A Prince or a Villain?

         This story took place in Great Britain, in 1854 when many changes occurred rapidly. There were new inventions and discoveries. However, we’ll leave those matters to be discussed by scientist and historians. This is going to focus on a young girl whose life is being transformed into a dignified lady.

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Chapter 1

         I opened my eyes for another day in our country house. Outside the window, I could hear lively music of birds and nature calling me. So far, it had been a superb time which I had enjoyed tremendously by roaming around the country side.
         I came here last week to my brother’s country house to enjoy my summer here, where I could escape from the dirty air of London. My poor parents had to stay there and surprisingly, they actually liked the idea of spending the whole summer in the city. I lay lazily in the bed, not wanting to wake up from this drowsiness.
         “Good morning, Miss.” As the maid opened the curtains, she spoke continuously to rouse me. She started cleaning, and at the same time, making loud noises. Of course I knew this was all to get me out of bed.
         “Good morning, Cassie.” Cassie is my own maid who came with me from London. She’s a bit older than me, about 20 years old. That makes her like a sister to me, on whom I can rely. She helped me dress in comfortable clothes, suitable for the countryside. While I was dressing, there was a knock upon the door.
         “Reina, are you ready yet?” It was the voice of my older brother, Killian.
I desperately shoved my head into the petticoat and shouted back, “Wait a moment, Kyle” (That’s his nickname, which I like better than Killian). Don’t go without me!” Today we were going to have breakfast outdoors. That was the advantage of staying with Kyle and without our strict parents. I heard the chuckles and knew that my brother was going to wait for me.
         Finally I finished dressing and opened the door wide to see my brother. In the country he wore much simpler clothes than he used to wear in London. He brushed back his long light brown (almost blond) hair with a hand. Then, with his deep purple eyes shining at me, he extended his hand to escort me. Together we walked toward our picnic ground.
         “Where are we going to eat? I hope we go to the lake today.” It was hard to keep the excitement out of my voice. Also, I couldn’t help staring at my brother to find differences in him since I last saw him. He looked cheerful, but I could tell there was some sorrow lurking his eyes. He still wasn’t over the tragedy. I put that thought out of my head firmly-determined not to let it ruin my fresh day.
         “We could go to the lake if you want, Sure. I’m perfectly willing to do anything for my baby sister.”
         “Life has been so hard with you gone. While you were here having a nice time in the country, I had to be stuck in the old mansion with that mean old governess!”
         “Governess Eugenia, I’ve forgotten her last name. She is just as old as other governesses, though.” I didn’t want my brother to defend her. Why wouldn’t he let me say bad things about her when she wasn’t around to check my behavior like a hawk? I shot him an evil-eye and tried to look at him that way for a long time. But then I sighed and gave up. What was the use of trying to convince my brother that Eugenia was really horrible? I was only glad that she didn’t follow me here; she came down with a sickness just before my parents sent me here. If she were with me, she wouldn’t have allowed me to be what I was right now. She was such a royal pain!
         We reached our destination. The lake was sparkling with the summer sun reflecting upon it. Of course, it was early in the morning and the sun wasn’t high up. The weather was a bit chilly. Still, it was refreshing to breathe in air heavy with dew.
         “I’m going to put a cloth on the ground and set the meal up. Meanwhile, you may go to lake and enjoy yourself. Don’t get too wet, though, and remember the water isn’t warm yet.” He knew I was thinking about jumping into the lake right then, but hearing about the chilly water changed my mind. I decided just to go and dip my hand in.
         I set off, excited, to the bank of the lake. I took off my shoes and drew my skirt around me tightly, so that it wouldn’t get wet. I bent toward the water and suddenly lost my balance….SPLASH!
          It was freezing cold! It felt like ice water. In the confusion, I drank some water which turned my stomach very sick and my head dizzy. There I was, at the edge of the lake, slowly drowning to death. Okay, that wasn’t the case since I knew how to swim--but not very well. I stroked wildly my arms and legs as hard as I could, but I could barely keep my face above the surface. The dress dragged me down as it gained weight quickly, absorbing the water. What in the world was my brother doing while I was in the water? Did he think I wouldn’t listen and dive into the lake anyway? I hoped that wasn’t the case. Then he’d assume everything was all right and wouldn’t come for me in time. The water numbed my senses and as time passed it seemed like forever, but in reality it was only a few minutes. I began to lose my strength and consciousness. I saw my brother coming for me at the bank and could just make out his expression of shock. In no time, he jumped right in. Soon he came by my side and I could feel his arms around me, trying to support my rigid body. Together we swam to the lakeshore and rested there. My brother nervously checked my conditions and found me alright, expect for my chattering teeth, blue lips and nails. He was clearly relived that the worst had passed.
          “Your face looks so white, stay here. I’ll bring some brandy.” In a jiffy, he came back and gently poured some brandy down my throat. It did me good, although I didn’t like the taste of it. I felt the warmth spreading from my stomach and going off throughout my whole body.
          The picnic was ruined by the accident and my brother insisted that we should go back so that I could to take a warm bath and let Cassie take care of me. I didn’t object much because I was too feeble to speak.
          When we returned, the butler instantly called Cassie, and I was dragged into the immense care of Cassie. The warm water was too good. Cassie was rambling on about how I should have been more careful and how I was now old enough to look after myself. I was in the middle of defending myself when I was about to fall asleep. A sudden realization hit me so hard that my face burned bright red. Thank goodness it wouldn’t show because my face was already pink from the heat. Why didn’t I shout for help when I was in the water? Surely my brother was within earshot, I can’t believe that such stupidity could’ve cost my life. I tried to comfort myself. Anyone could have made a mistake about not shouting help when one is in danger (I had to suppress the inner voice of mine saying, “But when would you shout for help if not in danger?” Good point….hmmm) I groaned slightly agonized by my thought. Hearing the sound, Cassie panicked, thinking I was badly hurt. I wasn’t in the mood of telling her what was bothering me so I told her I wanted to sleep. It would do me good to forget all that happened at the lake. I buried myself deep under the covers of the bed. Cassie-- having no idea why I was acting like that-- assumed that I was upset and left me alone.
          When I woke up, I was refreshed and no longer tired. I rang the bell calling Cassie in. I glanced at the clock and to my surprise, it was 4 o’clock. No wonder my stomach shouted savagely for something to digest. Cassie entered the room with some food.
          “How did you know that I was hungry? I believe today’s food is better than ever!” She was really a wonderful maid. Between my bites I praised her and also the cook.
          “Oh, it’s nothing, miss. I just brought some portion of food from downstairs. There are some guests down there.” She waved her hand away. The way she said it and her eyes dancing merrily made me curious and I had suspicion that she was hiding something from me.
          “Come out with it, Cassie. You know I don’t like guessing. What are you hiding from me?” I was always begging for her to tell me what was up.
          “Well,” I wanted to shake her and demand who came but there wasn’t any hope of doing that, “I might say there are some guests from London. They looked mighty familiar.”
         I got it! It must be my parents, since I have no idea with whom else in London Cassie would be familiar. Then I wondered, why had they come without any notice? Did something happen? I couldn’t wait to go downstairs to see them. But Cassie wouldn’t let me go before dressing completely. I had to wear my corset tied extra tight and a long flourish skirt that had to be supported by a hoop.
          “What’s all this fuss for anyway?” I complained.
But Cassie just smiled mysteriously and said, “You’ll see, miss.”
          I ran all the way downstairs to parlor. I had to stop dead when I saw not only my parents, my brother, my governess, Eugenia, but also some one I’d never seen before in my life. He was a pale gentleman which gave him the air of a vampire. I knew that my prejudice shouldn’t affect the way I see people, but I couldn’t help it. He had piercing eyes. I always thought grey eyes would be dull, but his weren’t. He had long, dark black hair that flowed to touch his shoulder, even though it was tied in a ponytail. They all looked stunned by my “gracious” entrance.
          “Really, Reina!” my mom cried out sharply and turned to the gentlemen. “I apologize for my daughter’s behavior, Lord Carston.” I swallowed hard and just stood awkwardly. I could feel Eugenia’s sharp glances and felt very humiliated.
          “I assure you that no offense is being taken. I’m so privileged to meet your lovely daughter. I was worried that the tragic event at the lake would prevent our meeting.” My brother came and led me to a couch facing Lord Carston. He sat next to me. I wanted to ask everyone what was going on, but bit my tongue instead, not desiring to make another mistake. Silence settled for a long time after we had seated. I just couldn’t bear it, plus Lord Carston’s gaze fixed upon me for an odd reason.
          Kyle talked very smoothly to break the silence. “I didn’t know that you were coming, Raphael. It has been a long time since we have seen each other.” I knew Kyle would come to my rescue. However, I was surprised at my brother’s friendly tone. How did Kyle know him? They look so different. Encouraged by my brother, my parents then began to explain the situation to me.

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          Bang! I shut the door as hard as I could and threw myself upon my bed. I was really mad at my parents. Why did I have to go to my first ball with this man whom I barely knew? I simply didn’t care about his status in society. I also couldn’t believe that my parents decided my debut at society without consulting me first. I was not ready for that! I was only sixteen and the normal debuting ages were a minimum of seventeen to eighteen. I turned and laid on my back. The evening’s conversation was still in my head, repeating itself again and again.
          “Your father and I’ve decided that it was high time for your coming out in society.” My mother, o my sweet mother, why were you beaming like that? I didn’t want to get myself a husband yet. Couldn’t I have my choice? Apparently, refusing it would be out of question because there was a guest present. I did my best to smile and look pleased with it.
          “Aren’t I a bit young for a debutant, mother? I’m not sure if I’m able to handle it.”
          “Nonsense, dear child. Governess Eugenia assured us that you’re perfectly ready for it. We agree with her.” What? You believed her?! That was even worse than my parent coming up with the idea by themselves. However, the worst was yet to come. “Don’t you agree, Lord Carston?” My mom gave him a flash of a smile.
          “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t agree to that, madam.” How did he come in to the picture? Why was he here when my parents are telling me that I’m going to make appearance in society?
          “As you would’ve guessed, Lord Carston is here to be your escort for your first ball. “ At this I meekly thanked him. My stomach was being churned by the outcome of the conversation.
          This was the brief outline of our conversation. I laid there, staring hard into the ceiling. I continued to do so till I heard a knock on the door.
          “Come in.” When the door opened, it was my mother who entered the room. I was half expecting her and would have gone to her room if she didn’t come, so I was relieved.
          “Hello honey. How’s your week been? I heard about your accident from Killian. How frightening it must have been for you.” She didn’t wait for an answer and continued. “I’m sorry that your debut was earlier than what we intended, but Governess Eugenia was so sure that you’re going to be the jewel of the society. We’ve prepared everything for you since last year. We’ve bought clothes, new jewelry and many things to make you appear at your best.”
          “But mom, why does Lord Carston have to be my escort to my debut? I’ve never met him and I so wanted Kyle to be my first escort.”
          “Girl! You have to thank Lord Carson for what he’d done. He doesn’t usually go to balls or any parties for that matter. He’s high in society. Can’t you see that if you went with him, that alone is going to make success out of your debut? I’ve heard many rumors that lots of young girls who wanted to be seen with him but didn’t get a chance. Oh, I can see the face of Lady Melville! She would really be envious that I could get such a gentleman as an escort for my sweetie.” She giggled, probably satisfied that she won a competition. She said good night to me and went out.
          So far, what I knew of Lord Carston was really little. I knew that his name is Raphael and my brother somehow knew him and was friendly enough to call him by his first name. He was a man whom most ladies liked, although I failed to see any reason for it. He was pretty high up in the society. I didn’t like his appearance much, but they say you can’t judge a book by its cover. I would probably get to know him better before the ball, because he was going to be with us for a few days. I didn’t know how I was going to tell Christine Melville that I was debuting in the same year as she is, even though I was a year younger than her. As my mother said, it was going to be fun seeing her face when I visited her later.

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To be continued...