Cost of the Crown (UNREVISED VERSION)

Pale

The moon shone upon the east and the twilight harmony was heard all over the kingdom. Feliz was sleeping peacefully as she heard the harmony.

She's having a dream that she knows she experienced in the past.

"Mom! Cedric taught me how to read, write and draw!" Maria ran to Queen Victorina with a book in her hands.

"Oh, has he now? That's quite impressive." Victorina smiled at her young daughter.

"He even taught me some words in different languages!" Maria jumped.

"Like what?" Victorina chuckled.

"E curdetum de! [I love you!]" Maria exclaimed.

Victorina stopped what she was doing then looked at Maria with great delight. "I love you too, Maria."

Maria giggled then said, "Cuerto id ma pampa? [Where is my father?]"

"Ureo pampa id ravas. [Your father is outside.]" Victorina looked longingly to the distance beyond their windows.

"I'd better see father outside then. Love you so much mom, I shall go!" Maria kissed her mother before leaving her in solitude.

As soon as Maria opened the door, Cedric was outside. Her brother went inside the room then greeted her mother.

"I see you taught so much to your sister." Victorina smiled.

"I taught nothing but the basics she needs to know when she's queen." Cedric faintly smiled.

"E a portude ove de. [I am proud of you.]" Victorina got off her seat then walked towards her son, she hugged him tightly saying, "You've been nothing but an amazing brother to your sister."

"What can I say? I've been raised by a mother who taught me how to treat women." Cedric smiled. He wasn't used to getting such treatment from anyone. Normally, he's just the fortune teller prince, sometimes even mistaken to be a gypsy.

While outside, King Eduard was taking care of the military until his daughter went up to him with a book in her hands.

"Pampa! [Father!]" Maria called for the king.

The king looked behind him to see his daughter skipping her way towards him.

"Maria." Eduard smiled. "What brings you here?"

"Cedric djuru ez horo su vaja, muwat, un dawo. Zje xen djuru awosa ed... gevefelenz... diaranguae! [Cedric taught me how to read, write, and draw. He even taught me words in different languages!]" Maria struggled. She didn't know if it was in the correct grammar, but at least she tried.

Eduard chuckled. "Id faz jo? [Is that so?]"

"I want you to have this. Cedric told me to keep it, but I want you to remember him so much." Maria told her father as she ripped out a page for her father.

Eduard took the page then folded it before putting it into his front pocket. It brought him joy to see his daughter being a loving princess.

Not long after Maria left her father, she went to the plaza to sing to the people she deeply adored. Singing the same song over and over again, though it did not annoy the people.

As she sang, she felt her throat get filled with water like she was underwater, she couldn't feel herself and she was slowly losing consciousness. She could not hear anything, neither could she breath, she was slowly dying in front of the people she loved while she felt as if she was drowning.

"Did you miss me?" A cold monotonous voice asked.

She collapsed in front of everyone and she was taken back to the castle where she was quickly examined by her mother. Cedric took a look at his sister then there it hit him.

"Mother... Something is happening... I do not know what but I feel uneasy looking at her." Cedric told his mother as his eyes started to get watery.

"I know what happened..." Victorina sighed. She placed her hand above Maria's eyes then casted a blessing to which would help the little princess heal without her knowing.

All of the people in the Orient knew about the incident and they were taken aback. The gray heads knew what was going on. Though, telling the people would result into a backlash that can harm the kingdom.

Maria opened her glowing red eyes to see herself underwater. The streaks of light scattered around the water she could see, though can't swim up, she felt as if she was being pulled further from the surface.

"I can't hear myself..." Maria tried opening her mouth but no words came out. It was all gibberish and each word stung her like lightning.

She closed her eyes once more to concentrate and analyze what was happening. She regained her hearing, but the same words were being muttered. It was annoying her and her eyes started getting watery. Her tears mixed with the water and the bubbles she created as she struggled to swim towards the surface in which she failed once again.

Under the water, she opened her eyes. She saw a mirror in front of her and it was mocking her existence.

"Who are you?" She asked.

"The question is... Who... Are... You?" The mirror answered with an insane laugh.

"I am you and you are me... Though I have not met you yet..." Maria answered.

"Better learn who you are then... You pathetic lot!" The mirror mocked.

Mari punched the mirror and so did the entity on the other side. The mirror shattered and it wounded Maria's hand. Though being hurt, her mirror counterpart wasn't, which was quite odd. She did not question it though, she just cried as she felt so miserable and lost.

"Why?" She tried yelling underwater.

The crown of her mother flashed in front of her as she cried. The mirror became the crown and as soon as Maria touched it, blood was coming out of the crown. She did not know why it was, but it made her swim further from the crown.

"What in the..." Maria muttered.

Her hearing became sharper and the words again kept repeating. She yelled, "Shut up!!"

But before she could continue what she was going to say, a young lady clad in yellow appeared before her. She was about to scream when she heard, "Who are you?" The same voice asked her.

Feliz opened her eyes as she felt cold sweat running down her cheeks, it was not a hot night but she was sweating profusely. Her eyes glowed vibrant red before turning back into brown right after she opened her eyes.

She felt chills down her spine as she muttered, "I don't know who I am..."

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Author's note:

Hi guys! The language that I used here is the language of the Orient. I just want to make a language of my own that separates Madara from the Orient.

You will see that someone in this story knows how to speak Madaran and Oriental.

That's it for this part, see you in the next!