Young Writers Society

The shore was something that Valerie had grown to hate. It shimmered brighter than the sun and sustained as much life, if not more, than the forest, but she hated it. Especially when she was stuck with the Marquess beside it for three hours.

Three hours of grueling family stories Valerie had no input on. Three hours of shameless banter that made Valerie’s head ache so much she thought it would snap in two. Three hours of petty arguments about how Valerie could ‘improve’. There was only one thing the Princess wanted to talk about, but it wasn’t a subject that Soleil’s mind could seem to wrap around to.

“You know,” Soleil started up again, “Celine is a really nice girl. I could imagine you two being friends with each other.”

“Mm-hmm,” Valerie groaned. She wanted to bang her head against a wall. Unfortunately, the only thing beside her was miles and miles of water.

“Then again, the only thing you have in common with her is me. But is that such a bad thing? She could tell you all of my acts of bravery that would make you fall in love with me even more.”

“Maybe I could tell her of how you lacked any chivalrousness on the carriage ride and make her despise you.”

“Celine loves me too much to be swayed by a prissy girl like you.”

“And maybe I don’t care enough to listen to any more of this.”

Valerie deeply regretted telling the Marquess she didn’t want to ride in silence. It would have been awkward to ride around for hours on end without any chatter, but she hadn’t expected him to go so over the top. Especially with what happened only about two hours ago. She could remember everything perfectly. The cuts. The stomach. The kiss…

Valerie remembered the horrible feeling of hurling in her throat. The boiling midday sun wasn’t helping her either, and by the time she tuned Soleil’s arguing out, she thought she was going to fall off her horse.

The Marquess rushed over to Valerie and caught her. She was sweating so much she felt like a dried-up prune. Soleil helped her get properly back on her horse before pulling them both closer to the shore and stopping.

“Let’s take a rest.”

“No…” Valerie groaned. “We have to get to the castle.”

“Well, I don’t feel like carrying you around after you’ve passed out.” He jumped off his horse and grabbed Valerie, pulling her down. She didn’t feel like walking.

Soleil set her down by the shore and cupped some water in his hands, pouring it on her head. Valerie’s eyes widened as she suddenly woke up, scooting away from the Marquess with a scowl. He just shrugged and smirked at her.

“What?” he asked. “You needed to wake up.”

“You didn’t have to splash that disgusting lake water on me.”

Soleil chuckled. “I wanted to keep things interesting.”

Valerie stared at him for a moment before dropping her head. She didn’t want to look him in the eye for this.

“I’m…” She took a breath. Soleil cocked his head.

“What?”

Valerie wanted to say sorry. She wanted to apologize for her complete idiocy. She had trusted a stranger to keep her safe, only to hurt the one person she at least hoped she could trust. She had nearly gotten both of them killed, but for what? A little banter in the night? How could she act so childish? She was nearly sixteen. If she was to become queen by the time of her coronation, she would have to not only defeat her father, but grow up. But no matter how hard she wanted to apologize, she couldn’t figure out how to swallow her pride.

She just gave Soleil a painful smile as he watched her curiously.

“Nothing,” she lied. “I just… It’s a bit hard to come back from everything you did.”

“I know. Seeing powers like mine for the first time tends to unravel naive girls like you.”

“Naive?” Valerie hissed. “How dare you call me such a thing. I know more than you ever will about the King’s darkest secrets and you have the audacity to-”

Soleil just laughed. It gave Valerie some distorted version of hope, how he could laugh in such a moment. It was the closest things could get to being normal.

“I could listen to you insult me all day.” He stroked her cheek before she pulled away from him.

“Don’t do that,” she growled. “Acting like you enjoy my company, but I know you hate me.”

“I don’t hate you,” he told her. “But maybe it is a bit fun to get on your nerves.” He grabbed her hand and helped her up.

“Come on,” he told her. “The faster we get to the castle, the faster we get to my money.”

“You have such deep values, Marquess,” Valerie said with an eye roll. Soleil ran his hand through his hair and winked at her.

“Yes, I’m quite the intellectual.” He held her foot and helped her up onto the horse, handing her the reins before getting onto his own. They both began at a trot and turned left, into the woods, where the sun was hidden by the cool leaves of the trees. A breeze rushed through Valerie’s hair. She smiled.

“Marquess,” she said after a while, his eyes flitting back at her from ahead. He parted his mouth, as if about to say something, but he waited for her to speak.

“Your powers,” she began, drumming the saddle with her hands. “I just- how did you get such cruel powers? Will mine be like that?”

Soleil’s brow furrowed with a bit of sadness, but she doubted it was for her. She had wounded his pride- again. She knew he wasn’t a cold-hearted killer, but hearing him talk as if he enjoyed his powers scared her. It was as if he didn’t feel empathy for someone who couldn’t give him something in return. Her father was the same way, except for the fact that he spared no sadness on those who could give something to him.

“I don’t know what your powers will be,” Soleil began, looking back ahead of him, “but I know the curse won’t give you something you’re uncomfortable with. When you truly become mad, and your heart begins to break, you won’t see your powers as cruel. All they’ll be is a crutch.”

“Is that what they are for you? A crutch to help you get what you want?”

Soleil’s jaw ticked as his eyes wandered around the forest. His tan face seemed to grow pale.

“If I have a chance to get revenge on someone who truly hurt me, I’ll take it. I’ve never noticed justice coming on its own.”

“I want revenge on people too.” She kicked her horse’s hindquarters and caught up to him. “But sometimes- actually, all the time- it’s easier to forgive people. And they will respect you for it if they’re good people.” She didn’t actually believe those words- but hopefully, it helped him.

Soleil glared at her before looking back at the woods.

“It’s easier to forgive people when you know they’re forced to respect you.”

“What are you talking about?”

The Marquess rolled his eyes and smirked at her.

“Nothing you need to care about.”

But Valerie could still see pain in his eyes. She could feel the heat coming off of his body, and in her mind, she could guess the beat of his pounding heart. She didn’t know what to say to him. She had never known how to comfort people- simply help them if they needed it. If he had been dying on the side of the road, she could have easily helped him and tended to his wounds. But bandages couldn’t fix a broken heart, and they couldn’t sear through the pain in someone’s eyes. It was something Valerie wanted too. But empathy wasn’t something she could take- it was something she earned from revealing her pain to others. And that was one of the many things Valerie refused to do.

They rode in silence until the sun rested in the middle of the sky, marking the start of the afternoon. The trees began to disperse as they made their way back towards the shore, the clear blue waters of the eastward lakes turning teal as they headed closer to East Bend. Soleil dismounted from his horse and helped Valerie down, quickly grabbing some bread out of his satchel and handed a piece to Valerie. She scarfed it down without a hint of elegance and looked up at Soleil. He smiled at Valerie with a glimmer in his eye before eating his own bread.

“I thought you would have hated me after killing your lover,” he smiled, brushing crumbs off his bottom lip. “But you seem to be doing better than I thought.”

“He’s not my lover.”

“But you want him to be.” Soleil sat down beside her and studied her eyes. She frowned at him, pushed him away, and rested her head on her fist.

“The first time I really thought I could trust you, and you insult me,” she growled. “You may have been a decent human being if someone had taught you etiquette.”

“If I recall, you don’t have any etiquette either.” He cleared his throat and started speaking in a high-pitched voice. “‘Get away from me, peasantry!’‘Get away from me before I call my guards!’” He swayed himself around with his hands on his hips as he grinned widely at no one in particular. Valerie snorted and shook her head. Any anxiety Soleil held before seemed to be gone.

“I’m going to have you hanged if you keep making fun of me like that.”

“You couldn’t kill me,” Soleil chuckled. “I would kill you first.”

Valerie sighed. She wasn’t sure whether to be horrified at Soleil or disappointed in him. So far, it seemed like both.

“Let’s just get back to the shore,” Valerie sighed. “Before we get lost.”

“It’s too late for that, Princess,” a husky voice growled. A man emerged from behind a tree with a sword that must have been longer than Valerie. He stared at her and patiently waited for her to move.

Valerie froze as Soleil slowly pulled a knife out of his pocket. He wrapped his arm around her and looked her in the eyes. His cold gaze sent a chill down her spine. Slowly, his hand made its way up her neck. He gently pulled her closer.

“What are you doing?” Valerie growled. She tried to pull away but his other arm wrapped around her. He sat silently and gave her a soft smile as the other man put the blade on Soleil’s neck.

“Promise not to miss me,” he whispered to Valerie.

The man cut through Soleil’s neck. Valerie gasped and froze as Soleil’s limp arms fell back to his sides, the Marquess leaning back into the dangerous touch of the other man. Blood poured onto his crimson suit as the man dragged him away and set him on the horse.

“Please get mad,” Valerie said, praying for her guide. “Please get mad.”

Valerie watched the man ride off with a limp body on his horse. His crime was heinous. She would kill him.

Kill him.

Kill him.

Kill him…

Valerie welcomed the old voice with a snarl as she got up and dusted off her filthy dress. Her horse stood off to the side, its ears pointed straight up as it scanned for any more danger. Its beautiful white coat had slowly turned to soot from the forest. Valerie put her foot into the stirrup and swung into the saddle. She looked at a tiny black dot in the distance, heading towards the coast. Valerie’s horse whinnied as she kicked at its whithers.

Valerie’s vision began to grow dark as the forest shrunk and the lake shore appeared. Her heartbeat slowed. Her blood crawled instead of flowing. She could see nothing and no one. At least, she couldn’t see anything except their bones.

The rider in front of her let out a snort as they turned their head to see her. She saw their lifeless skull let its jaw drop as she rode side by side with them, a small knife in hand. She wasn’t exactly surprised by their jaw-dropping, but she wouldn’t have minded not seeing their jaw crack as it opened. A strange blue light pulsed from around their bones, recreating a dull version of their real body. Their clothes were limply outlined in the light as well.

“Scared?” Valerie chuckled. She reached towards their reins the moment they jerked away. She held them with an iron grip, pulling them towards her until the horse came to a halt, its front hooves rising up until they nearly reared. She dismounted her horse and tried not to cringe at the cold of the water on her feet.

The other rider dismounted as well, but they left their sword in their satchel. Valerie looked at them curiously until her anger began to brew again. This man was a killer. He did not abide by any law. If he couldn’t learn the law, he would learn her laws. That he had no right to kill someone innocent, and logically, that meant she could kill him.

“Give me the body,” Valerie hissed. She eyed their glow again. It had turned more reddish. They were afraid.

The rider raised their hands and backed away towards their horse. Slowly, their fingers curled around Soleils neck, dragging his corpse off the horse and holding it in front of Valerie. She rushed up to them and held her knife to them.

“Don’t kill me,” they whispered, their grip tightening slightly on the Marquess’ neck. Valerie scoffed.

“Give me one reason why.”

“Because,” he smiled, though Valerie couldn’t see it, “if you do, I’m just one more body you have to deal with.”

Valerie just chuckled. “That isn’t exactly how it works.”

“Really?” he asked. “Then explain the body right behind you.”

Valerie had the stupidity to turn around. She whipped around her body, only to feel a painfully heavy object weighing her down. She fell into the water, unable to breathe. She panicked. She was trapped underneath Soleil.

She could hear the faint sound of talking- some smart retort the killer had come up with, though it probably wasn’t as witty as he thought it was. But Valerie couldn’t focus on it. She couldn’t focus on her breathing. There were only two things she took time to notice; the hoof steps behind her and Soleils glowing smile in front of her.

***

Valerie woke up to the smell of cooking meat and a soft chuckle that wasn’t Soleils. She groaned. How she hated that man. All she wanted to hear was his voice, and he couldn’t even do that. All she could remember of him was his piercing blue smile in the water, and his chilling last words before he died.

Promise not to miss me.

Of course, she would miss him. Now she wouldn’t have the chance to kill him herself. She would be forced to remember his unjust death that involved a stranger and not someone familiar. How could she live with that? How could he be killed so cruelly, and on her watch? What would her father say?

She let out a groan. Her father was dead to her. It wouldn’t matter.

“You’re awake.”

Valerie sighed. “Thanks, Captain Obvious.”

“And feisty as usual,” the voice said, ignoring her. A soft hand touched her neck. “At least you’re not hurt. That would’ve been fun, though.”

Valerie’s eyes snapped open. She knew that voice. She hated it.

Gabriel leaned over her with a lazy stature, his back hunched and his neck jutting forward. He gave her a warm smile that she wanted to slap off his face. He must have thought he was some sort of hero. But he wasn’t. Not to her, at least. He was nothing but cruel and selfish. Valerie was the same, but she would never dare compare herself to him.

“Get away from me,” she scowled, “and bring me the body.”

She didn’t want to think about how Gabriel had healed. Were his own powers able to do such a thing? Had he stolen the health of another young girl and placed his injuries on her? Soleil might have healed him before they had left, but Valerie refused such an idea. Soleil was profusely annoying, but he wasn’t a traitor.

“Can’t do that,” Gabriel said as he shook his head. “Neither of you are in condition to travel. Plus, it’s best not to move Soleil while he’s trying to heal. It will only delay it.”

Valerie stared at him blankly. “Soleil is alive?”

“Don’t act so happy about it,” Gabriel told her bitterly. She could feel his anger rising. His lips looked so soft and pink…

Snap out of it, she told herself. She wouldn’t think those things if not for the curse. It didn’t matter how perfect he looked if he was dead to her on the inside. If she did manage to kiss him at that moment, it wouldn’t be his fault for once. He couldn’t control the curse. None of them could.

“I found you and him washed up on the shore in the ugliest possible clothes,” he continued, his anger shifting into dull petulance. “It looked like someone had attacked you with the body. Of course, I was only able to carry one of you, but I could already see Soleil start his starcrestingly helpful curse. I would have left him there to die.”

“How lovely,” Valerie said flatly. “I would have done the same for you.”

“You were too beautiful to ignore, Princess,” he smiled, his finger trailing around her shoulder until it reached her collarbone. She slapped it away.

“I don’t know what you want from me,” Valerie growled, “but the one thing you will not be taking is my time.” Her blood boiled at the thought of staying with him. She wanted to sink claws into him and watch him cripple. He didn’t look human to her, but merely an object. She could either tear him to shreds or play with him. But she was better than that. She pushed her thoughts away and watched as the light of the sun seemed to reappear and Gabriel’s bones sunk back into his skin.

Gabriel just stared at her blankly before a smile spread across his face. He just watched as she let out a grunt and pushed herself off the ground, trying not to wobble at the new feeling of her legs. She hadn’t remembered it being like that before. Then again, maybe this is what happened after the curse overtook her. Maybe she became weaker and more reliant on the one thing she had deeply tried to avoid.

When you truly become mad, and your heart begins to break, you won’t see your powers as cruel. All they’ll be is a crutch.

Valerie let out a breath and pushed the thoughts out of her mind. She took in her surroundings. The sun shone brightly in the middle of the hollow she stood in. The soft feel of clover on her feet was comforting in the moment, even though she had never felt it before, and trees enveloped them like a wall keeping them from the outside. A piece of fabric was tied between two trees as a makeshift tent, and a pair of legs in black trousers poked out between them.

“I didn’t want to leave him in such soaked clothes while he was healing,” Gabriel explained, running a hand through his hair. “You would probably be after my neck if I let him get an infection.”

Valerie looked over her shoulder with a flat face. “You would be right about that.”

“Well, then, I guess we’re even.” Gabriel waltzed over to Soleil and grabbed his feet beginning to drag him across the ground. “You won’t kill me in return for me not letting you die. But, if you ever wanted to pay me a little extra for my endeavors, you can be sure to do so with a kiss.” He dropped Soleils legs with a grunt. “I don’t want any of your money. I’ll probably get the chance to steal it on my own today.”

Valerie just laughed. She found it unbelievable she was doing so, but she did. “Whenever you steal my money make sure to take my father too. Then his guards will kill you and you will kill him. That would truly make things even.”

Gabriel cocked his head and grinned at Valerie. “A life for a death. How strange of you to ask for that.”

“A life for a kiss is much stranger.” The Princess grabbed Soleil’s arms and draped them over her shoulders, dragging them over to her horse that stood calmly by a tree. She could feel the faint heartbeat of Soleil against her own chest and the strange sensation of his neckbones fusing together. She thought she could feel his eyelashes flutter against her cheek, but she didn’t want to get her hopes up.

Gabriel helped haul Soleil onto Valerie’s horse and smirked at Valerie once they finished. She tilted her head at him curiously. She wouldn’t trust him, but she did have one question before she abandoned him and the forest.

“What would it have mattered to you if we both died?” Valerie asked, hauling herself onto her saddle. “I wouldn’t have been able to have your head if both of us drowned.”

“I suppose not,” Gabriel shrugged. “But if I had let you both die, that wouldn’t be near as good revenge as torturing you. I have a feeling that letting you die would really just be a gift.”