It wasn't until a week after meeting Kassandra that Arianthe was able to get down and see her again. And as she sat on the dusty sheets of the unused bed she and the portrait talked about unimportant things like the weather, horses, the decor of the castle, dresses and all manner of things until Kassandra presently changed the subject by saying;
"So, what made you come down here again?"
Arianthe paused.
"I wanted to see you again." she replied simply "And I have a lot of questions that I need answering."
"Oh really?"
"Yes, really."
Kassandra tucked her black her behind her ear and looked at the Princess.
"What do you need to know?" She said.
Arianthe stood up and began to pace the room.
"Well firstly, how did you end up in a portrait?" She questioned.
Kassandra smiled wryly and bit her lip.
"That's a complicated question." she replied.
"Do you always do this?" Arianthe said irritably
"What?"
"Avoid questions. All I need is answers and you just won't give any. Why?"
Kassandra shrugged.
"The last time I told the truth I got in big trouble." she answered.
"There you go again, you answer me but you never answer the question." Arianthe cried in frustration. "Why do I even bother coming to see you if all you do is smirk and avoid things?"
She sat down on the bed, a cloud of dust flew up and made her cough.
"Curiosity killed the cat." was the reply.
There was a long silence in which Arianthe debated the best way to bribe a portrait.
"You will still come back though, you know."
She looked sharply at the woman in the portrait.
"Well I won't this time." she snapped.
"Really?"
Kassandra sat back and twirled her raven hair with a perfectly painted finger.
"Yes, really."
Arianthe stood up defiantly and started to walk to the door. She stopped just in front of it.
"I'm going now." She said.
"Good bye." Kassandra smiled.
"Aren't you going to try and stop me?"
"Do you want me to?"
"No."
"Then why are you still here?"
Arianthe angrily flung the door open with an accidental crash louder than she intended.
"You silly child, everyone next door will have heard that!" Cried the woman in the portrait "RUN"
Arianthe didn't need to be told twice, she picked up the hem of her dress and sprinted down the corridor and didn't stop running until she had made it back to her chambers where she slunk onto her windowsill with annoyance.
How dare Kassandra not answer any of her questions, if only she knew how important Arianthe was...
A sudden knock at the door made the girl jump. Irritably she sat up and smoothed down her dress and tried to breathe normally (as she was still panting from running up the two sets of stairs).
Who would be calling in the middle of the day like this?
"Enter." She called and the door swung open.
YOU ARE READING
Her Portrait
FantasyYoung Princess Arianthe has never stepped foot outside the castle. Her father, King Eustace is determined to keep her safe due to the disappearance of her mother years ago. But what he doesn't know is Arianthe is slowly learning his secrets and find...
