fate thou art a heartless bitch sometimes.
Bang, bang, bang, echoed the sound of his mother's dainty fist upon the sizeable wooden door. "I'm up." He uttered hesitantly, his barely audible tone caught briskly, as the virile young chambermaid finished him off, swiftly, beneath the sheets. "You had better be." The queen barked. Her abrasive tones, broken by the sound of creaky hinges, drew his attention toward the steady stream of light penetrating the darkness. Her narrow brows quickly pulled a look of disapproval to her fair facial features, though she'd attempted to hide them in the shadows. Her typically open-minded nature, tested heavily in that moment as she stepped over the various items of clothing tossed about the floor. "I can see that." She responded quickly, her voice strangled by detestable sighs. "I realize your father and I agreed you'd be free from royal duties for a while," she spoke with a pause. "Unfortunately, the King has been delayed by the monsoons in Kumandra. As heir to the throne, it is your responsibility to receive the visiting crown in his absence." She added, swiftly drawing the drapes over the windows.
Her iconic ball gown almost blinding against the light flowing in from the windows, reflected by tiny sewn sequins. A deep sigh followed each of her movements with hast as she quickly dismissed the naïve maid with the wave of her hand. "I understand things have been difficult for you." She began, calmly, watching the woman gather her belongings from the floor. "I also know you've decided to console your wounds with whatever chambermaid will enter your bed." She continued, making sure the servant in question caught each of her words while fleeing the scene. "Something I'm certain Elina wouldn't take kindly too." She uttered, referencing her sons poor behavior. "I'm also sure she wouldn't want you to carry around this feeling of guilt." She spoke, matter of factly, leaving her son flabbergasted.
Her words easily shrouded his increasingly unsteady emotional range with waves of anger and rage. How dare she make such accusations about his late wife? How dare she presume to know what Elina would want or wish for him? How dare she insert herself into his affairs? He internalized all of these unasked questions, adding fuel to the inferno building within his shaky frame. Of course, it was ultimately the final unsolicited question that gave solace to his mind. How dare she care so much about her son's anguish? Especially since he'd done nothing to deserve it. Was change even possible for him after all this time? Could he endure the pain of acknowledging his part in her death? Could he piece his broken life back together? He wondered these questions as he sat beneath the blankets, his mother quickly summoning Jakob to the chamber. "See to the prince. Make sure he's properly dressed and ready to receive the King of Solaria by mid-day." She continued, quickly taking her leave.
"Do you agree with my mother's assessment?" He asked, shifting his focus towards Jakob. He asked because Jakob couldn't lie. He'd seen the relationship between Elina and Liam form first hand. He'd also spent his entire adolescence with Liam, and if anyone knew what Elina might have wished, it would be him. "Elina was kind," he spoke with this softness. "She was always quick to forgive and never said anything bad about anyone, even if they deserved it." He continued laying out a plate of fresh fruit and cheeses for the prince. "If I had to guess what the princess might have wished for, I think she'd have wished for you to live a life full of meaning and happiness." He confessed, slowly grabbing the prince's formal attire from a nearby wardrobe.
Hearing the words forced a painful groan from him, mainly because he knew what Jakob said to be true and of the heart. He knew Elina would find his behavior of late appalling. He'd be insulting the memory of his late wife, and that had to stop. He had to choose happiness, had to make the most of life. He had to, for her and for the son they lost. Of course, saying was always different than doing. Something the young prince would quickly discover while waiting for the visiting carriage.
Standing on the steps of the palace alongside his mother and siblings, he felt this undiscernible shift. It shook his very core in a way he couldn't yet explain, as if fate had come to intervene. It came in a cloud of dust as two horse-drawn carriages entered the long stretch of dirt leading up to the palace. Each nerve in his body unsettled as fate intervened. The scent of lilac easily overwhelmed his sense of smell, which was hard to imagine among the blossoming field of wild flowers. It hit him like the abrupt kick of a wild stallion, knocking the wind right out of his lungs. It reminded him of a friend he hadn't seen since childhood. Her face flooded his memories.
She was six years old and visiting for the summer while her parents attended the wedding of another foreign dignitary. She had long, curly brown hair. Her eyes were soft, childlike, still innocent of the world's cruelty, though they wouldn't remain as such. He remembered her vividly in his mind, and yet the sight of her felt unfamiliar to him as she exited the carriage. It gave color back to a world that had been gray for far too long. It choked him up, left him with few words, and tightened the muscles in his chest, making it nearly impossible to breathe. Could this be fate? If so, she seemed mighty heartless.
