Black and White Colors

Chapter One

~Mariana's POV~

    What is color? Is it something you can taste, smell, hear? Not many would know. Married neighbors have tried to explain it, but always end up tongue tied. What is color that it has never been successfully explained through the centuries upon centuries that humans have lived. I personally have never experienced the mystical wonders of 'color'. This is probably because I'm only at the age of 17 and have yet to find 'the one', my soulmate as most of the kingdom call it.

My parents are only each other's second lovers. My father had a soul mate, that was until she passed away in a horseback riding incident. My Father was then given a second chance, and thus he met lady Heather. Ms. Heather is my step mother but I still love her as though she was mine. My father used to tell me wonderful stories as a child about how wondrous the sky is with the bright beaming light of the sun. Ever since my mother passed he would look at the roses and would stare blankly. He said that he missed the beautiful scarlet of the roses. The loss of mother took that beauty away from him.

Madam Heather has never experienced loss so she would always sit with father in the garden and tell him about the roses and how their colors glowed with joy. I knew deep down Father missed Mother, but I also knew that Madam Heather made him very happy, and for that I was grateful. Madam Heather would always attempt to get me to call her Mother, but I could never do it. It didn't feel right, don't get me wrong I love her to death, but she was not my mother in blood. Even though Mother died when I was only a toddler I felt so connected with her.

At night right before the sun set Father would tell me how I looked just like Mother. I had her pristine green eyes and her long silky Platinum blonde hair. Before mother passed she kept a journal of her visits to the forest and other kingdoms. She would write about how they all looked so differently in color. The missing colors always made me curious, for example why could I see grays, black, and white?Father would always tell me that those were not colors, they were dull and had no excitement. So as a good respectable daughter, I took his word for it and just waited patiently for the excitement of it all.

On the day of my parent's wedding, I was their flower child. Customs say that the flower child had to be blood related to the bride, but all of my step siblings had already moved on and left the kingdom. Madam Heather gave me a basket of tiny daisies and a dress, she told me that it was a pretty violet, I saw the sparkle in her eyes and I smiled and told her the dress was pretty. I was only 4.

My 18th birthday is coming up this month and I'm too excited. Most of my classmates had already seen or spotted a near glimpse of their soulmates, and they can already see the rainbow of wonders. I wonder what it's like. Maybe I'll see my prince during my birth week. I was getting ready for my final week of class when I heard a slight knock on my door.

"Yes who is it?" I called

Heather peeked her head in the door and smiled at me, "Good morning princess. Your Father is at the market place and wanted me to walk with you to the school house."

"Ma'am I don't understand why I can't just go to private classes in the castle?"

She glanced down at me, I have asked this many times before. "Mariana, you know you'll never meet your soulmate if you just sit in the castle all day."

I sighed and started to brush out my hair, "Do you think I will meet him this month?"

"There's only one way to find out." She smirked at me, "you have to go to school!" She said in a hyper tone while tickling me under my ribs.

I laughed so loud I could hear it echo through the hallways. She suddenly stopped tickling me when we heard the head cook call out. "Lady Campbell! We Need your assistance preparing for tonight's feast!"

I heard her curse under her breath before telling me to meet her at the entry gates she rushed out of my door closing it behind her.

I was so busy and stressed today. Father had prepared a feast tonight for my coming of age month and invited the western kingdom, hoping one of the 4 prince's would be my soul mate. I highly doubted it, I was beginning to think I was just a lost cause.

I finished brushing out my hair and put one of the 'scarlet' roses in my hair. I stiffened my leather vest/corset that covered my white blouse. I then bent down and ruffled my long gray skirt and tightened and tied my black boots. Grabbing my hide satchel off my bed I ran out the door and rushed down stairs. Once I hit the landing with my feet I heard a loud crash and looked beside me. On the floor was one of the assistant cooks. His name was Daniel, he's been my best friend since childhood. Only recently had he started working for my parents.

I gasped and went to help him up, his brown eyes were dazed and his blonde hair was sticking in every direction. His dress shirt was wrinkled up and was untucked in some areas around his waist.

"Ew Dan, you look like a mess. Did you go running with the horses?"

"No I ran into a horse." He snicked and glanced up at me.

"Ugh! You pig! I am a royal how dare you speak to me like that!"

"Oh my bad." He stood up straight and bowed. "Morning Mi'lady."

I lightly punched him in the arm snickering. "What were you doing beside the stair well anyways? Shouldn't you be in the kitchen helping to prepare?"

"Oh, Lady Campbell asked me to sweep and dust around the ground floor, to prepare for the guests." He stated holding up the bucket we kept in the tool shed out back full of cleaning supplies.

"Oh, well anyways have you seen her anywhere? She said she would walk me to classes."

"I think her and the Mister are out in the castle grounds near town."

"Thanks Danny!" I hugged him and rushed out the front gates to meet Father and Heather.