Maresa’s P.O.V (December 19, 1846)
Dark thoughts drifted in the air. I didn’t know where they were coming from. Someone seemed to be playing mind-tricks with me, but the only people who knew how...couldn’t right now.
“Stop.” whispered a stern voice next to me.
“Stop what?” I replied to a worried looking Y’lisse.
“Stop feeling this way. You’re throwing off my frame of mind.” she hissed back.
I sighed.
“It’s something in the air...there is something...wrong.”
She snorted.
“You’re paranoid, I tell you. The last time you had this happen, you had the whole place in panic, only to find nothing wrong.”
I made a face, a bit miffed.
“Actually the cook was going to poison her maid.”
She rolled her eyes.
“Unimportant much?”
I hid a grimace. I’d given up fighting with Y’lisse about the worth of every human life a long time ago. She sniffed, flipped her long, curly blonde hair over her shoulder, and flounced over to Mother.
“Don’t worry, Y’lisse just wants everything to go well. A bit more than me, I guess. I feel it too.”, a quiet voice murmered next to me. I looked down.
“Lisbeth, you do?” I whispered to her. She nodded solemnly.
“It’s coming from him.” she mumbled, throwing a distrustful look at Uncle Damon.
“Liz,” I sighed “just because he’s a little...aloof, doesn’t mean he’s evil. You know he adores us.”
Lisbeth muttered under her breath, “More like he adores our inheritance.”
“Lisbeth!” I chided, but stopped when I ran into Parvani. Who happened to be in a quiet heated argument with Y’lisse.
“Hey!” She growled, “Watch where you step!” She whirled around, eyes ablaze. As soon as she saw me she quickly collected herself.
“Maybe you should watch yourself.” hissed Y’lisse. Parvani turned towards her. A deadly look was cast Y’lisse’s way.
“Hey, hey, it’s fine.” I said, before a fight could break out. “Why are we stopping? We’re still a couple corridors from the ballroom.” I asked Lisbeth.
Parvani shrugged, then attempted to look above the heads of the adults ahead of us.
“There...there’s a horse…”
Lisbeth gasped.
“Do you think Y’lisse and I will be able to ride a horse to the ballroom?”
I smiled at her innocence, but unease nagged at me. Horses were always skittish around us. Unless these were really well trained horses, Mother wouldn’t have gotten them. Then, I heard Mother.
“Why, King Caine, Prince Simon, what a pleasant surprise!” she greeted in her melodious voice. “I’m afraid my husband isn’t-”
“Isn’t here.” said a cold, calculated voice. Mother stopped.
“...Yes. May I be of any service?”
I heard nothing for a bit, but then I heard metal being drawn, like a sword from it’s sheathe.
Mother’s sharp voice rang out.
“What is this?!”
The cold, calculated voice rang out again.
“For the death of Prince Andrew of Erudis by Shifter hands, I, Caine, King of Ancient Civilization, have ordered the execution of every Shifter. Men, women, and children shall be executed upon meeting.”
A swoosh of air. The flash of scarlet.
Someone shrieked, “NO!”
Come to find, that was my voice.
I heard the clip-clop of horse’s hooves start moving towards me.
Now or never.
“RUN!” I screamed. The congregations scattered. I saw Lisbeth pull Y’lisse along with her, Y’lisse looked completely shocked. Parvani looked confused then angered, before turning and fleeing. I turned to run when someone tripped me. I unsheathed one of my knives in time to parry a strike from a young man.
I stumbled backwards from the force of the blow. He was maybe an inch taller than me, with hypnotizing brown eyes, and longish brown hair. He had a short sword in hand. And it was pointed at me. He swiftly moved in to attack again. This time, I stepped aside and slashed at him. The steel blade nicked his ear. He let out a yelp of shock, his unarmed hand flying up to his profusely bleeding ear.
I turned and ran out into the courtyard. The guards rushed past me, but I could see something of an army to the distance. There was no way our much smaller army could take them on. I neared the forest, seeing the fleeing forms of my sisters shimmer before turning into their animal forms. I began to shimmer when something sang close to my ear. I yelled and ducked as a sword flew over where my head had been seconds previous. I suddenly turned to the right, and my assailant slammed into a tree.
I turned and saw it was that boy again.
“What are you doing?!” I snarled. “You’re supposed to be at home, kid!”
He glared at me and swung his sword again. I again sidestepped him.
“So be it.” I hissed, and unsheathed my second knife, shifting into an attack position.
He yelled and charged me. I ducked, and a cold something cut across my cheek.
My green eyes narrowed in fury.
“Why you little…”
He ran at me again. I was done with this child. I sidestepped and slammed the hilt of my knife into his temple. He dropped like a puppet whose strings were cut.
“Idiot.” I spat. I raised my knife to finish him off. Blood from his temple and ear ran into the snow. He was out cold. Perfect. This should be easy. So why was I hesitating? The wind stirred his hair a bit. A feeling began in my stomach. The hand with the knife dropped to my side.
“I won’t do this again.” I choked out. I turned to face the forest, saw silver, then raced into the depths, my snow leopard eyes helping me avoid every obstacle. The whole way through, I wondered,
Why? Why did I spare him?
