Chapter 1

Aurora woke up in her darkroom as it was dawn and there was no light yet. She switched on the candle beside her bed.

She climbed out of bed and her room was very small and depressing, it was just enough to fit her bed, and a bit of leg space to put a narrow table where her uniform resided.

This was deemed to be more than enough for a female maid, she could not complain as she worked in the palace, as long as she got there on time and well prepped that was all that mattered.

She wondered why she had to be so well prepped when they were the maids and no one saw them as they usually cleaned when the royals were either asleep or having dinner or attending balls and banquets.

She took her soap and sponge, and headed outside, it was cold as per usual but she was still not used to it no matter how many times she did this usual routine.

Aurora took a wooden bucket and went to the well that was a good ten minutes from where she lived. She got to the well and threw the bucket tied to the rope,

She threw it inside and watched it sink, when it became almost full she started to roll the pedal to pull it out, when it finally did she poured the water into her own bucket.

She carried the water back to the bathroom stalls that were situated outside. They were a very small square, which had a wooden door which she closed.

It was very hard to move but she scrubbed herself whilst her teeth were clattering from the cold. She poured the water on herself and she immediately woke up in an instant.

She finished and put back her garment on and headed out back to her room. The candle at least bought a bit of light, she undressed quickly and put on her normal uniform which was a brown plain blouse and an ankle long brown skirt, and long stockings underneath, with black, closed off shoes, this was determined to be prim and proper.

She took a worn-out brush and brushed her hair back, it was red and unruly at times but by now she was used to it and how to deal with it.

She tied it up to around a full bun. She took a can to see how she looked. She was happy with the results as this is how she was supposed to look at all times.

She made her way to the palace it would take a good twenty minutes, not everyone was lucky enough to get a servant's quarters in the palace which made it all the easier.

It was all about who you knew or how you were related, or the ranking of the workers played advantage to them.

With none of those, she was in a pickle. She got on her bicycle and made her way to the palace. The road was a bit bumpy and a bit hard as dawn was breaking.

She gets to the palace gates and she gets off her bicycle, you couldn't just cycle in as it was not proper for one to do so and she had to show them her badge, for her to be allowed in.

When she was cleared she went with her bicycle to the stalls were you could park them. When she had done that, she straightened her uniform and made sure to finish any last touches.

She made her way to the staff kitchen, she was glad that they at least provided her with some bread and tea before they started work.

The room was already booming with chatter and laughter, lucky to those that got there early as they stayed there and the perks of being in the palace's servant quarters was great, hot water was available to them and at times they could eat the leftovers that were left behind by the prestige.

The temperature increased significantly from the cold and cruel weather that she had come from. She could now feel her face a bit.

Her nose was probably red from numbness, they used to laugh her because of that but thank goodness the joke eventually downed down.

She went to go get some tea first as her hands felt frozen from the trip, she took a cup and went to the tea station where they filled her cup and was given a piece of bread.

"Aurora."

She said as they ticked off her name from the list, they only could get one serving each but she knew that the ones who lived in the palace got more as they knew each other and the kitchen staff was often way more giving if you bought them something special such as a hairpin.

She had failed immensely to get a hold of anything worth of value to bribe them so she could get some more.

"Aurora here!"

Aurora went to the table where her friends were seated, she sat down.

"Morning." She greeted them all.

"You look like you froze to death." Ida remarked.

Aurora took a sip from her tea and she burnt herself, "Ouch!"

"You forget every time you drink tea." Ella added.

"It's a shame you have to make it here through this awful forsaken weather." This time it was Lucy.

"It's sad that they can't make all of us stay here. I mean they eat very well, the kings and queens but fail to even give everyone decent living conditions." Agnes said out.

"Keep your voice down, you don't know who might be listening. The palace has eyes and ears everywhere you know." Evelyn said in a hushed tone so that it was only her that could hear.

"It's okay, really." Aurora smiled at her friends, they all lived in the palace but she, it had come down to hard luck.

Not that her luck has ever been up, it was down in the slumps just like her life was. The money earned here was just enough to live by and get necessities.

Things such as eggs and cheese were rare to them and only the rich ate that and only them could they afford such a lavish life.

She took another sip of her tip as it had cooled down a bit. She was grateful for the hot liquid as it was warming her up.

"Maybe a space will open up Aurora and we can all be together." This time it was Barbara.

She was grateful for her friends wanting to help her so much, they finished chatting up and they knew it was time for them to preset the palace.

The lucky ones worked with the cooks and they got a bit of a bite, but the rest of them had sweeping duty and scrubbing the floor which left one aching all over.

She got her broom and headed to the courts and the vigorous work of scrubbing started. She put her back and all her might into it.

The day had already and it was a bit gloomy,

After two hours she was done, and needed to go in and scrub the courts,

"Aurora! Aurora!"

Aurora turned to the voice calling her and it was Cathy, she worked in the kitchen so she wondered what she wanted?

She heaved when she reached her, "You need to come with me urgently." Cathy said between breaths.

Aurora followed her to the palace, she didn't get a chance to ask Cathy what was going on? And why was she wanted?

She got inside and found the head maid standing there, madam Beatrice, she was very scary, she was older and wanted everything done to perfection.

If it wasn't you would be subject to her lashes or worse you lose your only income.

"Morning Madam Beatrice."

Madam Beatrice motioned for Cathy to leave and she did immediately, she wondered if she had done something wrong?

"Aurora, we are in a pickle, I will need you to fill in for Constance, she caught the measles and will not be able to come into work."

"Yes Madam."

It's not like she could refuse the madam after all,

"Follow me Aurora."

Aurora followed her through the palace, and she was trying to remember all the twist and turns but she knew that would not be possible.

They got to the room and the madam stood aside for her to get in, "You will be cleaning this room Aurora, and you have to clean it to perfection."

Aurora nodded, "Yes madam."

"I chose you as I know you work hard,"

"Thank you madam, I will not let you down."

"There is an hour glass which you can use, you have an hour and a half to clean this room as they are eating breakfast currently."

"Yes Madam,"

"I will leave you to it and don't disappoint me Aurora." She could hear her threatening tone and she became a bit afraid.

With that she left, and Aurora turned the hour glass and go to work immediately. She picked up the clothes for laundry, and put them in a dish. She would take them out to be washed.

She made the bed and dusted everything, she swept the floor and made sure everything was clean. Whoever was in this room seemed to be well off, the silk sheets and the garments were made from the best.

When she was done she had a bit of time to spare, she picked up the basket with the dirty laundry, as she was going out the door she bumped into someone.