Hymn, The Princess in the Stained Glass Dress

Chapter 4-Hymn

It was eight, just three hours until I sing again. The light had faded away finally, but the moon was large tonight. The dress will be very, glittery. They loved it when the moon was whole, and it reflected on the glass.

Perhaps I should have tried to rest, though I never really rested.

Just then, I heard a small tick sound. Perhaps there was another bird trying to make a nest on the balcony. I wish they would let the birds stay... Baby birds would be so welcoming.

I tiptoed out to the ledge, but there was no bird, no there was a woman. She was staring up at me, as though she was waiting for me.

"I'm sorry for bothering you... I was trying to get your attention with the stones..."

It was hard to tell what she looks like. Her skin was pale with a golden hue. It seemed she had spent time in the sun. She was wearing trousers, like a man. Her hair though, was the most enticing of all her features. It was the color of sun shine, a bright yellow gold. The moon danced in her hair almost as much as it danced in the dress. No matter how far away she was, I could see those locks.

"You are the princess, right." She called to me. It was too bad I'm not permitted to speak to anyone. She appeared very charming. "The island princess?"

"No." I answered, she tried my patience. I turned to leave, for she was just as ignorant as any of those beasts, I heard her call again.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Please, forgive me. What's your name?" I saw her hands raise and her palms exposed.

"I don't have one." I projected down to her. My voice has a tendency to carry, a trick I needed to learn early on. Though, after my imprisonment, they built walls in the city square to bounce the sound to the furthest reaches of the city.

"Then, what do they call you." She asked.

"Many things. Though, most call me Hymn." I mused.

"Him?"

"Like the song."

"Ahh, right, well that makes sense." Her head dipped down, and looked back up. I saw the white of her teeth, as she tried to charm me with a faraway smile. I hummed in annoyance.

"What would you like me to call you?" She asked. Perhaps, I am not immune to her charm. Never has a soul asked me for my own name, they have just given me one. Though, had she not done just that?

"Do not call me the Island princess," I answered.

"Of course. May I ask why?" She waved a charismatic hand.

"Because that is not a name we have given ourselves. We do not call ourselves the island people, therefore it is offensive," I hummed.

"But are you not from the island?" she asked, her charm losing footing.

"The 'island people' is not what we call ourselves. Just because you are too lazy or too ignorant to ask us who we are, does not mean you should make names for us!" I yelled down at her. My, it has been awhile since I acted on my anger. I scared myself, I found. There is a lot of rage in me I needed to keep down.

She ducked her head again, "I'm so sorry... I didn't realize my degradation."

"It seems so." My temper retreated.

"What do you call yourselves?" She asked.

"The Unway people." Why am I telling her all these things? She was very easy to talk to.

"Unway. I see. You were very beautiful today." She rose her hand to me. "The dress was very beautiful."

"Of course it is." I scoffed.

"What do you mean?" Her hand fell.

"You see the dress, and you see it sparkle. It is beautiful, is it not? You see the way it glows in the night but you do not wear it. Every time I move, I get cut. I have scares that cover my body like a shell. They cover me, make me appealing, but humiliate my body and soul where no one can see," I shook my head. "I do not know why I am saying these things to you." I turned to leave again, this time running through the doorway.

"Wait!" she called after, "my name is Agatha Crone!" She yelled.

I stopped in my tracks. Agatha, why do I know that name? I had heard countless names from the people walking past the tower, but something about that name had made me commit it to memory. I very, very rarely feel the need to commit the rumors of the outside world to memory. Why did I now?

Curious, I stepped back out on the ledge. "Who are you?" I questioned.

"Agatha, the Agitator." Her arms fell.

The hairs on my neck stood on end. I know where that name came from. I had heard hushed whispers, and worried conversations about the leader of the rebellion. I heard how at the age of seventeen she took back her hometown in what they call now, The Fire's Revenge. There was a story about how she snuck into the fishing city of Metrova, and within a week she had gutted the city and stopped income from the merchants all together. Right now, that city is trading with the whole world in her name, and completely free from Tora. She has underground connections all over the country. Of course, all of these things are rumors. Though, having a conversation with this wild woman leads me to believe that perhaps they are not rumors at all.

I cautioned to the balcony's edge and looked down. "Why are you here?"

"I need your help. We, need your help." She called to me.

Just then, the timekeeper struck nine. Oh no. "Please leave! You cannot be here!"

Her head rose in alert and without asking why, she slipped into the shadows. The second she was gone, Gettidie burst open the door in the floor.

"Oui! Why are you out there! Get back in!" She shouted as she fit through the door. I hurried back inside. "Rotten girl! Trying to escape again? I thought we were over that. Tisk tisk."

I bent to her height, "No my Weeping Woman I-" A hard slap cracked my neck to the side.

"I said don't talk!" She screamed into my now exposed ear.

"Gettidie! Please! You leave a mark and they see that from down there!" Ellio rushed to my side. I smells the sweat that now beaded on his temples. Gettidie scoffed and turned away. "Were you trying to escape again Hymn?" He asked with a tone of worry.

"No." I answered turning away from him.

In the evening, I do not bathe, but they do brush my hair with oil. They try to lessen the thick look of my Unway hair. It has worked, mostly. After seven years of brushing with oil, my hair has become shiny and soft, like the hair of the Torian people.

I felt my cheek start to swell and heat up. "Oh now see, she won't be able to sing with a cheek like that!" Ellio held my cheek in his hand. I felt the soreness from his touch and I knew it was going to bruise.

"Aye! She's fine! She's gone out there a'plenta a time with bruises like that!" She turned to look at me, and I saw the flicker of a wince when her eyes met my cheek. I don't care anymore.

"She better be able to, or it's your head!" Ellio returned to his bag and retrieved the song for the night. It was a simple, old hymn that was very blatant. Boring.

I stepped onto the balcony that midnight and sang the song the same way I had sang it hundreds of times before. Though, I decided to look out into the crowd. I swear, there at the far end I saw a flicker of light gold.

(G^L^