The Cursed Girl, #1

by Maria Vermisoglou

  “The princess was stupid enough to ask it in front of people?”

  “And your mother said, ‘Saving the world.’ Have you decided yet?”

  “I don’t want to be a princess. Yet.”

  Heather nodded and asked. “Now what do you want from the library?”

  Ritta said, “To add an entry in your version of the Great Book.”

  Heather raised her eyebrows. “I can’t do that without the princess’s order.”

  Ritta smiled. “But you won’t add anything new. Rather make visible an entry.”

  Heather studied us. “Please explain.”

  Ritta explained since she had done all the research.

  “And you found about this where exactly?”

  Ritta glanced at me uneasily. “From a book.”

  Heather rolled her eyes. “Obviously, but which book?”

  “It’s from your book, Eva.”

  “Of course, it is.” I sighed. “It’s from a rare book and it’s dangerous if someone learns about it.”

  “I see.” Heather tilted her head. “Is it from the rare section?”

  I almost laughed. “No, from the black market.”

  “I see. I hope it’s in good hands now.”

  “It is. In mine.”

  Heather nodded but didn’t ask any more questions. She closed her eyes and the original Great Book appeared on the table. She opened it to the correct page and read the entry, then the little letters. “I didn’t know such thing existed, and I am the librarian. What a disgrace. But this princess was always smart and a little kooky and did things like this. I am sure she is laughing right now.”

  She summoned the library’s copy of the Great Book. “In here, there is nothing. I wonder why...” She took a quill and added the small entry, but with bigger letters so anyone could see it. “Now it’s been added in every other book, especially in the Academy’s.”

  “I have another question, Heather. Can a princess erase the laws of the previous one?”

  “It depends. If it’s a fundamental law, she can’t, but if it’s a little law like the one that says it’s optional to come to the White Land during war, then yes.”

  Ha. It was optional. “Why then do they say that the laws of the previous princesses can’t be erased?”

  “As I said, if they are fundamental, they can’t, and also if they are added by the current princess.”

  “And you want me to be one of them? This is crazy,” I declared and she laughed. We said our goodbyes and returned to my house. We would stay there for some days until I finished Ritta’s house.

  Drawing

  The next day, I hid my book. Since Ritta had mentioned my book, I had an odd feeling I needed to hide it. I had found the perfect hiding spot for it, and I placed the silver book on the rug in the main room.

  “That’s your hiding spot?” Ritta asked.

  I ignored her and raised my arms, and the book melted into the rug like it never existed.

  “What the?” Ritta said. “Where did it go? Under the house? In the cellar?”

  “Neither. It’s still in the rug.” I smiled. “I thought the rug was lonely, and now it has some company.”

  “What if someone tries to take it?”

  “Try it.” She moved her hand, but the only thing she achieved was lifting the rug into the air, but there was nothing under it except dust.

  “How?”

  I smiled. “Sometimes there are not hows; it’s just the way it is. Magic can’t always be explained. Now shall we turn that sad little house of yours into something magical?”

  Ritta’s sketch had falling flowers and birds for the exterior. The inside would be a surprise and I told her that she would love it. She helped me with the flowers because I didn’t know every flower—only those with healing abilities—and knowing all the flowers was her job. She summoned the flowers she wanted, and I drew them in exact detail. I added some seagulls, pigeons, ravens, and a phoenix in flight. Yes, phoenixes do exist, but you have to travel toward the sun to find them.

  After we finished, I sent her away to get something for us to eat and do some shopping so I could paint the interior without her peeking all the time and asking, “Are you finished? Are you finished?” You have no idea how disturbing that was!

  After she left, I went inside and started painting on the wall across from the fireplace since that wall was the first you saw when you entered. I worked for nearly two hours. A knock at the door told me that Ritta was here, so I opened the door.

  Ritta grinned. “Are you done? I am sorry I was late, but I thought you needed time to finish, and there were so many interesting things to see in the market...”

  Ritta went to the market as often as she could and saw “wonderful things.” She could go to the market every day, but for me, one time a week would suffice. I liked the humans’ market better and found it more interesting.

  “You are just in time. I have finished polishing the interior drawing. I hope you like it.”

  She entered and stared at my artwork. “Oh. That’s wonderful. I don’t just like it, I love it.” She hugged me. “Oh, thank you. Thank you very much.”

  I knew she would like it. I had drawn the sunset on top of a sea with the beach. I put starfishes on the sand with silver edges and some fish in the sea. From a distance, it looked like you could walk right into the golden sun and go swimming. On the other wall was a meadow full of every kind of flowers you could imagine in every color.

  We sat to eat and Ritta sat where she could see the drawing. I was glad she liked it. It made me happy when I did something for the people I cared about. Something good, like a drawing, and not because I saved them from being poisoned—then I just feel relieved and angry at them because... well, because they weren’t careful.

  After we ate, we went for a walk in the city’s square. It was nice and magic had lit the lanterns in the square. It was peaceful to walk there. It was the peace after the war for me and the hope that things could be better.

  “Aren’t your customers going to miss you?” asked Ritta when we passed by the fountain.

  “They will but I left them a message, and the orders will go in the box. I am taking the day off.”

  She laughed. “Take the day off to see the princess? I would prefer to work a thousand times over.”

  “Me too. Thank you for doing the research, by the way. You saved me from being kicked out forever.”

  She smiled and took my hand. “I save you and you save me. That’s what friends are for.”

  “How did you discover it anyway?”

  She shrugged. “Curiosity. When I first discovered the book, I saw the ‘communicating spell,’ but on the front page were some historical things about the White Land, so I made a note to read it after. It said some things and among them was this.”

  I arched an eyebrow. “I wonder why Heather didn’t see it. Don’t they copy from the original?”

  “I don’t know, but you heard Heather. That previous princess did mysterious things like this...”

  It still bothered me though. “And why would it be written in my book? It doesn’t have anything to do with witches. It just contains strong spells. Why have historical things too?”

  “It doesn’t have spells and facts only about us. It had the warlocks’ entire history and other creatures such as vampires and werewolves.”

  “That’s strange.”

  “It said what we have guessed: these two are fighting one another because their spirits are the exact opposite of the other. Like plus and minus, they can’t coexist, so they fight.”

  “That’s interesting. Did you read it all?”

  “No, I just read some strong spells, but maybe it’s time I did.”

  Like me, Ritta was curious to learn. “You just have to lift the rug,” I said.

  “But I did and nothing happened.”

  She seemed distressed by my spell, but you had to keep an open mind especially in the witches’ world. “Because you were thinki
ng of it as the rug in my house, but you should think of it as a portal to a cellar.”

  Ritta stopped short. “You stored it in the Void?”

  “Yes.”

  Ritta stared at me in awe. The Void was what connected all the supernatural worlds, and if you knew how, you could store things in it. It was a huge place that never ended, but it was essential for our survival. If it wasn’t for the Void, nothing supernatural could live. It was like a balance of sorts, but I didn’t know much about it to tell the truth.

  “It’s not that difficult,” I said.

  She stared at me like I was crazy. “The Void is difficult to use because it’s the Void. A huge place. You can store an item there, and if you do something wrong, it can end up on a volcano.”

  I laughed. “If it’s a demon, I don’t think it would be that bad.” Demons were not from this world and they used human bodies as hosts. They possessed humans with poor will and used them like puppets, and once a demon possessed a human, that human died. So, if humans died, I had no issues with a demon accidentally ending up on a volcano.

  “You stored a demon in the Void?”

  I shrugged. “I was out of time. I had to put it somewhere.”

  She looked at the sky. “How about kill it?”

  “If I killed it, I wouldn’t get the answers I needed. First, I questioned it, and then I killed it, but it spoke easily because it didn’t like the Void at all. It felt dizzy and woozy.”

  Ritta made a sympathetic face. “Oh, the poor demon. Maybe I should use that too after I learn not to send objects into rivers.” We laughed and collected our things for our trip back to Earth. Night was approaching so no one would see us coming, especially if we showed up from the woods.

  We flew through the skies. From up high, the stars were brighter and didn’t look like the shape the humans saw. We emerged from the woods and went to my house. It smelled like it had rained recently, and the ground was muddy. I liked the smell of rain and snow. I took the box with orders and sketches inside and would look at them in the morning. Midnight greeted us with meows and licks. She had missed us and I had missed her too; it felt a little lonely without her.

  The next day I was looking at some orders when I heard a knock at the door. Ritta answered so I continued working.

  “It seems business is booming.”

  I looked up and saw Alec. “What are you doing here?” I smiled.

  “I went to check on how you were doing at the new house, and I learned that you were back here. Do you know how insulting this is?” He seemed angry, but I knew he wasn’t.

  “It was not pretty.”

  He snorted. “Pretty? A house isn’t supposed to be pretty. It’s supposed to be comfortable and warm and safe.”

  “Since when do you know how a house is supposed to be?”

  “Since we went from tunnel to tunnel and from inn to inn. It was kind of exhausting to tell the truth but necessary. But I have to congratulate you on your work on your house and the others around. When I saw it, I thought there was grass growing, and it was strange since spring is not here yet. And the flowers. Are you planning to do the other houses too?” I showed him the orders. “Seriously? Wow. I am jealous of whoever lives in a house with your drawings on it. But why a cave?”

  “You know why.”

  “I guess I do. You liked Italy, but if there is a person who doesn’t like it, then he is either stupid or lost his mind.” Obviously. Italy was a paradise to me. “You should come and get your horse one day.”

  I slapped my forehead. “I am so sorry. With all that work, I had forgotten Sunshine.”

  “It’s understandable. When you come, can you bring something?”

  “A drawing?” He nodded. “Sure. What kind?”

  “Anything you draw is pretty.”

  “To give a sketch to a person I have thrown away at least twenty.”

  “Really? You must want everything perfect.”

  “Not perfect, just presentable. I am an artist. Imperfections are a must. Anything else you want to tell me?” I sensed he didn’t come to just scowl at me for not choosing to live in their house.

  “Yes, well... we are going back to Versailles... you know, for the trial.”

  Ah, yes. The trial for Jonathan’s uncle. The ex-king. The murderer. “I see. And you want me with you?”

  “No, just to let you know where we are going.”

  “Why?” I arched an eyebrow. “I am not someone important to have to know these things, and I am not your mother either.”

  “You still don’t know your own importance. You changed history. Eva the healer people are calling you now.”

  “They always called me Eva the healer.” I smiled. “Now it’s gone though. I still help people, but...”

  “Eva the artist.”

  “I doubt it.”

  “You have added another dream. It’s nice to do something you love.”

  Yes, a dream or maybe not a dream, a reality. “Stay safe.”

  “Why? Do you have any doubts about us?”

  “I always have.” I waved and he laughed.

  “What did Alec want?” Ritta asked.

  “To scowl me about not living in their house, to tell me to get my horse from the palace, he wants some drawings, and... oh. They’re leaving for Versailles.”

  “What? Oh. Oh.” She, fortunately, understood without me having to tell her. “Why did he come to tell you that? Is he giving you a report?” She laughed.

  “I don’t know.”

  The next days passed with more orders for paintings and more rain. There was so much rain, I didn’t notice when Jonathan and Alec left the palace or if they returned. People asked me about it, but it didn’t make much sense to me since I didn’t see them like I saw them every day like before. Now they had important things to do and I had orders to take. I missed them, but we were once again in different worlds: rich and poor or average people weren’t on the same path. Rich rule and poor try to survive.

  One afternoon, my mother, Ritta, and I were walking in the square, and we saw a commotion so we went to see what it was.

  “Eva, Eva,” Leticia yelled and waved at me.

  “Hello, Leticia. What’s going on here?”

  “They built a theater. It’s amazing. People come from other countries to perform here.”

  “And the poor don’t pay,” Mario, who was behind Leticia, said.

  “If the poor don’t pay, then how are the people being paid for their work? I don’t suppose they’re doing it for free?”

  “No, the rich pay. The poor don’t.”

  Ritta, my mother, and I couldn’t contain our laughs. It was just so ironic, so insulting; if any royal found out about this, they would be beyond angry.

  “Who did it?” Ritta asked.

  “The king did it,” Mario said.

  I stared at Ritta. “What do you mean who did it? We know who did it. You think it fell from the sky?

  “When?” Ritta asked.

  “We don’t know. It was just an open space, and today we saw this. How could they work so fast?”

  “It can’t be the king because they are gone.”

  “What do you mean gone?”

  “They are not here, Eva, they are still in Versailles.”

  “Maybe he gave the order...”

  “He might but how did they construct it so fast?”

  “You can ask when we go for the horse.”

  “Oh. The horse. I have to see it.”

  “You will when they are back, Ritta.”

  “I don’t suppose they can let us have it now?”

  “Without the royals’ order? I don’t think so...”

  After dinner, we went to the theater. I had never been to anything like this and wanted to see what it was. Two plays were being performed tonight. One was about a princess who was trapped by an evil witch. She couldn’t save herself and could only be rescued by a prince. I refused to watch that play. Women didn’t always need to be saved and th
e only evil witch I knew of wouldn’t waste her time trapping a human princess.

  We saw the comedy instead. It was funny and original. There was an ugly prince, and no princess wanted him for a husband or would even talk to him. He left his country and went in search of someone who would see the real him, but everyone he met was afraid of him and ran away until the day he was caught in a downpour. A girl found him shivering in the rain and brought him inside her home to get warm and dry. She saw his heart of gold and didn’t think he was ugly. The play ended with the two falling in love and getting married.

  “I enjoyed it. I liked that the girl could see his golden heart,” I said when the play had ended.

  Ritta wiped away her tears. “It was a beautiful love story. I’m not sure why they said it was a comedy. I cried more than I laughed.”

  “It was an interesting story, and I think it would be good if some royals saw it,” my mother said, and we returned home.

  The next day, everyone in the village was excited. People kept shouting that the king was back. Ritta came to see me in the afternoon so we could get my horse from the stables at the palace. When we arrived at the palace, we went into the stables and a man stopped us.

  “Excuse me. Misses. You are not allowed in here.”

  Clearly, he didn’t know who I was. “On the contrary. I am very much allowed in here. I came to retrieve my horse, thank you.”

  His mouth hung up, and he closed it as he stepped closer to get a better look at me. “Oh! Miss Eva, it is you. Of course. They told me you would come. Your horse is right here.” He guided us through the stables. “It’s a very nice and tame horse I must say and pretty.” When we were in front of Sunshine’s door, she neighed and tried to reach me. “She seems very happy to see you.” The man laughed and opened the door and Sunshine sniffed me.

  “Yes, I am happy to see you too.” I guided her out of the stall.

  “Thank you for taking care of her.”

  “It was a pleasure.”

  I took a box from my bag. “Will you see the prince today?”

  “Yes, miss.”

  “Then give him these, please.” I handed him the sealed box with the drawings.