The Cursed Prince's Strange Bride

The thought had occurred to her to ask Paulina for a mirror as she felt she would get some answers if she started by seeing how she looked like because something told her this was more than she was assuming it was.Maybe they were mistaking her for someone else, and she wanted to know why.

She had followed Paulina to the small old house and took the hand mirror from Paulina to look at herself.

"HOLY SHIT!" She exclaimed in a voice loud enough to cause an earthquake, startling Paulina.

She looked different. What happened to her face? Her hair? She wondered in alarm while also trying to stay calm and not panic. Nothing would come out of it if she panicked. A part of her had expected this no matter how silly and absurd the thought had been.

"My lady, please... you should lay down on the bed and wait for the doctor." Paulina pleaded.

"What year is this?" Alicia turned to ask her calmly.

\'Please be 2020. Please be 2020.\' She prayed silently. If it was 2020, then she would likely be able to do something about the current situation, even though it all seemed absurd.

"1503," Paulina answered hesitantly. "You... really do not remem— my lady!" She gasped when Alicia fell to the floor, looking lost.

What was she going to do? How did she get here? What was happening to her? How was she going to return? Why was the universe playing a cruel joke on her? Why did things suddenly have to go south just when she had seen the light at the end of the tunnel? She had a promotional gig with P & J company for goodness sake!

"You." She turned to focus her gaze on Paulina who looked at her eagerly. "You... don\'t have a cell ph–" She shook her head and rephrased her question. "Do you know what a cell phone is?"

Paulina nodded vigorously, causing Alicia\'s eyes to widen hopefully.

"Really? Do you know where I can find one?"

"My lady!" She cried. "What do you want to do in a cell? It\'s dirty and smelly."

"Excuse me?" Alicia asked the hope she had slowly dying. "I said a cell phone!"

"I don\'t know if that\'s what they call prisons now," Paulina said in between her tears.

"This is really 1503?" She asked again, gradually resigning to her reality.

Paulina nodded again and stood up from the marbled floor to search inside a small wooden chest beside the tiny bed.

Paulina returned with a little book and handed it over to her.

"This is your diary, my lady. Maybe you can remember all about yourself later." Paulina offered her the book which she took hesitantly.

She couldn\'t do this. She couldn\'t live here. She had to leave. She stood up from the floor and turned towards the door but Paulina hurried to stand in front of her.

"Please my lady. You need to stay in. Madam Grace is coming with the doctor to check you. It has been your wish to return to the palace. Please stay in so you can be checked properly."

"Paulina, is it?" Alicia asked and the girl nodded.

"Take me to where you found me. You saved me from drowning right? I need to return there."

"NO! My lady, you cannot go back inside the village. If anyone finds out you have been there, we may all get killed and Madam Grace would make us starve. Please, my princess." She knelt and cried.

Alicia could not help but feel sympathy for the girl. What had she gotten into?

There was no way she could leave now seeing how Paulina was crying. She wasn\'t that heartless to do that to the poor girl. So she was going to wait until late at night and escape.

She had to find her way back to whatever river they had saved her from and return to her real life. She could not live here. Never!

She guessed it should be about 7 pm now. Since they obviously didn\'t have a TV nor cell phone, she assumed they would have slept off by 9. She was going to escape no matter what it took, Alicia resolved in her heart.

An hour later, Alicia sat down patiently as the doctor checked her pulse and continued to hum. Then he placed his fingers on her temples, probably checking the pulse there also. When he was done with everything, he turned to look at Madam Grace who was eyeing her with concern.

"She seems fine. It must have been the shock from the incident. With proper rest, she should be fine by the morrow."

Alicia decided not to draw much attention to herself. If she wanted her plan to be successful, she had to play along and let them off her back. So when the doctor left, she lay down on the bed. She was starving but that was the least of her problems. She had to return home. No one was going to believe this story!

"My lady,"

She sighed when she heard Paulina call her. The girl was nice, but she was beginning to piss her off.

"I am glad it is nothing serious. Please sit up and have dinner."

Dinner?

Alicia sat up and looked up expectantly but the smile on her face faded when she saw the little plate on Paulina\'s hand.

"What\'s that?" She asked, frowning in confusion.

"Dinner, my lady. It\'s your favorite. You like roasted corn." She said before placing it on a stool beside her bed.

Alicia looked at the two little cobs of corn that had been roasted and looked up at Paulina.

"Just kill me!" She sighed in resignation.