my life was a mess, but i could clean my room

the future had once been glittering, a shining point in the distance guiding every one of El’s elegant, deliberate steps. it was everything she lived for, breathed for: a throne, a circlet of jewels, a kingdom laid out at her feet. she’d been born a princess, and she’d felt the truth of her birthright singing in her veins. her blood was the stuff of rubies, the culmination of a strong and enviable family. the Kleins. but now, that future, that legacy, lays in tatters at her feet. even her mastiff, Princess, feels like a mocking reminder of that life, a remnant of everything that was stolen away before she was even old enough to defend it. injustice. it simmers low in her bones, a bitter siren song urging her to do something - though what, she doesn’t know. sometimes, she feels like a disgraced princess victimised by the cruelty of life. other times…other time, she feels like a silly girl with only a dog for company.