The Crown's Reflection

Chapter Eleven: Ninth Birthday

"And you doubting your potential  is like the sun doubting its power to burn everything it touches."

-Sehajal

Elsea sat in the corner of the chaos, reading. Giggles and high-pitched chatter rang into the sun-filled sky, fueling the sudden prick in her eyes. She couldn't quite place why she felt so sad. 

"She's growing up." Her mother said to a nearby parent with a sniff, and Elsea knew who she meant by the loving tone in her voice. 

"Cake!" Saph screamed delightedly, as she saw  the giant pink cake being set in front of her. Elsea put her book down and went to take a seat, only to find that there were no more available. So she stood, singing "happy birthday" with the rest of the guests while Saph beamed. Elsea pretended they remembered her name in the song. Saph was only  supposed to blow out half of the candles, but she blew them all out anyway. When Elsea complained, Saph gave her a one-shouldered shrug, saying sorry in a not-so-sorry way. 

"The birthday girls get the first slice!" Her mother exclaimed, and Elsea and Saph held their hands out impatiently as she cut. A big slice was handed to Saph first, and a smaller one to Elsea second.  

Next came the gifts.

Saph was showered in brightly coloured dresses and dolls, while Elsea retreated back to her corner. 

"This one is for both you...and your sister," Elsea's father said, producing a small, mint-green box. The "and your sister" seemed like an afterthought, as if he'd forgotten. Elsea perked up and came to see what their present was. 

Saph opened it before Elsea could, letting out a gasp of joy. Two pearl hanging earrings lay nestled in the box, smooth and glistening. They were shaped like teardrops, and looked as if the bottom half was dipped in swirling gold. It seemed to glitter in the sun, and Elsea reached out to touch them, in awe. Saph snatched one of the earrings and showed it off proudly to her gaping friends, gushing  on and on about how beautiful it was and how it  would look amazing with her light pink dress. 

After what seemed like forever, the guests finally left and Elsea was left to watch Saph try on every single one of her new dresses. Every few minutes, she would burst from her room to receive compliments. It seemed quite shallow to Elsea, the way her sister brightened every time she was told she looked beautiful. Most of the encouragement was from Audra, who was Elsea's maid. Audra suddenly appeared to be Saph's friend, rambling about how Saph looked "positively royal" in pink. Elsea wondered what caused her sudden interest  to kiss up to Saph. Audra was a very young maid, and was six years older than Elsea and Saph. 

When Saph was finally done, Audra offered to braid her hair, stringing pink ribbons through it. The way she giggled with Saph made Elsea wonder why she'd never acted like that with her. Saph put on her  earring,  staring at herself in the mirror and fingering the pearl. Her full, perfect lips pulled downward in a pout, and she pulled at her other earlobe. 

"It would look better if I had the other one, wouldn't it?" Saph said, looking at Elsea out of the corner of the eye. 

"Oh yes, your highness." Audra agreed, in a way  that made Elsea shrink back and touch her earring protectively. She'd never had such a pretty earring before, it made her feel grown up. 

"Sea Sea?" 

Elsea focused her eyes on her book, pretending not to hear. They rarely shared gifts, and Elsea knew that Saph  hated sharing.  Their parents problably wanted them to learn how to share more.

"Can I pwease have your earring? I really want it," Saph begged, using her whiny voice and puppy eyes that made people melt and do whatever she wanted. It didn't work on Elsea though, she was the only person who could resist Saph's power. 

Elsea knew she couldn't ignore her forever, so she said simply, "No." 

"But I want it." Saph said quietly, almost like a whisper. Elsea felt a touch of fear, and the heir's eyes flashed angrily. But then it was gone, replaced by wavering eyes and a face about to erupt in tears. Elsea was annoyed, her sister was so used to getting what she wanted, that when she was refused, she turned into a whimpering mess. 

"I want it too. It was my gift too, you know." Elsea said bravely, looking Saph in the eye and trying not to notice  the glare from Audra.

That did it. Saph let out a loud, sniffling sob, tears  pouring down her cheeks. To Elsea's annoyance, Saph looked positively gorgeous crying, her glistening eyes somehow bluer. Saph's eyes flicked around, looking for their parents, her sobs getting louder and more dramatic. Audra put an arm round her shoulder, saying comforting words while glaring at Elsea.

It was only a few seconds of this before Elsea gave in. She ripped out the earring and threw it to her ungrateful, spoiled sister. Saph of course, stopped crying immediately and wiped her tears away happily. Why did Saph have to get everything she wanted? 

'Thank you'  were the words Saph was supposed to say, but instead she simply clipped the earring on, admiring herself in the mirror once more. Elsea slunk away, her feet carrying her to the crown room with her realising it. Elsea looked at a crown  and closed her eyes, almost feeling the weight of it on her head. Feeling angry and stupid, Elsea opened her eyes and went to her room, shutting the door and flopping on the bed. She would not cry.

When Elsea had finally convinced herself that she was fine, a loud knock banged against her door. Before she even said "come in", Saph threw open the door in a swirl of lace and silk. 

"Here are all the dresses I didn't want from my birthday." Saph dumped them in a thud on Elsea's bed, and was gone before Elsea could object. 

The door opened again, and Saph whispered, "Happy birthday, Elsea." Then she left, leaving Elsea surprised and a little guilty.

Elsea picked at a string on a dress and sighed. For some unknown reason, Elsea tried on a dress, perhaps just out of boredom. 

Elsea looked in the mirror, feeling foolish. Her breath caught.

The dress was such a deep magenta it was almost purple.