"Trash!"

Thrown with such force that her back smashed into the wall and blood spurted out from her mouth, Aria scrambled up in a panic.

Looking at the four disgusted faces in front of her, she started trembling.

Why? What did she do wrong? Why was she always treated like this?

"An illegitimate trash like you dares to steal Grandfather's favourite brooch. You deserve to die!" Her first cousin glared at her.

"And not only that, you even tried to blame it on little Henrietta." Her second cousin shielded a blonde little girl in her arms. "Death is even too cheap a punishment for her!"

The little girl that was being embraced stared at Aria. Her blue eyes blinked innocently as she puffed up her cheeks. "Sister Ella, Aria is also our cousin too. We shouldn't be big meanies to her!"

"You little girl." Dago, her first cousin knelt down and poked Henrietta forehead. "Why are you so dumb? No wonder that trash thinks you're an easy target."

"Brother!" Henrietta held her forehead and pouted angrily.

Aria stared at the family of three that were talking and laughing, seemingly forgetting her presence. She stared at the 'innocent' Henrietta, who had stolen the bracelet and her heart clenched.

Why?

Why?

Why was her life like this?

Dago finally remembered her presence and snorted in disgust as he looked down on her. Observing her messy hair, torn dirty black dress, her swollen face and cracked lips, along with her bleeding hands and feet, he felt a perverse sense of pleasure well up in him. Yes, this is how a trash should look like.

He bent down until he was at her eye level and smirked. "Little thief, this will teach you how to keep your hands still in the future." He moved back and began to pull the heavy iron door closed.

Ignoring the torn flesh in her knees, Aria hastily crawled to the door in a panic. "No... please no. Cage... No. Breathe... Air. Cage, no." Her words tumbled out. Still she was too late as the iron door immediately slammed shut.

At once Aria felt the darkness press in on her. It devoured her, swallowed her senses, spoke to her...

"No! Please let me out!" She banged against the door desperately, trying to find a means of escape. "I won't talk anymore! I won't say anything anymore! Please, just let me out!"

Laughing voices came from outside. "This will teach you a lesson on stealing." Her second cousin giggled.

"Let's go Henrietta." Dago reached out to pull the little girl but she evaded his arms. "No brother, I want to speak to Aria."

"No!" Dago panicked. "What if she harms you?"

"You already locked her up!" Henrietta stomped her feet on the ground. "What can she do to me through a locked door?"

"Then we will stay with you. What if she uses words to make you cry like last time?"

"Brother!" Henrietta yelled. "I want to talk to her alone! She's my friend! I... I just want to know where she hid Grandpa's bracelet, so I can return it to him. That was Grandma's last gift to him."

"Look at our considerate baby." Ella cooed. "Fine, fine, stop pouting, you little fish. We will leave you alone."

"Hmph. Go then. Shoo!" She waved them away.

Dago laughed and left one more final warning for Aria. "Say any nonsense and I'll pull out your tongue."

Aria shivered and retreated further into the darkness. From outside, she could hear footsteps and a while later, Henrietta's voice sounded.

"Poor little Aria." Her voice had lost its innocent tone, becoming dark and twisted. "You should just have gone along with me and kept your mouth shut when you saw me taking the bracelet. If you had, you wouldn't have been in this position now." Her tone was pitying. "But no. Aria, ever the good girl. You just had to insist on selling me out. But poor little Aria. Why would you be so foolish as to accuse me of all people? Do you think anyone would believe trash like you over a princess like me?" Henrietta laughed.

"Why..." Despair filled Aria's heart and she couldn't help but cry out. "Why me? Why does no one believe me? Why? Why!!!" Her voice shook and tears poured out from her eyes.

"Why?" Henrietta pouted as she tilted her head. "Why indeed? Let's see. Exclude the fact that your birth was a mistake, your stupid father cheated on Grandpa's chosen bride for him with your peasant mother, ignoring the strong backing that Aunt Litta family brings. It just so happens that Aunt Litta lost her womb when trying to harm your pregnant mother and get rid of you, so how do you think she would feel seeing you; the cause of her pain? And since she's so powerful and your mother was just a weak chicken... It just makes sense that everyone will stand on her side." Henrietta giggled.

With every word she said, the hope and will to live was drained from Aria's body.

"So blame yourself and your parents. Blame them for being too weak to protect you. Blame yourself for not being smart enough to seek power on your own. Blame your pathetic birth. Come to think of it, it would be better if you do all of us a favour and just died."

Aria cowered on the floor as those words circled around her mind. Blame yourself for being weak. Weak. Weak. Yes, she was weak! Her hands clenched into fists.

"Ah, you've made me speak so much." Henrietta sighed. " Now I'm thirsty." She reached into her pocket and brought out a bracelet. The body of the bracelet was made from a blue diamond and shone as the sun rays hit it. The golden clasp, which was made in the form of two intertwined swans and inlaid with rubies, also glowed. "Tsk. This diamond isn't as pretty as me." Henrietta pouted. "Say Aria, what would happen if I broke this bracelet in two and pretended that you gave it to me that way. What do you think Grandpa would do to you?"

"No, please no!" Aria screamed. She would die! Grandpa would kill her!

"Why shouldn't I?" Henrietta smiled. Her dimples became more prominent as she grinned. "Think of how trilling seeing you being beaten to death would be to me."

"Please." Aria begged. "Pleaseee..."

"Sigh. I've lost my fun. Why don't you do something that'll be fun to me. Maybe... bark like a dog?"

Aria felt her heart clench. A dog... yes what was she if not a dog? They send her errands and beat her at the slightest opportunity. She was even worse than a dog in their hearts!

With her fingers digging into the sand beneath her feet, she opened her mouth and began to bark.

"So funny!" Henrietta laughed happily. "Again, again!"

Aria continued barking. Her dull eyes held no signs of life anymore.

"Enough. Look at how much you sound like a dog." Henrietta flipped her hair. "I've had my fun. Now it's time to go hide this bracelet in a spot and then tell those dimwits that you told me the location where you kept it. Imagine how happy with me Grandpa would be." With that Henrietta hid the bracelet and skipped away happily. She saw her cousins waiting for her and ran up to them cutely.

"Brother! Sister!" She jumped into Dago's waiting hands.

"What? Did that useless trash do anything to you?"

"No!" Henrietta shook her head. "I told you we are friends!"

"Friends?" Ella snorted.

"Yes we are!" Henrietta seemed hasty to prove this 'friendship'. "She even told me where she hid Grandpa's bracelet!"

"Really?" Dago's eyes widened in delight.

"Yes! So stop being a meanie to her, alright? She's Henrietta's cousin too!"

"Yes, yes." Dago nodded.

"Good boy!" Henrietta patted his shoulder. "Now let's go find Grandpa's bracelet!"

Aria listened to the retreating voices dully. She lay weakly on the floor and her lips curved into a sad smile. Underneath her dress, she was bleeding badly from several wounds. As she bleed away and her will to live died, Henrietta's voice filled her head.

You're a mistake. Yes, she too felt that way.

Your peasant mum. Weak chicken 

Anutn Litta's backing. Powerful 

Blame your parents. Blame yourself.

Yes, a mistake. She was just a mistake.

Trash, useless, weak, a dog, just a mistake...

As the darkness swallowed her whole, Henrietta's voice sounded again.

Blame yourself for not being smart enough to seek power on your own.

Seek power on her own. Yes! She might be weak but she was smart! Seek power, seek power...

And in that final moment before she delved into the darkness, her emerald green eyes shone with life once again.