A lady sprinted through the dark streets of London, chased by a group of men whose eyes gleamed with bloodlust.
Cornered into a narrow alley, she skidded to a stop at a dead end.
No escape. Nowhere to hide.
Out of breath, she scanned for an exit, but there was none. She had run out of options and places to hide.
The day she had dreaded had finally come.
She inhaled deeply. Fear shouldn't cross her mind at that moment, she had to think!
If anything she wasn't ready to embrace her fate.
'Think!'
She screamed in her mind. She wouldn't let herself die like that.
She had come this far, not to be tossed aside like a piece of rotten meat and be left as food for the street dogs.
The lady stood tall and looked straight into the eyes of murderous men out for her blood.
Before another thought could cross her mind a blade went through her neck.
**
"Lady Irene."
My eyes fluttered open at the call of some.. person.
The blinding sunlight made me hiss and turn away, shielding my eyes.
"Lady Irene it's time for you to get up." The person said again. "Your parents are waiting for you."
I forced myself to sit up, blinking at the strange maid standing before me.
My shock only grew as I took in the unfamiliar surroundings.
Right there, I sat on a king sized bed, with perfumed sheets, in a giant room which walls were emerald coloured.
Was this.. heaven?
But there was no way someone as filthy as I could possibly end up in heaven.
I had never dreamt of beholding such luxury and laughter bubbled up from my chest.
It worked.
It actually worked!
"Milady, what is so funny?" I looked back at the pestering maid, who was frowning slightly.
"What is it?" I asked, slightly irked by her disturbance.
The maid only smiled gently. "I've been trying to tell you. Your parents are waiting for you downstairs."
I blinked.
I guess I had parents now.
The room, the bed, the smell of coconut — I really didn't feel like leaving from where I currently sat.
"Do I have to?" I asked.
I could do anything just to stay on this bed for another hour, add a few more days.
"Is that a question?" The maid raised a brow.
I did not know who she was but now I definitely didn't like her.
Another person added to my hate list.
Finally mustering up every last bit of will power I had, I was finally able to peel the bedsheets from over my body.
I dragged my self and stood in the center of the room.
The maid looked at me like she was awaiting something while I looked at her blankly.
What exactly was I suppose to do now?
"Come in." She called and walking in were four more maids with their head bowed.
Help the princess prepare to meet His Highness," she ordered.
Princess?
Was that what I was?
**
I was surely in heaven now.
The maids bathed me — a proper bath. I could've sworn that I hadn't had a decent shower in days.
Always running around, doing some dirty work or the other.
I was clad in a simple, elegant dress and the maids had began to braid my hair.
If I knew this was where I would end up I would have killed myself years ago and rid myself of poverty, other than taking the lives of others.
Far better than the blood-soaked life I lived before.
When a mirror was placed before me, I immediately frowned.
I knew exactly who this was.
Princess Irene. The youngest daughter of King George.
This was the body I shifted to!
I wasn't at all pleased with her looks.
She wasn't ugly... but compared to my old self? Definitely a downgrade.
"Is anything the matter Milady?" One of the maids asked, timidly.
I only just realized how much I was scowling.
"It's nothing." I said. "Focus on your work." The maids here were too nosy for my liking.
But what exactly did I have to complain about?
I'd gotten a roof over my head, clean clothes, a bed, maids and best of all I was now a princess.
And I loved the authority.
I used to be an assassin, bound by blood debts to kill without question, to a certain man for reasons best left unknown.
This body and this life was way better. And I could bare with this face.
But I knew all this wouldn't last. The flames of revenge cannot easily be extinguished by mere luxury.
Besides, aside from being an assassin, I was a Reborn — capable of shifting my soul into another body and become 'reborn'.
Although if I died, I couldn't determine the body I moved to.
This was the first time I'd ever attempted shifting souls and now I'm regretting the fact that I hadn't done it a long time ago.
One can only pity for the poor princess.
The more time I spent in this body, the weaker Princess Irene's soul would grow. Eventually, it would die out.
Not that I cared.
Empathy was a luxury I had long abandoned and I was living my best life right now.
"Your parents await you at the dinning hall Milady." I turned to the maid in disbelieve.
"You mean.. for breakfast?" I asked with a glint in my eyes, almost in disbelief. "Yes Milady." The maids were confused.
I stood up so fast and sudden that my chair fell backwards. "Why didn't say that earlier!"
____
I could smell it already — real food. Not stale bread scraps or broth. Real, hot food.
I was a princess now after all.
I grinned and chuckled in my mind.
The maids exchanged perplexed looks. I nudged my head forward.
After all I didn't know where the dinning hall was.
_____
I didn't waste a second admiring it. I stuffed my face greedily.
I didn't even know what I was eating — only that it tasted heavenly.
"Irene,"someone called hesitantly.
It took sometime to realize I was the one being called.
I looked up, meeting a room full of confused and slightly disgusted faces.
"What is this behavior?" the woman beside me — my supposed mother — gasped in horror, as if I was strangling a child.
I slowed my chewing and swallowed stifly. I had forgot I was to be a princess.
"Sorry." I muttered, quietly.
"What has gotten into you?" Another princess asked.
I sat up and leaned back lazily. "I don't understand what the problem is. It's food and I'm eating." She was speechless.
They were all speechless.
Their faces shifted from confusion to outright alarm.
They were a few number of things I could never tolerate and one of them was disrespect.
That was one rule that was ingrained in my brain and I strictly adhered to.
"This rude behavior will not be accepted." A prince — clearly an older brother — cut in, intending to teach me some manners.
His voice then softened, "This is not like you." They all looked confused and concerned. Mostly concerned.
What was I doing?
If I'd kept acting this way, I was bound to draw too much attention.
Bad attention.
I really didn't know how this Irene behaved so I the best thing I could do was keep quiet say nothing.
"I didn't lie. Why do you care how I eat? "
*Sigh*
I talked.