Apologies for the delay on this one. It took me nearly half a month to finish amidst a bit of writer's block and all the things I had going on at the time. Vania's a fairly new character to Ninjago, but one of my immediate favorites. I hope you enjoy!
remember
The servants in the courtyard gasped and gossiped when they saw their princess swinging from the roof of their quarters. With one hand holding onto the spire and a leather-bound journal in the other, Vania yelled at the top of her lungs, "Land ho!" She raised her wooden eyeglass before looking over at the dragon resting on her shoulder. "Don't you see it?" She pointed to the distance as Chompy gave her a confused whine.
"It's called imagination, Chompy," she explained. "We're sailing to the Spirit Coves, remember?" Her dragon raised his head, clearly still confused. Vania read from the guidebook in her hand. "The Spirit Coves is the well-known destination of a dragons' migratory path. According to legend, the jagged rock formations create an imperceptible portal to a distant realm, unknown to all but a few."
She put the book down and pressed her lips together, deep in thought. "You won't leave me for the Spirit Coves, right?" Her eager smile faded as she addressed her dragon. "Well, I mean, you can go, but only if you come back really quickly." Chompy seemed to nod in understanding. "Good. I never want to forget you—"
"Princess!" An irate voice called out from the courtyard. Looking through her eyeglass, she gasped dramatically before a mischievous smile widened on her face. "Prepare for war, Chompy! He will not steal the treasure!" Vania released her grip from the spire and gathered all of her things into a small wooden chest, managing to only drop one thing. The staff watching from below her began to mumble loudly as they moved to clear a path for the intruder.
A young man dressed in the gold armor of the royal guard emerged from the crowd, huffing and puffing. He stood there without a weapon in his hand nor a regiment to back him. The rest of the servants had scattered back to their respective workplaces. He was alone in this battle. "Princess Vania! I—" no, not enough force, "—your father demands that you come down from there at once!" There that should do.
Vania wisely chose to not ignore the stern look on his face. She grabbed her chest and climbed off the roof with her comment: "You're no fun." She supposed that's what happened when you turned sixteen. Chompy gave a hoarse crow in accompaniment although he really wasn't quite sure what he was agreeing to.
Hailmar remained as unamused as ever. "Come, your Highness. You really shouldn't keep your father waiting."
Eventually, the Vania' childish spite melted away into a nervous sort of guilt. This wasn't the first time she had found herself in trouble the past year. It wasn't difficult to guess what would happen next. Her father would be disappointed. There would probably be another lecture about duty and responsibility. She already knew all of that. But in the end, nothing ever changed. Not after her mother's death.
…
The princess was sent to their private courtyard after her meeting with the king. She hadn't yet changed out of the faded red rags she had been wearing for the purpose of her playtime but it was just as well. She could wipe her tears on the torn handkerchief that had previously kept her hair out of her face. Her father had confiscated her only treasure, a chest filled with maps and journals from the royal library—her mother's library.
Near the golden flower beds, Vania and Chompy sat together. "How could he, Chompy? It was all I had left of her." Chompy purred in understanding. "What were you thinking? You're the heir to the throne of Shintaro. Stop avoiding your responsibility. You're a disgrace to our family," she shouted at the afternoon sun. She turned her tear-stained eyes downward to pet her dragon. Chompy nuzzled against her as if to bring comfort to the forsaken girl.
"He forgot about her, Chompy. He doesn't want to remember her, and now, now I can't either." She paused here. "Mother always knew what to do. She left her books to tell me." Vania closed her eyes and saw a fuzzy image of a woman and a girl reading a leather-bound journal on a building with a spire. They were laughing, joy radiating from four hazel eyes. Vania tried to smile like the girl, but it didn't feel the same.
"What if I forget her?" She closed her eyes again, but the image remained stubbornly fuzzy. "Would father be happy then?" He seemed happy enough without her portrait hanging on the wall of the palace and without her throne sitting next to his. Vania frowned bitterly. No, the question was would she be happy if she allowed herself to forget.
She hadn't yet decided what to do when the bushes behind her began to rustle slightly. "Chompy? Is that you?" She turned around, but her dragon was still sitting beside her, growling at the source of the noise. "Hello? Is someone there?" Vania approached the bushes with caution, ready for anything, when a small purple hand thrust out at her. She jumped back with a frightened cry before recognizing the creature. "Mr. Sparkles?" she exclaimed.
"You left this here," it replied calmly, handing her a scrap of paper before its figure vanished. Vania searched within the bush for any trace of the creature, but she only saw its footsteps impressed in the dirt. "It couldn't have been Mr. Sparkles, could it?" she asked her dragon. Her father had said it was just her imagination, but she still wondered from time to time. Chompy growled once again in warning. "Maybe it was just one of the servants' children," she concluded.
She glanced down at the torn leaflet in her hand, reading each line carefully. "Chompy! This is a piece of paper from mother's journal! It must have fallen out when we were playing earlier." It was as if her mother stepped through the page once again. I know what to do, she whispered to herself.
Clinging tightly to the portal to another world, she wiped the tears from her face. "Chompy! Quit eating the flowers!" Vania tossed her golden hair behind her shoulders before running after her dragon.
…
"Your Highness. We found her." Hailmar preceded the princess when entering the throne room. Her father commanded his scribe to roll up the scroll and clear the room. The sun no longer gleamed through the large windows like it did that morning. Instead, sunset cast warm beams of reds, yellows, and purples on the marble floors. Hailmar stepped to the side as Vania was left to shuffle to her spot.
"Vania, where have you been? You were instructed to stay inside the courtyard until your tutor arrived for the evening," her father begin.
"I can explain, Father," Vania interjected.
"I will have no more of your excuses. This has gone on for too long. I have made my decision. From now on, you will be under the constant surveillance of the royal guards. You will not be permitted outside the palace until you have proven yourself worthy of the throne. You will fulfill your responsibilities as the heir of Shintaro if only for the sake of our family-"
"This is not my family!" Vania yelled back before covering her mouth with a gasp. She swore she heard Hailmar flinch in the silence. Putting her hands down, she said, "Our family is you, me, and Mom. But you refuse to even remember her. You took our family painting away from my room because she was in it. You locked up the library because she loved it. You won't even let anyone talk about her anymore." She took a breath between sobs. "All I wanted was to be just like her. But you took her away from me. Why?"
The king stood still in the fading daylight. His face contorted in a flash of rage, but it softened as quickly as it came. "I—I," he sputtered. He looked down at his nine-year-old daughter, still dressed in rags.
"Your Highness. If I may." Hailmar stepped forward and spoke without receiving the permission to do so. "Vania was wandering around Shintaro speaking with the citizens about—"
"Mom," Vania whispered. She gingerly pulled out a scrap of paper from her pocket and gave it to her father. The king read it silently. "I see. You miss—well. You are dismissed to your room. We will discuss this later." Her father turned away, muttering the names on the list to himself.
Vania raised her hand to say something more before dropping it to her side in silence. Hailmar laid a compassionate hand on her shoulder and escorted her out of the room.
…
Three customary knocks sounded from the door. "Come in," the princess said. Chompy roared happily to announce the arrival as Hailmar pushed the door open slightly. He stood there awkwardly before speaking, "Um, I wanted to let you know that your father is rethinking your punishment. In the meantime, he wanted you to have this." Hailmar held out a small wooden chest and Vania took it gladly, her eyes lighting up.
"He also said that this is yours." Dangling from his fingers was a familiar key hanging from a gold necklace.
"The key to the library?" Vania gasped in surprise.
Hailmar nodded. "It's yours now." Vania put the necklace around her neck and jumped up and down excitedly with Chompy. "Your father will be coming soon to speak with you—oh!" Vania suddenly threw her arms around Hailmar. He patted her back awkwardly in response to the hug and dusted off his pristine armor with a hand. "There now. This really was all your father's doing. Good night, Princess."
Vania nodded enthusiastically as the door closed softly. She crossed the room to her desk and took out a blank sheet of paper. With her most beautiful pen in hand, she started writing, being careful not to leave smudges on the long white sleeves of her robe. Chompy whined as if to ask her a question.
"What am I doing? I'm making a list like the one Mom made. I want to write down good things about all the people I love, so if I'm ever lost like Mom—" here she looked up at the various maps of Ninjago that littered the wall, "—everyone can remember me."
See, here's your name, Chompy." Chompy purred satisfactorily as he looked down at the page. "And here's Hailmar's, even though he's super boring now." Vania turned away from the paper before quickly scribbling another name. "And father's too. Because I'll always remember him."