Into the Light

Chapter Twelve: Ms. Goodgirl

Kaden sighed as he stood outside Larmina's door, silently tapping his dress shoe to the soft carpet below, every once in a while tugging at the tight collar around his neck. He wasn't used to wearing tailcoats, being a thief, him and proper attire don't mix.

The King and Queen asked them to come to supper and now he was waiting for the sorceress before they could go. Honestly, he wasn't nervous about finishing out his mission, no, this would be easy, as he's done many similar ones before. He was scared because of...her.

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Larmina stood in front of the vintage vanity mirror, observing her dress. It was dark purple with a dark shade of brown. Tight fit bodice and a floor length gown with long frilly sleeves. Being in the castle, meant you had to look good. The boxes set on the dresser were already filled with jewelry and shoes that lined up the racks in the closet. Dressed up in all that made her think of herself like a doll. And dolls are for sweet girls. And she's not a sweet girl. No.

She gritted her teeth but kept it together. Of course, she had a mission to get on with and she knew this was just one of the sacrifices she'd have to make in order to get what she wanted. But nevertheless, to an outsider, she looked stunning. With one side of her black hair braided and wrapped around, the rest falling loose onto her shoulders and down to her waist of tiny ringlets. Black beads adorned her head and a small jeweled clip was placed on the side.

Yes, she looked very stunning. And medieval.

Are you ready Mina? a voice said inside of her. She took in a deep breath, a sign that told herself that she was ready. After you walk outside that door, the bad girl Larmina is lost and in her place will be a friendly, good natured sorceress. Are you really ready?

She slammed the jewelry box shut and looked up to meet her reflection's eyes. The blue in her eyes seemed to be glowing, staring back at her with intensity and determination. No matter what, she was going to do this.

With that mind set, she quickly rid herself of the most nastiest thoughts and attempted to smile genuinely. And she tried. Many, many times until she finally got it down.

A knock was sounded outside her door and the sorceress swiftly turned to face it.

The voice cleared its throat. "Uh Larmina? Are you almost ready?"

She sighed and began in a cheerful voice, "Yes, almost done Kaden." Oh dear, how much it killed her.

There was silence on the other end, then he started again, "Oh um, al—alright then."

She sighed again and closed her eyes. Must. Stay. Focused. Snapping them open again, she made her way to the door and threw it open. Larmina inwardly gasped. She hadn't seen the thief in a proper tailcoat before, let alone anything other than a baggy black shirt, and now, the man before her was devilishly handsome. Something in her chest tightened and she dropped her gaze to the carpet below. She could also feel his stare. The silence stretched for seconds, which seemed like minutes.

"You look nice," she finally said.

"No," Kaden took Larmina's hand into his and brought it to his chest, making her head shot up faster than a firework, "you look beautiful." Her eyes lingered on their adjoined hands...it felt weirdly good and she couldn't put her finger on why.

"I suppose so, we are in a castle after all."

He smiled at her.

She took in a sharp breath and jerked her hand out of his. "Right, well, let's go. We can't keep them waiting."