Zara''s future fractured as if her life were held on a pane of glass.


    There were three more days until she would get married to Ruther, an heir of the house Fallengrad, who she''d only met a handful of times. The wedding was a political favor from her parents, the king, and queen, to the Fallengrads. Marrying Ruther meant that the Fallengrads would gain more influence over the kingdom, and her parents would gain an even tighter grip over the throne. The only person losing anything is her. Being a princess is not the life she wanted. The constant intrigue, drama, and facades would cause her nothing but grief. She could never be herself.


    The thought of her freedom slipping away brought tears to her eyes.


    As the day grew closer, she started to feel a sense of dread in her stomach. She did not want to sell her soul because her family was giving her out as some political favor. Yes, her life would be full of luxury, but her life would be empty with little room for self-expression. She wanted to help as many people as possible, but she also wanted to live the life she wanted. Was that really so much to ask for? She focused outside of her window. Her room was on the top floor of the castle facing the heart of the city. She smiled at the view while her gut twisted in on itself.


    The city below was beautiful. The white paint on the organic-looking clay buildings glistened as the sun barred down while the fauna spread throughout the city, contrasting nicely with the buildings'' texture. She could see tons of activity happening down there: people shopping, workers working, and businesses blooming. She envied their autonomy. Tears formed in her eyes as she looked away from the window. She had to decide before the wedding, hell before the end of the day, if she would fight this wedding or steel herself and accept her fate. She wanted to fight but was afraid of the consequences. Mother and Father could be ruthless. That''s how they maintained order amongst all the houses of Zaramon.


    Zaramon, she cringed at the thought of the kingdom. Her parents always said that she was given that name because the kingdom was her birthright. She hated them when they said that. How could she have an entire kingdom as a birthright? She wasn''t anything special. She was just born lucky.


    "I don''t..." she said, raising her fist into the air, "want this!" As she swung her fist down, the door opened.


    "Is everything all right?" a familiar voice said. Zara stood still for a moment, realizing that her little show of emotion could be a big source of trouble if seen by the wrong person. Thankfully it was just Mary, her closest and only real friend. She needed to be more careful.


    "No," she said, still looking out the window. "I''m very conflicted, and honestly," she shifted uncomfortably. "I''m terrified." Turning towards her best friend, she saw that her face was a mixture of anger, sympathy, and guilt. All of this was hidden under her typical stoic expression.


    Mary rushed over to her and hugged her. She was not used to physical contact as her parents were very distant. The servants of the castle were not allowed to get close to anyone without explicit permission, so physical affection was rare.


    They stayed like this for some time until Mary broke the embrace.


    "How about we go to the city square one last time? Just like we used to."


    She had to admit that the idea appealed to her. She didn''t want to deal with her feelings quite yet. She didn''t even really know what she was feeling. The distraction may help to clear her mind and decide what she should do.


    "Yes, let''s."


    Mary set off to change, and she did the same. Wearing regal clothes in the city was a surefire way of getting unwanted attention, which was the last thing she needed at the moment. Changing into a simple sundress and putting her hair up in a messy bun, she set off to meet Mary at the front of the castle.


    She looked at the hallways of the castle with a different perspective. They no longer gave her a feeling of safety instead of providing a feeling of imprisonment. The wedding''s immense scale and its aftermath all weighed down on her as she realized her future was crumbling. She would be held a lot more accountable for the family''s public perception, which meant a lot less freedom. She looked at the halls with a set of new eyes.


    The halls had beautiful tall arches. One side was lined with a series of large pieces of artwork. The other side had some equally large windows that oversaw the grounds of the castle. Looking down at the patterned maroon carpet, she sighed. Her home was turning into a prison. It would be poetic if it weren''t so sad. Shaking off the doom and gloom, she headed to the entrance. Waving and saying pleasantries to all the servants and guards she passed. They were always a little surprised when she did. Most of the royals barely looked at them, let alone talked with them. However, she was always fascinated by the stories they had to tell and their lives outside the castle.


    "Hurry up, slowpoke." Mary''s voice broke her out of her thoughts. Hurrying her pace a little, she joined Mary down at the entrance. To get to the city, they would need to cross the bridge that connected the castle to the rest of the city. The castle was surrounded by a large moat, due to some eccentric king in the past. Only one bridge was built to connect the isolated island to the mainland. There were gates on both sides of the bridge, which were continuously staffed by guards. While technology has improved over the years, the principles of old never changed. As they approached the first gate, they found themselves facing the guards.


    "State your business," a serious-faced guard told the pair. She hated this part because they always grilled her and chastised her. She could handle herself.


    "One last walk of freedom," she said with a dramatic wave.


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    "State your business," the guard repeated. They didn''t seem to be amused by her comment, so she reluctantly complied.


    "We are heading to the city square to have some food and do some shopping."


    "Don''t you have a wedding business to attend too?" She flinched at the word wedding. She wanted nothing to do with that right now.


    "That''s not really any of your business, but, as a matter of fact, I don''t have any today. That''s why I said one'' last walk of freedom.'' You guys are so dense," knocking on her head to emphasize the point. The guard, who was used to her strong personality, merely sighed.


    "Just doing my job. You may proceed," the guard said, turning towards one of his fellow guardsmen signaling for the gate to be opened. With a sudden clang, the large steel doors began opening, revealing the bridge behind it. She heard Mary sigh. It made her uncomfortable when Zara gave the guards a hard time. She gave Mary a little punch.


    "Don''t be so tense. We won''t get in trouble," she said, smiling.


    "That doesn''t matter. Your brashness never ceases to amaze me." Mary said, pausing for a moment. "but I could go on and on about your flaws, so why don''t we just continue." She said, stepping forward.


    "You can''t just say that and walk away!" Zara called to her. The two walked and bickered the whole way across the bridge. It was refreshing. Even though Mary put up a facade of maturity and status, deep down, she knew that they were on the same wavelength. Zara hated formality and rejected the standards put up by her parents, whereas Mary hated formality but held up a facade unless they were completely alone.


    The bridge was large and wide to handle large amounts of traffic. It overlooked a moat that branched out to some river systems, so boats could often be seen traversing below. While the sight was beautiful, it was weird that the only way between the castle and the city was a heavily secured bridge. It was understandable since the royal family had several enemies, but isolating themselves made the royal family''s already negative perception even more so.


    After a long walk and discussion about what they should do in town, they finally arrived at the second gate. After an equally quick conversation with the guard stationed there, they walked on through, reaching the bustling heart of the city.


    Zara took a long look at the square, taking it all in. There was a magnificent fountain in the square''s center that held a statue of the goddess herself. All six of her arms posed away from her as if she was blessing the world. This was represented by water flowing out of her hands.


    Today was a Sunday, meaning it was market day. The colorful stands, beautiful day, and delicious food were truly a sight to behold. Getting a whiff of various foods made her mouth start watering.


    "God, I am starving," Zara said, breaking out of her thoughts.


    "That''s blasphemy," Mary said, shaking her head. "The goddess will smite you for that one," smiling at that last line.


    "Oh, give it a break. She was already going to smite me," Zara said. She noticed one of the food stands in her peripheral vision. When she saw what it was, she could barely contain her excitement. "Mary, I can''t believe this. She''s back."


    Mary turned, and when she saw what Zara was pointing at, a look of pure joy came over her face. They were staring at the legendary dumpling stand of Mrs. Taragon. The owner of the stand had taken a break from the Sunday market. Ever since she took that break, they looked for her every market day but always had no luck. Today, however, she was back, which meant that today, there would be dumplings.


    Breaking into almost full-on sprints, they rushed towards the stand and to a day of fun.


    ***


    The two had a wonderful time in the market; looking at stuff, buying stuff, smelling food, eating food. A truly wonderful distraction from her other obligations. They were exhausted and had to sit down in front of the fountain to take a moment to rest.


    "I''m exhausted," Zara said, speaking to the world.


    "Three hours of eating and shopping will do that to you," Mary said. They sat in silence for a bit until Zara broke it.


    "I really appreciate this. It means a lot to me," She turned to face Mary, who had a shocked expression on her face. Zara replied to her newfound expression. Hey! I have feelings too, you know."


    Mary giggled. "I know I was teasing you. I appreciate you doing this with me too..." she paused and then, after a moment, resumed, "since it may be the last time, for a long time, that we can do something like this." A solemn silence hit the air. The market was still roaring loud, but it now felt distant. She was right. After the wedding, she would be swamped, and her ability to plan her life would be taken away. There are different standards for a single princess than there are for a married one. Her heart sank. She knew that the wedding would disrupt her life; however, she hadn''t realized how far that disruption would reach.


    "I''m going to miss you," Zara said, pouring all of her genuine feelings into the words. She had grown a real bond with Mary over the years, and she loved spending time with her. She was the only thing that kept her grounded when their lives had been scripted and often fake. The lives of royalty were all about being two-faced, and that wasn''t her, but Mary felt that way too. She understood her. Zara turned to Mary and was met with her eyes. It felt as if Mary was looking right at her as opposed to through or past her. Zara''s heart began pounding. Then Mary closed her eyes and smiled.


    "I guess you do have a soft side after all." Everything had changed. Mary''s eyes had held a beauty she had never seen before. They inspired a feeling of warmth, and that feeling took hold. Her heart reacted by fluttering. She clutched her chest with so much aggression that it startled Mary.


    "I didn''t mean to offend you. It''s just so rare that you show such genuine emotion or any emotion for that matter," Mary said, waving her hands in front of herself, forcing a small laugh. What the hell was that? She had never experienced anything quite like it. What the hell did it mean? Turning to Mary, her heart started pounding again. What was going on?


    "It''s okay. I don''t know what came over me," she forced a laugh and tried to move on, but Mary was clearly suspicious of her. After a moment of pondering, Mary decided not to push her.


    "You can''t keep everything bottled up, you know. You''ll either go insane or become so jaded that going insane would''ve ended up being a better option. You have to give me something, or else I''ll never forgive you as your best friend." Mary smiled with that last statement. Before she could respond, the two were startled by a sudden voice.


    "Princess Zara, you are to return with us at once," a voice shouted. "Urgent business awaits." She turned to meet the voice and saw two guards. Goddammit, what do they want?


    "What business?" She said, obviously annoyed." Today was supposed to be my free day."


    "Princess, forgive me, but I''m just following orders." The guard said. They learned over the years that the best way to get her to agree was not to fight her on her tone or her manners. She didn''t really want to be why the guards had a bad day, but today might be an exception.


    "Fine," Zara said as she stood up. "Mary, let''s go deal with whatever nonsense they have in store."


    "I''m sorry, but Lady Mary has other business to attend to," she was officially pissed off. Her heart was freaking out in ways she didn''t understand, and her only friend was trying to help comfort her. What could be more important than her mental well being? Before Zara could respond, Mary spoke.


    "It''s okay," putting her hand on Zara''s shoulder. "We''ll see each other before the wedding." It was a tradition for the maid of honor and the bride to see each other the day before the wedding. Zara squeezed the bridge of her nose and was as outwardly as annoyed as possible. The guards led Mary away, who waved to her before leaving, and the guards ushered Zara to follow them.


    "What a pain," she said aloud. Worried about the new feelings that had started surfacing.


    ***


    Zara flopped onto her bed, breathing out the largest sigh she could. It had been a long night. After Separating from Mary, she had done nothing but plan and make decisions for the wedding. Her parents had promised that today would be her day to relax and not think about the wedding, but alas, like always, her parents made a false promise and undermined her. She would give them a mouthful when she saw them tomorrow.


    Even though she had a rather exhausting day, she was feeling restless. Her mind brought her back to the market when she was looking into Mary''s eyes. The thought of it made her heart beat faster and her breathing more labored. She had never experienced this. All she could think of was that Mary looked beautiful. She always did, she took care of herself and dressed the part, but she couldn''t help but think that there was more to it than that. The way she looked right at her made her feel so…


    She slammed her hand down and stopped herself from finishing her thoughts. She knew the implications. She knew what would happen if her intuition turned out to be true. She had to decide now more than ever, whether to lock herself away or fight for herself.


    This night would be the start of many restless nights.