The ballroom was crowded with women and men waltzing to the orchestra. The rain was pattering against the giant windows of the castle. Willow entered the room in a golden gown and all of the people stopped their dancing. Willow was the daughter of the king and queen of Nuvarah, a kingdom that was hidden from the rest of the world. The only people who knew about its existence were the people who lived there. The outside world was divided into two groups of people. Creatures called Keelops who are like humans but they have magical abilities of all kinds. Then there are the humans. They have been at war with each other for almost two centuries and it caused destruction almost everywhere. It is said they are still fighting, but nobody in the kingdom knows for sure.
In Willow’s kingdom, there lived both Keelops and humans. They lived together in peace. Willow’s great-great grandmother was the one who established it and protected the city with her magic. Now, Willow was to be married and crowned as the new queen of Nuvarah. The men in the kingdom were all eligible bachelors for her hand. They were invited to the ball and now Willow must choose who she shall marry, who will be the new king.
The citizens of Nuvarah all bowed as she stood at the top of the grand staircase. Her black hair was straightened and pulled into a bun and her dark brown skin seemed to glimmer in the light of the chandelier. She lifted her dress with both her hands as she stepped down the stairs. Willow looked around at all the people in the room. The truth was Willow didn’t find any of the men attractive but she thought the women all looked beautiful. The men stared at her in awe as she tried to decide who to dance with. Willow would have to choose or else her father would choose for her. She approached a nice-looking gentleman and offered him a dance.
“Of course, Your Grace!” They started waltzing in the middle of the room. She tried to look entertained but she was quite the opposite. The song then came to a stop and the man said “It was an honor to dance with a beautiful lady like you.” He then bowed.
“The honor was mine,” Willow replied with a forced smile. Her mother taught her to always be polite. As a kid, Willow was brutally honest. Her mother despised it and she would beat her so that was the end of that.
The ball would thankfully be over soon there was only one more dance, but then something caught Willow’s eyes. Or someone. A young lady was standing by the hall door. She had gorgeous wavy red hair that flowed down her back and a dark green dress that made the color of her eyes pop. The woman looked nervous as if she was waiting for someone. Willow was intrigued. She snuck by the people dancing and watched the woman from the other side of the hall. Then she noticed an older-looking man walk up to her. He was wearing what looked to be warrior’s clothing. His hand touched the woman’s arm and Willow noticed she flinched. Willow tried to listen in on what they were saying, but she was too far away. She needed to get closer. She tiptoed nearer to them hiding behind one of the many suits of armor.
“I quit. I can’t do this to an innocent person. When you told me to kill her you left out the part that she was only 18! What could an 18-year-old possibly do to make you this mad at her?” The woman whispered angrily.
The man replied “She will be the one to get us all killed! The prophecy says-”
“I don’t care about a dumb prophecy! That’s it I’m leaving” She turned around but he grabbed her by the waist.
“Do I need to remind you what happens if you don’t listen to me?” He asked with a devious grin on his face.
Willow was trying to comprehend everything she just heard. They were trying to kill her. She didn’t even do anything and they were trying to kill her. Willow turned around but she glanced back at the redhead woman. She was struggling to get out of his grip. Willow thought about what he might do to her. She knew it was stupid to help the person who was originally going to kill her, but something about this woman was calling her name. She tried to think of what she could do to help her. Her magic barely did anything. All she could do with it is move small items with her mind. She then looked around her. A plan formed in her mind. Willow took one of the spears from the armor and held onto it tightly. She didn’t know how to use it, but she hoped they would think she did. She crept up to the man and put the spear right beside his neck.
“Move and I’ll kill you,” Willow said, trying to sound as convincing as she could. The man saw her in the corner of his eyes.
“Please. Your grace. I- I didn’t do anything. It was all her. You see I was trying to convince her not to hurt you!” He said pleadingly. Willow rolled her eyes.
“Let her go, and I won’t kill you.” She said bluntly. Willow knew the woman was confused. Her green eyes were staring at Willows. He let go of her immediately, but Willow knew better than to let him go free.
“Who else is trying to kill me?” She asked him. “Answer me!”
“I- I don’t know! Believe me!” Willow yelled for the guards and they took him down to the cells. However, if this prophecy was known to people, then there would surely be more coming after her.
“Thank you,” the woman said to Willow. She looked at Willow with gratitude in her eyes. Willow could hear her Irish accent more clearly.
“Don’t mention it,” Willow replied. The redhead woman started to turn around and walk away.
“Wait.” She turned back around. “I have questions. Lots of them.”
The woman then replied, “Oh right. Of course. Meet me in the center of the garden in an hour. Nobody here can be trusted.”
“What’s your name?” Willow asked her.
“Lilith.” She walked away and Willow thought about everything that just happened. It didn’t even feel real until now. She had an hour to process it.
***
Willow waited for Lilith in the garden where they said they were meeting. When she showed up her hair was in a braid and she was wearing a blouse and pants. Willow thought Lilith looked prettier with them instead of the dress she was wearing before. Now that she thought about it, Lilith was her definition of beautiful. Willow thought about her for a while, about her face and her freckles. What it would be like to look that beautiful.
“Are you okay?” Lilith asked. Willow noticed she zoned out.
“Oh my god! Yes! Sorry!” Willow started to blush even though she wasn’t sure why. Lilith noticed the blushing and gave her a playful smile.
“What I was saying is the man who I came here with is working for someone. I know where they are. If you come with me, we could dispose of him before anything happens to you.” Willow agreed and they decided they would leave tomorrow night and she hoped that she wouldn’t get caught by her parents.
The next night Lilith and Willow met up at the same spot and they discussed their plans. They were to kill him in his sleep. They both agreed Lilith would be the one to do this. They would be quick and swift. They arrived at the old-looking house where the man lived.
“Hey, are you going to be okay with this?” Lilith asked, concerned.
“Let’s just get this over with.” Willow responded. They got through the lock and went up to his bed where he was sleeping. Willow closed her eyes and Lilith quickly slit his throat. Willow looked at the man and immediately started to puke. She never had seen a dead body before. She never even imagined it.
Lilith looked at Willow and tried to calm her down. “It will be okay. We won’t get caught. Don’t worry, okay?”
Willow tried calming down. She took deep breaths in and out.
“We have to clean up the mess,” Lilith said softly. “Can you clean it with magic?” She asked Willow.
“I can’t. My magic isn’t strong enough.” Willow responded.
“Then I guess we’ll have to do it by hand.” She replied. They cleaned the mess completely. They were about to leave when all of a sudden Willow felt a knife against her throat.
“Don’t move an inch.” A voice boomed.
I am a student who enjoys writing, reading, singing, and doing local theatre. You can find me on Instagram as @juliafrechette
Photo by Alice Alinari on Unsplash
