Time:
Night
Age: Elira – 6 years, Kael – 3
years
The decision was not announced.
That was how Elira knew it had already been
made.
The next day passed with strange calm. No new
restrictions were spoken aloud, yet everything felt tighter. Doors closed more
quickly. Servants spoke less. Even the air seemed careful.
By evening, a maid arrived with unusual
politeness.
"Second Princess," she said, bowing low, "you
are requested in the Inner Court."
Elira's heart beat faster, but she nodded.
Kael stood at once. "I will accompany her."
The maid hesitated, then allowed it.
They walked through corridors Elira had never
been permitted to enter before. The walls were older here, darker, lined with
histories that did not welcome questions.
At last, they stopped.
Inside the room sat the Empress Dowager.
No guards stood close. No court officials
watched.
Only her.
"Elira," she said calmly. "Come forward."
Elira bowed deeply.
For a long moment, the Empress Dowager simply looked at her.
"You have caused confusion," she said at last.
"Not through action, but through existence."
Elira remained silent.
"Children of imperial blood do not disappear,"
the Empress Dowager continued. "They are either acknowledged—or controlled."
Her gaze shifted briefly to Kael, then back.
"My son allowed you to fade because it was
easier," she said. "That was his mistake."
Elira's fingers tightened inside her sleeves.
"You are not being punished," the Empress
Dowager said. "Nor are you being rewarded."
She leaned back slightly. "Your place has already been chosen."
Elira lifted her eyes. "What place is that?"
The Empress Dowager's voice was even. "You will remain the Second Princess.
Visible enough to exist. Limited enough to never threaten."
Elira's chest felt heavy.
"You will receive education," she continued. "Guidance. Protection. In
return, you will remain quiet, obedient, and loyal."
Kael spoke carefully. "And if she is?"
The Empress Dowager looked at him with interest. "Then she will be allowed
to stay exactly as she is."
"And if not?" Kael asked.
"Then she will be corrected," the Empress Dowager replied. "Or removed from
notice again."
The meaning was clear.
Elira bowed. "I understand."
The Empress Dowager nodded once. "Good. Understanding is all I require."
They were dismissed without ceremony.
As they walked back through the long corridors, Elira finally whispered,
"She never asked what I wanted."
Kael shook his head. "Because this was never a choice."
Elira looked down at her hands.
"So this is my role," she said quietly.
"Yes," Kael replied. "To exist where they can see you—and never step where
they fear you might go."
The palace lights burned steadily that night.
Nothing had changed.
And yet everything had.
Because Elira now knew the truth:
She was no longer forgotten.
She had been placed.