"I still wonder about it," I said.
His brow furrowed, eyes searching my expression. "Wonder about what?"
"Whether you're the villain in my story."
~~~~~~~
Mara Monroe is at the center of a war she wanted no part in.
But with her new throne she fac...
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I woke the next morning and he was gone. But that was no surprise.
In fact, I didn't see him again the next two days. I did, however, run into Andras again. This time, the Winter Prince was passing by the bench where I'd spoken to his sister only days before. Sketching again just as I'd been then.
"Are you an artist?" he asked, making me jump a little at his sudden appearance.
He chuckled a little at my reaction, lingering by a camellia shrub blooming with small pink bulbs. I imagined that the magic in the Winter court was like that of Summer in that the plants and flora seemed to have a mind of their own. Still, the sight of a flower with the soft dusting of snow on its petals was enough to inspire a quick sketch.
"Yes, I was still in school when... ah, well when I came into my new position," I said.
"School for art?" His brow furrowed. "Is that necessary for mortals in order to become artists?"
I laughed softly. "If they want to make money from art, it helps, but no it's not, strictly speaking, necessary. I was an artist before I went and I am still one even though I can't return."
His eyes scanned my face and if this had been a year ago, I probably would have blushed and started rambling. But it wasn't a year ago. And I wasn't the same girl.
"You sound sad about that."
"Which part?"
"That you won't return. Does it sadden you, your majesty? Your new position?"
My eyes widened at the question, taken aback by the straightforwardness of this conversation. I wondered if he could understand the depth of what he asked. He was born into his position. And while I'd been born a princess of the Summer court, I lived my whole life with three people who stood between the throne and me. In a matter of months, all three of those people were gone.
"If that's an invasive question, I do apologize. It's just that," Andras paused, "you fascinate me."
"It's not invasive," it definitely was, but I still had the urge to be honest, "I am saddened by how I received the position. Not so much by the position itself."
He nodded, "you've experienced great loss. I cannot even imagine."
And he couldn't. His whole family still lived. He was born into his duties and grew up learning how to carry them out. Fitting perfectly into one world rather than trying to hide half of himself.
I wasn't sure how to respond to him, instead I glanced down at my sketch pad. The drawing I started of the snow ridden camellia looked less whimsical and more melancholic than I intended. I shut the book.
Only a few days ago, I'd been in the same spot having a conversation with his sister. However, she and I talked about taking on a horde of vampires rather than my artistic tendencies. I preferred the former.
