Kingdoms of Corruption

4. Dana (Kreon)

Not too long ago, a princess lived in a palace made of flowers. She was an inquisitive girl and desperately wanted to see what lay beyond the petals that surrounded her. But her mother and father cherished her too much. The outside world was a dangerous place, they told her, full of those who would mean to harm young princesses. And so, they jealously kept her hidden from sight, locked away in her room until the day when she would be old enough to marry a local lord. This man was fat and very ugly, and much too unfit for the princess' tastes. She needed something more and yearned still to venture past the palace walls.

Some years passed, and the princess became more and more restless and the day of her marriage closer and closer. Then, one day, she met a peddler, who had arrived at the palace to sell the finest flowers in the entire kingdom. He wore the simple wool shirt of a commoner, but had the features and manner of a prince. Broad-shouldered and strong-armed, he had a build that could match even the sturdiest of oaks. His dark hair fluttered in the wind like the petals of the perennials that he sold, topped off with a light perfume. The two fell in love instantly.

Knowing that her parents would not condone such a relationship, the princess entrusted her place at the palace to her handmaiden, who had always been by her side. The servant adorned herself in the princess' dresses, jewellery and corsages, and posed as the princess until the very moment of the escape. With the assistance of a few loyal guards, the princess managed to borrow a sturdy horse and exit the palace otherwise unseen, riding off into the sunset with her beloved.

They built a house together, on a farm far away from the palace. They had a family, three beautiful children, who they adored so much. And there they lived, happily ever since.

*

Dana, Ley and Turi were huddled up in the ox-drawn wagon as their mother told the tale. Dana's father, Dokley, had always addressed his wife as Luwetha, though now Dana thought herself foolish not to have seen past the lie. Luwetha was the name of a rare plant found in the Outer Forest, and Dokley had been obsessed with it.

Dana's mother had spoken ever since they had left the farm, two whole hours, all the while sharing stories. Of unconditional love, of heroic knights slaying monstrous beasts, of kings peacefully settling conflict. Dana was sick of it all. Those stories did not exist in real life. Life was hard, unforgiving and brutal.

Dana did not stop her mother though, since both Ley and Turi were listening to her eagerly in the back of the wagon. She supposed even she would have fallen for stories like these when she was younger, and her two siblings had gone seven years without a mother, even though they hadn't had much of one before that. Seeing their faces of pure awe and delight as she led their mother into the farmhouse this morning, Dana even stopped herself from begging once more for her to leave. She would not have them separated again.

There were few moments that Dana could remember when her mother was so talkative. She had always been so reclusive in the past, spending her time reading the precious few books that Dana's father had collected over the years or wandering the fields outside the timber mill. Dokley never seemed to mind what she did, no matter how dire the financial situation. Dana had once pleaded with him to force her to work, but he had rebuked her. She was a delicate woman, he said, and what his wife did was nobody else's concern but his own.

"Why didn't the parents find the two lovers in the end?" Dana asked skeptically. "They must have scoured the whole kingdom looking for their lost daughter."

"It's just a story, Dana," Turi teased.

"Some stories do draw upon reality," Dana said, not taking her eyes off her mother.