The Untold Story of Ursula

Part 5: The Imposter

For the next several days Ursula and Spilia lived in harmony. They weren't necessarily friends, and they only spoke to each other when they needed something. Spilia lifted the spell she had placed on the cave to reveal that it wasn't barren, it was filled with books and cauldrons and potions.

Often Ursula tinkered with many of the ingredients she never heard of before, creating new variations of potions she failed in the past. One time Ursula dropped a jar of precious seaweed angering Spilia, the rage didn't last, it was almost impossible to stay mad in such a calming environment.

Ursula and eels wanted to stay in the cave forever, away from all responsibilities, but Ursula knew this wasn't her life's purpose. She did not go through all this trouble with the kingdom just to renounce her throne, she was just waiting for the perfect moment of her return. Despite being in the presence of so many foreign materials, food was still limited consisting mainly of plants found outside the cave.

After 3 days Spilia came back from a minor deal in a neighboring village giving the news that search parties have been going after Ursula; Missing Princess sandpapers placed all over the kingdom. Large sums of money have been promised for whoever returns Ursula safely back to her father.

This didn't alarm Ursula because she knew she was safe where she was. Spilia placed protective wards all over the cave, making it invisible to whoever passes by. So if her father did come back to the cave to look for her, it would be as if it vanished.

After 6 days of blissful living, Ursula decided it was time to confront her father. She started to adjust to her new body, it was heavy to carry around at first but after she learned how to swim with tentacles, moving around became easier.

"I'll be back for you guys, I just need to explain to my father what happened" Ursula said giving her final kiss to flotsam and jetsam before departing. With a reassuring nod to Spilia, she left through the exit of the cave.

Leaving the wards of the castle felt like someone stripped away the topmost level of Ursula's skin: vulnerable but manageable. She left at a late time that she knew no guards would be watching, not like it would be necessary however due to the appearance change, but just as a precaution.

Ursula swam up from the depths of the sea as she felt the water get warmer, kissing the pores of her skin. Looking around at the living quarters and towns she thought about her crowning. The coronation was supposed to be 3 days ago, all of this was supposed to be hers by now.

Only one week ago Ursula was ready to prove to the world she was ready to rule. At the time coronation seemed to arrive dreadfully slow, and now it feels like it could have happened a second ago. Ursula wondered what her mother would think, she would never have gone through these measures to keep her title. Then she wondered what her father thought, maybe this was his plan all along, kill Ursula emotionally so she was unfit to rule, leaving the kingdom in his hands for longer. This was only the beginning of Ursula's paranoid images, they only grew as she was left in solitude to think.

Those were the intentions Ursula had as she approached the front door of the castle. She would talk to her father as a women reclaiming foreign land, instead of a little girl begging. It had been several years since Ursula went through the front doors because they were used mostly by visitors, while she only used the obscure side door for protection against any potential violent masses.

Nearing the elaborate colorful doors that were triple her height, she was met by 4 guards who obstructed her path. The castle had so much security that Ursula normally doesn't know the guards, but one of them looked familiar. Behind the thick metal helmet was a pair of grey eyes and a head of wavy brown hair, it was Stelios, the suitor she knew from school. What was he doing still at the castle? Before Ursula could search her mind for answers, one of the guards left of Stelios spoke up.