Lost Crown

New Reality

I woke up, panting. My eyes wildly searching my surroundings. I sit up sharply, a series of differently pains follow suite. My breath was knocked out of me as the horrors of my dream dispersed behind me. Zano looked down at me from his spot in the tree. "Hey, calm down." He said. "Before you hurt someone." He growled. I sighed, my breath still ragged.

We were in the wood. Wait, do I know this person? How'd I get here? These trees don't seem like anything I've seen in my life. Their trunks were as thick as three men! Purplish vines climb up them, vanishing into their thick canopies.

Then it all came rushing back. Everything. My breath slowed, my panic less but my fear growing. Zano snickered at my realization. "Time to move, Princess." He called and hopped down. I winced as he hit the ground, making my pain grow. He didn't seem to have a trace of remorse as he tied the rope around my waist.

Not like last night. I saw true compassion in his eyes. Or did I imagine it? I shook it off. Either way, he's not like that today. He finished and wrapped the rope around his arm, packing up his bag. I had no strength to fight today as he dragged me through the wood.

After an hour, he sighed. "So. Uh... Where did you get the bruises?" He asked. I glared at him. "From you." I growled. My feet stumbled over each other, the aches only growing. It felt like my whole body was on fire, the flames of hell engulfing me.

He growls. "It's my job to know. I need to transport you there safely, right?" He shot my a glare. I snorted. "You said it doesn't matter what condition I arrive in as long as I'm alive, right?" I snarled. His eyes lit up in fury. I brace myself for him to hit me, to rush at me.

Maybe I can find police. He's obviously crazy. Nuts. I close my eyes, wincing under his harsh gaze. But he simply snorted and kept going, keeping his temper in check. There it is again. Compassion. So I didn't imagine it.

We kept stomping through the colorful forest. It was so unreal. I keep replaying what he said to me. We are on another planet. How? Wouldn't NASA found out about it by now? Are they hiding it? Confusion ran through my head the more I thought about it.

I guess I should just keep moving forward. It doesn't matter where I am, I just need to escape. He yanked me forward, and I stumbled over my feet and tripped. I saw the rocky dirt ground rushing up to greet me and braced myself, holding my hands to cover my face. But I never got the ground.

I slowly looked up to see Zano in front of me, his eyes glowing. He looked off guard, vulnerable. It would've been so easy to just run, to make my great escape. But all I could do was stare into his radiant blue eyes and his messy shock blonde hair covering his forehead in clumps. Why can't I run?

I found my footing and stood up. It was a weird feeling, like I weighed a ton lighter. It took practically no difficulty to lift and move my joints. Then it went back to normal, me weighing my weight. I looked at Zano again and his eyes stopped glowing. Did he just stop me from falling?

No, impossible. I mean, no human has an ability to do that! Unless... "Are you alright princess?" He asked, interrupting my thoughts with his smooth voice. Yeah, of course he had to make me forget my train of thought. I nodded, dusting myself off even though I wasn't dirty. He smirked. "Good. Now learn to walk." Did he just... Tease me? I thought in disbelief. I grinned like I just found out a big secret. And maybe I did. I know now that Zano isn't some robot. He has feelings. He cares.

We walked a bit longer before my stomach growled loudly. Zano sighed and turned to look at me. "Your hungry, aren't you?" He asked, irrated. Why yes, I am Captain Obvious. You haven't fed me in a day with decent food. "Yeah, I'm a bit hungry." I laughed nervously. He groaned and slung his pack onto the mossy ground. We were in a whole different part of the woods; the floor was padded with soft moss and the thin, white trees were few and far. It was peaceful and calming, yet I still felt as restless as ever.

Zano pulls out an object wrapped up in aluminum foil and tossed it to me. I fumbled with it before it landed on the ground with a plop. Zano growled. "Can't you do one thing right, princess?" He said. I shot him a smirk. "No. Your talking to a girl who can't even walk forward." I joked. He stiffled a laugh before going back to shift through his pack. My eyes widened.

"You laughed!" I exclaimed, dusting off the object I dropped. He snort. "No I did not." He protested, fishing out an object for himself and unwrapping it. "I saw it with my own eyes. You at least smiled." I pushed teasingly, unwrapping my lunch. It was a thick sandwich with who knows what on it. I decided to quickly take a bite instead of drooling all over it. He shook his head. "I smiled because your comment was true yet stupid." He explained and took a bite of his sandwich. I growled but decided to drop it. There's no way I'd get him to admit to showing emotions. I just smiled to myself and continued to munch on the sandwich agresively. I mean, who knows when he'll feed me again?

He stared at my messy faced and the empty foil. He looked at his juicy sandwich, not even half eaten yet. "I guess manners were lost somewhere in your hunger." He growled, taking another bite of his sandwich. I sat on a tree branch. "Yeah, a bit." I snorted. My eyes flickered to his, remembering his glowing eyes.

"How did you do that thing earlier?" I asked curiously, leaning slightly forward, interested in what he has to say. He'll probably deny it ever happened. I figured, but I still wanted to ask. He growled. "Will you let me eat first?" He asked, biting into his sandwich again. I growled and stalked off.

After a while of wandering, I found a fallen tree. It was thick and tall, resting against another tree. Everything around me was silent, peaceful. I studied the tree before deciding to climb it. Spreading out my arms to keep balance, I walked up the steep trunk. There was nothing for miles around me, the vast forest stretching across the horizon. It was beautiful. I finally made it to the top, which was at least over twenty feet above the ground.

I let my legs dangle off the side, gripping the trunk. The light of the day was fading into a golden sun set. "I couldn't have been gone that long, right?" I muttered to myself quietly. "Yes, you were." I jumped as I heard Zano beside me. I turn to him, my eyes wide. "How did you find me?" I asked softly. He scuffed. "Do you really think I'd let you out of my sight?" He countered, staring at me like I'm dumb. I growled and turned back to the rosey sunset. "This is the only thing that doesn't feel like a dream." I whispered, nodding to the sunset. He sat down next to me, staring at it. I laughed bitterly. "It's funny, back where I live the sunset was the only thing beautiful enough to be a dream." I muttered. He stared at me.

"Why doesn't it feel like dream now?" He questioned, his brilliant blue eyes curious. Funny, they don't look like a sheet of ice right now. I scuffed, looking at the sunset. "Because it's the only thing that's stayed the same." I whisper. He stared at it. "It's beautiful." He commented. I laughed softly. "You are seriously the most awkward person I've met." I grinned. "Is bullying victims all you know how to do?" I regret saying that. The air turned so cold I swore it was about to snow. No, more like a hail storm. He stood up, his eyes dark. "You'd be surprised Princess that there's more to a person than that." He growled. He quickly slid pass me and climbed up a few branches of the neighboring tree. I sighed and settled down where I was.

Within a few minutes it was completely dark and some type of bug came out. It reminded me of lightning bugs, except they fluttered around in a flurry of various colors. I smiled softly, remembering a different time.

We sat in the empty lot, looking up at the lightning bugs. "Wow. You sure know how to take a girl out." I laughed. He grinned, his green eyes flashing in the moon light. The dark winded ruffled his black hair gently, tugging childishly on his jacket. He looked at me, smiling. "Look Kitty." He whispered softly in a rich voice, bringing up his cupped hands to our face level. He opened them, and my eyes go round as a cloud of light emerged from his hand. They disappeared with the rest of them, slowly fading into the sick dark wood. "Wah- how were you able to catch that many?!" I demand but he merely chuckled. "It's a secret. You know, fire flies are beautiful." He sighed.

I laughed. "Yeah." I snuggled up next to his chest. He laughed. "What, your getting cold already?! Here, I need to tell you something." He said. I looked up at his face. "What is it?" I asked. He grinned. "I believe something very childish. I believe that the fire flies were sent to guide us. To protect us." He smirked as I giggled. "You sound crazy." I muttered before he leaned down and kissed me.

"But you love that, don't you?" He muttered.

I smiled softly, his touch seemingly brushing against my skin. I drifted off to sleep, lulled by old, sweet memories.