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Kira
The morning following Maeteo’s surprise arrival greeted me with dry eyes and a thumping headache.
My breakfast was waiting for me on the coffee table as I made my way from my bed after giving up on sleeping any longer. I had been tossing and turning since I had gotten back into bed in the little hours of this morning. Maeteo’s bloodied and beaten face appearing behind my eyelids every time I closed them made it difficult to drift off, and the little sleep I did get was plagued with the noise of his body hitting the floor and the copper and iron smell of the blood decorating the castle floors. As the birds started singing outside my window, I threw back my duvet and slipped my robe back on, blinking away the vivid reds.
Gracie had made her way into my room already and was sitting on her usual sofa, her legs underneath herself and her brown hair pulled up onto the top of her head as she sipped on a steaming mug of tea. She smiled as I appeared, but the bags under her eyes gave away the fact that she had not had much sleep either.
Letting myself flop down onto the other sofa, I covered my face with my hands and let out a groan. The lack of sleep was enough to make today a bad day, but the thought of what awaited me down in the castle dungeons made my stomach ache. Gracie nudged the coffee table closer to me with her knee.
I reached out a hand, grabbing myself a flaky pastry covered in butter and chocolate sauce, and lay back against the sofa cushions, my eyes on the ceiling as I chewed absentmindedly.
The thought of Maeteo being so close made me feel uneasy. I had told him not to follow me, and he had not listened. I did not know if I was angry or relieved that he was here. I wondered if he was here by himself, or did the others manage to make it, too? The guards said they only found him, but that did not mean Hollis, or Tarian, or even Emily, were not still out in the city center somewhere.
Did they come by boat? Or did they fly? Where would they have hidden a dragon in the city? My mind had vaguely registered one of the guards saying something about a tunnel.
My mind whirled until I felt sick, and I ended up putting the half-eaten pastry back on the table.
“So,” Gracie broke the silence eventually, her mug now empty as she placed it on the table in between us. My eyes flitted from the ceiling long enough to let her know I was listening. “Last night was… eventful.”
“You could say that,” I laughed without humour, rubbing my eyes with the palms of my hands and sitting up properly, groaning as I did so. “I told him not to follow me.”
Gracie nodded, knowing fine well everything that I had put in my letter to Maeteo all those months ago, the night we sneaked from our war tents and crossed the cold river with nothing more than a single trunk between the two of us.
“I know you did, but did you expect him to listen?” she asked softly, tilting her head sideways slightly as she eyed me, leaning forwards to lean her elbows on her knees.
“I’m his Queen, he has to listen to me,” I grumbled, somewhat pouting as Gracie laughed. Sometimes it slipped my mind that Gracie was older than me; the same age as Maeteo, and I felt like a child when I spoke to her like this.
I glared at her, sitting myself up from where I had been lying and standing from the sofa, running my hands through my still loose hair. I knew I had to go and getdressed and go and speak with Maeteo, but the thought of facing him — the image of his face bruised and swollen and bloodied — made me drag my feet. What was I meant to say to him?
Making my way towards my closet full of clothes, I reached for one of the many day dresses hanging on the metal rod. There were so many that I had not yet had the chance to wear them all, all of them custom made to fit me like a glove. I had shelves on top of shelves full of linen trousers and soft shirts, both short and long sleeved, for less formal meetings and casual days around the castle. Then, nearer the back of the space, was my training leathers and armour. They had not had much use since I had arrived in Fire, and my heart broke a little every time I looked at them.
I missed training. I missed the feeling of my sword in my hands and the powerful thrum of my muscles as we worked through a fight.
My sword was now stashed away in the castle armoury.
Shaking myself from my thoughts, I pulled a dress down from its hanger. A light pink dress with short sleeves and a soft neckline, it was modest and Queenly in the most subtle of ways. The soft fabric slid through my fingers easily as it dropped against my skin, the layers weighing next to nothing.
Gracie helped me braid my hair down my back, her gentle fingers working quickly and taming my unruly curls into a sleek braid that ended just below my shoulderblades. I debated not wearing my tiara, thinking that maybe it was too much, but in the end, I let Gracie weave it in between my curls. The small gems twinkled in the sunlight that streamed through the windows, and I sucked in a deep breath as I took in my reflection.
It would never stop being surreal; seeing myself with a crown on my head in a dress I would never have been able to even dream about.
Gracie’s soft hand on my shoulder pushed me into motion, and I thanked her as I stepped away from my dressing table and made my way through my chambers to the door.
As it closed behind me, I could have sworn I heard her uttering a good luck wish.
~~~
A single drip of water was the only noise I could hear as I entered the castle dungeons.
Two guards stood outside the entrance door, in full armour with their swords drawn, and they had been hesitant to let me enter alone. I managed to convince them I would be fine, that I was not a child that needed supervision, but now, as I stood staring down the dark, damp dungeon corridor, I regretted that decision.
A rattle of chains pulled me forwards, my dress moving across the dirty floor. I winced at the thought of how hard it would be to clean and made a mental note to send thestaff in the washroom some extra chocolates as a way of saying thank you, and sorry.
Metal cell doors passed one by one; each cell empty apart from one. A dark figure lay curled in the corner of one of the middle cells, their arms chained to the wall and their head hanging forwards between their shoulders. I paused, frowning, and furrowing my eyebrows. It was not Maeteo, they were not big enough, but it was a male. Curling my hand around the cell bars, I leaned closer to the gaps in between them, trying to get a better look.
“I’m over here, Princess.”
Maeteo’s voice made my head snap around, at the same time it made the figure in the cell’s head jump up.
