Aanya is practically drowning in silks and expensive fabrics. Her arms ache as she tries to keep everything from touching the ground. 

“Hmmm… let me see the grey one again,” says Tharia who was standing on a slightly elevated platform with dozens of pins holding various fabrics aloft. The head of house waves Aanya over.

She grabs the light grey cloth hanging on her left arm and holds it up to the princess’s face.

 “Yes, I quite like that one,” Benita, the head of house and head seamstress, says. They both gaze into the long mirror at Tharia’s reflection. 

It was two weeks from the annual ball, and today was the day the Princess and the seamstresses would design her gown for the evening.

Benita moves the fabric down so it wraps around Tharia’s waist. 

“Yes, this will do nicely,” she says, sounding like she was talking to herself rather than Tharia. Benita places the fabric over Aanya’s arms again.

It took an extreme amount of effort for Aanya to hold back a groan. It wasn’t because her arms were about to fall off, but because she had much better things she could be doing just now.

It was half an hour of ‘No, that’s not right,’s and ‘This has to be perfect!’s for Tharia to say, “Alright. I think we’re done here. Will that be enough for you?” Tharia asks Benita. Please say yes, please say yes.

“Yes, that should be enough to make the dress.” Thank goodness! “I’ll need to come back in a few days for the fitting,” she continues.

The princess nods, dismissing the seamstress from the room. Aanya let out a sigh. If Tharia heard her, she didn’t say anything about it.

“Aanya, is it?” she asks, looking at said person through the mirror. Aanya nods. “Take those fabrics… somewhere, and then come back and do the regular cleaning.”

“Yes, your Highness.” Aanya says with a quick curtsey. She has to stop herself from rolling her eyes. Who lives in the palace and doesn’t even know we have a sewing room? she thought. Aanya hurries out of the room. She quickly heads down to the sewing room on the lowest level of the castle, and places them at a station where a girl she doesn’t recognize sat.

“These have just come back from Princess Tharia’s chambers and need to be sorted,” she says quickly, trying to get out so she could do her regular chores and get back to her apartment as fast as possible.

“Ummm…”

It was then that Aanya got a good look at the girl; strawberry blond hair, freckles, soft brown eyes, clearly scared and didn’t know what she was doing.

“Are you new here?” Aanya asks.

 The girl visibly relaxes and says, “Yes, I am,” with a small smile.

 “What’s your name?” Aanya questions.

“Brianna.”

Aanya nods. She has a soft spot for new girls. After all, even though she has been working at the castle for a long time, being the new girl still sucked.

“These go on that shelf,” she says while pointing to a shelf in the far corner of the room. Brianna smiles and happily takes the fabrics to their spot, but not before saying thank you. Aanya chucklew, but stops when she remembers she has Tharia’s entire suite to clean. Her smile disappears and she turns to leave.

Just before she was out the door she throws a, “Good luck!” over her shoulder at Brianna. Just because she wasn’t happy about her job doesn’t mean everyone else has to be.

Now is probably the time to explain some things. Aanya is a servant working at the palace of Tot Colorum and has been there for most of her life. After her parents died, her older brother Bayne went there to find work and a home.

Bayne is a palace guard, which Aanya is insanely jealous of. You see, Aanya despises being a servant. She wants to do what Bayne does. She wants to fight, to serve her planet, and to travel and see the galaxy.

Sometimes, she would spy on the guards while they were working out or practicing with various weapons. When she was little, her dad gave her a small knife, normally used for skinning animals that they would hunt.

He had taught her how to use it, not only for skinning animals, but also as a weapon to use in a fight. Ever since then, Aanya became obsessed with learning how to fight with every weapon possible (knives were her favorite of course). She would train every day in the backyard of their small hovel after school.

Her father would even help her from time to time. Her mother didn’t approve of her daughter using a knife for something other than cooking (because it was safer), but she couldn’t say no to her husband.

However, after they died, Bayne became very protective over Aanya. He never let her join in on training or allow her to apply to become a soldier. He wouldn’t even let her be near any of the guards or officers.

Once Aanya turned thirteen, she had convinced him that she had no interest in the job anymore. Little did he know, she would use her breaks to go to her room to workout and practice with her knife.

That thought is on Aanya’s mind as she hurries to clean Tharia’s rooms. Once she has finished, she steps outside to be greeted with none other than Bayne. 

He has the same golden brown hair as his sister, but the similarities stop there. Bayne has a buzz cut while Aanya wears her long and in a simple bun. While Aanya has golden eyes, Bayne has a puppy dog brown color. He is tall and muscular, whereas Aanya is short and thin.

“They put you at Tharia’s door again? That’s the third time this week,” Aanya comments.

“Yeah, I think they might make me her personal bodyguard,” he replies, keeping his eyes on the opposite wall. His voice doesn’t carry any emotion, so Aanya can’t tell if he is happy about that or not.

Aanya groans. “I already have to deal with little miss prissy, not you too!” she complains.  Bayne looks around to make sure no one heard what just came out of his sister’s mouth.

When he has made sure the coast is clear he turns and says, “You should be careful.” Aanya rolls her eyes.

“No one’s around, I’m fine.” She is about to turn away and head back to her room when Bayne grabs her arm.

“Hey, can you meet me at lunch? I found out something about Mom and Dad’s death.” Aanya sighs.

“Bayne, you need to let it go. They died of an illness. We can’t do anything about it,” her voice softens. She won’t look into his eyes.

“I know we can’t, but I will not give up. They couldn’t have died from an illness. They were both perfectly healthy the day before. It has to be something more,” he sas with a stubborn and desperate tone.

“I’m not having this argument with you again,” Aanya says.

For a moment neither of them says anything. Bayne sighs. “Just meet at lunch okay?” Aanya nods slowly. She gives him one last look and heads down the hallway.

On her way to her apartment, if you could call it that, she passes the door that leads to the stables, blacksmith and barracks area. She notices a group of people with blasters, and while taking a closer look, she sees that they are new recruits.

One in particular catches her eye. He is a little short with tan skin, curly, dark hair and brilliantly green eyes. He seems focused on the task at hand. Aanya stares at the boy. He was truly beautiful. Aanya moves through the door and outside to get a better look. She makes it look like she is just heading for the back entrance to the servants’ quarters while still peeking at the boy.

Sensing someone was watching him, he looks up and locks eyes with Aanya. She blushes, embarrassed for getting caught staring. She takes one last look at the boy before rushing off to her room.

Aanya locks the door behind her once she steps inside the small room. Her bed is in one corner with a nightstand, which held her clothes in it’s drawers. In another corner is the door leading to the bathroom that she shares with Bayne (who lives next door). Aanya makes sure to lock that door as well.

Then, she starts her workout with thirty pushups, seventy-five sit ups, and twenty burpees. When she first began doing these exercises she could barely do one pushup. After years of doing them her muscles had grown to a decent size, not big enough for many to notice, but they were there.

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

She has a few canteens filled with water that she uses as weights. Aanya does 20 bicep curls, 25 tricep lifts, and 30 shoulder presses. After that, she takes out the knife her father gave her from under her mattress and practices swiping at invisible enemies. Being a visual learner pays off in these situations because she often watches the guards training and is able to imitate them.

Aanya doesn’t have anyone to correct her movements, but she does her best to make it as right as possible. Once she is done, she realizes she is devilishly hungry so Aanya takes a quick shower and heads off to the kitchens.

The hallways are small on this floor of the palace. The kitchens are on the lowest level which turns out to be underground, so no natural light can make its way down here. Unlike the upstairs, there are no portraits or pictures on the walls.

Once in the vast kitchen, she goes to the pantry and snags a muffin. Before anyone sees her, she makes her way into the small hallway again. Aanya goes back to her room to put her hair up into the standard maid bun and heads off to the Princess’s chambers, eating her muffin on the way. 

Bayne isn’t there anymore when she arrives. His shift must have ended, she thinks. Aanya wipes her mouth with the back of her hand before stepping inside. 

Tharia isn’t in her room. Aanya assumes she is at a meeting she had heard about earlier. Anaya isn’t sure what to do so she just starts touching up the room, straightening the bed sheets and pictures. It doesn’t take very long until she is at a loss again. 

 She turns when she hears the door open and close. “Oh, it’s you,” Tharia says when she spots who is in her room. Aanya curtsies in response with a frown on her face. 

Thankfully Tharia doesn’t notice and sits down at her desk with an armful of paperwork. 

“How was the meeting, Your Highness?” Aanya asks, already starting to feel awkward with the silence.

“Really boring actually. All they talked about was how much money we have and infrastructure plans. And something about there being some unusual activity in Bestia.” Aanya freezes, her duster in the air.

Bestia, or the Dark Planet, is always silent and dangerous. They had sent out explorers before but only one had ever come back, and he was so far driven insane, he couldn’t even talk about his experience. There were many horror stories about that place. Stories of people that can shapeshift into beautiful creatures. They would trick you into trusting them, and once you’re under their spell, they show you their true form which is so hideous and terrifying that just the sight of it will drive you mad. The fact that something might be happening there is a very scary thought.

“Oh yeah, and then the council members started to get angry at Dad. It got so heated, they had to cut the meeting short,” Tharia continues. She doesn’t seem very fazed about this news, but Aanya is.

The council members are known to be a bit grumpy, but as far as Aanya knows, they get along with the King fairly well and have never disagreed with him on a major scale. Was it because of Bestia that they are mad with him? These thoughts swim in her mind, her curiosity spiking the more she thinks about it.

What is happening at Bestia that could cause our planet to be alerted by it? And why would the council suddenly become irritated with the king?

“Aanya!”

Aanya emerges from her thoughts to see Tharia looking at her.

“Oh. Sorry, your Highness. Do you need something?” she says.

“No. You were standing there for like two minutes. I had to call your name five times.”

“I’m sorry. May I go?”

“Yes, I’ll call you if I need you,” Tharia says. Aanya curtsies and goes into the hall. She wanders aimlessly around the castle, passing endless portraits of grumpy royal people and beautiful landscapes. There are a few of the castle itself and the royal family.

Eventually, she sits down at a bench in a random hallway. She thinks about the council and Bestia. Then the thought of her parents comes to mind. Could it be a coincidence that  Bayne finds out something the same day that the council gets mad at the king and Bestia is having strange activity?

No, she thought, that can’t be connected. 

“Hey. Are you okay?” says a voice from above her. Aanya looks up to see Prince Mathias, Tharia’s younger brother. Aanya notices he is wearing a dark blue vest over his white button-up shirt. His gray pants are without a wrinkle and his black shoes are so polished, she can see her reflection.

  Aanya quickly stands and curtsies, as her training had taught her. “Yes, I’m fine, your highness,” she says. Mathias doesn’t look like he believes her. 

“Shouldn’t you be cleaning something?” he asks. Aanya knows he is not trying to be rude but she frowns anyway. 

She wants to reply with, “Shouldn’t you be running the country?” but she bites her tongue.

Instead, she says, “Princess Tharia does not have any work for me so she allowed me to leave.” Aanya still leaves a little bit of sass in her tone, but not enough to be punished upon.

“Yes, well… you shouldn’t be out here. If people see you’re not doing anything, they might think we are lazy.” Aanya has to restrain herself from rolling her eyes. She knows that wasn’t the real reason she has to stay in the sublevels. It was because the helping hands are not meant to be seen for whatever reason they come up with.

Nevertheless, Aanya curtsies again and walks in the direction of the back stairs and to her room.

Tharia doesn’t call Aanya the rest of the morning, so she goes to meet Bayne for lunch by the blacksmiths with a smile on her face. That was the area that the guards hung out most because it was close to the training area and the barracks.

Aanya spots her brother immediately in a nearby field with another soldier. They seem to be sparring with a staff as their weapon. When she gets closer she realizes he is instructing the other boy, and that the other boy is the same one she was caught staring at that morning.

Aanya is just about to turn around and run as far away as possible when she hears, “Aanya!” She takes a deep breath to calm her nerves and walks the rest of the way over to the pair. 

“Hey, there you are. Koa just asked me if I could help him with his staffing skills,” Bayne explains. Koa. 

“Oh.” Aanya says.

“Oh yeah. Koa,” he says, turning to Koa. “This is my little sister Aanya. Aanya, this is Koa.” he pushes Aanya forward. She is painfully aware of the fact that Koa is shirtless and covered in a thin layer of sweat.

“Hi,” Aanya says while awkwardly shaking his hand. She blushes a little at the touch, which is extremely embarrassing considering her brother is standing right behind her. 

Koa’s eyes shine with amusement. “Um… I’ll meet you by the… thing.” Aanya says while pointing to a random bench, wanting to get out of there as fast as humanly possible. Then she practically runs in the direction she pointed to.

She keeps going until she reaches the gardens. Aanya quickly goes to the area around the entrance to the kitchens so she won’t get in trouble with the more important people. She waits for a few minutes until Bayne rounds the corner.

“Hey, what was that?” he asks, breathing a little hard after running here.

“What? I didn’t do anything,” Aanya replies.

“So we’re just going to pretend that you weren’t all flustered when I introduced you to Koa, or that you practically sprinted out of there just now?”

There is a pause in which Aanya bites her lip and looks anywhere but her brother. After a few moments, Aanya sighs. “Okay, but can you blame me? I am fifteen after all and I get uncomfortable around shirtless, sweaty guys.”

“Yeah. But you can’t date him,” Bayne says.

“What? Why?” Aanya asks with a very confused look on her face.

“It’s just weird. I train the guy and…..” he trails off as he struggles to find more reasons.

“And?” Aanya presses.

“And he’s too old for you,” he says with a triumphant look on his face. Aanya 

rolls her eyes.

“How old is he exactly?”

“Too old. Anyways, you can’t date him,” he finishes.

“Fine. Now, what is it you wanted to tell me?” Aanya asks. Bayne suddenly turns serious at the subject change. He checks their surroundings to make sure they are alone.

“Okay. What I’m about to tell you, you can’t tell anyone else,” he says, looking straight into Aanya’s eyes.

“Okay,” she shrugs.

“I need you to promise me,” he says.

Aanya becomes a little worried at that. “Okay, I promise.”

Bayne takes one last scan of the area and says, “The night our parents died, a pair of royal officers came to our door. You and I were at Mrs.Caro’s, remember?” Aanya nods and Bayne continues. “They went inside, and the next morning our parents were on their deathbed. That couldn’t have been a coincidence.”

Aanya doesn’t know what to say. Everything that is happening with Bestia and the council, and then the fact that she is hearing about this all on the same day. It makes her head spin. 

Bayne is looking at her. “What are you thinking?” he asks.

“It’s just… something Tharia said after she came back from her meeting. She said that Bestia is acting strange. Like... there seems to be something happening over there. And the council got so mad at the king, they had to end the meeting early. It’s just weird that all of this is happening on the same day,” Aanya explains.

Bayne thinks for a moment. “What if our parents had something to do with the council. Like, they made them mad or something,” he says.

“How could they? They just worked here. They weren’t exactly important.” Aanya reasoned.

“I don’t know, but something is going on.”

Just then, Aanya’s wristband begins to vibrate. It happens so suddenly it makes her jump. 

“It’s Tharia,” Aanya says. She taps the device and a message appears on the small screen. “She’s calling me to her chambers. I have to go. I’ll see you later?” she asks.

“Yeah, be careful,” he says before giving her a quick hug. Aanya then runs inside, up several flights of stairs, and around many corners until she finally sees the double doors that lead to the Princess’s suite. 

Aanya slows her breathing and wipes the sheen of sweat off of her forehead before stepping inside. It turns out that Tharia only needs her to run some papers down to her father and some other important people.

After that, Aanya just does regular stuff such as cleaning, running errands, and eventually helping Tharia get ready for bed.

Finally, once Tharia is in her bed and sleeping peacefully, Aanya shuts off the lights and tiredly makes her way to her room. Thankfully, Bayne isn’t waiting there to talk or anything, so Aanya changes her garments and slips into bed peacefully. After half an hour of trying to calm her mind, she finally falls asleep.