Sea salt and pomegranates

Three

     The next morning was surprisingly cold for the summer, the breeze blowing my dark hair that I noticed was growing slightly long, and it seemed to look disheveled all the time.
    I did my duties as normal, exhaustion having a hold on me for not going to sleep. I felt myself drifting off every now and then, and I continuously found ways to keep myself awake.
But what kept me fully awake was the sound of a scream.
A loud, blood-curdling cry.
My eyes widened, practically bulging out of my sockets. Instead of running away, I decided to run towards the scream, like the fool that I was.
    The scream led me towards someone that looked like Selene. She was standing over something that looked like a giant pool of blood, seemingly disturbed.
"Selene!" I called out, running towards her. "What happened?"
She trembled, as though she was cold, before replying, "There has been..." She turned to the pool of blood, and I saw now someone was laying in it. It was one of the women who resided at the palace, her eyes wide open, blood trickling down the slit in her neck, made from a sharp item most likely.
I turned pale, my legs shaky as I failed to balance. I collapsed on the floor, and my knees buckled. This scene looked far too familiar...
The only thing I could think of was my father's dead body. He was killed the same exact way, laying in a pool of his own blood, his body cold and pale.
Was the same person who killed my father after me..? That couldn't be possible...I was about ten when that happened, six years had passed and nothing threatened my life.
Until now.
    "Fotis!" Selene called out, rushing to my side. "Are you okay?" She asked. "You look sickly..."
    I nodded, my mouth dry. I tried to speak, but no words came out when I opened my mouth. Selene pulled me up, and squeezed me tightly. At first I was surprised, and before I knew it, tears were starting to pour, my eyes red and puffy, my cheeks stained.
    She let go, but my body felt heavy, like I couldn't walk on my own. Selene sighed, rubbing her temples. "I can inform the others that...You are having a day off..." Selene told me.
    I slowly stood up, walking away hurriedly. I turned back to the scene, and I felt the hair on my arms and legs stick up before I started to run.
I heard Selene take a shaky breath before she started to explain to other boys and girls.
If this was the same person who killed my father, why are they suddenly after me? What did we do, and why are they here?
I had so many questions, and no answers.

    That night, I sat down on the beach, to get away from the commotion. It was peaceful, quiet...and that was how I liked it.
    After a short while, I started to hear soft footsteps in the distance. I turned around, spotting Nektarios. I didn't bother to tell him that I was mad because of the feast, we both looked too shaken up to say anything.
    "Why are you here?" I asked him. "I thought after all of that you would be guarded and kept in the palace."
    He sighed, wiggling his toes in the sand. "I would have, yes-but I found a way to distract them...I hope they don't notice I'm gone for quite some time." Nektarios gave me a mischievous grin, and I was curious. He snuck out of the palace? He always seemed like one who would obey the rules, no matter what.
    "Why are you here..? I heard from the servant girl, Selene, that you weren't doing very well." Nektarios questioned.
    "I wasn't, yes..." I answered him truthfully, biting my gum.
    "Is it about your father..?" He wondered out loud. We both froze up once he had said that. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sound insensitive..." He apologized quickly.
    "No, don't be sorry..." I sighed. "It's an honest question." We stopped talking, the silence somehow deafening. "Yes...it is." I took a deep breath, preparing myself, praying to the gods that I wouldn't cry in front of a prince. "The woman...I didn't get a good look at her, but...she was killed, in the exact same way my father was..." My voice was wavering, my eyes burning.
    "I'm sorry..." Nektarios said. "I wish I could have done something to comfort you in that time of vulnerability."
    "Thank you..." I replied softly, smiling, a look of sadness in my eyes. He was right...I was always very expressionate with my eyes.
    He reached out to me, and before I could do anything, used his thumb to brush away a tear that was falling from my cheek. I looked surprised by his affection, both of our cheeks flushing pink. "Sorry, I just..." He mumbled, trailing off.
    Suddenly, out of pure instinct, I tightly hugged him, bringing him into my arms. "Thank you..." I whispered in his ear.
    He hugged me back, but in a more gentle manner. "You don't need to thank me..." He replied.
    We parted, his tunic slightly stained with my tears. He did not seem to mind in the slightest though, which relieved me. I did not want to make him angry. I was not sure what would happen then.
    He swooped his light brown hair to the side, sighing. "I am going to head back to the palace for bed..." He got up, brushing the sand off of his tunic, and slipping his sandals on his bare feet.
I got up as well, and followed him.