The Mortal Queen | The Cruel Prince / Wicked King Fanfic

One

Jude

I slowly open my bedroom door, willing myself to be as quiet as I can. I tip-toe out into the dark hallway and close the door behind me. My feet are silent on the cold wood floor as I make my way to the end of the hall. I hold my shoes in one hand, and a jacket in the other. Vivi and Oak are still sleeping and I don't particularly want to wake them up. It's Saturday and they'd both be annoyed at me for not letting them sleep in. I walk into the living room, lace my shoes up in the dark and slip my jacket on. I'm out the front door moments later.

As I make my way to the edge of the yard, I pull my hood up over my head. Spring is just beginning, and the air moving in and out of my lungs feels like ice. I take a deep breath and turn down the sidewalk, like I do every morning, and begin my run.

Vivi got tired of watching me sulk, and begged me, no— ordered me to find something to occupy my time, so I did. I've surprisingly found a few things in this mortal world that I don't hate so much, but this one is my favorite.

I quickly found that running allowed me to sulk and clear my head at the same time, which is why I chose to start my day like this, before the sun came up. This little ritual gave me time to let all my jumbled thoughts pour into my head while also getting some aggression out of my system. And let's be honest, that's just better for everyone.

The hood starts to slip from my head, and as my braided hair gently taps against my back as I move, I decide to push myself a little harder, going faster with every mile that passes. The wound on my leg has long since healed to the point that I can't feel it anymore when I run.

Before I know it, I've run farther and longer than I usually do. The sun is rising, casting dim light on my surroundings. Lovely. That means I'm forced to observe all the flowers and life emerging from the cold ground. Things that remind me too much of Cardan and the life I was forced to leave behind only months ago. A complicated puzzle with so many pieces I haven't been able to sort through. I'm breathing harder now, and sweating as all the rage and confusion begins to surface.

I begin my climb up the steepest hill in the city, slowing my pace a bit so I don't pass out before I reach the top. This is my favorite part of my run.
At the top of the hill there's an empty parking lot that's mostly used for all the commuting drivers carpooling to other nearby cities. It looks over part of the city, but at the other end of the parking lot it's mostly a cliff that backs up to the ocean, and is an overlook point for travelers passing through. I make my way across to the other side and sit down on a bench, where I can rest and let my thoughts run wild.

There is a gentle breeze, and the scent of the ocean dances through me loosening a few strands of hair from my braid. In the distance I can see a few fishing boats making their way back into the harbor, and as I watch them I think of the fishermen and how ordinary and free their lives must be. They've probably never been betrayed by those closest to them, and most likely never will be. I pick some rocks from the cold, bare ground and throw them as hard as I can into the ocean beyond.

I lean back on the bench and close my eyes as the cool ocean breeze kisses my face. Suddenly I can see Cardan's face and the odd grin he gave me upon sentencing me to exile. I can't unsee it, and I fear it's turning into an unhealthy obsession as I try to make sense of it. Then I can clearly hear him laughing at me with everyone else at the ridiculousness of my claiming to be the Queen of Faerie.

I open my eyes again and stare across the ocean, as if I can see into my old life, and my eyes start to burn with frustration and other emotions I don't understand. There are so many unanswered questions, and I have absolutely nobody to give me those answers.

I look down at my watch, and with a sigh I heave myself up from the bench. It's nearly eight o'clock, more than an hour later than I was planning on. I give my arms and legs a quick stretch, take a deep breath and begin the almost five-mile journey back to the house.

The sun begins to warm my face as I turn down the street that will lead me back to Vivi's house, and decide to sprint the last quarter mile. I slow down as the familiar yard comes into view, and when I finally reach the house, I bend over and put my hands on my knees to catch my breath.

Inside, Vivi has started making breakfast, and it smells so good I want to cry. As I make my way toward the kitchen, I dry my face with a towel, and I'm frozen when I bring the towel away from my face to see Heather standing over the stove flipping pancakes.

She turns my way and gives me a gentle smile. "Hi, Jude. Hope you're in the mood for pancakes." She flips the last ones onto a plate.

I don't know what to say, so of course I just stand there and say nothing, but I manage to smile back.
Heather walks over to the table and sets out all the food. I finally find my voice. "When did you— I mean, how are you here?"

She smiles at me again. "I just finally gave up trying to ignore your sister."

Just then, Vivi walks into the room, Oak trailing behind her. She looks me up and down. "Still doing that running thing?"

I roll my eyes and sigh. "It helps me clear my head." I say. I can feel sweat trickle down my face, so I dab at it with the towel.

"How many miles this time?" Passing me, she guides Oak to his spot at the table and sits down next to him.

"Twelve," I answer, "Three more than yesterday." I'm still slightly out of breath.

I walk over to Where Heather is seated next to Oak and hug her shoulders. "I'm glad you're here." She smiles and puts a hand on my arm. "Me too." She says.

Oak looks at me and gives me a disgusted look. "Jude, you stink! I can smell you all the way over here." Yeah, because I'm right next to you! I just roll my eyes, but I laugh too.

Vivi swallows a bite of her pancake and shrugs, then says, "You really do smell."

"Yeah, I get it." I say holding my hands up in surrender. "I'll happily go shower first and sacrifice fresh, hot food for the sake of keeping you all comfortable." I curtsy, then turn and walk away without giving them the chance to respond, but I can tell by the loud whispering that they're annoyed with me. Vivi is especially tired of my attitude.

I turn on the shower and head back into my room to get my change of clothes while I wait for the water to heat up. As I turn to leave I spot my ruby ring on the floor out of the corner of my eye. It's almost out of sight, just under my bed. I must have dropped it or thrown it the last time I bothered to look at it. I narrow my eyes. What are you looking at? You can just stay there for all I care.

In the bathroom the mirror and glass door of the shower are already foggy. I hang my clothes on the rack next to the door and walk over to the mirror. With a sigh I use my hand to clear some of the fog to take a long hard look at myself. My hair is stuck to the side of my face and my cheeks are still pink. What are you doing, Jude?

Vivi asked me a few days ago why I haven't been scheming to make everyone pay for what they did to me, but the truth is, I am honestly and whole-heartedly not sure where to start, or who deserves my wrath the most.

I look into the mirror again, but it has steamed up, so I step into the shower and let the hot water rush over my skin. I close my eyes and place my hands on the wall to hold myself up, and I just stay like that for a few minutes.

Cardan's face drifts into my thoughts again. This time we're in his room, and he's sliding my ruby ring onto my finger. The one he stole from me in the first place. That damn ring has haunted my dreams and thoughts nearly every day since I was dropped here. Just looking at it fills me with both elation and dread. I don't know what it's supposed to mean anymore, if anything.

Then, without being able to control my own thoughts, we're in his bed, tangled up in each other from exhaustion. We had just made our vows to each other and neither of us had rested much the night before. During the night he had awoken me with a tender kiss, his fingers trailing down my cheek. I held his hand in mine, pulling his arm around my waist, and drifted off to sleep again.

"I'd do anything to protect you, Jude." He had whispered into my ear.

My eyes flew open, and I spluttered as the water blurred my vision. I turned away from the spray of the shower and stood there in stunned silence, my heart racing. This is the first time I'd remembered him saying those words to me that night.