Villain

5.A Visit from the In-Laws

I awaken with a headache and look around my room.The body and blood stains are gone, my two silver daggers clean and next to my bed. My hands have no blood on them and the only sign that what happened wasn't a dream was the dried blood stains on my dress. I fond myself relieved when I have to unlock the door, despite not being the one who locked it. I vaguely remembered the Prince's appearance last night . I could have killed him. Should have killed him. He watched as I killed his guest. He could have killed me in my sleep. Instead I woke up without having to worry about cleaning blood of the floors. I am uneasy at how well he handled the situation, how unafraid of me he was. The Prince thinks he knows me from my past kills, but he is very wrong.

"Cel! Cel," Dawn bursts into my room, her face alit with joy. "Get dressed. Mother and father are here," she says and I feel my stomach pool with dread. The King and Queen of light being here can only mean one thing.

The dining hall today is eerily like yesterdays. The Prince is at the head of the table with dawn to his right. The King is on his left hand side with the Queen next to him. I sit next to Dawn, directly opposite the Queen. "I would have invited my parents , but they are on a journey East,"Prince Lucien tells the King. My father provides the "boy" a forced smile. "To what do I owe this pleasureable surprise,"The Prince inquires, his voice holding a light threat. "Dawn had forgotten a very important gift at home,"The Queen responds and places something on the table. The black box hums with energy, it's dark magic drawing attention to it. I notice two of the runes are red now.

I swallow hard. She knows. "Mother," Dawn gasps, unbelievingly. This box is the Queens most prized possession. And she wants to give it away as a gift? No. She is merely reminding me of her power over me. The gift must be something else. The Queen lifts the lid of the box and takes out a beautiful silver chain. A purple stone is at the dead center. "Think of it as always having me close ," The Queen says as she hands over the necklace to dawn who puts it on immediately ,grinning at her mother. "It is beautiful , thank you," she gushes.

It is beautiful, but the fact that it is from the Queen makes me wary. It must have a charm on it that deals out my punishment. Or perhaps it is a protection charm. I sigh. The Queen of Light is not so kind. There must be a darker purpose to the beautiful accessory. "Oh and Marcella," she says , gaining my attention. "A gift to you for leaving your home to protect the Princess," The Queen hands me a simple hand chain. The links are silver and she fastens it on my left hand. She smiles at me as I start to feel the pain travel up my arm. "It is my pleasure and duty your highness," I say, forcing a smile.

I spend the rest of the day alone in my room, my hand numb with pain. The King and Queen of Light will leave before sunset, and dawn and her Prince have been giving them a tour and being graceful hosts. I have tried to take of the hand chain, but it tightened around me at every attempt. Finally, when the sun sets, the chain falls of my hand. I find myself sighing in relief . It was one of the Queens kinder punishments since it had to be subtle and I still had a job to do. A task that is going to be impossible after the events that unfolded yesterday. I hear Dawns door close as she enters her room, the faint sounds of her talking to Clair reaching my ears. I am glad they solved their issues.

I have been here for two weeks now and in that time, all I managed to do was expose myself to the Prince. He was already careful and calculated, and now he shall be even more so. I let out a sigh of despair. This is hopeless. I can't help the negative thoughts that begin to fill my head. i am not a good person. I take the lives of others without a second thought. I am an unwanted mistake turned into a weapon to gain power for the Queen. But I am still a person at the end of the day. I try to tell myself it is just the darkness in this Kingdom, but even that is a lie.

My door opens with a gentle creek and I turn to face Prince Lucien. I cannot help but frown. Why is he here again? he better not make this a habit. He walks into my room and closes the door behind him and I watch as he moves confidently. What is he up to now? "Why does the Queen of Light own a Black Box," he asks. The item, crafted with Dark magic was rare , and for the Queen of Light to have the last one in existence, there were bound to be questions. "How am I to know anything of the actions of the Queen," I respond, honestly not knowing much about it, other than the fact that she got it from Damien.

The Prince frowns, picking up the hand chain. "I know it is more than a jewellery box Marcella," his tone is a warning. "Why are you asking me and not her daughter," I snap at him. to which he responds with a dark chuckle. "You know a s well as I do... that little Princess is as blind and ignorant as she is beautiful," he states. "She is a naive little fool and do not think you can freign ignorance. You know what she keeps in it," he is seething with anger and I have never seen him with such little control before. "I honestly don't know," I tell him as sincerely as I can , causing the man to sigh. I take the moment to study him.

He looks tortured. Broken. What use could he possibly have for that cursed little box? The Prince looks up at me , studying my appearance. "You're here to kill me," he states simply. I don't respond, because what the hell do I say to that? "And yet. Last night. When you had the chance. You told me to leave," he says, and I let out a sigh at my stupidity. "Why," his question shocks me. Why didn't I kill him? Because of the specific instructions? Because Dawn had grown close to him? No. It was because he came to see what the ruckus was.

Any other Royal would have ignored me, and turned a blind eye, perhaps even punished me for harming a guest. But he did not. "You came to see if I was alright," I state honestly. The man runs a hand through his black hair, looking conflicted. "You don't know do you,"he asks. I frown at his words. The Prince lets out a chuckle. "I knew who you were the moment you stepped into my carriage Marcella. Just like your princess I have been a target my whole life. I wasn't lucky enough to be given a guard," he says to me. Why is he telling me this?

"I knew who and what you were because I realized you were just like me," he says and I realize he is very close to me. He leans forward. "A child of the dark," he whispers in my ear, causing me to shudder. He grins at me before pulling back and walking out of my room. What the hell was that about? I shake of the weird feeling his words gave me. He is trying to mess with me. Trying to make me sympathize with him so he could have the upper hand. I will not fall for his tricks. His charming looks may fall others, but it cannot fool me.

I know a manipulative monster when I see one and the Prince most certainly falls in that category. His death will improve the Kingdom. He will not be missed by anyone apart from dawn, but I know she will get over it. My door flies open again and the girl I was thinking of walks into my room. "Is it true,"she asks me with a frown. "Your majesty,"I ask her, confused. "DOn't play dumb with me Marcella. Is it true," Dawn yells in my face and I find myself taken aback.

"I do not know what you are talking about your highness," I tell her, frowning at her uncharacteristic behavior. "Clair told me she saw Lucien coming out of you room just now. And it was not the first time. Last night she saw him leave your room as well," Dawn says and I realize what she is accusing me of. "Your highness it's not what you think," I try to reason with her, knowing she is normally logical and reasonable. "After I confided in you about how I felt. how could you betray me like this," she cries angrily.

"Princess dawn I assure you it's not what you think," I tell her calmly. "I'm not stupid," she yells. "I see the way he looks at you. I notice how often he talks to you, I'm not as stupid as you think Marcella," she yells at me ,angry tears falling down her face. "I thought you were my friend! He's a married man Cel," she exclaims. I can't help but stare. I know she likes him, but this kind of behavior is insane. She won't listen to what I have to say, not that I know what to say in this situation, but it is so unlike her.

"Your highness," I protest. "You will stay silent when I speak to you. I am your future Queen and you will treat me with respect. Stay away from my husband," she seethes and as she turns to leave I catch a glimpse of her necklace, the stone a deep green. The doors slamming echo as the realization that the Queen put a spell on her own daughter leaves me feeling sick.