My Princess

Chapter 16

It was so peaceful here. The world around me held a sense of calm that I had never felt before and my inner world felt the exact same.

I had everything. Narcissa and I had our own little cottage beside the river, animals big and small living comfortably alongside us.

The weather was so warm, sunshine caressing my skin and a mild breeze keeping it from scalding me. I stood in the grassy field in front of our cottage as my lover picked berries, catching my eye and waving with a sweet giggle as she stood.

I could just barely make out the sound of her humming as she walked back towards the cottage, dress swishing as her hips moved to the rhythm of her own music. I giggled as I watched her go, coming to a disturbing realization.

No matter how hard I thought I could not recall anything about my life before this, and I found that quite strange indeed. I could not remember my childhood, the significance of this place, or even how I knew the young woman I was so obviously in love with. All I could remember was this exact moment in time.

How did I even get here? Am I dreaming? I thought to myself with a furrowed brow, gazing around at the perfect little life I had here. Was it even real? Why couldn't I remember?

Things began to grow hazy, a yellow tinted light surrounding the world around me as it began to fade out into a dark void of nothingness.

Narcissa POV:

The night was indeed very long. Y/n never actually woke but tossed and turned for hours shivering with fever. I had been keeping up with her pulse periodically and it often sped up or slowed down significantly, indicating that her heart was failing and trying in vain to hang on.

I had spent the night holding her in my arms, cooling her with a cloth, and trying to force water down her throat to keep her hydrated. It was now just barely sunrise, the soft rays of the sun lapping at the horizon as it worked its way higher in the sky.

I listened to y/n's labored breathing as she shook in my arms, the sound scarily similar to that of the few dying relatives I had encountered as a small child. I believe the adults had called it the 'death rattle' in which the lungs had begun to fill with fluid they could no longer push out.

I wanted nothing more than to rush down to that apothecary and hurry the potion's master along, however, I could not find it within me to leave /n's side. I could not bare the thought of her.. succumbing to this illness alone.

I would not leave her today. I could not leave her today.

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Around noon I ventured downstairs to the bar, catching Chance's eye as I sat down on a well worn stool.

"Ah Narcissa. I didn't see you for breakfast this morning." He started, a curious look on his scruffy face.

"Yeah. Y/n is getting worse and I cannot get her medicine until this evening. I just.. don't want to leave her for any longer than absolutely necessary." I sighed, actually quite relieved to tell someone even if it wasn't the entire truth.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Here, a drink on the house. I'll get the cook to rustle you up a meal since you missed the normal freebie."

"Thank you Chance. I really appreciate it." I smiled at the young man, taking the glass and downing the strong liquor in one go.

"Damn. Somehow I didn't expect you to be one that could drink like that." Chance chuckled, taking note of just the ice cubes remaining.

"I'm not usually one to drink but whatever numbs the pain I suppose."