The states of Abonisah have been under their monarchy's control for years. Both districts are split by a towering barbed wire fence which runs through the centre, separating the wealthy from the poor. The rich have been made aware of the animalistic...
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She had awoken early again, sunlight seeping through her curtains as it just peeped above the trees. It was a regular occurrence for Etta to wake up before she was actually supposed to, however she wasn't any more used to it, no matter how many times it had happened.
She yawned lightly, gazing out the window from the position which she had yet to move from in her bed. Her long, wavy brunette locks spread out messily over her pillows and her blue eyes fluttered as she tried to get used to the light. She gently rubbed away at her eyes before gracefully pulling herself out of bed, sighing contently to the sound of birds outside her bedroom window.
She quietly headed over to the wardrobe, picking out one of her more casual dresses before changing and taking a seat at her vanity. She only applied light makeup such as mascara and lipgloss due to the fact that her naturally beautiful appearance meant that she didn't need a lot. Light freckles dusted her rosy cheeks and her ocean blue eyes held gallons of wonder and curiosity which was just waiting to overflow.
A light knocking was heard causing Etta to stand and open the door gently. Her mother stood on the other side, holding herself with utter poise which simply radiated power. Etta's posture tensed slightly at the sight of her strict mother however she soon relaxed once she had seen the smile ghosting the woman's face.
"Darling, you look beautiful." Her mother gives an approving nod towards her daughter's appearance before continuing, "so what are your plans for today?"
"I think I'm going to go berry picking, Mother." Etta smiled whilst her mother simply nodded before leaving, making the princess sigh slightly.
Nevertheless, Etta forced her smile back onto her face before leaving her room, closing the door behind her. Gracefully, she made her way down the marble stair case, the tapping of her shoes echoing as she went. She entered the kitchen, greeting the cook with another signature smile before eating her pancakes politely, with complete etiquette.
"Thank you, Beatrice." Etta gratefully exclaimed, the cook smiled in return as she took the dishes to the sink.
Etta always made an effort to get to know all of the workers in the palace, something which completely demonstrated the difference between her and her family. Her parents had always believed that the middle class and lower were scum on the bottom of their shoes, that they were complete filth and certainly not to be trusted. Etta however didn't understand these beliefs, she had not been acquainted with many poor people in her life and even the workers were upper middle class at very least; she simply had no experience with them to know whether the images that her parents had created were true or not.
"Would you like me to bring you some berries today?" The young girl asked the chef who simply smiled before replying,
"I would love that, princess!"
Etta nodded before leaving the room, her posture completely straight however a slight bounce in her step. It isn't until she left the palace gates, out of site from her parents, that her pace quickened as she excitedly ran towards the forest, basket in hand.
Although the forests may have been a little frightening for some, for Etta they had always been a source of comfort. The young girl was used to retiring to the forests, surrounding herself in nature as a way to forget all the expectations in which her status had put onto her shoulders. Even though her parents never really took notice of the young girl, she knew that if she didn't keep up the reputation and duties given to her, then they would surely look at her with disdain and disappointment; which she knew would crush her completely.
Venturing further into the forest then she usually had, Etta was too deep in her thoughts to notice that she had strayed from the path. Not that the woods were dangerous, however everyone knew about the unspoken rules of keeping to the path and not letting curiosity get the better of you; after all, curiosity killed the cat.
Etta was snapped from her thoughts by the sound of light sniffles coming from further into the forest. With the thought of someone being upset on her brain, the princess quickly picked up her pace and headed towards the noise.
As she got closer to the source of the sniffles, Etta noticed a tall wire fence which she'd never known to be here, she'd never ventured far from the designated forest path, therefore didn't know of there being anything surrounding. She gently placed a hand on the mesh, wire fence, surveying her surrounding which made her feel sick to her stomach.
The other side of the fence seemed utterly horrifying, the complete lack of colour caused the scene in front of her to look like a monochrome picture. All visible buildings needed basic repairs in some way or another, while many people were begging on the streets. There were citizens with visible sicknesses and many who were skinny enough to see their ribs. In summary, the sight in front of Etta was complete misery.
She heard the familiar sniffle which caused her head to turn in that direction. The sight made her heart ache; a young boy, who couldn't have been much older that Etta herself, was sat against the fence. His head was hidden in his knees as he silently cried to himself.
Etta quietly walked over to were the boy was sat, she tapped him gently through the mesh fence causing his head to snap up as he flinched. He turned to see her through the fence, his eyes widening at the sight. He took notice of her beauty, her blue eyes stood out amongst the dull atmosphere he was used to, while her light pink dress matched the azaleas behind her perfectly.
"Are you okay?" She asked him worriedly, he had obvious bruises forming on his face and a small cut could be seen on his lip, but despite the injuries all Etta could think about was how attractive the young boy was; although full of tears, his eyes were a light brown with amber specks in certain lights and his hair was a slightly lighter colour than Etta's as a few curls fell messily in front of his face.
"Erm, yeah I'm fine" the boy hesitated before answering, still dazed by the girl's beauty.
"Well it's obvious that you're not, what happened?" Etta asked softly, sitting down opposite the boy on the other side of the fence.
"It's just uh, my dad he's not really happy with me right now." He vaguely answered her question but once he saw the concern in her face he sighed and continued, "well I messed up on the job he gave me and then he yelled at me and well, I got punished." He gestured to his injuries and the princess gasped in shock,
"Did he erm, did he hit you?" She stuttered making him sad smile and nod shamefully.
"Well that's just awful, why haven't you told anybody?"
"What do you mean? There isn't anybody to tell and nobody would do anything anyway." He shrugged making her confused,
"What about the police?"
"What's that?" He asked, a perplexed look covering his pale face.
"You don't know what the police are?" She questioned and when he didn't answer she continued, "they are the people who fight crime, they put the bad people away so that we are all safe."
"We don't have anything like that over here." He shrugged and Etta's mouth opened in shock.
"How terrible." She sighed and he just sadly smiled at her before changing the subject,
"I never got your name"
She smiled at the boy before answering, "It's Etta Ophelia Fawn, what about you?"
"Olen Jay Brookes." He announced proudly with a mock hat tip, making Etta giggle quietly.
"Well it's a pleasure to meet you, Olen." She beamed widely making him smile, dimples showing leaving Etta with butterflies.
