Elena woke slowly, her eyes fluttering open. Her head was pounding and she was thoroughly disoriented. The princess frowned. Where was she? She didn’t remember. She lifted her head, only to find herself gazing directly into a pair of light gray eyes. The sight helped to cut through the foggy confusion that had filled her mind. She remembered the party, talking, and dancing. She remembered walking out onto the balcony, the struggle, everything. Her own eyes widened. 

Quickly, she she sat up, moving back to the edge of the bed she found herself on. Moving so suddenly had only worsened her headache, and she winced, putting a hand to her forehead. Since it appeared that the woman was not immediately planning to attack, she slowly got off the bed, standing up on the opposite side. She still did not feel completely well after having fainted. Noticing the way the floor seemed to shift beneath her feet, her gaze flicked around the room, trying to get a sense of her surroundings, before they settled on the raven-haired woman.

Remembering what had happened triggered many emotions for the princess. She felt an acute sense of betrayal, though she could not completely comprehend why. Elena was of course scared, and she gripped her skirt with both hands in order to hide the fact that they trembled ever so slightly. But, even stronger than her hurt and fear was her anger. She was angry for multiple reasons. She was angry at the fiends who had taken her, at the woman who had tricked her. She was angry at herself for having been so foolish, so gullible and stupid as to have fallen for her tricks. And though she would not admit it, she was angry because she was terrified. If she let go of her anger now, she would have to face the intense feelings of fear within herself. So she instead chose anger, because it was safer, because she could control it.

Elena’s anger was not like the hotheaded temper of her mother, nor the subtle annoyance of her brother. Hers was cold, leaving her feeling numb. She stared directly at the woman across from her, her soft blue gaze turned to ice. She tried to keep her focus. There did not appear to be anything she could really do at the moment. She felt exhausted, and had no strength to fight with. Instead, she spoke, hoping to get some answers. 

It took Elena a moment to find her voice, but when she did she was glad that it came out strong, not weak and trembling like she felt. “Who are you? Where am I?” She had suspicions regarding what the answers might be, but a part of her still did not want to accept what had happened.