The Kingdom of Valliance

Tiara

Tiara woke up every morning for the next week feeling completely confused and cautious. It's not like she didn't trust anyone, she just didn't really know anyone. Her roommates seemed genuine enough, or so she hoped they actually were. The other young women that shared the room with her consisted of Lucie, the pretty blonde who never spoke a word, Mattie, short for Matilda, who seemed gloomy around the clock and Noelle, the younger girl, who just previously lost her sister. Noelle was the only one who really bothered Tiara. Not only was Noelle a bully at heart, but she liked to play nice and pretend she was really sweet until she had the chance to snap. There was nothing stable about that girl. So Tiara chose to ignore her as often as possible.

This particular morning, when there was all the free time in the world, Tiara wanted to meet new faces. It was probably best to suck up to as many people as she could so she'd be less likely to die. So directly after the morning meal of delicious gruel, Tiara explored her options. After the weeks of being at the palace, cliques had formed and Tiara was not a part of any. She sorted out her options and decided on a small group in the corner where two boys around her age discussed something of sorts. When Tiara made her way over, the boys shot her a look.

"Alright, I shall leave you alone," she told them and began to walk away. But an arm grabbed her.

"Are you Tiara?" the one boy asked. He was small but attractive and intimidating all in one look.

"Do I know you?" she wondered.

"No but you're the only girl I've seen with natural black highlights in a light colored hair," he explained. It was true, when Tiara was born, she was cursed with the strangest hair a person could ever have. Black on blonde just did not naturally happen in Valliance.

"So who told you of me?" Tiara questioned the boy.

"My sister, Noelle. I'm Noa, by the way," he introduced himself. That's right, now she recognized Noelle's brother. So he was the boy who tried to stop the guards from killing Clare.

"What did she tell you of me?" Tiara groaned. She had a bad taste in her mouth as she waited for the reply.

"To be perfectly honest, she did not mention much at all. She merely said she knew a girl named Tiara with black streaks in light hair," was the response. Tiara eased up. Of course the little devil wouldn't be nasty around her brother who seemed to care so much of her.

"That is right, I barely mentioned you at all," Noelle's voice sounded from somewhere nearby. Noelle materialized beside Noa and the other boy now. Tiara groaned yet again.

"And who might you be?" Tiara asked Noa's companion.

"My name is Godric," the boy answered. He had a strange sort of accent that Tiara couldn't quite place. He definitely was not originally from Valliance like she was.

"Are you doing anything for your free day today?" Noa interrupted.

"Not at the moment," Tiara replied.

"Noelle, Godric and I were thinking of journeying to the market to pick out some new clothing. Ours are getting quite revolting." Noa had a good plan; every week Al handed out some money to the young adults, barely enough to buy anything at all. But the combined sums might be enough for Tiara to purchase a new robe or corset for later use.

"Sure, let's go," she decided and the group set out to the market. Tiara refused to exchange so much as a word with Noelle. It's not like Noelle wasn't a nice person; she just had funny ways of showing she could actually be kind. Noelle spoke her mind around the clock.

At the market, Tiara welcomed the familiar feeling of home. She hadn't stepped foot in the market since her arrival at the palace, but as a girl she always traveled to buy goods from there with her mother. Her mother...it had been ages since Tiara had thought of her. But despite the feeling of home that swept through her, Tiara noticed 5 or so guards watching them from different areas of the market, trying to be conspicuous. Being a criminal didn't allow much freedom. But it didn't matter; someday Tiara would be free again. She would be the last one standing and would be knighted, or since she was a woman, dismissed from exile and rewarded another way. Tiara had complete faith in herself. She just couldn't die, she couldn't. There was someone she truly cared about just a few days out of Valliance. And there was no way in that world that Tiara wasn't going to see that person again. But Tiara then seriously doubted she would be able to hide her crime for months on end.