Continuation of: The Lady or the Tiger?

 Moving her hand to the right was not the actual answer she had chosen to give. The semi-barbaric princess had always suffered from muscle spasms and occasional facial paralysis. Originally her scheme was as follows: Stab her father with a knife concealed among her many petticoats, declare herself ruler of the kingdom, then marry the peasant. But, as with most unsavory and dire situations, every possible part goes awry. As the muscle spasm ended her lover had already opened the door, revealing the beautiful lady. Furious would only begin to describe the fiery emotion that raged within her. For the princess had decided her love was not reciprocating the same feelings as she any longer, so it was time to show him who was boss. 

However dear readers, do not think her abysmally cruel, as she was not actually sentencing her lover to permanent sleep. The peasant, Lucos, was a tiger tamer by trade and often could be found brutally whipping tigers into submission for the semi-barbaric king’s amusement. Thus the king’s daughter knew Lucos would conquer the tiger by pure force of will, though with no small amount of effort. After concluding that the momentous task was possible, she believed herself to be both fair and serving both their interests. Whatever the intentions behind her final decision, the outcome was the opposite of the desired path.

Out walked the lady in all her rosy-cheeked, lace-clad wedding dress splendor. The peasant gave a mighty whoop of happiness and swept up the maiden in his arms, effectively earning the hatred of Princess Irene forever. The two were married on the spot, with much pomp and to-do about the ceremony. Cheers and parties including the whole kingdom could be heard well into the following day. Only one creature in all the land did not utter a single sound of joy, her only feature was a sullen disposition.

The next day the peasant snuck into the great castle to visit Irene. She was upset with him for consenting to marry the beautiful lady but forgave him after seeing the truly sorry look on his handsome face. They swore to meet twice a month to continue their love. As the years passed Lucos forgot about the bi-monthly appointments more. He began to love his wife with an even greater passion than his affection for Irene ever was. He visited her less and less frequently until the visits stopped completely. As he drew away, the king’s daughter became a shadow of her former self, eating naught but a bite of cake a day or a sip of water. As with most Fadeings people forget all about the person who was once alive and well. Memories begin to disappear and humans get rather suspicious if only one remembers an event or person. One day she was seen no longer in the castle, nor a peep heard from her chambers. After becoming a being stuck in the shadows between life and death, the princess did the only rational thing to do; haunt the person who caused the immense emotional pain that lead to her demise. 

Lucos was quite old at the time this began; his sixtieth birthday was upon him in naught but three months. As these were the semi-barbaric times when it was considered a long life to reach your thirty-fifth birthday, no one was surprised when he died of a sudden heart attack. It was caused by a simple pan falling to the ground, but only thanks to none other than a rather vengeful ghost.