A Soul For Tomorrow

Chapter 1: The Return

The bright sun shone through the sheer cutains of the castle window, sending a beam to settle on the young Princess' cheek. Her dark curly locks were loosely dissarranged past her shoulders as she kept her chin resting in her hand, leaning her elbow on the ledge. She remained trapped within her own thoughts while her elderly attendant bustled around in her room behind her. ”Princess Lorien, please try to be reasonable today. The poor boy has traveled so far just to see you. At least be kind enough not to humiliate him. It’s not every day that someone comes from the other side of the Earth just to meet a wonderful princess such as yourself,” Mrs. Coldwell raved on as she searched Lorien’s wardrobe for something suitable to wear. Lorien detected a hint of sarcasm in her tone but continued to ignore the poor old woman as she had been, seemingly fixed on the kingdom below her.

Mrs. Coldwell pulled out a light blue gown with sequins near the neckline out from the wardrobe and turned enthusiastically to present her mistress with her discovery. Her cheer diminished quickly however when she had realized that the princess was ignoring her. She laid the gown on the bed and walked over to the troubled princess. Mrs. Coldwell put her hand on Lorien’s shoulder and smiled. Lorien turned around to face her servant and smiled apologetically.

“You’ve grown so quickly my dear,” Mrs. Coldwell began gently combing Lorien's hair with fingers, just as a mother would have done. But her eyes were not on Lorien. Instead, she looked out the window, staring at the kingdom of Bright Splendia, marveling at how peaceful and lively the city was. She turned back to look at the princess who was still smiling.

Mrs. Coldwell laughed. “This kingdom has grown too and one day this will all be yours. Now, I know you don’t like the idea of marriage but it has to be that way. It’s for the good of the kingdom, and you,” Mrs. Coldwell said reassuringly.

Lorien turned back to look out the window. “It’s not really marriage that bothers me. It’s more the fact that I have limited options as to who I can marry,” Lorien sighed. “I just want to marry someone who isn’t a prince. I want to marry…”

“That soldier,” Mrs. Coldwell cut her off, then sighed. “I know.”

Mrs. Coldwell opened her mouth to say something but the sound of the city bell cut their conversation short. Lorien sat straighter in her chair and stared out the window more intently, hopeful. In the distance she could see the sight of the city gates opening and a large mass of people marching through with pride. The city was suddenly alive and somehow, brighter than the sun that was shining in the sky. Right at the front of the large crowd, Lorien could see a blue flag with a large sun shining in the centre, the flag of Bright Splendia waving proudly. The soldiers had returned, victorious.

Lorien hopped out of her chair excited. “Quick Mrs. Coldwell, what should I wear!?” Lorien asked excitedly.

Mrs. Coldwell beamed as she pointed to the blue gown on the bed with pride. “I think it would suit your pale skin,” Mrs. Coldwell said cheerfully but Lorien was less than impressed. Admittedly, it was a beautiful gown, but she just felt it wasn't right for the occassion. To show her disapproval, she scrunched her face at the gown and made her way to the wardrobe.

“Yes, it would but it wouldn’t suit my deep brown curls. How about purple?” Lorien asked pulling out her violet gown from her wardrobe hurriedly before holding it up and examining it. Mrs. Coldwell shook her head.

“No no no. Let's see now..." she said as she joined her lady at the rack of gowns. After a moment's contemplation, the elderly woman reached into the textured rainbow of garments. "Let’s go with red. What do you think?” Mrs. Coldwell pulled out the red gown from the wardrobe and held it up. Lorien thought for a second and examined the dress. It was an elegant number that was fitted at the bust down to the waist, before ballooning out into a silk skirt. The upper half was embellished with thin golden filligrees of immaculate detail and a thin strip of black lace decorated the neck line. Lorien smiled and nodded to her attendant.

“It's perfect! Thank you,” Lorien exclaimed excitedly while Mrs. Coldwell laughed and hastily helped the princess into her gown. It was a tedious process but Lorien's beauty made it all worth while. When Mrs. Coldwell nodded her approval, Lorien thanked her attendant one last time in a swift embrace before rushing out of her chambers. The princess quite literally ran down the stairs in the most uncivilised matter, allowing her hair to flow freely. By the time she had reached the throne room doors, she could feel her hair in small tangles and she felt slight out of breath, for it is not every day a princess is in a rush. They were to arrive exactly when they mean to, always waited upon and never the other way around.

This however, was not the case with her mother. Although Queen Lucia (pronounced Loo-si-ya) was known by the people as the joyous Queen due to her nature, when matters concerned her daughter and her tardiness, it was unacceptable. Lorien knew this and somewhat dreaded stepping through the doors, but nevertheless, she entered the throne room where her mother was waiting. Lorien was surprised however to find that the prince that had come to see her had already taken his place next to her mother. He was dressed in an emerald green suit and he was very handsome, with deep brown hair, just the same colour as Lorien’s, and grey eyes almost as alluring as the moon. Though, as handsome as he was, Lorien felt no interest towards him. 

After examining her new suitor, she looked to her mother, who was obviously hiding her irritation with a smile. “Ah, my dear, at last," Lucia stood from her throne and moved towards her daughter, gently kissing her on the forehead. "Prince Samuel's been waiting to meet you. I'm grateful for his patience at least. He is also eager to witness the welcoming ceremony for our brave soldiers,” Lucia said happily for she was, after all, the joyous queen. Samuel stepped forward and kissed Lorien’s hand gently.

“It’s an honour to meet you, your royal highness of Bright Splendia,” Samuel said with a soft smooth voice. It would have been enough to make any heart melt but Lorien remained indifferent.

“Likewise,” Lorien said and smiled politely at him before taking her seat next to the Queen, who had returned to her throne. She looked at her mother, who had raised her eyebrows in approval of the new suitor. Lorien stopped herself from rolling her eyes when she saw Samuel smiling to himself and took his seat on the other side of her royal Majesty.

Queen Lucia sighed at the reaction of her daughter and but smiled before she looked forward again and ordered the guards to open the doors. The armoured men moved forwared immediately and as the large wooden doors of the castle opened slowly, the smile on Lorien’s face became more genuine.

The princess intently watched the army march in. In particular, Lorien could only keep her eyes on the young man who was leading them. The young man with light brown hair and emerald green eyes, the only one that she loved and would ever love, Lucas.

Lucas stared back at her as he marched toward her mother on the throne, his eyes showing the same love that hers did. His head was held high with much dignity to see his beloved smiling back at him. But his joy sank almost immediately as he continued to observe the royals before him.

Someone caught his eye, an unfamiliar but seemingly noble being, the man sitting on the other side of the throne. When Lucas realized who this was, his eyes turned cold. He tried to look back at Lorien but no longer could, for he felt that the one that he loved was no longer his anymore.