The Princess' Quest

Chapter 1

In the kingdom of Unali, there lived a princess named Maeryn. She had red hair like a sunset and bright amber eyes. She lived alone in the castle with only her mother and her servants. Her only friend was her lady in waiting Marianne. Marianne, barely spoke in the company of others, which is why she always enjoyed her time alone with the princess. It gave her time to speak whatever was on her mind.

"And then, he just looked at me," recounted Marianne. "It was like he expected me to say something."

"Maybe he expected an apology," suggested Maeryn.

"An apology! He ran into me! I'm the one who deserved an apology."

"Still, you know most men around here. Even if they have a lower standing than you, if you're a woman, they always think they're right and you're wrong."

Marianne crossed her arms over her chest. "I know, but that's not the point. As a servant in the castle he should have had the manners to apologize when running into someone, no matter who it was."

"Well maybe he was just speechless."

"Speechless? Why would he be speechless?"

"Because of your great beauty of course."

Marianne let out an unladylike snort. Part of her uniform required that she wear a veil over her face. He wouldn't have even been able to see her properly.

"Come on Ryn. While it's true he had to know it was me because of my uniform, no one but you and the queen even know what I look like under this thing," she said gesturing to the veil.

"I know, I was just teasing. Besides, even if he doesn't know how beautiful you are, I do."

"Thanks Ryn. I'm in this dress and under this veil so often, that sometimes I forget what I look like."

"Just picture me. That's what you look like."

"Minus the birthmark."

Although the two friends looked almost identical in every way, there was one difference between the two. Behind her left ear Maeryn had a strange birthmark. It looked like a cross with a heart over it.

"Well we may look alike, but anyone who knows either one of us would be able to tell the difference in a matter of minutes. Just because we look alike and have a lot in common, doesn't make us the same person."

"I know that Ryn. Like you're an amazing artist, but I can barely draw a tree."

"Where as you Mar have the most beautiful singing voice, and I just sound, well, eh."

"Yeah, but you can do something even better with your voice."

"Oh really? And what would that be," she asked already knowing the answer.

"Come on Ryn. We both know you can talk to the tribe animals."

In Unali, humans weren't the only intelligent creatures. While there were still regular animals used as pets or for food, there were also the tribe animals. They were far more intelligent than their counterparts and even had their own towns and cities. Their closest allies were those of the Elephant Tribe and the Wolf Tribe. The only problem was they still spoke their natural language and only those of royal decent could understand them. That's why Maeryn was so important to the kingdom. Her mother had been born a commoner and seeing as how her father had died a year ago, she was the only remaining royal who could communicate with them.

"Yeah I know." She looked around her blue and purple room, admiring the butterfly wind chimes Marianne had gotten her for her last birthday. "Can I tell you something?"

"Of course. You know you can tell me anything."

Maeryn took a deep breath before speaking. "Sometimes... I wish I had brothers and sisters. And not just one or two, but five or six. Then I wouldn't be the only one with this gift and I wouldn't feel so much constant pressure to be perfect all the time. Because that's what it feels like when I'm around everyone else. Like I have to be perfect. The only ones I never felt like that with were you and father. And it's only gotten worse since he passed. At least when he was still alive there was someone else with my gift." She sighed.

Marianne walked closer and put a hand on Maeryn's shoulder.

"Hey, I know it's not easy. But don't forget that I'm here for you. I will always be here for you no matter what."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"Thanks, Mar. Losing father was hard enough, but I don't know what I'd do without you too."

"I know you may not believe, but I know you would be fine. You're stronger than people give you credit for Ryn. That includes you."

Maeryn smiled, not really believing her. She was the weakest person she knew. All the servants were stronger than her, Marianne who practiced swordplay in secret was stronger than her, even her uptight mother was tougher than she was. But she didn't say any of this to Marianne. Instead, she just said, "Shall we get ready?"