The Princess Awakens

I wake up in my four-poster bed. I lift the heavy covers from my body, stiff with sleep.   “Time to get up, sleepy head!” I hear my maid Ruth call out as she moves away from the window. The curtains are drawn, and light streams in from the large window, stinging my eyes. I can see through the windows into the palace gardens. The rose bushes are blooming, but the fountains are still. They won’t be turned on until this evening. Until the ball.   Ruth draws near to my bed. She smooths the hair from my forehead and smiles at me as I squint back at her through sleepy eyes.   “Happy 18th birthday,” she says to me quietly. My first birthday wishes of the day. And certainly not the last. I smile back at her in thanks, and let the nervous excitement fill me.   I am finally 18, and tonight my parents are holding a ball with all the important people in the kingdom. I will dance with all the eligible men, and that scares me a little. I have to make a good impression. I have to make my parents proud of me.   I stretch and finally sit up. I get out of bed and look to see what clothes have been laid out for me. A beautiful blue day dress is lying across the small sofa at the end of my bed. My favourite. It has pink and white flowers embroidered all the way down the fabric. As my maids help me to wash and dress, my mind wanders.   What if I meet my husband-to-be tonight? Not that anyone has been chosen for me specifically, but many eligible men will be in attendance tonight. And somehow, I feel ready for it. I want to leave the protective confines of my parent’s palace. I feel ready to be an adult now, to be the head of my own household, and to make my own choices. My life has been wonderful, don’t get me wrong. But I’m very protected. I’m not even allowed near sharp objects. Embroidery was always out of the question for me, which I’ve always thought is seriously over-the-top.   I look in the mirror. The maids are finished. My hair has been twisted up into a fairly simple plaited hairstyle, but it will be replaced by something far more intricate this evening. I head to the door, thanking my maids on the way out. My lady’s maid, Miranda, appears at the door. Technically she should have been here earlier, but she’s my childhood friend, so we don’t really worry too much about the formalities.   “Happy birthday!” She grins and takes me by the arms. “How are you feeling?”   “I feel pretty good. Nervous, obviously. But we’ve got to get through a whole day before the ball, and it feels like we’ve already waited forever for this day to arrive!”   “True, but there’s still plenty to do! And breakfast is definitely at the top of the agenda... come on I’m hungry.” She pulls me along the corridor, and I almost trip trying to keep up with her. Not very lady-like, I think to myself, as I quickly glance behind us to make sure no one is around. Thankfully, we’re alone, and so we half run down the carpeted hallways. The only people watching us are those in the portraits lining the walls.   We slow down as we reach the dining hall. We’re more likely to bump into someone down here, and we need to catch our breath before my parents see us. When we reach the door of the breakfast room, everyone is already there. My parents are sat at either end of the table, and my elder brother is there too. This is unusual, he usually prefers to have breakfast in his rooms. My family turn around when they hear us come in, beaming at me.   “Happy birthday, dear!” my mother cries, holding her hand out to me.   I cross the room and take her hand, giving it a squeeze.   “Yes, happy birthday Aurora”, my father echoes. “Where’s the present?” He asks, looking to the nearest servant. The servant looks a little flustered as he bows and hurries off.   My brother gives me a wicked grin.   “No longer an annoying child – certainly something to celebrate!” My mother shoots him a look, but his grin only widens. “I’m only joking, happy birthday, of course.”   We’ve always had a strange relationship. We’re brother and sister, obviously, but he’s also going to be the future King, whereas I’m going to marry and leave to live somewhere else. The expectations of us are so different, I think we’ve always found it hard to relate to one another.   Miranda takes her seat next to me at the table. Although she’s technically staff, she’s more like a sister to me, and my parents have always let her eat with us. I have bacon and eggs for breakfast, and bread and butter. It’s delicious as always.   Just then, the servant hurries back into the room holding a deep red velvet box. My father takes it from him gently.   “This is from your mother and I, we thought you could wear it tonight.”   I reach for the box and open the lid carefully. Miranda gasps as she looks inside. It’s the most beautiful tiara, sparkling with hundreds of stones. Some are white ice-like diamonds, and others are the most delicate translucent pink. As I tilt the box to examine it, it glitters mesmerizingly.     “Thank you so much! It’s incredible, I’ve never seen anything so beautiful!” I say, hoping my face is conveying all the gratitude I feel inside. At least if I say something stupid tonight, hopefully everyone will be too dazzled by this tiara to notice, I think to myself wryly.   “We’re glad you like it, dear”, says my mother, “you’ll certainly look the part tonight.” She’s right. Nothing says princess like a tiara.   After breakfast, Miranda and I take our usual walk in the gardens. We start by walking around the rose gardens, inhaling the beautiful smells and watching the bees lazily visiting each of the flowers. We carry on off the gravel path and across the lawns. We’re heading for the small wooded area off to the side of the palace. The last of the bluebells are in bloom, and we don’t want to miss a chance to see them.   As we walk slowly across the grass, Miranda asks, “do you think you’ll find your Prince Charming tonight?”   “I don’t know, honestly. I am open to finding someone though. I feel ready to move on to the next chapter in my life. It feels like there’s not much for us here, don’t you think?”   “Yes, I know what you mean”, she answers me with a smile. It would be nice to have somewhere new to explore, new people to meet. You’d have new responsibilities. I can understand why you’re ready to meet someone.”   “Yes, exactly!” I’m happy that she feels the same way as me. I start to feel much more excited for the ball this evening. But there is still an apprehension. What if I don’t meet someone tonight? Or worse, what if I meet someone and they don’t feel the same way about me? When will my next opportunity to find my other half, my ticket out of this palace, be?   After walking in the bluebell woods for a while more, and discussing the possibilities of the future and marriage, we turn back towards the house. The sun is high in the sky now, and we know that preparations for this evening will be well underway. We need to start our own preparations.