Coralynn was silent at the dinner table, surrounded by her father, mother and older brother. It had been at least a year since her and her family last had dinner together, outside of a ball or meeting.
It was more suffocating than she remembered.
Enough time would pass while she lived at the Palace, that she would forget what they were like, and how they expected her to behave. She would grow increasingly excited to see them, craving their approval like a starved dog.
"The circumstances were not what we had hoped but I suppose there is still time." Her mother, Serena Valentyne said.
Coralynn looked much like her mother — tall and slim with blazing red hair and striking eyes, though her mothers were brown rather than ruby red. But her temperament came from her father.
"No," David Valentyne spoke for the first time since he walked into the room. "The decision by that damned Court was one of weakness. They understand what's at stake here. Stocks should have been up by now, but they have not moved. Things in Durival have grown increasingly unstable. The crown should already be ours. Our forces should already be moving on Durival."
Cora tightened her fists in her lap. Her father had often referred to the crown as 'theirs'. She knew he had no respect for the idea of the Starblessed rulers and the balance that it kept within the country, but she didn't have the courage to speak up.
I just wish he would respect me as an adult. She thought. I have been learning about this my whole life.
Cora swallowed hard, choosing her words carefully, leveling her tone. "Actually, father. A letter was sent last week by the Emperor Regent and the Star Court. It seems the Eastern country of Durival favors a peaceful union."
David was silent for a moment. He just stared ahead, picking up his wine glass as he spoke. "That's why the Goddess had the commoner girl born," he chuckled, condescendingly. "You don't hardly act like a Ruby Princess, speaking of silly things like peace. You're happy to let others do everything for you."
Cora's mouth tightened instantly as a cold freeze washed over her body. That is what happened when she spoke up or opposed her father's opinion in any way. He would instantly cut her down. Undermine her.
She blinked quietly and didn't answer.
Then her brother Henri spoke up. "That's not fair, father. Coralynn has been brainwashed by that ridiculous Court Member Thirteen. She's never been a free-thinker like the rest of the family. She wasn't even raised with us. You shouldn't be so hard on her."
Her father lifted his head, and looked directly at him. "I suppose you're right Henri." Then, he turned his attention back, his dark gaze set on her. "Coralynn. Make sure you're questioning your studies. This setup of the Star Court raising the Starblessed in their image is rather new, and like everything else in this world, it's a political tactic. Don't you forget that."
Coralynn swallowed shallowly, doing her best to conceal the stress that this conversation was having on her body. "Yes, father."
And just like that, the conversation went back to normal. The table was quiet but where Cora was deeply uncomfortable, the rest of them seemed eerily relaxed.
When dinner was over, they said their goodbye's and Cora retreated to her room, finally feeling like she could breathe. Finally passing through the threshold of her room, Cora collapsed on the floor, her back leaning against the door.
That's when the tears began to flood her eyes.
"I know I'm not good enough," she rubbed the warm, salty water that fell down her cheeks. "I know that's why the Goddess had Maren born. I know that's why the Court decided we should rule together. I know I'm not worthy, but I'm trying so hard! Why can't they see that? Why can't anyone see that?"
Cora sobbed for a long time at the door, with nobody to hear her. Hours passed and as the sky grew dark, so did her room.She hadn't bothered to bathe. She just slipped into her nightgown, and tossed her day clothes to the side. After turning her maids away each hour, almost on the dot, she finally thought that they had let up.
Then, she heard a knock at the door.
Cora rolled her eyes, that were red and irritated from crying and rubbing away salty tears. She ignored the knock at the door, pretending to be asleep, though it was still quite early for her.
Then, the knock came again, more persistent this time.
She stared at the door, narrowing her eyes.
Which of these maids is confident enough to knock again without announcing herself? Cora thought.
She was in a nasty mood, and considered walking up to the door, and firing the maid on the spot for going against her orders. A cruel smile played around her lips, and she knew exactly what she was going to do.
A third knock came, just as she rose from the bed, and she stomped over to the door with fury burning in her chest. Her palm gripped the doorknob, and as she ripped open the door, teeth bared, practically ready to pounce, she stopped dead in her tracks.
Bright blue eyes like starlight gazed up at her, and Cora thought her heart was going to lurch from her chest like a fish with a death wish jumping from its tank.
"G-good evening, Cora." Maren spoke, her voice soft as a feather. "I was wondering if you would join me in the kitchen for a late night snack."
Cora was thankful for the dark. The burning in her face as her body betrayed her mind would surely give Maren the wrong idea. During the announcement, Cora was initially confused at what the Court had meant. She hadn't even considered marriage to Maren, but when she glanced at her, her own mind began to writhe with salacious notions. The way Maren's wide, innocent blue eyes gleamed in contrast to the red in her face. Her confused, panicked expression. But what bothered her most of all was the way Maren's eyes didn't seem opposed at all. She wasn't just stunned at the idea. She was thinking about it.
And just the idea that Maren may truly have been contemplating it sent Cora into a paralyzed state of embarrassment.
"Why do you need me for that?" Cora asked, filling her tone with contempt so that hopefully Maren wouldn't notice the heat in her face.
"W-well, I didn't want to bother Leah since it's quite late, but I don't know how to light the stove." She responded.
Cora opened her mouth to send Maren back to her room, but then she remembered several months ago, when Maren had very nearly set the kitchen on fire in pursuit of a late-night snack. Luckily, a maid had arrived just in time to extinguish the flames, sparing the wing — and everyone in it — from burning to the ground.
She studied Maren, reconsidering her initial reaction.
Maren stood in her nightgown, a shawl thrown over her shoulders, gazing up at her with those bright, innocent eyes. The garment was rather conservative but hardly appropriate for the late hour, or for Maren's figure. The girls had practically grown up together, and when girlhood began to chip away, and womanhood began to emerge, the difference in their development was unmistakable. Maren was a small girl, but noticeably softer, and plumper as she aged. Even her presence was gentle and feminine, like a baby rabbit — all warmth and vulnerability.
Cora had noticed, too, when the soldiers began to notice. Their carnivorous, lingering glances. The subtle shift in attention when Maren walked by. She was like prey to them, and completely, happily unaware of the wolfish gazes that followed her.
And tonight, with guests filling the Palace, the halls were thick with armed men.
"Fine." Cora said, sighing in reluctant surrender."But only because I don't want you nearly burning down the wing again. Seriously, you need to start learning to do things for yourself. You're going to learn how to start the fire tonight."
Maren smiled softly and they walked through the corridor together. Cora stole a glance of Maren beside her, staring ahead in the dark, as if she felt completely safe.
She really has no idea, huh? Cora thought to herself.
***
"I did it!" Maren cried out as the flames finally ignited in the furnace.
"Wonderful," Cora responded flatly. "You learned a skill you should have known for years."
Maren turned her head back at Cora, pouting in her crouched position. "You're such a killjoy."
"Honestly, though. Did you have to cook yourself eggs at this hour? If you didn't wake the servants up, the smell certainly could." Cora teased.
Maren shot her a look and ignored her, moving the scrambling eggs around the cast iron pan. After some time, Maren sat a plate down in front of Cora, its ceramic surface clattering softly against the wood of the table.
"What is this?" Cora asked, eyeing Maren suspiciously.
"I made too much for myself," Maren responded, sitting firmly across from her. "My eyes were bigger than my stomach. I hope you don't let it go to waste."
Cora knew that Maren had always been like this. She could snap at her, and say the cruelest things, and still — if Cora's family was around — Maren was there, making sure she ate something.
Like the family dinners, enough time would pass that Cora would forget how relentless Maren's kindness could be.
She is far too nice for her own good, Cora thought, watching Maren as she polished off her plate.
And yet, Cora devoured the eggs, only then realizing how her stomach ached the last few hours. Between the judging eyes and the words like pitchforks, Cora hadn't had the will to eat much of anything at dinner. Somehow, Maren knew.
She always knew.
The kitchen was dark, the warmth of the furnace pushed out the frigid bite of winter air that seeped through the stone walls of the kitchen. Cinders that still burned in the ash, casting a soft hue of firelight across Maren's back. It was a stark contrast to the gleaming cold brilliance of her blue eyes that seemed to glow faintly in the darkness.
"Tomorrow we leave for the first trial," Maren began, setting her fork down.
Cora quickly fixed her face, glancing back down at her empty plate, setting her own fork down. "We do."
Maren fiddled with her fingers, until finally she picked up her plate, then Cora's and placed them in the sink.
"I just thought," she began, leaning on the counter to the right of Cora. "That we should talk about what kind of man we may want to marry. My friend prince A-"
Cora stopped listening to Maren. Her ears perked up as she heard a sound in one of the halls. It sounded like a door closing, and then came the bustle of footsteps. A door that she knew led to the wing that her family was staying in.
Cora leapt from her chair, grasped Maren by the waist, and pulled her into a corner of the room, behind piles of flour, wheat and other ingredients. Cora's palm fixed tightly across Maren's mouth, pulling Maren into her. Maren struggled against her, pushing her away, and talking into her palm.
Desperately, Cora leaned in and whispered, "Stop. Please. Listen."
The footsteps grew ever closer, and loud enough now that even Maren should hear. Nobody from the Valentyne family could find Cora with Maren, not even the servants.
Cora held Maren tightly, the cold stone wall pressing into her back. She buried her face into Maren's wild bounds of curly blonde hair, breathing her in, sheltering herself within its safety. Terror pierced Cora's gut, paralyzing her in place. Her body was rigid with fear.
The only thing keeping her grounded was Maren — warm, and small against her, yet solid. Cora realized her and Maren had never been in such proximity. She was intently aware of the way her arm wrapped around Maren's waist, her forearm caught tightly between the soft curve of Maren's bust and the firm press of her stomach and thighs.
The kitchen door creaked open, and two sets of footsteps clattered against the floor.
"The King of Garyn is up later than expected." A man's voice commented.
"Yes, well, his majesty has much to do regarding the marriage arrangements." Another, older male voice said. Cora instantly knew that was her father's personal butler, Victor. "It seems the Ruby Princess hasn't done much at school with making romantic connections amongst the Prince Candidates. Other than Prince Ariel Kingsley of Avelle, neither has the Sapphire Princess."
The stranger hovered by the door while Victor rummaged around the kitchen, the sound of clinking glasses were like gunshots to Cora's nerves.
Cora became aware of the intense buzzing sensation that coursed throughout her body. She told herself it wasn't indecent. That she was just touch-starved and that this was a normal reaction.
Maren didn't pull away or fight her. She leaned into the all-too-intimate hold, her small fingers curling tightly into Cora's satin fabric that dragged on the stone floor and pooled around their hips. Maren was trusting her with the moment, not fighting her.
And that meant more to Cora than she wanted to admit.
"Prince Ariel? Why does that name ring a bell?" The stranger asked, an amused lilt to his tone, as if he already knew the answer.
Cora's heart pounded with every syllable uttered from their mouths. Suddenly, she was acutely aware of the situation — of how it must look. The two of them huddled together in a tight corner. Maren sat, positioned between her thighs, back turned, yet still close enough that their warmth seeped through the layers of fabric. Silk moving against satin. Warm breath and plush lips against soft hair. And the soft, meaty flesh of Maren's exposed hip brushing against Cora's thigh.
It was terrifying.
And, to her surprise, just as exhilarating.
Victor sighed, "Yes, Prince Ariel. When the King and Queen of Avelle learned that the Sapphire Princess was born in their country, they instantly took her and the girl's family in. Royals are always looking for ways to better themselves, you see."
"So you're saying that Princess Maren will be pushing to marry Prince Ariel?" The stranger's voice asked.
"Possibly," Victor responded. "If not to increase their political power, then to cull the rumors surrounding the boy."
Cora's face burned so hot, she thought she may be ripe with fever. Her face moved, her cheek brushing against the soft flesh of Maren's cheek. Maren exhaled sharply through her nose, her breath softly crossing over Cora's knuckles.
She thought she'd never felt anything so soft in her life that could compare to Maren's lips. Her fingers moved on their own, as if she had been possessed, parting the soft flesh of Maren's mouth with her two fingers, sliding across the slick of her saliva as she pierced the soft opening between her teeth.
It was like Cora was in a trance. If she wasn't looking at her, it wasn't really happening.
"Rumors?" The stranger asked.
"The boy is just that. A boy, when he should be a man. His mother is on the smaller side, and he takes after her, far more than he does his father. He is timid, and so there are rumors that his preference of company isn't as…feminine as his family would like." Victor explained, as Cora listened as intently as possible.
The tips of her fingers reached something so slick and soft that it sent lighting through her. She softly pressed her long fingers into the opening of her mouth, pushing herself further inside, teasing the muscle that she found, testing Maren's limits.
Maren didn't try to fight back. It was as if she had relaxed her jaw for Cora, allowing her to explore places nobody else has been. Cora noticed the soft twitch of Maren's thigh, and the quickness in her breath.
"And so the Kingsley's are pushing for Ariel to compete in the trials, in hopes that Princess Maren favors him." The stranger said.
"At least, that's what the royals are whispering about." Victor concluded as he pushed back through the doors, his voice fading away as they walked.
When they were gone, Cora dragged her fingers out from between the warm embrace of Maren's mouth, leaving behind a trail of saliva that connected her fingers to Maren's lips.
She told herself this wasn't wrong.
That this had nothing to do with her personal feelings. That girls could do stuff like this without it meaning anything. But the idea that Maren would do this with her…
That simple idea — that Maren would allow Cora more than any other person — it pleased her, far more than she wanted to admit.