The Usurper's Queen | COMPLETED

10 | the other princess

Jane Ainsworth was not yet married to the King, but she had begun to act the part. She demanded the two princesses to refer to her as 'mother', not 'aunt' like they were used to before, and that they should curtsy to her, despite the princesses outranking her. Princess Margaret outright refused her and walked away, but Princess Cecily had obliged silently before running off to find her sister.

That afternoon after court session, I quietly escaped from Mother and Lisbeth, and went off to find Edmund. He was usually in the gardens, and to get there, I had to pass by a very old, ancient part of the palace that was over a thousand years old. The southern wing was obscured by the surrounding trees, making it very dark and gloomy. Lisbeth liked to tell me awful ghost stories and going down that corridor now seems like a terrible idea to me. It was raining cats and dogs at the time, and I felt as if I was trapped inside a never-ending darkness, and the winds howled maniacally around me. The corridor was dim and damp, and water was dripping down steadily from the ceiling.

I quickly lifted up my skirt and hastened my steps, but then I heard a soft, faint cry from afar. The voice was very faint, and it echoed throughout the space, hence I was unable to tell where the sound came from.

"Is anybody there?" I called, but no one answered, and the wind howled even louder. I gulped hard and looked around anxiously, only to see no one in sight. Perhaps, could it be a ghost from hundreds of years ago, still wandering these hallways in search of vengeance? Is it a king from a previous dynasty, having been brutally overthrown, or a knight who was betrayed by his most loyal companion?

I grew even more anxious and quickly turned around to head towards the exit, but a small white figure blocked my way. I screamed in shock, and the figure jumped upon hearing the shrillness of my voice.

"I'm sorry for scaring you," she apologized profusely while lowering her head. "I didn't mean it, please."

I took a closer look at her, and saw the long, pin straight blonde hair that obscured a garish red birthmark underneath her left eye. Her voice was very sweet and gentle, and her scrawny, porcelain white hands were cupped together, as if she were begging for forgiveness.

"Your Highness," I uttered upon realizing that the person I thought was a ghost was actually Princess Cecily.

"Lady Anne..." she murmured, and slowly raised her head to look at me. The princess was very short and petite, and quite small for her age. On the other hand, I was tall and willowy, and I was only a few inches shorter than my betrothed, who stood tall above other men. Therefore, seeing Princess Cecily craning her neck just to look at me softened my heart a bit, and I bent my knees to stand closer to her eye level. She was already twelve of age, but she had the appearance of an eight-year-old, and her weak body made it apparent why her parents preferred her elder sister much more compared to her.

"What are you doing here?" I asked her, and she remained silent for a moment, before eventually answering, "I like it here, Lady Anne. It is very quiet, and few people pass around here."

"Perhaps that is why your eyes are so puffy and teary then, Your Highness?" I retorted.

PrincessCecily hastily wiped away her tears and said, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have lied to you."

I stared at the princess with disbelief. How could a princess be so meek, so spineless? She apologized for every single thing, things that were not even her fault.

"Then why were you crying?" I questioned.

Princess Cecily was silent again, and her lips trembled as if she wanted to cry. "My sister said that Mother died because of me," she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper.