Chapter 1
Note: This is a darker fantasy, not following the "typical" dragon plots. This is also a more political book involving arranged marriages to multiple people.
Be aware of described violence, domestic violence, loss of unborn child, and death.
-Laelia-
“Hurry!”
“She’s coming!”
“The dragon is going to eat us!”
“I’ve got you!” I yelled as I jumped in front of the kids.
They all screamed and laughed as I chased them down the street. People were jumping back, trying not to get caught up in the chaos as the kids scattered, each one desperately searching for a place to hide.
“You can’t run from the dragon! I’ll eat you all raw!” I roared, grabbing one of the kids and holding him high above the ground, pretending to devour him. “One kid isn’t enough! I must have more!”
The kids bolted to the side, while I held onto the boy I had “eaten”. He laughed loudly as I swung him around in the air with one arm, trying to grab another child with the other.
“She’s coming!” one of them shouted from behind a small stall.
The vendor didn’t look particularly pleased and quickly shooed the kid out of hiding.
“I’ve got you!” I yelled, charging toward the child. “Now I have two!”
Both boys were laughing so hard their stomachs must have hurt, as I continued to pretend to eat them.
“Down with the dragon!”
“All attack!”
The kids yelled in unison as they charged at me, trying to rescue their friends from my clutches. Some of them wielded short wooden swords.
“Oh no, not swords made of dragon glass! I don’t stand a chance!” I cried out, clutching my arm where one of the kids had “cut” me.
I released the two boys I had caught, and they quickly dashed back to the others. The group erupted in cheers as they saw me fall to my knees, begging for mercy.
“Oh, brave knights, please spare me!” I said dramatically, looking at them with pleading eyes.
“No! No dragon gets to live.”
“Down with the dragon!” they all shouted again.
They charged at me, circling me as they “cut” me with their swords, chanting “down with the dragon” over and over.
“Oh no! I’m dying!” I cried, giving an overly dramatic performance of my demise. “So… much… blood…”
“The humans win!” one of the kids shouted, and they all cheered.
I couldn’t help but smile as I watched them celebrate their victory. But the joy was short-lived.
“Princess?” I turned around as I heard a very familiar voice that I desperately hoped didn’t belong to my governess, but I wasn’t that lucky. She never liked seeing me outside the castle walls, and she absolutely loathed it when I played with the orphans.
“Elizabeth,” I said, getting up from the muddy ground.
I didn’t even bother trying to brush the mud off my dress. I knew it was pointless, and while the mud didn’t bother me, under the piercing gaze of my old governess, I couldn’t help but feel a bit self-conscious.
“Playing with the orphans… again.”
She was so uptight that I didn’t think her back could be any straighter or her chin any higher. She was dressed in a blue gown with golden trim, her brown hair, streaked with hints of gray, pulled tight into a bun at the nape of her neck. Her green eyes were narrowed, and if she really did hide a demon inside that stern façade—as the kids and I often joked—it was definitely glaring at me now.
“Of course.”
“You’re filthy.”
“A little mud never hurt anyone.”
“But you, Your Highness, aren’t just anyone.”
It was hard to argue with that.
“Your father wants to see you.”
Her sharp green eyes shifted to the children, narrowing even more. “Go on! Home with all of you. Back where you came from!” she ordered, pointing in the direction of the orphanage.
She spoke to them as if she were performing an exorcism rather than addressing children. I felt their eyes on me and turned to give them a reassuring smile.
I bent down slightly and whispered to them with a wink. “Go on. We’ll play again tomorrow.”
They smiled before scampering off, continuing the game on their own. I watched them run away, sometimes wishing I could join them.
“Princess!”
“I’m coming, Elizabeth.”
My old governess wasn’t a patient woman, and I was never in a hurry. It was an awful combination. Luckily, it didn’t take us long to reach the castle, but there was no time to change, and I was brought before my father in a light pink dress, now covered in mud and slightly torn.
My dark hair, with the distinctive white streaks in the front, was a tangled mess. My father was sitting on his throne in the middle of the throne room, where he usually listened to the peasants’ complaints. My six older brothers were scattered around the room, each with a smirk on their lips as they took in my appearance.
“Playing with the kids again?” my father chuckled as he took in the sight.
While my disheveled appearance didn’t really bother me, I was relieved that we were the only ones in the throne room. I didn’t need the judgmental stares.
“What can I say? I like mud.”
My father only shook his head, trying to suppress his laughter. I knew people expected him to lecture me, to make sure I abided by the rules of being a princess. But I was not like any other princess.
“But a princess does not play around in the mud, does she?” my father inquired.
I sighed. The proper answer would be, “No, Father, she does not,” but where was the fun in that? “But Mom liked the mud, and she liked to play with the orphans, so why shouldn’t I?”
My father’s smile quickly faded. While he surely appreciated seeing her spirit in me, he didn’t like talking about her.
“Laelia…” my father sighed, rubbing his forehead tiredly.
“Father, I know a princess isn’t supposed to play in the mud, but my duties are so terribly boring. One of my lessons is strictly about how to curtsy… Curtsy! And socializing. How to speak properly, sit with a straight back, and—”
“Laelia.”
“And eat tiny little bites, and after that, I’m supposed to learn old history and then—”
“Laelia!”
“And then I’m to learn about embroidering and sewing pretty flowers and—”
“You are to be married!”
