A small grunt falls from my lips as I reach up to pull the dress off its hanger, the closet so tightly packed that the fabric keeps getting snagged against itself. I was shocked when Heloix barged in my room this morning demanding that I pick out the clothing I want to bring for our trip, poor John standing behind him practically pissing his pants.
Heloix refused to offer any advice on what to pack or how long we will be staying for, leaving me with no choice but to pack something for every occasion. Even though I've worn nothing but an oversized grey dress my entire life, I'd say that I'm pretty well versed in the attire that the royals wear.
"Do you want me to help you?" John speaks up, wearily eyeing the dress I'm tugging on from where he lounges on my bed.
"No."
Despite my answer, he gets up walks over to me before swatting my hands away. "The King will be upset if he finds out I allowed you to pack for yourself."
A loud snort escapes me at his words, and I roll my eyes in annoyance. Heloix has been getting on my last nerves with this whole 'Adeline can't do anything for herself' thing he's been pushing. I've been feeling better with each passing day and am almost entirely back to normal save for a couple of headaches here and there.
"If the King wants my suitcase packed for me, then he can come and do it himself." I retort, pushing John's hands away and snatching the dress once more.
I angrily tug it until it dislodges from the hanger, the fabric falling quickly into my arms. Bundling it up in my arms, I turn towards the open suitcase on my bed. I can see John watching me out of the corner of my eye, but I ignore his presence as I give the dress a sloppy fold and stuff it in with the others.
"How'd you convince Heloix to leave you alone with me?" I ask, genuinely curious given that up to this point John has only been allowed to be around me when there is somebody else present.
"Because," John murmurs, cutting in front of me as I turn back towards my closet. "He thinks that I'm packing for you."
John refuses to let me pass, his broad back blocking my path. I contemplate trying to push him out of the way but decide against it with a silent grunt. It's unusual for John to take his duties seriously and the fact that he is fighting with me to do his work is a clear sign of how nervous he is.
I don't blame him, though, considering that Heloix gave him this task personally and the punishment for disobeying would probably be quite severe.
My mood drops as I realize that I'm being entirely unfair to John, my comfort leading me to act out and disobey the King despite the fact that his kindness only extends to me. Heloix wouldn't hesitate to punish either John or Betty if they stepped out of line, yet here I am fighting with and urging them to do just that.
With a heavy heart, I sit back down at the edge of my bed and watch John pull out the clothing I sloppily packed and refold them neatly.
"I feel uncomfortable being treated like this." I admit, embarrassed that Heloix is forcing the slaves to wait on me hand and foot like they would with a Beast.
John pauses his motions, glancing up at me with a small smile.
"That feeling is what makes you a good person." He shrugs, letting out an abrupt laugh. "If it were me, I'd be milking it for all it's worth."
I chuckle at John's statement, knowing that he would love to have me cater to him. He'd probably tease me about it for weeks afterward, too, making sure that everybody knows how I'm his personal slave.
"Do you know how long I'll be gone for?" I pry, wondering if Heloix was more generous with information to John than he has was to me.
"I don't think for long." John answers, turning to glance at me in confusion. "The King told me to pack enough clothes for a couple of days. Did he not tell you?"
Frowning, I shake my head no. Despite my annoyance at Heloix for keeping such basic information from me, I'm glad to hear that we will not be gone for too long. It's not every day that humans travel with their owners, and I'm unsure how I will be treated at this new place.
John continues packing for me, his tall frame making it easy for him to remove my clothing from the closet. He doesn't look to me for advice on what to pick and, as I watch, I realize that he has much different taste than I do.
While I gravitate towards the more modest styles, John chooses to pack the form-fitting and shorter dresses. I speak up a couple of times, urging him to pick something more appropriate, but he ignores my requests with a gleeful reminder that he is in charge of my packing.
Despite Heloix's reluctance to share with me the reason for this trip, I've gathered that it's quite an urgent matter. Typically, if a King is going to travel, there are weeks of preparation and planning done to ensure that there's an action plan in place if something goes wrong.
I wonder if the Second will be coming as well, or if he is staying back to take charge in Heloix's absence. Given his apparent dislike towards me, I'd honestly prefer if he stayed back even though the thought of traveling alone with Heloix makes me nervous.
He's promised to protect me, but at the end of the day we will be staying in another kingdom where he does not have any rule, making me doubtful of how much protection he can actually offer.
"How's Emma?" I ask John, curious to hear how she is doing since being taken by the Beasts.
John shrugs in response, tilting his head to look at me out of the corner of his eye. "She's doing okay and is happy that you got her moved out of the kitchen."
A small smile spreads across my face at his words, happy that she likes her new position. She'd mentioned a couple of times that she enjoyed peering out the windows that overlooked the estate, so I knew that working in the gardens would be the perfect job for her. I was pretty worried that Heloix wouldn't approve of the move, but he just rolled his eyes at my request and told me he didn't care.
"Are you two still," I pause, searching for the right words. "friendly?"
John releases the dress he holds in his hand and turns entirely to face me, mouth set in a flat line. "Are you still friendly with the King?"
Point taken. I hold up my hands in surrender, letting John know that I'm dropping the subject. I'm saddened by his lack of trust, knowing that before we came here he told me everything and anything, but understand that my association with the King has made him weary.
Besides, John's lack of response was an answer all in itself. He's still seeing her, and is probably upset that the King and I are both staying in the wing the servants use for their late-night rendezvous.
I hold back a chuckle as I think back to John and I's plan to sneak our way in here. Honestly, I'm glad that Heloix put an end to it. It would have done nothing but create unnecessary tension between us, and there's absolutely no way that Heloix would allow us to be around one another either.
John and I both turn our heads to the door as we hear the front entrance slam, waiting for Heloix's inevitable entrance. He's gotten into the habit of slamming the front door every time he enters and exits, successfully managing to startle me every time.
As expected, it takes mere seconds for him to reach my room, the door flying open as he smacks his hand into it. Heloix's large frame takes up the entirety of the entrance, his head only inches away from the top of the doorway.
He's wearing casual clothing today, and I can't help but do a double-take at his sweatpants and t-shirt. I've seen him in his comfortable clothing multiple times at night, but he wears only button-downs and slacks during the day. It's pretty shocking to see him dressed down, and even more astonishing at how good he looks in it.
The sweatpants are made of a thick grey material that doesn't do much to hide the strong muscles behind them, and the t-shirt leaves little to the imagination as well.
"I told you to leave the door open." He looks to John as he speaks, mouth set in a straight line.
John bows his head as he mumbles out an apology, and Heloix watches him for a moment before turning his attention to me.
"Are you ready to go? We are running late." He asks, looking between my stuffed suitcase and John.
I nod in response.
"Great, we will leave for the stables now." He says, moving forward to help me stand.
Shooing him away, I push up off the bed and stand up by myself. Heloix's constant need to help me is frustrating, especially as he ignores my numerous complaints that I'm perfectly capable of moving around by myself.
"The stables?" I ask, furrowing my eyebrows in confusion. Why would we need to go to the stables? "I was under the impression that we would be taking a car."
I've never ridden a horse before, and the thought of getting on top of one of those giant animals frightens me. I still don't trust them. They could jerk me off like it's nothing and break my bones.
"No, it's quicker to travel through the woods by horse. You will ride with me for safety." Heloix comments, moving to the side and ushering me out the door.
John silently zips up my suitcase, his head turned downward and face flaming red. I wish to say goodbye to him, but knowing his fear of Heloix I decide not to remain silent. The last thing I want is to rile any feathers.
Heloix follows behind me as I make my way out of his wing, his body so close I can feel his heat on my back. If I were to slow my pace in the slightest he would probably crash into me, and I think about doing just that for a brief second to annoy him.
"Have you ever ridden on a horse before?" Heloix asks, his voice quiet.
I shake my head no, hoping that my nervousness isn't too apparent. I feel slightly better knowing that I will be riding with him, but knowing that I am to be in such close proximity with him for an undisclosed amount of time brings me a whole other level of anxiety.
"Do not fret." Heloix murmurs, ducking down so his face is directly next to my ear, his lips brushing lightly against the lobe. "If you're good I'll masturbate you against the horn."