Part 53

"I think something bad is about to happen." The maid who was helping me trailed off, looking around uneasily. I gave her a curious look.

"Why would you say that?"

"I heard the maids talking about something last night. Something serious, and they all look terrified when they are around you. You should be careful, princess." She said it worriedly. I just smiled at her.

I sat in front of the mirror to do my hair. I tied my hair to a loose plate, with some strands hanging loosely on my face. I wore a white floor-length gown matched with a dark blue belt and a pair of heels matching it. The look was simple yet elegant. I painted my lips red, which complimented my look. Looks never mattered to me, but for such an important day, I had to dress up. I took a last glance at my reflection and exited the room.

When I reached the stairs of the long hallway, I saw the man from last night with silver hair. He was wearing a black suit with a clean white shirt. His hair was neatly combed back, exposing his godly features like his high cheekbones, firm jawline, and nose, which enhanced his features. I just stood there, admiring his good looks. His eyes drifted to mine, and I realised he caught me staring at him. A small smile crept to his lips. I quickly moved my gaze to the woman who was walking next to him. The woman had dark hair, and she wore a white gown similar to mine. We would have looked like sisters if only I had great looks like her. As if reading my mind, she locked her gaze with me and smiled brightly. I smiled back and moved to greet them.

"You do look like my sister, though." She said I was smiling when I bowed my head to greet her. "It's a shame; I am 1000 years older than you." She said humorously and smiled.

"1000 years? Wow!" I mumbled.

"You look gorgeous." The man complimented me. I smiled brightly, looking at him.

"I am Kristen." I introduced myself to him and extended my hand for him to take.

"I am Lord Zephyr." He said he took my hand and shook it lightly. I felt a spark within me when our eyes met, and I was pulled into a memory.

The vision took me to the war, which took place when I was an infant. The powers of 100 witches were passed onto me. I was engulfed in powerful magic, and I cried in pain, waggling my small feet and kicking the air. A man hid himself behind a tree and watched the women die one by one after passing their powers to me. "The child cannot handle that much power; we must do something." A woman says beside him: His eyes change colour to a deep red, and he extends his hand in front of him in a sudden movement. A bright white light shoots out of his palm and forms a circle, covering my small frame. He was protecting me. I could feel that. After several minutes, the last witch died, and that was the first time my eyes changed colour. He came out of hiding and saw me ejected in the air, covered in a small blanket. He took me in his arms and smiled at me. "You are born for a greater cause, little one." He says this and smiles at me. "I will protect you." He says this and strokes my cheek, and I hold onto his pointer finger with my small hands. He smiled brightly, looking the same. I was pulled out of my vision, and I took a step back, pulling my hand away from him. 

Lady Seraphina looked at both of us and started stepping down the stairs, giving us space to talk.

Tears welled up in my eyes when I looked at him. I knew deep inside that I had some connection with him. He took a step forward and wiped the tears from my cheek. "Why do you always cry when we meet?" He asks with a smile, and I hug him tightly. I cried some more. Stanley stood silently near the door frame of our room and watched us from afar. When he heard me cry, he started walking towards us worriedly. Lord Zephyr smiled again and pulled me away gently from the hug. "You grew up to be a beautiful woman, just like your mother." I chuckled. "Really?" I asked.

"Yes." The corner of his lips moved upward into a smile. Stanley approached us and stood beside me, bowing his head in respect to the Lord.

Lord Zephyr looked at Stanley and smiled. "I am Stanley Ruthven." He introduced himself and never made eye contact with the lord.

"I know," he said.

"Kristen was born for a great cause, and she is very dear to me. You must take care of her and protect her at all costs." He says it in a strong tone.

Stanley smiles and bows his head again. "Rest assured, my lord, I will love and protect her with my life."

"I will be watching you." He said it playfully and took my hand in his as we walked down the stairs to the throne room.

The room was rearranged according to the council members. Four thrones sat in the middle of the giant room, with an elongated table at the front. King Edmond and William stood near the left side of the room talking to some men who were dressed like ministers, and on the right side of the room stood Queen Irna along with the ministers of Forks Land. As we made our grand entrance, everyone bowed their heads to the council member. When I turned my head towards William, I saw the king looking at my hand, which was holding the arm of the Lord. A puzzled look formed on both the King's and William's faces. William looked much more bothered by it. I felt happy inwardly that my guardian angel was walking right beside me, and he was not someone to be messed with. I thought, and Lord Zephyr smiled in my head. "You do think so highly of me." He spoke in my head. "Of course. It makes me feel so happy to see the vampires being terrified of the lords. You all are my guardian angels." I said that and walked to stand next to Queen Irna as the Lords took their seats.

I spotted Sophie in the farthest corner of the room, hiding behind a pillar, staring at the ground as if it were the most interesting thing. Everyone took their seats in the room once the lords were seated, like in the courtroom.

After a moment of silence, Lord Sessaphina spoke. "We are here to discuss the request submitted by King Edmund to the council. Suggesting a treaty to be signed between the vampires and the witches to stop the war. He also further requested to get the blood supplied to them by the witches, like in old times. He extends his hand for peace." Lord Seraphina finishes and looks at Queen Irna.

"Do you agree, Queen Irna?" She asks.

Queen Irna looks at me briefly. I wanted to say something to her, but I couldn't find the words to say it. What would I say in the first place? Should I say I don't trust the vampires? Or should I say no to signing a treaty with the vampires? I just stood there silently.

"If signing this treaty brings peace to both races, I would like to take it into consideration." Queen Irna spoke.

"Very well." Lord Seraphina says this and looks at her palm. A golden, glowing light appears in the middle of her palm and vanishes before a white scroll appears. She places it on the table and asks Edmond and Queen Irna to come forward to sign the treaty.

King Edmond looked calm and composed all the time, and when he was called forward to sign the treaty, a small smile formed on his lips, which looked more cunning than genuine. I was sure he had something cooked up in his head. They both signed the treaty, and King Edmond extended his hand for Queen Irna to take. She looked at Edmond and shook his hand lightly before pulling it back.

Lord Drakon spoke. "Now that the treaty is signed, we hope for peace between the two races. King Edmond, we must warn you and your race not to bring harm to Princess Kristen. We have already witnessed an attack on her last night, and we are not sure of her safety among the vampires. The princess will be returning to the fork's land today itself. Also, the council will extend their hand to strengthen the Fork's land barrier. Without Queen Irna's or the princess's permission, no race can enter the borders.

Edmond looked troubled at the announcement and fidgeted with his fingers. "Lord Drakon, with all due respect, we wanted to sign the treaty for the peace of both races and to extend our friendship to the witches. I would like to apologise to Kristen for what happened, and I promise that no harm will come to her in the future. Prince William is deeply disheartened and saddened by her departure. He cares for her deeply and respects her. So I would like to request the permission of Queen Irna to let them continue their friendship by sending the blood supply every month through Kristen. The vampires looked at each other, and my eyes turned into the size of a saucer. Why would he want me to supply blood to them?

Queen Irna smiled at his scheme and turned towards the council members.

"I understand the kind intentions of King Edmond, but I would like to politely decline the request. Princess Kristen's wedding with Prince Stanley is scheduled for next month. After the wedding ceremony, she will be crowned as the Queen of Fork's land." She says this and waits for the response of the people. The vampires start to whisper among themselves about the shocking news, even to myself. It was like a blow to my head. The queen never discussed it with me before making the announcement. What was she thinking? Millions of questions swam around my head.

William sent death glares to Stanley after the announcement. If looks could kill Stanley, he would be dead by now. Stanley looked unfazed by the announcement and returned the glare to William like they were having a staring contest. I, on the other hand, looked dumbfounded. King Edmond looked speechless.

"King Edmond, as the Queen of Witches, do you think it's appropriate for her to do logistics?" She asked sarcastically.

"I propose her friend Sophia for the job, as she is from vampire land. We are well aware that she is one of your subjects, and we will send the supplies through her." The queen says, and everyone's eyes turn towards Sophia, who now looks pale like a corpse. I understood that it was all planned out by Queen Irna before the council meeting. Queen Irna asked Sophia to come forward, and she took small steps with a trembling hand.

Sophia couldn't utter a word and just stood like a statue next to the Queen. The king was speechless as nothing went according to his plan.

"We shall send the wedding invitation to you soon." Queen Irna says to King Edmond:. "I wish you and William would be present at her wedding. As William is her only friend and as Prince Stanley's half brother, he should be the man of honour." Queen Irna says it with a hint of sarcasm hidden in her words. She planned out the perfect revenge. The council agreed and dismissed the meeting after signing the treaty.

King Edmond ground his teeth and clenched his fist when he saw Kristen looking at him with a smile. He thought that they had planned everything out before coming here.

That evening, before Kristen returned to her home, William requested to meet her. Stanley declines when the maid comes with the request. William barged into her room while she was packing along with Stanley. Stanley stands before him and pushes Kristen behind him in a protective way. "Do you think you can fight me?" He asks Stanley.

"This is the first time you spoke to me, brother," Stanely says and smiles at his brother calmly. "I would like to talk to him, Kristen". He said to me. With a nod, I left them alone to speak. 

As Kristen shut the door behind her, the room fell into a battlefield of unspoken tensions. William, who towered over Stanley, had a dark grin that spoke to his shady intentions. Stanley, surprisingly calm, maintained a steady gaze at his estranged brother.

The only sound in the room was the faint creaking of the antique hardwood floor underneath them. Past family conflicts rattled the air, and the atmosphere seemed to intensify with each passing second.

William flashed a cryptic smile as he dug into his pocket and pulled out an old, worn-out crystal ball. "You might want to take a look at this, dear brother," he sneered, placing the crystal in front of Stanley tantalisingly.

Stanley's expression shifted—a mix of curiosity and nervousness—as he reluctantly extended his hand to receive the mysterious crystal ball. Little did he know that the contents within would unravel a web of secrets, plunging them all into a deeper abyss of family drama.