Witches of Regnum

XXII

Arpina sat by the feet of her newest masterpiece. Sweat dripping from her temples from her recent activity.

When she got to the palace, much to her expectation her father sent for her immediately. He gave her a sound talk on how he had warned her of the great dangers letting outcasts into their personal spaces was, and how since her mother had approved of it, she had an older relative that could snatch her spot at any given advantage.

She was sick and tired of her father and his obsessive hatred towards the dark witches. Most light witches disliked them but his was on another level. And ofcourse, as all their conversation went lately he entered the topic of marriage.

Arpina hadn't the slightest idea why her father insisted on seeing her as incapable of ruling the throne alone. He knew she was going to do fine as queen, but he didn't trust she had the emotional capacity to take it alone. And that, she saw as absolute blasphemy.

She picks up a hammer and smashes it into the stone in front of her.

Again and again she smashes the tool unto the sculpture, in attempts that her rage would somehow create some sort of art. Whenever she was sad or angry or distressed, she would always lock herself up in her art room. Painting, sculpting or drawing her emotions away.

"This is useless!" She yells throwing the piece off it's pedestal allowing it crash into a white dust unto the ground. She burries her face in her palms squeezing her eyes shut. Even art couldn't help her negative emotions today.

"Princess Arpina.." A familiar voice suddenly emerges from the silence. The dark haired princess looks up to see the face of her newest official cousin.

"Uhm lady Amber... How did you get in here?" She asks a bit confused.

"Well your highness your door was unlocked, and your lady in waiting said you were up here" she explains, rubbing her hands nervously on her orange dress.

"Alright, well, why are you here?" She asks cutting straight to the point. The lady looks down shyly.

" Well I- i wanted to spend some time with you, if you please" she replies. Arpina raises a suspicious brow at her.

Dusting the dust off her gown she makes her way to her cousin, who's hazel eyes seemed to refuse to meet hers.

"Then you could have called an official meeting, if at all we can spend time together over lunc-"

" No! " Amber interrupts leaving Arpina taken aback.

" Um actually, your heighness I have a bit of a nack for the arts myself... I was hoping we could make a piece together"  she explains.

The princess couldn't help but let out a giggle. This shy and nervous Amber was quite different from the one who had the odacity to say all manners of things to her last night.

"Y-your heighness?" Amber suddenly breaks the silence she hadn't noticed she held.

"Ah yes well what exactly do you have in mind lady Amber" Arpina replies leading her towards her art supplies.

"I was thinking we could do some sort of painting, perhaps a mural?" She suggests as she scans through the endless array of brushes and paints. In all her life she had never seen so many painting tools.

"A mural?" Arpina asks and Amber nods. "Well what kind?" She asks getting out some of her best brushes.

" Maybe something representing the bond between our realms, as fellow witches.. " she hesitates as Arpina picks out a can of crimson paint ".. and cousins" at the last two words the paint almost slips our of Arpina's grasp. Those words coming out of her mouth left her uneasy.