A PROMISE OF OLD

STALKER PRINCESS

“Zala…”

Anne and Leta poked their heads inside the Princess’s room.

“Go away…” She muttered, pulling the covers over her head as she coiled herself on the bed. It had been a full 24 hours since the archery contest. Since she approached Prince Orpheus in a not so ‘royal’ manner. Zala wasn’t one to feel embarrassed often, but she found herself drowning in that emotion each time she remembered that annoying Prince telling her ‘you’re making a scene, Princess.’

“We are coming in.”

She held the cover tight over her head, ignoring them. But she couldn’t ignore how on the point that male was. Zala was aware that she tended to act on her emotions without thought, and she usually didn’t fuzz about it. But this time around, she knew that she should have kept her cool. Still, it was so hard for her. The sudden memory that flooded into her head then and threw all logic aside.

“You need to at least eat something.” Leta’s soft voice said from beside her, and Zala felt awful for making the soft female worry about her.

“I don’t want to.” Her words were almost slurred and uncaring. About half of the participants were sent home that morning. Although she felt like s**t, she couldn’t deny that they were shittier.

“How about we go to the garden?” Anne suggested, eagerly, “It always makes you feel better.” She added only to be turned down by the princess. 

It wasn’t that she didn’t know what to do to cheer herself up. She just didn’t want to be cheered up. She wanted to be left in her pathetic state as long as she could endure. And it seemed like she could endure for more than 24 hours.

“I just want to disappear.” She wined, the Prince’s words repeating themselves in her head along with his face. He looked like he was reprimanding his daughter!! That made her feel worse.

“This is worse than the time the King yelled at you,” Anne whispered thoughtfully. Zala didn’t do well being yelled at. It made her an emotional mess. So when her father yelled at her for the first time, she locked herself up in her room for a whole week, cutting all contact with him. It was safe to say that the King loved his daughter way too much to repeat it. They do reprimand and scold her. But never yelled at her.

Zala didn’t move when she heard Leta and Anne leave her room, closing the room behind them. The two had been pestering her about what was going on. She hadn’t even said a word to Anne about her head overwhelming her with memories whenever that Prince was concerned.

“I see what’s going on here.”

Zala recognized her mother’s and could only guess that Anne and Leta went to call her over. The Princess groaned because she knew that the only one who could drag her out of her mood was her mother. From the stories she heard, her mother was very much like her when she was younger.

“That’s enough. You’ve had a whole day to wallow in self-pity. You need to get up.” The Queen rolled her eyes and began to pull on the edges of the blanket.

“Mom…” Zala whined, holding on tight to the blanket around her, but one person can only do so much against three women who thought the best thing for her was to get her out of bed.

“Don’t ‘mom’ me.” The Queen managed to tug the sheets off of her only to face the withering princess.

“You look terrible.” The Queen offered with a frown.

“Geesh, thank you, mom. Now can you three leave me alone?” Zala tried to get back under the sheets but neither of them was willing to let get do that again. The Queen was right, Zala looked like s**t. Her hair looked like a tangled mess, her face has pillow marks all on it. And she looked like she hadn’t taken a bath since she was born.

The Queen sat down beside her on the bed. The Zala she knew was way too strong and stubborn to let a few words get to her. She knew that that Prince was trouble the moment he entered their palace. He had achieved a great feat. Zala wasn’t one to lock herself in her room because of someone’s words. 

“Do you want to talk to your mom about it?” The Queen softly asked, causing her to sigh and lean against the headboard with her knees tucked against her chest.

“Nope,” Zala whispered.

“I see. Then you’re leaving the Palace.” 

“no ooo. I don’t want to. I’m in here for a reason.”

Queen Vivien ignored her, got up, and started going through Zala’s closet. The Queen was very much aware of her dressing up in pants and shirts, then tucking her hair under a cloak to leave the palace. 

“Ho… How did you …?” Zala stuttered, eyes wide with surprise when her mother threw some ‘disguise’ clothes on the bed for her to wear.

Queen Vivien scoffed. “You didn’t actually think you went out all these years like this without anyone’s notice did you?” 

“Please leave me alone,” Zala moaned. She really thought that she was doing a good job at hiding that. 

“Most people outside the palace know that it’s you.” The queen added with a laugh when Zala’s eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

Was she that easy to see through? She thought she did a moderately good job.

The Queen sighed and sat beside her daughter, laying the clothes by her side.

“Ths is not you, Baby.” She whispered with a fond smile, making the others nod their heads in agreement.

“The Zala I know would sneak out to be out there, amongst her people, dancing the night away. Not bolted in here in self-pity.” The Queen added. The Princess sucked in a breathe then slowly nodded her head. 

“Perfect.” The Queen chimed, “Let’s forget the fact that I know you play dress up. You can pretend to sneak out again.” She laughed at the disgruntled look on her daughter's face and left her alone, telling Anne to take care of her.

“If I’m going, then you two are going with me.” The princess slid out of bed.

“O... I … I can’t possibly do that. Valerie will be looking for me.” Leta stuttered, eyes blown wide with heart drumming in her chest.

“Valerie won't do anything. Besides, a Queen needs to get to know her people.” Zala smirked at the sweat running down Leta’s hairline. The girl was too proper. She needed to live a little. 

Zala took her bath, set clothes aside for Leta and Anne. The three dressed up and by the time they left the palace grounds, the sun was nearly setting. Tomorrow was going to be the day of the second contest, and she felt nowhere near figuring things out. She rolled her eyes at the guards who pretended not to know who she was. She really was that obvious.

“You could pass for a boy, you know?” Anne laughed at the Princess when the three finally made it to the town. The music was loud and you could taste the festivity in the air.

“A very pretty boy,” Leta added, making them giggle at the blushing Princess. 

The two wouldn’t say it, but they were glad that Zala was feeling well enough to blush. They were glad that she was finally feeling herself.

This time around, Zala didn’t miss the side glances and the soft smiles on the people's lips. They clearly could tell that she was the princess. How long had they known? It made her feel both stupid and warm inside. Stupid that she couldn’t tell that they knew until her mother pointed it out. But then, her heart fluttered in her chest when she realized that they all knew but left her to her devices. Zala laughed when an older man bowed lightly at her, tugging on her hand and leading her onto the dance floor. 

“Try not to step on anyone’s feet!!” Anne shouted over at the two royals who were making spectacles of themselves, almost tripping over their feet as they tried to keep up with the tapping of everyone's feet.

The music was loud. Leta and Zala laughed their hearts out, messing up the steps in the dance but they were having the time of their lives. They were graceful in their movements, laughing and dancing with anyone who requested. They danced for so long, only stopping and moving to the sidelines when their feet were sore.

“That was so much fun!!” Leta exclaimed, clapping her hands in wonder. Zala and Anne pulled her towards a candy stand. Leta wasn't one to run off from home and she rarely joined these festivities, so her awe was understandable.

At the candy stall, the vendor had set fairy-shaped frames, colored coatings, and dry fruits as toppings aside. Zala paid for all three of them and they spent the next few minutes making their own candies, choosing the flavor and toppings.

Too eager to stand still, Leta laughed and dragged the two girls away from the stall, pushing them to sit on small stools amongst the Kids and a few others who were molding things with clay.

“I don’t think I’ve had this much fun in like.. ever..!” Leta’s excitement could be heard from her voice as she slammed the clay down. 

Watching the others, she followed their lead. The night pretty much started with them wanting to get Zala out of bed, but they were all enjoying how things were going.

“Now you have a story to tell your children.” Anne retorted. Then with a wicked grin, threw a wet clay, rightfully hitting Zala on her forehead. The Princess gasped, her eyes bulging out of their sockets, she let out a burst of evil laughter, squinted her eyes at her friend.

“My hand slipped. I swear…” Anne pleaded, laughing warily at the vengeance in the princess’s eyes. And that was how everyone joined them in throwing balls of clay around, painting their skins and clothes with the clay.

Amongst the crowd, over those busily soiling themselves with clay, Zala caught a glimpse of silver hair tucked underneath a cloak. There was currently only one being with that hair in her kingdom. Her smile turned into a curious frown when she saw him walking towards the woods.

Zala knew better than to follow him. She knew better than to even think of it.

Yet, She pulled Leta closer then said, “I’ll be right back. I’m going to get something to drink.”

Leta nodded her head and Zala did just what she knew she shouldn’t be doing. She made her way through until the crowd got thinner and thinner until she was the only one left.

She could recognize that Prince’s frame anywhere, and at the moment he was walking deeper into the woods. Curiosity was very dangerous, Zala knew that. 

But she still followed him, her heart beating loud and hard in her chest. The animals in the woods were lost to her as she kept her eyes glued to the hooded figure, following behind enough to stay unnoticed and still not lose sight of him.

She sucked in a breath, stopped just as he did. Zala, hide behind the nearest tree that could hide her.

What was he doing there at that time, wearing a hoody and sneaking around like a thief?