Daughter of the Night [A Twisted Wonderland Fanfic]

Chapter 5

Y/N gripped the stitches of her dress, trying to breathe steadily as she stared at the ebony fabric wrinkling in her vice-like grip. Even with the gloves, made of the finest silk, the satin fabric of Y/N's dress was doomed to suffer a painful experience as she trundled back along the path, heading away from the castle that she had spent the last few weeks at. 

Slowly, she raised her gaze from her lap where her clutch sat, turning to the veiled window. Lifting her hand, she pushed back the edge of the fabric, a weak smile clinging to her cheeks as she watched the castle of Night Raven Academy disappear over the hill. She allowed the fabric to flutter back into place, a silent ripple in the air, and sighed, leaning back into her seat. She shifted for a moment, trying to find a comfortable position, before eventually giving up and slouching back against the velvet. No one was here to scold her for not holding the proper posture, though she was well aware that her mother might have liked to scold her every waking second.

At the thought of her mother, Y/N reached into her clutch and pulled out her phone, tapping the screen. She always kept the brightness at half, not too dark that she would have to strain her eyes, but not too light that her eyes would grow weak from the bright light. Her mother had also made her promise to never use her phone in the dark when it ought to be less than half so as not to strain her eyes. 

'What does the old bat want now,' Nox huffed. Y/N pictured her sitting across the carriage, her arms crossed and her usual pout adorning her lips. Black hair that seemed too perfect, and too straight to be natural, and the light sort of fizzing that came from Nox's body, for she was not as real as people thought her to be. 

'I think it's lovely that we get to see Aloren after a year,' Luna said. It felt as though she was sitting next to Y/N in a beautiful dress of white and blue, bouncing excitedly as she dreamed of meeting their fiancé. Though Y/N could hardly stand listening to Nox and her constant complaints about just about anything that happened to cross her path, there were times when Y/N wished that the sunny counterpart would simply sit in silence and say nothing. 

Y/N chuckled sourly as she pulled up the picture of Aloren that her mother had sent. Dressed in a beautiful suit of midnight blue, most likely a gift from his three aunts who he spent each summer with. Gold epaulettes sat on his shoulders, the tassels swinging in the wind of the portrait. A kind smile had been painted upon his handsomely chiselled face, illuminated by the sunlight of the garden where he stood. A hat had been tucked under his arm, a small golden emblem sitting upon the rim that bore the mark of his house, a house that Y/N would soon belong to.

'He's handsome,' Luna said. Y/N could almost feel her hovering over her shoulder and turned off her phone, stuffing it back into her clutch. 

'Prince Charming,' Nox scoffed, her voice venom in Y/N's mind. 

"More like Governor Charming," Y/N said, turning her attention to the window again. 

She pulled back the curtains once more and sighed when she saw the approaching shoreline. None of her friends would be pleased when they discovered that she was leaving without telling them where she was going, but Y/N preferred that they, Malleus especially, remain in the dark about her whereabouts. She had sworn Lilia to secrecy, telling him that she would explain everything when she returned. Not that he had been keen about letting her travel to the kingdom by herself rather than being accompanied by himself. But Y/N assured him that the ship would be travelling by portal and would arrive within an hour. 

The carriage suddenly rolled to a stop and Y/N sighed, waiting for her escort to open the door for her. 

"A lady always waits for a gentleman to open the door for her," Lady Umbra said, holding her daughter's arm tight. Y/N had been about to get up and open the door on her own but quickly sat down upon seeing her mother's glare.