"And as it appears, your majesty, our beloved king and princess are no more. The sea and the sky has shown us no mercy."

Tears streamed endlessly from Queen Marissa's eyes, "M-my daughter, my h-husband!", she could barely form the words in her mouth. It can't be! It just can't!

"We tried, my queen" The man shook his head, "But that storm was no match for us or the ship our king sailed on. Everything was gone and lost in an instant."

The young queen let more tears escape from her tired green eyes until she was sobbing and shivering without any restraint. She dropped to her knees from her throne chair, letting the heavy crown fall from her head.

The whole room fell silent as her sobs echoed through the whole room.

The man in front of her lowered his head, "We have lost everything...our king! Our one and only heir, her highness, Princess Rosella!"

He then picked up the crown and held it high, "Who shall ever be the rightful heir! The fate of our kingdom is doomed!"

All the other council members in the throne room lowered their heads in grief for King Reginald's reign was ever so advantageous and fair for the kingdom and its subjects. The loss of the one and only heir caused further despair among them.

But such important matters of state hardly mattered to the queen as for her, this was the loss of her one and only family she ever had and she loved them more than her crown. Marissa restrained herself from sobbing," I-I can't stay here any longer, I need a moment to myself, thank you."

The young queen ran from the throne room and locked herself inside her and the king's private chambers. She needed all the time and solitude she could possibly find to mourn for her family.

Her kingdom and subjects would have to wait. In fact, she may even choose to keep the door locked forever if this was what it was going to take. She just couldn't be strong. Not anymore.

"God, why did I ever choose to stay back!"She fell into the bed as guilt pierced through her heart, remembering she refused to join her husband and daughter on the voyage as she believed her presence in the throne room would have been more important.

"At least, we could've all been together!"

…

Back in the throne room, a woman in her late 20s sent a secretive smirk at the man mourning the deaths of the royals, before the queen's throne. "Brilliant!", she mouthed. The man sent her a nod of approval, Anything for you, mistress!

…

Golden rays of warm sunshine prick at the young Princess' eyes, forcing them to open partly. She groans as she forces her tired body to ascend.

She manages to sit upright, her eyes still drowsy with sleep, Just a few more minutes mother…

Suddenly her eyes shoot open, "Mother?", she only hears silence. She observes, no one is next to her. This isn't her room. This isn't the palace...This is…

She's not home.

She almost stumbles as her shaky legs try to carry herself through the warm sand. She tries to run, but she falls, "Where am I?", she panics, her eyes circling every direction at once. No people or castle in here for miles. Only inhabited nature with the vast sea before her and the open sky above her, "Mother!", she cries.

Silence, again.

She thinks being louder would help, so she cries again.

Silence is all that is returned to her cries for help.

She is all alone.

She weeps. She weeps and she cries again for help with all her might, but all she can hear is the never-ending roaring and crashing of the sea waves all around her.

She tries to remember, How did I get here?

But there is nothing she can recall. She looks around the sea, there is no ship at sight, not even any mass of debris that can assure that a shipwreck is to be blamed for her presence in this very island. All that was left as a remainder is the terrible pounding on her head that only intensifies every passing second along with panic building up in her chest. She tries to calm herself down, It's going to be alright, It's going to be alright.. but fails as the fear of being left all alone with no shelter and loved ones builds up again. She doesn't even dare to move from her spot.

It is almost sunset by the time the abandoned princess regains enough strength to calm herself down, though she doubts that the entirety of her fears have indeed disappeared . She pulls herself to her feet, which have grown numb and cold from sitting so still. She begins to wipe specks of dirt and sand from her ripped dress and her legs. Strands of her platinum blonde get caught in the gentle warm breeze. She breathes into the breeze with content, so fragrant, she observes. As she carries herself through the sand, she can't help but relish the feeling of how comfortably warm and soft the sand is underneath her feet.

She pauses to appreciate the scenery around her. This is crazy, she thinks. Just hours ago, the same scenery of the island she found upon waking up had scared her like never before. The crashing and roaring of the sea waves had sent chills down her spine but now she found the sound so oddly relaxing. And the sky was a literal painting of all shades of orange, pinks and purples as the sun finally began to set. Birds flew across the sky and the surfacing dolphins formed an amazing silhouette against the sun and the sky that spilled all their colours ever so generously into the ocean.

She had never seen a sight this beautiful.

Well, at least tracing back to all the things she could possibly remember, which wasn't much. She smiles and giggles, astonished at all that nature has portrayed to please and appeal to all her senses. It's almost like…the island is trying to welcome me here! , she thinks and she believes it.

She sighs contentedly as the remaining moisture from her tears get lost in the breeze. She glances around in every direction once more. Not a human in sight. Just her and the island. Just as she expects, and will continue to have to do so. From now on.

She takes a deep breath. Then and there, she makes a pledge to herself that she would look into the assertive side of things, always. She would strive to survive from all hardships she faces along the way and be fearless of everything. She would put every possible effort into turning the feelings of her solitude and loneliness into the strength and determination required to survive on her own. She would try everything and beyond to make a home out of this place for as long as she would have to remain here.

Even if it would have to be for the rest of her life.

…