Villain

10.The Real Dawn

I wake up hearing footsteps and jolt upward. Despite myself, I relax when I see it is Prince Lucien. I cant help but think back to Dawns actions. To how easily he could pretend to be Dawn. What if all those times Dawn threw a tantrum it wasn't her? What if it was him? Playing this game for long, waiting patiently for me to snap and kill his enemies for him? I stare at him as he smiles at me, remembering his behavior when I first got here. He isn't lying about us being a perfect match, but that doesn't mean hes being honest with me either?

"Did you spell Dawn," I ask. My question throws him of, and he shakes his head. "There is no need. I know it is painful for you...seeing this ugly side of her," he says. "Shes obsessed with you," I tell him, watching his reactions carefully. This isn't news to him, Dawn isn't subtle with her feelings. "I have done nothing to earn it," he speaks slowly as if trying to calm down a jealous wife, which is what Dawn is. A jealous wife. I get up and walk past him. entering Dawns room without knocking.

She frowns when she sees me, opening her mouth with a nasty response , shutting up and changing her expression suddenly to a pleasant one when she sees Lucien behind me. For a second her eyes widen, and I know she has noticed our eye color. Why did he have to follow me? "No," she exclaims. "Shes lying to you. My mother put her up to it," Dawn runs up to him, grabbing his hand. "She was sent here to kill you. Its just a trick," she gushes. "They're working together. It is a spell. Shes not your match," Dawns voice has a desperate edge to it.

I stare at her wondering how it came to this. I grew up with her. I've known her my whole life, and endured hell just to see her happy. And now I have one good thing and she hates me for it? For a man? "Dawn you're the one who was spelled," I say gently. "Your mother sent you here knowing how dangerous it is for you. This is all a game to her. She only wants power and doesn't care who dies. Not even if it is you," I try to reason with her for what feels like the millionth time.

"Liar. You are jealous. You were always jealous of me and so you decided to to steal my husband in the pretense of helping her," Dawn yells. I study her features before my eyes fall on her earrings. Earrings she has been wearing since her wedding day. I curse myself. How could I have been so stupid? So blind? "This was all the Queens doing and I can prove it," I say calmly. I concentrate, picturing Dawns earrings falling to the floor in my mind. As I think it, her earrings float of her ears, hovering in the air for a few seconds before falling to the ground. My head aches from the simple act. After years of not using magic, I was bound to get drained easily. Being bound to the box meant magic would hurt so long as there was still magic in the box.

I will just have to get used to another pain. Dawn falls to her knees, gripping her head and screaming in pain as grey ight surrounds her. "Leave us please," I tell Lucien. "Cel," his voice is wary. "I can handle this," I promise him. Casting me a wary glance, he disappears in a cloud of black smoke. Dawn passes out from the pain and I lift her up and take her to her bed. I lay her down and sigh before grabbing her earrings from the floor. How did I not notice the purple jewels on them? I keep them with the necklace the Queen conjured and wait for Dawn to wake up.

Its lunch time when I hear the quiet gasp from Dawns room and her hurried movements before she enters my room, wide eyed and breathing heavily. Is it he real Dawn or is she pretending again? She enters my room slowly and sits next to me quietly. I can tell there's a lot going on in her mind. "Tell me it was all a bad dream," she whispers barely. I shake my head, causing the girl to sigh heavily. "I...I found out we were sisters the day I was married...I overheard the conversation that day..."she avoids my gaze as she speaks. "All your scars made sense...and I couldn't believe the order my mother gave you...I never knew...how cruel she was," she struggles with herself as she speaks.

"I feel so stupid," she mutters, more to herself then me. 'Its not your fault," I tell her gently. "You don't know what its been like Cel. It was like I was trapped in my head with someone else in control of my body. It makes me sick. I remember everything," Dawn closes her eyes. I take out the chain and earring the Queen gave her once she is calm again. Her eyes wide. "You can destroy them," I tell her. With a nod, she focuses her energy on the cursed objects and they turn to ashes in my hand. I smile at her gently. "We have a lot of catching up to do," I tell her. So we sit and we talk until it is dark, and when Prince Lucien comes to visit me , he finds us laughing together.

He looks at her suspiciously before nodding at me subtly. The darkness he sensed around her is no longer as strong as it was when he saw her. "I knew you were wrong about Dawn,'I cant help but grin. His surprise at me addressing her by her name is obvious. Dawn laughs at his expression."Were sisters.She shouldnt be so formal,"she smiles. Lucien looks at me,grinning,"I was right about you helping us all,"he says, and I find myself turning red at his words. Since when do I blush? I really wish he had no part in this war, it would make everything so much less complicated.

"We need to call the marriage off. You two are a perfect match. No one would dare to challenge that," Dawn states. "That would mean going to the Kingdom of Light,' Lucien responds. Dawn nods. "I will start making arrangements," he says, before leaving us alone. I watch him go , sadness filling me. "If you could help me , maybe you can change his mind to," she says , guessing my feelings halfway accurately. "He still has the rune box," I tell her, and she nods , understandingly.

"You could be selfish. You deserve to be happy Cel," Dawn says softly. "But at what Price," I ask her, and we fall into silence for a few moments, lost in our own thoughts. "Whats the real reason we are going to the Kingdom of Light Cel," Dawn asks. I sigh , wishing more than anything that I could tell her everything. Unfortunately, this is something I must do alone. "You know what I need from you," I tell her, and she nods. "I'll do everything I can to help. I need to after everything I have done," she says softly. I smile at her, watching as she goes to leave to her room.

"You will always be my hero Marcella Blackwell," Dawn says as she leaves, my heart shattering to pieces at her words. I smile at her, unable to respond. That view of me she has is going to change very soon.