To Be A Princess (ON HIATUS)

CHAPTER 5 - Surprise! You're No Longer a Maid You're a Duchess

THE NEXT MORNING WAS absolutely chaotic. Servants and maids were everywhere busy preparing for tonight's ball. Trunks full of foreign and expensive ball gowns were brought up to the debutantes' rooms. I tried to avoid the chaos as much as I could, but it's kind of hard when you're helping with preparations yourself.

Izzy was frantically running around her room trying to get ready. Her favorite cousin, besides Addie, was coming and she wanted everything to be perfect.

King Peter and Queen Elisa of Beyren and their children Prince Maximilian and Princess Cecilia were attending the ball. Queen Elisa is King Charles' sister so Max and Cecily are Izzy's cousins, Cecily being her favorite.

Cecily was reckless and unruly and had no filter. She was brash and rebellious and I absolutely loved her. Her sassy attitude combined with my sarcastic comments made us a force to be reckoned with.

Cecily's younger brother Max, on the other hand, was the complete opposite. He was quiet and contemplative. I've never heard him say more than one sentence at a time. But whenever he did speak, it was always something clever or witty.

"Sky! They're here!" Izzy exclaimed and jumped away from the window where she had been keeping watch. "Come on!"

"Izzy, slow down!" I said as she dragged me down the hall. I prayed to Lady Amársinee that we wouldn't fall down the stairs since we were running so fast.

Izzy pushed the doors open and rushed out. A footman was opening the door to an elaborately decorated carriage that I recognized to be the Beyren Royal Family's. King Peter stepped out first followed closely by Queen Elisa.

"Uncle Peter, Aunt Elisa!" Izzy said and embraced them. "It's so good to see you."

"It's good to see you too, darling," Queen Elisa replied with a soft smile. She let go of Izzy and looked at me. "It's good to see you too, Skylar."

I grinned. "You too, Your Majesty."

"Is that my two favorite people that I hear?" Cecily said as she emerged from the carriage.

"Cecily!" Izzy squealed.

"Hey there, Little Tiger," Cecily grinned. Her nickname for Izzy originated a long time ago when little Izzy went through a phase where she was obsessed with tigers. She had told Cecily that she wanted to be a tiger instead of a princess causing much laughter.

Cecily turned to me. "Oh, it's you. I haven't seen you since that last time I wished I'd never see you again," she said jokingly with a barely suppressed grin.

"That's unfortunate for you," I shot back. "I was thinking the same thing. Forever would be too soon before I had to hear that annoyingly high-pitched voice of yours. It reminds me of a shrieking banshee that just refuses to shut up."

"It's good to see you, weirdo," she said and gave me a hug.

"So, what do you guys want to do?" Izzy asked.

- - -

Two hours later, I found myself precariously hanging off the edge of the palace's watch tower wearing a ridiculously frilly pink dress and a crude red wig. We had each been tasked with performing to most preposterous stunt while being judged by the other two. Whoever won would be given the award of the Year's Best Troublemaker.

I took a deep breath before screeching my rendition of the poem The Tragedy of Love. "Like the sun that rises in the west—"

"It's east! The sun rises in the east, you idiot!" Cecily hollered from the ground.