[MUSIC RECOMMENDATION: FÚR ELISE - REIMAGINED ~ ALEXANDER JOSEPH]
Oriana didn't turn back until she was far from the room. Then, she walked towards the entrance where the two women had registered her name without talking to any of them. She walked out of the inn and didn't stop until she was outside. Leaning forward with her hands on her knee, she puffed for breath.
"What in the name of crazy did I meet in there?" Oriana said to herself, ruffling her head. "I could just..." She kicked and punched the air as if the Crown Prince was standing right in front of her.
People passing by were startled by the girl's sudden action. Some walked faster, thinking she had lost it, while others stayed on the side to watch the girl.
Oriana gritted her teeth. "He's lucky I didn't have a jug near... I would just whack!" She said, making the sound of crack with her hand. Then she punched the air again, letting out her frustration.
"So many mad people roaming the streets, dressed in silk!" The princess exclaimed. When she tried to walk back to the gate again, she stepped on her gown, which sent her toppling to the ground. Oriana cursed under her breath.
"For the life of me!" She shouted, anger coursing through her veins. Never in life had she been humiliated like this, and it pained her. The man just made her look powerless and weak.
The onlookers gasped when they heard the young maiden curse openly. They formed groups and judged the girl, throwing her scornful looks.
Oriana, who wasn't paying attention to the crowd, sat on the sandy ground with her legs folded. She touched her neck and remembered her grandmother's necklace, which she had abandoned for her freedom.
"Nana... I'm sorry I had to leave it behind for my freedom. I hope you understand." She raised her eyes up to the sky, but the sun kissed her forehead, almost blinding her.
"Ah!" She covered her eyes. "Nana, are you angry with me? Do you want to make me blind? Do it, I deserve to be blind." When a small grain of sand entered her eyes, she stood up and shouted, rubbing her eyes frantically.
"Nana... I don't deserve to be blind. Forgive me, I promise to get it back. Don't always listen to my prayers." The girl shouted, rubbing her eyes, as her body moved in circles.
The crowd that now gathered to watch shook their heads in pity.
"The young maiden must have lost it? Look, she's talking to herself," some pointed in her direction.
Bessie, who had just arrived in town, saw the commotion. Something at the back of her mind told her to check; she might find the princess there. When she walked closer, she almost didn't recognize the princess because of her change in dress, but then her golden blonde hair was hard to miss.
"Oh, sweet heavens," the maid held her chest, running to stand before the princess, trying to cover her from the judging eyes of the crowd. "Princess Oriana," Bessie whispered.
Oriana opened one of her eyes and she sulked. "Bessie, I think Nana wants to make me blind." She cried, pointing to her other closed eye.
Bessie moved closer, trying to open the Princess's eyes. There, she saw a small grain of sand hanging on the rims of her eyes, which now turned red. The maid blew air into it, and slowly the sand moved down with tears.
"It was just a grain of sand, but it's all gone now." Bessie said, still trying to hide the princess with her body.
Oriana blinked once, and more tears slipped from her eyes. Then she blinked again. "Still stings, but it's better." She smiled. "I thought I was going blind, turns out it was just a clingy grain of sand."
The maid nodded, turning to look at the inn where the princess had been standing. "How come you're here, and what happened to your dress..?"
This question caused Oriana to remember her predicament. She rubbed her forehead. "It's a long story..." Then she asked, "How did you find me?"
"I saw the look of horror on the Minister's face when he came back home and how he rejected the marriage chest like a ghost was chasing him. I knew right away it was your handwork. I asked him where I could find you," Bessie explained. Oriana smiled, at least one thing she did today worked.
"Let's go to the carriage; it's waiting outside," Bessie pointed, using a jacket to cover the princess from the judging eyes of the crowd.
"There's nothing to see here, go on with your daily life," Oriana waved at the crowd as she followed her maid to the carriage, which was waiting.
The coachman and the royal guard assigned to escort the princess ran towards her when they saw her walking with the maid.
"Princess Oriana," the royal guard bowed. "I'm sorry for not carrying out my work efficiently." If it were heard that the princess had escaped under his watch, he wasn't going to live to tell the tale.
Oriana waved at them. "It's okay, I'm fine. Nobody is going to have to hear about it, except maybe if you decide to wag your tongue," she said, knowing most of the palace servants informed the King of all her activities.
"On second thought," the princess tapped her finger thoughtfully on her lips, "I think there's a way for you to carry out your work efficiently. I have someone you need to confront, I mean beat up." She said this, turning to look towards the inn once more, remembering the Crown Prince she had encountered inside.
The coachman, royal guard, and Bessie turned to look at each other. This princess was their chaos and was going to be their very destruction.
"Princess Oriana... it's not a good idea to confront someone," Bessie said, worry evident on her forehead.
Oriana shook her head. "Don't worry, the person is misguided and needs to correct his ways. Do you know he took my necklace?"
"Was it stolen? We can go report him to the town's magistrate," Bessie advised.
Thinking deeply about it, Oriana knew that it was not stolen, but she needed to retrieve her grandmother's necklace. As they stood there, two passersby stopped to greet themselves, and the princess overheard an interesting topic which piqued her interest.
"I'm going to Morado this evening; I heard the Crown Prince is finally getting married," one of them said.
The other person clapped her hands. "That's right, business would be good there, but then the royal family won't be going. I heard their relationship with Morado isn't that great."
"Yes, but we were all hoping the Crown Princess would marry the Crown Prince of Morado. But since it didn't work out, Orion's hope of a strong alliance now rests on marriage arrangement with the kingdom of Avon," the first person said with a deep sigh. "I'll be leaving now before the last carriage departs."
Back where Oriana stood, listening to the conversation, her lips curled into a mischievous grin, and she turned to look at Bessie, who wasn't understanding the situation.
"Do you know the best way to punish a person for life?" The princess asked, the grin still on her face.
The maid wasn't sure, but she had a bad feeling about this, especially with the way the princess grinned at the moment. She shook her head slowly.
Oriana raised her brows. "Making them marry my sister." She threw her head back and cackled loudly like a witch, then she threw her hands up in the sky. "God! Who said your signs aren't always clear..."
Bessie blinked as she watched the princess, and the only reason she could come up with for why the princess was acting this way was maybe because when she was born, the royal physician mistakenly dropped her, and her head hit somewhere, which loosened some screws. But the maid wouldn't dare say it out loud.
"Quick, let's go; we have a letter to write to our soon-to-be family-in-law." Without waiting for the stool, Oriana jumped inside the carriage, hanging her leg on the couch. She touched her chin, thinking of the beautiful plan she had cooked up in her head. The princess grinned throughout the ride.