Princess' Task

**Trevor POV**

A pounding in my head caused me to wake up groaning out in misery. Whether I was more pained by the internal hammering or the fact my sweet dream of my Cupcake was gone; was anyone's guess. Both were fighting to split me open.
My arm flopped around like a caught fish until it met with a cool glass. How nice! Someone left me a tall glass of water and what appeared to be powdered pills. I downed them faster than a child with a handful of M&Ms. Feeling slightly less lightheaded, I stood from the bed. Sluggishly, my memories from before my drink caught up with me.
"Did something happen to the princes?" I almost didn't want an answer. I loved those kids like my own.
Not startled in the least, my sister answered from her desk, "an attempted abduction that failed."
Damn, the assassin was going after the princes now. "I'm sorry. I should have protected you all. Found a way to-"
Her face twisted unnaturally. "What happened is not your fault! Devon will be making the trip here soon and can help keep his children safe. You have your mission to concentrate."
Guilt crawled under my skin. I should have investigated more but wound up sleeping in my sister's bed dreaming of the woman I was attempting to get over.
"Whatever your perverted head is thinking about manwhore, could you stop?" She pointed downwards with an annoyed expression.
Suddenly my nakedness occurred to me. I jumped back faster than Sonic himself and tied a sheet around myself. It did little to hide my excitement at the thought of Cupc-Natalie. Her name is Natalie, not my Cupcake… but damn, was she sweet.
"TREVOR! There are clothes on the mother freaking chair I had a maid retrieve for you! I do not want to see your Wiggle Worm!"
I mock scolded while dressing, "I haven't called him that since I was twelve! How the fuck do you remember it!"
Still sheltering her face from my fantastic body, she replied, "I kept the information under lock and key in case you ever got a serious girlfriend. Thought she would like to know about Mr. Wiggle Worm!"
"You wouldn't!"
"Oh, but I have every reason to humiliate you after last night. You and your Wiggle Worm manwhore."
I snapped at her playfully, "stop calling me manwhore, and for the love of everything holy, don't say Wiggle Worm anymore!"
"Then don't attempt reproduction with a woman on my bed the day your engagement gets announced fecking MANWHORE!"
I had just finished arranging my tunic with a golden raven on one shoulder and a tree on the other when my sister's words registered in my foggy mind. Whatever beer that must have been stronger than any brew I'd had previously. My head wasn't keeping up.
Confident I had misheard my sister, I wiggled my pinky into my ear to clear out the passage. "What did you say?"
Gritting her teeth now, she rephrased. "You brought Cupcake up here to fool around only hours apart from Princess Lydia announcing you had proposed to her."
"Natalie died yesterday in your Mother's courtyard." I had to squeeze my hand hard to control my rising temper. "Princess Lydia and I are not engaged. We TALKED about maybe in the future. The only girl I was going to sleep with was Lydia AFTER I made it clear it was imperative I get over Natalie first. I would never marry a woman while still in mourning!"
"You made that crystal clear to her? She told all the high and mighty in Lutz you two are engaged. It was strange she did that while you weren't there, but she acted so dauntlessly, we assumed she was telling the truth."
"I was chasing after the assassin. Lydia had seen her out of the corner of her eye, so I went after the killer."
"Really? She said you were sick."
The hell? I needed to have a talk with her soon. Something was not sitting right with me, and it wasn't just the alcohol.
"Then the assassin attacks; Natalie and little Shion bested the assassin, forcing him to flee. Next thing I know, you're here drugged up on some sprinkled in Flower Happiness."
I blinked a few times. Obviously, I was still dreaming. "I had a beer. Sure it was strong, but-" was I really drugged last night? Whatever was going on, I had to stop falling for the assassin's traps. Shortly I would go check on that Izzy girl and then be on my way to the horse stables. Jacob was a traitor but a damn good investigator.
"Are you okay?" A basic question. All she said was a basic question, and my body froze. Aileen had enough on her plate without an extra serving of drama from me. "Trevor, talk to me."
I flexed my muscles a bit, letting my ego shine. "Naturally, nothing can keep this man down for long! Don't worry about Shion and Kalum. Their Uncle will defeat anyone who harms the hair on their adorable little heads! Just look at me! The assassin was smart to run!"
Aileen's face fell. She rubbed at her temple, thinking hard about her following words.
When she spoke, I was surprised. Her words felt like they were falling from someone else's lips. It was worse than a slap to the face. "Shion and Kalum should be up from their nap soon. I want to have something sweet here to soothe them after yesterday's stress."
"Okay? Shall I call for a maid?" I asked, flabbergasted at her change in demeanor and subject. "Wait, nap? What time is it?"
"Past noon, brother. The drug knocked you out. And no maid. I do not trust anyone but you to retrieve this snack. Would you really risk someone giving your innocent nephews poison?"
Her words were getting clipped the more she spoke. A storm was brewing inside her, waiting for an opportunity to let her temper blow. "Just go get a dessert. Oh, and do stay with the baker present. Make sure nothing is added."
"Reduced to Errand Boy…"
"You fuss worse than Kalum. Anyway, I may have done you a favor. I heard the baker working is quite cute and has been given the kitchen exclusively for the next couple of hours."
Zero sense. The kitchens were always bustling with cooks and bakers. Why is only one working currently? Perhaps the King is taking after his daughter's paranoia.
Huffing out my annoyance, I begrudgingly agreed to the demeaning task.
Out of nowhere, she asked, "would you like my help with the investigation?"
I shook my head. "No, I'm fine. Nothing can stop God's finest creation!" She shouldn't worry about me, not with everything going on with Shion. Although, I do miss working with her. The two of us could solve anything together. But she had enough to deal with, especially with her past resurfacing.
A loud thump sounded from under her desk. "Go!"
"Got it; you want something, sweet Princess." I tried to mock.
"I want my brother back."
Of course she could tell something was wrong with me. Aileen could always read me just as I could her...
Knowing her temper was dangling by the thinnest spider thread, I turned for the door. "Hold on."
She got up from her desk and closed the distance between us. I had expected to see a fake smile on her face, but no. My sister was grinning from ear to ear. In all my years with my dear sister, I had seen that particular look only when she was furious. Aileen had a misleading habit of smiling when extremely pissed. If she shuts up and smiles, run. Don't think, just run.
"Ail-" *SMACK*
My ears were ringing from the force of her slap. I blinked a few times, too stunned to talk. I expected her to do something, but not a bitch slap. A red print was already forming on my left cheek and stinging badly. She put all her momentum and power into that hit.
"Now you know you aren't sleeping. Remember that."
I marched myself out her door, yelling over my shoulder, "it's a pinch, not a slap."
In the distance, as I closed her door, I heard her snort out, "don't care."
Outside the Princess' wing, people were in a hurry running off going about their daily tasks. I crossed paths with a young scribe lad along my way to the kitchens. In his hands were two books, a quill, and ink. Perfect. I pulled him around a corner with me. The poor boy went pale, assuming he had somehow disrespected me. I didn't give him the time to apologize or bow. I could care less for any of those formalities.
"Rip out a piece of paper that is blank on at least one side for me, good man." I did my best to make him feel at ease.
He gulped before answering me timidly, "these are to be prepared for the Lord Erm."
"Tell the Lord of Erm one page is missing, for it was essential to the Prince of Lutz. He can take any issues up with me personally or King Ulrich if he must."
The scribe did as instructed and ripped me out a piece with some kind of war tactics on the front. The back was blank. It worked fine.
I placed the paper against the wall. The scribe was wise and got the quill ready for me. In sloppy, rushed handwriting, I wrote,
*Dear Lord Devon,*
*Your favorite brother-in-law is having more issues here than he had predicted. The assassin is after your sons, at least one of them. He is more cunning than I initially gave him credit for. Aileen is having problems with Sir Alaric's voice again too. As much as I despise admitting it, I need your help here.*
*PS) Do not tell Aileen you received this letter. It will only cause her more stress. Tell her you finished your stuff, and I know you missed her, so just go with that. #BurnPaperWhenDone: Yes, I'm so desperate that I used a ridiculous hashtag. So you know this is serious.*
*Humbly,*
*The Best Trevor The World Has Ever Seen*

"Have this addressed to the Lord of Vernen immediately and find someone to send the letter swiftly. I'm counting on you." I handed everything back to the astonished-looking scribe. You would think I'd just given him a sack of gold.
He beamed at me, "thank you, my Prince! I am honored to be trusted with such an important task! It shall be done with haste!"
I nodded and walked down two more flights of stairs to the kitchen. My head was becoming more and more clustered with each step. The assassin's intimate knowledge of the castle and my family, being drugged, all those electronics in the bastard's hideout, his attack on my family, and then getting away; him and his scheming was one step ahead of me on everything.
Just as I was about to push open the doors to the kitchen, a soothing voice cut through my thoughts and halted my hands. I pressed my ear to the door, listening intently. Inside, a girl was playfully and free-spiritedly singing a country song from my dimension. The cheerful tune had me completely mesmerized. Just hearing her was calming me and clearing my mind.
*Right, it didn't matter how cunning the assassin was. I would best him in the end. No one messes with my family, me, or the people I care about.*
I closed my eyes, starting to feel like my magnificent self again. A warm smile grew on my face while I let myself be refreshed by whoever sang beyond the door.