A/N: The chapter ahead is raw, which means not been proofread yet nor edited.
****1
King Liorei gave the first three bracelets. Moon looked up to him. Her heart is racing. She's excited to see what the King got her this time.
"Close your eyes."
So, she did.
Gently, he placed a light, celestial tiara on her head. Because among the Princesses, Moon is the only one without a crown.
He prepared a mirror in front of her, "Now, open your eyes."
Moon slowly opened her eyes. And when she saw herself, her widening eyes glistened with tears.
"Happy birthday, my child." King Liorei brushed her hair with his palm. That made the Princess burst into tears and hugged him tight.
Watts Xirquit looked down at the presents on his hands. He's next and he's already before the Princesses. His sight became blurry, his hands are shaky. When he raised his head to see Sun, his heart thumped fast when he couldn't see her the same way.
Instead of going to her first, he went to the twin Princesses.
"H-Happy birthday, P-Princesses..."
The people are confused.
King Liorei stand to the side, smiling at Moon who's still crying while wiping her tears away.
"T-Thank you...?" The clueless Princesses thanked and looked at each other then to their parents.
The Grand Duchess stand up and brought her son in front of Sun.
"What are you doing? You're supposed to go to her first," she whispered to him, but the Young Lord's mind is not coordinating with him. The same event is flashing before his eyes. He can't seem to forget. He can't see Sun the same. She's nothing like the Princess that Moon truly is.
"No..." He said and break free from his mother.
His anxiety heightened when he found that everyone's staring at him blankly.
"What's wrong?" His mother asked. And when he looked at her, the gifts on his hands fell when he saw spirals in her eyes.
The Grand Duke excused himself and picked up the gifts on the floor.
"Celia, my son is not feeling well. Bring him inside---"
"N-NO! I-I'm not...sick. Sorry. I was just..." The Young Lord took the gifts from his father, refusing to meet his gaze, afraid that he will see the same things in his eyes.
When he turned to Sun, he trembled.
She's smiling at him unhappily.
He was taken aback.
"You're a fake."
Is what he wanted to say, but he can't. So, he took another step back, distancing himself from everyone, until he found Moon beside him.
She wiped her tears completely and looked at him.
Then he looked at King Liorei who walked to stand beside Moon. Watts Xirquit is acting strange.
"P-Princess..."
He fell down to his knees. Moon was frightened and hid behind the King who was shocked.
"Watts!"
The Grand Duchess bolts to him and tried pulling him up but he prevailed.
Slowly, he raise his hands to her.
"Happy birthday to the Third Lady of Heart."
.
.
.
What he witnessed truly altered and changed everything he used to believe. After the party, when they got home, the Grand Duchess gave him an earful of scolding.
"Moon is the real Princess!" He shouted, surprising his mother. He's looking down, avoiding her gaze.
"What?"
"I-I saw it. With my own eyes, Mom! I can't---It's hard to believe it, but believe me! I can't explain it, but believe me! Sun is a fake! Moon is the real Princess!"
"Oh my fucking god. What's wrong with you?"
The Young Lord's eyes widened from what he heard. And with trembling lips, he looked at his mother who's palming her face and is pacing back and forth.
"Xerene, language."
"Can you hear yourself, Watts!? What's wrong with you and you're talking shit all of a sudden? Did you even know what you've done? Van is so mad! Siofra called me for a private talk because of what you said and what you did---"
"BUT I TELLING THE TRUTH, MOM!"
Ohms Xirquit finally arrived home. He was late because he stopped by Titania's bakeshop to get treats for his son---youngest brother.
"What's happening here?"
He loosened his coat with one hand. The servants pulled it off him. He stopped beside his brother who's crying.
"You don't understand at all!" He shouted before running upstairs to lock himself in his room.
.
.
.
"They don't understand... They don't want to believe me."
He wiped his tears away and walked to his table to continue his work. A painting of her. With this, he will prove them that they're wrong. They will believe him this time.
Only for them to not.
"Watts, this is not funny anymore. Stop. You don't know what you're saying. Do you want her Dad to come here and punch you back to your senses? You are being ridiculous!" The Grand Duke said and shook his head.
"Please, just stop. Don't make your Mom angry. Let's go to the Tower. I'll see if you just hit your head somewhere. What you're saying is as grave as treason. To speak Sun is an impostor... You're digging our graves."
He felt his heart dropped in that moment.
"Y-You... You said we have the strongest minds..." His voice cracked as he step back. The Grand Duke was astounded and stared at his son. It only made him cry when he saw how emotionless his father has become. The spirals in his eyes...became scarier.
"You're not my Dad. YOU'RE NOT MY DAD! I want my Dad back! I want my Mom back! NO! My Dad is not scary! I WANT MY DADDY BACK!" He screamed as he tweak his hair.
The rest of his family then came to the scene because of the noise they heard, but he pushed them away when he saw the same spirals in their eyes.
"WATTS! What's happening!?"
His brother Ohms hold him on both his shoulders. The spirals in his eyes are weak, fading in and out, but they're still in his eyes.
"Kuya! Please, believe me! Dad---That's not Dad and Mom! A-Ah... Y-You have spirals in your eyes, t-too... You're not r-real... What's happening!? KUYA! Kuya Ohms, believe me! Sun is an impostor! Moon is the real Princess! Kuya, don't be like Mom and Dad. Please, don't be like Mom and Dad! I'M SCARED! I'M SO SCARED! I WANT MOM AND DAD BACK!"
In the end, they put him to sleep and tucked him in his bed. They watched over him with the spirals in their eyes and wicked smiles on their lips that haunted him when he fell asleep.
.
.
.
"What is it this time? Why is Watts crying again?"
Ohms angrily slammed the glass on the table. It shattered.
"Why not ask your brother!? He's being insane! Tell him, Watts! Tell him what you're asking us to do! SPEAK!"
"MOM!"
Ohms Xirquit's powerful voice scared them.
"Don't you dare raise your voice at Watts! What are you, his enemy? Yelling at him like that as if he's not your son!? Are you that Van Dragunovv!?"
Elektra and Spike entered the scene, confused and feeling chilly.
Ohms Xirquit pulled his brother to his side. They sat together and he asked him, "What is it that you want?"
Watts Xirquit hiccuped, "M-Moon has n-nobody... I want Celia to be by her s-side... K-King Liorei is always a-away. S-She have nobody... She might be lonely. We're f-friends but... But I am busy in school."
"See? Now you know how outrageous it is? Of all the people, CELIA!? He's asking us as if it's easy!"
Ohms Xirquit pat his brother's back and nodded.
"Is that all?"
The Grand Duchess's jaw fell.
"ARE YOU FOR REAL!?"
"Cover your ears." He helped his brother bring his hands to his ears. Then, he stand up to face his mother even though his father is within the same room, keeping his silence.
"She's just a fucking maid. Is she more valuable than Watts? Huh? Tell me, Mom? Since when you've become this bitchy? Ever since he's spouted nonsense about Sun being an impostor? You've been so mean to him. Why? It's like you're protecting something so hard. Is he telling the truth then?"
"Don't get me started on you, Ohms! You don't understand!"
"OF COURSE I FUCKING DO! Ever since that day, I've been seeing my brother crying his eyes out! I'm not fucking deaf! I'm not fucking blind, Mom! This is how you handle the shit he started!? By yelling, screaming, and making him cry every time!? I should be the one asking you: what the fuck is wrong with you and you're being like this!? NOBODY, NOT EVEN YOU, CAN RAISE THEIR VOICE AT HIM! If he wants to give Celia to her, she will go by MY words. I'm kicking her out for all I care! That's Watts right there, our youngest! That's the last baby we will ever have in this family, and you're torturing him like this!? The next time I hear you raise your voice at my brother, we will leave. Believe me, Mom. Don't get on my nerves. No one, not even their stupid fucking Deities, can bully my son. This will be my last warning to you. I will be your enemy if you bully Watts again. Do you understand that, MOM?"
~
And so, Celia was sent to the Diamond Palace to be Moon's maid. But the night before that...
"You called for me, Your Grace?" Celia is down to her knees, bowing her head before the Young Lord who's looking past the windows.
"Starting today, you're under me. Swear that you will not accept orders from my family, even if it's Kuya Ohms. Swear that you will only take orders from me and Moon. Kill anyone you will deem a threat to her. Keep an eye on Sun and her knight. Protect Moon as if your life is always on the line. Do not fret if a Dragunovv threatens you, but tremble before me once I learn how you falter before them. Moon is the real Third Lady of Heart, and I declare this to the Heavens. I have faith in you, that's why I chose you. Celia, swear to me."
Celia closed her eyes and placed her right fist to her chest.
"My life is yours. Your words are mine. I must forfeit my life shall I fail my Lord."
.
.
.
If only they could see what he can see...
"I saw you. I see you. I can see you for who you are, Princess. I know who you truly are."
Seeing her as she is will always fascinate him. Her beauty puts the Deities into shame. How divine. She's holy.
It's all worth it. He doesn't care if he were to lose his family. They never believed him in the first place. Though his eldest brother took his side most of the time, it's not the affirmation he wanted. He wanted to hear him say that he believed him, but it never happened. Ohms Xirquit only took his side every time because he's merely his youngest brother. That's all there is.
"I will always worship you. Nobody can make me hate you again, Princess. My heart...will always be, patiently, yearn for you."
And in the empty grand hall in his villa, they danced in their matching pajamas. But even in something silly, the Princess is beautiful. Be it golden or gray, she has always been beautiful in his eyes.
Time always seem to move slow every time he will see her smile. Her sweet melodies replays in his ears like the are echoing. The ripple of his heartbeat is calm.
He will give everything up for this woman. He will do anything for her to get back what was stolen from her.
The Princess is golden like daylight. The Princess is also gray like black and white.
He loves both versions of her.
They kissed. Long, slow, and passionate. They kissed so slow that they only parted when they ran out of air. They kissed as if they reached the end of their story, one with a happy ending. Their kiss was imperfect, but it was everything. Two beginners, trying something only the adults do. They know and they only laughed it off with their foreheads on each other's.
"I belong to you."
Moon smiled and kissed the tip of his nose. She became gray when she ran away from him while twirling.
Moon stretched her hands out to gum with a loving smile, "Then, chase me. Come, Nikola. You are my salvation. Then and now. Always have been. My lifeline."
When the Young Lord's point of view glitched creepily, distorting Moon's beautiful face. Now, the spectators are seeing the same face of Moon, but much golden than when they're within each other's touch.
But this Moon is different.
Because she's screaming her lungs out. So loud and hard that it destroyed her vocal chord.
"I can't do it! NO, I WON'T DO IT! PLEASE! DEITIES ABOVE! HAVE MERCY ON ME! HAVE MERCY ON ME!"
She went down to her knees, slamming her hands on the floor and rubbing them together while looking over her. But there is no merciful sky over her, but the false night sky for their son.
His voice, though weak and distorted, still carried the echoes of the man she loved. "Please," he whispered, his eyes locking onto hers with a desperate plea, "---do it while I still remember you, while I still know who I am."
"NO!!" She screamed, her voice screeching.
Her eyes, tired of crying diamond tears, bled.
"Please, don't leave me! What went w-wrong? I did the same thing she did! Please, I don't want to be alone! Watts, don't do this to me! You're all I have! YOU'RE ALL I HAVE! DADDY LIOREI, HELP ME! A-AAHHH!!! MY HUSBAND! I TURNED MY HUSBAND INTO A MONSTER!"
The Empress's heart shattered with each word.
She felt an excruciating pain in her stomach.
"Please... Elyzena, thank you for trying... I'm sorry... I-I don't...want to leave you, too..."
The Emperor's tentacles helped her up and led her to him. Her terrified eyes told him she didn't want to do it, but he placed her hand on his chest, telling her where she should end him.
"Please, my love. I'd rather you be a monster than lose you for the rest of my life... I will find a way to turn you back..." she begged him one last time, hoping it would change his mind.
But the Emperor knew that it would be impossible, and he hated the idea of living as a monster forevermore.
"I pray to God Astaroth to give us another chance. Please... In our next life... I will save you earlier. I won't let you become...e-evil. I will g-give you everything. Every...thing. I will protect you from t-them. I will be stronger... Stronger, so I won't fall down like this anymore. In our next life, I will love you earlier and harder."
Her grief was a raw, consuming thing... a void where her heart had been. She had saved him from the fate of becoming a full monster, but at the cost of her own soul. The weight of her choice bore down on her, a burden she would carry for the rest of her life.
Using his last ounce of sanity and strength, he forced the Empress's hand within his chest and through, giving her his still beating and human heart. But it didn't last long, for her curse consumed it and turned it black.
Time seemed to stand still, the world narrowing to this one unbearable moment. She had killed the man she loved to save him, but in doing so, she had lost a part of herself that she could never reclaim.
They collapsed together, and he could still see her. It's much worse. Death is not, but the sight of his wife mourning her heart out for his fall. His tears fell.
In that same night, she birthed their son, the Prince he almost was, Zodiac Astrophel Nikolai Xirquit-Warlock. Fully developed, now blackened by the inescapable curse of his mother. And the Emperor witnessed how she both lost him and their son. Death is taking him so slow as if he wanted to hurt him more than leaving her already did.
And so, the Empress swore:
"YOU TOOK EVERYTHING FROM ME! I SWEAR TO THE DEVIL YOU SCULPTED ME TO BE, I WILL DESTROY HEAVEN! I WILL SLAY EVERY DEITY THERE IS FOR WRITING MY FATE THIS CRUELLY! MY HUSBAND AND MY SON! MY HEART AND MY HEARTBEAT! YOU'RE NO DIFFERENT FROM THESE DRAGUNOVVS AND EARTHLINGS! I WILL DESTROY EVERYTHING! EVERYTHING!!!"
She clutched her son and his heart in her arms, rocking her body back and forth---and that's the last sight he's ever seen before his broken soul was forcibly taken from his body.