My Princess

Chapter 30

The hours passed painstakingly slowly, not a single drop of light entering the dark dungeon cell. I had no clue how long it had actually been, whether it was night or day, or when someone would come down here next.

I wasn't sure if I was more fearful or grateful for the fact that after depositing my companion and I down here we had received no other human contact. On one hand we were safe from those creeps that had been spying on us, but on the other there was no chance of escape until one of them made an appearance again.

It was cold and Narcissa and I huddled together against the damp, dirt wall, our wrists and ankles chafing from the rope that bound them. Our eyes had grown accustomed to the pitch blackness around us, a heightened sense of hearing allowing us to listen to the scrapes and bangs above us as everyone else went about their normal daily life, either unaware or uncaring of the two prisoners trapped below their feet.

I had completely lost all track of time when the sound of a heavy metal door scraping open sounded from above us, light flooding in and searing my eyes. I shielded them as I tried to look at who was coming down the stairs, heavy bootstraps coming ever closer as I squinted against the bright light.

"Well I see the two of you haven't succumbed to insanity from sitting in the dark for two days. At least I hope you haven't. The mentally I'll aren't as.. fresh in my personal opinion." Chance laughed as he squatted down in front of me, leering at me as I tried to inch backwards away from him.

"I've brought supper. It may not be the last meal you were hoping for but it'll be the last thing you'll ever get to taste so do try and enjoy it. The butcher will be down soon." The man chuckled low in his throat, dropping two bowls of undistinguished mush in front of our feet.

Surprisingly enough a single candle was left in the center of the room, far enough away that Narcissa or I couldn't get to it easily but showering the room in enough yellow light to see our food and a shadowy version of each other. Chance himself left without another word, shutting and locking the old metal door behind him with a loud 'clang'.

I hesitantly took one of the bowls, bringing it up to my face to smell. It didn't smell like anything in specific and I was wary of what they might be trying to put in our bodies. However, Chance had said the butcher would be down soon, indicating that he would be the one to end our lives, plus I very seriously doubted they would want to poison the very meat they intended to consume.

I used my fingers to pinch some of the bready mush into a ball, poking it into my mouth. I didn't taste like much at all, bland, flavorless, gruel. I nodded at my companion to give her the go ahead, the other girl doing the same as I and hesitantly smelling the substance before tasting it.

We hadn't spoke much these last two days, preferring to stew in our own thoughts in the darkness. However, now that I could somewhat see her, I could see the fear that riddled Narcissa's body. The other girl sat with her knees pulled up, fingers shaking as she meekly ate her food.

"Hey." I rasped out, voice rough from disuse. "I promised I'd take care of you. I don't intend to break that promise anytime soon. We'll get out of this."

My companion turned her gaze towards me, chewing methodically and swallowing before responding.

"Yeah, sure." She sounded entirely unconvinced as her eyes fell upon the clay bowl once more. I sighed, pursing my lips as I looked at her for a long moment and contemplating what I could say to comfort her before thinking better of it and simply averting my gaze.

We were pretty fucked and we both knew it. There was no point in denying that fact.

✨✨✨

I presumed it to be nightfall when the sound of footsteps approached us once more. This time there were voices that accompanied them, a second figure coming down the stone stairwell with a heavy apron covering the front of his body.

"Up." Chance spoke, jutting his head towards the door. "It's time."

The second man was obviously the butcher, leering at the pair of us as he would a well bred pig. I could feel his eyes roaming over my body, not in a sexual way, but as if he was imagining the most tender pieces of meat he would carve from my flesh.

I gulped, hauling myself to my feet on shaky legs as my companion stood just slightly behind me. I held both Chance and the butcher's gaze, keeping their focus on myself rather than Narcissa as I subtly shifted my body in front of hers just a little bit more.

Chance turned towards the stairs, Narcissa and I falling into line behind him with the butcher taking up the rear to keep us from escaping. He was a large man in both height and weight, beady little eyes all but undressing us as sweat poured from his fleshy brow the sound of his huffing breath following us as we all trudged back up the stairs.

I had to squint against the bright light of the kitchen as we made it to the top, shielding my eyes with one hand as they struggled to adjust after two days in pitch blackness. We paraded through the inn and out into the streets of the town, turning in the direction of the apothecary and far side of the village as the full moon cast a soft glow over us.

It was a rather quiet march of death, the streets empty and dark but the closer we drew to the edge of the town the more voices began to fill my ears. The glow of a bonfire up ahead greeted us, the entire village standing in a circle around something I could not see.

Chance whistled to gain the crowd's attention, the gaggle of men, women, and even children turning and parting down the middle like the Red Sea. Dozens of eyes leered at us as we passed, giving us the same look as the butcher had, as if my companion and I were nothing but a cow raised for a long awaited holiday supper.

Even the young children stared at us hungrily, eyes filled with want. They didn't see us as human beings just as they themselves were, they had already been turned into vicious brutes by their town's history. I looked away, unable to bare the thought of such young children being taught that this was the way one should live.

At the center of the circle stood a guillotine and a bonfire, already dressed and ready to have Narcissa and I roasting over top of it. I felt the other girl fearfully grab my hand, her fingers shaking as they desperately clung to my own. I squeezed them, offering what little comfort I could give to her in that moment but knowing it wasn't nearly enough.

"Friends!" Chance shouted, grinning as he spun in a slow circle to address the crowd. "The time has come for our annual sacrifice to the Gods. They have gifted us yet another year of bountiful harvest and it is only right we should give back to them for their generous sacrifice. For the second year in a row, the Gods have gifted us not one but two to indulge in." The innkeeper turned to us, a sadistic grin on his face as he looked down at Narcissa and I.

"And this year is extra incredulous. For we have two very special people to partake in our ceremony." Chance grabbed my arm, hoisting it above my head to show the crowd who he was speaking of. "This here is our very own potion master's bastard child!"

The crowd gasped and awed as I stood there in shock, my blood running cold. How did he know that? I hadn't told anyone other than Narcissa that.

"And this here." He took Narcissa's arm in his free hand, hoisting it over her head just as had mine. "Is none other than Narcissa Black, the youngest daughter of the royal Black family!"

The crowd only grew louder and I could feel my heart beating rapidly, threatening to pound right out of my chest. We had been so careful. We hadn't even told my father who Narcissa really was. How the Hell did he know all of this?

Chance dropped our arms, turning us to face him as he leaned down to whisper in-between us. "Guess you should have been a little bit more careful about your gossip sessions huh?" He laughed. "Or at least picked a more subtle nickname."

I gulped, realizing I was the one who had given us away. That camera Chance had hidden in our bedroom hadn't only captured our most intimate moments, it had heard us speaking about my father and how I called Narcissa 'princess' all the time. This was on me.

My body went numb as I realized the danger I had put us both in for dropping my guard. I had known all along something wasn't right but I hadn't listened to my gut, wanting so badly to believe this was a place we could come to call home. Now, my mistake may very well cost us our lives.