REJECTED

THE HANDMAIDEN, EMILY

Emily stood silent while gazing into the prince's eyes. Many considered it a rude gesture, but the prince didn't mind. Followed by an abrupt blinking, Emily declared, "Are you looking for a handmaiden or an entertainer? Anybody among these girls would suffice. Why do you want me to go along with you?"

The headmistress awkwardly smiled as she stepped in between them, "Pardon me, your majesty. The girl has a bit of a scathing sense of humour."

Though headmistress Gwen got excessively worried over the young lady’s remark, the prince seemed to enjoy her novelty.

After her refusal to accompany him, the prince was even more curious about the young woman and had established a clear method of convincing Emily for the position of the handmaiden.

He thought about approaching the young woman once again. This time, he thought of a subtler approach. After moving towards the aged headmistress, the prince expressed his appreciation for their home, “It’s a great orphanage. I mean the facilities are top-notch.”

With her head bowed, Emily responded, “The orphanage is grateful to the queen for that. Due to her charity, the orphanage has been able to flourish and provide children with education and great facilities. It is her generosity and cares for female empowerment that led to this flourishing establishment.”

Pleased that he was finally able to strike a conversation with Emily, the prince further asked, “Don’t you have any friends here?”

After a brief contemplation of the query, Emily responded, “Why does the life of an orphan strike your fancy?”

Apparently, she had a counter-response for everything.

“Fancy? That’s a strong word. I just wanted to know a little about the life that the orphanage provided to the children here, ” clarified the prince. "Pardon me if I crossed my limits while exercising my curiosity."

After an extended sigh, Emily finally revealed, “No, it's not that. I am not habitual of getting engaged in becoming part of elongated conversations. But, I don't mind sharing the life that I had lived here. Usually, I don't make friends. I did have a person I held dear to my heart. Since I considered her my sister, I don’t really regard her as my friend.”

“You must have been miserable after her departure,” suggested Ferdinand, trying to keep her engaged.

While staring at her feet, Emily revealed, “Yes, I was pretty sad when she left. Her absence hadn’t been replaced by anyone yet. It’s not like I didn’t try making new friends but nobody could take her place.”

“You’re just like Alpha Madeline in this regard. She too suffered through the same thing, ” Ferdinand pointed out.

Not sure about what an orphan shared in common with the alpha, Emily asked, “How’s that even possible?”

Ferdinand decided to hit the hammer while the iron was hot. Ferdinand believed that by relating with Alpha Madeline, Emily might change her mind about declining the position of the handmaiden.

Therefore, he began reciting the alpha’s despairing period, "Queen Madeline had a handmaiden when she was seventeen. After that woman's death, she didn’t let anybody else procure the same position. When people want to know the reason behind her disregard for one, the Alpha argued that since there were no intellectually bright women around, she avoided the company of them altogether. That's why I particularly showed interest in you."

Emily seemed to be under the impression that one doesn't need to be intellectually gifted to help the Queen in her daily chores. Headmistress Gwen read the apprehension in Emily's eyes and placed her hand upon Emily's mouth to stop her from speaking anymore.

Further, the headmistress bowed her head and showed her remorse to the prince, "I would like to apologise to you, but I can't let her get taken away. She is the youngest and wickedest of all. There's much more that she needs to learn."

The prince placed his hands upon the old lady's shoulder and declared, "We will offer her a life better than she could imagine. The workload for her would be lesser as well. She would only have to tend to Queen's needs and can use the rest of the time for herself."

What caught Emily's attention was the prince's mention of "less workload". Hence, Emily moved ahead a little, took a bow and asked, "Prince, could I be of service to the Queen?"

While the prince was pleasant to hear the lady's confession, Gwen found it hard to appreciate her decision. The headmistress, therefore, engaged the prince and his subordinates in the feast and took Emily away for having a sound conversation on the matter.

As the two women reached closer to an empty room, Gwen expressed her concern, "You've been living in this small town however you've liked, but it's not the same for the capital. The capital is known for being inhabited by the strongest of packs. And you --"

Emily heaved a prolonged sigh as she spoke, "I understand that I haven't even shifted yet. That, however, is not a problem. I will not be moving to the capital to join their pack. I will just be a handmaiden."

Headmistress Gwen held the young woman's arm as she revealed, "I have always considered you a daughter. Watching you part breaks my heart."

Though Emily stood indifferent to others, she did show affection towards the headmistress. The young woman held her in her arms and finally expressed her true intentions, "My reason for travelling to the capital is that I want to explore. I might not get an opportunity like this again."

The elder lady caressed her head and reminded her, "That's fine with me, but try to avoid getting into conflicts, and remember not to roam outside the pack's dwelling during the night. In a royal court, you must always look at your back. Who knows what trouble would end up winding you up in it?"

With excitement evident in her azure eyes, Emily explained, "I haven't gotten acquainted with the capital before. I am just so excited."

After observing the two women dislocated from the crowd and whispering things among them, the prince's younger brother approached them.

Observing Emily's fascinating features, Prince Jordan got tempted to ogle at the beautiful woman. Though Jordan was a younger brother to Prince Ferdinand, he was a notorious flirt. He had a bad rap for teasing and passing flirtatious remarks to the younger girls. The headmistress was familiar with the man's tendencies.

Hence, the headmistress walked in front of Emily and enquired, "How can I be of service to the younger prince?"

Jordan grinned as he responded, "You can't do anything for me, but the young woman behind you will suffice."

Emily cleared her throat as she was about to land an insult on the lascivious prince, but the headmistress quieted her by pressing her index finger against the young woman's lips. The senior lady then bowed her head in front of Prince Jordan and excused herself, "Pardon us, prince, but we need to leave."

The headmistress then held Emily by her arm and dragged her back to the hall where the feast took place. Emily glared at the prince with contempt while being hauled away.

As they dined, Gwen pondered on the very nature of the future that will unfold in front of young Emily. She feared Emily's impulsiveness and her whimsical behaviour.

Prince Ferdinand then rose from his chair and toasted in the name of Queen Madeline Shillingford. While the whole crowd rejoiced, Margerie seemed displeased.

While eying the prince, the woman declared, "Pardon me, but I am also well known for my knowledge regarding domestic work."

The prince nodded and continued his discussion with the headmistress.

Margerie got hurt by the prince's disinterest and eyed Emily with an abhorrent gaze. Emily was as aloof as always. Though she read the contempt visible in Margerie's eyes, she paid no heed to it.

Then, it was time for the parting. The headmistress aided in packing Emily's luggage and escorted her to the exit. Though the headmistress's eyes only reflected sadness, Emily herself couldn't feel anything but joy.

The boring town life was getting to her, and other purposes needed to get fulfilled.

Though Emily had always planned on leaving town for the capital, she never thought the day would arrive that sooner.

As she stepped out of the orphanage, she saw a queue of carriages waiting for them. After getting seated, Emily got accompanied by Prince Jordan.

The moment Jordan settled on the seat adjacent to Emily's, she mumbled, "It is going to be a long trip."

Prince Jordan couldn't catch up with what she spoke and hence asked her, "Did you say something?"

While adjusting herself a little sideways, Emily responded, "Nothing that should concern you."

Prince Jordan only got further interested in the handmaiden due to her fiery temper and witty remarks.

He wasn't shy in expressing his opinion, "You're quite an entertainment, Emily Adkins."

Emily looked at the guy in disbelief and was quick to say, "This is the first time I got addressed as 'entertaining'. Most of the time, people refrain from talking to me as I don't shy away from showcasing my contempt for over-friendly and audacious people."

"For a handmaiden, you lack the basic etiquette of humbleness," remarked Jordan.

Emily quickly responded with another scathing remark, "For a younger prince, you too lack the basic decency that all royals possess."

Jordan looked at the woman with disbelief as a wide grin encompassed her face. Through the rest of their journey, Jordan didn't dare to speak anything more to her.

The moment the carriage rushed through the crowded street of Stanford, Emily glared outside the window in a fanciful manner. The capital had institutions, enormous buildings and libraries, everything that Emily's town lacked.

After a brief exposure to the city, the carriage took Emily to the predated destination- the alpha queen's mansion. As she entered the place, a crowd of young women surrounded her. They took her for one of the servants that were to get recruited.

It was only then that Prince Ferdinand came to her rescue and explained, "She is the queen's handmaiden."

The crowd of women looked at Emily with baffled eyes. Since Queen Madeline hadn't allowed anybody for the post after her first handmaiden's tragic death, it was unbelievable for them that somebody was getting recruited.

Prince Ferdinand, accordingly, politely asked Emily to follow him to the Queen's chamber. Without a word, Emily quietly walked behind him, observing the elegant furniture and wonderful ambience.

Since Emily's concentration dissipated on the things around her, she couldn't mind her steps. Her head collapsed with Ferdinand's back since he stopped abruptly in front of her. While apologising, Emily stepped away and eyed the huge chamber in front of her.

Ferdinand then knocked at the door to get the permission to enter. Since they heard a response from the Queen to enter the place, Ferdinand brought Emily with her.

Emily's eyes trailed a figure sitting on the couch with kind eyes and a small mouth. It was a woman, seemingly of her age.

The woman appeared like the quintessence of tenderness and love. Emily felt something she hadn't before. Emily's eyes were wide open while her heart raced fast against her will.

Ferdinand introduced Emily to the alpha queen, but the poor woman was so enchanted that she couldn't even open her mouth to provide any response.

Annoyed by the lack of response, Queen Madeline walked closer to the young lady. Emily's breathing became intense as she sniffed the Queen.

Madeline, however, observed the woman's silence and enquired Ferdinand, "Can't she speak?"

Ferdinand himself was puzzled to observe the silence and shook Emily by holding her arm. Finally, Emily regained her focus and spoke, "Pardon me, Alpha. I am your new handmaiden, Emily Adkins."

Those words were enough to trigger Madeline. With her eyes wide opened and her fist clenched, Madeline demanded Emily get taken away.

Puzzled, Emily glared at the alluring woman and wondered if it was her response that infuriated the alpha.

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AUTHOR’S NOTE

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