Where the Land meets the Sky

Chapter 17 Kiraleth

After I left the dungeon earlier, I wandered aimlessly through the castle, until I found myself here in Amy's old bedroom. It's devoid of all personality, but when I closed my eyes, I could still see the way it used to look clearly, as though it had never changed.

I tried to say goodbye to her in my heart. I have to let go of all the feelings I've harbored toward Amelia for the last eight years. It will make things easier for me when we inevitably part ways.

Then I heard footsteps coming from the hall outside. I'm not sure what compelled me, but I stood up and leaned out of the doorway and I saw a beautiful princess in a ball gown, sprinting toward me. I saw the glint of brown scales as the princess passed under the torchlight.

And now here I am; standing before her. Amelia pants for breath as and looks up at me. Something about her is different. It's more than just her messed-up hairdo or her the elegant gown that somehow perfectly compliments her scales but seems ruffled and disheveled. She's out of breath and there's an expression on her face is one that I just cannot decipher. Is she sad? Angry? Hurt? Resentful?

"I demand a secret meeting!" she shouts. Her voice reverberates throughout the corridor.

One look in her eyes and all the peace I've built in my heart shatters.

"Amelia," I close my eyes and turn away. "I--"

Her warm soft hands grasp my wrist. I feel the breath being sucked from my lungs. She spins on her heels, yanking me along behind her. My feet stumble. I hear our footsteps clattering against the stone as she guides me away.

I hope whatever she's dragging me to doesn't rob me of my resolve to call off our engagement. It's something I must do. For her sake.

Princess Amelia shoves me into our guest chamber's sitting room. A roaring fire is already blazing from the large stone hearth. The two chairs have been pressed close to each other and a steaming pot of tea rests on the end table.

I hear the doors lock behind us. My wings stiffen. My hands ball into fists.

This is the room where it happened, isn't it? This is where I got down on my knees for the first time in my young life and apologized from the bottom of my heart.

What was I thinking back then? Probably the exact same thing that I'm thinking now: That I would do just about anything to keep this beautiful draconid in my life.

"Amy, I--"

"Kiraleth--"

We talk over each other. I close my eyes, clench my jaw and turn my head away. This nostalgia is just making everything more painful. Why? Why did she have to demand a secret meeting? And why those words? Is she trying to break my heart?

Amy clears her throat and starts picking the pins out of her hair. One by one those glossy ringlets of hers fall down to her shoulders in a beautiful cascade of straw-colored strands.

I sit down and loosen the collar of my shirt. Men's clothes are constricting. I feel as though I can hardly breathe in this shirt. Removing the tie around my neck doesn't provide the relief I was hoping and instead my breathing grows heavier.

Amy sits down in the chair across from mine. We are so close together that our knees are almost touching. When we were little girls sitting in these chairs our feet didn't even touch the ground.

Stop it, I order myself to focus on the task at hand: saying goodbye.

"Kiraleth--" Amy begins. I put my hand up to stop her.