A beautiful roof, painted in red, greeted me as I opened my eyes. Looking around, no one was in the room but me, laying down on the soft carpet in the middle of the room. I slowly stood up, groaning as I put my head in my hands.

I tried to understand where I’m currently at by examining the room, looking for an object that can give me the slightest clue but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t tell. Then I heard a bit of shuffling outside of the door.

I wonder what could it be?

I stood up with caution, not wanting to put any attention to where I was. I might be trespassing, for all I know.

I approached the door, turning the knob as carefully as I possibly can. As my head peaked out, maids were walking around in a panic. They were running back and forth from a room at the very end of the corridor.

Stepping out of the room and closing the door behind me, I can already tell that something serious is happening.

“Excuse me?” I tried asking one of the maids but I was ignored. I tried asking for another one but I got the same result. At that moment, I didn’t know if people didn’t see me or if everyone was just busy, not having any time to entertain unnecessary questions.

“AAHH!” I suddenly heard a scream coming from the room at the end of the hall. And with that scream, all of the people standing outside of the door rushed in its direction.

I followed a few maids to understand what’s going on. I’m absolutely confused right now. I don’t know what to make out of everything.

I stopped walking when I overheard a few medical personnel having their conversation outside of the room.

“Will she get out of this alive?” one of them asked the one wearing a blue cloth around his back.

“We’re not completely sure,” he shook his head. “We can only hope that her will to live is stronger than what she’s currently facing.”

“Amelia!” a shout was heard from behind me. I was quick to turn and saw a young man running in our direction with his guards by his side.

“Amelia,” he continued to speak a name as he bolted straight towards the door, only to be blocked by the medical personnel outside.

“Young prince, we’re not allowed to enter the room. It’s the rules,” one of them spoke in a very calm manner. I could see right through the eyes of the medical personnel that he was terrified of the situation as well.

“Amelia!” the young monarch persisted in trying to get past the medical personnel to no avail, held back by his guards.

Grunts, groans, and screams continued inside the room. Random maids go in and out of it, one carrying a basin of clear water and the other with blood-red water.

My eyes widen, horrified at the sight of those basins. What could cause such a scene?

Could the woman screaming in agony be in actual danger? If that’s the case, shouldn’t they be doing everything to stop her from bleeding?

“What’s happening to my wife?!” the young monarch asked the medical personnel with frantic eyes. “Can somebody please explain to me why my wife sounds like she’s on the brink of death?!”

“Young prince, please, calm yourself,” another medical personnel tried to tone down the hysterics of the panicked young man.

“Calm down?! You all expect me to calm down when the screams of my wife can be heard from the very doorstep of the castle?!”

“Young prince, even if you act this way, it won’t solve anything. The doctors are inside with the maids. We have to have faith with them and your wife as well,” the head of the medical personnel spoke.

“Faith in my wife? What she’s got to do with anything?” the young prince continued with his questions.

“Your wife has been in labor for hours now and according to the doctors, not a lot of progress has been showing,” the head of the medical personnel started explaining. “She’s been losing a lot of blood, possibly because of an internal wound. If she doesn’t have the will to live, we’re not sure if she can survive this birth.”

Shock hit my head and heart in an inexplicable amount. I don’t have any relations with this woman and yet I feel so affected by what’s happening to her. Her screams are enough to explain that she’s in absolute pain.

“Why aren’t they doing anything about it?!” she shouted, not able to contain his frustration. “Why won’t the doctors heal it right away?!”

“Your child is still inside her womb. Using our magic to heal your wife can have dangerous effects on the child.”

The young prince stood there in disbelief and fear. Stunned and horrified, he took a few steps back. It’s as if he’s already lost all hope for his wife’s situation.

A few more screams and grunts… then silence came upon the hallway. Everyone’s eyes, including mine, were wide open in anticipation of what happened. This silence was torture for all of us. If we couldn’t bear to hear the woman’s shouts of pain, we’d prefer that over this deafening - almost paralyzing - stillness. And even though I’m not involved in this matter, even if I’m not sure whether I’m seen or being ignored, an abnormal sense of panic arises within me.

Minutes felt like hours and the silence was broken by a loud cry of a baby.

The birth was successful! The baby was born.

But is the mother safe?

The young prince walked directly in front of the door, waiting for it to open, eagerly anticipating news about, not only his child but his wife.

The doorknob wiggled and within a second, the doctor walked out of the room, wiping his hands with some kind of cloth.

“Doctor, how is she?” the young prince asked. I walked a few more steps closer to him to listen to the news. “How is my wife?”

“I’ve done everything I could to stop the bleeding from inside her,” the doctor spoke. “It will now be up to her, on how she will recover if she’ll be able to regain her strength back.”

The young prince, still in shock and worry, nodded as he could form no words as a response. I could see thoughts racing through his mind, not knowing what to say next. “And our child?” he asked, looking back at him in a slow manner.

The doctor smiled and put his hand on his shoulder. “Allow me to be the first one to congratulate you on having a son.”

The young monarch’s eyes widened, even more, when the doctor proclaimed that he just had a son; his future heir.

Everyone around us quickly bowed to the young prince, expressing their congratulations, “All hail, the righteous prince and princess of the realm for blessing us with an heir to the throne.

And for a moment, time stood still… and the young monarch was torn from being excited about the birth of his child to fear for the very life of his wife.

♔♔♔

I groaned as I struggled to open my eyes. The rays of the sun strained my eyes a little bit as it pierced through the windows. My eyes were in a bit of pain, trying to have a better view of everything.

My surrounding was an absolute blur to me as my eyes began pushing itself to its limits in giving me a clearer perception of things.

As my eyesight became clearer, I saw a faint silhouette of a lady, sitting beside me. I blinked my eyelids a few more times and there she was: Elizabeth.

“Hello, dear brother,” she smiled, her grip on my hand tightened. “How are you feeling?”

I groaned again, feeling an immense pain on the back of my head. I buried my head in my hands, trying to soothe the pain.

“Does your head hurt that much?” she was fast to ask, standing up. “I’ll go and fetch the doctor for you.”

“No…” I gathered all the strength that I have, just to be able to utter one word.

She stopped immediately as she heard me speak. “Why not? You’re clearly in pain,” she carefully sat again, holding my hand.

I slowly shook my head, careful not to add more pain to my already pulsing head. “Where…” I tried to form a sentence at a slow pace. My body felt numb, not able to function properly. “Where’s… Mother?” I let out a deep sigh. It’s as if I ran a marathon just to say two words!

“Oh, she’s fine. You don’t have to worry about her,” Elizabeth reassured. “James has been keeping a close eye on her ever since you two arrived here.”

I looked around, trying to figure out what day it is. It felt like time passed over me.