Princesa (gxg)

8: Change Has Come

A light behind my eyelids forces them open, the sun shining through the open window and directly into my eyes. I yawn, stroking Kiley's hair and watching her sleep. My snow coat has melted and left behind a sodden rag stained with her blood.

I feel in a trance when I hear the door to my chambers knocked on. My mother's voice calls for me from the other side, and before I answer her she opens it, slipping inside.

"Daughter, I must speak-"

She turns around after closing the door, eyes widening at my blood-soaked bed and shirt. At the woman sprawled on top of me sleeping.

"Is she alright?" my mother asks, brow furrowing in concern.

I watch her, confused she'd care. I expected her to shout, to punish me, maybe be afraid. But this reaction, I was not expecting. 

I haven't spoken with her much over the years. Only at meals and outings. The king keeps us separated for fear of us banding together and overtaking him. Or simply put, he wants to be the favorite parent.

"No," I say, caressing Kiley's forehead. She whimpers softly in her sleep. "She's not. She needs a doctor."

"I can call for one once we speak. Your father told me about the ball. About what you spoke about."

She was not invited. My father made her remain in the private areas of the castle.

I stare at her, wondering why she's here now.

"I'm with you, Amelia."

I cock my head at her. She called me Amelia.

"With me for what?"

"For overthrowing him. You need to become ruler if Vastera is to remain ours. Peaceful."

"Why are you picking my side? Aren't you supposed to agree with him?"

"I am. But I don't."

She walks over to us, sitting on the edge of my bed far away from the bloodstains. She lays a flat hand on Kiley's elbow.

"I had a lover before I was picked to be your father's suitor. I never understood why I was chosen. Maybe he saw that I could never love him, so I would never cloud his judgments. I tried everything I could to be rowdy, not be picked. But he did, and I was forced into the palace." She sighs, stroking Kiley's arm. "Not a day goes by that I don't think about what I could have been. Where I would be. If I wasn't chosen, maybe I would be far away from here. Married and living in a little cottage. Carefree." She reaches out and smooths a lock of Kiley's hair down. "I miss her terribly."

"Her?" I ask.

My mother nods solemnly. She stands, walking toward the door.

"I'm on your side, Amelia. Trust me." She opens the door, stealing a look at Kiley. "I'll call for a doctor."

The man I've seen for my routine checkups my entire life bustles into my room a few moments later, his medicine bag in tow. My mother follows behind him curiously. He stares at the two of us on the bed, shaking his head softly before coming round and inspecting my snow. Her wound still looks ghastly.

"I'm surprised she made her way back to you," my mother says, looking over at her wound.

I tug on Kiley's earlobe. "She always makes it back to me."

"She loves you?"

"She does."

My mother nods, sitting on the edge of my bed again. "I would like to speak with her, if that's alright."