A/N: This was written for a fifteen minute challenge. My word was cardboard. And the first thing I thought of was the phrase "cardboard castles." It's the idea of daydreams being fruitless. And I'd never written for Trina before, but I thought the idea fit her.

There's a girl in New York City. Skyline's no longer pretty. Bound for destination anywhere. She grew up in California. Big dreams – they tend to own you there. Now she's building cardboard castles in the air.

-Cardboard Castles, Diana Degarmo

-o-

Once upon a time, Trina Vega thought she would be a princess. She thought she'd have the crown, the hair, the pretty dress, the handsome prince, the works. She had planned out the perfect castle. It was huge. The size of a small city. And it would have everything in it she wanted – an ice cream maker, a swimming pool, a movie theater, and, of course, plenty of space for her dolls. Trina was only three at the time. And what she had instead of her magic castle was a crawling, squawking little sister who quickly became the favorite of the family, whether her parents would admit it or not.

Okay, princess, let's get that diaper changed.

Her dad used to call her that. Princess. Now, the tiny girl in the pink blankets got the title. At three, she felt like becoming a princess was the way to get the attention she wanted. Princesses had to be paid attention to. Everyone loved one. And they got everything they wanted.

By thirteen though, Trina Vega had bigger plans. She was singing in the shower, taking dance lessons, and memorizing lines from her favorite movies. So, she may have been a little demanding of her family. And, so, she may have alienated some of her old friends with her obsession with the spotlight. It would be worth it. When she auditioned for a spot at Hollywood Arts, she knew, absolutely knew, that she would get in.

She was wait listed.

Sorry, princess, come back next semester. You're just a little too young.

Oh, she went back again alright. And again. And again. Until they had to let her in. And that's where her dreams began to take shape. One day, her name would be in lights. Bright neon lights at the top of an old fashioned marquee at one of those big theaters in New York City. People would purchase tickets to her show in advance and seats would be sold out every single night. The hard wood of the stage would have to be polished after every show because she would dance her little feet off. The curtain would fall at the finale, and they'd have to raise it again and again and again for her encores. It was so clear to her, she almost expected to hear the applause when she walked down the halls at school.

Get out of the way, princess, I'm trying to mop the floor here.

But for the first year she was there, it was only the janitor that talked to her. She had to claw her way up from the bottom of the social ladder, and the class, to prove that she could do it. But then, Tori took her hard earned spot in the talent show case, and suddenly, that little pink princess that had grown up to be just as talented and pretty as her big sister (though Trina would never admit it out loud) was stealing the attention again. She was the one getting the applause and the cheers and the spotlight, and Hollywood Arts was just handed to her on a silver platter.

So Trina did the one thing she could think of when graduation rolled around and it seemed like Hollywood wasn't going to pan out, even for a promising young talent from a performing arts school. The one thing she didn't think Tori would ever be brave enough to do on her own. She packed a few bags, cleaned out her savings account, and hopped a plane to New York. She found a cheap apartment that made her cringe in disgust every time she opened the door. She braved the subway. She shopped at "vintage" stores to save money. She even learned how to set rat traps, though she screamed the first time she had to get rid of one. She found a minimum wage paying job at a diner at night, and she auditioned for off-off-off-really off-Broadway shows during the day.

And when she was cast as a chorus member in a musical about a caramel macchiato bringing two people together, she thought she was finally on her way. But Tori's album hit the top of the charts shortly after, and no one she knew was even interested in her little bit of news. Trina wondered if she could ever catch a break. Even on the other side of the country, she was playing court jester to her sister the princess.

Can I interest you in Princess' peanut butter pie? It's the house specialty!

She keeps a bright smile on her face, though she knows the customers can probably see right through it. They eye the cheap black apron and her highlighted hair and the glitter on her finger nails and roll their eyes. This is probably the best acting she will ever do, pretending she cares about what these people want for dessert. But she needs the money. Rent's due and she doesn't want to ask her parents, or god forbid her sister, for help.

There is a light at the end of this New York City tunnel though. She has an audition for a role tomorrow, playing a princess locked in a tower who just wants to follow her dreams. And while she winds her way through tables and booths, sticky with ketchup and grease, she can see the tower built on a small stage, herself banging away on the door, her face in an expression of pure anguish. She can hear the applause, smell the stage makeup, and feel the heat of the lights on her skin.

Trina Vega just might get to be a princess yet.

-o-