Silverclaw

Visiting Jasmine

 Fiona sighed as she tugged on the ribbon she had tied her hair back with. Now sixteen, she had gained muscle over the last year that hadn't been there before she joined the Snow Leopard Knights, thanks to the vigorous training that she had been put through. Picking up her sword, she slid it into the sheath on her hip, settling it so it would be easy for her to draw in an emergency.

 Opening the door to her rooms, she slipped out and down the corridor towards the doorway into the kitchen. She was just about to turn into it when a voice called her from down the corridor. Closing her eyes in exasperation, she resisted the urge to run and turned to smile at the girl running towards her.

 'Highness! Aren't you coming to breakfast? They're handing out the purses!'

 'Sorry, Anna, but I can't. I have to get up to the palace.'

 'Oh. Maybe I could come with you? To the palace, that is.'

 Fiona's gaze narrowed on Anna, and the other girl shifted nervously. 'That's not a good idea. Mother and I are visiting Jasmine today.' Not wanting to watch the other girl's face fall, she turned and walked into the kitchen, grabbing a couple of bread rolls as she went and placing them in the small bag on her belt. Slipping through the crowd of cooks and parlour maids, she made her way to the side door that lead out onto a back street.

 Smiling at the little boy who was stood waiting for her, Fiona dug out one of the rolls and tossed it to him. He gave her a toothy grin as he caught it, and then ran off down the road in the opposite direction that she went in. Pulling out the other roll, she bit into it as she slipped out onto the main highway through the city.

 Greeting merchants and shopkeepers who knew her, Fiona started walking up to the palace, a skip in her step now that she was free of the Halls and the constraints of her life. She hated the constant bowing and scraping from her fellow students, often escaping into the Rose Maze that her sister, Anya, had loved so much in the month that she had been there.

 Reaching the gates to the palace, Fiona nodded to the guards as she walked past, and they saluted her with a quick smile before returning to scanning the crowd around them. Fiona continued on her way into the palace, weaving her way between the people in the main areas until she reached the back corridors that she knew so well. Finding her mother's room, she let the guards have her sword before knocking loudly and entering the room in time to see her mother throw a crystal goblet at the maid who had just burned her hair with the curling tongs.

 'Stupid girl! How can you fail to do something so simple? Get out, this instant!' The girl fled, tears pouring down her cheeks, and Fiona blinked. Her mother didn't usually react like this to such a simple thing, but then, burnt hair was difficult to hide for the both of them, seeing as mother and daughter were albinos. Fiona smiled at her.

 'Mother, good morning.'

 'Is it? Oh, Fiona, just look at this mess! I'll have to apologise to her later, my hair is burnt, and our neighbours are threatening war!'

 Fiona stiffened. War had loomed over their country for the past six months now, and the fact that their neighbours were now outright using it as a threat told Fiona that her mother had every reason to be upset. She contained her emotions, however, and smiled at her mother.

 'Well, let them come at us. We are far bigger than any of them. In the meantime, let me at your hair, Mother.' Stepping up behind her mother, she started rearranging the hair that the maid had struggled with, pinning it in place with silver hairpins that had diamonds dangling from them. Finished, she smiled at her mother in the mirror.

 'Better?'

 'Yes. Fiona, thank you. How do you do it?'

 'I practise on my own. It's easy enough to do it on other people's hair, but not so much on your own.' The two of them smiled at each other. 'Mother, is the situation really that bad?'

 Melissa sighed. 'It's worse. King Seth is sending out his troops even as we speak. He didn't take the news of your refusal to marry his son well, I'm afraid.'

 'His son is only five years old!'

 'Which is exactly what I told him myself, but he says that five is more than old enough and that you should have been married off at birth! Well, you can imagine what I said to that, Fiona.'

 Fiona burst out laughing. 'I can, yes! Come on, Mother. You wanted to visit Jasmine today, yes?'

 Melissa smiled at her. 'I did, yes. Well, let's go and see her, shall we?'

 She stood, and Fiona stepped back to let her past. The two of them left Melissa's rooms and walked through the castle, chatting together as they made their way to the underground room where Jasmine was now kept. Since her attempt on Melissa's life the year before, Jasmine had descended into true madness, and they had had to put her in a specially designed room to keep her safe.

 When they got there, the guard snapped to attention and handed Melissa the key. Inserting it into the keyhole, Melissa turned the key and then pushed the door open, revealing the padded room beyond it. Jasmine sat in the centre of the room, a cloth ball in her hands, and she batted it back and forth, giggling every now and then.

 Her clothes were ragged and dirty, her face smeared with dirt. No one could get close enough to clean her up without her going berserk, and Melissa refused to let the doctors give her drugs that would keep her constantly calm. Jasmine didn't look up as they entered, just kept playing with her cloth ball, and Melissa sighed sadly.

 'Oh, Jasmine...'

 It was the wrong thing to do. In an instant, Jasmine was on her feet and attacking, her fingers contorted into claws as she screeched her fury. Fiona, used to this, jumped forward and knocked Jasmine away from their mother.

 Jasmine hit the far wall and slid down it, unconscious. Melissa sobbed behind Fiona, and Fiona turned to look up at her quietly. Seeing her mother's tears, she didn't hesitate to hug her, and Melissa wrapped her arms around Fiona tightly.

 'I don't know what to do, Fiona... I just don't know anymore... If only your father were here....'

 'I know, Mother, but we have to try and get through this. We know Anya's alive and well, right?'

 Her mother nodded, and straightened, pulling a handkerchief out of her sleeve to wipe her face with. 'Yes, you're right, we do know that. And at least we don't have to worry about Jasmine.'

 'Exactly. We have the best of physicians looking after her, and they've been doing the best they possibly can. Let's go, before she wakes up.'

 Fiona firmly led her mother from the small room, not looking back at the sister that she had so loved when they were young, not wanting to acknowledge what had happened to her.

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Please don't hate me for doing that to Jasmine! >.< Things do work out for them all, don't worry. And I'm sorry for not uploading before! I completely forgot... >.<

Anyways, I hope that you've enjoyed it! Any comments will, as always, be gladly received. =^.^=