Mirror, Mirror

2.06 Night Stalking

I hope you turn out to be nothing like me. I hope you know laughter and light, that you realize that life is more than the expectations people put on you. I hope you do the things you love just because you love them, not because people said they were 'good' to do.

I hope you learn to love yourself.

❖

The first time Starla noticed Rayna sneaking out at night, she had been leaving her room to finish up an errand. She'd run right into Rayna purely by chance, who had exited her room across the hallway at the same time. At that time, Starla hadn't thought anything of it.

The second time Starla noticed was a week or so later, after she came back from working on clothing for the upcoming Debutante Ball with her cousins late that night.

Starla had been rounding the corner to go to her room, when she saw Rayna disappear around the corner on the other side of the hall. Where was she going at this hour? Starla tried following her, but by the time she'd reached the end of the hallway, there was no sign of Rayna.

The third time, Starla was more prepared. She had narrowed down the time to be Tuesday nights, around 10 o'clock. She figured this out by waiting by her own door and listening carefully to hear Rayna's door open and shut softly. When Starla opened her door quietly and peeked out, she confirmed that Rayna had snuck out, as she saw a heavily cloaked figure round the corner. Once again, she was too fast.

Starla tried to raise the concern with anyone who would listen— Aunt Crystallia, her instructors, the King.

"She's stealing from the palace; I'm sure of it," Starla complained to the King, catching him alone after dinner. "Aren't you going to do anything about it?"

"That would be a problem," the King agreed gravely.

The next day, Rayna had a small, mysterious handbag.

"What's that?" Starla asked. She didn't take Rayna for the type to carry around accessories.

"The King sent me this and called it an 'allowance'?" Rayna said, looking baffled even as she was explaining it.

"WHAT," Starla stared at her. Rayna shrugged. Starla's petty plans to get Rayna in trouble continued to backfire. For example, Rayna was struggling hard at training. However, when Starla complained about that to the King, he doubled their training. Starla had to get up earlier and stay later.

So, the next Tuesday night, Starla found a corner in the adjacent hallway to wait for Rayna to sneak out. She vowed to catch Rayna doing something nefarious and finally get her in trouble.

She hid herself and waited for early an hour. Finally, she saw Rayna darting around the corner, looking this way and that. Starla, who was wearing a dark cloak to help hide better, followed her. Rayna was certainly sneaky, but so was Starla. Stealth was part of her physical training, in addition to martial arts, survival, endurance, and strength. A lady had to be well-rounded after all.

Rayna left the palace entirely. Interesting.

But before Starla knew it, Rayna was slipping out the backdoor of the palace. Starla had to run to keep up with her.

Once Rayna reached the city, she was a lot harder to keep up with. She seemed to know the ins and outs of moving through a city, which was not a part of Starla's training. Starla lost her. Frustrated, Starla returned home. She'd try again another night.

It took Starla about ten or so tries to finally keep up with and follow Rayna on her mysterious night excursions.

Finally, Rayna slowed. Starla ducked behind a crate right as the Rayna glanced around. She was waiting for something, or someone. This was finally the moment Starla was waiting for, where she'd figure out what Rayna was up to.

A larger figure melted out of the shadows to meet Rayna. A... man. They embraced, and the man led her inside.

So Rayna had a lover. That was... unexpected. But not a crime. A woman had a right to her own romantic and sexual freedom, after all. More power to her.

Starla debated whether to stick around or to give Rayna her privacy. Finally, Starla decided to stay. You know, just to make sure Rayna was OK. Woman's honor, and all that. Starla examined the building from afar, as well as her surroundings. This seemed to be some sort of neighborhood away from the city center. The building seemed to be someone's apartment.

It was only half an hour later that Rayna finally emerged. She looked... really happy. She was glowing. Starla congratulated herself for staying to ensure Rayna's safety, then trailed her back to the palace.

Well. That solved that mystery. After that night, Starla concluded that Rayna was strange but harmless, and she shelved that mystery.

❖

"I solved the mystery," Starla told her cousins the next day. "You'll never believe it. She was sneaking out to see a man."

"Was he cute?" Rivero asked.

"I don't know... I couldn't see him. It was too dark," Starla said. "Rayna looked happy when she left though."

"See Starla, that just goes to show that Rayna is a normal girl, and you were being suspicious of her for nothing," Poppy-Anne said. "I feel a little worried about her. You'd better make sure she knows that she'll die if she gives birth to a female baby."

"I'm sure she knows," Starla said, then rolled her eyes. "But sure, I'll just casually drop in a conversation with her to put a glove on it while having sex."

"Are you going to tell the King? I think he would flip out," Rivero said.

"No," Starla said. "As long as she's not stealing my shit, I don't care what she does. She's not a great fighter, but she's not stupid. I trust that she won't get herself pregnant. Or killed, at least."

"Good," Poppy-Anne said.

"I'm tired of talking about Rayna. We don't like her," Starla said, suddenly bothered by this conversation and how much her cousins seemed interested in Rayna and not her. And so, the subject was changed to Rayna's debutante ball, which would take place on the Summer Solstice. Aside from her birthday in the spring, the Summer Solstice Ball was the day she looked forward to the most.