𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐞 | ✎

v.

The girl didn't recognize me.

I thought of her in her wake -- of her hair, with a hue kissed by starlight and sunrise. Of the piercing gaze of her eyes, the pure determination and resistance within them. And the color was so striking that I'd die before I forgot it; the way they reminded me of the evergreens at night, of the fields after a spring rain. I couldn't help but recall her lips, her cupid bow, her heart-shaped face, and wondered why she even was in that alleyway, especially with a blade of that value.

I made my way back to the Palace, forcing myself to walk slowly if only to resist reaching out with my shadows to track where the girl ran off to.

Like always, the streets of the Night Clime were bustling. We were known as the Clime that never sleeps, and we lived up to that name. Permanent insomnia riddled with nocturnality flowed in our veins.

I pulled a lone coin out of my pocket, and tossed it up and down in the air as I made my way down the cobblestone path, nodding my head to vendors I recognized, selling goods in their carts on the road. It was common for me to wander around town before dawn, so many commonfolk waved at me along my path, while others attempted not to gawk. But no matter what, everyone recognized me. They knew my name, my status, what I was.

Everyone except her.

I bristled at the realization she was on my mind again. Maybe she truly was Venom -- tragic, deadly, and undeniably unforgettable.

The coin I was tossing found its way to a vendor selling cans of fish, among other delicacies found in the seas in our western regions.

"Your Highness," the vendor said, his smile slightly unnerving at the sight of two golden teeth. "What a pleasure."

"You insist on flattering me every day, don't you, Njall?" I replied, grabbing the can I always did.

"What can I say? You do give me the best business."

I winked as I walked off. "And you give me the best deals."

"One day I'll find out who you give my cans to," he called in my wake. "I know you don't eat them yourself."

"One day, Njall," I said, unable to help the smile tugging up my lips.

Instead of taking the main road to the Palace, I veered off to another small, dark and quiet street-- one I tried to visit every morning.

I neared a small blanket tucked in the corner of the street, hidden behind some crates and surrounded by the dark walls of a cottage. I opened the can and knelt to the ground.

"Nyx," I said quietly, making small clicking sounds with my tongue. "Nyx, girl. I'm here. Come out."

Two large green eyes with slitted pupils met mine from inside a small hole in the brick wall. Nyx let out a noise between a purr and a growl before slinking forward and out of the crevice, her black, small furry body stretching to make the fit. Once she was out, she made her way over to me, rubbing her small head against my leg and bending to start eating the fish. I run my hand down her slender body, brushing off small pieces of dirt and dust from her smooth, black fur.