They ran a brush through my thick long hair, twisting and pulling it into a bun. The dress they had chosen for me was pink with black lace,
"The final touch," the head maid, Theshia, smiled as she placed a black rose in my hair. I didn't smile, or nod, or do anything. They had me tortured, then pampered? My mind was reeling as a suffocating feeling grew tighter in my chest. They walked me to a dining hall where the king and queen sat gracefully. I looked at them, studied them. when my vision was blurred with tears I couldn't see how beautiful they really were. I wanted to scream at them, to kick and thrash until they sent me to the afterlife like they did my mentors and friends. I could only pray that my gods would give me the strength. The queen smiled at me with warmth while her husband grinned evilly,
"You passed! Great job dear Freya!" The queen beamed,
"Thank you," I whispered, thankful that it was over,
"Do you know what this means?" The king asked, "why don't you tell her, Katerina," the king said, turning to his queen,
"Welcome to the royal family!" Her Majesty, Katerina, exclaimed, "you'll be married to my youngest and most precious son, congratulations!" She seemed so happy with this fact, I didn't understand. I held my tongue, the anger that welled within me turned into hopelessness,
"Begin the process," the king smiled.
I screamed as a hot branding rod hit my shoulder. Two strong knights held me in place as the rod burned deeper into my flesh. The smell made me sick and the tears came once again. I dug my nails into the arm of one of the knights reacting to the pain, in turn, they pushed the rod in harder. As if a thousand suns had kissed my skin, the pain lasted long after they removed the rod,
"There, you are now marked with the youngest prince's seal, may your life be happy and your marriage prosperous!" The king beamed with pride as he raised his glass. My silence filled the room,
"Do you have anything to say, darling?" The queen, Katerina, asked. Her voice slightly quivered after seeing my torture,
"No, Your Majesty," I whimpered, on my knees,
"Please call me Mother," she smiled, "oh, what a joyous day!" She beamed at her husband who, in turn, beamed at her. They were completely oblivious to the pain they had caused me, or they didn't care. I could feel their burning eyes on me as they went over the rules of being a princess. I wasn't allowed to go out on my own, nor was I allowed to make friends with anyone under the noble status. I was going to have to learn etiquette and I would be given other classes as well. No matter how much food they placed in front of me, I couldn't manage to eat a single bite,
"Freya dear, are you listening?" The queen asked. When I looked up from my plate to nod, I saw crazy in their eyes,
"Yes, Your Majesty," I whispered. My voice was still hoarse from before and my lips still chapped. The queen gestured to my plate and smiled,
"You have to eat something, would you rather have the maids feed you?" She asked. I shook my head and began to eat. I figured having food shoved down my throat was just another form of torture. Before the tragic events that led me here, I would have enjoyed that meal. The taste of meat soaked in seasoning and sauce, noodles hot and fresh, almost translucent! I didn't savor any of it. I swallowed in hard, forced gulps. I drank from the water cup, not the wine. They watched as my expression never changed, as my will to continue grew less and less. Then, I heard them whispering to each other,
"What are we going to do?" The queen asked,
"If she doesn't take care of herself, she'll likely die before the wedding!"
"I'm afraid at this rate she'll kill herself first," the king huffed, "if we're going to break this curse, we have to keep her alive and happy," he nodded,
"Perhaps marrying her to that worthless prince isn't the best option? Maybe she'd prefer the second prince? Or the crown prince?"
"I doubt that, those two are much older, I think she's better off with the one her age,"
"But she's so, how do I put it, depressing." The queens words hit like a boulder to the heart. I wanted to slap both of them, to rip those precious earrings from her ears and tear her hair out,
"Your Majesty, if I may, I believed she is depressed because you killed her only family, and burned her home to the ground," the duke, Herman, interfered. I didn't even see him come in!
