Violet Reign (ON HOLD)

1 // Enslaved

The only sound in the corner of the slave's pen was a child's crying. Alaina was always an enchanting little girl- except for when she wailed to the top of her lungs. Her mother stood over the wooden cradle and rocked it slowly, murmuring little phrases to soothe her daughter. The more she observed her, the more she realized that she mimicked her looks. She had dark, coily hair, a sharpened jaw line with a rounded chin, and lips that would surely be full in her later years. The only thing that was wrong was her red tinted eyes.

Her mother had to lean in to notice it, but you wouldn't be able to miss it after a few moments. Her child's eyes had turned a deep crimson. Alarmed, she reached for her, only to be struck with what seemed like a red lightning. Pain surged through her arm and she cursed, clutching her left shoulder.

The sound of heavy boots stole the focus from her wound. The last thing she needed was trouble from the Pen Keeper. She searched frantically for anything, even if it was just a block of wood, to protect herself and her daughter. When she turned around, she stood with her face just inches away from the royal blue coat of a Constable of the Royal Family.

"Esmee, it's just me," he said. She leaned back against the wall with a hand pushing back her hair. "Cedric," she breathed. He knelt down beside her and let her rest her head in his chest. "Fortunately, I was able to keep the Pen Keeper away, but not for long."

"S-she has magic. How does she- and it's red," she rambled. Cedric reached out to rock the cradle, eventually calming his daughter. "She did this," she continued. She pulled back the rag-like material she was wearing to expose the open cut. "It isn't too deep, I think you'll be okay," he said as he ran his finger over it. "If anyone asks, I did this." Esmee's eyes went wide, but she forced herself to understand. Cedric wasn't supposed to be back here unless it was to somehow punish a slave.

"We will work around this somehow. She is not to be taken by the King." He kissed her temple for reassurance, but it was for the both of them. It was already difficult to keep his daughter and Esmee's relationship a secret, but Alaina has magic. All three of them would be killed. "She'll control it as she grows older, I couldn't when I-"

"Officer Castor?" interrupted a voice. "I've got it covered," Cedric shouted back. He stood over the cradle and held out his finger, which Alaina grabbed with her fist. "I'll do anything I can to keep you two safe. I promise to."

♦ ♦ ♦

The only sound in this room was a broom sweeping across the wooden floor. A nineteen-year-old Alaina Castor tried to focus on cleaning her part of the slave's pen as she had been told, but her mind kept flickering back to her mother. "Esmee O'Connor," she muttered aloud. Her mother deserved her real name spoken and not forgotten.

She could remember the tragedy as if it were yesterday instead of thirteen years ago. She was an innocent six year old and playing with a doll while her parents watched. Within a heartbeat of that moment, Esmee was snatched away from her father by the Pen Keeper and several Constables. She had chased after her, only to be knocked back with a smack to her face. Alaina never saw her mother after that, but it didn't take much to figure out that she was hanged.

Hanged for being the lover of a Constable. Hanged for stepping out of boundaries. Hanged for creating Alaina.

Her face stung with the memory of that smack, but it couldn't compare to the loss of Esmee O'Connor. She should've known that her death was bound to happen ever since King Ferdinand found out that his most trusted Constable had fallen in love with a slave. Cedric was stripped of his magic and demoted to a slave when she was two years old. Four years wasn't enough time to spend with her mother.