Coletta

In two days they would go to the castle. Coletta was excited. Would the king and queen accept them as official grandchildren? Would she and Franka be recognized as possible heirs to the throne? And what did that mean for them? Would everything stay as it is? Or would everything change again? Would Coletta be a good queen? What did a queen do anyway? Apart from wearing beautiful clothes and expensive jewelry? And be allowed to sit on a throne? Could a queen do and buy what she wanted?

Of course, Coletta had asked her stepfather, but his answer was far from satisfactory. "We'll see when the time comes", he said.

"I hope we don't see Prince Heinrich often!", her older sister grumbled. "He's snooty and mean!"

"That's right", Coletta said quietly. "He didn't want to play with us."

Secretly, Coletta regretted this very much. She liked Prince Heinrich. He already seemed so grown-up. But she didn't tell Franka. The two sisters had agreed that they did not like Heinrich. And that was final. So, she kept her thoughts to herself.

She looked impatiently at the clock. Three of her friends would soon come to visit. Coletta had begged for days to invite them until her stepfather agreed.  She wanted to show them how she lived now. And all the beautiful things her mother had bought her after the wedding. Franka also wanted to invite some of her friends. They would come the next day.

And then, it was finally time. Coletta's best friends, Georgette, Dalila, and Alette, were brought by their parents. While the adults talked, the girls played together. They played catch in the garden and painted colorful pictures. Franka helped them build a puppet show out of chairs and a blanket... It was a great day.

Shortly after sunrise, when Franka and Coletta were supposed to lie in their beds and sleep, Coletta sneaked out of her room. She was thirsty and wanted to get a glass of water.  She crept down the dark corridor, past the door to her sister's room, from where she could hear Franka snoring loudly. Coletta looked at the pictures on the walls. Eerie portraits of strange vampires. Such a picture was about to be painted of Franka and her too. Would they look similarly scary? With eyes that followed you? As if the pictures were alive? She crept down the grand staircase on her way to the kitchen. She passed the spacious living room of the property. The door opened a crack and she could hear her mother, stepfather, and Kevina talking.

Instead of creeping further to the kitchen, to which another staircase led, Coletta listened curiously at the door.

"I think it's good that the girls keep in touch with their old friends. Coletta was so happy", her mother said.

"You let them bring the mob into the house!", Kevina hissed angrily. "I'm trying to find a partner! What should the nobility think of me when they hear that the mob is a guest in our house? What a shame! That's what they'll say about it."

"Kevina!", her father admonished her angrily. "They are the friends of your stepsisters."

"Daddy!" Kevina sounded anything but remorseful. "I want to find a suitable partner. That reduces my chances! You allow Coletta and Franka to make a mockery of me. Are they suddenly more important to you than your own daughter?"

"Kevina, you're exaggerating", Prince Tenner said quietly. "Of course, you are very important to me. But I don't want you to talk like that about my wife's daughters. And I agree with Martha. It would be wrong to completely tear the girls out of the lives they know. I have become increasingly aware of this today. I regret that we could not make the transition easier for them. Nobility obliges."

"Tear them out of their previous lives? You already have", Kevina murmured. "So why not cut off the last connection? They are supposed to be noble girls? Princesses? Noble girls do not play with the mob! You made that very clear to me from an early age!"

"Kevina?" Coleta's mother sounded sad. "They are still children. Their old friends are important to them. It would be wrong to take them away now."

"I used to be a kid too", Kevina muttered. "It didn't hurt me not to be allowed to play with the children of our employees. It simply shouldn’t be."

Now?  What did her mother mean by now? Coletta had promised her friends that they would remain friends forever. Even if she lived in a fancy house... She had promised to invite them to her next birthday. Just like in the old days.

"We will soon introduce the two girls to a few playmates befitting their status", Prince Tenner said. "After visiting my parents. But tomorrow Franka's friends will visit us. I’m sure they will be well-behaved girls who will not bring shame to our reputation. Don't worry, my child."

"Certainly!", agreed Coletta's mother. "The two sisters Fanele and Renelle are two wonderful, quiet girls."

Sighing, Coletta crept into the kitchen and got her glass of water. Would she and Franka soon not be allowed to see their friends anymore? That would be terrible!