ᴜɴᴅᴇʀ ᴀ ꜱᴘᴇʟʟ ᴏꜰ ʟᴏᴠᴇ

05

I sat at the big diningtable, opposite me Clara, next to Damiano, at the end of the board sat Nate and opposite him at the other end sat a woman. She was from the country's daily newspaper. Her golden feather matched her exaggerated make-up, the same feathers adorned her uptucked red hair. "Prince Damiano, Prince Nathan, it's a long time since we saw each other ," she said and inspected me with her cat eyes. "Miss Feather," Nate nodded to the woman. Her name matched her appearance exactly. "Let's start right away," she happily tapped around on the sheet. "I see we have a guest here," she stretched the pen in my direction. "You, my darling, tell me your name." "Anabelle Trey of Zilda," I told her proudly. Trey was a well-known name in my country, my father worked hard for his recognition, which he probably did not deserve at all. "A Trey, you are from far away if you are a Trey," she said and wrote eagerly on the sheet. "Well," I said. "She's here because of me," Nate replied for me, "she's not an guest, she's part of me." That was enough for Miss Feather because she already wrote her own words on the paper, while golden color splashed around. The conversation continued, asking about the lovers of Damiano, who showed rather uninterested aversion, she was also asking about me and Nate, where all this came from, she talked also about rumors that were clarified and new estates of the king.

It was late when I arrived in my room. However, every day here ended late, something I still hadn't gotten used to after a few weeks. After I took a bath and got ready for bed, there was a knock on my door. I quickly brushed a coat over me. To my relief, it was only Nate who looked as tired as I was. "I just wanted to say good night to you," he whispered and took me in his arms. I looked up at him. "Good night Nate." "Good night Anabelle," he said and kissed me on my forehead. I closed the door quietly and snuggled into all the blankets and pillows. And I fell into a deep, dreamy sleep.

It was late night when I woke up. A look outside made it clear to me. I heard voices outside. I tapped to the balcony and already shoved away the heavy curtains. A starry sky beamed towards me. The moon illuminated the courtyard that spread out in front of my balcony. There was a person in the middle. I didn't recognize who it was, but I heard a muffled voice. The rose tendrils piled up like a wall and blocked my view. That was a clear sign of leaving whoever that was alone, but my curiosity won and I took the way down.
I quietly sneaked over the cold floor of the castle until I was finally outdoors. Cold night air surrounded me. It was really bright when I walked through the wet grasses. Little flowers bloomed next to me. I looked at the way of flowers that was laid for me. It was really an enchanted garden. Another surprise in this castle.
I stopped abruptly. Again I heard voices. But there was only one person to be seen? A queasy feeling spread within me. And the next moment, before I knew it, the thorny arms of the flowerwalls dragged me into themselves.

I found myself in this wall, protected by the tendrils. I had a perfect view of the person I had heard. To my surprise, it was Nate. He sat by a stone surrounded by roses. And I only now understood that it was a grave. It was a beautiful grave. The name of a woman adorned the grave, under it stood "beloved wife of the king". It was Nate's mother.
"I told you about her, mother, it's her! I finally found her, do you believe me?" Part of my heart broke as I watched Nate talk to his dead mother. A little rose whispered to him. This place could not be more magical. It was a beautiful picture, Nate looked like a fallen warrior, sitting next to the grave while the rose talked to him. I gathered and disappeared quickly. It was too intimate for me to listen to him. I probably shouldn't even have gone out. Even if it filled my heart with warmth as he told his mother about me. Did he go to her every night?

I was back in the castle, it was so quiet and I was hurrying to get upstairs. I resolutely climbed the stairs to my room. Suddenly, I was pressed quickly and hard against the wall at the top. A hissing escaped me when a strong grip pressed against me. I pressed myself scared against the figure but the grip was far too tight. Damiano cursed when he realized that it was just me and slowly let go of me. "Shit Belle, what are you doing here?" You could see the relief in his face. His blue eyes shimmered in the moonlight and looked dangerous. Apparently he thought I was some burglar. At the thought I had to smile a little. "I couldn't sleep," I answered truthfully. "Better go to your room, if Nathan finds you awake here he will be worried." His gaze slipped over me while I was still standing by the wall and only dressed in my night dress. Damiano was way too close to me. I hastily turned towards my room, a slight tingling effected in my stomach. I still felt his gaze on me and my skin was burning. However, when I turned around again, Damiano was already gone. I quickly disappeared into my room, closed the curtains, snuggled up again and forced me to sleep.

The next day I was introduced to anticipating plans. It seemed as if the empire had many opponents. The king assigned tasks to each of his sons, the days I spent my time mostly alone or with Clara. I finally decided to leave the castle and go into the city. To my relief, I also managed to do this and made my way with the carriage to the center of the empire, which was not far from the castle. After some time, I also arrived. It was a magical backdrop. A palace crowned the center of the old city. It was the official royal seat, the place where the princes were probably right now and discussing plans with their father. I explored the different parts of the city. There were many. Every part was named. Even Nate and Damiano had their own, as did the King himself and his lovers. There were a total of three that I made up, Damiano's mother, Nathan's mother and his new wife.

The people who were walking around the city seemed just as enchanted as the city itself. There were old magic shops, magical bookstores, as well as magical clothing stores. I tried one of these clothing stores. The sign showed "Mathilda's magic dresses". I opened the door and was flooded by a cloud of fragrance. A woman approached me, she had white-gray hair and smiled at me. "I had already wondered when you would come," she said. I didn't say anything and just smiled. "I'm looking for a dress," I said. "Oh yes, come with me," she put a hand on my back and led me into a compartment of the shop. She held a green dress towards me. It fit me perfectly. It had an emerald green corset with golden cords as a top and the underskirt made of green tulle. It felt like a cloud. The old woman didn't have to persuade me, I bought it right away. She smiled immediately and told me that she knew I would like it. I did more small purchases before I made my way back to the castle.

The sun was already at the end of the hill and it would soon get dark. Happy about my purchase, I ran into my room to dress myself in the dress. It really fit perfectly. And in fact, the dress had a small inner pocket over my waist. It was perfectly made for the dagger, which I always hid under my pillow. I pushed the blade into the pocket and closed the corset again. There was already a knock on my door.