You need to get up. Swallowing, Elfitine slowly stood up slipped out of her nightgown. She put on the simple yet elegant white dress she always wore to her morning bath. It was far more elegant than the clothing all the other islanders wore, made at the island’s sewing factory.
“Good morning, Lady Elfitine.” One of her ladies-in-waiting entered the room and bowed. The girl was only two or three years older than Elfitine, close enough in age that they might have been friends—if the lady-in-waiting ever dropped her formality.
“Good morning.” Elfitine smiled magnanimously and hoped, as she always did, that she made a convincing princess. It had been six years since Elfitine had first taken on this role, but she was still uncomfortable.
She was born a commoner and had lived an ordinary life until the age of eight. Then Reynard had taken her in, and she’d spent a year with him, traveling to various locations. To her, the word “princess” was much like that of “God” or “demon”—the concept was so far removed from reality, she could barely imagine it.
Elfitine was unsure how to act. The Scrapped Princess was branded as evil and literally “scrapped” at birth, so it’s not like she’d had a royal upbringing. Elfitine knew that her awkwardness and timidity made sense, at the very least.
“Will you be bathing now, my lady?”
Elfitine nodded in silence and walked outside. She hoped that keeping silent made her seem more dignified. It was certainly easier.
A narrow path stretched out from the back of the house, leading to the small natural spring that was her personal bath. No one but the Scrapped Princess was permitted near it. As she walked along the path, she couldn’t help but let out a sigh.
Alone again.
Elfitine reached the spring. She removed her dress and folded it neatly, then slowly stepped into the water.
The chill bit into her skin, banishing her drowsiness. She lowered herself into the pool gently, waiting for her body to adjust to the cold. She leaned back and sighed. This was the only place where she could drop her act and put aside her responsibilities. Naked and alone, for a short while she could simply be Elfitine.
It cheered her up a little. She was happy to be of service to Reynard by taking on her princess role, of course, but every once in a while she needed to remind herself who she was.
Something rustled in the underbrush.
Elfitine wasn’t concerned. None of the islanders would come near this place, but sometimes birds or small animals wandered by. She craned her neck to see what sort of creature had come to visit her.
Suddenly, a girl’s head poked out of a bush.
“Aah!” Elfitine shrieked in surprise.
The girl had blonde hair and blue eyes like Elfitine, but that was where the similarities ended. Her look of childish confusion, as she scratched her head in an unladylike manner, was lifetimes away from Elfitine’s careful serenity.
To her surprise, Pacifica didn’t seem the least bit apologetic at interrupting her bath.
“Oh, man,” she said as she sucked in air. “I’m really lost.” She looked over at Elfitine, and her eyebrows raised. “Hey!” she exclaimed. “I know you! You’re… um… Arcadia, right?”
“E-Elfitine,” Elfitine whispered, taken aback.
“Sorry; I’m really bad with names.” Pacifica screwed up her face in concentration. “Elfitine, Elfitine, Elfitine, El-fi-tine! Okay, now I’ve got it.”
Elfitine couldn’t help but smile at the girl’s strange behavior.
Pacifica eyed Elfitine suspiciously. “Are you laughing at me?”
“Oh! I . .. I’m sorry, no.” Elfitine realized she’d been caught with her guard down. She quickly stopped smiling and tried to regain her serene, otherworldly expression.
“My name’s Pacifica, by the way,” Pacifica continued, seemingly unbothered by Elfitine’s discomfort. She paused. “I didn’t know you smiled,” she added.
“Miss Pacifica…” she began.
“Ah, don’t call me that—that’s way too formal. Don’t call me Miss and I won’t call you Miss.”
Elfitine pursed her lips. The girl was a bit aggressive, so she didn’t even bother trying to speak over her.
“Just ‘Pacifica’ is fine. I’m sorry I interrupted your bath. I was taking a walk and I got completely turned around. I’m glad I found this spring, though—it sure is pretty. It’s nice how quiet it is.” Pacifica finally paused for breath. She gave Elfitine a piercing look. “Is this your own personal spring?”
Elfitine took a moment to clear her throat. “Yes,” she said evenly.
“That’s awesome.” Pacifica’s voice was tinged with envy.
“W-would you like to come in?”
Elfitine paused, unsure of why she had made the offer. The spring was the only place that truly belonged to her, the only place where she could really be herself. But since no one was ever there, no one ever saw her be herself. She sometimes wondered if her personality really existed if it was never exposed to the public.
This could be my chance, she slowly realized. For someone to know her as something other than the Scrapped Princess.
“Really?!” Pacifica said, unable to hide her excitement.
Elfitine smiled. “I’m the only one who ever comes here, anyway.”
As she spoke, there was another rustle in the underbrush.
“Hey, Pacifica,” a voice called out. “You shouldn’t wander away like—”
A figure entered the clearing—a tall, muscular— and most importantly—male figure. Shannon looked at Pacifica, then followed her eyes down to the pool.
Everyone froze.
Shannon patted his sister on the head, a look of extreme discomfort on his face.
“This one’s all yours. See ya.” He quickly turned to run away.
“SHANNON! Get back here, you pervert!” Pacifica grabbed him by the coat and jumped on his back. She yanked his ponytail and screamed in his ear.
Shannon stumbled. “Ow! Wait, I didn’t—”
“No excuses! Peeking at girls in the bath is an unforgivable offense! I’ll never forgive you!”
“It was an accident, I swear! I didn’t mean to!”
“Be quiet, you sicko! Heaven, Earth, and even Raquel may forgive you, but I never will!”
Shannon managed to stagger away with Pacifica still pulling his hair and shrieking. He crashed through the bushes, still protesting his guilt to the girl on his back.
Elfitine stared after them. She hadn’t breathed since Shannon first came through the bushes.
Suddenly, she realized what had happened and let out a scream.
Raquel sat on a crate, sipping tea and chatting with the workers. She seemed perfectly at ease; getting along with the young and the elderly had always been one of her talents. It hadn’t taken her long to strike up a lively conversation with men thirty years her senior.