I slept brilliantly in the silky smooth bedsheets of the room. Three gentle knocks woke me up the next day. The morning rays of light caressed my eyelids gently. I woke up with a clear, peaceful smile gracing my face like cascading satin.
The maid walked in, with her hands holding a silver tray of beautifully crafted English scones, with some light tea and fruit at the side. She set it on the nightstand next to me with a light clink. The still, soothing atmosphere permeated my mind and chest, making me yawn with untroubled tranquility.
"Lord, good morning. I have taken it upon myself to warm the bath for you, and it will be ready momentarily." Her eyes were cast down demurely as she bowed.
I grinned with my eyes twinkling and thanked her with a soft voice. I sipped the mellowly brewed tea and felt it slide down my throat. What a nice day today-
"Ah, after you finish preparing yourself, Madam Rosé expects you in the ballroom for your royal etiquette lesson. Thank you, I shall take my leave."
My heart instantly shattered and my eyes dropped into a dead fish stare. The tea in my hand started to taste bitter and I placed it down with distaste. And the rays of sun shining through the window suddenly started to become glaringly bright. Stop being so bright, I didn't give consent. You're intruding into people's lives. I can report you for breaking and entering.
----
I stepped into the ballroom. It seemed hauntingly empty, with a solitary sound echoing eerily off the walls and the floor-to-ceiling windows towering over me like giants. I walked forward to the center, where a woman with harsh features and a pointy stick held in her left hand stood.
"Young Lord, walk faster." She slapped her stick onto her right hand, making me feel that it was a whip rather than a small stick. With mixed feelings, I hurriedly rushed forward and stopped a few meters in front of her.
"Good morning. I am Leainelono del Rosé. You may call me Madam Rosé. I am the etiquette instructor employed by the royal house. For the next six days, I will be briefing and educating you on royal etiquette." She bowed stiffly, like cardboard folding for the first time.
She slapped her stick onto the floor, making a loud clack. My heart jumped and a bead of cold sweat rolled down my back. I bowed and held my right arm behind me tremblingly. "Good morning, Madam Rosé. I am Remis Alchean Xenith, and am delighted to make your acquaintance." An almost robotic tone escaped my lips, and my left hand shook slightly at the invisible pressure she exerted.
She gazed at my posture with narrowed phoenix eyes. Her snide frown slowly dissipated and her pursed lips relaxed, with the ends of her mouth curling up. "Good. Since you seem to have the basic aristocratic mannerisms down, there is no need to go over the standard curriculum. Revising the original itinerary, I believe we can allocate more time onto perfecting your bow to royalty." Her upturned almond eyes glinted as she stepped forward close to me. The cane in her hand clacked onto the marble floor to disturb the tense atmosphere surrounding her.
Although she had only lightly brushed my chin with her fingers, it felt as though she was firmly grasping my face to push my chin up. I almost choked as my head slid up to avoid her bone-chilling touch. Her lips seemed to curve more at my reaction.
"Listen carefully, as I'll only repeat instructions once."
"As you are now, your head shall be slightly tilted upwards."
"Your waist bent at a 49 to 52 degree angle." Her cane smacked my stomach and I immediately hurled forward.
"Your hand," she grabbed my forefinger and smacked it up, "needs to emulate a feather gently falling!"
"Your arm!" The tip of her cane rammed into my shoulder, sending a piercing pain up my limb.
"Your legs!" She hurled the side of her stick onto the back of my knee, forcing it slightly forward. I yelped.
"Be quiet, and remember this posture." She commanded harshly. I nodded.
"Don't move your head!" She smacked my forehead thrice with the demon stick. I bit down the yelp. Her stick reluctantly withdrew at my obedience.
"Good. Now stand."
I shot up with my back pin-straight and my arms tightly clamped to my sides.
"Bow, using the posture I just taught you."
"Where are your eyes, are you trying to stare right into His Majesty's forehead? Look down!"
"I said, your hand must emulate a feather!"
"Why is your back so bent? Are you already as old as me? Do you need assistance to go to the potty?"
"Your head looks as if you were just robbed by lowly thieves! I said your eyes must be down, not your blasted head! Have you no ears? Or perhaps a mind that simply cannot process simple instruction?"
I bit the inside of my lip and cried imaginary tears. Whimpering, one thought came to mind. She's worse than Mother...
----
The end of the lesson ended with a bout of reprimands. I shed inward tears and left the ballroom with throbbing palms, a sore back, and shaky knees.
Collapsing on the soft bed, I groaned in weariness. The royal family should be condemned for abuse of minors. I don't wanna go tomorrow...
When I woke up in the morning, the same serene and blithe maid came to deliver my breakfast served on the silver platter. She told me that the bath was ready, infused with a perfume she believed best suited me, and left with quiet steps. My initial impression of her was gone and was replaced by nothing less than a harbinger of torture.
I choked and sucked down the pastries lacklusterly. When I arrived at the venue, I saw Madam Rosé standing in the same rigid pose she was yesterday. Shivers crawled down my spine as I inched towards her with tepid steps.
"Young Lord, walk faster." The same words were uttered by her thin lips and I immediately sped up my walking pace. I felt like a newborn fawn wandering into a wolf's den. I wanted to sob from the pain I felt on the palm of my left hand.
"Let's begin." The demon stick struck the ground and her upturned glasses glinted with frightening light.
----
In and out, the strikes to the palms to my hand and the blatant abuse of my knees grew harsher and harsher. I dragged myself in and out of the ballroom with legs that seemed to want to weep and bawl in exhaustion. Finally, the sixth day had arrived.
I stepped into the ballroom with a wobbling gait. Madam Rosé stood, in the same place she always stood.
I felt a bitter feeling overcome me. The last day...! The last day of my suffering! Long live the king, I can finally escape this abusive hell! There is nothing better than beautiful rays of sunshine in the morning! So what if they're not convicted of breaking and entering! Ahhh, life is beautiful, everyone is beautiful, we should all hold hands and praise the goddess...!
"Young Lord, walk faster." She ordered. I practically ran to where she stood. The last day! The last day! echoed in my mind over and over, and my heart originally overshadowed with despondency and darkness finally saw the light.
I bowed perfunctorily, with all of the training and exercises drilled into muscle memory through the pain of the demon stick. "Madam Rosé, good morning."
"Good morning, let's-"
The sound of the large oak doors creaking open interrupted her speech. Her eyes narrowed and her stick tapped onto the ground.
A head of blond hair stuck out of the crack, followed by an enchanting face. I could see his pupils constrict as he spotted Madam Rosé in front of me. With ingrained steps, he jumped out of his concealed place and immediately approached her with a speedy stride.
"Crown Prince, walk faster." She smacked her cane onto the ground once more. Both the prince and I flinched instinctively, made familiar with the meaning of the phrase.
He stopped next to me and perfunctorily bowed. I could tell that it was a result of the brutal training he received under her. After five seconds of familiar intolerable silence, we both stood up in unison and faced the strict face of Madam Rosé.
Her tapered eyes slightly widened and her pursed lips turned slightly agape. Her villainess eyes shone in a strange light. I gulped, wondering if I was going to get a beating this early into the class. I could see the crown prince instantly turn stiff, like he was wondering if he would get a beating too.
After some time, her new, frightening expression vanished. She coughed, turning her face away and concealing her expression. I could see her body faintly quivering and immediately wanted to cry. Don't hit me...
However, instead of the beating I expected, she simply coughed and waved her hand. "Ahem. Since the crown prince is here, I assume he wants to participate in the class." She approached us. Her three-inch heels clacked onto the floor, resounding around the empty ballroom. Her right hand pushed up the bridge of her glasses. "Then, we shall begin."
----
What am I doing dancing with another man? The prince's broad chest was tightly pressed onto mine as we held hands and swayed in circular motions. My head was almost resting on the prince's shoulder as I struggled to make up for the height difference.
I hesitantly piped up. "Madam Rosé, may I ask... why do I need training for this?"
"Yes, yes... just like that..." Her mumblings were interrupted by my question and she looked up with her glasses slightly crooked and her loose bun in slight disarray. I saw her stick lying on the floor, replaced by a pen and notebook.
"Ah, what? Oh, yes, yes, training..." Her eyes flitted around and the tip of her pen tapped on her right palm. "Of course, you need to prepare for instances where the crown prince has no partner in an event." Her head turned back and she continued on with her muttering and hurried writing.
More questions arose at the answer. Taking advantage of the position, I whispered into the prince's ear. "You think this is strange too, right? In what instance would I have to do this with you?"
A few seconds of silence proceeded.
"Prince?" I turned my eyes to him. He couldn't possibly think that... uh?
Lucius's originally pale neck had flushed a deep shade of red, and his ears twitched and shook. His heartbeat grew fast and seemed to burst out of his chest.
"...d-don't do that... it's weird..." He whimpered, his skin continuing to redden.
Oh.
----
(A/N: Madam's POV.)
She tapped her cane on the floor, the sound resounding around the large ballroom, and concluded the lesson. The slightly blushing teens hurriedly scampered out of the room after becoming a bit more aware of the other.
The madam strode out of the ballroom soon after with a steady, swift gait. Her three-inch heels hit the floor with discipline. A long, oak door with an intricate lock stood in front of her. Her bony, graceful fingers slightly trembled as she fished out the keys from her pocket.
The door clicked shut behind her, and it became deathly silent. The curtains in the room were drawn, enveloping the room in pitch-black darkness that seemed particularly sinister.
She raised her head. With a flick of her sleeve, the blackout curtains drew and a burst of light shone into the room glaringly. She sighed and walked towards the window with her upturned eyes narrowing, her mouth spread into a sinister grin. I knew it...
She spun her body around and her eyes lit up with a feverish glint. She threw her heels off unbridled and it spun in the air, landing in the corner of the room. Prince Lucius and Lord Remis...
Her head lifted up and her eyes burst with color. Facing her were posters of men, covering the walls. Posters of men in intricate and sensual positions, their heads tilted and kissing passionately. Posters of them embracing in obscene positions. The bed was weighed down by a towering stack of books, while the remaining books were strewn across the floor in a haphazard fashion.
"It's too good to be true...!" A frenzied grin spread on her face.
She stalked forward to her desk. The dim light of the lamp illuminated the underside of her face. She halfhazardly threw her glasses onto the bed behind her.
She bounced on her toes and spun around and around, unable to contain her excitement. "The scene of two men dancing sensually, their hips pressed together and their most sensitive parts rubbing together...! Ah, just the thought of it...!"
Blood dripped out of her nose.
"Goodness, Lord Remis and Prince Lucius were practically oozing with chemistry! It was like they were made for each other...I can't even handle it! This is beyond amazing, it's like a dream come true!" She twirled on her toes, clutching her hand to her chest and giggling hysterically.
"There's no way I can just leave this be now..."
She stepped on the bed frame with one leg and looked forward valiantly. With her eyes fanatically shining, she clenched her fist and declared, "No, it is my duty! My new ship must set sail!"