The Abandoned Princess

0: Heart of Glass

Even as she felt the presence of these certain people before her, she still felt alone.

The abandoned princess' heart has long gone cold, just like the floor beneath her. She knelt before the king, the crown prince, the princess, the knight, and the young duke.

"Speak of your wrongdoings," the king said with such coldness in his voice. A tone she always hears of.

She forced herself not to shake too much, for they'll see her anger and sadness. Eyes blankly staring down, refusing to see their faces, she already knows what emotion they have as they look at her. It was already carved in her heart.

"I have none, your majesty," she spoke loud and clear.

The sound of shoes hitting against the tiled floor echoed in the spacious throne room felt like she was in a deep ocean drowning her whole being. Her cyan eyes then found the tip of the polished shoes.

"Then what is that you wish for?" The king asked, looming down at the abandoned princess.

"Father, what are yo—" the crown prince stopped midway.

Her wish. It was simple and yet it's hard to have.

Her wish was just to be loved by them. To be a part of a family and coexist in the same room.

But all of them saw her as a villain. A person who doesn't belong to this place.

She, who killed the queen after giving birth to her. She, who tried to harm the princess because she fell in love with the young duke. And she, who burned down the royal church with the new queen inside.

Whether she speaks of the truth, her side of the story, they will never listen. She knows of it because in their eyes...

She's a villain, after all.

Finally, after stepping a foot inside the throne room, she looked at the king's face with nothing but resentment and spoke her wish.

"I wish to be with my mother."

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

Closing the book, I looked at the author with strained eyes. The author was watching me with excitement, pushing me to finish the book from the beginning to the end in one sitting.

I massaged my eyelids and internally groaned. How long had I been reading?

"How was it? Do you like it?"

"It's awful," I flatly said as I stretched, creating a popping sound. "There are a lot of plot holes, and the characters' development is shitty."

"Mind your words, Elaine. How many times do I have to tell you not to use those words?" And yet she hasn't punished me every time I curse. "In any case, the characters' development doesn't matter, they'll develop on their own."

"...What do you mean?" I asked suspiciously as I sipped the freshly brewed tea that she had made. She's definitely up to something. I could tell by her I-did-nothing smile of hers. "What did you do now?"

"Nothing! You're thinking way too much again. Ease up, will you? Anyway, I was referring to the ending. Is it good?"

I made a face. "Having the same name as the first princess who got beheaded by her own father. Then no. As I said, the whole story is fu—is awful."

For some reason, just thinking about it irks me up.

She smiled wider after insulting her work. Placing down the empty cup of tea I asked myself. Should I have sugar-coated my words since it's her first book? But then why did she suddenly start writing one?

Maybe she's right. Maybe I'm just thinking too much.

A long yawn came from my mouth and my body felt heavier so suddenly.

"What if you become the said abandoned princess? Will you do it differently and save yourself from that tragic fate?"

"No," I said in a heartbeat.

"Why not? Is it because it's your destiny, Elaine?"

My eyes were getting heavier. Destiny? "What are you talking about?"

"Why?" She asked again, disregarding my question.

My eyes shut from the drowsiness. I then leaned back on the chair, making myself comfortable.

"Because I'm not her."