Some sort of an instrument was playing as I enter the forbidden wing. The fear I felt seemed to melt away once my mind plugged into the beautiful tune. I stood there mesmerized, and then the sound propelled me forward. There was a big guy sitting in the shadows. He was playing a flute, low and melodic.
I did not say anything, looking to prolong the spell. My eyes grew moist because I felt homesick. The music reminded me of long summer days in Louisiana. It felt like I was a lone survivor in the huge city. It was liberating and frightening.
Sensing my presence, he stopped playing the flute and turned, pinning me with his intense gaze. The time stood still before I took a step back in horror. It was the same creature who attacked wolves and saved me last night. I wished I were dreaming. This felt like a nightmare.
I forgot to breathe as I took in his ugliness in one glance. Hair covered his arms, legs, and his face. He was shirtless. There was a bandage over hi
I wanted, needed to be alone. “Please, do not do anything drastic, your majesty,” Lady Josephine said. Both women had identical worried lines on their faces. “It will get easier, I promise.” I wandered with no direction in mind. What to do? I asked myself. Her brother could go to college. Her father could get a state-of-the-art hearing aid. Money made the life so much easier. But at what personal cost? I wished I did not stop and help an old lady to cross the road. As someone said, every good deed was punished. In her world, there were many surrogate mothers. That was different. Those women were inseminated artificially. There were no beasts. No trick marriages. No golden cages. I was standing in the middle of an orchard, surrounded with trees bent by the weight of the fruit. There were so many beautiful birds, fluttering and singing. At that moment, it did not feel like a prison. I picked a fallen apple and sniffed. It smelled like heaven on
I waited for the Beast King, my nerves on edge. The forbidden wing where he lived was nothing like I imagined. In my previous visit, I was too overwhelmed to notice little details. It was neat, tidy. It made me sound like a bad person, but I assumed he slept on a mattress made of straws. Instead of a washroom, there would be a giant litter box or something. I could not tear my eyes away from the big king-sized bed. Disturbing images played in my mind. Until now, I'd been under the assumption that the ladies were not in charge of his area of the castle. I was apprehensive about peering into anyone's room, because I didn't want to find out anything about his personal routines from doing so. The Beast King, on the other hand, appeared to be a religious figure. I nodded as I looked at the titles of the books on the table in front of me. My only complaint was that they were a touch too literary for my tastes. Reading trashy, fast-paced thrillers and romanc
"Can you tell me what happened to you, Queen Nia?" Lady Alana inquired after noticing me with my head bowed. "I'm not sure why, but I'm suffering from a severe headache," I said, a slight moan in my voice. "Please take a seat, my queen." "All right, I'm open to anything." "This is such a nagging discomfort." It made me feel uneasy whenever the ladies attended to me. No matter how many times I protested, they always won. Lady Josephine presented me with a liquid that had an amber hue to it. Lady Alana untangled my hair from a tight bun and began massaging my scalp with a fragrant oil she had rubbed in. Was I in some kind of special spa? "Can you tell me what it is?" I took a tentative sip of my drink. It helped to relieve the discomfort in my stomach. "It derives from a particular root." All digestive problems can be resolved with this remedy." "However, it is my head that is hurting. That is not what I require at this time."
"I noticed that the light was turned on. "I had a thought..." He took several deep breaths and cleared his throat. "You're aware of what happened the last time. I don't want to go through this again. I'll be there to escort you back. Don't be concerned, Queen Nia. "I'm not going to be seen," he added in a hurry. "I promise that I will remain out of your sight the entire time. The ghost wolves will not bother you while you are in my company.""No way, Beastie King," says the narrator. I shook my head, as if he could see what I was doing."All right, stay safe," he said in a hushed voice, his voice breaking. I was startled by the sound of slow retreating footsteps. "Wait, you dope," I yelled, my voice rising in frustration. "That is not what I am referring to. "You are under no obligation to remain in the dark at my expense." "But why?" you might wonder. "Everyone keeps their distance from me." His voice was tinged with disbelief. "There is nothing you ca
I stood in front of my father like a naughty girl who had been caught doing something wrong yet again. The way he treated me was extremely humiliating. I was an adult, with aspirations to one day rule the world. I deserved to be treated with courtesy. Not going to happen, I promise you! My father was a wonderful man, but his political views were out of date. In his heart of hearts, he believed that a woman would never be able to lead as effectively as a man. It was a completely erroneous way of thinking. I didn't have the sharpest mind in the world, but I was far superior to many men and women. "You're well aware of the border situation. "It's gotten to the point where it's beyond worrying," he said, looking at me closely."Yes, the Father King," says the speaker. Yesterday was particularly difficult. The Mega Kingdom successfully captured the West South checkpoint. They're going to overrun us if we don't take the higher ground again," I narrated, as if I were reviewing m
I took a deep breath. It meant he would live alone once I returned to my world. That made me feel sad for him for some reason. “I was pretty steamed when I heard this. If I refused the wedding, people would think I went back on my word. A royal’s word is everything. Other kingdoms would not trust me. I became a king at a young age, and I had responsibilities.” I nodded. All made sense. I noticed his voice was growing bitter. “So, I went over to confront Princess Mia. She was away. Her kingdom was a two-day ride away, so I decided to spend the night. I was trying to sleep when her lady maiden entered my room. I will not make a lame excuse she seduced me or something. All I can say is she was angry with the princess. Sleeping with a maiden is a grave sin. Right in the middle, Princess Mia walked in on us. To make the matters worse, the lady was her best friend. I broke her heart. She used the sorceress and put a curse. The righteous anger was on her side. She m
Being attracted to someone on a mild level was one thing; however, becoming pregnant was an entirely different level of commitment. Something like that was something I was already aware of. "I'm not sure what to make of this," I say. "I'm not sure I understand what you're trying to say." The motion was made with his head in a shaky manner. I made the decision to become a member of the organization. Having been crowned queen, I'm beginning to feel the weight of responsibility that comes with the position. Please do not inquire as to the reason for this. "Please refrain from spitting in the face of the gift." His amusement was quickly replaced by a smile, which eventually developed into a broad grin as he walked away. In order to keep a smile on my face while answering, I did everything I could. It was becoming more and more difficult to manage. The situation, whatever the circumstances, could not be tolerated! At the time of my vows, I was cons
"You appear to have settled in well here, Queen Nia," I exclaimed, to which she responded with a smile. "We've come to express our regret for what we've done. "We were wrong in what we did to you." There seemed to be an interminable pause. Then she gave a wink. The royal elegance has been replaced by a sense of mischief. Her actions were completely incomprehensible to me. I would have made the other person sweat and demonstrated my dominance over them. "I should be enraged at you, but for some reason I'm not," she admitted, her voice full of candor. "Please accept Queen Nia's apologies, Lady Jasmine." This time, the anticipation was even greater. Her cheeks were becoming increasingly flushed. For a split second, I thought she was going to say no. "I'm sorry, Queen Nia," she said, a slight bend of her head indicating her regret."You must put your hands on her feet," I instructed."That is not necessary," Queen Nia exclaimed, taki