Once Upon A Princess

7: The First Nightmare

She sees red. The room is red, and there's a strange, acrid smell in the air. She's wearing a strange dress, it's made of scratchy material. She can hear someone laughing faintly in the background. She turns, only to see more red. Then there's a figure in the corner, shadowy and too hard to make out. It's approaching; slowly and with purpose. She tries to run, and the room seems to melt. It turns into a strange and unfamiliar room. Everything around her looks as if it was made for a giant, she is small and the room is tall. She hears the footsteps from behind; hears the unmistakable sound of a weapon being drawn...

Amelia woke up, her stomach in the middle of a terrified pitfall. She sat up quickly, rubbing her eyes to adjust to the light. It was already morning. She felt the sheen of sweat on her, the nightdress she was wearing sticking to her uncomfortably. One of her handmaidens was in the room, stoking the fire. She turned to Amelia with a smile.

"Good morning, princess. Sleep well?"

Amelia didn't want to tell her she'd had a nightmare. "Yes, thank you."

The handmaiden nodded. "Good. Would you like me to bring you up your breakfast? Your parents are away at meetings, so you'll be dining alone today."

That was all well and good to Amelia. "I'd like a bath first."

"I'll draw one for you then, princess." Without another word she left into the small bathroom adjacent. 

Amelia nearly threw herself out of bed, not wanting to remember the strange nightmare she'd just had. Instead she tried to think about how nice a bath would feel, and as she unchanged she let it unceremoniously fall to the floor, glad to be rid of the sticky nightdress. The tub was already halfway full of hot water, and so she jumped inside even though her handmaiden hadn't finished filling it. Having the steaming water poured on top of her helped. For some reason the sting sharpened her focus, and the dream faded as it should. She'd never had a dream, especially not a nightmare, stay in her mind for long. It was unsettling to have those strange images stay plastered there. Especially after the odd day she'd had yesterday; surely a talking frog would be the forefront of today's thoughts.

After being scrubbed down and having her hair washed, she changed into a clean nightgown and given her breakfast in bed. The lady who brought the tray gave her a look like a scared doe, and the man who poured her water seemed to be avoiding her gaze. Everyone was still being cautious around her, even though she felt fine. It made her feel more alienated than usual; the customarily awed glances and revered attitudes were now mindful and wary.

Once she was dressed and finished with her lessons — noting that only her tutor, Madam Tunna, seemed to treat her much the same — she told her lady-in-waiting she wanted to go outside. She was anxious to be rid of the suffocating stares and the foreboding walls. Not only that. She had to check on her ball, and the whereabouts of the frog.

Her lady-in-waiting, named Ana, gave her a strange look.

"You want to go outside?" She said it as if Amelia had asked if she could go cliff diving.

"Yes, I do. I left my ball out there."

"Well don't worry about that, we can have someone go and get it for you—"

"No," the princess said forcefully. She felt her hands bunch up at her sides. It was frustrating to feel like everyone was walking on eggshells around her. She was used to being protected, but not like this. "I will get it myself. I'll take someone with me if you're so worried."

Ana seemed surprised at Amelia's insistence. "Okay, princess. Should I have a guard go out with you?"

Amelia shook her head, though a few good options came to mind. A guard would only be more protective. "I want Camil."

"As you wish."

Amelia decided against going out before Ana got back, hoping that it would make people less afraid for her. She wasn't crazy, she was just itching to go outside. Mostly to retrieve her ball herself, if need be.

It was less important to her that the frog was there, but she had no concrete plans to get the ball back besides its insane deal. She was mostly worried it had run off. She probably fell on top of it when she'd fallen in the pond. It could've left. And then she would have no way to get her ball back.

Ana came back a few minutes later with Camil. The princess nearly leapt out of her room, grabbing Camil's hand as she passed her and making her run down the hall with her. Camil looked as confused as Ana had been. Was she acting strangely? She couldn't tell.

"What is amiss, princess? I was just told you wanted to see me," Camil said through her exhausted pants. They were actually running, so much so that Amelia felt like she may trip in her dress the whole way. She had one hand bunched up in the fabric, hiking it up.

"I just need to be outside," she answered.

Amelia stopped then, just at the edges of the wide doors that led out to the garden. They were open, letting the light pour in and the hot, stale air waft in the fresh smell of grass and flowers. It was very bright outside; Amelia could feel the warmth on her face. It was just like it was yesterday. She breathed in a quick breath, squeezing Camil's hand. Camil scrunched her face, but beyond that said nothing.

The princess was movement again; letting go of Camil's hand and walking down the steps. For some reason all the haste was gone and she was walking calmly down; almost looking regal as was fitting to her title.

The pond looked still; for some reason Amelia had expected it to be changed somehow. But it was the same as it had always been. There were still bugs swirling lazily along the surface, causing small ripples. The same fish made their journey around its depth without a real destination in mind. The water was just as clear, unfettered blue as usual.

She approached the edge, in the same spot she'd fallen yesterday. She stayed far enough away from the slippery part, and managed to coax herself to look down into the water. She was stopped with a hand on her elbow before she could lean too far.

"Princess, is this such a good idea?" Camil whispered. There was urgency in her voice. She definitely thought something was wrong with Amelia. "You just fell in there yesterday."

"You know about that?" she replied.

She turned to look at Camil and saw that the kitchen maid had an almost guilty look on her face. Her eyes were wide. She was scared. Amelia realized she might feel bad she'd left Amelia alone yesterday after what had happened to her. Maybe she thought it was her fault, somehow.

"Everyone does," she replied as if it was common sense. Which, Amelia supposed, it was, based on everyone's reactions to her today. "Now come away from there. There's no point in looking at the ball. It will only make you miss it."

Camil tugged once on her arm, using little force. Amelia let her guide her away a few feet, turning once again to look back at the water. She stood there, watching the still and innocent blue. It looked so inviting. She couldn't believe how cold it was, even with the sun beating down.

The princess blew her hair out of her face with annoyance and then side-stepped closer to Camil, latching her hands onto her arm.

"Would you look then?"

"What's the point?"

Amelia wondered if she should tell her about the frog. She thought against it; for some reason she liked that only she knew about it.

"Check that it is still there."

Camil shrugged, and Amelia let her hands fall as Camil approached the water herself. She peered down, Amelia watching as she scanned the water and then bit her lip.

Then Camil turned around, slowly, her eyes slightly widened.

"Princess. The ball is gone."