'Do you really live with that old witch Achren?' various girls asked.

At least they were never mean. Most were polite, though distant.

'Why do you all call her witch?' I asked one day.

'´Cause she is,' one of my roommates said. 'You honestly live with her and have to ask that?'

'Yes,' I said. 'She´s never showed the slightest hint of witchery.'

'She´s a queen without a king though,' another girl said.

'And?' I asked. 'She rules all right.'

The other girls looked at me as if I were strange for saying that. True, it was not normal for a queen to be queen without a king. Both king and queen normally lived to old age, and died within a few years of each other, leaving the kingdom to oldest son and his wife, or oldest daughter and husband, if they had no sons.

Most girls eventually realized that Kate and I were not witches, nor dangerous, and gradually became less frigid towards us. However, it seemed that Henrietta seemed to have fully pulled Hedwig into her feud with us. Hedwig worked her butt off to prove herself a better student than we were. Sometimes I saw in her eyes though, that she would have liked to be our friend, but was afraid to cross her sister.

Henrietta continued to take classes at the finishing school, and both Kate and I could see that the wait for a decision from Aunt Achrne was wearing on her. She was nineteen that year, and we heard rumors that she was engaged to a powerful noble of Girona. She continued to do what she could against Kate and I, me in particular.

The four years of finishing school continued this way, with me continually worried about what Henrietta might do. Kate and I found ourselves nominated for the Royal Ballet and Theater, but, of course, Henrietta got in the way of that. I was quite surprised when we were made understudies anyway.

The day that Hedwig, Kate, and I finished our fourth year, Aunt Achren called her nieces and nephews to come visit her for a week. Henrietta had recently been married to a rich duke from Girona, and he was brought as well. She grilled us for a few days, testing every ounce of knowledge we possesed, weighing our answers in her head. Henrietta, Kate, Hedwig, and I were the oldest of the twelve of us there. Everyone besides Kate and I were nieces and nephews of Aunt Achren´s late husband.

The final night of our stay, Aunt Achren called us all into the Great Hall, lining us up in front of her.

'Kate,' she said.

'Yes?' Kate asked, stepping forwards.

'You, as your father´s oldest, will inherit his kingdom. Do you wish to inherit mine as well?' Aunt Achren asked.

Kate looked startled. I doubt anyone expected this.

'Why so surprised child? You are already being prepared for rule by your father, or will be soon,' Aunt Achren said.

'Being the oldest does not necessarily make me a good queen, trained to be or not,' Kate said. 'Why am I a better choice than Lucia, Henrietta, or anyone else here?'

'I like your answer,' our aunt said. 'Princess.'

Kate´s jaw dropped. 'Are you calling me that because I am my father´s princess, or because I am now yours as well?'

'Yes, because now you are both,' our aunt replied. 'If you do not want my kingdom, you may pass it to someone else. But I advise you not to do it until after I am dead. I do not want to see any nitwits on my throne.'

I think I was the only one who noticed how her eyes flicked towards Henrietta when she said that. Everyone else was too busy looking daggars at Kate.