When the boat came upon its rightful dock, I wished that I had never been disobedient. I wished that I had never come to these shores by myself. That way, when I looked at all the people below, all the of little boys and girls playing games and women carrying baskets of foods that smelt strange and new, I would have been delight and entranced. There was a whole wonderland for me to discover.

But I only felt anxiety when I peered down at all those people, all those men. Laughing, drinking. Roughhousing, shouting.

My hand twitched to my thigh, but all I had was an empty set of bands wrapped around my leg. My prized dagger had been left at home with my sisters, at the queen's demand.

"Fucking hell," a guard grunted from behind me. I spun around at the gruff voice, my already elevated heartrate pounding faster.

But the guard was not focused on me as another man climbed onto the boat. The two shared a quick, energetic embrace.

"Fucking hell," I murmured to myself, wondering what the words meant. I had never heard them before, but it seemed that they were joyous and enthusiastic. I decided to reserve them for an exciting time, one when I couldn't contain myself. They felt fun to say at the very least.

A young man spotted me as soon a he boarded the boat. The intent, predatory way that he perused me made my skin crawl, despite the smile on his lips that looked friendly enough. Maybe being without my dagger was a blessing, because, by now, I would have pulled it out at this point and swung it at anyone and everyone who dared get this close to me.

And no princess I had read about had been so aggressive. Surely they would know I was a liar then.

"Princess Ember," the young man greeted and he dropped into a bow. "Welcome to our kingdom, we are honored to have you."

I nodded my head at him, not trusting my voice to betray my emotions as I examined his uniform. How were the colors so pristine? Did these people avoid the sun at all times? Or, perhaps, this was a special occasion for them just the same.

He waited for another beat, expecting me to say something, then rose to his full height, letting his smile resume. "I am here to collect you and take you to meet the king and queen. They are so eager to see you."

I could only manage another tight nod. 

"If you would follow me, I will take you to them. I know that you must be weary from your journey, so we have your rooms ready for you and a meal being prepared right now." 

The man rambled on as he turned away from me. His hands were clasped behind back and he strutted about the ship. I fell into line behind him, trying to keep up in the surprisingly heavy dress. He was still talking when we made it off the ship and into the bustling streets, but I heard nothing that he was saying. He was too far away and frankly, I couldn't be bothered to care. A man slid up on my right, brushing his shoulder against mine. I let out a yelp of surprise, but the man only frowned at me. Then I realized he was wearing a uniform as well, with the royal crest on his shoulder. A man closed in on my other side and I could hear the stomp of boots behind me. 

I was completely surrounded.

I told myself over and over again that these men were here to protect me. These men were just delivering me to their sovereigns. They could not let any harm fall onto me with risking job lose. And they proved this by pushing aside any commoners who tried to get to close or reach out their hands and touch me. I decided to be thankful for them. If I had been greeted with a thousand hands grabbing at my dress, I would have tossed myself back into the ocean.

Slowly, I felt my body loosen and I took in the surroundings. Firstly, my feet ached on these stones. Who thought it was a good idea to make a path out of rocks? It was horrid. I saw a man carrying a tray of something red and bright, a fruit or vegetable maybe. An old woman tried to tug on one of the guard's sleeves, bringing his attention to a shimmering gold fabric.  I watched a man present a woman with flowers. Her cheeks turned bright red and she giggled while I scowled.

That's all it took? Flowers and a couple whispered words? Did she not understand how dangerous and demanding these men could be? Did she not know what it would feel like to be pinned down by a man, to be helpless and pleading?

"Can I request something?" I said aloud, to no one in particular.

All the guards surrounding me glanced in my direction.

"Is it possible to have female guards accompany me sometimes?" I wondered, then quickly added. "I had many sisters back home and fear I will miss them dearly."

"That's not possible," the man in front announced, the same man who had bowed to me and chatted endlessly. He then resumed his lecture about each and every building we passed.

I asked no further questions.

I wanted to appear as a monarch should. And I wanted to be untouchable, unimpressed by everything and anything because I knew, deep down, these humans were vile things.

But they made it very difficult to remain stoic when we climbed up and up and reached the top of an impressive hill. 

There, a beautiful palace sat, as if it was awaiting to welcome the holiest of guests.

Spires and turrets twisted high above the ground, boasting beautiful views of the city below. I wondered immediately if I could see the ocean from one of those windows. We were already so far from the water, well over a couple kilometers away from the port. The walls were a yellow, so colourful they almost seemed to be gold in the sun. And the roofs, slanted and angry were black as night. Surely this palace was big enough to care for all of the town's people I saw below, but then what were all those little house for?

I vaguely thought of the way these people would turn up their noses at my crumbling home that housed all of my sisters. 

As we entered the palace, all as one moving unit, I noticed the flooring first. It was the one thing I could see clearly without bobbing and bouncing to see around my towering guards. The floor was polished wood that gleamed in the natural light let in from the windows, windows that didn't seem to leak or howl just as mine had.

We walked through this hall for what seemed like forever, then another set of doors opened. The flooring changed. A different color of wood was under my feet. Another set of doors groaned open. Dear God, just the set of hallways was bigger than the siren's entire castle.

But, as I stepped forward, all of the guards who had been with me through the town suddenly fell silently to the side, turning to face the center. I glanced at them warily, pulling up to a stop as I stared at one of them. Though his eyes remained forward and emotionless, I saw his fingers wave forward, gesturing me on.

I scrambled to catch up to the single man who led me through the town.

It was then that I realized that I was in the throne room. The walls soared above my head, screaming with power through their blinding red paint. The color was everywhere, in the tones of the rug beneath my feet and the stairs that led to two equal sized thrones.

My eyes met the monarchs and for a moment, I could only stare. 

A stern, unsmiling king with mostly grey hair watched my every move. An equally cold queen was perched on his right hand side. I felt as if I had just walked into an unexpected winter storm. Heavy gold crowns glittered upon their heads, boasting all kind of stones that I couldn't even begin to categorize. But, if this was so obviously the king and queen, where was my future husband?

It was when the king cleared his throat that I remembered myself. I dropped into a small curtsey, careful to keep my battered and old slippers concealed under the skirt of my dress.

"Welcome, princess Ember," the king announced, opening his arms.

"Thank you," I whispered meekly. I felt like I should have said more, but I couldn't find the words.

"We are so delighted to have you here with us," he continued, though I wasn't certain that his expression said the same thing. "I hope that the royal carriage was to your liking."

"Carriage?" I repeated, my brow furrowing. What did that even mean? 

The young man who led me here spoke up in my silence. "The prince specifically requested that she have time to stroll through the village. He wanted her to get acquainted with her new surroundings."

The king blinked slowly and I watched a breath rush into his chest, then slip out slowly, controlled. A guard on my right tensed, his shoulders coming up, as if he was now prepared for battle.

"Our apologies that the prince could not be here. He had other duties to attend to," the queen jumped in. "I'm sure that you are eager to meet him, but you have had a long day as it is. It might be best to have a filling meal and retire. Tomorrow you can begin planning for your wedding. Only a month away and so much to do."

A month.

I had a month to meet a man, a detestable human man, who couldn't even be bothered to show up for my arrival, the marry him.

I could say nothing, staring up at the queen with a slack jaw and wide eyes. This wasn't possible. This wasn't possible. My queen would not do this to me. And the queen before me now surely could not want this either. This must have been some cruel joke. 

"Is everything alright, Princess Ember?" the king hinted.

I needed an excuse to get out of here. I needed an excuse to get out of here right now.

I blurted out the only reason my sisters and I had to go to our rooms and lay down for a while.

"Everything is lovely, however, I have just begun my month's blood and I am feeling a fair amount of discomfort. Would it be alright if I retired for the day?" 

The queen immediately grew pale. 

The king froze.

"Um, yes that would be alright."

~~~Question of the Day~~~

Who is your all time favorite book character?