Finally, the day of the engagement came. A swarm of servants rushed to Eliza's room, early in the morning. They had to help the Princess get ready on time. She couldn't be late for such an important day.
The dress, finely tailored especially for the day, was beautiful beyond compare. Its pastel green colour reminded of early spring. The corset was embroidered with gold threads, and the translucent sleeves were made of the finest silk. The bottom half was stitched with fibres in the same colour, layered one over the other, in waves of lace and brocade, like the foaming sea. On the other hand, Elizadidn't allow anyone to touch her hair or her face. She managed to hide her wrinkles again with a nice whirl and let her hair fall down on her shoulders. Then, she carefully put on the tiara which was brought to her on a velvet cushion. It was the tiara she has always dreamed of since she was a little girl — when she was braiding flowers in the shape of a crown, imagining they were the most precious gems. Flowers made of emerald, big bright pieces, surrounded by small diamond pieces, were shining in the light. And her laced shoes were also decorated with precious stones.
Eliza was happy. This was to be the happiest day of her life. What was about to come didn't matter anymore.
Downstairs, in the dining hall, the arrangements were almost over. The long tables were placed in a semicircle, covered in finest textured linen. On alabaster lamp stands with ruby flowers and emerald, candles were burning with colourful flames.
The Table of Honor, where the Prince and Princess were expected to sit, next to the King and Queen, was placed higher than the other tables.
The meals were so diverse, Eliza would've almost needed a whole week to count them all. Fish, vegetables, veal, mutton, rabbit, venison and salads, all placed on silver trays. Soup bowls steaming hot. Roast meat with all kinds of dressings. Sponge cakes, pies and the finest cookies and cakes reigned over the dessert tables set to the sides. Exotic fruits, sorbet, confiture waiting to be enjoyed. Everything looked perfect.
The guests were coming down to the dining room, taking their seats. Big smiles and cheerfulness were all over those merry royal faces. The Prince was greeting the guests at the entrance. His ceremonial attire was not much different from the one he usually wore. But you could see on his face he was happy.
When Eliza made her entrance, everyone held their breath. Whispers of appreciation were coming through and, for the first time, Eliza felt like a real princess. The Prince came forward to receive her, greeted with a smile and led her to her seat, on his left. Next, there was the Queen who gave her an encouraging look and the King who smiled softly.
The feast began and, in front of the diners, came prancing jesters and court musicians who brought along even more cheer.
After dining, the Prince invited the guests to the ballroom. It was a large room, loaded with thousands of torches and candles and decorated with flowers and shrubs to make the place look like an indoor garden. The music players took their place on the stage. When they began playing, the Prince invited Eliza to dance, smiling like he never had before. Eliza was not the only one to notice that the Prince was truly happy. She lent him her hand and got shivers when she felt his firm grip. The same shivers she felt that first time in the library. Then, the two floated on the notes of a mellow waltz. Eliza didn't trip, not even once, a good sign that the dance lessons she got from the Queen had not been in vain. The Prince was holding her by the waist and looked her warmly, which had her blood rise to her cheeks. Hundreds of pairs of eyes were following their every move, but Eliza and the Prince had eyes only for each other. The song ended, and the Prince kissed her hand and went back to their places. But they didn't sit for too long. For the orchestra tackled another waltz, and the two danced again, and again like they couldn't have enough of each other. Other dancing pairs joined them and the ballroom was coming alive with gracious moves, smiles, and cheers.
In the middle of this celebration, the Prince picked a glass and struck it repeatedly with a fork until the place fell quiet. All eyes on him.
'Honoured guests, I have the pleasure to announce an important moment for this evening. My future wife and queen, Princess Mara, will enchant us with her beautiful voice.'
Eliza was so overwhelmed by the evening's proceedings, that she completely forgot she was expected to sing. She went to the stage, floating as in a dream, and after a short moment of silence, her voice was heard throughout the castle and beyond. All the guests stopped from everything they were doing. Nobody dared to let out the smallest breath. Everyone was eager to hear the wonderful voice they've heard so much about. And it was all true— it was the sweetest voice ever heard. When Eliza finished the song, she received a standing ovation with long bursts of applause flooding over the entire room.
The celebration went on until the first rooster crow was heard; it could have continued even longer if the guests weren't so tired after all the dancing or so tipsy after all the wine. Eliza thought it was the most beautiful day of her life. So beautiful, that she sang whenever she felt like—not once, not twice, but three times altogether, forgetting about one and all.
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To Eliza's surprise, the King and Queen didn't tattle on her after the engagement was over. Even more so, they left the castle after a few days, disregarding the Prince's pleads to stay longer. The Queen gave Eliza a hug when they left, a hug she wished it could last forever. And the King... Well, the King gave her a kiss on the forehead, just like any father would kiss his daughter goodbye. In that kiss, Eliza felt pain, regrets, and fatherly love.
After the guests left, everything seemed to have gone back to normal. For everyone, except for Eliza. After the three songs at the engagement ball, her face began to suffer terrible transformations. Her left side was turning more grotesque. The wrinkles were now going all the way to her chin. The skin under her eye began to sag. Her left eye turned dark and strange, giving her the creeps every time she looked in the mirror. In a few days' time, the darkness took over her entire eye, and the white disappeared completely. The left side of her mouth turned blue, almost lifeless and her lips were sagging. The life ran out
of her hair, too, half of it becoming white and hemp-like.
Eliza had no other way but to hide her hideousness. She made herself a black bonnet that held up her hair, with a black lace veil covering the grotesque part of her face. And when the nanny and her chaperones asked her why she was wearing that bonnet, she made up a lie that those bonnets were being worn by all princesses somewhere, at the other end of the world. A fact, she said, she found out from one of the chocolate-princesses who lived in a country where it was always summer. Shrugging, the chaperones stopped being surprised at it. Even more so, some of them also made those weird bonnets for themselves and wore them with great pride. Only Nanny Ana didn't believe a single word that came from Eliza's mouth and shook her head every time she heard such nonsense.
Soon, Eliza was changing entirely. She changed her cheerful dresses with grey, colourless ones to match her strange bonnets. She stopped visiting the kitchen and the castle's courtyard where dozens of children used to follow her.
And on top of all, she couldn't take the bracelet off. She tried several times, locking it in the back of a drawer. But each time, she had succumbed to it, putting it back on her hand as if the bracelet had a will of its own, one that was unbeatable. And maybe it did...
The Prince has also noticed the change in Eliza. They met every day at dinner, but the girl didn't talk like she used to. She ate quietly and excused herself before the dinner was over. And soon, she gave up dining with the Prince altogether, choosing to eat in her room. But the Prince didn't give up that easily. Almost every day he would ask her to join him on his morning walk in the castle's gardens.
Winter had taken over the entire kingdom and everything was covered in snow. Eliza muffled herself, covering her face almost entirely with the cape's hood. That's when she was turning back to the cheerful girl she once was. The Prince was telling funny stories from his childhood and she would laugh so hard, the whole garden echoed.
One day, the Prince gave her a white rose which somehow survived the bitter cold of winter. Eliza took it with a shaking hand and could still smell its fresh scent. Then, they continued their walk, their hands touching from time to time. The Prince told her how once, when he was a child, he climbed on his father's throne and accidentally hit the royal sceptre, chipping it. Afraid of the punishment he was to receive, he blamed it on his mother's cat. The King ordered the cat to be locked up so that it wouldn't do any other damage. But Prince Gabriel couldn't bear to see his mother's sadness and eventually admitted to the crime. The King forgave him eventually, the cat was set free, but he hasn't said this to anyone ever since.
'And now it's our secret,' he laughed.
Eliza also laughed at the Prince's shenanigan and promised to keep the secret.
'You know, I feel like a different man around you,' he confessed. 'Kinder, generous... And happier.'
And before she knew it, he took her hand and gently pulled her towards him. His other hand was caressing her young cheek. But when his lips were close to hers, Eliza jerked herself from his grip and ran as fast as she could, tripping over several times, falling in the snow, getting back up and running again.
She couldn't stand the Prince seeing her hideousness. How could she kiss him with her half-dead lips? And even though she always dreamt of this moment, as every girl did, the desire to run and hide was greater.
She spent three days locked up in her room, with her face buried in the pillow. Every so often, she looked at the flower the Prince gave her and drowned even deeper in sorrow. Nanny Ana was the only one who entered the room. But not even the nanny could find out why she'd changed so much.
And then there was Tommy, the only one to look at her without being frightened. The only one who could see beyond her face, all the way to the centre of her soul. Every day, the Prince asked about her; and every day he got the same answer—the Princess didn't want to see him. And so he dived deeper into his defensive plans. He sent messengers of peace to the countries he had already conquered, signed alliance treaties with the neighbouring countries, and prepared his army for the great war foretold by the prophecy.
One evening, Eliza heard a soft knock on her door, one different from her nanny's. She tiptoed to the door, put her ear close to it and waited. Under the door, a letter with royal insignia appeared. The girl opened it with trembling hands. It was a letter from the Prince. He was trying to understand her behaviour. He wanted to know what he had done to affect her so, that she didn't want to see him again. And he promised her that, if her feelings weren't the same as his, he would let her go anytime.
As the lines went by before her eyes, big tears fell on the letter. No, the last thing she wanted was to leave the Prince. How could she be away from the one she loved the most in the entire world?
Eliza's life as a princess is nothing she expected. Thank you for reading her story! Please vote and comment and make Eliza popular among other fantasy heroines here, on Wattpad. Happy reading!