The Lake

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Emerald

The morning came earlier than Id liked but I was excited to start day two of my journey and today I want to go pick some flowers and maybe go swimming. Two things I never get to do at home, the only time I could see the flowers was in the garden and picking them was a taboo. The royal family would never be caught swimming either, the only times I've ever gone was when I snuck out with Lia, and she took me.

Unable to wait I start to empty out my basket onto the dresser to use it to carry the flowers, I leave a little food inside the basket an also pack an extra dress encase I decide to go swimming. I glance out the window half excepting to see an army storming in with my father at the forefront coming to save the day. The taught brought a smile to my face at just the image of my father. Growing up our relationship might not have been typical of a normal father/daughter relationship.

Its always been either "Your Majesty" or "Father" all my life, never dad like a normal person. King Leopold was strict in the way of etiquette, not that he didn't show me affection it was just in his own way. Where normal kids could play and be a kid, I had to be prim and proper at all times and make sure I'm always on top of my game so no one could see a weakness in the royal family. We must always be strong and held together so the people will put trust into us.

My mother wasn't always royalty, she was once a commoner, and my father was actually banned from seeing her as a kid. It broke his heart, but he obeyed his father and stopped seeing my mother. It wasn't until her eighteenth birthday that he discovered she was actually his mate the whole time. His parents weren't happy about him marrying a commoner, but a mate bond is sacred and is to be honored no matter what. In our kingdom if the heir to the throne hasn't found their mate by the age of twenty-one an arranged marriage will be planned and executed on their birthday as well as their coronation and a new reign would begin.

The supernatural world can be a tricky place, with different versions of the same religion but among every species one thing remains consistent and that is mates. The Moon Goddess matches you with one special person who is supposed to be your other half. A mate is more than a normal human marriage, ones souls are connected and constantly calls for the other and there's no avoiding it. When someone finds their mate, they preform the marking which is when you complete your bond and forever be connected as one.

The marking is normally done in private and during an intimate act, but its been known in some cultures as royalty to be marked in front of your people. I however think that's barbaric, in Mythrein culture the marking is very personal. That's why I was to be wed on my twenty-first birthday and take over the throne its tradition but still saddens me because I always dreamed of finding my mate. I dont want to be forced into a marriage that I cant get out of just because I haven't found my mate by twenty-one.

To be marked by your mate would be a dream come true to any supernatural being. I havent been informed much of what happens after the marks been completed but I do know that after you wed each other when you consummate the marriage each bites the other on the neck and it completes the bond. The mark heals fast and leaves behind a beautiful scar to show people your mated. Thats about as far as my knowledge goes on mates and the marking.

I snap out of my thoughts not wanting to think about my wedding thats supposed to be the happiest day of my life but instead has been turned into a prison sentence that will last a lifetime. I wish my parents would put an end to the arranged marriages after what they went through, but I was wrong. I put on my shoes which are a size too big for me, so I keep both bags of my scent pills hidden at the tops of both and decide to go ahead and head to the lake to get my mind off home.

I leave the room smiling ready to get to the flowers and actually pick some. As I get to the bottom of the stairs, I notice that Ella isnt at the desk, instead is a younger girl with bright red hair. Shes writing or drawing something in a book as I pass and doesnt even look up once. I head out of the Inn and start for the path she showed me yesterday that heads toward the lake. I know that the walk will take a while and I'm really enjoying alone time. Dont get me wrong I loved going yesterday with Ella, but I came on this journey to find myself and thats what Im going to do!

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