As the Leaf Falls

I Am, The Jacana

Lotus-Eloise sat in her chambers, her heart heavy with apprehension as she gazed out the window, lost in thought. The impending marriage to Ambrose, weighed heavily on her mind. It felt like a betrayal of everything she held dear.
A soft knock at the door interrupted her reverie, and Sofia, entered the room with a troubled expression. "Your Highness, it is time," she said quietly, her voice filled with concern.
Lotus-Eloise turned to face her, her eyes brimming with sorrow.
"I cannot do this, Sofia," she whispered, her voice choked with emotion. "I cannot marry a man I do not love."
Sofia's heart ached for her mistress, knowing the depth of her despair. Tears welled up in Lotus-Eloise's eyes as she shook her head in disbelief. "How can he force me into such a loveless union? Does he not care for my happiness?"Sofia's gaze softened with sympathy as she placed a comforting hand on the princess's shoulder.
"I fear the king's resolve is unwavering, Your Highness. He sees this marriage as a necessary alliance to strengthen the kingdom's position." Anguish contorted Lotus-Eloise's features as she struggled to come to terms with her fate.
"But what about my own desires, my own happiness? Am I to sacrifice them?"

Lotus-Eloise couldn't help but draw parallels between herself and the caged birds she had observed in the castle gardens—beautiful creatures stripped of their freedom, their only purpose to produce offspring for the pleasure of others. Was this to be her fate, to be nothing more than a pawn in a game of power?
She would be queen, yes, but only because she had agreed to marry Ambrose leaving her with nothing more than the hollow title that adorned her brow. A Queen only in name—a mere figurehead.
The king would be the one respected and revered, his decisions hailed as law, while she would be relegated to the sidelines, her voice drowned out by the echoes of his authority. He who would hold all the power.
Sofia's voice was barely a whisper as she replied, "I wish I had an answer for you, Your Highness. But sometimes, the burdens of duty outweigh the desires of the heart."
With a heavy heart, Princess Lotus-Eloise knew that she had no choice but to obey her father's command.
Princess Lotus-Eloise stood in her chambers, her reflection in the mirror a vision of regal elegance and sorrow. The weight of her opulent gown seemed to mirror the burden on her heart, heavy and suffocating. As she waited to walk down the aisle towards an uncertain future, her thoughts were consumed by a tumult of emotions—fear, despair, and a lingering sense of resignation. She knew that with each step she took towards her betrothed, she would be stepping further away from the life she had once dreamed of, a life filled with love and happiness.
And in the end she said , i do.