Anais is on her way to her arranged marriage when her family is attacked and their carriage set alight with them trapped inside. In theory, Anais should have been burnt to cinder like the rest of her family, but instead she walked from the flames.
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Anais stared out of the carriage window and tried to resist the urge to sigh again. The forest was just greens and browns and quite frankly boring. Not that she expected this journey to be interesting or fun, of course. She wanted it to be a dull one to reflect how she was feeling; utterly miserable. She lowered the silk curtain and instead returned to staring at the unread book in her lap, the words unseen.
"Cheer up will you!" Her mother had snapped when they'd been an hour into the journey. "If you keep frowning like that, you'll get wrinkles!"
Anais kept frowning because she hoped she would get wrinkles. Then maybe her husband to be wouldn't want her and she could go home and stay unwed forever like she wanted. She sank further into the cushions of the carriage and shot her younger sister a quick glare. If only Rithia was older then it would be her duty to marry some rich man to further her fathers political influence, instead of Anais'. And not just any man either... An older one.
Anais flinched at the thought. She'd never met him but she'd overheard the maids gossiping and they'd said he was fat, old – at least fifty – greying and balding. But more than his looks, she feared him. He had been widowed three times before, the deaths of his previous wives all extremely suspect. That would be a blessing though, she mused, if he were to kill her. Preferably before consummating the marriage of course. Just the thought of that made her stomach churn.
The carriage lurched to a stop causing her to almost topple into Rithia sat opposite her. Their father swore loudly and opened the door to shout at the drivers, leaving the three Apelle women alone in the carriage
"Ouch!" Her sister whined. Looking down Anais noted her book had fallen on her sisters' silk slippered foot. "You did it on purpose!"
"You think I made the carriage suddenly stop?" Anais smirked as she bent to pick up her book. "Fine, you're right. It was all part of my nefarious plot to drop my book on your foot!"
"Mummy!"
"Enough!" Mother snapped at them both. "Rithia stop with the whining and Anais–" She fixed her with a glare. "–Enough of the sarcasm. It's unbecoming."
Anais scowled at her sister, who stuck out her tongue in response, before peeling back the silk curtain to try work out what was wrong. Dusk wasn't far from descending, which meant they were getting close to where her betrothed lived. Father had said they'd reach it just after nightfall.
"Perhaps we have reached your fiancé." Rithia spoke suddenly, tone purposely nasty.
"Perhaps I ought to throw my book at your nose next time."
"Anais!" Her mother scolded, horrified.
"I told you mother; he simply won't accept a barbaric animal like Anais." Rithia tittered.
"Then it's a good job father brought his spare heir with us." Anais jabbed back. "If he refuses me, he can have you instead!"
