73 - It was Laura!

"Thank you so much, my love." Princess Laura hugged her husband. When the hug tried to linger for longer, gently, he pushed her from his space.
"All thanks to the commander. She offered to get the kaayan healer to try restore you father's vision. Clearly, it worked."
The princess couldn't contain her excitement from knowing her father could see now. She was sad he didn't have his sight during her wedding ceremony but now she was happy he was going to get to see all his grand children and he was going to be able to nuture then with extra love and care.
Laura smiled, taking Nicholas hand. "I'm happy our love could stand all the tests of life. Our marriage is still standing firm after all we've been through." She went on her tiptoes and place a peck on his lips.
Nicholas knew he had had to break the news to her now. He didn't want to keep letting her fall deeper and deeper with him. He loved someone else and she deserved to know that. It was important she knew he didn't feel the same way about her.
When the prince made to speak, she cut him short, saying, "our kids will be so cute." Laura had on her face plastered, a grin while she clapped softly. "We'll name them Nicholas II and Laura II." She added still beaming. "Or would you prefer three kids?" She raised an eyebrow.
He took his hands from hers and crossed them against his chest but the princess hands went around his neck. He wanted to huff out of frustration but he didn't, he only took a step back. It was now or never. The earlier he told her about his undying love for the commander, the better it was for the three of them. "We need to talk, Lily...um Laura." The prince made a mix up with their names.
"You want five kids, uhn?" The princess put her hands on her waist and raised both eyebrows.
The prince rolled his eyes. "Can you speak someone else? Somewhere we can get more privacy." They were in the hallway.
The princess nodded and led the way to her room. When they got in, she shut the door and sat on the side of her bed. She gave him the opportunity to sit anywhere but Nicholas refused choosing to stand in the middle of the room.
And so, he started, "you're an amazing person, Lily. You're beautiful, your smile lights up just like the sun. Your energy is amazing but I just can't bring myself to love you."
The smile that was plastered on Laura's face was wiped off to a frown. She was confused as to why he was saying this when they were just discussing baby names in the hallway.
Despite the friend that appeared on Lily's face, Nicholas continued. ".Falling out from your love was gradual. It was not deliberate or forced, it was natural. I never felt anything and so maybe this relation has to conclude here.You were true. You're so full of love but no matter how hard I try, I can't bring myself to think of you. I can't force myself to want to see you every day. My face doesn't light up when I see you and so I don't love. I just can't bring myself to love you. We can't continue to force what ever this marriage is. We can't."
"Nicholas." Princess Laura gasped. Her heart was starting to pound and she hoped that all that he was spewing was some kind of prank or game.
"Laura, I can continue to force the feelings I have for you." Nicholas brought out in a low tone.
"I have loved you with all my heart. .How could you never care about me and my feelings and just walk away like this? This has to be a joke." The princess stood from her bed angrily. "You can't do this to me Nicholas. You love me!"
"Nothing is left between me and you." Nicholas breathed out. "My heart belongs to another."
The princess felt her heart shatter into pieces. It was like like someone pierced her chest and took out her heart and threw it to the floor, breaking it into tiny piece. She couldn't believe her ears as tears rolled down her cheeks. "Nicholas, you love me!" She fired.
He walked towards her and held her hands. "I'm sorry it has to end this way but my heart beats for another. It's the reason I want to be a better person.'
Princess Laura pushed him slightly hating the smile that appeared on his face. "Who is she?" Nicholas didn't respond. He only moved towards the door.
Angrily, Laura tugged on his hands and asked again, her voice loud enough to be heated anywhere in the castle. "Who is she?"
Nicholas didn't respond, he only stood watching as she cried while questioning him. Her make-up was smudged, her eyes were flowing with black eyeliner, her foundation and smoky eye shadow had mixed together making her look uglier than before.
Laura gulped. "It's the commander. Isn't it?" Nicholas still didn't bring out a word. "It's the kaayan commander. I've seen the way you both stare at each other."
"Calm down, Laura."
Princess Laura wiped the tears that welled in her eyes. "Your silence says it all." She sobbed. "What does she have that I don't?" She pushed Nicholas on the chest. "Answer me!" She started to throw blows at the prince but he could barely feel it because she wasn't strong.
Nicholas didn't know how to pacify her. He didn't want to continue the marriage. He knew the longer he took for him to end things with her the harder it was going to be for her to take the news. "Just calm down, Laura."
It hurt him to see the tears on the princess face but he could never bring himself to love her no matter how he tried. All he wanted was to be with the commander who he loved dearly. He couldn't live a day without beholding Lily's face. He had fallen in love deeper and deeper with the stubborn commander.
"She looks exactly like I do. I have a better face! She has an ugly scar on her face!" Laura yelled. She couldn't fathom why the prince had chosen her. She was ugly. A part of Laura knew that the commander wasn't. Even with the scar that disfigured her face, the commander was still gorgeous.
How could the prince pick over her someone who wasn't worth it and didn't have class? She had imagined she and the prince were going to spend the rest of their lives together. She had their lives all planned to the tinniest of detail. She had already started to imagine them chasing after their grand children when they were old and their legs were shaky while their children took over the affiairs of the kingdom.
Elaine ran into the room hearing the upset voice of the princess. She was in the kitchen preparing dinner with he other maids when she keeps hearing Laura's voice. She ran to hug the princess when she saw her crying.
Laura cried held unto Elaine tightly, crying unto her bosom.
Laura's heart wouldn't stop aching. She felt like her heart was going to give out and she felt like she wanted to die. She hugged Elaine tighter. She couldn't believe that the prince never loved her. It was hard for her to believe all he had said. Her heart was racing faster than it had ever. Her head ached while her eyes continue to bring forth tears. She couldn't live without the prince. He was the only man she shad ever loved.
"What's going on?" Elaine asked the princess in her arms but she only responded by sobbing harder. The old maid turned to the prince. "What did you do to her?" She sounded like a protective mother.
"I'm sorry, Laura." This came from Nicholas as he walked out of her room.
****
King Eric was still excited to have his sight. Who wouldn't be? His hope of ever getting his vision had been crushed each time one of the doctors that couldn't help came around during his days in darkness. He had thought he wouldn't be able see till his death.
"Where's the commander? I'll like to thank her for all she has done." King Francis felt indepted to her for helping save his kingdom and help be the channel to restoring his sight. He had heard a lot about the commander and her Nobel and fearless deeds.
Nicholas nodded and went to get Lily from her room. They both made it back to the throne room.
King Francis froze seeing the commander. She was without her mask and so he could see the striking resemblance between her and his Laura. He was also supposed to see the horrible scar that ran across her face.
Wait" He called out before he stepped closer and made a big mark across the face of the twin of doom, and rather than scream. She went rigid. He had his answers right in his front and he watched the blood gush out from the mark he had made. He made the mark so she wouldn't come back to torment him again or be born anywhere in the werewolf kingdom. They watched the flow of the river take her away as he watched the other twin in his hand.
The king remembered by heart how that scar came to life and how he had given her that scar to ease his pain and never set eyes on her. It was impossible! She was suppose to be dead, out of the face of the earth. She was the twin of doom and wasn't suppose to be around or even alive.
He moved towards the commander, trembling. His hands went to the scar on her face, tracing the horrible thing that disfigured her perfect face.
The commander frowned at the hand of the king on her face. Nicholas had told her he wanted to see her not, invade her personal space.
"How did you get this scar?"
"I've had this scar all my life." The commander replied the king.
King Francis frowned. "Are you sure?" His hand went back to the commander's face as he traced the scar again.
"You look just like Laura." He said to the commander while staring at prince Nicholas. Nicholas only nodded at the of man, confused.
Nicholas watched in confusion. The prince was still shocked that commander Lily and princess Laura looked alike. They could easily be passed off as twins but what he didn't know was that there was a lot behind the fact that they looked the same.
The king started to recollect all that the seer had prophesied when Cecil, his wife, was pregnant. He started to put the pieces together.A gasp went past the king's lips as it dawned on him. His intuition was right. He fell on his knees and began to weep remembering all that had happened.
Lily wasn't the twin of doom. It was Laura!