2 Chapter 1

The chatter of familiar voices woke me from my unconscious state. Deciding not to open my eyes just to make sure of my surroundings.

"She was in the forest alone and I doubt she did all of that to herself!" Desteria's voice. She often got into arguments with Eris.

"You know she's an attention whore so she probably asked someone to do it or maybe she's a masochist." I'm very far from a masochist but I'll excuse what she said for now. She gets envious easily.

"You're so unbelievable! She's our little sister!"

"Just because we came from the same place doesn't mean I care."

"Why are you even here if you don't care?"

"Simply because I want to know where she was. It's almost been a month."

So my timing was correct. Don't get me wrong I did try to escape on multiple occasions but it wound up backfiring so I was there a bit too long. Regrettably I opened my eyes and tried sitting up which immediately made me nauseous.

Eris plopped down on my bed, scooting close to me. "Artemis are you okay? We were so worried about you when you didn't come home!" My sister is an absolute psychopath. She's usually selfish and only concerned for her own well-being. I don't blame her but I also don't trust her ever.

Pushing myself away from her made sense. My throat was still sore so I didn't say anything but made the gesture for some water. Desteria got the hint and handed me a glass. I quite honestly did want Eris near me and she caught on to that, moving away. I downed the liquid quickly, wanting to get this conversation over with.

I wouldn't tell them the truth, not the whole truth at least. It's not that I want to lie to them but it's better this way. "Don't worry Eris was right." The way Desteria looked at me almost made me laugh. That probably sounded more like a joke than a statement. "I told you she was a whore!"

     Whore

I despise that word. "Shut up. I never said that. I was with some friends and there were some animals that almost killed us." There were a few holes in my statement but neither of them asked questions. It was in Desteria's nature to be rather quiet. "Can you tell Eden to come here? I need her help." I didn't want to turn my back to them. If they didn't ask about the wounds then I wouldn't have to explain them. Despite Eden being a servant she didn't say much and only really speaks when spoken to.

She wouldn't ask questions about what happened and would just take care of everything. Desteria pursed her lips but turned on her heel and left with Eris following close behind her. I reluctantly left the comfort of my bed. Standing up made me really feel the pain I was in. My body was aching all over and the sharp pain in the back never went away. The wounds probably closed my now but that didn't alleviate the pain.

Standing up was still a struggle but at least I could feel my legs again, though they were still trembling.

It was still dark from what I could tell which was fine. I don't do well in the sunlight. It's irritating and I can barely see, not to mention the sun burns. I tried my best to keep my room dark as well. I could still see fine if not better. The small knock on the door snapped me from my thoughts, hearing the words.

"My lady? Your sister told me you needed my assistance?"

"You can come in, Eden."

It's always nice to see a familiar face after a long time. Eden was usually rather stoic and when she opened the even she couldn't hide her shocked expression. All she did was say "I'll run you a bath and then we can tend to any wounds you received. Your father would like to see you as soon as we are done." I simply nodded at her words. Of course my father would want to see me but explaining things to him would be more complicated.

"Thank you. Can you add lavender as well? I have a headache."

She took a small bow before quickly disappearing. Sometimes my thoughts go back to what people say about me. Eris' opinion doesn't matter because it's just that, an opinion but it doesn't hurt any less when it's your own sister that says it. Sometimes I wish people could drink their words and taste how bitter they are.   

              Would they even care?