On the mannequin, the dress was beautiful. Elegant with ruffles and laces in every direction in glittering purple shades. But wearing it was impossible. It didn’t fit Seren right. The thick bodice was meant for someone much thicker in the chest than they were. It kept slipping down with every step Seren took. For modesty’s sake Seren wore a simple short sleeved blouse beneath the sheer pearleascent blouse the dress was meant to be worn with. Which was almost completely see through.

The bodice wasn’t the only thing not meant for Seren. The gown itself was far too long. Despite their best efforts it dragged along the ground. The heels that were meant to be worn with the dress Seren didn’t even attempt to wear. There hadn’t been any rain for a few days but even with the dirt dry and hard as mountain stone Seren felt they were sinking down with the weight of the dress. The corset that was required to be worn with dresses was making their back ache when it wasn’t stealing the air out of their lungs.

Seren and the Queen were taking the golden close-topped carriage out of the castle and through the city. It’s seat were softer than anything Seren had ever been allowed to sit on before in their life. The curtains were purple and the seats were the same shade while the walls and floor were either painted to resemble gold or had been covered with a layer of real gold.

“I couldn’t help but notice your shoes,” The Queen said, in a much simpler but still layered and elegant dress.

“Oh yes,” Seren said. Folding their white-gloved hands in their lap. “They didn’t fit.” Seren hadn’t meant to lie, but under the Queen’s intense scrutiny they needed a believable reason faster than an honest explaination. The Queen accepted their lie and looked out the window.

“Ma’am?” Seren asked. Fiddling their fingers together and watching the way the fabric’s seam moved when their hands did. “Do you remember meeting my father?”

“I do,”

“What was he like?” Seren never had a chance to meet him. Dead of a plague when they were still an infant. They never sat with their mother, much less got a chance to speak with her about him.

The Queen’s face was passive, her eyes were far away. She was still despite the rocking of the carriage.

“When I first saw him,” The Queen said finally. “He was the light that illuminated the room. The grand ballroom went completely silent when he asked me to dance. No one else existed when he smiled…” Seren nodded. Ballroom. Gown that she wore when they met. It made sense now why Seren was uncomfortable.

“I still see his smile sometimes,” The Queen said. “When I look at you.” Seren looked up from their hands to look at their mother. She was still staring faraway out the window. They reached out and put their hand on their mother's, the Queen turned and pulled their hand away. Seren sat back awkwardly. The Queen glared at them for a short while before turning back to the window. Seren let out a breath quietly. They adjusted through the ball gown, hoping the walk in the woods would be mercifully brief.

As they left the city limits Seren's thoughts turned to James.

"Mother?" Seren asked, starting out the window so they wouldn't be distracted by their mother's glare. "Why did you send the prince away?" Through the corner of their eye they saw their mother's dress moving in irritation.

"You didn't think he was interested, did you?" The Queen smoothed out her dress. "You know the golden apples are magic. That's all the wanted." Seren started to speak but stopped. They were sure just asking about him had irritated the Queen. There was no reason to rile her up further by telling her how Seren had to practically force James to keep ahold of the apple. Not the kind of thing someone who wanted more would do. Seren entertained the thought for a few more minutes before wondering if he'd ever date come back, and desperately hope he'd dare.

The carriage came to a stop a short ways from the forest. One of the knights accompanying the pair opened the carriage door and helped out the Queen and then Seren. The full weight of the dress nearly slipped right off them at they dropped. Seren pulled up the bodice again with a blush on their cheeks as the knight averted his eyes. They cleared their throat and started forward. The long gown caught on a branch and stopped them. Seren lifted the bottom of the gotten but couldn't lift it enough to free it.

"Allow me," the knight said. Taking pity on them and untangling the end of the dress and holding it up so Seren could walk at a reasonable pace alongside her mother.

“Thank you so much,” Seren whispered graciously as they hiked up the front of their skirt to walk.

“Don’t mention it, Myr Aderyntan.” The knight whispered back. Seren came up alongside their mother and walked with her. They walked completely in silence together towards the tree line. Seren kept sneaking glances at the Queen, trying to think of something innocuous to say.

“Seren,” The Queen said, abruptly stopping.

“Yes?” Seren asked, stopping just as abruptly.

“Those wildflowers, the purple ones, you see them?” The Queen gestured off toward the trees. Seren squinted and saw something purple very vaguely.

“Yes, I think so.” Seren nodded with their eyes as focused as they could be.

“Fetch them for me,” She said. Then turned to the man holding Seren’s skirts. “You fetch the vase from the carriage.”

“Yes your majesty.” Both the knight and Seren said at the same time. Seren tried to be as regal as they possibly could as they stumbled toward the trees.Seren struggled as they headed for the tree line. The dress slowed them down considerably. They hadn't even reached the treeline before they were sweating and red faced. Out of breath they hunched over to catch it again. The treeline felt forever away. They looked back at the knights all swarmed around the carriage and when the wind blew they could hear their mother screaming at the poor bastards.

They lifted their dress a little higher. Slightly more daring with their mother distracted. Seren was partially thankful that they weren’t currently the target of the Queen’s wrath but also pitied the group who was.

“When I rule this kingdom, I’m not going to act like that.” Seren whispered as they fought for each step. Trying to hold up the bodice and the skirts all at once. “I’m going to be grateful and thankful and polite.” Seren chanted the ways they’d be different from their mother as they walked. The chant giving them more power to push forward with.

They reached the initial line of trees and dropped the dress. It slid right off their chest and caught on their hips. Seren snatched it back up with a scowl as they hunted the lines for the gods twice damned flowers. Little sprouts of purple flowers on thick stalks waved in the wind beyond the treeline. Seren grumbled and hiked the skirts up again. The shade of the trees helped relieve some of the heat that had been building under the dress. Seren reached out for the flowers but stopped as the realized they would have to carry the flowers and their skirts all the way back.

“That’s an unadvised way to dress in this sort of place,” A voice from the trees made Seren jump out of their skin. The dress caught when they tried to turn and threw them to the ground. Seren fought through the layers of fabric to see who was speaking. A set of piercing but highly amused blue eyes were set against the tree. He was balancing a dagger on a leather gloved hand and barely keeping back a laugh at Seren.

“You’re not wrong,” Seren struggled to sit up much less stand.

“The Queen really didn’t need to make it so easy,” The hunter shrugged. Tossing the dagger up and catching it by the hilt easily. “It’s terribly unfair to kill someone at such a disadvantage.” Seren felt their face pale.

“Excuse me?” They snapped. Slipping out of the dress entirely and standing in only the cotton pants and under shirt. “My mother would never-”

“Your what?” The hunter dropped the dagger entirely as he looked Seren up and down then out of the trees. "She never said anything about royalty. Royalty never goes unnoticed…" Seren looked out the trees where far off in the distance their mother was still directing the knights. They could scream, and they would all come running.

"Look, if you aren't okay with killing me then we'll just forget it all." Seren said with a final swipe of their arms. "You and I will part and whatever mom paid you, you can just return or call it some kind of commuter expense. This doesn't have to end badly,"

"She'll just hire someone else to kill you." The hunter said. Seren shook their head in disbelief.

“No that. It can’t be. This has to be a mistake." Seren insisted. "I mean, my mother is a real piece of work but why would she want me dead?"

"Called you a problem and a nuisance when I was contacted." The hunter said unhelpfully.

" But why?" Seren crossed their arms and stepped out of the dress puddle. " What did I do? I haven't…" Seren paused as a slow realization started to dawn on them.

"Look, I can't let you head back." Three hunter said. Bending down and picking up his dagger. "It's a lot more lucrative for me to ransom you, I hope you understand."

"I do, but I don't approve." Seren said sternly. "And what's stopping you from being arrested as soon as the Queen knows I’m dead? If she can send me in a gown as heavy as the ocean to my death I'm sure she has no problems with letting you hang for a crime she solicited." The little sparkle of amusement left the hunter’s eyes. Replaced by alarm. He looked past the trees. Seren looked out and saw the Queen coming toward the treeline. When Seren looked back to the hunter he was already gone, hiding nearby most likely. Seren turned back to the Queen and was struck by a lightning of panic. They dove down and yanked the dress’s corset up around their chest. Getting it up and secured by the time the Queen moved into the trees.

“Your majesty,” Seren said, unable to help a slight tone of distrust to thier words. The Queen’s green eyes narrowed in impatience.

“Perhaps you can’t find the flowers because you haven’t gone deep enough,” She said annoyed.

“Or perhaps that’s not what you meant for me to find, is it?” Seren asked quietly. The Queen’s face lit up, too shocked to speak. “And I bet this isn’t a dress of any importance. You just wanted to make me an easy target.” Once Seren started, they couldn’t stop.

“That’s why you brought the knights out but not the ladies? You didn’t want anyone to be with me when you sent me out to find something that never existed? Is that what you did to my father t-” Seren fell to the ground , they could taste blood and the side of their face was white-hot. The fall was cushoined by the dress, but the dress made it had for them to turn and glare at the Queen.

“How dare you,” The Queen was trembling, but if it was caused by the rage or the shock was unclear.

“Me?! Are you ill?” Seren nearly screamed as the crawled out of the dress. They felt the wind of another of the Queen’s blow on the back of their neck. Seren crawled backwards and stumbled up to their feet, trying to stay out of reach.

“You are disrespectful and you always have been!” The Queen said in a tone low enough only the three in the area could hear. “I never wanted you, you’ve been nothing but an obsticle. Always demanding, always taking the attention from me. You were a mistake and my biggest regret is not drowning you as an infant when I had the chance.” Seren didn’t feel the sting of the words. There was too much rage coursing through their veins to feel anything else.

“You’ve lost your mind.” Seren snapped. They shook their head, still backing away. “No, I’m not taking this anymore.”

“Don’t you take another step!” The Queen commanded.

“I’m leaving! I’m going to get as far away from you as possible and then, I’m going to keep going!” Seren was yelling, they couldn’t control their volume anymore. They hardly could control the words they were saying.

“You will not go anywhere. Your behavior is mad, I’ll have you sent straight to bedlam. You’ll never be heard or seen again.” The Queen’s quiet voice made Seren’s seething anger quiet. Replacing it quickly with cold fear. “Think of the sympathy, everyone will come and express their grief for my poor mad child.”

Seren had no words. They could only turn and run. The Queen screamed for the knights and Seren ran faster. Plunging into the dark shadows of the forest.