Miriam pressed her hand into the cold castle wall, the stone poking small bits of concrete into her skin. She felt crazy waiting outside for her brother as he went out and explored the world. The world was so vast but Miriam was stuck inside the castle walls viewing the same orchard, the same bugs, and the same people every day. The lady-in-waiting assisted her every morning into her dress and she would stare out the window watching the birds fly free and freer than she’d ever be. She’d walk down the steps, greeting the morning staff before sitting gently at the huge dining table, her nose usually stuck in a book as she ate fruits and bread with eggs. Bacon and vegetables would cover the table and the delicious food had made her stomach sick. Once she was done eating, she’d return to her quarters and wait. She never knew what she was waiting for yet her heart yearned for the need to wait. Once again, she would stare out the window at the rest of the world. 

Carriages passed by with either criminals or high-ranked nobles, the bakers would pass by with their thick variety of bread and fresh pastries, and the scruffed children that would play in the streets or a thick forest. Miriam had felt so far from her people, from her kingdom. It was as if she was held in the sky forced to look down upon and watch from afar as her people lived normal lives. Although she had wished to become a ruler, she wished to become a commoner as well. She had always remembered her mother arguing that commoners wouldn’t step foot in her castle as it would ruin the flooring from their dirty selves. Miriam always knew that if she would assume the crown, no one would be shut out, not the people and not her. The cold walls of the castle weren’t comforting, no maid would talk with her in fear of their mistakes and no one had allowed her to leave the castle without an entire parade following her closely.

A small knock echoed through the door as Miriam quickly straightened her posture turning towards the opening door. A fake smile crept on her face as she stood there, her heart beating much faster than a rabbit’s when it was being chased. Her brother, Desiderio, crept through the door, quickly shutting it behind himself. 

“ Sister, I need to ask a favor.”

“ What is it?” Miriam asked, quickly letting go of her princess posture. Her back ached in response.

“ I need you to cover for me while I leave.” 

“ How long will you be gone?” 

“ Only a few hours. Just hold onto this. It’s a poem and if Mother asks any questions just simply say I’m in my studies writing new developments in poetry.”

“ You know mother will disrupt your studies.”
“ She shouldn’t because my grades have begun to decline. I simply asked that she not disturb me and only send in Matthew when she needed me.”

Miriam felt a pit develop in her stomach as she saw the desperation in her brother’s eyes. She knew that if they were caught she would lose any chance at crowned heir and any chance to leave the castle. Yet her brother would only be gone for a few hours, and their mother would be in a meeting for at least another day or two. 

“ Ok, but you’ve got to do something for me,” Miriam demanded.

“ Yes, anything.”

“ I want you to tell me everything about the meeting you join and your studies towards the crown.”

“ Is that all?”

“ Also one of those red pastries from the baker.”

“ As you wish,” Desiderio replied placing the piece of paper in her hands before quickly exiting the room. 

Miriam had returned to the balcony, watching as her brother crawled through the hole in the wall and dashed off into town being slowly covered by the walking crowd. Oh, how Miriam had wished to be in that crowd, to be with the people, to buy at the market, and to be noticed as just another commoner instead of the princess. She felt so suffocated in her quarters, the wind had blown through her room but not her lungs, and the corset wasn’t tightly strung on yet it felt like a restricting bond. 

She left her quarters trailing down the stone steps, her heels clacking against the steps and paths. Her dress casually picked up dirt on the way down, as she finally reached the servant's exit corridors quickly sneaking out before she could be seen. She had made her way through the stables and to the courtyard where she unfolded the paper her brother had given her. 

Little bird, why haven’t you learned to fly?

Little bird, oh why haven’t you seemed to learn,

That your wings are much too weak,

Your feathers can’t fly,

They’re much like bricks,

But little bird you continue your travels,

Even though you are fragile,

Now little bird fly south,

And with that loud mouth,

Create such a drought,

For now, the revolution has begun.

Miriam mumbled this poem to herself for the hour as she walks in the courtyard, her hair tied up into a frantic ponytail. It was a perfect summer day however the demons she had battled in her head were growing frantic as the hours had passed. Although Miriam was only 15, she had a higher responsibility than most princesses. Most are left to sit on a chair and look as pretty as possible like a cart full of vibrant-colored fruits. However, her brother got to practice ruling a kingdom as if he had the capability. Miriam had dreamed for many years that she would sit on the throne and be the one to end the suffering, accepting the fact that the two kingdoms would have to be reunited in marriage. Yet Miriam still sat on that boring side chair, in a boring castle, and a boring life. She wanted more out of life; love, power, hospitality. Yet these things were replaced with materials, at least that’s what the other princesses tried to convince her to do every blue moon. She couldn’t be the only one to wonder what life was like outside of her balcony, in the streets, and in the houses rather peering over the castle walls. Yet she stands, holding a poem waiting for her brother and praying that her mother wouldn’t step outside. 

Every moment of her life was thinking the same thoughts with the inability to speak them as if her vocal cords were cut. She wanted to be more and yet it confused her on why her brother had agreed so quickly to teach her his heir lessons. There must have been urgency outside of the castle walls but how would he know? Their mother would be the one to check their mail promptly before it was given to them so there was no way Desi would know without Mother figuring it out. 

Hours had already passed as the sun set in the distance. Her feet felt as if she had poked knives in the bottom from the walking in the courtyard. Her head had hurt from the mumbling, and her mind raced faster than any carriage. The poem was now intertwined with her fingers as she continued to pace around, the poem repeating once more before she paid close attention to the remarks on the letter. A few spots were smudged out in thick black ink yet left the poem untouched, but the last line repeating in her head felt like she was going crazy. 

For now, the revolution has begun.

Miriam frowns at this line hoping it was a revolution of love rather than against her own kingdom but she couldn’t accept that it would be from love. She knew nothing about Desiderio except that he would sneak out quite often, his thick leather boots made a clicking sound as he walked in the halls. He knew very well that putting on leather boots would make most people assume that it was a guard rather than him. Sometimes Miriam would follow her brother a little bit behind just to watch him leave. Miriam had tried to duplicate these same methods but failed miserably as a maid was getting rather irritated when she was stuck behind her on a staircase. 

Yet her brother hadn’t been gone this long before, and she knew that her mother would come looking for him soon. It had been 5 hours since her brother left, and she had worried sick about whether or not he was going to appear once again or if she’d have to admit her sins to her mother. It would have left no heir to grab the throne unless she was forgiven, and if she stayed silent then the thoughts would have eaten away at her mind until somebody found the poem. She was good at staying silent but never lying. 

Miriam soon leaves the courtyard making her way to her quarters, stopping in front of her brother’s room to see if she can hear anything. The door seemed untouched but with the faint sound of wind, Miriam left the door behind assuming that it was just the open balcony doors. The poem was still in her hands, the paper now damp from her clammy hands as she opened the door. 

Desiderio’s room was big but so bare with furniture. He had his bed, wardrobe, desk, and a small daybed in the corner. One wall was complete with bookshelves that hadn’t quite reached the ceilings but were enough to create two different levels. The bookshelf was a little bare with the second level barely filled to the brim with books from every author you could think of. Books are imported from different cities or countries, each in their own language and writing style. Miriam had wished she got this many books, especially ones to improve her language skills, she 

giggled at a few spaces completely covered in dust making it obvious that he hadn’t ever picked them up or looked at them. Towards the end of the bookshelf, a few spaces were empty showing the taken books but Miriam hadn’t thought about it too much as they were poetry books. Miriam quickly closed the balcony door trying to get out of the room before anyone realized. 

“ Miriam? What are you doing in my room?” 

Her brother stood in the doorway watching her take a book into her hands, he laughed at her urgency in trying to hide. He walked into the room closing the door behind him.

“ Which book did you grab?” Desiderio asks.

Miriam struggled to find the words but she felt flustered at her brother’s sudden appearance. She hadn’t spent 5 hours waiting for him to get back just for him to show up so suddenly or at least in the most boring way.

“ Halen and the Gods,” Miriam replies kind of scoffing at the randomness of the pick.

“ That one is quite boring, nothing good comes out of a made-up story.”

“ Just like how you make me lie for you for 5 hours.” 

“ I delivered that letter for you but you hadn’t mentioned I was on a time limit.” Desiderio scoffs placing his satchel on his desk. 

“ Desi, you were gone for 5 hours. I was worried sick! Mother hadn’t even begun to look for you-” 

“ Then what’s so big about me leaving? Mother was in a meeting all night and all day yesterday!” 

“ You don’t think that the servants would eventually catch on and tell Mother!”

“ Miri, please, the servants would do nothing. They’re too afraid of mother and then to be the one to tell her that her child is missing.”

“ You don’t realize how risky it is to do what you’re doing. As the prince-”

“ As the prince I should be able to discover my own land especially one that I will rule! I don’t know why you care so much, it’s not like you’re going to be Queen of Alrusa. You’ll probably be the Queen of some unknown kingdom in the East and once in a blue moon make your way back to Alrusa for the kingdom’s ball.” Desiderio acknowledges, his voice growing louder with each word. 

Miriam felt hurt, her brother had just admitted to her worst fears, and she prayed that it would never happen every night. She always believed that it would be her mother to tell her that 

but never her brother. Not the brother who had climbed trees with her, aided her wounds when she fell, and the one who used to sneak sweets so she could taste them rather than focusing on her appearance. Miriam only knew one response, she gripped the book tighter and ran out. The poem still intertwined with her fingers. It felt like a blur as she moved towards her quarters, tears hadn’t begun to start flowing because she knew better than to let her makeup run. She pushes her door open to her quarters as she puts the book down on her desk, throwing the crumbled ball of paper at the wall. Desi’s words had angered her so much, that it felt like a tidal wave crashing over you and you’re powerless against it. Words can hurt so much but they’re just a collection of letters and strokes that you write. She tried to ignore his comment the best she could and hoped to collect herself before dinner. 

She picked up the piece of paper she threw and opened it back up, revealing the poem once more. She read over the lines managing the sick feeling of the last line. For now, the revolution has begun. She felt powerless against her brother as the future king it would be quite easy to make her country turn against her. 

She knew her mother would be pleased with her downfall and the creeping feeling that her sister didn’t go missing. If she was even alive, why hasn’t she returned for the throne or is there something preventing her? Miriam knew she couldn’t disappear or wouldn’t want to, but she couldn’t comply with the mold that was being created for her. Would she have to undermine her brother just to succeed in her life? She knew her mother would find amusement in watching siblings rival for the throne, but to know that her precious son has been fighting against her. That was one feeling that Miriam knew she couldn’t shake nor find amusement in. Yet she wanted that throne to be hers, she wanted to be the one at the head of those meetings watching all of the old council members be irritated at another rule that went against the gods. She wanted to prove to them that the gods weren’t mad but simply impressed at her capability. She wanted to assist her mother and brother but she couldn’t betray herself to fit into a role she never wanted to play. 

Miriam looked at the open balcony knowing she would have to fight for her freedom. She knew she had to fly like a bird. 

Fly or end up on a dinner table.

“ Who are you little bird? And what revolution do you have flying?” Miriam mumbles before folding the poem back up and placing it in the band of her dress.