Star-Crossed

Chapter Seven: I knew that look, dear/ Eyes always seeking

THERE'S SO MUCH about Niburu that I have yet to learn from my dreams. I knew about the purple sky and the clean air. The air that smells so much better than our own air, the smell of cotton candy in the spring and strawberries in the summer. Xerxion tells me much about the planet I lived on before. That on Niburu there are no winters, but instead, sometimes there are very chilly springs. In Niburu, there is no snowfall and the trees maintain their leaves. Trees on Niburu come in different shades, but the most common of shades is blue. The waters on Niburu fall from the sky clear, much like Earth, but Xerxion says a sea called Mare Aurea-which is Latin for Sea of Gold-somehow turns the water into a shiny, golden color. He says there is a story that said long ago, a god came to Niburu and blessed their planet. According to the legend, this god stood on top of the water, hands raised to the sky as he blessed Niburu. After he had blessed them, the water where he stood turned to gold and the planet grew far more prosperous than any other planet around them.

All I can do is listen in awe as he tells me these stories. The stories he tells me are so insane-stories of purple skies and golden waters and air that smells like cotton candy-that if I had not seen these things myself, I'd think he was insane. Imaginative, but insane.

"In my dreams," I say, as we walk side by side down the familiar path that leads to my home, "I remember thinking about being trained in combat. If I was a princess training for combat, it makes me wonder if everyone else on Niburu trained, too."

"Everyone trained," he confirms. "It was even more expected of you to train because you were a princess and soon you would be queen. The monarchs of Niburu must be far fiercer than the rest of us. You trained for hundreds of years to be the best among all Niburuians."

"But, Niburu is a place of peace," I murmur.

I'm not quite sure how I know this, but somehow I do. I felt the calmness of Niburu in the winds and every time I breathed in, I could feel how in harmony my people were with each other.

"We are," he says, frowning. "But, our planet is very vigorous, its beauty far beyond that of any other planet. Many wish to take it from us and make our planet theirs. Hundreds of years before you were born, your parents barely stopped an invasion. Millions of innocent Niburuians died that day. Because of that, your parents decided it would be best if we all knew how to protect ourselves. We are a peaceful people, but we are warriors, too. I believe that is the only good thing your parents ever did for our planet."

The way Xerxion speaks of my parents isn't hateful, it's merely as if he's displeased with them. It makes me wonder what they did to vex him. Xerxion isn't the type to be pleased by much, but he is never displeased either. There was one thing that gave him pleasure and that was me. Seeing him displeased was something new.

On the beach, too, Xerxion had said many people hated my parents. Many people hated them so much, they feared I'd become just like them, so they wanted to kill me to get me off of the throne. It makes me wonder if my parents are the reason that I died.

I open my mouth to ask him when a familiar, shrill voice calls my name annoyingly.

I turn unwillingly to see Amanda scrambling to make her way over to us. She is dressed in a skin-tight dress and neck breakingly high pumps. Her auburn hair is up today and she is flaunting her green eyes with a smokey-eye look. She is also staring straight at Xerxion, making the face she always makes when she is about to try to get her claws into a guy.

I glance over at Xerxion apologetically. He is eyeing Amanda the way you eye a rabid dog. It's like he sees that she is ready to attack and he is preparing himself for a counterattack.

"Rania, who is this?" She asks, twirling a stray lock of hair and fluttering her perfectly applied false lashes.

Normally, guys fell all over Amanda. Typically, when guys realized my unavailable vibe was a permanent thing, Amanda swooped in a snared them. I think this entire thing is like a competition to her. Guys always choose me first and for whatever reason, that drives her crazy, so she tries to make as many of the guys who are interested in me fall in love with her. It frustrates her even further that they only go for her once I turn them down. That's one of the reasons she pretends to be friends with me. You know the saying, keeping friends close and enemies closer.