A untold amount of time has passed.
Arianna is not quite sure what she is feeling right now. Hate? despair? Anger? Acceptance? Indifference? Lack of interest?
Princess Arianna had a lot of time to think.
Being a statue mean she can't move and sleep. That also means she can no longer feel her body. She no longer feels the pains and aches from standing and carrying her own weight. She's not even sure if she remember what it's like to have a aching back and aching feet. In fact, she no longer feels hunger. She... no longer feels anything....
Well, that's not entirely true. The curse still allows her to see, hear, smell, and feel through her stone cold skin. She could feel the subtle changes in the temperature. She could feel the pain of her stone flesh cracking with age and erosion. She could feel the plant life slowly rooting itself into her stone flesh. She could feel the occasional bird distribute it's droppings onto her body. She could feel animals and monsters big and small make nests on her body, be it a bird's nest on her shoulder or head, or a rodent making a home in her frozen and wide-open mouth.
She should be angry at all of this, and she was at first... but after awhile... she realize she can't do anything to stop nor control the situation.
In her first days as a statue, she was internally crying, trying to yell with rage to the heavens to let this stupid curse wear off!
...But it never did wear off.
And she was stuck watching life go on in the forest around her.
She occasionally finds one of the bandit queen's victims wonder around the forest, but they always ignore her and fall victim to one of the many traps and residents of the forest or or somehow miraculously managed to escape the forest. Either way, watching the other victims try to survive the forest was one of the only forms of entertainment she could find. Some of their fates were hilarious! Some were turned to stone like her, some killed each other, and other were turned into fellow residents of the forest. Either way, she soon understood what the bandit queen meant by entertainment.
Yet... None of the visitors to the forest realized that she was once a princess. And no one made any attempts to save her. If anything, they were too busy protecting themselves. The sheer number of times she was ignored was one of the many reasons she gave up calling for help. Some of them even tried to rape her statue form! Such idiocy!
Eventually, Arianna gave up any hopes of ever being rescued or ever freed from this curse.
For some reason, the curse never wore off like the bandit queen said, and Arianna eventually caring about whether she ever get freed or not.
Besides... It was... almost peaceful no longer having any real needs. To no longer take mandatory baths or to constantly brush her hair... To have any kind of desire what so ever. She no longer needs to eat or rule a kingdom. She no longer has to worry about getting married or worrying about what's being provided to her. She no longer has to worry about any benefits or responsibilities...
In fact, she's glad her body is deemed worthy enough to take care of the animals and plants. They're the only things that keep her company. And she's glad that her fellow residents of the forest thinks she's worth any kind of company.
Occasionally, she tries to talk to the animals and plants. Nothing can hear her thoughts, but talking to anything helped kept her sanity.
In the end, Arianna decided that she can live with this. She's just glad she can see life and and world move around her. It comforts her that lifeand the world goes on. When her body finally gives out and crumbles to dust, she can die happy knowing that she's one of the lucky few who doesn't need to worry about hunger and desire...
---
*CRACK*
It was a day like any other day, even if Arianna has lost track of how many days has passed, or when the sun and moon sets and rises.
*CRACK*
It seems that her body is finally going to die. Cracks riddled the surface of her entire body.
*CRACK*
She may not know how long her life has been, but she has long since stopped caring about the time.
*CRACK*
She may have regrets about not fulfilling her role as princess. But at least she can die satisfied that she grew to appreciate the life of others.
*CRACK*
Here it comes. She can feel parts of her body crumble to dust already! While she wouldn't mind more time of life, she also understands that she can't really accomplish much as she is now. Perhaps wherever she goes in the afterlife will allow her to make new friends! She doesn't care if she goes to heaven or hell anymore! The wildlife here was great company... even if they wearn't truly her friends...
She realized a long time ago how much she missed having a loving father and maids to take care of her. But most of all, she wanted someone to talk with... Someone who can respond...
*CRACK*
As she felt more flakes of her stone flesh falling off, she begin the panic.
She doesn't know if the afterlife would allow her to have friends, to eat, or to have responsibility! She won't be able to do certain things in the afterlife that she can while she's alive!
*CRACK*
No! No! What if her daddy is still alive? What if she can't see him again! And what about her kingdom? Is it okay? She's a only child and there's no guarantee that her father can sire a new heir! What if her kingdom goes to ruin because of her absence!?
*CRACK*
NO! SHE MUST SEE THE OUTSIDE WORLD AND MAKE SURE IT'S OKAY FIRST!
*CRACK* *CRACK* *CRACK*
NO!!! NO!!! NO!!! NO!!! NO!!!NO!!!NO!!!NO!!!NO!!!NO!!!NO!!!NO!! NNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!! SHE WANT TO LIVE FOR GOODNESS SAKE!!!
*CRRRRRRAAAAAAAAACK* *CRRRRRRAAAAAAAAACK*
She prayed to the lord. She internally screamed for anyone to save her! She screamed to the animals, and monster, the plants, the earth! She prayed and yelled for help to anything and everything that could hear her!
*CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACCCCCCKKKKKKKK*
At long long last, the last of her familiar lifeless flesh has fallen off.
For the first time in a long time, Arianna couldn't see anything. She was blind.
Arianna felt the rush of the animals and plants scattering as she felt herself falling through the air
Was this the after life? And if it is, then why can she still feel, smell and touch? And why does everything still smells like the forest?
...It took a moment to realize why she could no see any longer.
She wasn't blind. And it wasn't too dark to see either. For the first time in a long time... Princess Arianna had her eyes closed.
Upon realizing this, Arianna opened her eyes... Only to be blinded by the surrounding light. She had to close her eyes again and slowly open them back up.
And when she did regained her vision, she realized that she was now laying on the ground exhausted. She's been standing in a upward position for so long that she forgotten what it was like to be in laying position, much less any other position!
But what surprised her more was not her bodily position. It was the colorful sight of her on flesh!
For the first time in who knows when, tears of joy flowed down her face as she bared witness to her own human flesh!
She was finally free. She thank the lord, her father, the earth and everything in existence to finally be given another chance to live!
Now... all she needs to do is to remember how to move her body again. It''s been so long since she felt her own strength and muscles that she doesn't really remember how to sit up! she had to remind herself how to move again!
It took a bit, but after some stumbles and falls, she finally managed to stand on her two feet again! It's seems her body is exactly as it was when she was turned to stone. That also means that her hunger from before she was turned to stone has returned.
Arianna was initially taken aback by the sudden rush of bodily urges that she has long since forgotten, but she was also glad.
She was tired of not having to worry about responsibilities! She's ready to take on life anew! She wanted to shout for joy!
"Whaalhula!"
Arianna instinctively clasped her hands over her mouth.
It's been so long since she physically spoken that she forgot how to properly speak and use her mouth!
She has a lot of relearning to do. How long has passed?
Arianna examined her surroundings. The forest seems to be exactly as it was when the curse wore off.
All the settlements the plants and animals made on her body were scattered around her. Burd nests and plants were laying on the floor. Families of animals were wanding around wondering were their homes went. The rodent that lived her mouth was missing... OH GOD! SHE BETTER NOT HAVE SWALLOWED THE POOR THINGS!
She frantically crawled about until she found a family of squirrels soaking wet from her saliva.
Instead of feeling disgust for tasting squirrel fur, she breathed a sigh of relief that they were alive.
Only then did she realized that she needs to relieve herself... (She needs to go to the bathroom.)
But before Arianna figure out what to do next, a nearby bush rustled as something nearby approached...