Clouds of smoke clouded my vision and fulled my lungs. As seconds passed my, more and more oxygen was being stripped from my reach. My skin was bathed in ashes and weighed down my dress, making it hard for me to move from the bathroom floor. My body was too tired to call out for help, so I stayed still to preserve my energy and air.
Voices, possibly imaginary, sounded from the outside. A spark of hope lit inside of me from the sound, even if it wasn't real. Time slowly went by, my lungs screamed for air, and my body started to feel numb, making the pain less unbearable.
"...she's not in here..." I heard from a distance. I attempted to heighten my focus to see if I could hear more. "She is somewhere in this castle, and we must find her before it's too late. We don't have much more time..."
Along with their voices, I heard footsteps also get closer to me, making me relax my body in relief that I would be found soon. After some time, the bathroom door opened to reveal me to a number of figures. Their body's were not identifiable because of the heavy smoke that hid them from my sight.
"We found her!" A man shouted. He knelt down to my level and placed his hand underneath my head so that it was no longer on the hard tile. "Please don't mind my touch, Princess." He said. Soon enough, I felt the presence of more people surrounding me, but their voices subsided. One last man made his way up to me, replacing the first man's hand with his own as he knelt down to me.
"We are going to get you out of here." He said. I would say that I recognized the voice, but the heavy smoke and the lack of oxygen didn't allow me to think straight. He snaked his strong arms around my body and lifted me up. In a haze, my limp body laid in the strangers arms, not caring who it might have been.
My surroundings quickly changed as we traveled to the outside of the castle and into another facility which I couldn't quite make out either. My eyes stung, my chest ached, and my skin felt hot, distracting me from the other major events that were occurring around me. I was laid down on what felt like a bed with the man still next to my side. "We are going to take care of you, Princess. You will be alright."
____________________________________
My heavy eyes parted open to a dark room. It was quiet and unfamiliar to me, light only coming from the crack underneath the door. My ears also caught the sound of machines, bringing my attention to my side. It was a vital monitor, sounding at the beat of my heart rate. I looked down to see that I had multiple IVs in my arms and other wires connected to my body.
My hands shook in fear as I didn't recognize where I was or understand what was happening. I lifted my sore body to find that I was changed into what looked like a hospital gown instead of my dress that I was wearing before. However, my skin still showed layers of dark ashes.
My body jumped at the sound of the door opening and the sudden light shining in the room. I looked to find a lady, most likely a nurse. She bowed before coming any closer to me. "Hello, Princess. My name is Carianna, and I have been the person taking care of you. I understand that you must be very confused and scared, but right now, we need to make sure that you're healthy enough to get out of bed." She said, her beautiful accent sounding in my ears. I lightly nodded. She carefully examined me and all the parts of my body. "Are you in any pain?" She asked. After a moment of hesitation, I shook my head.
"Are you feeling tired or sick?" She asked, and I nodded my head. "That is what I had expected. Your body just experienced a period of time where you were not expose to a healthy amount of oxygen. You might be tired for a day or two, and your nausea will soon go away. I gave you some medication for that through your IV." Hardly taking in anything she was saying, I just nodded my head. "I believe that you are well enough to get up and shower." She announced.
I watched as she took out my IVs and bandaged me up. "The bathroom is just in that door there and it has anything you might need. If you need anything else or assistance, there will be a button on the bathroom wall that you can press and I or another staff member will be there to help you." She explained as she helped me move off of the mattress. Carianna guided me to the bathroom door and opened it for me. I stared blankly into the dimly lit room, not knowing what to say or think. Carianna must have understood the purpose behind my silence and exited the room without another word.
After some time, I made my way into the bathroom and saw my reflection. Ashes matted my hair and covered the majority of my skin. My eyes were bloodshot from dryness and irritation from the smoke I had encountered. In the moment, my emotions were absent and it made me feel alright. In the back of my mind, I knew that I should be freaking out, or crying, but I didn't have the energy to. I felt nothing.
I looked to find set of clothes laid out for me; sweatpants and a simple shirt. Bringing myself over to the shower, I stripped off the hospital gown and stepped underneath the flowing water. I watched as the grey water around my feet fell into the drain, making me realize how badly I was covered in dirt. The water stung my skin, but I didn't care to change the temperature. I took my time washing all of the residue out of my hair and skin, enjoying how much better it made me feel. Eventually, I had to get out and start to face my realities.
I put on the set of clothes, combed out my knotted hair, and brushed my teeth, making sure to get the nasty taste out of my mouth. I looked at myself one more time, admiring that I looked better, but it would definitely need some time. Leaving the bathroom, I realized that I was all alone, making me decide to do the rest by myself. I walked out of the room to find a long hallway that lead both ways. As I ambled around, my thoughts filled up with questions I figured would never be answered. I put together that I wasn't in Aiden's kingdom based on the way the building looked, which was a relief, but I was still terrified to know that I wasn't somewhere familiar. The hallway lead to a set of doors which I exited, leading to a great opening to a beautiful, yet unfamiliar castle. As soon as I walked through the doors, multiple pairs of new eyes landed directly on me. I coward back a step, nervous from the sudden spotlight. Someone noticed my shyness and came up to me.
"Hello, Princess. It's an honor to have you here." He bowed. "I am Cane, security staff, and I am assuming you are looking for some guidance to the king." The man said. I nodded my head. "Come with me, I will lead you to him." I instantly attached myself to his side and allowed him to guide me to his king. I looked around trying to see if anything looked familiar to me knowing that I have visited multiple castles in the past, but I don't recall seeing this one. After our silent trip, we arrived at a set of large doors which he knocked on.
"Come in." I heard. The door was opened to reveal someone who I never thought I would see again.
"Roman?" I questioned. I took note that his father, King Lilac was also in the room. Their eyes landed on me. I kept my eyes on Roman, not believing what I was seeing.
"Princess, please have a seat." Roman said, his thick accent becoming familiar to me once again.
"What the hell is going on?" I demanded with anger pulsing through me.
"Princess, if you have a seat, we will explain everything to you. We have no intention to hurt you." King Lilac said. I looked at the both of them for a moment, deciding if they were worth listening to, and I agreed since I couldn't get answers anywhere else. I took a seat across from King Lilac's desk, and Roman right next to me. "I know that you must be scared right now, but-"
"Can you just get to the point? You attacked my kingdom, destroyed my castle, and I don't even know if my family is alive." I said, becoming emotional as I came to more realizations. "Why would you do this?" I yelled, demanding an answer.
"Princess, it wasn't us who attacked your kingdom, it was King Heart." King Lilac explained, making me instantly back down.
"W-what?" I choked. "I don't understand, I'm his....he wouldn't have a reason to do that." I said.
"Are you positive about that?" King Lilac asked. I searched for possible reasons in my head for these actions.
"The only problem we were having was with my father. He didn't want to accept the marriage, but I convinced him to agree with it."
"I don't believe that he told the Emperor that he agrees with it. Maybe he was going to agree and then something set him off and caused him to change his mind last minute. Did either of them threaten you if you were to disagree with the partnership?" Roman asked.
"King Heart threatened me. I was willing to agree with it to keep myself and my family safe, so it definitely must have been my father that said something." I concluded, bringing my head into my hands. "How come I'm here? How did you know that we were being attacked?"
"We got the signal of his attack planes coming into our area. Our flight team tracked them and saw that they were heading towards your kingdom, which didn't look very good. We decided to follow them and our instincts were right about your safety. My son and some of my men went in to find you before King Heart's men could." King Lilac said.
"Were you able to find anyone else?" I asked Roman, thinking about my parents and Serene. He sadly shook his head.
"We were just early of King Heart's team, so we had to get you out as soon as possible. If you would like, we can send some of our men back to look for your family." Roman suggested.
"Yes, please." I hurried my words. Roman looked at me with deep concern, and I looked back at him. I haven't seen him since the night of my engagement in the hallway. "Thank you." I whispered.
"Of course, Princess." He replied. "I'm so sorry that this has happened to you." I looked down at my hands in thought.
"D-do you think King Heart would actually kill my family over a disagreement as small as that?" I questioned, looking for any hopeful answer.
"He really is an evil man, and we know how persistent he can be. If someone is not to his liking, he will go to the most extreme measures to make sure he is fully satisfied. I apologize, but I can't lie and tell you that I don't think he wouldn't." King Lilac stated. I lightly nodded my head in understanding, appreciating that he didn't want to sugar coat anything just to make me feel better.
"We will do everything we can to find them, alright?" Roman asked, tilting his head so that I looked at him. I could tell he noticed the tears in my eyes by the way he saddened his expression. "Father, would it be alright if we had a moment to ourselves? The Princess and I became acquaintances at her party, so maybe she would feel more comfortable if she just spoke with me for now."
"Of course, Son. Come find me if you need anything." The king said before leaving shortly after. After the door closed, we sat in uncomfortable silence, not sure what to say to each other.
"Thank you for taking me here, I apologize for my rudeness and not letting you both have a chance to explain." I said shamefully.
"No need to be sorry, Princess. You are going through the unimaginable, so I understand completely." He said with a light smile. I gave a small one in return as I was so thankful for him at the time. "On a positive note, we meet again."
"Yes, our two minutes I the hallway were quite nice." I laughed shyly. "...So, what happens now?" Roman sat back in his chair in thought.
"For now, we are keeping you hidden. We can't let King Heart or Emperor Maroon know you are here until we are certain that they won't be any harm to you." He said. "I would love to keep you here for as long as I can, but unfortunately, they will find out at some point." I sat back in the chair, attempting to soak in all of the information.
"So what happens when they do find out?" I asked. Roman leaned forward so that his elbows rested on his knees.
"I don't know, Princess. I really don't." He answered. I wasn't disappointed by his response, understanding that no one knows what's happening or what the right thing to do is. "What I will tell you is... that I promise to protect you for as long as I can. I won't let that bastard that calls himself a king hurt you."
"Thank you, Roman. How could I ever repay you?" I asked genuinely.
"Please, there is no need." He insisted. I just nodded my head and looked down at my nails, noticing that ashes had embedded underneath the paint. I felt Roman watching me as I nervously picked at the manicure, the paint chipping to the floor.
"I really hope my father is alright." I spoke.
"Just your father?"
"Serene too." I corrected myself. "I hope she is okay too."
"Is that your mother?" He asked. I shook my head and kept my eyes glued to my hands.
"Serene is my friend. She was my assistant, but my best friend." I replied. "I wish I could say that I hoped for my mother to be alright, but it would only be a lie." Roman cleared his throat and turned his body more towards me.
"You resent your mother." He pointed out. "Why is that- if it's not too personal." I looked up at him, just barely smiling. I appreciated his carefulness.
"Honestly, I don't know. It's kind of always been this way. My mother and I constantly disagree and argue, even over the most ridiculous things. Ever since I started becoming older with a mind of my own, our relationship declined. I believe that she is only hateful towards me because I'm not behaved for a lady."
"For a lady? You're Princess Rosewater for crying out loud. You are the most respected lady in the whole world."
"I mean that I rebel, I don't have the best manners at the table, language, obedience towards the Emperor, and anything else you can think of. I hate the royal system and my only wish Is for me to be a normal person- or at least feel like one."
"What should a normal person feel like?" He questioned. I just shrugged my shoulders. "Hmm... I wouldn't know either. Maybe while you're here, we could both figure it out."