Blue

Chapter 11 - Blue            

After I had been pushed out from the throne room, the guards led me down the narrow hallway in the castle. We travelled through the maze of stone, up and down endless staircases and bustling people. The castle was alive inside the walls as I watched maids scurry from room-to-room cleaning as they went, and guards watching them longingly as they swept by them. We passed a large kitchen, where loud banging of pots and pans and loud voices could be heard as they prepared the kings next meal. The scent of freshly baked bread and roasted chicken hit my nose as we passed, and my stomach screamed at me involuntarily. The last thing I had to eat was that soup from the doctor, and that seemed like days ago, even though it had only been just a few hours.

The guards continued to walk me through the castle until we reached our destination. A small wooden door glared down at me, and had a large black iron lock bolted into the framing. Marcus, the larger of the two guards lifted the lock upwards, letting out a small groan against the weight of it. I guess this is where I would be staying for my time here, however long that ended up being.

                “Enjoy your stay.” The smaller of the guards, Simon, smirked at me before ripping the door open and pushing me inside, causing me to stumble and land on the hard stone of the floor. He then slammed the door and locked it with an audible click. I groaned in pain as I stood up from the ground, and brushed some dirt off the gold dress I was still wearing. My hair had begun to fall out of place from its braid, and I had to push long black strands from my eyes to look around the room. 

The room itself was nothing but beautiful at first look. High ceilings, and tall windows set with sheer blue curtains gave a view of the castle’s courtyard, where colorful tulip gardens, and bubbling fountains gave a serene vision. The stone floor of the room was cold and hard, but giant plush powder blue rugs were set up around a small fire-place, and surrounded a small cozy looking fuzzy blue couch. A dark wooden coffee table sat in front of the couch, and had a sparkling glass lamp in the center of it. A large four poster bed was set into on the left corner with large swaths of blue fabric hanging from the frame that fell around the bed, and pooled at the floor in large blue puddles. Big and fluffy pillows were layered at the head of the bed, and a large white down comforter covered the incredibly large mattress. A small bathroom was placed on the right side of the room, and seemed to already be stocked with the necessities of a small bar of soap, and shampoo. Large white towels hung from a small rack attached to the wall, and a stand-alone shower was in the back of the small room. A small closet was set in right next to the bathroom, and was filled with, what I could only assume to be my size, clothing.  The best part about the entire bedroom though, was a large bookcase next to the fireplace. Standing floor to ceiling, and stocked full of leather covers. At least if I was going to be locked in here, I would have something to do.

I walked slowly around the beautiful room, and ran my hands over all the sheer fabric of the curtains and the soft comforter on the bed. Drinking in the sunlight from the large windows, and pining for the fresh air that was just a glass pane away. The room was stunning, seemingly built for a princess, and definitely not a prisoner. I had never seen such luxury, as our little cottage only had the absolute basic things that we needed. Most of the faerie lived in extreme poverty due to losing their homes to King Ben Avon, but a few were able to afford small things like couches and mattresses if they had a skill that was useful to the king. My father had been lucky enough to be one of those few, and was a wood worker by trade. Not very surprising though, as my father had come from a race of pure blood earth faerie, and was more attuned to that element than most were. Whatever we weren’t able to afford, my father was able to build, and what he couldn’t build; he would sell his pieces to afford whatever we needed.

I felt a tears spring to my eyes as I thought about my father, but quickly shook them away. He would not condone me to be feeling sorry for myself when there is so much more to be prepared for in the coming days. I could see him now, scolding me for the mess I had gotten myself into.

                “You’ve done it now Aspen.” He would have said, and shaken his head at me. Then he would have sighed and thrown his arms around me; kissing me on the top of my head. “Now fix it or make the best of it.” I can almost see the look of concern in his eyes now, as I’ve gotten into another mess, and there was no way of getting myself out of it this time.

 I walked over the main door and attempted to turn the knob on the door, and of course, found it to be locked from the outside. I walked over to the windows, and tried pulling up on them, but noticed the locks turned from the outside. It seemed the King knew I was going to be accepting his offer, and had every preparation made so that I could not escape. I sighed in frustration, and walked over to the bookshelf, running my finger across the leather bindings before plucking one off the shelf and retreating to the small couch in front of the fireplace. If I was going to be locked into this room, I was going to at least relax while I had the chance.

The book was blood red in color, and had a thick black script on the front that read Scarlett and the Wolf King.  I sifted through the thin pages, reading small snippets of the long paragraphs. It seemed to be a romance novel between a human girl, and an alpha of a wolf pack. I laughed quietly to myself; everyone knew that werewolves only mated with each other. They had some sort of higher power that led them to their soul mate or something like that. I had actually met a werewolf briefly when I was a small child. He was not what you would have expected; thinking of how fairytales talked about them being vicious, and most of all overly hairy. He had come from a pack just south of the kingdom, and wanted a small wolf carving for his son who was about my age at the time. He had heard my father was the best wood-worker in the Kingdom, and sought him out specifically. I don’t remember much about him, except for his bright yellow eyes and light brown hair, but he had been kind and threw a ball back and forth with me while my father worked on his carving.

A small knock pulled me from my thoughts, and I threw down the book and stood quickly from the couch.

                “H-Hello?” I stuttered out. Surely this stranger had to know that I couldn’t open the door from the inside. I heard a small thump, and what sounded like someone yelling on the other side but it was muffled by the thick wood. The creaking sound of metal being lifted resonated through the door, and it swung open to reveal two pissed off looking guards, and a small mousy girl yelling at them.

                “She hasn’t eaten all day, and you’re just going to lock her in here with nothing?! NOTHING!?” Moira screamed at the guard closest to her, a boy who looked no older than eighteen. He put his hands up in front of his body, clearly forfeiting to the insane lady raising her fist to him. “Thanks for nothing, you useless waste of space!” Moira yelled as she stepped into my room, and slammed the door behind her. The lock clicked back into place, and she turned her red face to look at me, her chest rising with heavy angry breaths. “Well, you look like absolute shit.”

I couldn’t hold back the laughter that escaped as much as I couldn’t stop the tears that burst from my eyes and streamed down my face. I wrapped my arms around my stomach as I laughed, and Moira watched me with a concerned look on her face. She walked over, and gently placed a hand on my shoulder.

                “Aspen?” She said quietly. I took a couple breaths to bring myself back from the hysterics, and I gave her a small smile.

                “I’m sorry, I just couldn’t help it. After this whole day of absolute misery, gods, I am just so happy to see you.” I wiped a stray tear from my face, and Moira gave me soft smile.

                “Well, you’ll be even happier to see me when I tell you I brought you food.” Moira let go of my shoulder and reached into a small bag she had wrapped around her shoulders. A square box wrapped in a green linen napkin appeared, and she held it out for me to take from her. “I was able to snag some roasted chicken, and snap peas from the kitchen for you. Oh, and of course,” Moira reached back into her bag and pulled out a small loaf of bread wrapped in plastic. “You can’t have a good dinner without the bread.” Moira beamed at me, and I felt a genuine smile spread across my face.

                “Thank you so much, you’re absolutely heaven sent, but Moira, how did you know I was here?” I questioned, and she smirked.

                “News travels fast in the castle, and I figured you had to be in the guest wing. Although, the giant lock on the front was a dead giveaway.” She snorted, “They act like you’re some sort of giant beast, and not just a young girl.”

                She helped me set the food out on the small coffee table in front of the couch, and wandered over to the closet after I took the first bite of the chicken. I moaned in happiness as garlic filled my mouth, and I swore I would never taste anything better than this in my entire life. Every bite was like pure bliss, and I was already halfway through my meal when Moira returned, a pair of gray shorts and a light blue t-shirt draped over her arm.

                “When you’re done, I’ll help you out of that dress so you can get a shower. You have to be uncomfortable.” She gestured at the rumpled fabric that was still draped over my body. I looked down at the fabric, and saw dirt laying the bottom of the beautiful gold fabric. A large spatter of red blood had soaked into the some of the fabric that ran up neck, no doubt from when the guard pushed the blade too hard into the skin there. My eyes widened, and my face fell as I looked over at Moira who was still surveying the damage.

                “I’m so sorry Moira, I ruined this gorgeous dress,” I started, but she held her hand up to stop me from continuing.

                “I don’t care about the dress Aspen. I am much happier to see you here alive.” She smiled, and I felt warmth spread through my body. We hadn’t known each other for more than a few hours, but she was the closest thing to a friend I would have in this castle.

                “Thank-you.” I whispered, and she nodded with a smile.

                “Now, let’s get you up and ready. I know you have a long day ahead of you tomorrow, and its already late at night.” Moira helped me stand up, and we walked to the bathroom together. She pulled out the braid in my hair, and untied the knot at the base of my neck that was holding the dress up. It fell to the ground in a puddle at me feet, and I stepped out of the fabric. Moira grabbed it, and wrapped it around her arm while I wrapped a towel around my body. I reached into the shower, and turned the handle to start the shower. Steam quickly filled the small bathroom, and the little mirror fogged up from the heat.

                “I’ll see you around?” I questioned her, and she shook her head, her short brown hair whipping around her face.

                “No, I’ll see you tomorrow. Same time.” She smiled, and stepped out of the bathroom. “Get some sleep.” She closed the bathroom door, and I heard her footsteps as she left the room. Three quick knocks, and the creaking of metal as the iron lock was lifted. I heard her swearing at someone briefly, and the door shut with a loud bang. Leaving me again alone in the room, and alone with my thoughts.

I sighed and placed the towel back on the rack before stepping into the hot and steaming shower. I let the water run over my sore muscles, and began to scrub down my body, wincing as I hit the burns that ran across my wrists. Most of the bruises had turned a soft yellow at this point, but the burns would never heal as long as I had an iron bracelet locked into place.

Exhaustion hit me like a ton of bricks, and it felt like it took every ounce of energy to lift my arms. I quickly washed my hair and stepped out of the shower, drying myself off with the towel I had hung up. Large bruises were scattered across my breasts and stomach, and my knees were scraped and red from being pushed onto the floor. I couldn’t see myself in the fogged-up mirror, but I was sure my face wasn’t any better now that all the makeup had been washed from my face.

I slipped on the shorts and shirt that Moira had left for me, and stumbled into the bed at the other end of the room; my body sinking into the soft mattress. Thoughts of tomorrow barely crossing my mind as I drifted off into a deep and dark sleep.