The Cruel Crown (A Young Elites Fanfiction)

Adelina Amouteru ❦

My hands are tight hanging by my side trying not to lash out. This girl who calls herself Ghost doesn't stand far. Her countenance is porcelain white fading out to shadow. Her hair is black and white; it's inverted.

A face of betrayal or innocence? Only time will answer me.

Her appearance makes me guess why she is aliased as Ghost; her skin looks transparent almost. But could her Elite power make up her name? Will I gain an ally today who can turn invisible at will?

"What is your name?" I ask.

"I am Nyx Rosario." She smiles to me, but it is not a welcoming one, sly?

She has been given an Elite name, Ghost; she might have once been or still is with the Daggers. Suspicion arises.

I will not allow myself to trust her. I cannot allow myself to trust anyone again.

The kingdom walls are illuminated by low lights that are sitting inside the ornate chandelier dangling over our heads. The silver hanging jewels cause strange shadows to be casted on the crimson red walls.

"Might I ask for your name?"

I hear her words to me but do not throw back a reply immediately. This girl came to my palace ignorant to my name.

"My name is Adelina. Adelina Amouteru." I don't know why there is so much pride tinting my voice when I say it. There is nothing that I have done to be prideful about. My name is a curse, and I am the sin.

I couldn't save Enzo, I almost killed Violetta, I'd forgot about Magiano. And my whispers are destroying my mind, my thoughts, and my memories.

Before I rushed back to greet this girl, once I received message of her from a servant, I was in search of my infamous thief.

"Where is Magiano?" I accidentally blurt out loud. But Nyx wouldn't know who I was talking about anyway.

Peculiar though because when I utter his name, Nyx shifts uncomfortably as in recognition. Has she had a past with him? Have they met before?

"Sorry," I say unused to giving apologies. "Do you know Magiano?"

"Yeah, we've met before. We met in a bloody mess of a battle, he almost slaughtered me and my team, but gave us the luxury of mercy. I will not ever be able to repay the debt I owe. He saved my friends. Did you say he was here?"

This girl's tone suggests that she knows more of myself and who is in my society than she lets on; she lets ignorance fill herself.

"Magiano is somewhere around here. Let us search to see where he has wandered."

I have still not yet acquainted myself with this castle, which now I rule over.

"How long have you known Magiano?" I ask, trying to keep conversation. I am terrible in small talk. If you have to say something, don't waste your short breathe on something that is worthless.

"I first ran into him in the Sunlands. I was buying a piece of bread from a cheap food stand and he was running away through the streets casing quite a commotion. He ran into me and for some reason, told me to hold onto the jewel. I forget what he called the official name. He said he would come back and retrieve it. And he did, and that's when we tried to kill each other. I wasn't very formidable and adept in combat, formerly, that is. It's almost scary, so I've been told to watch me fight." I can see the faltering in her voice, the small tremble she's trying to hide in her hands. I wonder why that is. "I have been tau-" Nyx cuts her voice off fast, suddenly and suspiciously. "I am self taught in my skills in battle."

I wonder if she is truly a good fighter as she claims she is.

Surreal, indeed. I try to hide a smug smile off of my lips, almost unable to conceal my smile. Magiano never loved her, like I had thought.

I freeze. A blush of the color of the red rose rising to my cheeks. I fight to stand up. I want to crash down the ground. I want to kill this girl to be left by myself. The warm feeling inside my grows and leaves my cheeks blushing hard. Why have I had that kind of thought about Magiano?

"Are you okay?" Nyx crouches beside me, her arms hanging by her side.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm okay." I stand up, placing my hand on my cheeks; the blush is gone, but my cheeks still feel like an inferno. "Let's go find him for you." I feel like I'm hobbling along, like I've been pierced by a dagger into my stomach.

"So, have you and Magiano seen each other since?" Why am I asking her this? Why do I care?

"No, like mentioned before, we had met again and engaged immediately in battle. He wanted the sparking jewel and I was tenacious with the jewel and could not release my grip. In the end, he spared me. But to answer your question, we haven't seen each other since he granted me mercy. I still cannot decide if I would have given him the same luxury if the tables were like that for me."

Her expression is of anger and sadness, sadness taking more hold. But I can't decide if her expression is sincere, matching her emotions.

Adelina, this girl cannot be trusted! She is too much of an oddity to be here. You hold greater power over her, but she will be an equal in fight to the death. Kill her, kill her now! Or you will regret this, or have you already regretted your decision? My whispers they have drowned me again. I am being drowned in my own poison.

She showed up at the gates looking for me. She must know my infamous Elite name of the White Wolf, but why has she sought me out? She is quite strange and peculiar; she must be kept close, close enough to kill.