anything and everything

Man in the Shadows

Cherry sat on her rail of her terrace, enjoying the cool night breeze. She needed a moment to escape her reality.

To escape the loveless marriage she'd been sucked into when selecting the wrong man for her lover.

To escape the stress of trying to fix a country that did not want to.

To escape everything real.

She felt like a teenager again as she sat there. Any minute her nanny would run in and scold her for doing something so dangerous.

Why was it when she looked down at her feet she had a momentary thought to throw herself off. What would falling feel like?

Cherry did not want to die, it was only a passing thought.  She closed her eyes, swaying slightly but not intentionally.

She had read all the romance stories on her shelf dozens of times over. Now she pictured herself a prince. A nice man who walked out to the terrace with her. One who brushed her hair aside and whispered.to her "you'll catch a cold."

He would care for her health and happiness. He would love her. He would take her inside and they'd share tea, bonding through their silence.

"Come inside, you'll catch a cold."

Cherry nearly fell off the rail as she heard a voice in her ear. She opened her eyes and looked around but saw nothing. She needed to sleep, that was all. Lack of sleep was driving her insane.

The days continued to pass without incident but Cherry started to wish one would occur. In her dreams she saw a shadow man. The prince that had come to help her that cold night.

He had no name or face in her dream but he felt real.

Cherry couldn't stand the sound of her castle and left on her horse down the riding trails. She stopped at the lakeside clearing so she could think.

Focus on the sun, on the animals, and the cold water.

"You're never alone, princess. It's no good for you."

Cherry looked around but didn't see anyone. Yet that voice had been so close she could practically feel their breath on her neck.

She was going crazy.

"Stop trying to find me. I can't show you myself. You know that."

This time the voice was in her other ear. She desired to look but held herself still. From the corner of her eyes she could see no one was there. She knew that voice. It was the prince in her dreams.

"Why cant you show me your face?" Cherry asked but was met only with silence.

What a familiar feeling to her, being ignored. She was ignored or insulted, there was rarely another option. She didn't usually feel this disappointed from it.

Cherry wasn't sure why she'd found herself in the ballroom. She just was drawn there. The moment she opened the door she saw a figure there. A man standing dressed head to toe in a black formal attire. He was ready for a ball except the mask he wore was more fitting for a masquerade.

"Will you dance with me princess?"

"I haven't seen you in ages." None the less, Cherry approached him.

"I was saving my energy so I could share a dance with you, my love."

Cherry looked at his extended hand for a moment too long before she took it. She hadnt spoken much to her mystery shadow man but she felt right with him. She felt loved and appreciated.

Now, gliding over the floors with him, she felt happier than she had in many years. She didn't want it to end.

°°°°

"I don't want to wake her." The princesses personal servants had come in to prepare her for the day.

"Why not?" Rin asked, keeping her voice equally low so they would not wake her husband.

They laid with their backs facing one another on the opposite side of this large bed. Cherry had a pillow wrapped in her arms.

"Look how peaceful she is. She's having a good dream." Elyse answered sounding a little sad.

The man she'd chosen as a husband had no desire to love her. To help with her work. To do anything but suffer in his own mental prison that he'd constructed himself. Rin and Elyse cared for cherry but there was nothing they could do.

Rin looked at Cherrys smile. A genuine smile they hadn't seen in months. "What do you think she's dreaming about?"

"Probably something with her brother or dad."

"Come on, she asked to be woken up. Don't upset her by letting her sleep late." Rin focused again on the task. The two woke Cherry easily by calling her name and shaking her arm.

Cherry woke with a slight start and gazed at her pillow for a moment. She looked disappointed but it was quickly masked.

"How was your sleep, Queen Cherry? You looked quite peaceful." Elyse greeted her with a smile. "Did you have a good dream?"

"I did... Yes." So it was all a dream, she should have known.

"What was it about?" Rin asked.

"It doesn't matter. I can't let my dreams come true. There's matter more important than fantasies. Please bring breakfast to my study, I have work to catch up on." Cherry said, getting herself out of bed and walking to her closet to find clothing.

Dreams are for those who have nothing else. Elyse had heard Cherry say it before.

She glared at the back of the sleeping king. Of course Faris hadn't been woken by their commotion.

He could fix all of those. He could bring the light back into Cherrys eyes. He could give her a real smile. He could at least be her friend if not a lover.

But he wouldn't.

Cherry had once had dozens of dreams, each was plucked away by the handful. She clutched onto only one after all this time.

With everything in her she held onto her dream of finding love.

Elyse could see her hold was growing loose, she was growing tired.

Faris was about to cut the thread that tied cherry to her final dream.

Elyse feared the day she would see all light drain from Cherrys eyes. All hope from her soul. The only one that could save her refused to see it.

MissAvarice