Chapter 3: You Must Earn Their Empathy
"Hey, Princess Emma of the Light Kingdom. I'm Ruby, Princess of the Wolves. My grandma is friends with your mom." The imposing, slinky brunette was lying on her side on the top bunk, and sporting a wide smile.
"Hi." Emma was a bit awestruck. She'd heard all about werewolves and the tales of their brutality and bravery, but she'd never met one before. Her roommate wasn't entirely human after all. "What's it like?"
Ruby tossed her head back and laughed. "It's indescribable."
"Oh," Emma replied, feeling small and suddenly bashful. Her luggage had been delivered and stacked in the corner of the room and she took a moment to acquaint herself with what would be her new home for the duration of the summer.
The dormitory was ornately decorated in gold leaf trim over pale pink walls. It was utterly and completely a Princess room. Emma worried her eyes might bleed. It was bad enough she had to dress up every day, and now she had to live in a room that looked like a doll house.
Collapsing onto the bottom bunk, Emma felt relieved from the heft of her dress, but something was already stabbing her in the back. The corset pinched her waist and she wondered how long until she could change out of it. There were two desks in the room and each one had a welcome packet with an orientation itinerary sitting on top.
"When did you arrive, Ruby?" Emma asked politely, noticing that one of the closets was already full with a disturbing number of red cloaks and simple dresses.
"Not too long ago. Listen, I probably won't be spending many nights sleeping here. I plan to be out running most of the time. Normally, I sleep in a cave with my pack during the day, so it's like a major adjustment, you know? I wanted to tell you so you're not always wondering where I'm at," Ruby explained, twirling her hair around a finger and acting like going on a werewolf run was completely run of the mill small talk.
Emma nodded and her eyes widened as she realized she was so out of her element. She often wished she wasn't an only child. Her parents talked about having another child, but it hadn't happened in eighteen years, so it didn't seem likely. She had always wished that she had someone to play with who understood her, so she wouldn't feel so alone and, at times like these, ignorant.
That seemed to be a wish that her fairy godmother had never bothered to grant.
"It's safer for everyone involved. I wouldn't want to accidentally eat a princess while I'm in wolf form," Ruby joked, or at least Emma thought she was joking. She responded by laughing nervously, and thought about the contract they'd all had to sign. She let out the breath she'd been holding, and started to read the itinerary. It said she'd be meeting her academic partner later that day. The rest of the morning and afternoon was free time to get settled in and explore the campus.
"Do you know any of the other girls here?" Emma tore her eyes away from the pamphlets and looked up at Ruby.
"Yeah, a few…the Fox princess, Stephanie, and I are pretty tight. Princess Peach is pretty cool, I knew her from school…And you, of course. Everyone knows about the great and beautiful princess born of true love to Queen Snow and King Charming."
Emma gulped and felt her mouth go dry. Something about Ruby's tone harbored a hint of jealousy or mocking. She didn't realize she had such a reputation or that her parents were so famous. It made her feel uncomfortable, and now it made sense why she felt like everyone looked at her just a little too long during the send offs.
"You're joking. Most people don't know of me," Emma stated, trying to believe it to be true.
"Yeah, right. You're like super famous, and not just around the Enchanted Forest. You are like so popular. Don't be all coy about it." Ruby's eyebrows shot up and she turned over on her stomach to prop her hands up on her chin.
"Oh, awesome." Emma shrugged, but her heart was pounding. She didn't want this feeling to get under her skin. She felt enough scrutiny at home, she was hoping to go under the radar at school, but if Ruby's perspective was accurate, that wasn't going to be possible.
"It's a good thing people respect you. It's nothing bad, don't worry. And if anyone does have a problem, it's just because they're jealous. You're the best of the best, is all." Ruby snickered and let her eyes wander over Emma's poofy dress. "You're really doing me a favor actually. You can guarantee I'll be name dropping my famous roommate when I get in trouble around here."
It felt unnerving to be judged, however positively, based on her name and title. She couldn't help who she was born to. Emma patted at her nest of hair and managed a weak smile when they heard a knock at the door.
Emma went to answer it, and a flurry of maids rushed in and began to unpack her luggage and organize her things into drawers. She was used to the treatment at home, but she had hoped to escape it here. She wanted to do things for herself.
It took only a matter of minutes for everything to be put away in its proper place and, after the maids curtsied to her and asked if anything else was needed presently, Emma and Ruby both shook their heads and the three girls exited swiftly.
Emma sagged down on the lower bunk and sighed. She spent the rest of her morning idly chatting with Ruby and poring over the map of the campus and the island. Along with the more information on the school, which clearly emphasized academics secondary to etiquette and husband hunting lessons, Emma read over the rules.
The very first rule emphasized a strict adherence to the no magic allowed policy. That wouldn't be a problem; Emma had no desire to learn magic. Some kingdoms were known for it, but the Light kingdom only used the magic of the fairies and had an arsenal of magical defenses that were only to be used if the kingdom came under attack.
As far as Emma knew, there was virtually zero risk of that happening. The only kingdom that was enemy to the Light Kingdom was the Shadow Kingdom, formerly known as Wonderland. Emma wasn't even supposed to know that much. She had been completely kept in the dark on all political matters unless she her presence was required for a military ball.
She felt foolish sometimes only ever overhearing information about her own kingdom from the maids and valets who gossiped as they worked and quieted down whenever they were made aware that Emma was there.
She lay back on the bed in her ridiculous gown and allowed herself a moment to feel decidedly unprincesslike. She made a face and arched her back, twisting on the bed. It was so uncomfortable, like a fire poker was jabbing into her spine from the pits of hell.
She already missed her soft perfect mattress from home. She chastised herself for feeling homesick already, and forced her thoughts away. She spent time aimlessly drifting over the rules and then her eyes popped open as she realized she was wondering if Regina's bed was comfortable. She sat up when one of the decorative twigs in her hair poked into her scalp.
….
Ruby and Emma made their way down to the cafeteria for their first lunch on campus. They passed by the bird feeders and the feeding troughs set up from some of the smaller animal princesses and around to the line. Ruby handed Emma a tray and, as they drifted through the line, Emma vaguely noticed Ruby piling various meats onto her tray. She was too busy looking around at all the other girls.
When she felt Ruby pat her back to get her attention she looked down at her heavy tray, "What's all this?"
"I didn't want to look greedy so I put some of my food on your tray," Ruby explained casually. They walked around, trying to find an open table, but a feeling of fear started in Emma as, the more they looked, it appeared that all of the tables were full and the other girls were giving her weird looks.
Ruby leaned down in a whisper, giving some other girls the side eye, "Um, do you want to go back to the room?"
Emma nodded as her cheeks colored in embarrassment. She got the feeling that they were all talking about her. Maybe being famous didn't make her popular as much as it made her an outcast. This was supposed to be the place where she met her lifelong friends.
She gripped her tray full of meat a bit tighter and sucked in as deep a breath as she could in her corset. She turned on her heel and followed Ruby back up the stairs.
