My Choice

Chapter 2

I wake up before the crack of dawn, quietly so I wouldn't wake my parents. I slip on the outfit I chose on the previous day,go to the place where I hide my favorite weapon, a black sword with a silver handle named midnight death. Both mother and father would never approve of me using such a dangerous weapon. They say ladies should not carry such weapons if any at all. They would kill me if they knew I had this. I open my door ever so slightly to where I can see down the hallway. No sign of guards,parents, or anything that would stop me.I creep down the hallway, past my parents room, and out into the cold outdoors. I go to the horse stalls, making sure nobody was around. I hop on my horse, Night, and ride to the river where Asher and I first met. There, I find Asher sitting on a white tree branch above the frozen water. Something was off with him. He seems so off his guard. I use this to my advantage. I creep up behind him ever so quietly until I was right behind him. I reach forward and tap his shoulder. He jumps about 2 feet in the air while shooting an arrow at me. I swiftly avoid it. He stares at me in shock. "I-I could have killed you.." I nodded,"Yes,well you always were a lousy shot." He smirks and tackles me to the ground,tickling me. "Ah haha no stop hahaha!" He stops so I can breath. He then takes his bow and aims it at a target. He shoots it dead center. "How's that for a lousy sh-? Um, Ryia? Uh,your dress top is well um..." I look down to see my breasts were showing. I quickly fix it. "Honestly, you freak out over every little thing." He blushes. Then my mind goes back to his former appearance. "Say, Asher? What was up with you earlier? You seemed so distant." His expression changes. "Hey! You wanna see something cool?" He says, changing the subject. I roll my eyes and nod. He leads me into a dark park of the woods. I hear a loud roar come from ahead. I pull out my sword. "Dragon." I say, getting ready for a fight. Suddenly, a flash of white blinds me as I am thrown against a tree. "Ah! Damn! That hurt like hell!" I lay on the ground, not even daring to move. Asher runs over to me. "Ryia! Are you alright?" I nod, standing up. "Sorry, she's not usually like this. I guess she thought you were gonna hurt her." He points to my sword. I look up at him, barely keeping my eyes open. "She?" Asher nods and calls for something. A white dragon with eyes as blue as mine steps into the light. I back up against the tree. "Who is this?" He smiles,"Relax. This is Isolde, my pet dragon. I found her when she was young." I look at the magnificent creature. It's eyes connected with mine. It walks over to me and forms what seems like a protection barrier around me. Asher laughs,"She likes you!" I look up at Isolde, who's gaze has not left me for a second. I smile,"Hi, Isolde." She puts her enormous head down in front of me so I can pet her. Asher watches us in awe. I can't help but notice he is fumbling with something in his pocket. "What is in your pocket?" He freezes in his place. "I-it's um well you see..." He pulls out a beautiful necklace with a blue stone in the center of it. "I wanted to give this to you." He puts it around my neck. I admire it's beauty. "It's beautiful! Thank you,Asher!" He smiles and hugs me. "That's what friends are for." I stare at him. His tone somewhat changed in that sentence. I decide to ignore it and try to stand up. That was a huge mistake. Pain shoots through my entire body and I fall back to the ground. Asher catches me, looking rather worried. "I'm fine. Just sore from getting thrown against a tree. No need to look so worried. Now, if you don't mind helping me to my horse. I believe I can make it from there." He nods, a little hesitant, and picks me up. I hadn't noticed the cut on my cheek that was oozing blood. Damn, I'll get in trouble for sure. Asher puts me on my horse and says his goodbyes. "Are you sure you'll be alright?" I feel like I will black out at any minute and the pain has spread to every part of my body, but I couldn't tell him that. He'd beat himself up about it. "Yes, I'm alright. I'll see you later, I guess." He leans up towards me and whispers in my ear,"Be safe, Sapphire." He slaps my horse and it takes off running. It was midday when I got back home. I open the door to the castle. I start to hurriedly walk to my room until I was stopped by that oh so familiar harsh voice of my father. "Where have you been, young lady?" I don't turn to look at him,"I was out." He walks towards me and harshly spends me around,"What have I told you about facing m-? What happened to your face?!" "I-I uh..." Before I could answer, I felt a sharp pain in my head and felt dizzy. The room started spinning. My father noticed this,"Ryia? What's wrong?" I look at him dazed,"I-I...." I black out, falling into my fathers arms. "Ryia? Ryia?! Guards! I need help!" My mother rushes into the room. "Rowen, what happened?" He shakes his head,"I don't know. She just fell." My mother looks at my face and gasps,"She's so pale! Where did she get that awful cut?!" The guards come barging into the room. "Your majesty! The princess!" He growls,"I know, you fools! Get a cold rag and warm blankets! Quickly!" They scatter like little mice. My father carries me to my room and sets me on my bed. He notices the necklace that Asher had previously given me. where did she get this? It was night by the time I finally woke up. My mother and father still at my bedside. They look at me with a mixture of anger and relief. My father spoke first," What the hell happened to you?!" I look away from him, not wanting to answer the question. "Answer your father, Ryia!" My mother shouts. I flinch. It was very rare that my mother yells. "I was in the woods. I saw an oak and climbed it. A branch broke and I crashed to the ground. That's all." I lie. I know what would happen if I told the truth. However, my father knew I was lying. He gave my the kind of look that would make any normal person's skin crawl. I know he knows. "We'll talk about this later. Get some rest." They leave my room and I sigh. He'll figure out the truth sooner or later. Wondering what my father will do, I drift off to sleep.