The (Not So) Perfect Princess

I make a stupid decision

Once I got myself under control, I began stripping off the layers of jewelry Mrs. Bolshire had stacked on me. Six bracelets, two necklaces, a pair of earrings, one anklet, and countless numbers of rings. I dumped it all in a box and shoved it under my bed, not wanteing to ever see them again. Next I shook myself out of the forest green gown I’d been strapped into, and threw it under my bed too. My pinchy, high-heeled shoes went with it. I quickly undid the knot that held my corset together and suddenly found that I could breathe. Without a second thought, I tossed the wretched thing in my fireplace. The fire wrapped itself around the corset, hungrily licking the delicate fabric. Within moments, my one and only corset was reduced to nothing but ashes. It made me feel a little better.

I then trudged to the washroom, where I soaked a small towel with water and scrubbed my face as hard and long as I could stand. When I finally put the towel down, I found that my face was rubbed free of makeup. I stood there a few more seconds, staring down my reflection in the mirror.

I was wearing nothing but my underwear, and was letting more skin show than Mrs. Bolshire would ever allow. My bun had come loose and was handing limply at the nape of my neck, and my over grown bangs were hanging in my face. I could barely look at my grey eyes, though, because whenever I did, time sped backward.

“You were and accident.” Father had said. “We never wanted you.”

I turned my gaze down. I couldn’t blame him. What kind of princess went through six governesses in a year? Or would rather wear pants than a big, flouncy ball gown? Or screamed and yelled when she was angry? A princess that no one would be proud to call their daughter, that’s what.

I sulked out the washroom doorway and crawled into bed, mentally and physically overwhelmed. I wrapped myself in the soft cotton sheets, trying to forget everything, trying to forget the world and everyone in it. Nobody and nothing existed, all except my bed. I snuggled deeper in the pillows and breathed in their scent. The rain outside continued to hammer down on the roof, and every now and then lightning would slice across the dark sky, bringing flashes of false sunlight through my windows. In no time I was asleep, lulled by the rain.

~ ~ ~

CRACK!

I sat bolt upright, drenched in a cold sweat. My heart was pounding five times faster than it should’ve been, and my eyes were wide. Light danced across my walls, and disappeared just as quickly as it came. My shoulders relaxed. It was only lightning.

I shivered. It seemed as though the storm outside had seeped through the walls and into my skin. After all, I was only wearing my petticoat and a small wrapping over my top. I heard the grandfather clock in my parent’s room dong softly two times, and yawned. It was still the middle of the night.

I pulled the sheets off and swung my legs over the edge of my bed. My toes tingled as they hit the cold floor. I tip-toed over to one of my windows and peered out. The storm from yesterday was still raging on: thunder and lightning, wind and rain.

Lightning flashed again, and in that half a heartbeat of light, in that millisecond, in that blink of an eye, I saw something terrifying. Ten feet below my window stood two figures. In the half-a-second I was able to see, time slowed down. Something else lay on the ground; something small and unmoving and also covered in mud: a body. Time sped back up. The world went dark.