Weaving Destinies

I woke up to find myself underneath my covers. I wondered what time it was and turned over, groaning. I realized that I had never actually gone to bed last night. I began to think that I fell asleep on my bed after I had taken my bath, but then I remembered how Alec had kidnapped me.

I sat upright with a jolt and looked around. I was in a large room that looked like it was in a castle. The walls were made of stones, but the floor was carpeted, and the skinny windows had glass over them. I was in a huge four poster bed with the curtains drawn back. The bedspread was a dark red, the same color as my nightgown.

Wait a minute, nightgown? I had been in sweatpants and a T-shirt the last I remembered! I blushed, wondering who had changed me into this. I slid out of the bed and slipped my feet into a pair of dark red silk slippers. I crept over to the wooden door and jiggled the handle. It was locked.

“Oh, someone’s going to be doing some serious jail time for this!” I thought angrily. “And I didn’t even walk into a dark alley!” I sat down on the bed and stared out the window. What I could see shocked me. I ran over to it for a proper look outside. The view was breathtaking.

The castle was set on a large hill surrounded by a lush, green forest. There was a gorgeous blue lake in the distance, and even further out, purple and blue mountains rose against the horizon. Beyond the forest, green countryside interlaced by blue rivers stretched out before me. My mouth dropped open as I watched puffy white clouds float by lazily on a periwinkle sky. I had never seen anything more beautiful in my life, and I was pretty sure this wasn’t even close to Kentucky.

A knock on the door broke me out of my spell.

“Your Serene Highness?” a male voice called politely through the door.

“What? Are you talking to me?” I responded, confused.

“Of course, your Serene Highness! The prince wishes to see his bride.”

“Well, you’re not going to find her in here. I’m the captive prisoner, not some kind of beautiful princess bride,” I turned back to the window.

“Um, please pardon my boldness, but the High Prince said that her Serene Highness, Princess Faith, would be residing in this room,” the voice stuttered nervously.

“Nope, no Faiths here. Just an Olivia. Try another room,” I advised. The man apparently walked away because he didn’t respond. I sighed and sat on the window seat, gazing out of the window. I didn’t know if I could ever get home. With all this talk of royalty, it sounded like I was in a different country. How did I get here? How long had I been asleep? And most importantly, what in the world was the deal with Alec?

A few minutes later, the lock in the door clicked, and the door swung open. Alec strode towards me. He was dressed in soft leather pants and a crimson shirt looking to be made of a fine material.

“You!” I spluttered, jumping up and backing away from him.

“Why did you lie to my butler?” he asked me, coming closer.

“I didn’t lie! I told him the truth, you kidnapper!” I pointed an accusing finger at him. “Do you have any idea what kind of trouble I’m going to be in when I get back? Do you have any idea what kind of trouble you’ll be in?”

“Faith, I command that you stop this nonsense immediately!” Alec said sternly.

“Stop this nonsense immediately,” I mimicked him in a high, obnoxious voice. I laughed bitterly. “What makes you think that you can boss me around? It’s not like you’re a prince or something!” In reply, Alec reached into the depths of the dark red cape and pulled out a small gold crown with a diamond glittering on the front. He placed it on his forehead and let me do the math.

“But… that’s not possible! No way you’re a prince!” I exclaimed. He smiled in response as I stared at him in disbelief. I was so confused. How could he be a prince? How could we be in a different country? How could he just kidnap me, and why me of all the miserable girls in America?

“Now then, the arrangements for the wedding have been set,” Alec began to pace the room.

“Whoa, back up! Who said that I was going to marry you? I’m not even royalty! And seriously, I’m only seventeen! It’s not even legal for me to marry without parental consent!” I countered.

“It may be illegal in the United States, but it is not against the law here.”

“Where exactly is ‘here’ anyways?”

“Why, Torm of course!”

It had been two years since I had taken World Geography, but after memorizing countries like Kyrgyzstan and Liechtenstein, I would definitely remember if there was a country with an easy name like Torm.

“Ha ha, very funny,” I crossed my arms. “There’s no country called Torm!”

“I know,” Alec replied calmly. “We are not on Earth.”

“Wh-what?” I stared at him again. He had really lost it. I didn’t know who the butler was or how he was pulling this castle thing off, but this couldn’t be real.

“We are on the planet Torm, the twin planet to Earth. It is very similar to Earth, only in a different dimension,” Alec explained.

“Who would believe that? You need professional help!” I exclaimed. He was off-the-charts crazy. “You have to be kidding me!”

“No, this is not a joke. I am not sure if you have been informed of this yet, but you are destined to be the High Queen of all Torm and my wife,” Alec continued. I moaned and pressed the heels of my hands to my now throbbing forehead.

“This can’t be real. I wouldn’t believe a word, but I just can’t figure out how you managed the castle illusion,” I sighed. This had to at least be a hidden camera show, but it was so elaborate!

Alec knelt in front of me.

“Believe it or not, it is fate that we be together. Our union has been determined since the beginning of the heavens. The fate-readers have seen our destinies intertwined together, so I have brought you here to me,” he said, trying to take my hand. I pulled away.

“Fate-reader? You mean like a fortune teller?” I asked.

“They are similar to the fortune tellers on your planet. Fate-readers are chosen by God to guide people with their lives. Each one I went to in turn told me to marry Faith of the Tribe of Legends.”

“Tribe of Legends? What the hell is that?”

“It is a term we use for those who live on Earth. The most remarkable of the fate-readers was an old lady. She seemed to be at least two hundred years old. She had a vision of what is destined between us.”

“What was it?” I asked with an impatient sigh.

Alec cleared his throat and recited, “The coming of Princess Faith shall bring forth a new era, unlike any other seen before. She shall leave hope and joy in her wake, her kind and gentle beauty a white rose among weeds. She shall be Alec’s one and only true love. She shall be his greatest strength. She shall be his greatest weakness. His heart will long unfaltering for her, his love encompassing the universe and the heavens. Yet through her strength and generosity, her heart is made of ice. She has lost the ability to love and trust. Unless the prince is able to melt her heart, she will never love again. If he succeeds, her love for him shall have no end.” Here Alec paused slightly before continuing. “I see shadows three: Alec, Faith, and Callagroth. I see blood from Julia’s dagger drip. And hark! a shadow falls to never rise again.”

I stared at him, not sure what to think. A hidden camera show wouldn’t have such a cheesy prophecy, and come to think of it, they would probably have the decency to pick on someone else.

“Do you not see? Faith, we are meant to be together!” Alec smiled and tried to grab my hands again. I pulled away.

“No way. You have got to be truly insane to believe this!” I exclaimed.

“I do not believe I can wait until you are finally mine!” Alec laughed cheerfully.

“No! For the last time, I’m not marrying you! And those visions had the wrong pictures or something because I’m not Faith!” I argued. I stopped. “Wait, who am I kidding? There were no visions! You’re crazy! You need help!”

“Of course you are Faith, my dear. Besides, it would be impossible for you to back out now. All of Torm is expecting us to be wed. They wish for a High Princess and for us to be at full power.”

“Full power? Now what are you talking about?”

“Why, true love’s kiss! When we kiss for the first time, our powers will reach their maximum.”

“But I don’t have any magic powers!” I groaned. I couldn’t wait until this psycho was in a straight-jacket. “And give me a break! True love’s kiss? How cliché can you get?”

Alec was about to reply when he looked at a pocket watch.

“Time to get ready for our wedding, my love!” he smiled, standing up.

“But I thought that was supposed to be tomorrow?” I frowned.

“You slept through the entire night. Our wedding is today.”

“I’m filing for a divorce!”

“Marriages are lasting and unbreakable.”

“I’ll commit suicide then!” I cried out in desperation. He was really starting to scare me.

Alec laughed softly and said, “Marriages on Torm are very different from those on Earth. They last for eternity. Even after death, we shall be bound together.” He left the room.

What a nutjob. But as out of his mind as he was, he did seem to be serious about this wedding thing. The marriage might not be legal, but if he kept me locked in a room for years, then it didn’t really matter. He could do whatever he wanted with me. I shuddered.

Suddenly, a group of girls burst into my room. They were dressed in stereotypical French maid outfits but didn’t look to be much older than me. They were giggling and laughing excitedly. Before I could object, they dragged me into a bathroom through a door that I hadn’t seen. Much to my displeasure, one of them suddenly pushed me towards a very big bathtub and commanded, “Take your clothes off.”

“No way! I can take a bath myself!” I argued.

“But we are your personal maids! We’re supposed to clean you!” another one insisted.

“We could get into a lot of trouble if someone finds out!” one of them looked close to tears.

“Well, no one has to find out! I don’t know how Alec got you to agree to all of this, but I’m getting out of here and I’m not going to marry him!” I said, crossing my arms. They looked at me worriedly. They truly looked upset. What would Alec do if he found out? Was he some kind of evil mastermind keeping a group of people trapped here to do his bidding? Would he torture them if I didn’t agree?

“All right, all right! Fine! I’ll let you pamper me like the princess I’m not!” I sighed. The maids squealed in delight. By the end of my bath, I wasn’t sure if I had ever been this clean before. They put me in a beautiful wedding dress and led me through a very real-looking castle with plenty of servants to a small chapel to wait for the start of the wedding and the end of my life as Olivia Jones.