veiled hearts

almost fourteen

I never felt truly connected to the choices made in my rite.

Me? The chosen one? Yes, I could be the daughter of the King, but that doesn't make me any more special, right?

"I feel like everything here is a messed up lie," I heard my brother state as he spoke to the Lord. I hid outside, still wiping my own tears even days after their death.

"And I will not be playing the clown in this circus, Lord Davian, I do not care about being the gods damned prince!" His voice arose, like it never had before. His face was red, and he spat out those words that I never could. "You may love playing with my sister's mind, and she may fall into it, but I won't. I have the right to leave, so I will."

And just like that, he had faded away. I was stuck, vowing to never speak my brother's name in that land ever again, giving my life away as if I were not the one to be chosen as sacred only some weeks after that.

In the rite, blood is drawn from the person, left to form a path into the sacred goblet of light from the past heirs to the throne of Luminae.

The water inside the goblet trails different clues, some type of little drawings, signs that form to determine whether one is or isn't the chosen heir to the throne. The drop of blood simply disappears if the person isn't worth the throne, it signs what people compare to a drawing of the flaming sun if the heir's blood has been drawn. But in my case, the blood leaked, sun and moon were found inside the goblet when my blood was poured, and after that, it was drenched in it, and then it struck me, it was terrifying.

I was special.

My blood was sacred.

Not many knew what it meant, but the mentors did, the wise did. They told me and everyone that I was the chosen one.

When the land of Luminae was founded, they chose the Queen this way, the goblet had been there for ages, and the Queen Lumine had poured the blood of her enemies in it after The Moonlit War, that blood mysteriously became the crystal clear water we saw that day. And to ensure the voice of the gods, the blood would come back when they inquired for change.

But why me?

"Princess," A voice called out, I felt like every breath I took was taken from me, like any second I moved I would be dead. Like the sky was to fall down upon me, and I'd get to meet the love I was once provided. But it was too early for that.

"Princess Lyra,"

I wanted to live, I really did. I was afraid of opening my eyes and picturing my loved ones, maybe the gods, maybe my parents, maybe my very ancestors, or the decaying versions of those who I once wanted close to my heart.

I felt a tickle on my palm, as soft as a rose petal, as fine as falling snow, and as warm as crippling fire.

The blood, the pain in my waist, the smell of metal swords. Those were gone.

A familiar scent hit my nose, making me open my eyes abruptly. Pine, smokey amber, woods... Fresh air. I loved it.

And then he was there.

Dark hair.
Plump and scarred lips.
A bright smile.
And those eyes...

It was him.

I knew this man, I had seen him before.

He saved me? Again?

"It's y-." I started, attempting to sit up. A sharp pain struck my abdomen.

Well, it seems like that wasn't truly gone.

He grabbed me softly, resting close but respectful enough, he positioned me so sweetly. He seemed so kind, so caring. "Hey there, don't move too much." His voice was calm, yet intense. Deep.

"What happened?" My mind was blurry, it was as if thoughts weren't able to come together, voices spoke, but I was unable to listen. Asking what happened was the minimum amount of information I needed to know, and the maximum I could take. "I feel like I fell into the deepest sleep ever." I confessed, drawing my hand up to my head to caress it.

"Princess," He started, his voice emitting sorrow. "I'm not sure how or why this happened, but your guard—." He took a deep breath.

Just say it, I thought. "I'm not sure what happened, but when I got here from the stables, I saw him grabbing an arrow to your body." What?

Why would he-. Huh?

That's not right.

"I need to speak to him, this simply cannot be true." I demanded. My hands shaking. "There's no way he...he's not like that,"

Theodore's stare moved from my lips to my eyes, then to my hands. He grabbed my hands, he caressed them as he spoke, "He did. He did, Lyra. I know this is hard to believe, and I know he was a good man, but-"

"Was?" What in the world? "Was? What do you mean by was? What did you do to him?" My voice sounded stronger, I almost yelled, my face signed multiple feelings at a time, I could physically feel my heart break, it hurt, my whole body, my head, my blood boiled. "Where is he?" I widened my eyes and knit my brows, I needed him.

"Where's my guard, who are you? What did you do to him?" This all seemed wrong, this all sounded like a terrible lie, like a joke, a scene.

I didn't care about the pain, I didn't care about the people around me, my purity, my looks, my wounds, my behaviour. I didn't want this to be true... I didn't, it just can't be. He was being the sweetest thing only some hours ago. It must have been a missunderstanting, it must have been someone else, this man had to be lying!

"Liar..." I whispered, forcing myself up.

"Princes, please, sit down."

"Who are you?" I stood up, not caring about the sharp pain that evaded my body and almost held me down. Two steps.

Two steps I took. I was way too close to him now, I grabbed the collar of his shirt. My lips close to his, my forehead almost touching his nose.

This scent... These feelings, his body.

My sight moved towards his lips. A scar. I found a scar.

My hand moved down to my thigh, steadily yet as fast as I could. I grabbed it, the dagger, the one Eiran gave me, which still impressively stood pressed to my thigh.

I moved the dagger under his chin, his head tilted down, making his breath hit my lips.

And then he smirked. He smirked? What was so funny?

"If you don't tell me where Eiran is right now-." I was so focused on my words I didn't even pay attention to the fast moving heavy steps behind me. "—I vow to the great heavens of Luz that I will end you myself. Got it?"

He was about to speak, but his eyes shifted towards something behind me, and his expressions changed.

"Lily." Someone said, it sounded almost like a weak sigh.

Lily.

My features softened, but I remained still. Who was this? Why did he know me by that name?

"Am I interrupting something?" He said, making me pop my eyes open as I realized just how bad this looked.

"Yes-. No?" I dared to turn around, and my heart skipped a beat.

"Hey Vi, the princess here almost slit my throat because I told her what happened." Oh, my gods.

He smiled. "Lyra Zorn... princess?" He sounded so sarcastic, it wasn't funny, it was such a bad joke I started tearing up.

Blonde hair, brown hunter eyes, porcelain skin, and a face that I had been seeing every day. My own.

"Vincent."