My cheery bells on my costumes sound all over. I want to rip them off, but they're part of my training with the dancing and the routine. I like the movement, I don't like people watching me.
When I'm about to rip one of the bells off, so annoyed. I hear small sobs coming from the plants, and since I knew who practically lived here, I could guess who cried.
Encouragingly asked into the silence, "Helena?"
The sobs stopped instantly, and a small bush started to shake, its leaves falling. "Helena, I know you're hiding there."
Encouragingly asked into the silence, "Helena?"
The sobs stopped instantly as a small bush started to shake, its leaves falling. "Helena, I know you're hiding there."
An exasperated sigh sounded, and then Helena emerged from the bush, washing away her tears. I catch her wrist, stopping her from wiping them off. "It's okay to cry. I'm asking if you need help."
She crunches up her brow, still red from crying. "With crying?"
I nod, giving her a wicked grin. She chuckles, and then I drop my smile immediately, saying, "I cry a lot too, you know."
Realizing that I'm still touching Helena, I let go of her hand. She shakes her head as if in dismissal of me. "I don't believe you, Taj."
I scratched the nape of my neck, tilting my head sideways. She is scanning my features for something. "That can't be true. I have never seen you so much as not smiling." She points at my face as in evidence.
It's not untrue, but one does not know how to navigate this sort of life unless you know how to put on a mask. People have their own sort of puzzles, I've learned.
I tilted my head up in a mischievous grin. "Just because I smile doesn't mean that I don't feel sad. Remember that, okay?"
She frowned, not understanding, "Why wouldn't you smile unless you're happy?"
Annoyed that she caught me off balance, I swiftly changed the subject. "What are you doing here and not back at the main house?"
That's what they called the palace, the royal quarters. That thing was big enough to house three families or a small army.
"I always go here when I'm sad." She lifted up her knees to sit on a wild tiled bench. Although made of marble, it looked like it had small weeds sticking out of it from small plantations from all sides. "Dad said that I should stop coming to meetings with his counselors, that I argue too much with them." I sat by her side, making sure she felt my hands land on her shoulder. She wiped off her tears, sniffing her nose, "But it's only because they're wrong!"
She huffed, crossing her arms, and I chuckled. And that landed me her full fury. All I did was widen my grin. "People like to hear how right they are, especially from women."
She's scrunched up her nose. "Why wouldn't they want women telling them the truth?"
I angled my head, thinking of how to phrase my answer. "Helena, you're right most of the time, and I know better than to argue with you. But most people feel stupid to be called out on such foolish mistakes, so you need to be more subtle about it."
Now she perked up, propping her elbows to better support her head. "Like how?"
"With men? Give them compliments, then point out how their actions could be seen as obstacles. Women are more subtle than that, they tend to think that they're always being watched. Which makes them feel uncomfortable, and you wouldn't need to do much more."
I give a subtle glance to Helena looking at me with glitter in her eyes as if I told her how to hang the Moon from the Stars
"You know? You say that I'm the smarter one between us, but compared to you, I feel so stupid most of the time." I grimace, feeling a tug on my stomach.
Despite what she thought, she could probably be the smartest person in the city. "What did you actually say?"
She shakes her head. "I stated a few simple facts to the Lord who complained to us about the tax he had to enforce. That the tax he was paying was the same that any other lord was required to pay and that he should cut back on the luxurious parties that he's known to host. In a few months he would probably be able to pay us in full with interest."
I purse my lips, trying not to laugh at that because I can imagine her little face lecturing that old lord.
She will make a fine queen.