walked

My name is Valentine. I'm the princess of Swanpole. It was a tiny yet happy village off the west coast of Canada. Even though I'm royalty, I always showed kindness, always playing with the village children, helping the elderly and caring for her neighbors and friends. But I didn't get that personality from my father.

You see, my father is a dictator. His 'king' position made me a tyrant. A harsh, rude ruler who treated everyone horribly. But the townspeople were always too afraid to speak out. Swanpole was all they've ever known. To them, the king kept the village together. But it surely wasn't true.

It was a sunny but cloudy day is Swanpole. I had decided to leave the castle early at dawn to see the sunrise, before going to help my courtier, Naomi. She was baking cookies for the towns 4th year anniversary of her father being king.

It was a foolish day. May 6th. The day my father was crowned king after my grandfather retired and wanted to pass along the title to my dad. The first months were smooth sailing, but it didn't last long.

When my grandfather died, everything went downhill with my dad. The village was devastated, but my father was very upset. It hurt me to see him, but it hurt to see him take it out of the townspeople even more. I felt upset at the cause of events but I wasn't allowed to speak against my father. So I kept silent, until today perhaps...

"We shouldn't celebrate my father at all." I spoke to Naomi. Naomi took the warm cookies out of the oven and sighed.

"I can't speak badly of the king, Valentine. He's my boss, I mustn't get in trouble by him. I'm sorry." Naomi said. Valentine turned away her head in frustration.

Naomi and Valentine walk with the pan in hand with decorated, delicious cookies. They stood outside the castle as hundreds of people waited outside. People came up and bowed to me before taking one.

A little girl came up and took a cookie.

"Thank you princess!" She smiled gleefully before giving me a hug. Her mother came up later.

"Diana, you mustn't hug the princess, she's royalty. You just bow and thank her and you leave okay?" The mother turned to me. "Princess I'm very sorry." She bowed, taking the little girl off of my dress.

"Oh it's okay, I promise, I love to see people of my town, acts of kindness mean everything to me, especially hugs." I said smiling at the little girl while I said the last part.

"I understand princess, but I shall must get this little one out of your hair! She can get crazy sometimes." The mother takes the little girl away and I sighed to Naomi.

"The townspeople used to interact with royalty all the time. They are too scared to do such acts now, all because of my father. It upsets me deeply." I said. My heart aching inside. When I was queen, I would marry a good man, who surely wouldn't take advantage of the people who are the source of his power in the first place.

"I understand Valentine. But the king is going through a lot right now. His father, your mother, your brother too. I understand his anger. Even if it's misdirected." My eyes softened at her words. She was right, a lot had changed for my father. I shouldn't judge so easily. I was the princess after all.

My grandfathers death, my mothers, and even my brother running away. My father was going through a lot. I need to be a good daughter and a good princess.

I was determined to make things right.

I walked along the thick, empty hallway. Expensive gold frames of my older descendants from hundreds of years back, we still cherished and worshipped them in our big castle to this day. My footsteps creaked against the dark chestnut brown wood flooring as I sheepishly walked.

It was a long hallway to the biggest room in the castle, the kings bedroom. It was huge, the size of some villagers houses. It had a big bed, with many royal treasures inside. 

I walked along the royal blue carpet until I got to the scary dusty double doors. I knocked three times, my personal preference before calling out to him

"Father it's me, Valentine." I said for confirmation. A couple seconds later he softly opens the door. He stood over me with his menacing gglad

"Father it's me, Valentine." I said for confirmation. A couple seconds later he softly opens the door. He stood over me with his menacing gl"Father it's me, Valentine." I said for confirmation. A couple seconds later he softly opens the door. He stood over me with his menacing glare, staring daggers into my eyes through his dark eyebrows.

"What are you doing here? You have duties around the castle today." He said sounding very hostile. I turned to look at his semi-unfurnished, boringly sad room, before speaking.

"I have concerns about you. Your going through a lot right now, with your grandfather, Mom, and my brother. So what can I do to help? I feel horrid with everything also. But I don't think your coping well either." I said. Holding my arms together behind my back innocently.

"I'm coping just fine. I don't need your pity Valentine. Now get away from me and help out, stop being so useless when today is the most important day of the year." He stepped back and slammed the doors shut, causing me to stumble back a little before crossing my arms

"So kind isn't he..." I said sarcastically under my breath. I walked through the eerie hallways again before making my way into my room.

I threw myself onto my bed, staring at my ceiling in thought. I had so much thoughts running through my mind it was like a race. seeing which one of my inpulsive thoughts would win and make me do something stupid and crazy that I'd regret harshly.

I held my hands over my face, wondering what to do. I was the princess of Swanpole, the life many people dreamed of. It wasn't a walk in the park though, even if I was a princess.

One thing stuck in my head like cement on the ground, where was my brother? He ran away last year. Was he dead in a ditch somewhere? The thought killed me inside but there was only one way to find out.

I packed a bag with some clothes, food, water, and a knife, just in case.

I wore a baggy black hoodie over my head and sneaked out as soon as the clock struck midnight.

And then I was off, to start my new life in the forest, to find my brother.

I walked a pathway in the back side of the town, it was a huge forest with tall trees and a lot of open surface area. It was so dark I could barely see anything.

I creepily snuck through the leaf covered soil of the forest, like the tall trees were looking down and laughing at me. I found a big tree and sat down under it. I drank some water and decided to head to sleep for the night.