The Fake Bride

Trinity was awake when the first stream of morning light hovered behind the glass of her window. Reaching for the curtain, she brushed it aside to brighten the room. Trinity yawned, stretching her arms and legs to shake the stiffness out of them. She looked around her little room without any particular intention in mind. There was nothing special or different about it. Besides the little mattress that she was sitting on, she only owned a desk, topped with ordinary accessories like her hair brush, hair pins, and strips of ribbons. At the foot of the bed was a small chest, in which were her dresses.

But, she found herself smiling anyway. Today was, indeed, a special day.

As was her daily routine, she picked out a dress from the chest, a pale yellow cotte and changed out of her nightgown. She combed and braided her hair promptly, as she had done every morning of her life. With that she was ready to leave for another day of work.

Trinity moved toward the door and exited her room, closing the door behind her. The servant living quarter was still, void of human presence, except for the faint chirps of the birds in the trees. No one usually rose at this early an hour, but in a matter of hours, it would be as rowdy as a market. The hallway opened to a small balcony branching from the building. She stopped at the top of the flight of stairs and turned to face the east.

Far in the distance, a series of mountains jutted from the horizon line, burning at the edges as the sun began to emerge. She stood, breathed in the fresh air, and squinted at the dawning light. It was a beautiful sight no matter how many mornings had passed by. She loved being here, watching the world from above as it unfurled around her. After all, she was fortunate enough to be in the servitude of the royal family. For a girl of humble background such as her, the palace was the only place she could call home.

Content, she began descending the stairs. As she stepped on to the backyard, the old, friendly soldier smiled and tipped his helmet at her. She nodded and returned the smile with one of her own. She realized the palace guards had it hard; they had to be alert and dedicated while in their posts. She had seen him dozing off sometimes and had often brought him a blanket in those especially cold nights, and he had been grateful of her consideration.

Slowly, she made her way across the yard, toward the little well set in the center. She dropped the bucket into the hollowness and it hit the water below with a splash. Swaying the rope tied to the bucket from side to side, she tried to fill the bucket as much as possible before pulling it up again. With a heave, she lifted the heavy vessel over the rim and set it on the ground. She gathered her dress, squatted down, and dipped her hand into the water. The cold made her gasp and tingled on her skin. Despite the shiver, Trinity rolled up her sleeves and scooped up a handful of water to wash her face.

“Boo!” A voice crept up from behind and made her jump back with a squeal.

Facing her, Trinity realized, was Princess Farsiris—her one and only mistress. She appeared taken aback by Trinity’s reaction, but then her face livened with a childish grin that formed a dimple on her cheek.

“Your Highness,” she said breathlessly. “Why are you here?”

Taking Trinity by surprise, the young princess tackled her with a tight hug. “Why? I’m here for you, of course.”

It wasn’t the first time she had expressed her affection in such an open way, yet Trinity couldn’t get used to the fact that a legitimate princess was treating her, a commoner, with more privilege than she deserved. Still, she couldn’t deny the warmth she felt from the princess’ embrace.

“Princess, you shouldn’t have come here. This is the servants’ place.”

“Servant or not,” she claimed, “you are still my friend. Besides, I need to talk to you.”

Trinity sighed, but she smiled. “I’m always here to listen, Princess.”

“Good,” she said, grabbing Trinity’s hand. “We shall go, then.”



Trinity had always been terrified of horses. And facing one, the very source of her fear, wasn’t quite a good omen either. Perhaps, she should have known what was coming the moment Her Highness took her hand and slid right under the nose of the trainer into the stable. She glanced back at the snoring figure, hoping he would sense something wrong and wake up to save her life. No such luck.

The princess had a different idea about the beast. Flare, a white mare, was more vicious than she let on. Once, she had thrown Trinity off her saddle and broke her leg. If it hadn’t been for three grown men to wrestle her down, Trinity would have had ended up with more than just an injured leg. It was enough fear to last her a lifetime.

Princess Farsiris nuzzled the horse playfully and stroked her neck gently. Then she turned to Trinity and patted the horse’s back, demanding Trinity to climb on. Immediately, those two large eyes focused on her, and she humped superciliously. Trinity’s jaw dropped. She knew Flare did not fancy her much, but she didn’t think a horse could think herself superior to Trinity, even if she were only a peasant.

“I…don’t think I should,” she said meekly. She was sure the vile creature could smell her fear.

“Oh, don’t worry about Flare,” she said. “She will behave herself, now, won’t she?”

Flare neighed indignantly in return, which earned a narrow look from her master. In other circumstances, she would not ride a horse even if it killed her. But since it was the princess, Trinity didn’t believe she had a choice in the matter. She was obliged to obey. That, she must do. Grudgingly, Trinity made her way toward the horse, her trembling hand placed on Flare’s back. Just as she was about to step on the stirrup, the horse growled, turning her glare toward her rival. Startled, Trinity froze in the spot.

Princess Farsiris shot her a warning look. “Settle down, Flare.” Then she gave Trinity an encouraging smile. “Come on, you are a big girl.”

Poor Trinity could only swallow down the panic and mount the horse. The princess, on the other hand, effortlessly settled down behind her.

“Hold on tight,” she said, tightening her grip on the rein. Trinity closed her eyes as Flare galloped her way down the hill. The cool breeze brushed Trinity’s flushing cheeks. As cold as it was, the dawn’s sunlight warming the earth offered a sense of comfort. Trinity felt a jerking motion as the horse came to a stop.

“All right, open your eyes, Trinity.” Slowly, her eyes fluttered open as a soft sensation fell upon her eyelids. At first, she squinted from the blinding radiance; then, as her eyes finally adjusted, she found herself staring and gaping. Before her eyes, soft red, yellow, and orange painted over the sky’s blue. The luminous sun seemed to engulf the whole sky.

A mutual silence befell them as they admired the scenery.

Princess Farsiris was the first to speak, “I wanted to show you this. Isn’t it wonderful?” She beamed innocently. Her smile was like the sun itself, dazzling those who had the fortune of seeing it.

“Yes, Princess, it really is.”

“Now, close your eyes,” she said. Trinity did as she was told. Grabbing her hand, the princess lead Trinity down a path—a mystery to Trinity. Beneath her feet, Trinity could feel the wet morning dew grazing her skin.

“Alright, we are here. Open your eyes now,” the princess said.

The first thing she saw was a pair of excited, blue eyes staring at her. Even as a young girl, the princess’ beauty was renowned. With the passing of the years, she had grown more and more beautiful. The way she loved to laugh attracted much adoration for her. Her smile could easily liven up the room and set people at ease. Though there were cases of envy toward her, no one could deny that they paused to stare when she walked by. To top it all, she had a fine personality to match.

There was no doubt that she was the most beautiful lady of the land.

Princess Farsiris pulled her down to sit on the green bed. All around them was a mattress of green, dotted with small variant of colors. She stared closely at one white bud, realizing that they were on a field of clovers. While Trinity observed her surroundings, the princess busied herself with weaving the clovers into a wreath. Trinity couldn’t help but smiled at the princess, as she concentrated on perfecting her complex art piece.

Trinity started to make one herself. She plucked a clump of clovers and daisies and began interlacing them. It took the princess awhile to finish, when Trinity had a beautiful wreath in her hands as soon as she began. Smiling in triumph, she placed the crooked, tattered crown on Trinity’s head. Trinity in return did the same. As unskillfully crafted as the princess’ gift with those leaves slightly crushed and stems falling out of place, it was a precious gift to Trinity.

The way the crown of flowers settled on the princess golden head gave her features an ethereal feel, as if she was a fairy in disguise of human skin. A creature too lovely to behold.

She took Trinity’s hand and smiled in such a way that it was almost heartrending. “Do you remember the first time we met? You told me you would always stay with me, and you have always kept your promise,” she said. “Well, today would be nine years since then. Thank you for being here for me all these years.”

How could she forget? Even if nothing else in the past mattered, she had always held onto the memory of that fateful day when she first met the princess. The day she received her name. The day she was reborn. The day she truely started living.

Tears swelled in her eyes and she wiped them away before they could fall. “The one who should be grateful is me. You have given me more than I can repay.”

“Are you crying?” the princess said, flustered. “Oh, don’t be. You’ll make me cry, too.”

“No, I’m not crying,” she sobbed and saw that the princess was also crying. And they both started giggling, crying for the sake of one another. Anyone who saw them would think they were mad. But they didn’t care. Being childhood friends for nine years, they had learned to communicate without a word spoken.

“Happy birthday, Princess.”

“Happy birthday to you, too, my friend.”



Before the farm’s roosters crowed, the princess and her servant girl slipped back behind the palace wall. As soon as they reached the princess’ chamber, Trinity was pushed down into a chair, while the princess scuttled off the search her wardrobe.

Trinity stared at her back in worry. She had initially intended to wait of the princess and not the other way around. Sitting in a chair with nothing to do, muddle her more so than it relaxed her. At last, she came back, holding a red dress in her arm. She held it for Trinity to admire. She knew it must have been newly made, for she had never seen the dress before.

“It will look great on you,” she commented. Though, she knew everything looked great on her.

“Not me, silly,” the princess said. “It’s for you.”

“Pardon?” She did not trust her ears.

“I said,” she spelled it out. “This dress is yours. I want you to have it.”

“But…”

“No ‘but’,” she interrupted. “Now get going and get dressed.”

Reluctantly, she put on the dress. The princess helped her fasten the ribbons on her back where she couldn’t reach. Then, she nudged her toward the mirror on the wall. It was her, Trinity, with the washed-out blonde hair and pale complexion. But she was wearing something different for once, something that she could never dream of affording. The velvety material hugged her waist comfortably, where it poured down like a blooming flower. The sleeves began at the shoulders and wrapped tightly along her arms, and the elbows were fashioned so they revealed the full chemise sleeves beneath. The zigzag of ribbons on her front gave the dress a touch of innocence.

“You look stunning,” the princess cheered, her eyes glowing in delight. Though she wasn’t convinced, Trinity knew those words were honest, for the princess was never capable of deceit.

She averted her eyes, blushing. Princess Farsiris picked a few white daisies from the wreath and plaited them into her braid. She cupped her hands on either side of Trinity’s face and smiled. “Red is a powerful color. It brings out the vibrancy of your eyes—the color of the sea.”

Trinity could never understand why the princess always compared her eyes to the sea. As far as she knew, the sea was blue not green. There was nothing special about them.

“Princess, I…can’t accept this,” she started to protest.

“I insist, Trinity,” she said. “Today is as much for you as it is for me.”

“But I can’t work with this dress. I will ruin it.” She lifted her skirt to show how long it was.

“Oh, hush, hush. You didn’t think I was about to give you a pitiful wreath that I destroyed more than created now, did you?” She laughed. “This is my real gift to you. I knew it was the perfect dress for you.”

Trinity still wore an uneasy look.

“Since it is a celebration, everyone is allowed to pretty up,” she reassured. “Besides, it would be a shame if you were not there to attract attention.”