ALANNA
Without thinking twice, I fling an artefact towards the queen and it hits her on the temple. Her eyes widen briefly right before she drops to the ground, an unconscious heap. Lochan clenches his jaw, his eyes burning with fury. "Give me that rose" he growls and I shake my head as tears continue to roll down my cheeks. "Give it to me, you bitch!" He roars and lunges forward to hit me. He slams my head against the wall and my vision blurs for a moment as I fall to the ground. "Let go of the rose!" He orders and I shake my head. "It's going to kill you!" He exclaims and I scramble away from him, still clutching the rose that has been burnt halfway. "Just do as I say!"
"I'll rather die than be stuck here with you and your psycho mother for only God knows how long. I'll take my chances, thank you very much" I spit, using my free hand to take out my long hair pin from my hair. He lunges at me again and this time I don't hesitate to drive my hair pin into the back of his palm. At the same time, the last of the rose petals become ash and my vision fades. My ears begin to ring and I sink into oblivion.
....
".....lady? My lady?! Are you okay?" I open my eyes with a groan, only to find myself lying on the floor of my bedroom at Zeron's castle. I sit up immediately, ignoring the ache in my head and the sting coming from my palm. I let out a sigh of relief. It worked, thank goodness.
"Where have you been? His majesty has been worsening without you" Taera says and I rise to my feet, stumbling a bit.
"Is that-Is that blood on your forehead?" She asks, reaching out to touch me.
"Not necessarily. Right now, I have more pressing issues to attend to" I say, brushing my hair out of my eyes. "Whatever it is, it can wait. You look dizzy and unwell-"
"Take me to the king" I say and she gasps. "What?"
"I need to see him, right now"
"He's going to kill you without a second thought!"
"Take me to him" I insist and she sighs.
"Yes, my lady"
We both walk out of my room and make our way towards Zeron's chamber. I know he's not going to give me a 'welcome back hug' but I just need to know if he's okay. The maids and guards give me sympathetic stares as we walk along the hallway. Finally, we get to our destination and Taera sighs. "Good luck, my lady. You're going to need it" she says and walks away. I raise my fist and knock on the door. Without warning, the door creaks open and black shadows creep around me, sending shivers down my spine. I quietly walk in, my heart pounding hard.
"And. She's. Back" Zeron drawls as he steps out of the shadows, his eyes burning like the flames of a thousand furnaces.
...
ZERON
She stares at me with wide eyes, her face pale. I take a step closer to her but to my surprise, she neither flinches nor steps away from me. "So, you run away from my palace and escape with Lochan. Then you return and expect me to throw you a welcome back party?" I ask and she frowns, confusion written all over her face. She's either a great actress or she's really confused.
"Escape with Lochan? No, I didn't! He forced me" she says and I narrow my eyes, not believing her. "You don't believe me, do you?" She sighs and I clench my jaw. "If Lochan took you to his kingdom, how are you here right now?" I ask, my fingers itching to wrap themselves around her neck and strangle her to death.
"I met Talon-" she begins and I freeze, a wave of emotions washing over me. Talon...She can't possibly mean my brother. I thought he was dead. She has to be lying. "Who told you about my brother?!" I growl and she stiffens. "No one except your brother, himself. I saw him, Zeron. I think he was a prisoner there. He told me how to escape from Lochan's kingdom. I don't know if he escaped too, but I'm telling the truth" she utters, her eyes wide and frantic. Dismayed, I move away from her and look outside the window. "How do I know you're not lying to me? My brother is dead" I say, my muscles tense.
"He has the ability to shift to a feminine form and he has one mole beneath his left eye" she rasps and I grip the window sill, my knees threatening to give out. Only mum and I know about Talon's ability to shape shift into a feminine form. This is due to the fact that his female twin had died in my mother's womb and her soul had attached itself to Talon's soul. All this time, he'd been a prisoner in Lochan's castle. Rage pulses through my veins in hot waves and the shadows in the room increases. I turn away from the window just in time to see Alanna swaying on both feet. Her eyes flutter close and before she hits the ground, I appear at her side and scoop her in my arms. I notice the blood that is now trailing down her temple. Her breathing is uneven and shallow and she looks so pale. I clench my jaw, an unfamiliar emotion sinking it's claw in my chest. She looks so fragile, so human. Lochan must've hurt her. I'm going to ruin that bastard when I finally get him. No one is allowed to hurt Alanna except me. "You should call for the healers. She doesn't look so good" I stiffen at the sound of a very unfamiliar deep voice coming from the entrance of my room. I slowly turn around, my gaze resting on the figure that's now leaning on the door jamb with his arms folded across his chest.His icy blue eyes meets mine and a smirk curves his lips.
"Talon...." I breathe and he pushes himself off the door jamb. "Good to see you too, brother" he rasps.
....
"Is this really you, my baby?" Mum breathes for the hundredth time today as she cups Talon's jaw. He smiles and presses a kiss to her forehead. "Of course, it's me mother" he responds and mum tears up again.
"You look so frail! You must've suffered so much in that psycho's kingdom" she rasps and he embraces her. "It's fine, mother. I'm here now and it's all thanks to Zeron's wife" he says and I look away, at the mention of 'Zeron's wife'.
I'm never going to get used to that. I'm married to a human whose name is Alanna and she's my wife. She's also expected to bear my children. I mentally shudder at the thought of that. ".....fatten you up. Zeron, you didn't tell me that Alanna's back" mum says, turning to look at me. I roll my eyes and start to walk away.
"In my opinion, her return isn't important" I drone, then I vanish from sight. I appear in front of the half-opened door of Alanna's chamber. She's lying on her bed, her golden brown hair fanned out all over the pillow. She's wearing a white dress and she's very much asleep. I turn away from the sight of her vulnerable form. I have no idea why it makes my heart squeeze. "Zeron..." Alanna mutters in her sleep and this time, my stomach turns to lead. She's dreaming of me? I quietly step closer and her next words shock me. "Don't hurt him, please. I love him, Lochan. He's my husband" she whimpers and I sag against the wall, my breathing quickening. "Please, please, please...." She moans and I hold my hands to my ears, unable to take it anymore. Without a second thought, I begin to head out of the room, only for Alanna to stir and call my name groggily. "Zeron? Wh-"
But before she's able to complete the sentence, I vanish from sight in a flash.