Sinful

555

The aftermath of the King's shocking announcement was complete chaos. Questions exploded out of the countless press, desperate for more insight, while the workers from the castle looked at each other in worry and unease. Princess Thana shot a glance towards Silas in concern, she was hoping he would show some sign of knowledge but the face looking back at her was filled with confusion. Her heart sank. It was clear that the old mage knew nothing about the resignation of the King, which terrified the Princess even more. Silas was the one who knew everything and even he did not predict this outcome. 

The crowd shifted their focus away from the King as he exited the hall and began to focus their attention on the next closest outlet for answers, Princess Thana. They closed in, yelling out various questions in hysteria, worry and shock. The young woman stood from her throne as fast as her body could allow her, she looked around in panic as the crowd began to suffocate her. Her chest tightened as she struggled to grasp enough air for her lungs, sweat dripped from her brow as anxiety filled her body. Her eyes darted across the room in hopes to find an exit but it proved to be useless. The panic overcame her, with blurry vision, the woman slowly begun to collapse. 

Before her body could hit the floor, it was blocked by a strong arm, lifting her up and pulling her closely to their chest. They quickly rushed her out of the room while most of her weight was leaning on them as she struggled to stay somewhat coherent. The noise slowly subsided making Thana aware that she was finally away from the mayhem. The strong arms still held her tight, her heartbeat matched theirs as she attempted to focus on their breathing in order to calm herself down. She untucked her head from their shoulder and was met with scarred dark skin and a bright red cloak. Silas. 

He removed his arms from her body, giving her a view of her surroundings. The infirmary. Thana looked around the empty area, it hadn't been very busy in this quarter for a long time due to their safe haven, it was somewhat comforting to the Princess to know that this room had rarely had visitors. "Stick out your hand." Silas interrupted her thoughts as he placed two black pills in her ghostly white hand. The contrast of the two shades always intrigued the Princess, it was almost beautiful.  She tossed the pills in her mouth, swallowing them quickly with a grimace. 

She's regularly took her medicine to lessen the symptoms of unease and has been for as long as she could remember. It was part of her daily routine, one she does out of habit, one that is required to live a long life. Thana found out early on in life that she was cursed with poor health, a mysterious disease plagued her life, occasionally making the simplest of tasks almost impossible. The King ordered Silas to create a cure for his young Princess but the best Silas could do was make temporary solution, it was proven to dull the painful effects of the illness but was very unpredictable. One dose may mute the disease for a week while the same pill may soothe her up to 8 months, it was a cruel game of Russian roulette, a game of which she was tired of playing. Whenever the medicine wore off, Thana became irritable, angry and violent, her body became hot to the touch, burning her up in excruciating pain. Thankfully, she had several warning symptoms, like unease, anxiety and general weakness, that prepared her for more medicine. If her symptoms ever got overlooked, she would spiral into an unpredictable temperament, forcing everyone to stay alert for the next mood change. She hid her weakness from everyone except for Silas and her father, they were the only ones she trusted. The palace workers knew she got into "moods" but assumed it was just a young woman going through the changes of life. She was ordered to never tell anyone about her disease as a royal having a weakness is dangerous, it would be exploited. Thana would take her illness to the grave, even if it was the thing that put her there.

The two friends sat on a cot, fingers intertwined as Thana slowly recovered from the close call. The duo sat in comfortable silence as their thoughts differed, the princess was still grasping what her father had said while Silas pondered what to eat for dinner. Their silence was interrupted by a royal guard bursting through the infirmary doors, he stood at attention, giving a slight bow of respect before briefing the two on the purpose of his arrival.