The Bad Fairy (girlxgirlxgirl)

11. Guilt Over Old Mistakes

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⚠️ mentions of physical abuse, violence ⚠️

To say that he's not nervous would be a lie.

The hallways of this palace are nothing like the hallways of his own. They are large, dark and full of echoes, with stone walls rising up to a high stone ceiling, only lit by occasional coloured lanterns here and there. The boots of the goblin royal guard echo with every step that they take. They wear heavy clothes. They throw him curious glances. Angry glances. Evil glances. Nayan knows that it's so stupid. He should never have come here.

His sister coming here five years ago is one thing, but this is another. Sure, it must've been terrifying for her, as it would've been for him, too. But she was the youngest princess, a person of no real strategic importance to the goblin kingdom. He's an adult crown prince, probably the most valuable hostage these goblins could think of aside from his own father. Coming here was stupid.

Honestly, Nayan is surprised that they let him in at all. He's followed by a shit ton of guards, sure, but still. How could they have let in an enemy of the kingdom? Nayan is terrified, and that makes him embarrassed.

He's fought on the battlefield in the loopholes, against demon leaders and soldiers alike. That was deadly, that was dangerous, and yet he wasn't terrified then. He wielded his divine sword with a stoic expression on his face and served his kingdom as well as the angel realm for a year or so. The fairy kingdom isn't officially in the war, but he had to prove his strength somehow. He came out alive with a few injuries here and there, not even a nightmare in sight. And now, this is what he's scared of? Walking inside the palace of crown prince Dieq? It's embarrassing, but Nayan can't help it.

The way these guards are staring at him... it's unsettling. It's like they are leading him to his doom.

All corridors of this palace look the same. They are all incredibly dark and empty, large enough to echo and cold enough to make you shudder. It's such a contrast to the loud and bustling markets and city outside the crystal walls. And the differences only enhance from there. Nayan has never felt out of place before, but now in his white and turquoise robe with crystals hanging from every possible place, including in his pink hair, he definitely does. The goblins dress nothing like him. And Nayan is thankful that he's so tall, otherwise he'd look terrifyingly inferior to these tall goblins.

When the goblins suddenly stop Nayan nearly crashes into them before catching himself. They stand in front of a pair of large, closed wooden doors. Nayan takes a deep breath, as quietly as possible. He's here for a reason, so he needs to put on a brave, stoic face like always, and approach his enemy with strength.

"The fairy is here, your highness!"

The prince rolls his eyes at the lack of title, or indeed name that the guard uses when addressing him. He doesn't comment on it though. Patience and sense is what a great leader needs when being diplomatic. He hears someone answer something on the other side of the door, but it's too low of a tone for him to catch it. The guards push the doors open, and Nayan presses his nails into the inside of his palm, hard enough to create a mark, before he heads inside.

"Boys, please, address the prince with a little respect"

The first thing he hears is a rather amused tone, coming from somewhere in the room. There is a large wooden table in the middle, and several chairs around it. Nayan looks around the room to see who just spoke, assuming it to be the crown prince. The first thing he sees is silver hair, a little curled and hanging over his eyes and in the back in the form of a mullet. A sharp, well defined heart shaped face, with a mouth that stretches into a wolfish grin, showcasing his sharp fangs that glint under the dim light. Nayan's breath gets dumbly caught in the back of his throat. He doesn't know what to make of this prince, other than that he's intimidating.