The Book of Cliches

Chapter 1- The Princess

She was dressed in a pale peach gown of the finest silk, her golden hair cascading to the floor on waves, her pale oval face in contrast with her blood red lips. Surrounded by suitors on all sides; dwarfed by the tall, handsome men in gleaming suits of silver armour emblazoned with their personal crests, proclaiming their bravery and skill on the battle field.

Sipping watered- down wine daintily from a silver chalice she laughed her high pitched, tinkling chime laugh at something one of the knights had said.

She spent the whole banquet coyly smiling at her suitors from under her long lashes.

At the end of the dinner each knight grasped her hand and placed a kiss upon her palm. With each brush of a knight's lips against the smooth skin of her palm she simpered at the knight in question.

Truly disgusting

Once all of her suitors had kissed her she was swept up the castle stairs by the King and Queen, who were delighted with the young men clamouring for their daughter's favour.

But of course the girl they were whisking away wasn't their daughter. She wasn't the princess. She was my stunt double. Yeah you guessed it I'm the princess. So why, you may ask, am I shut upstairs while a commoner takes my place? Am I ill? No Do I care? Not particularly, though I don't like everyone thinking I behave like that.

Going back to the original question, I am locked away every time (yes this isn't the first time) I do something to annoy my parents. Such as; removing to gold dye from my hair, slapping knights, sneaking out, participating in jousting tournaments incognito, practicing weapons, ripping the organza from dresses, refusing to wear anything pink and (the most recent) cutting my hair to mid back.

I am not the daughter my parents wanted, a daughter like Farah. I am naturally a redhead, I am tall and athletic, my skin is blemished and I naturally scowl rather than smile. All in all I am the exact opposite to what they wanted. They wanted a son to carry on the Royal Lineage, they were prepared to have a girl who would do little more than marry a wealthy noble or knight. I was neither.

So they came up with the brilliant solution to dye my hair and replace me with Farah, the daughter of my mother's handmaiden, whenever I did something particularity nasty. Which is often.