Posted: 11 May 2014
An unsteady light from the gas lamp fell across the pages of a dusty volume, as a young woman strained to read the text. The letters blurred and her mind grew heavy and slow. Heavy footsteps came down the hall outside, and the door opened. The woman did not look up.
“Princess,” the voice was soft, but stern. There was no answer until the man cleared his throat.
The Princess looked up, “I should be reagent. It is the law,” she tapped on the book, punctuating her thought. The man in the doorway held his own lantern aloft, staring down at her grim faced, “Not while your uncle lives.”
The Princess leaned back in her chair, rubbing her temple, “He will bring us to ruin.”
The man stepped into the room, making sure the door was shut behind him, “Do you think the council does not understand this? The people do not. It is what they expect.”
Sighing, Princess Sophia stood and moved to the window. There was a mournful silence shared between the two of them as the Princess stared up into the night sky, and the man down at the open book on the desk.
“Who will truly be ruling, John? Felix? William? Hans? Will they release their hold when my brother is of age?”
“I'm sure each of them thinks they will be the one to hold influence over Nicholas.”
Behind her back, the Princess's hands tightened their grasps on her wrists.
“Princess, you must rest. Nicholas arrives tomorrow.”
“At what price do we present ourselves as nobility? It would have been better for us if my uncle had died.”
John said nothing.
The Princess sighed and turned to face the older man, “We must welcome him privately. We are still grieving, the people will not think it unusual. It will buy us time.”
“Not much.”
The Princess closed the heavy book on her desk, “I am tired, send me my servants.”
John bowed and left the room.
The Princess slumped back into her chair, staring at the flame of her lamp. Her eyes were heavy and dry. The orange flame slipped out of focus. Her eyes slid closed.
Sophia jerked herself upright, blinking hard. Her servants would be there soon, and she could not be seen like this. She pushed herself up, but froze. Her mouth hung open a little as she stared across the room at the woman who had just stepped out onto the floor. It was as if she had stepped out of nothing. Gripping the side of her desk, the Princess shook herself to banish the illusion, but the woman remained turning around the room.
“Oh, it worked. Thank goodness.”
“D-dem...” Sophia straightened, setting her eyes firmly on the intruder, “Get out, Demon!”
The woman, taken aback, stopped looking about the room and faced the Princes, bringing her face to a stern expression, “I am not a demon!”
The Princess could only blink at the reprimand. The other woman continued, though her demeanor relaxed and her eyes once more wandered the room, “It turns out that I am related to one, though we haven't determined who. The demon, I mean, we know that it's likely to be my great grandfather as my grandfather was a bastard. But,” the woman shrugged, “you can't really blame a person for being related to someone.”
“I wish it were so,” the Princess fell back into her chair, rubbing her forehead. “If you are not a demon, what are you and why are you here?”
The woman was silent. Biting down on her lip, she shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “I am,” her eyes wandered up to the ceiling, “I am, Ina,” she nodded at the decision to give her proper name. “I am here to extend you our friendship. Well, mine and my...” Ina folded her hands behind her back, “My wizard friend's.”
Sophia snorted, “I shan't have anything to do with witches or wizards. Their magic is blasphemy, and you,” she pointed at Ina, “are mad. Get out.”
Ina folded her arms and puffed out her chest, showing no intention of going anywhere.
“Get out!” the Princess rose from her chair, tall and commanding.
Ina remained unmoved.
Sophia's face turned flush with anger, “Get out or I shall call the guards!”
Ina moved her hands to her hips, “'Oh, hush. You'll do no such thing.”
“Gua--” but the word was smothered by silence before she could finish speaking it. Her hand went to her throat.
Ina's eyes seemed to sparkle, as if they were saying, See?
“W-what is this?”
“I don't want to hear your fussing,” Ina reached a hand into a pocket and pulled out a small, folded paper, “Here,” she stepped forward, holding it out to the Princess, “If ever you find yourself without friends, we will be waiting here.”
The Princess made no attempt to take the paper. Sighing, Ina let it fall onto the desk, “I do not think your servants will be coming tonight.”
She stepped back into thin air.
The Princess did not move, not for a long time. Finally, with a sigh, she left her hand drop from her throat to the corner of the desk. The folded paper tickled her fingers as they brushed against it, but she did pick it up. She did not look at it. She turned to the clock that sat on her mantle, but the light from the lamp did not make it so far. Thinking over all the events of the night, she found that she could not fathom what time it might be. Not bothering to remove her clothes, she went to her bed and fell onto it. Her mind held onto Nicholas and John and the woman who had the power to appear in her bedroom, and it wasn't until the flame of the lamp had burned out, that Sophia could escape into sleep.
