The bird in the cage

"Lorelei! Lorelei! Lorelei, where are you?!" Grandmother Lou, the current queen shouted looking for her, a dress in her hand, it was big, yellow, purple, white, and gold, a monstrous sight, the bust was too tight, the waist was thin, "There is no way I'm wearing that mess of fabrics!" Lorelei declared hiding behind the wall farther down the hall, she turned around, towards the window, it was high from the ground, 9-10 feet high, surrounded by flowers, using the sheets from her room, tied together she threw it out the window, with the help from her young handmaid, who tied the sheet to a door, and made sure Queen Lou wasn't close by as Lorelei scaled down the outside of the wall.

The young sir knight Goughd, reached up to catch her as she let go of the end of the sheets, he caught her with ease, smiling as he set her down, "remember be back before nightfall, so I can help you climb back through" he said, Lorelei nodded, planting a kiss on his cheek as she ran from the castle hand in hand with her best friend Niles, his mother helped her change into peasant clothes, as the went to the town, Lorelei watched the festival with joy shining in her eyes, she was having the best time together, sitting on the roof of an abandoned building, they watched the parade, while eating.

Niles who was a few years older than Lorelei watched her, she looked so happy in the dirty rags he hated having to wear everyday, she looked so happy talking to, dancing with, and singing with the people her kind looks down on, eating the food he wished he didn't have to eat, yet this was the princess, the most favored princess in her castle, treated as a gem treating others no matter who they were as gems. "Lorelei…." he called out to her, it was like everything was in slow motion, "you…..you're a pure girl….through and through right?" he started, "I ain't no saint, and I know how I was born, even the fact…tat my mom was only 12-13 when she had me, meaning she was younger when she had my siblings…." She said, her face twisting in disgust, "That's what royal women have to go through…even you at some point.." he said, looking at the sky, "I…don't want that, if I have to marry young fine! But I will put up a fight, until he waits for me to be 18 to have children!" she shouted, pouting, "really, why?...I mean I know why, but why 18?" he asked, "I wanted my first kiss to be when I turned 16, and I wanted it to be with someone around my age, not a man near my fathers age, or worse my grandmother's age!" she stated, the both of them shivering at the thought.

"...Isn't tonight…well today the day you're supposed to go to that kingdom?....to meet men who will be your husband?" he asked, "Yes….after the official arranging, the one father approved, Grandmother Lou will be going behind fathers back, to sell me to whoever offers the highest payment, that's why she insisted on coming with us" Lorelei explained, "You know...if you're not pure…those men won't bid" he said, Lorelei's head snapped to him, "really?!" she asked, he nodded, she thought before looking at him, "Niles…..do you mind?" she asked, he smiled, his heart bursting with joy, he nodded, moving closer, just as the fireworks were set off, they kissed, deeply, he held her waist, as he pulled her close to him, she placed her hands on his chest, as she leaned in more, when the pulled away, their eyes widened, it was almost nightfall.

They ran through the woods, pushing through thorny rose bushes, branches, and party streamers. She quickly changed back into her own clothes, before running to the castle, she ran to a cabin, she placed everything from the night inside a box, "what is that?" Niles asked, "My memory box, it holds keepsakes from you, your mother, and sisters, every gift you guys ever gave me, every gift that I hold dear to my heart" she explained, running in front of him, he smiled sadly, his sister told him while the two of them were gone.

AN HOUR AGO

"Niles ... .her mother came by to warn us, that the day before Lorelei returns from that kingdom with her new husband, to keep Lorelei from sneaking over here, she'll be sending soldiers here, they'll take you and the boys to be Odvagond soldiers, big sister Milly and mom will be sold to a brothel, and me and baby Angie will be raised by her to be her servants…"

"Lorelei…...this won't make sense now, but…. I love you, and in the future, I will make sure to become worthy of you!" Niles declared, Lorelei laughed confused, as they stopped in front of the window, young sir knight Goughd wasn't there, "Grandmother has been looking for you!" someone shouted, walking towards them was Josh, her step- brother, Lorelei hid Niles behind her, "Calm down…..come on I'll help you in through the window..." Lorelei looked at him from head to toe, then she saw that twitch in his smile, "1….2…..3!" Lorelei ran holding Niles hand, she went to her uncle's window, "....Uncle….Dest?" she called out, his heavy footsteps as he walked over, he stared at her before sighing, he opened his window, and extended his hand to her, Niles helped push her in as he pulled her through, before he could leave, Lorelei pulled him forward, kissing him on his lips one more time, not knowing it would be the last. 

As planned Lorelei left, going to the kingdom Lora is the princess of, she was just a few years younger than Lorelei back then, so she never saw her face, unlike James who saw a glimpse of her. Niles didn't wait, he and his family left in the middle of the night but not before going to Lorelei's cabin, he took off his necklace placing it inside the box, with just a letter that said, "I'll explain the next time we meet, and I can promise you that we will meet in the future", Uncle Dest explained to Lorelei three years later when he came back from his war, only that her mother had something to do with it, when she went to confront her, she was slapped, sent to be locked in her room for two weeks, and told she would be put through training for the day she'll meet the man she will marry, at the end of those two weeks, Lorelei was gone, nowhere to be found, no one saw her leave her room, but saw Uncle Dest enter her room only once, then after he left out, Lorelei's complains, and vents stopped, he too was gone, his room empty of all things.

During those two weeks, Lorelei was put through harsher training as her mother was just being spiteful, jealous Lorelei found love through Niles, jealous that Lorelei had the guts to admit she was in love with a peasant, tighter dresses, bland food, longer classes she wasn't allowed to fall asleep during, she made Lorelei wear a dress so tight that she fainted, Lorelei's father walked in at that moment, his shouts snapping her mother out of her spiteful rain as Lorelei wouldn't wake up at her father's orders, only then did her mother realize she went too far, Lorelei's father forbid her mother from seeing her until she was well no matter how many times she cried she was sorry.

Once again locked in her room until she was well, she was just a bird in a cage, alone, following orders she didn't want to follow, Dest saw how Lorelei was like him, she hated life as a royal women, as a princess, and he listened to her cries from his room, so he leaded a helping hand, that he never got when he was young…..

"Be free my little bear! There will be no Lorelei, only Lilith" were the last words Uncle Dest told her as he left her in the den, that she now ran as a comfort place, no one in the town questioned her arrival, a woman who seemed to know the truth helped her change her appearance, months, turned into years, years became longer, Lorele- Lilith turned the dirt den into a beautiful place for the town, going along the river stream, looking for a nice fishing spot one day, she saw a girl in the lake drowning, she saved her, and left before anyone could see her, as she had been seeing posters of her face plastered in the kingdom, she was skipping and hopping through the woods, looking for berries, the same girl had eaten poison berries, Lilith helped her, taking her to a clinic and leaving before the doctor could ask her name, because people from her kingdom were looking for her in that part of town, once more which was a trap, but the same girl seemed to about to be attacked by a man, who was James with his face covered, as Lora wanted to thank her savoir, and prove to James it wasn't a setup, just pure luck, a friendship as bloomed, Lora following Lilith around, until she gave in excepting her as a best friend.

Lilith wore what she wanted, ate what she wanted, acted how she wanted, one time a boy tried to scare her into giving him her doll, she beat him up, and watched as his mother scolded him, instead of yelling at Lilith that she should act like a lady, or that she was to blame for him being mad, she later became best friends with that boy as well.....

The bird was finally free….