Her dream had been the same for years. She woke up in her castle dungeon and saw a man kneeling on his knees with his arms dragging from the chains attached to the opposite sides of the floor; he was wearing a thick metal collar around his neck, clearly restraining him, and his hair fell upon his shoulders.
She approached him and as she got closer she could feel the power flowing from within him. Usually his power would scare her but, this time it didn't; she was able to get close enough to touch him. She slowly reached out and placed her hand gently on his shoulder. His head lifted up, sharply, and his crystal blue eyes pierced into her own as they zeroed in on her.
"Jasannah..." He whispered, softly.
His voice dry and brittle from the lack of water or how tight the collar was restraining him. She couldn't tell.
"You found me."
She gasped but before she could ask anymore, she awoke to her mother shaking her out of her sleep.
"How many times do I have to tell you..."
Her mother began in stern voice to which Jasannah rolled her eyes.
"...princesses don't sleep in. I know. I know." Jasannah finished, sitting up and stretching her arms.
Her mother looked at her closely and narrowed her eyes.
"Why did you sleep in?" She asked, demandingly.
"I had that dream again." Jasannah whispered, barely enough to be audible.
Her mother's face hardened and her eyes held a cold look within them. Jasannah could never understand why her mother hated those dreams.
"What happened?" She asked, sternly.
Jasannah took a deep breath and explained.
"It was the same but different.I saw the same guy, chained up, head down. But instead of his aura scaring me, it drew me in. I got close enough to touch him."
Her mother let out an audible gasp, clasping her hands to her mouth in shock and taking a step back.
"H-he said my name... He said I found him." Jasannah continued, with a hidden smile which she kept for herself.
When she looked at her mother's face, her light hazel eyes were a vibrant gold. Jas instinctively rolled her eyes. Her mother had always reacted like this when she talked about the dreams.
"If I've told you once I've told you a million times, Do Not Get Close To Him, and now you've touched him!?" She yelled, her voice shaking the room.
"It wasn't on purpose! I was drawn to him. I couldn't help it! And why are you talking about him as if he's real?" She asked, completely confused.
Her mother let out a low growl. "Get up and get dressed, wear something emerald, your father's parents are coming to see the finishing touches for your party."
She started walking towards the door but, before she left, she turned back, sadly smiling and said,
"Happy 21st Birthday."
Jas let out a sigh and flung herself back into the comfort of her pillow. In the darkness that surrounded her, she saw his face again.
"Save me." His blue eyes pleaded, his eyes welling up with tears.
Jas jumped up, startled, and shook her head. It was only a figment of her imagination.
'I must be going crazy.' She thought.
She walked over to her very large closet. One side of the wardrobe was victorian dresses and the other, fitted evening gowns. She chose a beautiful dress with two shades of green and flowers embroidered with whitish green flowers on the bodice of the dress, she rang for her maids and stood on the stool. Several tiny elven females scurried in. Jas pointed to the dress, they took the dress down, and began to lace her up.
After the dress, it was time for hair and makeup. Jas dismissed all but two elves. Elyssa and Faelyn. Elyssa was working on Jas's hair and Faelyn was doing her makeup.
"Up or down my lady?" Elyssa asked.
Jasannah looked at her natural curly auburn hair and smiled. "Down, Elyssa, thank you." She said.
Elyssa took her time styling Jasannah's hair letting her natural curls do all the work.
Once her freckles were well hidden, per her mother's request, Elyssa disappeared into the large closet and reappeared with a wide brown box. Elyssa and Faelyn kneeled down and presented the Princess with her tiara. She took her tiara out of the box and looked at it. Today for some reason, the small tiara with beautiful emerald gems and priceless diamonds, that usually weighed nothing, weighed a ton. She let out a heavy sigh and placed it on her head.
"Happy Birthday your Highness." Elyssa said sweetly.
Jasannah returned the smile but, didn't feel it. In less than 36 hours she was going to marry a man she didn't love, to save a kingdom that was crumbling. She looked in the mirror and didn't recognize the woman staring back at her. She had the same eyes, and the same hair but it wasn't her. A single tear slide down her cheek.
"Stop crying." Her mother said coldly.
Jasannah quickly wiped the tear away, held her head high and walked passed her mother.
