the unnoticed stars

dull

                                                                                            Isla

"So, are you going to give me the privilege of knowing what is going on?" I say trying to figure out if I need to find the nearest weapon or not. I do not necessarily want to kill the Prince, but I would not mind it. I never have.

"Do you have any weapons on you?" He asks skeptically, rightfully so. I squinted my eyes a bit, the suspicion growing the longer we walk down this hallway. I never learned to trust people and I am sure as hell I am not going to start now, not after everything that has happened. I dislike the Prince, but I do not seem to hate him, yet.

"I cannot believe you would think such a thing of me, Prince!" I say sarcastically, knowing I have kept my mother's dagger hidden under my breasts for almost a year. Some guards have gotten close to discovering it, due to them being disgusting perverts who need to go home to their unfortunate wives.

"Don't say it like that, we both know you have a weapon of some sort, or you will find one. You know it costs nothing to say the truth." He says giving me a disappointed look, one I would imagine a father would give him child. I would never know; I do not know my father and my mother said it was better that way, I believed her.

"It also costs nothing to lie, dad." I see a ghost of a smile on his face. "Also, we both know I do not really need a weapon if I truly wanted to kill you." I say smiling up at him. Zaidin is abnormally tall; I would not consider myself tiny by any means and he towers over me, as well as everyone else.

"You are just going to be the death of me, aren't you, love?" He says leaning closer to me. The scent of wood and mint rushes to my nose, all the sudden I become self-conscious of how I have not taken a true bath since I got here.

"I guess you are just going to have to wait and see, Prince." I said trying to recover from the insecurity gnawing at my gut.

We walk for a while in silence, I never have liked silence, but this is not terrible considering I have been in a cell for a year; I am not going to take any chances, yet. I still am entirely confused as to why I am out of my cell, knowing I should be there for the rest of my life, along with Blythe. Poor girl, she's alone now. I started to like her, anyone who can kill a grown man and live to tell the story is a bad-ass person, even if she doesn't know it yet. 

  "Do you always avoid questions, or do you have memory loss?" I ask ruining the silence. Zaidin looks down at me with exaggerated shock on his face, so I lift my hand up trying not to pay attention to how dirty my nails look, I close his mouth shut leaving my fingers on his chin for a split moment. "You do not have a very good poker face, Prince. Now answer my question." I say pivoting toward him, stopping in the middle of the large hallway, engraved with golden art everywhere that meets the eye.

"No, I don't always avoid questions, only when a pretty girl asks them." He says with a smirk in his tone, but not one on his face.

I start to laugh, uncontrollably. I halfway expect him to, but he never does, not even a hint of a smile. Zaidin just stands there, watching me as though I am some sort of oil-pastel painting coming to life.

"Oh, you were being serious." I say, a little defeated and embarrassed. Heat creeps its way up to my neck and cheeks, and again I am left utterly confused. Even more so.

"Of course I was, you haven't heard that before?" he asks sincerely. The weight of his gaze is almost too much to handle. I need something to do with my hands. My mind automatically went to the hidden dagger I had lodged between my breasts, so in one swift motion I pulled the top of my blouse down slightly and grabbed the dagger. Before the prince could react, I already had it to his throat, shoving him against the wall.

"How about we keep the personal questions to a minimum, alright?" I say huffing out a breath, looking directly into his eyes but he's not looking back. Zaidin is looking to where I slightly pulled my top down. Following his eyes I realize that it is still down, revealing more than it was before.

"May I?" He asks out of breath, and before I even have time to think, he pulls up the top for me. He tries his best to smooth out whatever he can, I forget I have a dagger pointed at his throat. "Alright, love, let's put your pretty knife I knew you had away. We need to get you cleaned up before we disembark." I hesitantly lower my dagger, deciding he's not a threat for now. I don't step away, keeping eye contact with him.

I hate him. Once I had decided that, I stepped away.

He guides me up to where I see the most beautiful staircase I have ever seen. There are paintings of women anywhere I look. As I look around in awe of this art I turn around to the prince, who to my surprise, is already looking at me. His head is slightly tilted like it would be while he was paying attention, so why is he paying attention to me?

                                                                                       Zaidin

She is the most breathtaking taking girl I have ever met. She doesn't even know that the paintings around her are just shadows of what her true beauty is. She is vibrant and they are dull behind her, just as they should be; behind her.

I have always been surrounded my whole life, but that does not mean that I am not alone. Growing up in this castle means you must abide by the rules and do the absolute best you can to impress my father, but Isla. She does not abide by the rules or try to impress anyone; I am truly jealous.

"Just up the stairs and to your right is my bathing chamber, I was told that one of the maids brought you some clothes. Get cleaned up and I then I shall explain what it is that we are doing." I say gesturing to the stairs, but she is still looking at the paintings, if only she knew.

"Uh, thank you." She says, not even bothering to look in my direction. Yet my heart swells, no matter the circumstances. No matter that she is forbidden, no matter that I have had my eye on her since she was carried in with a smile on her face a year ago, being held down by four guards. No matter that I cannot have her, I still crave her. No matter if it is wrong to want her.

My heart still calls her name.