by Aron Lewes
“Oh.”
“And your name is?”
“I’m Cydney,” she said. “Cydney Reyes.”
“It’s really nice to meet you, Cydney. And we really owe you for giving us a place to hide. I’ve been through so much in the last week, so it’ll be nice to sit down and relax for a bit.”
“Well, the attic won’t be the most comfortable place in the world. But I used to live up there before my step-mother decided I should move into the shack, so it’s not that bad.”
They reached the main house, which was nothing short of a mansion, and yet the shack she referred to was more suitable for chickens. It was becoming apparent that something was very wrong with Cydney’s situation. “You don’t get along with your step-mother?”
“No,” Cydney quietly confessed.
“Well, it’s not my place to pry, so I won’t.”
“Rebekka...”
Cydney looked at Lyric with concerned eyes.
“Like I said, pay no attention to Lyric’s psychobabble. He’s going to be pining for Rebekka for... who knows how long? Just try to ignore it.”
“Um, okay.” Cydney opened the door and they followed her inside. The interior was spacious and lavishly decorated, but Aurora tried not to make a fuss over it. After all, Cydney lived in a shack. It seemed her step-mother wasn’t giving her the opportunity to enjoy the luxury, so Aurora didn’t think it would be appropriate to point out the marble staircase, the expensive draperies, or the immodest decorations.
The attic, however, was completely different. Dingy and drab, it was a stark contrast to the rest of the house.
“Well, here we are!” Cydney announced, turning toward them with a tremulous smile. “I know it’s not much to look at, but make yourselves comfortable. You can stay here as long as you’d like.”
“And your step-mother won’t come up here?”
“No. And neither will my step-sisters. They hate it up here. They think there are spiders up here.” Cydney walked to the middle of the room, where a handmade, half-stitched dress was hanging on a mannequin. “I’ve been working on this dress for months, but they haven’t come up here to see it. Not even once.”
Aurora moved to take a closer look at the dress. It was simple in style, but quite pretty, and lovingly crafted. It made Aurora remember that she was wearing the low-cut gown of Blackbeard’s choice. “This is a really nice dress. You made this?”
“Yeah. It’s a work in progress, though. I should be done with it soon. I just have to finish some of the hemming,” Cydney said. She had her eyes trained on Lyric, who was walking around the room and peeking under furniture. “I just hope I have it finished before the ball.”
“Ball?”
“Yeah, but I probably won’t be invited. And even if I am invited, I’m sure my step-mother won’t let me go.”
“I’m sorry about that.”
“I’ve met the prince before... he’s... we’re...” Cydney seemed to be on the verge of a confession. Her face turned bright red.
“Let me guess. You’re dating the prince?”
“Well, sort of.”
“Wow. I wonder what your step-mother would think about that! If you ended up marrying the guy, you could get some revenge on her, that’s for sure.” But Cydney was so meek, she didn’t look like the sort of girl who would be out for revenge.
“Oh, he’d never marry me. We really like each other, but...” Cydney lowered her eyes. “Prince Charmaine is engaged to someone else.”
II
THE NAME Charmaine must have echoed in Aurora’s ears at least a dozen times. When she finally regained the use of her voice, she needed clarification. “You and Prince Charmaine... like each other?”
“Yeah. Well. I guess it’s a little bit presumptuous to assume he feels the same way about me as I do for him, but we’ve spent a lot of time together, and...”
“And...?”
“And he’s kissed me a few times. But I guess it’s not that serious.” Cydney gave her lower lip a nervous nibble. “I’ve probably said too much. You don’t want to hear details about my personal life. I hardly know you.”
“No, it’s okay. I think it’s, uh, interesting.” So, her fiancé was a cheater? Somehow, Aurora wasn’t surprised.
“It’s just... I don’t have very many people talk to. Actually, I don’t have anyone to talk to. My step-mother hates me, my step-sisters are cruel to me, and...” Cydney tried to blink away the tears that were forming in her eyes. “There I go again. I keep telling you everything about my life.”
“It’s fine. So, when is this ball?”
“The day after tomorrow,” Cydney said with a sigh, reaching out to touch the dress she’d been working on. “You think I’ll have this done by then?”
“Maybe. I can help you with it, if you’d like.”
“It’s sweet of you. You seem like a really nice person. Well, anyway...” Cydney turned her attention to Lyric, who was trying to snatch invisible bugs from the air. “I better get back to my chores. My step-mother will have a fit if I’m not finished with the ironing by the time she comes home.”
“I can help you with that too, if you’d like.”
“Thanks, but I shouldn’t pass off all my work to you. It seems like you’ve been through a lot already... getting chased... and... and...”
Cydney was staring at Lyric. “I know what you’re thinking, and you’re absolutely right. He’s definitely a handful.”
“Well, um...” Cydney started to retreat for the stairs. “I’ll be up to check on you later on. And I’ll bring you some supper, too.”
“That would be great, thanks. We’re really indebted to you.”
When Cydney was gone, Aurora sat on the floor and tried to digest everything she’d been told, but her time with her thoughts was limited.
“Uh, Aurora?”
It was Lyric who spoke. She turned toward him, eyebrow raised. It was the first time he’d addressed her all day. She was starting to think he didn’t know any name other than Rebekka. “Yes?”
“Uh, where are we?”
“We’re in Cydney’s attic. Don’t you remember?”
Lyric’s face was a blank slate. “And who exactly is Cydney?”
“The girl who rescued us from the wraiths in the woods? You honestly don’t remember?”
Lyric scratched his head for several seconds. But no matter how hard he scratched, he was never going to remember. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. The last thing I remember is being on the ship.”
Aurora ran over to him, grabbed his hands, and gave them an excited shake “Oh, thank God! You must be back to normal! Cydney thought you were a loon!”
“Cydney thought I was a... a what? Why?”
“Lyric, you were acting crazy! Do you remember the siren on the ship?”
“Vaguely, yes.”
Vaguely? His love for Rebekka was hilariously fickle. “She cast some sort of spell on you. You were going to walk off with her to who-knows-where, but I grabbed you and used the wayspinner to save you. But when we got here, you were still under the influence of her spell. You kept going on and on about how you loved Rebekka, and how you wanted to find her.”
Lyric looked horrified. “I did?”
“Yeah. And don’t give me that face. I’m not making this up!”
“No, I believe you! It’s just... difficult to digest. And this person, this Cydney person... she thinks I’m a lunatic?”
“Well, yeah.”
“And she saved us?”
“Yeah. She’s letting us hide here in her step-mother’s attic.”
“She is? And how long have we known this girl? How long have I been out of it?”
“About...” Aurora made her best guess. “Three hours?”
“So we’ve only known Cydney for three hours, and she’s letting us stay here? That sounds awfully generous of her, but what sort of a girl invites strangers into her house? We could be murderers for all she knows!”
“I’m not goin
g to criticize her for being trusting. We’re good people, right?” Aurora finally let go of Lyric’s hands and turned away from him. “Well... I’m a good person. I think you scared her half to death!”
“So you say.”
Aurora took a few steps away from Lyric and sat in the middle of the room. Reclining on her elbows, she expelled a deep breath. “Lyric, come over here for a sec. I’ve got something important to tell you.”
He sat beside her, eyebrow raised. “Oh?”
“Yeah. Cydney told me something that was very... interesting.” When she looked over at Cydney’s handmade dress, Aurora wasn’t sure if she wanted to smile or frown. “She said she’s been having a tryst with Charmaine, and that he’s having a ball in a couple of days.”
“Char... Charmaine??” It took Lyric a few seconds to process the information. “THE Charmaine?”
“Uh-huh. And do you know what this means? If Charmaine’s nearby, I might be closer to home than I realize.”
“Perhaps. But it also means your fiancé is cheating on you.”
Aurora punched him in the arm.
“Thanks for pointing out the obvious, jerk.” Aurora watched him rub his arm, but she didn’t feel guilty in the least. After all, she didn’t hit him that hard. He was being a baby, as usual. “It’s not like I’m heartbroken or anything. Charmaine can do whatever he wants.”
“He can?! You’d marry a man who’s having trysts with other girls?”
“No! Of course not! I’m not heartbroken because I wasn’t in love with him! I barely knew him! I’d sooner marry Blackbeard than Charmaine.”
“Ooo. A princess in love with a pirate! How shocking!”
Aurora was tempted to punch him again. “I never said I was in love with him, did I? I’m just saying, if I had to choose, I’d pick the pirate over the prince. That’s how much I have an aversion to Charmaine right now.”
Lyric grinned. “But you don’t have an aversion to ME?”
“I always have an aversion to you, Lyric.” She patted him on the head, and his grin was gone in an instant.
“Okay, so be honest. If you had to marry me, Charmaine or the pirate, who would you choose? I’d say I’m more handsome than Blackbeard, and more charming than Charmaine, so the choice should be obvious.”
Aurora yawned as she listened to his pointless prattle. She had to admit, though, it was far preferable to hearing him go on and on about how much he loved Rebekka. “I don’t know, Lyric. Anyway, let’s just talk logically for a second, okay? Obviously, I need to get to Charmaine’s ball.”
“You do?”
“Yeah! He might be cheating on me, but I think he’d help me if I asked. He could arrange a carriage to take me back home.”
“Could he arrange a carriage to take me back home?”
“Probably. I mean, he’s a prince... right? He probably has lots of carriages at his disposal. And you’re an emperor, so I’m sure he wouldn’t hang you out to dry.”
Lyric rubbed the palms of his hands together, looking a bit devious. “Okay, sounds good.”
“So, how are we going to get invitations to the ball?”
“We don’t! We simply walk in! I’m an emperor, you’re the prince’s fiancé. Why would we need invitations?”
“Because if you haven’t noticed, we look like crap. You’re dressed like you’re ready to swab decks, and I’m dressed like a barmaid. Unless it’s a costume party, no one’s going to listen to us if we just show up at the castle gate. We barely got to see Princess Rachelle, remember?”
“Yeah, but I was dressed in a towel!”
“A towel is worse than a sweaty, tattered pirate’s uniform?”
“Well... I don’t know! They’re equally bad!”
Aurora sighed. She found herself sighing a lot when Lyric was around. “Anyway, no one really knows of my existence. I’ve never been to the castle before. I’m not even sure it’s common knowledge that I’m his fiancé, you know what I mean? Without any proof of my identity, no one’s going to listen to us.”
Lyric nodded. He was finally getting it.
“So anyway, we’ll have to procure some invitations. I’ll have to ask Cydney about that.”
“Is she cute?”
“Who, Cydney?” Lyric answered her query with a nod. “Yeah, she’s really cute. She’s cuter than me, that’s for sure.” Aurora paused for a few seconds. “That’s not saying much, though. Everyone’s cuter than me.”
Lyric groaned. “Fishing for compliments, are you?”
“What? No!”
“Any woman who says something like that is fishing for compliments.”
Aurora gave him a little shove. “Well, this woman happens to think it’s true!”
“Well, this man thinks you’re full of rubbish!”
“Well, this woman thinks you’re an as—”
Aurora didn’t have a chance to finish her insult. Her voice was drowned out by a thunderous voice below them.
“YOU STUPID GIRL! DIDN’T I TELL YOU TO PUT THE PIES IN THE OVEN AFTER WE LEFT? AND THE ROAST IS BURNT! THE POTATOES ARE MUSH! CAN‘T YOU DO ANYTHING RIGHT?”
Aurora looked over at Lyric, but he looked just as puzzled as she did.
“YOU NEVER DO WHAT I ASK! WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO WITH YOU? IF I COULD, I’D TRADE YOU FOR A COW! YOU’RE HOPELESS! HOPELESS!”
“What in the world...?” Lyric whispered.
“Well, Cydney did say she didn’t get along with her step-mother.”
“GO STAND IN THE CORNER UNTIL WE’RE DONE EATING! THAT WILL TEACH YOU! NEXT TIME, MAYBE YOU’LL GET IT RIGHT!”
“Wow.” Lyric whistled. “That’s harsh.”
“I just know she’s talking to Cydney. She treats her like a slave! If I wasn’t supposed to be hiding up here, I’d go down there and give that woman a piece of my mind!”
Aurora and Lyric sat in silence, waiting for more dissonance from the room below them. Every few minutes, they heard snippets of shouting. There was more than one voice shrieking at Cydney.
“PEAS ARE COLD!”
“HAIR IN MY FOOD!”
“WASH THE DISHES!”
“AND MY LAUNDRY WHEN YOU’RE DONE!”
Lyric met Aurora’s gaze. “See? I’m not so bad, am I?”
“You’re alright, Lyric. I’ve built up an immunity to you.”
“Oh, that’s good. Because I’ve built up and immunity to you too.” He sneered at her. “You’re not so nice yourself, you know. You can be a real bi—”
The sound of footsteps made Lyric stop in mid-sentence, and another insult was cut short. Cydney arrived. She was carrying two plates of food, and had a bundle of blankets tucked under her arm.
“Hi.” Even in the dim light of the attic, Aurora could see she was red in the face. “I brought you guys some food.”
“Oh! Thanks so much!”
“It isn’t much. It was all the leftovers I could scrape together.” As she handed over the plates, Cydney’s eyes were downcast. “Did you... did you hear any of that?”
Aurora decided to play dumb. Downplaying the situation seemed like the right thing to do. “Any of what?”
“The yelling.”
“Oh... yeah. A little bit.”
“Are you kidding? It sounded pretty ugly down there!” Lyric exclaimed. He snatched the plate from Cydney’s hand, laid it on the floor, and held out his hand. “You must be Cydney?”
“Oh!” Cydney looked to Aurora for reassurance.
“He’s back to his old self now,” Aurora explained. “Whether it’s for better or for worse, I can’t be sure.”
“Oh.” Cydney started to reach for Lyric’s hand. She was anticipating a handshake, but he grabbed her hand and kissed it.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Lyric.”
“It’s nice to, uh... meet you too.”
Aurora chewed on a piece of roast beef as she watched their awkward introduction. As soon as she swallowed, she said, “So, Cydney, I have a question.”
Cydney knelt on the floor beside them. “Yes?”
“You said something about getting an invitation to the prince’s ball, didn’t you? Well, I think it’d be nice to go to something like that. How does one go about getting an invitation? Do you have any idea?”
“Oh! My step-sisters were discussing that during dinner. He’s invited every female in the realm!”
“Oh, really?”
“Mm-hmm. I guess he likes to surround himself with women.”
“Apparently,” Aurora icily agreed.
“Should I be concerned about that? I mean... he’s supposed to like me, right?”
Aurora’s own thoughts seemed to echo Cydney’s. Should I be concerned about the fact that my fiancé likes to surround himself with members of the opposite sex? She couldn’t even fathom the idea of marrying Prince Charmaine. It would certainly be the end of life as she knew it. In a way, she wished Cydney wasn’t so friendly. She wasn’t supposed to like her fiancé’s girlfriend, was she?”
With a full mouth, Lyric murmured, “cheater.” Neither girl could understand what he said, but they both looked over at him. “What? Oh, don’t mind me. These are good potatoes, by the way.”
“Really?” A timid smile worked its way across Cydney’s face. “My step-mother said they were mush.”
“Yeah, maybe. But I like them a little mushy.”
Aurora watched Cydney’s smile disappear.
“So... is there anything else you two might need to get you through the night? I brought some blankets.”
“This is great, thanks,” Lyric took it upon himself to speak on Aurora’s behalf as well. “After you’ve been stripped by a troll and knocked around in a tiny boat, everything else seems like the lap of luxury.”
III
“OKAY, I LIED! I LIED!”
Aurora had been forced to listen to Lyric’s whining for the last hour or so, but it didn’t effect her that much. She was getting used to it.
“I lied when I said it would be the lap of luxury, okay? The blankets made me itch, the floor was hard, and I have a crick in my neck! If only I had a pillow, I think one of the problems could have been prevented. Couldn’t she have considered bringing at least one pillow?”
