PROWESS. (COMPLETED)

Chapter 80

 Anastasia POV:

"Knock knock." Says a familiar voice. I lift my eyes from the letter to stare through Aries. He leans casually in the door frame, hands shoved in the pockets of his suit.

"I..." My fingers feel numb, the paper feels light as a feather, but the weight of the words crush every bone of my body. I'm paralysed, the letter twitches in my hand; my pathetic attempt at passing it to him

Aries' eyes drop to the letter, he steps forward, "May I?" I nod, my head dropping to my chest, too heavy for me to keep holding high. My head swims with phrases from the letter; 'I had to make a choice' 'I know you'll resent me for this', 'I'll always be proud of you' my shoulders drop too. My head feels fuzzy, like a swarm of angry bees are trapped in a jar.

A headache pulsates behind my eyes, they water.

Silence settles as Aries reads: "Of course my Father was looking to make a pawn of you and buy you as bride for Chad" spits Aries, disgusted. "Your Dad made the right choice."

"You think?" I demand, appalled. "Aries, I lost my childhood!"

"And gained a future, your independence and the freedom to make your own choices." He argues. "Stace, you wouldn't have had a childhood if he'd married you to Chad. You would have been expected to mate and produce an heir, regardless of if you were a child yourself. You and Chad would've both lost a childhood... not that Chad would see it as a loss if it meant gaining you as his." Snarls Aries, venomous. "Anastasia." Says Aries more firmly, coming to stand in front of me and kneeling so we are on the same level. He lifts my head up to look at him, supporting me with strength I lack. "You gained so much more than you lost. It was an impossible decision to make. Don't forget you will have to face similar hard decisions since your destiny is to become Queen."

How could I forget? I had been systematically repressing the thought since the day I met Kellen. My head drops onto his chest, despairing at the truth of his statement. I want to scream at the moon for all the injustices she has dealt us. Deep down, I feel gratitude for Dad's foresight; Aries is right, I gained much more than I lost. Boarding school while one the most difficult experiences I ever endured, it prepared me for the reality of hierarchy and patriarchy in our society. A future centered around those two things had already begun torturing me at thirteen. Dad's choice allowed me to have a say in my future, and I have since paved the way for change; I couldn't have done that chained in marriage to someone I didn't care for, at whose hands I would have been made to produce a child I didn't want and I certainly wouldn't have been ready for.

I also couldn't ignore that because of Dad, I met Aries. Aries, who showed me how to stay sane while being bent to the will of other, outwardly becoming powerful and independent. Aries gave me prowess, guided me into becoming 'Prowess'. Because of Dad, I found my true mate, Kellen and despite my relationship with him being rocky and trying, we are much stronger for it now. Because of Dad, I could choose how to prepare for my future.