Queen's Obsession

Chapter 19

I know I promised three chapters today but.... I managed to also get a fourth one done!

*Suzanna's P.O.V*

When I woke up in the morning, I realized I had slept in much longer than I normally did. I hurried through my normal routine and didn't have time to do my hair in its normal elaborate hairdo. Instead I just tied it in a low braid, tying it with a loose piece of ribbon. It was frayed at the ends but I didn't really care at the moment.

I matched the piece of ribbon with one of my light pink dresses, the dress covered in loose lace that was quite beautiful. It wasn't one that I wore often but I felt like pink was a good color to wear today.

One thing I did notice before I left was that the tray that I had left on my bedside table was now gone. I just assumed that it had been taken by a maid at night which I was kind of worried about because I didn't like strangers in my room.

I made my way to breakfast, rubbing my eyes with the back of my hand as I walked. I was still so tired  that I ended up bumping into someone. I stumbled back, muttering an apology as I moved my hand away from my face.

Pandora seemed to be amused by my tiredness, something that made me pout. It wasn't my fault that I was tired and if you really thought about it it was all her fault. It was her fault for making me so upset yesterday.

"How's your leg? I heard that you got injured yesterday,"  Pandora said simply.

"I'm fine, I'm going to breakfast now," I said as I tried to walk past her, pausing when she rested her hand on my arm. "What do you want now?" I asked as I pulled away, not wanting her to have any contact with me. Maybe I was still a bit miffed with her from yesterday but I felt justified in my anger.

"My sister has requested that you join her for breakfast," Pandora said simply. I groaned as I threw my head back, a small pout on my lips.

"Do I have to?" I asked as I rested my head against the wall.

"Yes," Pandora responded. I banged the back of my head against the wall once before Pandora pulled me away from the wall to prevent me from doing it again.

"What happened to freedom of choice?" I complained as she pulled me along with her. "This counts as kidnapping, you know? I didn't agree to walk with you," I complained with a frown on my lips.

"Alright," Pandora paused and let go of my arm. "Should I assume that you do want to dine with my sister and not upset her by turning her down? Or would it be right of me to assume that you want to upset my sister?" she asked.

"If I did upset your sister, would I get to live?" I questioned as I tilted my head slightly.

"No, I would see to it that you were executed right away," Pandora said dryly, her words dripping with sarcasm.

"I'm going to the breakfast hall then, tell me when my execution is," I said as I tried to turn back. Pandora stopped me, making me huff softly. "I'm going to throw myself out a window soon, I'll blame you in my note," I said simply as I continued walking.

"You say the loveliest things," Pandora said as she scoffed, showing me the way to the Royal dining hall. My mind was working overtime at the moment. Perhaps later today I could convince Queen Seraphina that she was wrong about me being her daughter. Specifically when Pandora wasn't around.

Speaking of Pandora, she pushed open the dining hall door for me. I didn't bother to thank her seeing as I was still upset with her. I tried to get away with sitting as far as possible from Queen Seraphina but Pandora didn't let me. She made me sit right next to Queen Seraphina.

"How are you this morning darling?" Queen Seraphina asked as she turned to me. I realized that there were other people in the room at the moment, mainly maids, so that explained why she was still wearing her veil. I kind of pouted at that, I liked when I could see her eyes.

"I'm good, how are you?" I managed to stammer out when I realized that I hadn't answered. I wasn't used to making small talk with her. We normally worked in comfortable silence and when we did talk it wasn't small talk like this.

"I'm doing well," Queen Seraphina sounded quite pleased. "I'm feeling much better now that you're here," she said and I felt my cheeks heat up. I ducked my head, staring down at the table as Pandora snorted in amusement.

I glared at Pandora from where she sat at the side further down the table, Captain Orion sitting next to her. Pandora was quickly becoming a person at the top of my hit list, I idly wondered how much it would cost to have her assassinated?

I was drawn from my musings by Queen Seraphina gently touching my arm. My eyes flickered from the hand resting on my arm to her veiled face.

"What would you like for breakfast?" she asked as her hand gently rubbed up and down my arm. I grew flustered from the affection and I struggled to find my words. It seems I didn't have to as Pandora decided to speak up.

"She normally eats scrambled eggs with no pepper, bacon, and sometimes biscuits with gravy," Pandora stated. I blinked in surprise as I turned my attention to her. I hadn't realized that she had paid that much attention to what I ate. Especially considering the fact that I tried to avoid sitting with her now. I had quickly realized that most people in the castle were intimidated by Pandora and therefore avoided the people that she was around.

I decided that I would maybe forgive Pandora for being mean yesterday. Not for reading my mail, she would have to earn that forgiveness but I would maybe forgive her in the future especially if she helped change Queen Seraphina's mind about me being her daughter.