. Lilly fell asleep peacefully and didn't wake up until the sun started to rise. Lilly took her time waking up and getting out of bed to shower, she felt comfortable just laying there in her bed. She rolled to her side and laid there for a couple of hours. She was just about to pass out again thanks to the sun's warmth when she heard screams through the walls. Lilly struggled to sit up thanks to her growing stomach, her breasts were beginning to hurt and her feet were now swelling and hurting. Her lower back pain was now becoming constant. As Lilly got up and made her way towards the sounds through the corridors. She started to move faster and faster as the screams were getting louder. Lilly found her in the same room as yesterday when she saved that maid. Without thinking she opened the secret door closing it quietly and then made sure no one saw her exit. Thankfully the only ones that could have been a witness didn't notice. Lilly walked up behind the man and hit him on top of the head. He fell to the side and Lilly was able to see that she just rescued the same maid from yesterday. Zeal was strangling her and now he was knocked out. Lilly grabbed the maid's hand and ran through the castle.
"I'm going to put my trust in you, you better not screw me over!" Lilly said in a haste "You saved my life twice, I'd never." The maid replied. "Why does he keep trying to kill you?" Lilly asked while running at top speed. "Because I ratted him out, I'm from that little Kingdom he attacked, I have family there, I have friends, It's still my home!" The girl cried. "Good warn them again if he tries anything," Lilly replied. The maid was shocked at Lilly's reply. "Aren't you supposed to have his back? You're his Queen!" the maid said in shock. "Don't remind me." Lilly said in a cold tone. Lilly led the maid to the stairs rather than the secret passages since she didn't trust the girl. From there Lilly led her to the first room that Lilly found and left a bed and dresser in there. When Lilly found the bonus room she was in now, she had broken several of the stairs that led to her room, making it impossible to go up the stairs any further. That was the main reason Lilly used the secret passageways to get around. The small bedroom Lilly led the maid to had a half bathroom a toilet and a sink, there was a secret door behind the dresser but was easily hidden, thanks to whoever designed it and that large wooden furniture. "Here you can stay here, should something happen I'll get to you and help, keep the door locked, there's a knife under the pillow." Lilly said "Thank you for helping me." The maid said to Lilly in a soft tone. "No problem." Lilly replied. "You don't stay in this room do you?" The maid asked. "No." Lilly said sternly.
"I can't stay with you can I?" The maid asked, Lilly was able to pick up on her fear but she still had her guard up. "No, I'm sorry." Lilly replied. The maid had watery eyes but understood and slowly walked to the bed and sat down. Lilly sighed and thought for a moment. "Why are you here?" Lilly questioned as she walked into the room and sat next to the girl. "To support my family, we had just moved from a small Kingdom called Portor for a better life, it's main source of income is our fishing docs. Most people don't know about us and so we have no allies or anything to offer for trade. I support my younger siblings and my mom, who's currently sick, my father died 6 months ago from being sick, and I also send money back home to my grandparents. I took the job because it's a decent-paying job." The girl said looking down at her feet, Lilly listened to the girl closely. "How old are you and what's your name?" Lilly asked sternly. "My name is Abbi and I just turned 18." Lilly was surprised that the girl wasn't much younger than her. "My name is Lilly, I'm the second Princess of Maybelle and now unfortunately the Queen of Veiltest, I plan to kill that unwanted husband of mine and take over this Kingdom, in return provided you don't do anything shady I'll contact my parents and get them to agree to be allied with Portor and when I take over this Kingdom after Zeal's death Veiltest and Portor will be allies," Lilly spoke confidently making Abbi smiled and thanked the Queen repeatedly.
Before Lilly knew it her and Abbi were talking about their life, leaving nothing a secret. She led Abbi to her room and they sat on Lilly's bed talking until they both passed out. Several weeks passed and it turned out trusting Abbi wasn't such a bad idea, she helped Lilly out a lot and even though they shared a bed and spent nights talking they got along pretty well. They even had a lot in common. The summer months were coming and their room was becoming unbearably hot. So while Zeal was away Abbi went outside while Lilly hung up a dark brown piece of fabric that cut out most of the light, Abbi's goal was to make sure no one could see the fabric whatsoever. Thankfully there was no way to even see the window. So Abbi went running back to the castle and back to their room without being spotted to deliver the news to the Queen. Once the fabric was hung up, it felt much cooler in the room, sure it wasn't a cure-all and it was still warm but at least it was tolerable. Lilly's stomach was becoming more noticeable and bending over was a no-go. Her stomach seemed more cramped than ever and she felt like she had no more room for her child to grow. Lilly was warming up to the idea of being pregnant, and even felt herself being excited for her baby's arrival, she would often wonder if she'd have a boy or a girl. Lilly couldn't wait to put her baby in cute clothes and hold her baby in her arms. She kept thinking about what she wanted to name her baby. She couldn't help but love her little one even though she didn't know what her baby looked like.
Zeal started screaming one night waking up Lilly and Abbi from a comfortable sleep. "Those corridors cause everything to echo I swear." Abbi said crankily. "Comes in handy though," Lilly said in a tired tone. Lilly sighed and struggled to get up. "Where you going?" Abbi asked in a sleepy tone. "Going pee first, all that movement was a bad choice, then I'm going to see what has him all upset." Lilly replied while walking to the bathroom. When Lilly came out, she saw that Abbi was gone, Lilly's heart skipped a beat and started to race, she quickly went through the secret passages to see if maybe Abbi went to snoop. Thankfully her suspicion was spot on. As Lilly came hurriedly through the passageway she saw Abbi peering through a peephole. "What's going on?" Lilly asked trying to quietly catch her breath. "Apparently we will be invaded soon by a strong Kingdom. I guess they are headed this way and will reach landfall within a month." Abbi replied in a whisper. "Do you know who?" Lilly asked. "No he hasn't said, but that guy right there said that he saw a flag, it was royal blue with a purple lotus on it and the lotus had light green stars circling the lotus flower." Abbi replied. "That's Maybelle." Lilly replied with a smile. "Are you going to be able to fight against King Zeal? You're 3 months pregnant right now." Abbi said looking at Lilly with concern. "Yes, I'll be doing what needs to be done for both my Kingdoms and my child." Lilly replied looking through the peephole and glaring at Zeal. " Then in a frightening tone, Lilly said something unexpected. "Long may he reign.." Abbi gulped for the first time since meeting Lilly she was afraid of her, she watched Lilly walk away and Abbi slowly followed behind her, looking at Lilly's back and she wondered if she really knew Lilly at all. They finally made it up to the room and went to lay down when Lilly broke the silence. "You don't need to be afraid, I know it's scary but I promise I won't hurt you or let you get hurt." Lilly said reassuring Abbi. Abbi smiled and laid down eventually falling back to sleep.