The rain poured down heavily amidst the cold night sky, the warm lights from inside the palace ballroom illuminating the place and emitting its radiant glow even to the outside.
Agatha sat by her vanity table, dressed to the nines in jewelry and a crown she'd rather not wear, the shame it brought upon her weighing heavier than the precious gems on it.
"My dear." A voice rang through the room as the bedroom door creaked open. "The children are waiting." As that sentence was spoken, Leonard and Carmine ran over to their mother.
"Mama!" Leonard squealed as he ran over to hug his mother alongside his younger sister. Agatha placed a hand on both of their heads as she smiled.
"My diamonds, go outside and wait for me. Mama will be there soon." She instructed them in a soft voice. The two children chirped happily and left, waving goodbye to their mother before leaving with a maid.
As the door closed, the Tsar stepped forward, a hand reaching for his wife before it was brushed away. He sneered at that action. "My dear, are you seriously pushing away your husband? Today is a joyous occasion, it's the Winter Ball held in—"
"I couldn't care, my Tsar. Get out." Agatha replied back harshly, putting on her earrings with precision. A brief silence filled the room before a sigh came after.
"Really? Anyone would feel lucky if they were in your place. You're the Tsarina with two children! You're the mother of the nation!" The Tsar exclaimed, blind to his own faults.
Agatha threw a glass cup at the Tsar's feet, standing up abruptly. "Does it look like I want to be the Tsarina?! Does it look like I wanted to marry at 16?! Does it look like I wanted to bear your children before the appointed age of adulthood?!"
"Do I look the least bit happy when I'm with you?! Do you think my shouting is love—" A loud slap echoed through the room followed by a scoff. "The Tsarina must act her best no matter what she feels, my dear."
"Stop your foolish actions at once." The Tsar ordered, leaving a now frozen Agatha where she stood. "Madwoman." He muttered before turning around and leaving the room. Agatha's hand clenched into fists.
The Tsarina soon exited the room and joined her family, carrying her daughter while the Tsar held his son's hand. She smiled at the nobles with each step she took, heavy and full of anger.
The Tsarina is the mother of the nation, the ruler of the empire, the patient and wise woman that the people look up to. The Tsarina was a role she bore with disgust, a title forced on her, a prison for her mind.
She could only look back to the younger years with silence, knowing that those innocent days will never be returned to her again.
