Arianna sat in her high, lonely tower and watch another one walk out. she felt so small up here, sitting with perfect posture yet feeling the coldness of every castle stone to her back. captive. the kings captive. his daughter. her rooms were a quick ladder away, lush and lavish, filled with silks and velvets. she prefered the lonely, dusty attic. 

she sat there and watched day after day, lonelier every time. every. stupid. time. this war would never end. her father, of course, assured her it would. and of course, when it did, she would be married off for an alliance. 

if she didnt jump out this stupid window first.

if she didnt run away first.

if she didnt somehow gain an ounce of power first.

if she didnt-

maybe her mother would help her break free. when her mother came back for her, she would be free. in the mean time, she lived under her fathers thumb and tried not to kill someone.

it wasnt just arranged marriage. she didnt care. her every action was controlled by him. when she left this lonely tower. who she saw. when she could come down and who could be her maids. he even controlled what she wore. when he needed a cute, child daughter to gain some diplomats sympathy, she was dressed almost like a child and told to hold a doll. for suitors, she had to wear some ridiculously lavish gown that just made her look stupid. and for someone else, she didnt know. she was only a tool. 

being married off was her biggest threat. if she was married before her mother came for her, then all of this would be for nothing.

her mother was coming for her. she had been gone ten long years. Father said she was dead. the servants said whatever Father said. the courtiers said whatever Father wanted them to say. but her mother was alive. she was alive and she was coming for her.

when she was 5, she asked her mother why she was leaving. Mother just kissed her forehead, said she would understand someday, said she would tell her when she came back. so she asked when, when was Momma coming home? "soon, love. I'll come back for you." soon, love. the words echoed in her mind. she remembered her mothers voice, saying them. the scent of her. the love in her eyes. she remembered the fireplace crackling in the backround. she remembered the sparkle of tears in her mothers eyes. the rest she was told, or remembered the hollow words to. except for that breif moment, those two words. soon, love.

her mother had green eyes. big, bright green eyes, beautiful eyes. pink cheeks cast orange in the warm fireglow. a purple dress. she remembered the way it fell soft to the ground, and rippled with the words. brown hair. she was tall, or she looked tall from a 5 year olds eyes. she remembered the warmth of the hearth, the snowflakes falling outside.

her mother would return. she knew it. and in the mean time, she would sit here like a good princess and trust her mother. Father would say soon didnt mean 5 years. but she wouldnt tell him. 

she wore a purple dress right now, it looked like the one she remembered. she would be brave and wait for her mother, who loved her.

she had a dress that was her mothers. it was white and silver, with blue hems. it was perfect and hidden. not even the maids saw it. her father had thrown away all of her mothers gowns. she stole it when she was seven.

but she tried it on. it fight as if it were made for her.(note: in mediveal time, clothes were made specificlly to a persons exact body shape and dimensions. as someone with long legs that no pants seem to fit, i wish we still did that. but anyway, that just means she is the same size with the same proportions as her mother.) she hid it at the bottom of a chest in her attic, under a pile of blankets. a trunk she sat on now.