The Rose In the Night

Secrets(really rough draft)

The aroma of fire wood nestles in well with the scent of damp forest. I can feel Lia brushing through my thick curls as she sits behind me at my crystal vanity. Often I would complain during this process. To the point she would have to wrestle me down. Today I stay quiet despite feeling the bristles violently ripping through my curls.  My hair hates to be tamed. Still adjusting to the constant damp environment of the capital it was not happy to be forced from its natural form. My scalp seems to have gone numb with my heart.

I study our reflection as she continues to work through my curls.  Lia's electric  eyes study my hair in frustration as she begins to hum a soft tone filling me with the same warmth of the sun. Despite her frustration Lia hands carry the tenderness only a sister could have. My mind begins to think about The endless years of this same routine.  I remember the gossip we shared at the temples as she would braid my hair. The endless laughs. Somehow have been some of the most memorable in my life. Was any of it real?

Despite my anxiety Her  scent of honey envelopes me in a blanket of comfort. The way it brought me such comfort twist my stomach in disgust now.

My mother told me women in her culture Often covered there curls with protective cloths because her people believe we collect energy through our strands. Another woman doing  your hair was considered to be ritual exchange of energies.

I found that true over the years with Lia. The bond we share  was deeper then blood. Our souls were bonded in a way I could never explain in words. It was something that has giving me strength in the darkest times of my life. She was there when my mother died. There when we had to leave home for the first time . There for almost all my first as I was there for hers. We shared everything together.

Every heartache
Every joy
Every thought
As one

Or so I thought. The rules were clear anyone who broke the rules was a traitor to the king. What was worth her betraying my father?

Betraying m?
And...
Betray me?

My mind toss and turns with the person I've known most my life with who she's becoming.

I didn't know what terrified me more the dream about my death or realizing my best friend is a liar.

I knew she was beginning to keep things from me but never a crime like this.

It's been days now since I woke up in the middle of the night. I spend many sleepless nights waiting for her to sneak out again yet it hasn't come. I want  to make sure it wasn't my imagination. How could I?

All I can constantly think about is finding her empty bed. I haven't told her I know yet. Saying it would make it true I knew she didn't care much about laws but sneaking out her room in the middle of that night was something that could get her outcasted. It was the law for me to immediately have her arrested for it.

My heart drops As her eyes flicker to mine because I realized I couldn't.

That was the worst part of it all. I couldn't sentence her to death her even if she could be betraying my entire family.

I feel like I'm in a nightmare but this one I was never going to wake up from.

"The constant water in the air makes your hair want to curl no matter what I do." She laughs as she points her head towards the window.

I hadn't even begun to notice the drizzle that begun again. The rain here was a constantly stop and go. Never heavy always light drizzles.

"Maybe it'll make you stick out amogst your sisters."

"You act as if the prince is already here."

"His arrival is only a few phases away." She laughs it off

"It's not as if he will see me."

It always amazed me the amount of time she would spend on my hair even though she'll just cover it with a thin sheet. It was as if she were preparing me for a ball everyday.

Her own hair was already tied back into her uniformed bun. Her facial expression are so easy to see without her wild hair hiding it. I want to ask her where she was the other night. In hopes that maybe I was dreaming

"he will one day. entire country will and when they do it's my job to make you look a queen."

"I just don't get why you have to work so tirelessly on my hair. You already have so much to do."

"I don't mind it. It's  my favorite part of the day. It l reminds me of spending time with my sisters." She smiles.

When the children of her country were sent to my father's land she was separated fro. Her family as most were. Is that where she goes at night?

To see a sister of hers?
Has she finally found one?
Did she find another family member at the castle?

Questions at the top of my tongue that could give her good reason to sneak out. Questions that can never fall out. I'm too terrified of the true answers.

"One day you won't wear this all the time And I have been trained to wait on the future queen most my life." She giggles.

We're here giggles even real.
Was anything about her real?
Was everything an act?

I'm no longer seeing the things she says. Her eyes are bright with rest today. Is that why she was so tired before:

" did you finish your book the other day."

Reminding me of another secrets. How many secrets does she have.

"Not yet."

"I'll have to return it soon."

Before she can say anything else my door opens Theo walks in