Chapter 2: Serene

"Be careful with him"

Leila had finally left the Queen's tent but Selene was still deep in thought.

She was deeply thinking about what Leila had just said that she didn't notice that the baby bird jumped from her hands and learned how to fly.

She half-smiled and was slightly relieved of the sight. She kept on staring at the baby bird finally spreading her wings when suddenly a hand covered her mouth.

Her heart kept on pounding and adrenaline kicked in. She was entering fight or flight mode. If she fights, she might alert the nearby villagers and cause commotion. She doesn't want that. That's more worse than kidnapping her. What to do? Her mind is in a blur and at the same time her heart was in commotion.

"Mmmfffff." She struggled to keep up with her breath.

"Shshhh. It's me." She heard a familiar voice. Her heart calmed down when she realized who it was. She felt safe for a moment inside his arms. His voice just gives her this kind of relief.

"C-Carlos?" Selene turned her head to see her intruder. When she turned her head, she didn't realize that her face was too close to his. She stared at his plump lips and she could smell the mint from his breath. She bit her lip when she felt his hot breath on her lips.

"Fuck." His eyes widened for an unknown reason.

"I-I'm sorry." He said as he removed his grip from her and distanced for a bit while hiding his face.

Selene closed her eyes and pulled herself together. She sighed to calm herself down because she can feel her face heating up. Good thing that it was dark. He can't see how red her face was.

"Why are you here?" She said gently. Well, that's a first. It was the first time that she wasn't aggressive towards him

"Well..." He trailed off. He was caught off guard for some reason that he can't find the right words to say.

"Selene"

Selene heard a voice. It sounded odd. Selene brushed it off since she thought that she was just hearing things.

"I was uhm...I was just walking by, you know..." Carlos continued.

"Selene"

She heard it again. This time, it was more clearer

"Selene...Selene...Selene...Selene"

It was getting louder, more clearer than the last. She can't let this one slide.

"Shshhh. Do you hear that?" She focused on that noise she was hearing.

"What noise?" Carlos was confused.

"Shshhh. It's calling me, can't you hear it?" She kept her hearing senses sharp.

"Selene...Selene..."

The voice was getting louder.

"Selene..."

It sounded like a faint whisper from a goddess.

She looked everywhere but the voice almost looked like it came from everywhere. There's only one place she hadn't checked. The Queen's Box.

The Box was a secret stash that only the queen can open. It was forbidden from everyone.

She felt the wooden floor to find the hidden compartment.

Her memory was faint but if she can remember right she may find it again.

The last time she saw the box was when she was a child. That was the only memory she kept with. Her mother never spoke nor mentioned it ever since.

"Carlos" She called him when she found the hidden compartment.

He didn't respond. He just walked towards her and opened the compartment.

There were piles of dust that flew out. Papers and other precious things were there. She coughed and coughed because of the dust.

Carlos handed her his handkerchief, "Here."

She hesitated for a moment but accepted it. She was flustered from his unexpected gesture. Usually, they only interacted in the battle field. They didn't have the time to be intimate with each other.

Finally they found the box but unfortunately, it was locked.

"Do you have something that's small, long and pointed?" She said. She couldn't even look at him because she was too caught up in observing the box

"I have a hairpin" he said. She looked at him oddly.

"What? Can't a boy have a hairpin?"he said raising his hands up

She squinted her eyes and just accepted the hairpin.

After many twists and such, she finally opened the lock. What was weird is that a piece of paper was the only thing there.

"What's that?" Carlos asked.

She couldn't read the paper because it was too dark. Carlos was getting impatient and pulled the paper from her.

"HEY GIVE IT BACK" she shouted.

Carlos found it amusing, her getting annoyed so he raised his hand up high to keep Selene from pulling it from him.

"Damn you and your tall height." She cursed under her breath.

She just jumped up and down. She looked up at his face to make her see the annoyance but unfortunately, he looked down at the same time. Their faces were too close.

Selene stopped jumping. She took a step back from embarassment but almost tripped. It was a step back of embarrassment and a step forward to awkwardness. Carlos held her from the waist so she wont fall but their faces were so close again.

"What's with all the tripping and us almost kissing?" She thought

She stared at his eyes. She entered a new realm of bliss that she never knew. The surroundings were getting blurry and it felt like the world has stopped. His face was inching closer as she closed her eyes.

"Ahem"

They both straightened up and looked at the intruder.

It was the Queen.

"W-we weren't doing anything. Promise" Selene held her right hand and stuttered due to nervousness

The queen took a stern face with her eyebrow raised and just looked at the both of them.

"Selene. Follow me, I had scheduled you dance lessons because the prince of Shinea is coming" she was too straightforward. She turned her back and walked out elegantly

Selene took one last glance at Carlos and exited the tent.

Selene was about to take a step when Carlos grabbed her elbow and whispered in her ear.

"Check your pockets before sleeping. ONLY before sleeping"

He let her go. Selene didn't look back and continued walking but was actually spacing out so she didn't notice that she was about to trip again.

She just walked faster and followed the queen.

---

Selene's POV

"Selene..."

The queen didn't even look at me.

"Y-yes mom?"

She stopped at her tracks and didn't respond. She just continued walking as I followed her.

We reached the room for dancing in the palace.

I was going to enter the door when the queen spoke.

"Be careful with him"

I stopped midway and looked at her back as she walked away. I shrugged it off and continued to enter without even looking at her anymore.

Him? Who's him? My dance instructor? Geez. What's up with mom?

"Princess Selene. I'm Awshlin, your dance instructor"

Woah. This guy has an accent. It's amusing, I'll give you that. Sort of an overused French accent? The s is z. The r sounds like a bird getting choked. But what? He's a guy and his name is for a girl?

"Ashlyn?"

"No, Princess. It's Awsh-lin"

"Uhmm okay? Ash-lyn?"

"Awshlin."

Okay I give up. He turned his body and took quite the exhibition before asking me for a dance. He has a really big butt though.

And this guy is short. Pfftt. Who can be shorter than me? I'm not gonna answer that.

"Princess, let's dance"

"I dont know how to danze...dance"

"Just follow the music, Princess"

His butt is actually much more of a dancer than me.

"That's right Princess. Ze Magnifique"

Woah woah woah. I can be a dancer?

"OWWWWEEEWWWYYY"

Oops. I spoke too soon. I stepped the nutshell's foot...with my heels.

"Ohhh, that's gonna leave a scar."

I looked at the one who spoke. It was Breyan. He just appeared out ot nowhere.

"SCAR? SCAR? YOU THERE. YES. YOU WITH THE MOLE ON THE MOUTH. GET THE FIRST AID KIT IN THE BOUDOIR" Ashlyn panicked and just asked a random stranger to get him a first aid kit.

"Calm down, Pops. I was just joking with the scar." Breyan was still snickering while calming him down.

Ashlyn kept on shouting.

Tsk. I knew I was not a good dancer.

I exited the dancing room to escape the drama.

I sighed and just walked aimlessly around the castle.

It has been years...since I last walked through these halls. My feet were getting hurt so I decided to go back to my room. My mind was too full. I couldn't think straight.

Today's events happened so fast.

I leaned on the door when I entered my room. I sighed again. My mind kept on flashbacking to today's events with him. With Carlos...

"Check your pockets before sleeping. ONLY before sleeping"

Oh yeah. The paper. That paper. I pulled it out of my pocket and read it out loud without hesitation.

"Power unleash. Power burn. Let the chosen one be born. Evergreen. Evermore. The power you sought will be born."

After dictating that, a blue light appeared infront of me. I felt a searing pain on my body as the blue light consumed me. I saw darkness after that.