Once

Chapter One

"'Scuse me, miss, you'll have to pay for that." Wynter tugged at my thin velvet sleeve and I spun on my heel to look at the shopkeeper who was frowning slightly at me. Ah. I had nearly forgotten.

"How much, then?" As I was rummaging through the old deerskin bag I took with me, Wynter was rotating in a circle, mouth open in awe around the shop. It was not a place I would admire, but seeing as Wynter had never been exposed to anywhere outside the palace --

"Sevenpence worth, that one is," the shopkeeper jabbed a finger at the cloak I was gripping onto. I nodded and handed him his coins before we exited.

It was nightfall when we returned to the abandoned hovel we now called home. Throwing the cloak and deerskin bag aside, I went to start a fire at the hearth.

"Sister," Wynter whispered, and I turned to face her.

"Yes, Wyn?" There was a bristle of heat at my fingertips and I grinned as I backed away from the fireplace, feeling instantly warmed. An image of scales flashed through my mind, but it fled when I glanced at Wynter again. Her cheeks were salmon red and I could see the tears threatening to spill out onto her face. Sniffing, she rubbed her nose. "Ah ... what is the matter?"

"Why did he do it?" Her fists were curled at her sides, and she was trembling. Brow furrowed; everything in her seemed to scream with pain and fury.

Ah, I thought. So she was not in despair, but rather angry with our brother. Good. So was I, and with good reason. He had driven us out of our home, committed treason and drove his future queen out so he himself could sit on the throne. Then, of course there was his greatest crime of all -- the murder of our parents.

I considered telling her the truth. But the truth would not be taken as such by sweet Wynter, and if it was, she would then despair. I did not want that for her. Despair and heartbreak were more difficult to bear than hatred and anger.

"You mustn't think of it or him," I chose to tell her. "He was manipulated by another who wished to ascend to the throne." The lie was incredibly lame, but I watched her let the words sink in. Then her lips pursed as she frowned.

"How stupid of him," she said softly. I nodded, swallowing.

"How stupid of him indeed."

-

She didn't understand why we had to keep moving. That night I bought her a new cloak was not the only night I chose to deceive her and twist my words into something easier for someone as young as her to stomach. I hid the truth with lies as one would cover a grand table with a cloth. But the truth was the truth, as a table was still a table.

Time and time again she asked me, "Why can't we stay, sister?"

Her inquiries stayed the same, but my answers varied.

"I don't like how this hill rolls," I'd tell her. "We need a bigger room for you," I tried once. By the time we were nearing the seaside, which was far from our home, my creativity had dwindled vastly.

Here the truth was: our brother was sending his spies and assassins in search parties to find his sisters and bring an end to their lives. I had seen this coming -- as much as he favored Wynter, he favored the throne above all things, and Wynter was no exception to that.

He was a bastard -- though, in technicality, he wasn't. It had been Wynter who was born of another woman. A sorceress sent away in shame, at my mother Seyla's orders. Many times did I wish for things to be different. Haides resembled me in his looks, but he was a monster and I was not. If anything, it was Wynter who was a true sibling to me.

But it was Wynter I chose to lie to, over and over.

I would pay the price and I knew that.

"The ocean! I smell it!" She shouted, and I broke out of my reverie. Wrapping my shawl around me tighter, I kept a close eye on her as she tore across the sand. Wynter was light on her feet, and she had always loved to run. Our mother had scolded her often for it. A real princess of Nadora could not wander wildly about, and that was exactly what Wynter adored to do.

Of course, now that our mother was gone, she had no one to scold her for running. I certainly wasn't about to --

"Wynter!" I shouted, horrified as she took her shoes off and began to wade in the water, failing to lift her torn skirts. Worry filled me when she dove under the blue waves, but she rose out of the water in a few moments, grinning at me. Her damp blonde hair was pasted on her head, and because of the distance, she looked tinier than ever. I couldn't help but smile, and the next thing I knew I was taking my own shoes off, dashing into the sea.

It was cold. Freezingly cold. How did she manage to stay in for this long? But before I could make an exit, a splash of this ice cold water smacked me in the face and I was screaming.

"Oh, you are going to pay for that!"

I splashed my sister in return, and she simply smiled brightly at me. Thrown off by the sudden sharp joy in both of us, I blinked and stared back at her.

"What is it?"

"I am so glad you are still you," she said softly. "I thought you were going to continue to act like a horrible adult and get stuck that way!"

There was a short pause, and then I gaped and swam towards her, splashing her as hard as I could.

-

That night, we slept in an a half-built hut. It was terribly drafty, but I had not planned to sleep anyways. I watched as Wynter slept soundly, curled up in a ball, clinging to her cloak as she used to cling to her beautiful silk sheets. At the memory of something pertaining to our old home, I flinched and shifted, looking up at the sky. The roof had not been started, and so I was met with the bluish onyx of the night sky. Colorful stars burned brilliantly above, and I felt very small.

I had not planned to sleep. But the rustle of the wind and looking at the stars lulled me to sleep anyways, and soon I was dreaming.

I woke up to the sound of Wynter screaming for our father. Instantly, I sat up -- and my palms met a chilly stone floor. A gasp escaped me, and I realized we were no longer in the hut, but in a dark, enclosed space. Remain calm, I told myself. Remain calm. You are Princess Persephone Seyla of the Vexun line, and you will rule over Nadora. You will take the throne back and you have no fears. None at all.

None at all.

I found Wynter at the corner of the room, still wrapped in her now torn and damp cloak. A lantern must have been lit outside the door, as a dim light crept in from underneath the door. Taking Wynter's hands, I helped her to stand.

"Do not cry or scream," I told her. "You are a Vexun, and we do not fear anybody or anything. We will get out of this place, and have whoever has put us here cut into pieces and burned out of existence." Her blue eyes shone in the sliver of light there was in the room, and she nodded slowly.

We both turned to look at the door.

Swallowing, I reached over and turned the knob.

The door was not locked, and there was no one on the other side. Or at least, it looked as if no one was on the other side. We silently crept out of the room. I was tempted to pick up the lantern and take it with us, but doing such would give us away easily. Besides, I was not afraid of the dark.

I had been born and raised in a world of darkness. I wasn't about to rely on the light to lead me out. I had Wynter with me, and that was enough to raise my courage and spirits.

We were two hundred and fifty steps away from the room when voices began to echo through the hall. Wynter's hand squeezed mine and we quickened pace. My eyes had adjusted to the lack of light and I could now see the exit ahead. 

"Where are they?!" I heard a voice demand. The voice resembled a man's, but I could not be sure.

"Obviously not here?" A gruff voice answered. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Wynter smile. We made it to the door and I made sure to be careful was I opened it --

But we were not careful enough, it seemed.