in a distant province, at the crossroads of several lands, stood a kingdom that many did not know existed. set on a green hill, the houses piled up in a dancing procession of bricks, roofs, and whimsical walls. small, large, squares, long… none were similar. each house seemed to have been carefully shaped by the own hands of those who lived behind its walls. these same hands dedicated themselves every day to the maintenance of a precious thing in the village.
flowers.
they were the symbol of this land, they were what had brought it wealth and prosperity. at every corner of the streets, of the buildings, the flowers decorated and colored the village with a palette of hues which could be seen nowhere else. roses, hydrangeas, cornflowers, honeysuckles, lily flowers… all were there, adding their colors to the great and ubiquitous floral harmony.
this village, bearing the sweet name of adoramus, was an ode to greenery, color, and joy. the inhabitants spent their days singing, laughing, telling each other the news of the day without worrying about the horrors that this world had to offer. it seemed impossible for anyone to feel an ounce of unhappiness, except perhaps for the prettiest flower in the kingdom. lovely, radiant, delicate; she was a bud still waiting to be picked. the gilding blinding the sorrow, no one knew that; enclosed at the top of her golden tower, her petals were fading one by one, slowly.
the sound of the piano resonated in this tower in which the walls were adorned with gold. it was heard, it was understood and appreciated. it made itself understood by all those present except by the person who played it. you could see your fingers moving with grace and delicacy. you were not feeling the music, you were enduring it. for you, this was not a melody, it could not possibly be one. those were only sounds; sounds without any poetry, nor any meaning.
in the middle of this work written by beethoven, suddenly, a false note. a false note caused by a hand. a false note that sounded better than a note perfectly played. a false note that reminded you that nothing could be perfect — despite what your mother endeavored herself to tell you. you wanted to smile, smile at the joy that this mistake had caused you. but you held back, keeping your back straight, your gaze fixed on the music sheet and its lines stained with shapes, which you understood only a quarter.
“start again.”
the voice was carried away by the draught, but nevertheless, it reached your ears; a voice of a low sound, a firm tone. with one movement, your hands began to move again; to move to the rhythm of the notes, without any fault. the sound escaped from the strings pinched by the hammers, encompassing the room in a musical trance in which you did not participate. your gestures, similar to those of a puppet controlled by strings, stopped abruptly when the last three notes were heard several minutes later.
“you’ll play it until it reaches perfection. it is out of the question to pass for fools because of you at the gala.”
“yes, father.”
receiving a positive comment from your begetter was a pure work of fiction. this ignorance hurt you more than you wanted to admit, but no one knew about this. your mother had, after all, done an exceptional job when she had taught you the art of hiding your emotions.
“a dignified queen must always appear in control of the situation, even if she is not.”
“a respectable queen must not let her emotions supplant her wisdom. They are detrimental and useless.”
these sentences were simple excerpts that made up the long list of manners you had to learn. for your parents, most specifically your mother, these were the most important thing to remember. they had focused on instructing their values. they had tried to turn you into their perfect little pet. they had not noticed how they had deprived you of freedom. they had grown attached to perfection, even more than to their own daughter.
these pieces of advice had fixed themselves in your mind. you didn’t let any feelings appear. never an ounce of fear, anger, sadness could be seen on your face. never once you questioned this method. never once you thought that, perhaps, humankind needed it. never once you thought that perhaps, it was vital for humans to show their emotions.
the sound of many steps, followed by one of a closing door was the warning signal to drop this mask that had become too heavy for you; this illusion of a model princess, the worthy heir to the throne of adoramus. the villagers thought they had a strong woman in front of them, ready to lead their destiny to glory as your father had done decades earlier.
they were wrong.
you were none of that, you would never become one. sometimes, your thoughts would take you on a journey into a parallel world, a world in which royalty did not flow through your veins, a world in which luxury was only one thing you could dream of.
you stood still for a while, staring at those black and white keys; these keys that contradicted the saying, “life is not just black or white”. and it was true. life was not reduced to two colors. life was an expanse of color, unique to each individual. ùost people had a colorful expanse, similar to the various flowers adorning the village’s streets. some, more melancholic, held an expanse of dark colors, as dark as a sky endowed with the colors of midnight. you, however, had only ever experienced an expanse of grey. your life had taken the form of a repetitive and boring rhythm, a rhythm that did not make you sing, a rhythm that did not make you dance, a rhythm that made you want to sit on a chair and not move.
resuming touch with reality, you headed for your quarters, walking with a steady and assured step. the sunset had been magnificent and the moon, almost full, had risen, pouring its silvery light over the plain, the mountain and the mounds that rose here and there.
during your journey among the huge corridors empty of any presence, you observed the bindings of the walls which you did not care about. your hands caressed the soft fabric of your white silk dress out of sheer nervousness. the castle was plunged into darkness with one exception; on the stones reflected the yellow glow of the still illuminated candlesticks. the wind was howling, crashing against the windows and trees. chills run down your spine. the grip on the fabric not loosening, you accelerated your steps, hoping to get to your room as soon as possible. something was terrifying about being alone in this vastness.
passing by the throne room, your whole body froze when your eye caught something abnormal.
the door was ajar.
that had never happened before, you were sure of it. in all the moments that made up your miserable life, never had you seen this door open at night. The castle guards made sure to lock it every night, before beginning their rounds. this room was only open to the public on very rare occasions; even yourself could count on your left hand’s fingers the number of times your feet had treaded the tiled floor. of course, the gala was approaching fast, but why start preparations in the middle of the night? it was complete nonsense.
deciding that it would be a wise decision to check what was going on, you came closer, full of apprehension, towards the door carved and decorated with gilding. your trembling fingers wrapped themselves around one of the handles, ready to push it to glimpse at the inside. with your gaze fixed on your action, it was impossible for you to notice the human shadow that joined yours.
a bloodcurdling scream was heard in the castle. yours.
“shush, princess. it would be a shame to get caught. don’t you think?”
a hand placed itself against your mouth, forcing you to swallow back your protests. pupils trembling, heart beating too fast for it to be healthy, your first reaction was to struggle. your assailant took the blows without flinching as if your kicks were just a caress caused by a feather. many tears flowed down your cheeks. fear slowly crept into your veins, like a snake crawling through a deserted forest, not wanting to be spotted by potential prey.
the only exception being that, here, the prey was you.
what was going to happen to you? was this how your life was going to end, at the hands of a criminal? the latter loosened his grip on your waist, but while you saw an opportunity to escape, your ambitions were completely destroyed when he, instead, imprisoned your wrists. the man pulled you into the room with him before closing the door, which you were sure resounded in the whole castle.
"sorry princess, but i need you to stay quiet a little longer.”
a candle was lit, illuminating the face of the man who would surely be responsible for your death. on your cheekbones appeared a slight redness at the sight of man. tall and graceful, his features exuded innocence — what a joke, you thought. a slight mocking but sweet smile was addressed to you. he was beautiful, even ethereal. never before had your father’s pretenders reached the level of beauty that you were now facing. his very slightly curly black hair fell before dark eyes, sparkling of malice. bowing, he grabbed your hand to lay a kiss on it from his pink and thin lips.
"my name is joshua, princess. it is an honor to meet the one who makes the heart of an entire kingdom flutter.”
with his words and the wink that accompanied them, he made yours miss a beat. for the first time in many months, a dose of adrenaline was felt in your veins. for the first time in many years, the excitation of being apart of an adventure — even though the role you were playing was that of the victim — was felt in your veins. for the first time in your life, you felt alive.
with automatisms taking over, however, you did not show the effect that this simple encounter had on you. instead of words of admiration and curiosity, the only sentence that came out was: “i request you to immediately let go of my hand, sir.”
he did so, but not without caressing your skin which he found to be as soft as a plum. all these rumors, those which spoke of an heiress with beauty as pure as a goddess were true.
after straightening his posture, the man dusted off his clothes. this particular gesture caused you to draw your attention to them. the black rags adorning his body made you frown. an outfit of this social rank had no place in this castle where each morsel was overflowing with wealth.
"who are you, and what is the reason for your presence here, sir?”
a smile lit up his face as he approached you — cutting off your breath at the same time — who was surprised at this closeness to a stranger. what a strange man, you thought. he didn’t seem to care about anything, not even the fact that a single word coming out of your mouth could lead him to death. his step was light, giving the impression that he was floating rather than walking. with one hand, he grabs a strand of your hair, wriggling it around his index finger. two mischievous eyes met yours.
“i already told you,” a sly smile appeared on his face, “the name’s joshua. as for my presence here… i am looking for a particular object, a jewel if i may add.”
it was as if someone had just poured a bucket full of ice water on your body. A grimace formed on your face. your hand abruptly put an end to his touch by pulling his finger out of your hair. two steps backward were taken before an accusatory finger was pointed towards him.
"if you think i will let you steal my father’s crown or his scepter, then you’re absolutely wrong. you must leave before i warn the guards about your arrival and how you manhandled me.”
"it won’t be necessary, sweetheart.” he replied, starting once again to play with your hair. he admired for a few moments the strands against which his fingers were slipping, they shone so much that he could have confused them with silk. you swatted his hand away, huffing. this man was slowly but surely pissing you off. "the jewel will already be too far away for it to be recovered.”
impossible. the guards had been chosen from among the bravest and strongest men in the kingdom. they had been trained by the greatest, even had to win a duel against your father, the king, to be accepted into his ranks. it was not a wretched peasant. his clothes made him look like one, his face didn’t — that was going to counter that. he was alone, there were dozens of them. you shared your thoughts with him, scoffing at how ridiculous and overconfident he sounded. not even his charisma could prevent him from showing that your words had touched him, the tip of his ears noticeably blushing.
"what is this jewel, anyway? it must be small if you think its disappearance would not be noticeable.”
coming towards you, he imprisoned between his long fingers your chin, which he directed upwards, before plunging his gaze into yours. his pupils were unstable, constantly going back and forth on your lips, your cheeks, your forehead, your hair…
you were really beautiful, ethereal even, he thought.
this man — that you had never heard of — was watching, even scrutinizing you, so intensely that you broke the eye contact, too embarrassed to continue. with his simple glance, the man had just sent the immeasurable number of lessons given by your mother flying. even if it was impossible to hide the erratic beat of your heart and the redness of your cheeks, you tried to maintain a neutral expression.
the words he articulated were spoken in a soft voice, in the same tone that someone who would have taken to tell a secret.
"it’s the most beautiful jewel in the kingdom. it is said that its beauty exceeds that of a pure diamond. many wish to make it theirs; hypnotized at the thought of seeing this mysterious treasure with their own eyes. it is however inaccessible, enclosed between the walls of this castle. only the most reckless tried to overcome this obstacle, but no one had succeeded. no one until me.”
"i… i am… not sure i understand what you may be talking about, joshua.” your voice was trembling, by the gods, why was it trembling?
he shrugged, reassuring you that you would soon understand what his words meant. looking around, assessing the room in which you were both still standing, his gaze finally landed on a small door at the back, next to the king’s imposing throne. you swallowed when you understood where his eyes were focused. in this room was the gemstone equivalent of what a man could gain in a lifetime. if by misfortune, this joshua, whoever he was, managed to gain access to this room, your father would have his head and yours with it.
"you cannot do that.” the façade you were trying to keep intact was starting to crack, its bases weakening at each of his words. it would collapse soon, for sure. nevertheless, you had to hold it together until he was no longer in front of you. it was out of the question for him to see how his mere presence was managing to destabilize you.
"this jewel isn’t in there. though I might have to return one day. i could use some diamonds or even rubies. i’m not picky.”
what a boor!
the way he behaved triggered in you a fire that was increasingly becoming more difficult to contain. you were bubbling with anger. didn’t this man understand what his presence here meant? didn’t he understand how dangerous it was for him, as it was for you? frowning, fists clenched so strongly that your nails had made crescent shapes appear in your palms, you tried to stay calm. however, something in you snapped when he had the nerve to laugh.
"get out! i said get out!”
your cry was so loud that he recoiled several steps, his gaze frightened. the feeling of having your face on fire becoming disagreeable, you breathed slowly, a hand on it to calm you down. suddenly, many sounds of metal friction, as well as footsteps were heard in the silence of the castle.
the guards.
your wide eyes crossed those, terrified, of the man.
a profanity was muttered; it being a word you couldn’t even bear pictured in your thoughts. without you being able to understand what was going on, your body found itself placed without any delicacy on a shoulder clad in a black rag. joshua began to run at full speed to one of the nearest windows, mysteriously already opened. it must have been where he entered, you concluded. looking behind him, the man hurried to jump off the ledge when his eyes caught sight of the armed men’s horde dressed in armor. ignoring your screams, and the blows administered in his back by your little fists, he contented himself with hugging you very tightly, trying his best to protect you as much as possible of the impact that happened in a few seconds.
the flower field softens your landing.
the eyes that you had closed under fear, began to filter the moonlight again. the incomprehension could be seen on your face. if he had had the intelligence to steal his oh so important jewel and leave without a word, everything would have gone well. it wouldn’t have been difficult for you to make up a lie about your presence in this room. after all, lies were nothing new to you, they were constantly spilling from your lips. “yes, i’m fine. yes, i’m glad to be here. yes, i can’t wait to become the queen.” finding an alibi would have been a breeze and would have allowed the thief to escape safely. but, in the name of the Gods! why did he drag you into this? now his chances of survival had just been reduced to nothing.
you could not help but notice something. watching his pockets, nothing seemed to resemble near or far to a precious stone.
“where’s that famous jewel? tell me this mess wasn’t caused for nothing.”
“it’s right there, sweetheart.” not waiting any longer, he took your hand, dragging you through the field of flowers, moving you further and further away from the castle. “hurry up before the kingdom learns that their precious princess is gone.”
in silence, you observed the profile of this man, his delicate features which seemed to conceal many secrets, you were certain of it.
suddenly, in the grey hue that had sum up your whole life, drops of paint fell. they fell by dozens. red. yellow. even green. a real summer shower whose raindrops painted the air, your soul, your heart in colors all brighter than the other. it was a splendid picture of a field of flowers that appeared in your thoughts. in the midst of these tasks of color, of cheerfulness, two silhouettes ran, their hands intertwined.
