Queen vs. Parent

image [https://i.ibb.co/9gP5RS6/toppng-com-line-dividers-png-1000x200.png]

There was a colossal miscalculation on Eydis’s part.

Sure, she'd been attending classes, feigning interest in the inane ramblings that passed for teenage education. She endured typical routines: the infantile taunts, the playground name-calling. These 'Elites' seemed particularly fascinated by her attire - a clash of hand-me-downs and borrowed rags.

One such specimen, a freckled oaf slammed his locker shut in her path. A forced grin stretched across his face, revealing a chipped front tooth.

"Well, well, well," he oozed, a veneer of forced confidence. "The genius herself. Share the Chem homework, nerd?"

Eydis arched an eyebrow. "Ah, Chem…istry. A subject that, unfortunately, eludes even the most brilliant minds like mine. However," a sly smile played on her lips, "if your curriculum includes pest control — particularly the application of specific insecticides on oversized, buzzing annoyances — I might be of more service."

The oaf's face contorted with confusion, his brain cells struggling to keep up. "What the… are you quoting poetry at me, freak?" He fumbled for her collar, a clumsy attempt at intimidation. "Homework or you'll regret it!"

Before Eydis could unleash a withering reply worthy of her lineage, a presence descended upon them, chilling the air despite the artificial warmth. The oaf spun on his heel, his idiotic expression morphing into a caricature of adoration as his gaze landed on the newcomer.

There stood Astra, a vision of controlled chaos. Her silver hair, a cascading waterfall of moonlight, framed eyes that smouldered like banked embers. The academy blazer hung loosely on her slender frame, emphasising the black choker that clung to her pale throat.

"Move," Astra commanded, her voice a husky rasp that promised a blizzard.

The lovesick oaf stammered, his hand still hovering awkwardly by Eydis's collar. Annoyance danced across Astra's features as she stalked towards them, a predator eyeing particularly slow prey.

With inhuman speed, Astra's hand darted out, sending the bully hurtling across the hallway until he collided with a resounding CLANG against the lockers opposite. The metal lockers groaned in protest, a deep dent marking the unfortunate oaf's impact.

All without Astra breaking stride.

Eydis stopped her roommate with a gentle touch on the wrist. "Impressive display of... hallway redecoration, Astra, but…” she teased. "Don't you know it's terribly impolite to interrupt a damsel in the midst of making a menacing threat?”

Astra mumbled something about him "being in the way," a statement demonstrably false given the deserted hallway.

"For what it's worth, my gratitude overflows." Eydis straightened her collar. "Though the disappearing act is getting old. We are roommates, yes?"

A pained groan from the floor, courtesy of the lovestruck oaf's failed attempt to rise, interrupted their exchange. Astra didn't even grace him a glance. As if swatting a fly, she flicked her wrist in a subtle gesture, and a wave of invisible energy pressed the oaf back down with a muffled Oof.

A knowing smile tugged at Eydis's lips. "Now I understand why my younger self was so captivated by your... brilliance. It all makes sense now."

Astra’s eyes widened. "What are you—?"

Eydis leaned closer, her voice a low whisper tickling the shorter girl's ear. "No amount of deflection can erase a certain... sonnet penned in your honour. Think of it as a youthful appreciation for your skills, not some silly crush. Besides, getting to know you better wouldn't hurt, roomie."

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Astra's porcelain cheeks tinged with a slight flush that disappeared with a blink of an eye. “I wasn’t avoiding you,” Astra mumbled, sounding suspiciously like... embarrassment?

With a final, withering glare in the lovesick oaf's direction (who seemed to shrink a few inches further into the floor), Astra vanished down the hallway, leaving a faint scent of sandalwood in her wake.

Eydis watched her go, a satisfied smirk playing on her lips. Befriending Astra, arguably one of the most powerful students in the academy, was a strategic move worthy of a chess grandmaster.

After all, a Queen didn't need to be the strongest piece on the board; she just needed to know how to leverage the ones that were. And despite Astra's prickly exterior, Eydis had a feeling there wasn't really bad blood between them.

Lost in this introspection, she nearly missed Dean Saito approaching, his face etched with a peculiar urgency. "Eydis," he announced, "your parents are here to see you."

Eydis, channelling her inner Natalia, muttered a single, eloquent word under her breath.

"Motherforker."

----------------------------------------

"Your Majesty! A canary, he's hurt!" Young Eydis, barely tenth winters old, rushed to the side of the Queen of Shadows.

Her mother turned, a regal figure clad in raven black. Her eyes, molten gold, glinted with disdain.

"Dispose of that filth!”

Eydis, clutching the trembling bird, stammered, "But... he can be saved! I know it!"

"Then he'll be a cripple," the Queen scoffed. "Better off dead, child."

Eydis's chin jutted out defiantly. "I can protect him. Just because he can't fly doesn't mean he's useless."

The Queen dismissed her daughter with a sharp gaze. "Caged, then," she corrected, turning away. "Would you rather live a life stripped bare, Princess? Shorn of your power, your essence, your freedom, just to exist like a forgotten thing? Throw it away," she thundered, leaving no room for argument.

Eydis stood alone amidst the shadowed trees, watching her mother's retreating figure. A spark, defiant and fierce, ignited in the young princess's bright golden eyes. With a flick of her wrist, a serpent, its scales shimmering obsidian, materialised at her side.

‘Take it to the healer,’ she commanded silently.

The serpent obeyed, its body coiling gently around the injured bird and soared into the ashen sky.

Eydis, her chin held high, trailed behind the Queen. She wasn't her mother, and never would be. A chance, a life — that's what she'd given the bird.

Its fate, its freedom, would be its own.

----------------------------------------

"Eydis, can you hear me?" Dean Saito's voice cut through the memory.

"Just… nervous," she mumbled, the echo of the Queen's voice still chilling her.

"Hard to imagine it was the young woman who challenged me the other day," the Dean said with a smile, pushing open the door to his office.

Eydis entered, her jaw clenched. Sitting on the sofa were two figures who seemed the antithesis of the fire-breathing monarchs she envisioned. Gone were the villainous pronouncements and imperious stares. In their place sat a couple who could blend seamlessly into any middle-class suburb.

Her father, a man with her own dark hair and warm amber eyes, beamed at her. Her mother, a brunette with a stylish bob and eyes the blue of a summer sky, offered a weak smile.

"Mom, Dad, I miss you," Eydis murmured, channelling her newly learned pedestrian language.

Tears welled in their eyes, and panic clawed at her throat. Sure, she revelled in the misery of her enemies, but this... this was genuine concern, and it threw her off balance. Before she could retreat into her usual snark, her mother enveloped her in a suffocating hug. Her father followed suit, transforming her into a human panini.

"They can't do this to you," her mother choked out, a tear escaping and tracing down her cheek.

"Just tell us, Eydis, if anyone gives you a hard time," her father rumbled. "Don't you dare suffer in silence again. Though, considering this is the first time in years you've admitted to missing us..."

Lovely. Smooth move, Eydis.

Words seemed to desert her. "Y-you're suffocating me," her voice muffled against her father's sweater.

Cupping her face, her mother asked, "Look at you, sweetie, all skin and bones. Did they starve you here? Come on, let's get you something decent to eat."

"Uh, yeah, sure." Eydis ran a hand through her hair, feeling utterly disarmed. Here she was, a master manipulator who could navigate court intrigue with ease, yet she found herself floundering in the face of genuine concern.

This—whatever these strange emotions swirling within her were—was uncharted territory. She thought, silently following her parents down the hallway.

"So," her father began tentatively, "how are you adjusting to, well, everything?"

Eydis shrugged, unsure how to answer. "It's...different.”

"Different is an understatement," her mother said, a wry smile playing on her lips. "But you'll manage, Eydis. You always do.”

Eydis offered a small smile. "Perhaps."

Her mother's hand squeezed hers briefly. "Any decent food here? You always loved pizza."

Eydis grimaced, picturing the ‘pizza’ - a monstrosity of questionable meat on dry bread. "Actually, I'd love some seafood pasta."

Her father's eyebrows shot up. "Seafood? But you hate—"

"Only decent thing in the cafeteria," Eydis blurted, quickening her pace. The worry on their faces was an irritating reminder of everything that wasn’t hers.

This wasn't her life. These weren't her parents. Their presence felt like a tightening noose.

All she wanted was for them to leave.

She stormed past them, the question of the canary ignited in her mind. Had it survived, or had its song been silenced forever? It didn't matter.

Eydis wouldn't be silenced. She would fight, claw her way back to who she was meant to be. Even if it meant enduring this, whatever this was.

Goosebumps erupted on her skin as her ‘mother’ wrapped her arms around her.