Disenchanted

The sun had already set. It was dark and the moon was surprisingly full. It was strange to see it complete when it shouldn't have been for at least another three days. Of course, I was no expert on the stars and changing of the skies, so who was I to say when the moon should be full?
We had stopped the carriage for a break to water the horses and stretch our legs. It would take another hour or so to get to the prince's mansion. Aya had said we should arrive around eight o'clock if nothing went wrong. Why he had to ride with Jenea, Marlen and I in the carriage was beyond me, but he had filled the small space with his presence nonetheless. He was infuriating and quick to voice his opinion, obviously finding me unsuitable for his Highness. Like I cared. It wasn't my fault we were engaged. I didn't even know why we were supposed to marry. I didn't even know how I was considered a "princess". I had heard nothing of my parents, but it hadn't seemed like they were royalty. There were a lot of things that just didn't make sense. Why Aya chose to pick apart what I had accepted so easily these past seventeen years was beyond me, but he just seemed to take delight in teasing me.
I sat on a pillow, unallowed to move because Jenea didn't trust that I wouldn't dirty my dress, and stared at the moon. Marlen was off somewhere in the trees, doing whatever it was that she did when she disappeared and leaving me to my thoughts as I sipped the tea I'd been offered.
Now that I was away from the house, I felt even more chained. As I stared at the moon, an emotion I had so easily ignored over the years welled inside me. I sighed quietly, setting my tea aside and wondering when I had become so lonely. The emotion had always been there, of course, but I hadn't noticed how strong it was.
"Ah," I exclaimed softly, my hands coming up unsure as my eyes overflowed. I had makeup on. If I rubbed my eyes, would it be ruined?
"Princess," Jenea said, the whisper of her dress reaching my ears as she came up and knelt beside me. She pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed at my eyes. "You shouldn't cry. You're nearly eighteen already. You're a woman. Be stronger."
Jenea's way of comforting wasn't really comforting at all, but it made me laugh. I let her finish cleaning up my eyes before I thanked her and stood, heading back towards the carriage. I had had a revelation in some small level of my heart and it made me realize that once I got to his mansion, I was going to give his Highness a piece of my mind. It was about time he was knocked down off his horse.
I whistled high-pitched and loud, letting Marlen know we were leaving and within seconds, she was zipping back to me. Aya handed me into the carriage and then Jenea, who picked up my letter box again and situated it back onto her lap as Aya climbed in himself.
The carriage jerked into motion within a few minutes when everything had been cleaned up and Aya asked, "What is that light that keeps following you?"
Marlen laughed and the sound filled the carriage, but it was me who answered. I was the only one she allowed to hear her voice anyway, so she wouldn't answer him. "She's not a light." Jenea scoffed, but I ignored her. "Her name is Marlen. She's a spirit."
I thought I saw Aya's eyes harden, but he merely asked, "What kind of spirit?"
I frowned. "I don't know. She won't tell me."
"Because it's a secret," Marlen teased me and I smiled at her tone.
"So," I started, changing the subject. "What's the prince like? Is he handsome?"
Aya grinned, crossing his arms in a sort of smug gesture. "Very. He's kind, too, and generous, strong. He's already mastered every skill there is. He even surpasses his older brother."
"He has an older brother?" I asked, shocked. He'd never mention them in his letters.
Aya's cheeks went red in the dim lantern light of the carriage. He cleared his throat. "Yeah, well, his older brother's only good point is his face."
My eyes widened. "You're so rude! Would you say that in front of him?"
Aya looked me square in the eye. "I have."
My mouth dropped open and I leaned forward. "What did he say?"
He sniffed pridefully, muttering, "He told me that I was a hundred years too early to lecture him when I couldn't even talk to a girl properly."
"You're talking to me," I pointed out.
He smirked. "You're not a girl. You're a monkey."
I sucked in a breath, indignant and angry. "I am not!"
"Your tree-climbing adventures prove otherwise, Raven."
Angry, I turned my attention out the window and stayed stonily silent for the rest of the trip. Marlen kept me entertained enough with stories and other conversation, but I didn't say a word to Aya. It was obvious by his angry movements when we arrived that that had made him more than irate, especially considering he had tried to get my attention on more than one occasion. It wasn't my concern. He could take a long stroll on a short dock for all I cared.
The carriage pulled to a stop in the brightly lit front courtyard of what I assumed was the prince's mansion. It was situated much the same way mine had been: surrounded by a forest and seemingly cut-off from any civilization. That was just a mirage, though, since I could see the reddish glow of a town or city off in the distance. You could also see the capitol from here, but that was in a different direction than the glow of the town and much further off. The air here was different, too. Almost as if it was waiting for something to happen. It was kind of eerie.
"Why are there no lights in that direction?" I asked, nodding towards the left. We had come up from behind the castle, having to circle around to get to the front, but the city lights as well as the town lights were distinctively on the right. The forest on the other side was thick, tangled and wild, almost singing with life and nature. It was almost as if it was calling to me, but it was far enough away that I knew that I couldn't get there easily on foot. It seemed untouched and I wanted to explore, the urge for adventure rising in me strongly enough that I had to forcibly shove it down to keep my feet planted on the cobblestones.
"That is the Disenchanted Forest," Aya informed me after he told the driver to put the carriage away. "You are not to go there. Ever. There's magic in there and dangers even the palace doesn't know about. No one sets foot inside unless they plan on never coming back out."
I swallowed, my eyes still locked on the far off wood. "I'll keep that in mind."
Aya grabbed my chin, turning my face to his. "Never, Raven."
I frowned at him, my brows drawing together as I pulled his hand away. "Alright. I get it. Not going in." I glanced around at the one-story, vast mansion and crossed my arms, then uncrossed them when the movement made it harder to breathe. "Where's the prince? Wasn't he supposed to meet me here?"
"This is just the courtyard," Aya explained, offering me his hand. Not wanting to be impolite, but not really wanting to touch him, I let my fingers slide into his and he tucked it around his arm. "I'll show you around." He glanced over his shoulder. "Jenea, you can just take that to the princess's room and meet us later."
Jeana shook her head, holding the awkward box to her front demurely in an uncharacteristic show of subservience. "I stay with the princess."
She followed behind as we entered the hall, the doors opening to a blast of sound. Music was playing, there were servants and people of obvious higher status all chatting and running about in excitement, sipping from glasses and in all different manner of dress. Both men and women were everywhere and my hand tightened on Aya's arm in nervousness as I looked about and felt out of place. My attendants had been right about one thing: I did not fit in. No one--not one person--had even the slightest hint of red hair. Although there were some girls that were dressed in the same style (less revealing, though, it seemed) as I was, their hair only came in the shades of brown, gold or black. No red. Not anywhere.
"W-Where's the prince?" I stammered, squaring my shoulders as I searched the crowd for my fiance and Marlen ducked into my hair to hide herself. I thought he would stand out to me in some fashion. After corresponding for so long, I had almost thought that I would be able to pick him out from even a large crowd like this. It had been a foolish dream. Apart from a few choice men, Aya was actually one of best looking men here.
The hall itself was a large room with a shining floor that was brightly lit with hanging lights and glowing balls that some witch or wizard had probably been hired to create. The walls were nearly taken up by the tall and wide windows that covered them. Heavy red drapes that fell from ceiling to floor and were held back with fasteners to let in the light of the moon. Long tables were lining the right wall, the wall in front and the left. On the right, a large, throne-like chair sat with three smaller versions around it in the very center of the table. Plates and shining utensils were placed at every one of the numerous seats.
"Y-Your Highness!" a flushed boy said, rushing over and bowing to Aya, making my eyes shoot wide and the hall suddenly go quiet. All eyes turned on us and even I looked at Aya for explanation. The boy continued on without notice. "Your clothes are ready in another room. If you would just come with me to change. . ."
"Look, it's Prince Aya," a girl whispered.
"He's in such common clothing," another said.
"He's looks so handsome no matter what he wears," a third girl continued.
A fourth girl asked jealously, "Who's that with him? She's not the princess, is she?"
"But she has red hair--she has to be," one answered.
I ignored their comments about me, grasping tightly to the one that was most important. Pulling my arm from Aya's, I stumbled away from him, my hairpins jingling from the sudden movement. "Y-you're the prince?!" I asked accusingly.
He just smiled at me. "So it seems." He shrugged. "You never asked, so I didn't bother to tell you. It wasn't important anyway. I found out what I needed."
My face went red in anger and embarrassment. He hadn't said a word! He had lied the entire time. Instead, he had let me make a fool of myself under the pretense of "judging my worth". Before I could help myself, and ignoring Jenea's sharp shout of my name in warning and reprimand, my hand lashed out and smacked across his cheek, turning his head as the sound echoed around the hall amidst gasps and shocked exclamations. His left cheek immediately went red, his eyes wide as he turned them back on me with shock and surprise.
"It was important!" I seethed, not caring who heard me. I had done worse things in front of my attendants, so these people could watch or not. It wasn't as if I gave a damn. "Do you know how long I waited for you to come for me?" I poked him in the chest, anger burning through my veins. "Eighteen years, that's how long! Now, when you finally decide to show up, you lie in order to judge whether or not I was good enough for you?" I shook my head. "I'm not your toy! You can't just use people how you like, you . . you bastard. I hate you." Turning away from him, I grabbed the box from Jenea and shoved it at him, the lid jarring loose and spilling out half of the letters at his feet, some old, some newer, but all obviously cherished and read many, many times. Tears stung my eyes as I glared at him, but I held them back, pulling myself as straight as I could and holding my head high. "They're yours, so you can have them back. Obviously, they are of no use to me anymore."
Spinning on my heel, I stalked towards where I had seen the servants come in and out of the hall and called one to ask to show me to a place outside that wasn't in the front courtyard or off the grounds. They took me to a garden and, after thanking them, I walked among the newly blossoming flowers, trying to lose myself in the stone paths as I longed to be back at my own house, with my own attendants. Yes, it hadn't been ideal, but at least there no one had lied to me.



"What are these exactly?" Aya asked Jenea, lying a hand on the old box Raven had so protectively brought along. He had asked Jenea to come with him after they had cleaned up the mess both socially and physically that Raven had left in her wake. Now he was dressing in the blue, formal jacket and cream breeches that had been laid out for him for the banquet. His engagement banquet that his fiancee was obviously no longer keen on attending.
"You heard her yourself," Jenea told him, her voice rather stern. She was a hard woman, that much was clear. In all his nineteen years, he'd never met anyone so seemingly uncaring and cold. "She told you they were her treasures."
"Jenea," he said sharply, coming out from behind the screen he had used to shield him as he changed.
The woman sighed, irritated. "They're your letters. You should be able to tell from looking yourself." She laid a hand on the box and Aya thought it odd to see her face twist into an almost motherly look. Well, it would have been motherly if there hadn't been so much pity. "She kept them. Every single one. She read them over and over like a mantra, searching for. . something." She turned her eyes on him, unblinking. "You could be a little nicer to her. That was a horrible trick you pulled."
Aya felt his cheeks go red and he rubbed his hand over his face. "Shut up. I was nervous. I couldn't help myself."
"And just look what it's gotten you," she quipped callously.
Aya glared at her, but ignored her comment, getting back to the letters. "Why did she keep them?"
"She fought me on a lot of things," Jenea told him, tapping the box, "but this she was absolutely firm on. We weren't to throw a single one out. It's more because, aside from that ball of light she always talks to, she has no one other than you." That made his fingers fumble on the ties to his shirt, and he frowned as he readjusted himself both mentally and physically as Jenea continued on without care to how her words affected him. "I'm sure you're aware that she has no family and the women working at that house were sometimes less than kind. Even I am wary because of the rumors surrounding her lineage." Her lips twitched to form a sort of smile. "She looked forward to every letter and cherished every word."
"It was all rubbish that I copied from somewhere. There was nothing personal in any of them," he said with disbelief.
Jenea raised her head in pride. "The princess is well aware of that fact. She's not a nitwit. You, however, are an idiot."
Aya's mouth dropped open. "Do you realize who you're talking to?! I'm an Imperial prince."
"I serve the princess," Jenea said unflinchingly. "Not you. I'll say what I wish."
Aya stared at her in shock and then smiled, bewildered. He sat on his bed, sighing. "I see." He ran his hands through his hair. "She really hates me then?"
"You can't love someone you've never met," she told him without hesitating. "I'm sure she does hate you. She lived in that house all alone. I was the only constant person that was there because the servants were always being traded out. You were the one person that knew of her existence and yet you never once came to see her. She's been alone all these years dreaming about the kind of person you were, but you never thought about her so deeply."
"Who are you to say I didn't think about her?" he snapped. "Of course I thought of her. I wrote her every two weeks for nearly fifteen years. I had my guards take me so that I could watch her as a child without her knowing." He stood, pacing his wooden floor. "Of course I couldn't meet her. I was never good enough. I couldn't even write one personal letter, copying things from books instead. How could I face her? I wanted so badly to make that smiling girl fall in love with me. "
Jenea was unyielding. "That doesn't change the fact that you were the person she wanted to see the most and yet you never showed on her doorstep. Watching her from the shadows doesn't make you a better person. You also stopped writing her suddenly. What other emotion would she have other than hate? Smiling is just her way of hiding it."
Aya smiled sadly, staring at the box of unfelt, but frustrated letters. "Yes. I supposed I would hate that person as well."
"Now that you understand," Jenea said with a wave of her hand, "go and find her. You have a banquet to get to."



Aya had found me nearly an hour after I had been in the garden. Though I had hoped he wouldn't, I had known that someone would drag me back into the mansion. We had a celebration to put on after all. It had been a little awkward after the show I had put on, but a lot of men had thought it intriguing and asked me to dance. And I had accepted. It had been fun to twirl around the floor with different partners and laughing at whatever they said and learning new things. The Emperor had even danced with me, telling me that it was about time a girl stood up to them.
But the banquet was over and my birthday had come. The sun was shining high and my head was itchy from the way Jenea had pinned my hair up today. That stupid crown was back on and another goofy dress in the style that Aya liked had been forced on me. Blue and white this time. I hated it, but Jenea had let me sleep in my own clothes, so that was as good as it was going to get. Unfortunately, tonight I would have to sleep with the ornaments and crown on. Why, I didn't know, but Jenea had said it was a right-of-passage into womanhood or something. I was supposed to sleep without messing my hair. . . . That was practically impossible, but she told me that I would be surprised what I could do if I put my mind to it.
Right now, though, I was enjoying the sunshine while the clouds let me. It would probably rain in a few days--that's what Marlen had said--but white, fluffy clouds were gliding overhead today. It was warm and the flowers in the garden were nice and fragrant. Aya had a lot of gardens and I liked most of them, but his largest had been my favorite by far. There were fountains here and a field where he let wildflowers grow wildly. It was in that field that I was currently sitting, picking some flowers to put in my room later. Something had to liven that dead place up, and I was thankful the wedding had been postponed a few more days so that I could redecorate a little.
"The rumors don't do you justice," a voice said from behind me.
I jumped, almost crushing the flower stem I was holding as I spun to see a tall man that could only be a few years older than Aya standing there, smiling kindly. He had a kind face that was somewhat familiar--maybe he was a relative of someone at the banquet last night, but I hadn't seen him at all. His hair was light- straw-brown with a reddish tint that made my heart thump in longing and it was fluffy and blowing in the breeze, making me want to reach out and touch it right where it parted slightly above his right eye. His eyes were a light-blue and had such understanding and kindness in them that I felt instantly at ease. He was definitely better looking than Aya and I heard Marlen whisper something of the like in my ear as she slid down my back to hide amongst the flowers and dandelion fluff. She was right again. With a long, pointed nose, puckering and soft lips, large eyes and softly arching brows, he was what I had pictured when reading books about the unearthly beings with ungodly beauty.
"Rumors?" I asked, shaking clear of my head.
His smile grew and he offered me a hand to take. I did and he kissed the top. "You're far more beautiful than they give you credit for."
A blush rose in my cheeks and I wished I had a hat to hide my hair with. "T-Thank you." I licked my lips, glad the shiny paint wasn't on them today. "You obviously know who I am, but who are you?"
His brows rose and he looked apologetic, smacking himself in the forehead. "Where are my manners." He smile at me in apology. "Forgive me. My name is Harris. I'm Aya's older brother and the Imperial Crown Prince."
My eyes widened. "The Crown Prince?!" I would have scrambled to my feet, but I didn't think my knees would hold me up. "What are you doing here?"
"Well, I missed the banquet, so I thought I would introduce myself to you personally."
I looked down, embarrassed. "O-oh. Thank you."
"Harris!" Aya's voice boomed out from across the field and I turned to see him crossing it in quick, angry strides. I stood only moments before he grabbed my arm and shoved me behind him. "What have you said to her?" His voice was angry and his eyes were spitting fire at his brother. I would have still been mad at Aya too, but he had been looking at me with such sad understanding since he had found me in the garden last night that I just hadn't been able to gather enough annoyance to throw at him.
"I haven't told her anything," Harris said easily. He smiled at me as I peeked out from behind Aya's shoulder. "I just wanted to see the rumored red-haired princess." He turned his eyes back on his brother, his smile fading. "She seems like a nice girl, Aya. I don't know what spell or lies you've used on her, but it seems you've easily deceived her into becoming yours."
"I didn't use any spells," he challenged. "Raven has been mine since she was born."
A flush rose in my cheeks at his words, my heart thumping against my ribs as I wondered if he meant it in a romantic sense or just as a fact. I wasn't an object, but maybe that's all he saw me as. And then there was the possibility that he saw me as something more. I didn't know if I hoped for either or wanted one over the other.
"That may be true," Harris agreed with a nod. He smiled with a wisdom that almost scared me. "But fates change."
"What are you talking about?" Aya said angrily. His voice changed to hold conviction. "The princess's and my fates have been interlinked. Nothing you do or say can change that."
Harris inclined his head. "It seems I've been taken upon as rude." He gave me another kind smile. "Princess, it was a pleasure meeting you. I hope we can do so again." He bowed, turning and leaving.
Aya waited until he was gone before he turned on me. He grabbed my arms, pulling me up on my toes. His eyes were angry. "What did he tell you?"
"N-Nothing," I said, unsure as to why he was angry. I blushed, looking down. "He just introduced himself and. . Um. . . "
"What?" Aya pressed, still angry.
My face was so hot I thought it would start steaming. It must had been as red as my hair. "He told me I was beautiful."
Aya's shoulders slumped and his hands relaxed, turning gentle on my arms. He put a hand under my chin and pulled it up. He was smiling softly at me and my heart thumped painfully in my chest. "You are beautiful." He leaned down, his face getting closer and closer until he was a mere breadth away. "Raven, close your eyes."
Confused but curious, I shut them, only to have them shoot wide a moment later when I felt something pressing against my mouth. Realizing that it was Aya's lips, I froze. Was this what they called a kiss? And Aya was giving me one? But why? A kiss was given to someone you love. Did he. . . ? No, he couldn't. It wasn't possible. . . Was it? On the slight chance that it was, I closed my eyes again and kissed him back.



I couldn't sleep. Something was wrong. It wasn't the fact that the room was unfamiliar still. It wasn't the fact that I had only a few things in here that were mine. I just couldn't breathe. You would have thought that the soft corset I had worn my whole life would be easy to be in after the steel traps I'd been forced to wear for the past two days, but obviously not. I was hot, too, but it wasn't yet Summer, so I shouldn't be having any trouble. Yet here I was, spread out on my bed in my own clothes, trying to keep my hair from getting ruined like Jenea had warned me against, while I struggled with a growing ache just under the surface of my skin.
I closed my eyes and tried my best to relax, but it wasn't working. I was breathing too heavily, sweating too much and too uncomfortable to just lie on a mattress. Irritated, I sat up and swung my legs over the side, stepping onto the cold wooden floor and padding over to my assortment of clothes. I needed to change. I'd nearly soaked what I was wearing now. Wanting comfort over propriety, I pulled out my favorite outfit. It was one Jenea had deemed a princess should never be seen in, but who was going to see me?
I pulled on the skintight pants no respectable girl would wear unless she were doing chores outside, slipped on the thin white shirt--careful of my hair--left the strings open and threw on my knee-length, blue and gold vest. Padding back to my bed, I put on my shoes and sneaked out of my room without hesitation, heading down the hallway quietly and on alert for guards even though I was aching. I made it out of the castle without mishap and into the closest garden. I didn't bother looking for a bench, instead just lying on the cool ground, closing my eyes and breathing in the night air.
I was just starting to think that this was working when my body suddenly cramped up painfully, curling me to my side as I gasped. A shriek escaped me when my skin started to burn, my veins feeling like they were on fire. My back was the worst and I screamed as I felt the skin near my shoulder blades split, something pushing it's way out from the inside. I flipped on my stomach, crawling towards the doors in order to get help.
The light of the full moon peeking through the clouds caught a shine on my skin and I looked at my hand in horror, pulling up my sleeves to see the same thing on both arms. Scales. I had little golden scales pushing their way through my skin, translucent and visible only when the glare of the moonbeam caught them right, but they were there.
I opened my mouth to scream again, but was flipped on my back painfully, crushing something that shouldn't be there and making me cry out as whatever they were continued to stretch and grow underneath my shirt and vest. Looking up at what had flipped me, I saw Aya. Scared and confused, I reached up to him, breathing heavily from the pain. "Aya. . . Help."
It took me only seconds to realize that Aya was not here to help. He stood over me with a hard expression, his eyes cold and determined, his whole demeanor shifted into someone I didn't recognize. He placed a sword against my throat and I swallowed, trying to keep still even as the tearing at my back continued. My skin burned so badly that I bit my lip, drawing blood.
"I knew you were just like them," he said with disgust and hatred. "I knew. As soon as I saw that tell-tale red hair, I knew you had their blood."
Slightly daze and confused, I asked, "What are you talking about? Like who?"
He leaned closer to me. "Like all the females of your line. A dragon."
"What are you talking about?" I repeated, gasping as another shock of pain went through me. My veins were cooling down, I thought, or I was just getting used to the heat. Either way, it was only my back that was hurting. That spot between my shoulder blades was burning, my skin boiling. "You're not making sense."
He relaxed his sword a bit, genuine shock filling him. "My God, no one told you at all?" He played the tip of his sword in my hair and I turned my head away. "You're just like your mother and her mother before her--a dragon. A destructive beast that brings nothing but disaster in its wake. That's all they've ever done and you're going to be just like them! I can't take the chance that you'll turn into what you're trying to now and decide to take apart the Colless."
"I'm not going to destroy anything!" I shouted weakly.
"Your destiny says otherwise." He raised his sword to my throat again. "You can't see yourself right now, but you look just like what you are--a monster. You have scales instead of skin, your eyes are those of a reptiles and I bet you're growing wings out of your back. Why do you think you have no parents? It's because your mother was the same as you and had to be killed. She was a fire-breathing beast without a heart." He wrinkled his nose in disgust, the shadows on his face making him look frightening. The length of his sword gleamed in the moonlight as he stared down its surface at me. "You're not human, Raven, and that makes you a threat. Just like she was."
"So, what?" I spat, fear making my heart pound and reality making it break. Had he always been suspecting this? Had he known even though he had kissed me that I might be someone with dragon blood in them? If so, for how long had he known? Since when had everything turned into a lie? Was it all just an illusion, an elaborate game he created so that I would be putty in his hands until he deemed I was a threat? "Are you going to kill me?"
Please, say no. Just tell me no.
He didn't even blink. "Yes."
I closed my eyes, tears leaking out as my heart shattered. I had been so stupid. No wonder he had never come to see me. No wonder he had been so insulting. No wonder he had stopped writing. . But why had he gone so far? Why pretend for so long? Why kiss me?
"Now," he started. "Hold still. Since you're practically immortal, this will take a while."
Yeah, well, I wasn't going to give up that easily. Ignoring the pain in my back and lungs, I took a deep breath and whistled sharply. Realizing what I had done, Aya raised his sword and made to swing down even as I scrambled to get away from him.
Marlen beat him to his blow. She flung herself at his face, her glow probably blinding him and her tiny hands definitely giving him something to mess with. I didn't wait. Even when she shouted "Run!", I was already on my feet and racing as fast as I could, fighting with the pain as I pushed my body past its limits to get to the cover of the trees on the other side of the garden.
I didn't make it.
Pain shattered my rib-cage and I looked down in shock to see the blood-soaked tip of an arrow protruding from the middle of my chest. My breath came out in wet gasps as I latched onto the arrow and turned in shock to face Aya, the world around me silent as I tried to make sense of what was happening.
Why was he doing this? I couldn't make sense of it. I didn't understand. His face was scratched, but he was otherwise uninjured as he strung another arrow to his bow and pulled it back with an unyielding, cold and cruel expression I never thought I'd see directed towards me.
I fell to my knees, unable to support myself any longer and he hesitated. Gritting my teeth, I grabbed the arrow and pulled it forward in a slow but constant motion. I screamed helplessly, and my breaths came in shallow when I finally dropped the arrow on the ground, blood seeping from the hole in my chest to soak my shirt. Just a few more feet and I would have reached the trees. Maybe then I would have had a chance to get away from him, get away from this nightmare. I wanted to ask him why, but I couldn't form the words, couldn't even get enough air.
Agony was probably obvious in my eyes as I pulled my head up to face him, unable to do anything else. I was going to have to watch him kill me. I was going to have to watch the man I had been infatuated with since I was three, the man that was supposed to protect me, love me, the man that was supposed to rescue me take my life. The pain was unbearable and I felt my heart crumble into ash inside my broken chest. But if he was going to kill me, he was damn well going to have to look me in the eye as he did it.
A flash of pain crossed his face, but he schooled his features and drew his bow again, aiming at my chest.
For a second, he just stood there, the silence echoing around us as he poised, ready to fire the finishing shot. Tears streamed down my face, unchecked and unwilling, but I refused to look away, pain and betrayal seeping from my eyes so thick that there was no way he couldn't read that in my expression. His brows drew downward in what I thought was regret and, as if he couldn't take it, he closed his eyes and released the arrow. It whistled through the air, loud and true, cutting through the air and coming straight for my heart, but it never struck me.
A wind swept up and suddenly a white figure of a beautiful woman was standing before me, the arrow in her hand and an expression of murder on her face. I had known those features my whole life, I had just never seen them this big before, so it took me a second to realize that it was a life-size Marlen. Her hair shone in a pinkish silver in the moonlight as she lifted me into her arms, cradling me into her chest, her pristine robes getting stained with my blood.
"You will never touch her again, human," she sang, her voice lilting the threat so sweetly that I had to blink. Aya had taken a step towards her, his face surprised and his eyes somewhat glassy. Marlen crouched, bending her knees as if bracing herself. "I will you kill you myself if ever you raise a finger against her. Think on what you've done and regret, because next time you won't be able to."
Without another word, Marlen launched herself into the air, the wind moving my hair. Jenea was going to be so angry. It was probably a mess. But she could wait. I was slipping away--I could feel it. So I clutched at Marlen's robes as my eyes shut on their own and said the only thing I could think of before I died, "Marlen, thank you."