Chapter Two

The woman behind the counter peers at me, and an odd, sort of dubious look at me. "Well, aren't you something special?" She asks with a laugh. Despite the good intentions and lack of anger in her comment, I find myself flinching. "Wow, those wings look like bats. And your tail sure is uh, something. Never seen an animal with a tail like that. And horns. You look like a goat!"

"Um, thanks?" I responded, unsure if it had been a compliment or an insult, and tilted my head ever so slightly. I fiddle with my thumbs, waiting for a reply.

"Unfortunately, given your… uh, let's call them, unique features, I don't have any clothes at the moment that would fit you, Miss…?" She asks, wanting my name.

"Amarante," I tell her with a nod.

"I see…" She whispers, sighing and shaking her head. "Sorry, there's nothing I can do for you. Please find business elsewhere."

Oh, come on! "Hey, wait!" I called after her but she made the motion of shooing me with her hands. Well, fine. I stick my hands in my pockets and walk away. Would I be accepted anywhere I went? Maybe it was better to just go back to the castle.

But it appears that I'd be forced back anyway. Guards swarmed me, pointing their spears and yelling at me. One even told a subordinate not to touch me. I narrow my eyes and sigh, raising my hands. I had no idea what happened, but I certainly didn't want my head to be chopped off. I could feel their anger and their hate, their narrowed eyes and their clenched teeth behind their suits of armor. I walk with them, being kept in the middle, as if making sure that I would not run away. As we passed the streets, people looked at me, gasping and their eyes wide. Mothers grabbed onto their children, and merchants grabbed onto their plants, yelling harsh and crude words. Blacksmiths pointed whatever weapon was closest - whether that be axes, swords, or knives. I simply glare at them, and they start to tremble, as if stricken with fear.

We reach the castle, and servants line the walls. I walk forward, screams echoing in my ear. Eventually, we reach the throne room. Damiano is sitting there, leaning to the back of the chair. The throne was decorated with gold and purple and orange, as if it had been made specifically for him. He sits up, placing a hand underneath his chin and smirking. Then, he shakes his head, frowns, and screeches with a high-pitched voice. "Do you have any idea what you've done?!" His voice is loathing and rageful. He stomps a foot on the ground, and then taps it multiple times. "Mother and Father are gone, because of you!" He moves forward, his steps resounding in the brightly lit and huge throne room. The guards step out of the way. I watch, not making a move.

Then, he grabs my neck and shoves me to the ground. "Y-you monster! Creature!" His voice cracks and raises once more in pitch. He tightens his grip, and it feels as though it's harder to breath, and my head is throbbing where I had been shoved against the harsh stone. "Our parents- no, my parents- are gone!" He sobs, fury lighting molten orange eyes. He slams his free hand against the ground, breaths harsh and shallow. "You killed them! Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

"What are you talking about?" I gasped, raising a hand to try to wrench him away from my neck. I manage to, and then stumble upwards, coughing and trying to regain my breath. The guards pointed their weapons at me once more, and a few stood to Damiano's side, as if protecting him. I turn, waiting for his answer. How rude, to accuse me of something without any proof.

"Mother and Father passed away in their sleep, waiting for the festival to truly begin!" He screeched. He runs a hand through purple hair, as if trying to keep himself composed. He paces, and the protectors with him mirror his movements. "When I went to wake them up, I found them, laying there dead!" Eventually, he goes to sit back on the throne, holding his forehead with his hand. "I know," he sobbed, as if truly having despair at this sight. "That you did it. I warned everyone of your curse, but their kindness had them still keep you. And you know where it got them?" He uses a handkerchief to wipe away crocodile tears. "It got them dead! If it was not for you, they'd still be alive!"

"But I wasn't anywhere near them!" I pointed out, crossing my arms. I moved forward, but a guard had pressed their spear to my neck, so I simply stayed there. "I was out, looking around at the festival!"

"You dared to go out?" He asks, feigning surprise. "Do you not know you could have killed many others? Brought them pain as well? It is out of kindness that you stayed where you had been! You are lucky you only killed two today!"

He wasn't going to listen to the fact that I was innocent. Still, I had to try. "I didn't do anything!" I replied, my own voice raising.

"Of course you did! The way they died was unnatural!" He retorts, waving his hand. "I am hearing no more of this. She won't even admit her crime."

I narrow my eyes. "So, then, what are you going to do with me?" My answer is given as I cry out in pain, feeling something around my neck. It felt as though I'd been shocked and burned at the same time and I fell to my knees, grabbing my throat.

"I'm exiling you and letting everyone know of your true status, should you be able to shapeshift or the like and hide your identity. That is a choker with a skull on it, showing you are destined to bring nothing but pain, death, and misery," he explains, his voice losing the loathing it once had. With a noise akin to "tch", he kicks me against the wall. "Leave, now. You'll never be welcome in Stozavia again."

I get up, trying to contain my shock, my anger, the fact that I wanted to wring his scrawny neck out. But, I had no power. I was just a cursed child. "Very well," I reply. If those two truly had been dead, then Damiano was ruler now. I could not oppose him. I start down the hallway. Turning my head, I wave to him. "Goodbye."