Audrey

Her sister was different to anyone she had met, for the first time in her life, someone saw Audrey. Truly saw her, not like everyone else, instead, it was as if she was existing for the first time. Her joy was short-lived as her sister was ushered away, out of her sight, and she decided to leave as quickly as she could too. She didn't look up once, she curtsied and hurried to her home.

The reason she came after everyone else, and the reason why she was always the last to be informed of urgent news, was that her room was in a completely different location to everyone else in her family. She lived in a small palace called the Daisy Palace, too big for her alone, whilst her family lived in the Diamond Palace, too big for a hundred people to live in. They each lived in a wing of the Diamond Palace was the size of three Daisy Palaces, and had more than twenty wings. It took her one hour in a carriage to reach the Diamond Palace, yet, she had never been late to any event held there. 

She set off on her journey, allowing herself to reflect on the night that had passed. She felt relieved, even though her life had been soured by her sister's disappearance, she was grateful she was safe and well. She prayed that from this night on, their lives would be imbued with every joy. When she arrived at her palace, she found herself unable to get out of the carriage for a second, saddened by the depravity of her life. Perhaps things would change now that light had returned to the palace. 

With that thought, she entered her palace, which remained somewhat lifeless. She wondered if her life would change now too, maybe her parents would see her worth, and maybe she would live with them one day. Perhaps she would find joy and meaning in her own life, she hummed as exciting thoughts ran through her mind. 

As she reached her room, a negative feeling found its way into her mind, what if nothing changed? Worse, what if it became worse?

No, that can't happen, she thought. She didn't know how much longer she could keep pushing this giant rock up the hill, how much more she could bear the pain of it rolling onto her and destroying her, she needed to get over the hill now. She needed to or else she would die. 

She forced the darkness to dissipate from her thoughts, she couldn't let it interfere with the positivity of the night. She lay in her bed and let the positive outcomes fill her mind, she would be surrounded by family soon and it would be amazing.

***

After three weeks, she realised that she was now completely forgotten. On Fridays, she would be summoned for dinner and the invitation stopped coming, her servants stopped showing up, and she slowly felt the abandonment of her parents grasping at her throat. No, no, no, no, ran through her mind, her thoughts unable to form. Where was everyone? They couldn't possibly abandon a princess? Could they? Even worse, Edmond hadn't visited her either or sent a letter, nothing. 

Am I so forgettable? she wondered, as she stared at the emptier halls, even more lifeless than ever before. Her tutors hadn't come either, how could everyone have forgotten her existence? She stared at the mirror, her cheeks looked less chubby, her small frame thinner, I am ten, she thought, basically an adult, I can do this. 

She walked into her kitchen, an unfamiliar place, and she quickly realised she didn't know what anything was or how to use it. She ran to the study and grabbed a quill and paper, she wrote to her parents, begging to send her some staff and one tutor, reminding them of her existence. How would she send it? She ran out of her castle, she knew the way to the Diamond Palace, and so she began her journey. She had a hat on, a dress that now looked too big on her body, and she walked. 

Three hours later, she finally arrived, the guards, thankfully, recognised her and allowed her into the palace. Her usually pale face red as the heat had caught up to her two hours prior, the servants gave a tall glass of water, and stared at her pitifully. After waiting for two hours she suddenly stood up and asked the butler where her father was, he told her he was in the study, she demanded to be led to his study. 

She had never felt such fury, how dare they do this? She stood in front of the giant study doors, and before the butler opened them he stopped and turned to her. "Princess Audrey, are you sure about this?" he asked, knowing the torment the young girl had faced. 

"Yes, it's time I put an end to this." she responded, her confident front crumbling from the shake in her voice.

"Take a deep breath, you can do this. Let's wait a moment before you face him, okay?" She nodded, staring at him gratefully. She breathed in, held it, breathed out, repeated. Then she looked at him again, this time with a more determined nod, he smiled at her sympathetically and they walked in.

She had never been in her father's study before, or any other room other than the dining room until that day. She found that the room was grander than her entire palace, paintings made of gold adorned the walls, a chandelier three times her size hung high on the most beautiful ceiling a study had ever seen. She saw that there was a tea table, and around it sat her whole family, smiling like there wasn't a worry in the world. The butler announced her presence and they all turned, shock on their faces, joy only on Cecilia's face. 

"Audrey, it's been so long since I saw you!" Cecilia called, ushering Audrey over. Audrey smiled at her as Cecilia continued, "come here! You must have tea with us." 

"Thank you, Your Majesty, but I unfortunately do not have the time for it today. I'm here about the matter of my survival, I hope that although I am not a daughter any of you want, you will not allow me to die. Please send over some servants and a tutor as soon as you can, and send over someone who can teach me the jobs of the servants so that in a year, you can send me only the tutor and I will be able to survive on my own." Just as she was about to turn and leave, she stopped and spun again. "And, I will no longer accept any punishment from you. Since you have stopped being my parents and family, you have lost the right to take your anger out on me. Should anyone try to lay hand on me, I will no longer hold allow it. Believe me, I am completely capable of stopping it."

She curtsied and left, leaving a tension behind her that could be cut only be a giant axe.