Snippets of Greatness

Princess Dawn

First written when I was a sophomore in high school.

"I just don't know what to do with you," the princess's father said, sighing. He was staring somewhat forlornly out the window of his study while his daughter stood in the center of the room, eyes fixated on the stone floor.
"You're irresponsible, antisocial, and ungrateful. You didn't used to be this way, but since your mother died..." He trailed off, but quickly regained composure. "In any case, something must be done about your attitude. I will decide on a consequence by tomorrow. You are dismissed."
The princess turned and walked relatively slowly out of the room, careful not to let any emotion show on her face until she was out in the corridor and the door had closed behind her. At which point she started running down the hallway, unchecked tears streaming down her face. She didn't care where she ended up, as long as it was far away from her negligent father who, she was convinced, only chose to be involved in her life to scold her for things.
Suddenly, turning a corner to go down a hallway that happened to lead to the kitchen and laundry areas, the princess found herself colliding with another person. Laundry went flying every which way, and the two individuals crashed to the ground.
As they stood up and dusted themselves off, the princess noticed that the person she had run into was a peasant girl about her age who had short hair, the color of which reminded the princess of mahogany streaked with gold, and eyes the color of ocean waves. Similarly, the peasant girl noticed that the princess looked much better in person than in the portraits she'd seen around the castle, with long blonde hair the color of afternoon sunshine, and eyes like... Well, she couldn't quite place their color. Were they blue, like the sea after a storm, or were they green, like summer meadows after a heavy rain?