The Crown's Entrapment

Contrary to her prior belief, she couldn't handle herself...

Just the act of undressing last night's dress had been an endeavor and a half. On top of keeping herself quiet as to not alert Jayra of her rebellious actions, even the task of getting herself presentable was making her sweat.

And that wasn't even the worst part.

"O-Oh no... BleUgH-"

Almost immediately, Xenia held her hand up to her mouth, her stomach traitorously wanting to spew out what little amount of water she managed to sip earlier. Even after years of living out her life, she never thought that she'd be brought this low by mere alcohol.

Then again, there was a reason she never drank the thing too much in the first place.

'Dammit all to hell... I don't want throw up!'

Her thoughts went on overdrive as her fight-or-flight instincts kicked in, her stomach still trying its best to expel its contents all over the floor as her eyes quickly flew towards the nearest bathroom. She could taste the acrid burn of her stomach acid already, and there was no way that she could stop this from coming out now.

'No! I can keep this in, dammit!'

Forcefully swallowing, Xenia let out a tired pant as she shook the taste of acid off her mouth. The world was still spinning, but at least she managed to fight off the worst case scenario that was utterly ruining her room by making it smell like her guts.

"T-This is a disaster..."

Xenia almost wanted to cry at the intense nausea she was feeling. Sure, she could ask Jayra to help her, but did she really-

"BLeuGH-"

Feeling her guts betray her once again, all vestiges of her stubborness faded away in favor of reluctant capitulization.

Okay, she's had enough.

"J-Jayra..." Xenia weakly uttered out, her mouth still covered in an attempt to prevent herself from vomitting. "H-Help..."

The princess winced at how weak her cries for help were. Knowing that she might not even be heard, she crawled her way to the privy in her chamber. At least she should- "BLEuGH-"

Nope! Nope! She won't make it! "J-Jayra!"

Risking it all by yelling out to her friend, her throat burned with acid as she did her best to delay the inevitable. She just had to hold out for a few more seconds before-

"Xenia?! What're you-"

"H-Help me... please..."

Moving quickly, Xenia could only let out a grateful smile as she felt Jayra carry her the rest of the way to the privy in her chamber. Letting it all out, a decent part of her pains almost evaporated instantly. She'd be able to clean up immediately as well, making sure that all of the cold sweat she had on her body was thoroughly cleaned up.

"You should've called for me for this, you know," Jayra sighed with worry as she helped her princess clean up. "I saw Darius come in earlier, and I thought you were fine."

"A-Apparently, I wasn't fine enough," Xenia weakly chuckled. "And sorry about that... I honestly thought that you'd... well, tease me..."

"Even I have enough sense not to tease you if you're suffering this much," Jayra mirthfully scoffed. "Also, Darius told me that I should escort you back to the dining hall for breakfast. Though for some reason, I have a feeling that he planned on doing that himself before he saw you."

Xenia could only scoff, "Well, that's obviously because of these things... on my shoulder... I didn't give him permission last night..."

"Or maybe you did," Jayra pointed out. "You just don't remember it."

Well, she did now, but that was something that she was planning on keeping to herself.

"My drunk self should be different from my normal s-self," she quickly retorted despite her protesting stomach. "I-I was... I shouldn't be responsible enough... B-BLEU-"

Another retch stopped Xenia from finishing her thought. But at least Jayra was there for her as she rubbed her back.

"There there... We'll get that fixed soon enough..."

Xenia could only hope that was the case. She was meeting with the Queen Mother just a few minutes from now, and she should at least be presentable for that.

"Just... Just help me?"

"Sure thing, milady."

***

"I'm never drinking... alcohol again..."

Holding onto Jayra's arm for support, Xenia made her way to the dining hall, where Darius and his family will surely be waiting for her to appear. She didn't know how much time had passed, but she was pretty sure that she was running late already.

Well, at least she had the excuse that was her crippling hangover.

"Don't say that," Jayra chuckled beside her. "You'll have to drink wine during social gatherings, you know. There's no escaping alcohol in our lives."

"Well, I say I can live without it..." Xenia pouted in defiance. "No more... drinking wine for me..."

"Save that anti-alcohol talk for when you're pregnant," Jayra cheekily quipped. "Right now, as a monarch, you have the responisibility of drinking socially for the good of your realm."

"W-What happened to not teasing me while I'm suffering?" Xenia pouted, her face still a bit green from her nausea. "I just don't want to feel this bad..."

"Ah, but what if Darius asks you to drink with him?"

Jayra's counter question almost gave her pause. However, she quickly recovered as she harrumphed, "Then he can drink all by himself."

"Keep telling yourself that~"

Weakly shaking her head, Xenia decided count her losses and keep quiet. Still, that one question still lingered in her mind. Would she truly risk getting drunk again if it meant spending more time with Darius? Wait... Why was she even thinking about this?

"We're here."

Looking up, Xenia felt the smallest tinge of anxiety creep up on her as the doors to the Dining Hall entered her vision. Somehow, a part of her was telling her that something big was about to happen behind these closed doors.

"Are you ready?" Jayra asked.

"H-Hopefully," Xenia murmured out. "You can let go of me now."

Feeling her friend's support leave her body, her knees slightly wobbled as she stood on her own two feet. Mustering up her focus, she walked forward. At the very least, it allowed her to push away the nagging question to the back of her mind unaswered.

She was definitely not going to answer that with a 'maybe.'