The Princess in the Tower (Burkes, maybe Axis?))

[Ophelia Burke]

Ophelia's steadfast refusal to marry Axis Thorne had not gone over well, particularly with her father. Kassia was also siding with her father, and mostly everyone else seemed to be staying out of it. Jadon seemed too wrapped up in his own business, and her mother didn't have much to say at all. Only Allaire seemed to be fully on Ophelia's side... which was something, at least.

But as a result of Ophelia's stubbornness, she was now banished to her room, like some kind of fairy-tale princess locked in a tower by the evil king. She was also forbidden to communicate with anyone outside of the house, so she couldn't even send an owl to Tyler to ask for help. She was trapped, a prisoner in her own room.

[Kassia Burke]

Kassia knocked on the door holding a tray of food. She could have sent a house elf,but this trip was personal. She hated fighting with her sister, she hated any kind of trouble in the house and often went to fix things, but this time Fee and her father were digging their heels in and everyone was miserable.

"Fee...It's me..I have food."

[Ophelia Burke]

Ophelia sat on her bed, writing furiously in her diary. She wrote all the things she wasn't allowed to say to Tyler, she wrote bitter letters to Axelrod Whatever-his-name-was, she railed on about her father, her mother, her sister, and the entire insulting, oppressive system that allowed women to be forced to marry against their own wishes.

She'd filled half or her journal by now, and her hands were aching and stained with ink spots from her quills. She had already gone through half a dozen. After all, she had nothing better to do in this prison she used to call her room. She had to do something to keep her spirits up, because she refused to cry--at least not until her father was around to see the misery he was inflicting upon her.

When the knock sounded, Ophelia sat up, listening for a moment. She hoped it was Allaire, who at least sympathized with her predicament. Or perhaps her father, in which case, she would need to be prepared to summon forth some well-timed tears.

Pretty much the last person she was hoping to see was Kassia, so naturally it was her voice that spoke, announcing that she had food.

Ophelia was getting rather hungry, but her wounded pride would not let her give in that easily.

"Is it poisoned?" she asked in a snide voice.

[Kassia Burke]

Kassia bit back the smart remark on her tongue, but she couldn't resist rolling her eyes. She loved her sister, but if she was anything, she was melodramatic.

"No Fee. I'll test it if you like." she said keeping the exasperation from her voice.

[Ophelia Burke]

Ophelia really didn't want to let her in. For whatever annoying reason, Kassia, her younger sister, seemed to believe that she had some sort of right to tell her what to do. It annoyed Ophelia greatly. As sisters, they all should have been allies in this. After all, if she were forced to marry some loser she didn't know, it would soon happen to all of them. Kassia, annoyingly, seemed to accept this concept, but Allaire, at least, had the good sense to be properly outraged.

So if she let Kassia in now, she was fully expecting an annoying lecture from someone who, in her opinion, had no right to lecture her at all.

On the other hand, Ophelia also knew that Kassi was stubborn enough that she would sit outside her door until she was let in. And besides, Ophelia was getting rather hungry.

She didn't answer right away, carefully tucking her diary under her mattress and summoning forth a few tears, just for effect. She knew her sister would likely not be moved by them, but it was worth a try,

Quietly, she made her way to the door and opened it. "Fine. But you should know right now that I will not be changing my mind, so don't even try."

[Kassia Burke]

Kassia bit her tongue, no princess Fee would not change her mind, and this time Kassia wasn't going to argue.

"I won't. I don't want to argue." she said gravely.

She entered the room carrying the tray which sported two meals instead of one indicating that Kassia was going to stay and eat with her sister.

[Ophelia Burke]

Ophelia loved her sister, honestly she did. But Kassia was so very different from her, so practical and responsible. She was somehow bossy and submissive at once, and Ophelia had no idea how she had achieved that, but it frustrated her. They really had so very little in common.

So, yes, it was a surprise than Kassia was not here to fight. But Ophelia was smart enough to know that sometimes, the quiet ones are the ones you need to look out for the most. Rather than yelling and shouting, Kassi could try to quietly reason with her, and Ophelia was in no mood to listen to reason, not when she knew she was right.

"Well, good," she replied, sitting down with a huff. "I'm tired of fighting with you, too. I just want to get out of here. Papa is being unreasonable, not even letting me go to school."

[Kassia Burke]

"He's probably worried you'd elope with Tyler Parsons." Kassia said honestly.

It wasn't that Kassia was heartless to Ophelia's feelings, she simply knew it was her duty to marry the man her father chose for her. Her father was a good man, and he wouldn't choose a husband for Ophelia or any of them that he didn't honestly believe would make them happy. Perhaps because he had his own arranged marriage that worked out so well he thought that they all should have one.

Kassia didn't question her duty. She was born to privilege and privilege meant responsibility.

[Ophelia Burke]

"And what if I did?" Ophelia replied airily, slicing into the piece of prime rib in front of her. "Papa wants me to get married so badly, so why shouldn't I get to have a say in it? Honestly, Kassi, sometimes I think you haven't a romantic bone in your body. We're talking about someone I'm expected to spend the rest of my life with. Shouldn't I love him? Or at least like him? For Salazar's Sake, the least papa could have done was introduced old Axelthorne to me before promising me to him!"

She sighed heavily. "It's just not fair, Kassi, and the fact that you seem to think this is all perfectly normal is what I can't understand. Haven't you ever wondered what it would be like to meet someone and just fall head over heels in love? To feel your heart pounding in your chest when he looks at you? Papa is wonderful, of course, but what is the chance that he would choose someone for you that would make you feel that way--especially without even giving you a chance to meet him first to see if you fit?"

[Kassia Burke]

Kassia sighed, "Look Fee...I told you I don't want to fight or argue. I won't try to convince you to marry Axis, and you don't try to convince me..." she looked at her sister finally the wariness showing on her face, " Can't we just eat?"

[Ophelia Burke]

Ophelia sighed, and began to eat quietly. She was beginning to wonder whether she would ever get her sister to see her side of it. She could never understand Kassia's stubborn adherence to antiquated and obsolete customs. This wasn't Victorian England. It was the 20th century, and surely it was time to give up some of the old customs. Women had rights, and they simply could not be forced to marry against their will.

"I'm not sure why you bothered to come in here," she said at length. "I would think you would have wanted to just drop off the food and leave, so you could have your dinner with someone whose company you actually enjoy."

There was a hurt tone to her voice, and it was only slightly feigned. She knew her sister loved her, but she was pretty sure she didn't like her very much. Ophelia felt the same way. She loved Kassia, but she found her so very confounding in her strong belief in duty over happiness. They were just too different.

[Kassia Burke]

Women indeed had rights, the right to be foolish just as Fee was being. It might have been different if their father was a cruel man, but Kassia knew better. For all their lives their father had doted on his daughters. Fee had merely needed to snap her fingers and their father made it happen, whatever she wanted she got, but marriage was different. Fee said she was in love now, but love faded magical marriage contracts did not.

What fee didn't understand was that Ben was protecting his daughter. Because of his name and power and the Burke girl's looks, men crawled out of every corner of the earth to offer for the girl's hands in marriage. Ben had vetted so many boys and men whose intentions were dubious, men who might harm or not treat his daughter the way she deserved to be treated. He wasn't against love and neither was Kassia, and it wasn't just about money although with Axis' fortune and name he could be assured that the man wasn't just courting Fee for the Burke name. He truly believed that his daughter would be happy with Axis, a man who would spoil her the way he had. He saw Tyler's actions as deceitful and dubious by courting his daughter without so much saying a word to him beforehand.

Clearly if the boy had truly been interested he would have said something to Ben by now, but he hadn't, which led Ben to be mistrustful. He was so worried about his daughter, because the heart was fickle, he only knew a hard hand to keep her in line.

Kassia understood.

"I didn't have to bring you your food, a house elf would have done just as well, I wanted to bring you your food, I wanted to sit with you. I love you Fee, even if we don't see eye to eye on this."

[Ophelia Burke]

What neither their father nor Kassia understood was that this wasn't even about Tyler. She would be fighting this just as hard even if Tyler wasn't in the picture, if she'd been completely single. Her issue was the fact that she was basically being told to be a bystander in her own life, to let other people (mainly men) decide how her entire life should play out, without even do much as consulting her about it. Her father might have thought it disrespectful of Tyler to not have approached him first before getting involved with Ophelia, but she thought the opposite. Axel rod was the disrespectful one in her eyes, because he never thought to even introduce himself to her or start a conversation with her before making an offer for her hand. For Salazar's sake, they were both Slytherins, so he must have seen her in the common room once in a while, and yet Ophelia was quite certain she wouldn't recognize him if he were standing right in front of her! He knew nothing about her except that she was beautiful and rich. How was that a foundation on which to build an entire life?

Ophelia was a lot more intelligent than most people--namely her own family-- gave her credit for. Only one person seemed to think she had a brain in her head, and valued her for it, and that was Tyler. He thought she was more than ribbons and lace and curls. He thought she could be something other than a trophy wife. How could she not prefer him to a faceless loser who hadn't the nerve to even speak with her?

"We don't see eye to eye on anything," Ophelia said sadly. "Because you think yourself above me. You think you're smarter than I am, that you're the good one because you always do as you're told. And I'm just the pretty little princess who throws tantrums when I don't get my way. But this is more than that, Kassi. Whether you believe it or not, I do have a brain under all these curls. And if I marry Axelthorpe, I'll never get to use it. I'll die inside, and become just another empty society wife with nothing to say for herself. I'll become more spoiled than ever, because I won't have anything else to live for except shoes, and dresses, and jewelry. Is that what you want for me? Or do you want me to be a better person?"

[Kassia Burke]

If Kassia bit her tongue any harder it would start bleeding.

If all their arguments over this engagement proved only one thing about Fee, it was that she didn't understand the reality of their world. Being a Burke came with a lot of privileges, and more responsibilities. Fee had enjoyed the privileges, and now balked at the responsibility. A responsibility that had been on their shoulders since they were children. Their father didn't make the rules, he didn't spring the idea of arranged marriages on any of his children, this was common knowledge from youth. It was also common knowledge among the upper end of society.

Tyler, if he had any sincere intentions toward Fee, should have spoken up long before now. Axis had been interested and followed the proper protocol according to their station in life. He asked permission to court Fee, and Ben approved of the match. Nothing had been set in stone, but Fee had overreacted, and then Ben reacted in response, and once Tyler was mentioned both sides dug their heels in. It wasn't "Men" deciding "Women's" lives, Jadon would need approval before he married, and it would be approval from both Ben and Emma.

No one doubted Fee's intelligence, least of all Kassia. Kassia knew both of her sisters to be incredibly intelligent. But she also knew that Ophelia was spoiled, they all were. Part of that was why she was so surprised that Fee had reacted the way she had. Fee was intelligent, she knew how to wrap their father around her finger. If she had been pleasant, agreed to meet Axis, drew out a long courtship, put down a few tears in front of her father that she was unhappy, Ben more than likely would have refused Axis. It was her utter refusal to meet the man, flaunting her "boyfriend" this way and that, that angered, and quite frankly scared Ben into forcing the issue.

Kassia's frown grew as Ophelia spoke, "Fee...I never knew you felt that way." she said sadly. "Ophelia, I've never thought I was above you or smarter than you. I've always admired your passion and joy in life, your cunning, and your ability to wrap just about anybody around your finger. I know you have a brain under your curls, and I know you're smart enough to use your curls and your other assets." she was stunned. Whenever she thought about Fee she thought about that muggle movie and actress Marilyn Monroe, she could be smart when it was important, but most men don't like it which is why she only pretended to be an airhead to get what she wanted.

"I don't want to argue with you, but if you're determined to talk about this then I will remind you that you've never even met Mr. Thorne, not outside of school anyway, and even thought you don't like that he didn't approach you first, you have to understand that his going to Father for permission to court you is proper! It's the way it has always been done. It's his way of showing both Papa and you that he respects you and this family, that he has noble intentions towards you. Papa would never agree to the match if he didn't believe you to be well suited, and even though you think we have such a low opinion of you, I assure you papa knows that you are more than shoes and dresses. He agreed to Axis' courtship because he believes that Axis would complement you, that he would bring the best out in you, would try to understand you, and would still keep you in a lifestyle that would make you happy. He knows none of these things about Tyler. He knows nothing about how Tyler makes you feel or behave, and Tyler has still done nothing to show Papa that he's sincere about you, that he isn't just playing with your emotions, after your name and money. Can't you see how worried Papa is about you? This is the rest of your life. This is the Man that papa is supposed to trust to take care of you. Not because you can't take care of yourself, but because it would kill papa if Tyler, if anyone, hurt you."

[Ophelia Burke]

Oh, Ophelia understood quite well the imagined importance of their family and the manufactured responsibilities. She just didn't agree with them. It was, she now realized, very possible to be rich and pureblooded without being a snob. It was possible to have these privelidges without acting like they were literal royalty. After all, they were not in line for the throne of England. The fate of the entire country did not rest on whom she married and how many children she produced. As far as she could see, the only "responsibilities" they had were to continue the pure bloodline, and Tyler was a pureblood. So what was the bloody difference?

Kassia's assurance that she did not think she was better than her did not appease Ophelia. She didn't believe it. She often felt talked down to by her younger sister, as though she were not as intelligent. Like Kassi felt she had to explain things more carefully to her so her tiny little brain could understand. "Well, you could have fooled me," she said with an injured sniff. "I feel like you're so stubborn that you won't even listen to my side of this, even when I'm being reasonable."

"I most certainly have not forgotten that I haven't met old Axel Grease," she added. "In fact, that is the entire point. I haven't met him, I don't know him, I don't even know what he looks like. He has never spoken to me, even when we were sharing the same common room at school. And he says he wants to marry me? How can he, if he's never even talked to me? He knows nothing about my thoughts, my dreams, my fears. He has no idea what matters to me or what makes me tick. So I can only conclude that he just wants to marry me because I'm beautiful and a Burke. And that is no foundation to build a marriage on. Furthermore, Papa handled this poorly, because instead of inviting Axelrod over for dinner and introducing us to see if we got on well together, he just accepted on my behalf and presented it to me as though it were already a done deal. And I was just expected to be happy about it? It isn't fair, Kassi, and you must see that."

She sighed softly, then let her shoulders drop. "But if I agree to at least meet this man and let him take me out just once, do you think Papa will be more willing to reconsider? And what if I were to arrange for Tyler to meet Papa?"

[Kassia Burke]

Kassia felt like she was talking to a brick wall, the very reason she didn't want to argue with Fee to begin with. The definition of insanity, doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting a different result.

She had heard Fee's side, and their father's side, and she had already scolded her father too for handling his end poorly. But Kassia agreed with her father, not in forcing a marriage, but she understood her father's worry and responsibility.

Kassia wasn't a snob. She never considered her name, wealth, or blood made her better than other people, but she knew all of those things made her and her family a target for others. The whole reason their father had agreed to Axis' courtship was because he trusted Axis not to take advantage of Fee.

"He was supposed to get to know about you. He was supposed to find out your thoughts, your dreams, you never even gave him a chance to court you. Just because you don't remember him, doesn't mean you didn't make an impression upon him. You must have made an impression on Tyler before he became interested in you. Can you honestly tell me you remember every conversation you've had with every single person at school? The moment you made an impression on Tyler he should have sought out papa like Axis did, with an honorable intention to court you. Your very argument is what papa is afraid of with Tyler. That he's after you because you're beautiful, rich, and a Burke. And while you might find it romantic that Tyler sought your approval before seeking papa's, the bottom line is that it was disrespectful, not only to papa, but to you. Maybe these rules are outdated or stupid or any number of things you think they are, and maybe it is romantic how Tyler courted you, but he knows these rules too. If he were raised a proper gentleman - which you have assured me he has been - he would know what an insult it is to this family and especially to you that he never once talked to Father even after he knew he was interested in you. He insulted you Fee. He insults you still. Axis' approach to papa followed traditions and showed proper respect for him and for you, even if he wanted to talk to you first, even if he would have liked to really get to know you before he courted you, he knew it would be an insult, he asked for permission and allowed his interest for you to come under scrutiny by our father whose primary concern is for your happiness. And papa did invite Axis to dinner, many times, you never showed up. Besides which you have been handling papa ever since you were two years old, this whole mess could have been avoided if you had done just that. If you had met Axis, let him court you, and then told Papa you weren't happy, if you had given him a chance. If you had kept Tyler out of it until Axis was gone. If you had told Tyler to go to Papa in the first place."

She sighed also defeated by the conversation.

"You think papa's trying to sell you Fee. He's not. He loves you. He's worried about you. It's fear that's driving him to this silly engagement, and fear will make him dig in his heels."

She looked at Fee speculatively, "Did I tell you he met a suitor of Allaire's?" she asked.

"Ashton Lane...do you remember him? He's from a decent family, not Axis' level obviously, nor Tylers. He doesn't have wealth, but Papa's approved of the courtship. We don't need money Fee, Axis couldn't buy you with all of the money he has, Ashton certainly couldn't afford Allaire if that were the case. But papa has met Axis, he's met Ashton, he trusts their intentions are honorable, he's never met Tyler and he wonders what Tyler's hiding if he hasn't made his intentions towards you known."

She took her sister's hand, "You think I don't understand Fee, that I don't hear you...I love you. I want you to be happy. And I do understand." She looked away, " I yelled at papa." she confessed.

Kassia had never done so. She had never openly confronted either of their parents, though she was indeed clever about "handling" her parents as needed. She had wheedled their father as much as she had argued with Fee. Fee would never see how hard Kassia fought on Fee's behalf, or made the same arguments Fee had made to their father, just as their father would never see Kassia arguing with Fee on his behalf.

"I know you think I took his side against you. I haven't...I just...I wish you two could meet in the middle. I wish that you hadn't blatantly refused Axis' courtship, and I wish that He hadn't mentioned a stupid engagement. I wish you two could talk not argue. I wish that he could meet Tyler and I wish Tyler to be everything you think he is and more."

[Ophelia Burke]

Ophelia sighed. She, too, was getting frustrated by this conversation. She was really being very reasonable right now, but Kassia seemed determined to think of this as an argument. Ophelia was rather thinking of this as armistice talks, where she would lay out her position and then explain what she was willing to give up.

Giving up Tyler was not on the table, as far as she was concerned, and neither was agreeing to marry Axelthorpe. However, she was at least willing to make some concessions, such as meeting whatever his name was. But Kassia's nonsense about how supposedly it was disrespectful of Tyler to speak to her before asking her father's permission first really rubbed her the wrong way. How preposterous was it that anyone should have to consult her father before courting her? After all, was he dating her or her father? She was getting angry now, and she was just about ready for this convseration to end. Even hearing that Kassia had apparently fought with papa on her behalf gave her no comfort. It just meant to Ophelia that Kassi had no opinion of her own, because now she was fighting her on their fathers behalf.

"We'll never agree on this," she said. "I feel it is more disrespectful to me for someone to decide to marry me without ever talking to me first. And you say maybe I have spoken to him, but honestly, if I did he did not introduce himself to me. Papa says he's such a great catch, and yet I never heard his name before I was told I was engaged to him. So I fail to see how he's such a great catch. And I only refused to come to dinner because he was only invited after I was already supposedly engaged to him. If he'd been invited before that, perhaps I could have gotten to know him and like him then."

She pushed away the remains of her dinner and sat back, a determined expression on her face. "However, I'm tired of the fighting, too. So please tell Papa that I am willing to meet Axel, if he will agree to meet with Tyler."

[Kassia Burke]

Fee only thought she was being reasonable. She wasn't listening. She didn't concede anything. She wanted to have her way and flaunt years of traditions and customs. Kassia never said that Fee should marry Axis, nor would it have come to that if Fee had been "reasonable" to begin with. She had dug her heels in, declared Tyler to be the one and refused to acknowledge any other suitor. She thought it was disrespectful that Axis spoke to her father before her, when he was following the rules of courtship that had existed for centuries. Kassia agreed that their father's heavy hand in forcing an engagement was wrong, but Fee refused to see how her stubbornness had forced their father's hand to that end.

Contrary to what her sister thought Kassia did have her own opinions. Strong ones. But she could see and understand both sides of the argument as well as where both parties had acted poorly. But she didn't want to be in the middle of this anymore, she was tired of her Sister's scorn, and her father's disapproval. She was tired of being the enemy for trying to bring peace. Neither Fee nor their father would ever be grateful to Kassia for defending the other or trying to reach common ground. Fee would never listen to Kassia about how to handle the situation or their father to get what Fee wanted, and their father would never listen to Kassia to get Ophelia to listen either. She couldn't be their father and act for him, neither could she be Fee and act for her.

"You can talk to him yourself Fee. I'm done being in the middle. It's obvious now that I never should have tried." She left the room then tears of frustration in her eyes.

She did it because she loved them. But she was tired of being hurt, rejected, and scorned for defending her father or her sister.