The Glassblower's Heart: Royal Romance
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P.J.Williams
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The Abandoned Child
The wind howled through the small, cobbled streets as the infant girl was left on the doorstep of an old, wooden cottage. Wrapped in a tattered blanket, she whimpered softly, unaware that she had been abandoned in a foreign land. The figure who had left her behind disappeared into the shadows, footsteps fading into the night.
Inside the cottage, an old blind woman named Agnes stirred at the sound. Her fingers paused mid-stitch as her ears caught the faint cry. “What’s this now?” she muttered to herself, rising slowly from her chair by the hearth.
The woman, though frail in body, had a sharpness to her movements that suggested strength in her old bones. Guided by memory, Agnes moved toward the door, her hands feeling for the familiar knobs and latches. As she opened it, the cold air rushed in, bringing with it the soft cries of the child.
Her fingers stretched out, trembling slightly, until they brushed against the small, warm bundle left on her doorstep. “A child?” Agnes whispered, her voice a mixture of surprise and uncertainty. Kneeling down, she gently pulled the blanket away from the baby’s face, feeling the smooth, round cheeks beneath her fingertips.
“Poor thing, left out in the cold…” Without hesitation, Agnes scooped the infant into her arms and brought her inside. She closed the door with her elbow and settled the child by the fire.
The warmth of the hearth enveloped them both, and for a moment, the old woman simply sat, cradling the baby as if trying to understand what the fates had brought to her doorstep. “There now, little one,” she cooed softly, stroking the baby’s cheek. “You’ve no family here, do you? Well, I suppose we’ll just have to make do.”
Agnes had never imagined raising a child, not at her age, and certainly not with her blindness. But as the days turned into weeks, and the weeks into months, the bond between her and the girl deepened. The child, whom Agnes named Emilia after a name that had come to her in a dream, grew quickly.
Her bright, curious hazel eyes were a stark contrast to Agnes’s unseeing ones, and the girl’s laughter soon filled the quiet, lonely cottage with new life. By the time Emilia was five, she was already a help to Agnes.
The old woman taught her how to fetch water from the nearby stream, how to sweep the floors, and how to tend the small garden they kept outside.
Though Agnes could no longer see the flowers bloom, she trusted Emilia’s descriptions of their colors, and in those moments, it felt as though she could see them herself.
“Tell me again, what color are the roses this year?” Agnes asked one summer afternoon as they sat outside on the cottage steps. The sun was warm on their faces, and the scent of fresh earth filled the air.
Emilia, her face beaming with pride, described the roses with great detail. “The red ones are the brightest, like the color of the sun when it sets. And the yellow ones…they’re like the light in the morning, when it first touches the trees.”
Agnes smiled, her head tilted slightly as if picturing the scene in her mind. “Ah, I remember. Your descriptions are so vivid, Emilia. You’re my eyes now, you know.”
The girl’s smile grew, and she snuggled closer to Agnes, resting her head on the old woman’s shoulder. They sat like that for a long time, the rhythm of their breaths matching the steady hum of the world around them.
***
Emilia’s curiosity seemed boundless. As she grew older, her interest in the stories Agnes would tell her deepened. But it was one story, in particular, that caught her imagination and refused to let go.
It was on a rainy evening, the two of them sitting by the fire as the storm battered against the windows. Agnes, with her hands folded neatly in her lap, had been recounting tales of her younger days, when her late husband, Robert, was still alive. “He was a glassblower, my Robert,” Agnes said softly, her voice thick with the memory.
“Worked with the flame as though it were a living thing, coaxing it to do his bidding. He’d take raw, melted glass and turn it into the most beautiful creations.” Emilia leaned forward, her dark-brown curls spilling over her heart-shaped face as she listened intently.
“What kind of creations, Grandmama?”
“Ah, all sorts,” Agnes replied, her fingers moving as though they could still shape the glass. “Vases, cups, even sculptures that shimmered in the sunlight like they were made of diamonds. But it was the mirrors that he was most proud of. He could capture light in a way no other craftsman could.”
Emilia’s eyes widened, her mind filled with images of glowing furnaces and molten glass being shaped into wondrous forms. “Can anyone learn to do that?”
Agnes chuckled softly. “It takes patience and a steady hand. But yes, if you’re willing to learn, I suppose anyone could.”
From that moment, something shifted inside Emilia. Glassblowing became more than just a story—it became a dream. She began asking more questions, wanting to know everything about the craft. Though Agnes could no longer see the beauty of the glass, she described it in such detail that Emilia felt as though she could picture it herself.
“Tell me about the furnaces,” Emilia asked one night. “How hot do they have to be?”
“Oh, hot enough to melt the sand into liquid, so hot you can’t get too close,” Agnes replied. “But once the glass is soft, that’s when the magic happens. You blow into a tube, and the glass takes shape. It’s like breathing life into something that wasn’t there before.”
Emilia’s heart raced with excitement. She could almost feel the heat of the furnace, see the molten glass glowing orange and red. “Can I learn how to do it too?”
Agnes paused, her lips pursed in thought. “You’ve got the fire in you, child,” she said at last, a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. “But you’ll need a proper teacher. I can’t do it anymore…not without my sight.”
“I’ll find someone!” Emilia declared, her voice brimming with determination.
Hearing the quiet determination in Emilia’s voice, Agnes told her to pull the old basket from beneath the bed.
“The night you arrived on my doorstep,” Agnes said softly, “I didn’t know what to think of you or of what had been left behind with you. But I knew one thing.” She paused, her voice firming. “I knew to take care of you.”
Emilia kneeled and dragged the basket into the light. It creaked faintly as she lifted it, releasing the faint scent of lavender and something older that had been preserved by time. Nestled inside were a few carefully wrapped items, each placed with intention.
Her fingers closed around a small rattle first. It was heavier than she expected, cool against her skin. Silver…real silver, she was certain, its surface etched with fine, swirling markings that caught the light when she tilted it.
They weren’t scratches or decorations meant for a child, but deliberate symbols, precise and unfamiliar. Emilia traced them slowly, a strange sensation stirring in her chest, as if the metal itself recognized her touch. She gave it a gentle shake. The sound was soft, clear, almost musical—far too refined for something meant for a peasant’s child.
Beneath it lay a folded blanket.
Emilia lifted it with care. The fabric was impossibly soft, warmer than wool and smoother than silk, dyed a pale, delicate pink that hadn’t faded with age. Threaded through it were faint patterns woven so subtly they nearly disappeared unless the light struck them just right.
She brushed her fingers across it, aware that this was no ordinary cloth. It was expensive, yes, but more than that, it felt as though it had been made for a purpose she couldn’t yet name.
At one corner was a small stitched marking. Not a name, but a symbol—one she didn’t recognize. Emilia studied it, her brow furrowing. It meant something, she was sure of it, but whatever meaning it held remained just beyond her grasp.
She looked up at Agnes, questions burning in her eyes.
Whatever these items were, wherever they came from, they were part of a story that had never truly ended.
“I’m sure someone is looking for you, child.” Agnes paused. “One day they will find you.”
