~ The Omen ~

The smell of death was like a pungent metallic odour. It was a sickly-sweet smell of rotting flesh and burning metal. The druid could smell it from a mile away. Etrix let the lingering scent of death wash over him. It was unmistakable. The Princess radiated an omen of death. It followed her, hiding away in her shadow and lingered in the air when she passed.

"Hurry." The Princess said in a hushed whisper as she climbed the apple tree with her knight.

The scent of apples mixed with death was strong enough to give him goosebumps. Etrix's eyes narrowed and the right side of his lips tugged itself upwards creating a subtle sinister smirk that contorted his face. He watched her shadow flicker against the floor beneath the tree, whispering curses of death. The Princess was destined to die.

The secret behind her birth was enough to pique his interest. After all, he was a druid. He had supernatural powers through being at one with nature and his connection with the nature spirits. Much like how the Del Silvermonds served as vessels for the astral gods, he was an extension of natural order and nature's will. And nature willed for Princess Winter to die. Her fate followed her wherever she went.

He sighed softly and listened to the whispers of the wind. The wind sang songs of sorrow and the trees wept for the girl. She was so small and so young. Her silver hair and bright eyes reminded him of a silver fox. He chuckled softly before channeling the power of a nature spirit into his body. Warmth radiated from his heart and crawled over every inch of his skin. His human form began to morph into the shape of a small wolf.

The toes of Winter's shoes made loud crumbling sounds as they dragged against the sturdy trunk of the apple tree. She used her weak arms to pull herself upward. Smooth branches decorated with bright red apples loomed over her head as she climbed. She couldn't help but smile, this was the first time she'd ever climbed a tree as Winter.

"Princess," Ezekiel said with a sigh. "Please be careful."

Winter's heart began to pound steadily as she pulled herself up to sitting position on one of the highest branches. She closed her eyes and let out a happy sigh. The wind blew her silver hair in all directions. She felt free.

"Sorry for pulling you away like that." She said in a whisper that was whisked away with the wind. "I'm not used to that kind of stuff. I've always been alone with Aiden, so dealing with other people makes me nervous."

Ezekiel perched himself next to her on the branch. "You shouldn't apologize. I'm your knight, it's my duty to follow you everywhere."

Winter glanced at the branch beside her. A baby wolf with hair that glistened silver in the sunlight seemed to be watching her intently. Ezekiel followed her gaze and reached for his sword immediately upon seeing the animal.

"Don't." She told him. "It's just a baby."

The fox tilted its head. The creature's eyes were so humanlike it sent shivers down Ezekiel's spine. Something about the way it watched them felt off.

"Do you have a name?" She asked the creature softly while reaching a hand out towards it. Ezekiel stiffened and gripped his sword tighter, but the fox nuzzled its head into her gentle touch showing no hostility whatsoever.

Winter smiled. "Then I'll name you Snowflake."

~***~

The silver wolf seemed to mock the King with its hostile ruby red eyes. The King was furious when he found out his daughter had run away with her knight, but he was now consumed by an even worse wave of fury when she returned hugging a baby wolf. Perhaps it was the way that she showed the feral animal more affection than she did her family that made him boil red with rage.

"Give me the wolf," The king ordered, looking down at the creature that taunted him.

"Absolutely not." She shook her head. "Snowflake is my pet."

The King emitted a horrifying aura. He watched the creature with dangerous eyes. His irises that burnt with green fire mimicked a lion intently watching its prey. The air became dangerously heavy around them.

"You're not allowed to have a pet." The King retorted cruelly. "Especially one with such ominous eyes."

"Just try and take him from me." The Princess barked. "I dare you."

Ezekiel went pale. His hands trembled in the presence of the King and cold beads of sweat began to form on his forehead. No one in the entire Empire dared to defy the King. He was a cruel killer whose finger tips were stained crimson red with the thousands of lives he took mercilessly by his own hands. If you so much as breathed too loud, the King would have your head beneath his feet.

He was terrifying, but Ezekiel found the Princess even scarier. Ezekiel still couldn't shake how horribly heavy the air felt and how terrified he was of the Princess' eyes. Despite being a little angel, the Princess could be terribly frightening too. She was a Del Silvermond, after all. There were moments where she should be lost deep in thought and her eyes would be washed over by a cool calm: a look so frightening that it made his hands tremble. While the King was like a dangerous fire consuming everything in its path, the Princess was like a dangerous snowstorm eating away at the environment around her slowly.

"Fine." The King said with a sigh. "If that thing harms anyone or ruins anything, then I'll make it into a rug. Understood?"

Winter smiled. "Yes, Your Majesty."

"Father." He corrected her. "When will you start calling me father?"

Winter hesitated and silence hung heavily in the air. It was so intense that Ezekiel felt if he breathed too loud the air around them would shatter into a billion pieces. Winter scoffed. Family doesn't abandon you. No matter how hard she tried to, she couldn't see the King as her father. Her harboured sentiments of hatred from feeling like she was going to be left behind her entire life floated tauntingly in the back of her mind.

She tried to make herself realize that the Winter she was now and the Winter inside the novel were two different people. They lived in different realities. They lived through different experiences. But no matter how hard she tried, she remained out of touch with the reality around her. She was detached from those around her. The only thing that grounded her to this world within paper was the pain she felt inflicted on her through beatings in the cramped attic.

"I can't." She said in barely a whisper. "I really can't yet. I'm sorry."

No matter how she looked at it, this man was Aiden's father. Not hers. This was Aiden's story. His origin. His kingdom. Winter's world existed only between the four cramped walls of the dusty attic.

The King let out a sigh. "I won't force you. Go find your brother, Aiden was looking for you earlier. There will also be a banquet in a couple of days to publicly announce your return."

A banquet? Winter couldn't help but feel ominous.