74 — And so it ends…

Laura had never known heartbreak if it stared at her in the face before but today... Today was very much different than any other day she could have imagined. She had been through a lot but still survived because she believed her love for him was what would save her from all the figure she endured but now, been here... Hearing this. She would much rather be dead.
Nicolas never loved her, Nicolas never even cared for her but Nicolas loved her and Nicolas cared for her, she kept on asking herself 'ehat did she have that I didn't ?' it was a terrible question to ask because she knew she was really beautiful despite the scar but she still didn't understand why he would choose lily over her. She was beyond sad and somehow even angry a big and it was justified. He didn't think their marriage was that much of something worth saving, he looked at their marriage like it never happened and like it was a skillful sacrifice. In more ways than one, it was a sacrifice.
She buried herself between her sheets, her eyes redder than a cherry and her puffed eyes giving o vious details of how sad she was. It was on her bed that Elaine came to find her.
"What's wrong?" She asked, Laura was so frightened out of her bed, it took a sorcerer somewhere to ensure her spirit didn't drift off of her body. She got up quickly and furiously wiped her eyes and her face.
"How dare you barge into my chambers?" She wiped at her eyes furiously. Elaine bowed her head in apology and looked at her with a mother's eye.
"I'm fine. You may leave" She didn't mean to snap at Elaine but she needed this time alone and to herself. Elaine found herself bowing again, nearing missing the reason why she was here.
"Your father requested your presence in the throne room" somehow that got to bring a smile to Laura's face, she hadn't seen her dad since those, bless their souls, kayaans saved his sight. It would be a breath of fresh air when he would be able to see her again. She nodded at Elaine and she walked right out.
****
Lily played with her hair as though she had only just recalled that she had hair on her head. She couldn't believe that the high priestess was dead, she had died just to make sure that this whole kingdom saw that it was protected. They had won the war, they had captured the king, the king had killed himself, Nicolas got to live and she fought for her survival as well, if anything this war that they had won was a group effort, a collective group effort. All the fairies and dwarfs and elf's and the rest had all put in their best and when the time for recognition came, they all went back to their previous spots, either in hiding or back to their various tiny kingdom's, in some way, it was better that way, there shouldn't have to be a euler, a supreme ruler, it was better this way. She toured the castle, honestly she had never really been in a castle but here she was. She looked around taking notice of the scurrying maids and the guards that stood at each door like a well formed statue, she saw the statue of a wolf, the name tag corresponded to the name of the recent wereking, it made sense that in his youth that he was an admirable soldier himself. She smiled at herself at such a good man, almost father like to his people. She ventured more into the castle and ended up getting out into the castle grounds and taking note of the brightest shades of flowers of all sizes, they had even bloomed and a smile crossed her face. She had never been one to adore flowers like the way she adored this one.
She walked into the market, seeing the people as they survived and thrived, it turned out that not all the faires were gone, not all the elf's, not all the witches either, the market was buzzing. People kept shouting prices and the names of their goods to everyone who passed but everyone who passed had a destination in their minds as they paid no heed to them, except for her. . She solely missed her people at the kaayans but life here was very different and she took the liberty to explore as far as she liked and as much as she could, she was thankful that she had outsmarted her body guards seeing as she didn't see any in sight.
That was until she was rounding a corner and one of them in their neat uniform came out of nowhere and bowed, nearly taking her heart out in fear as she gave a tiny shout and placed her hand on her chest.
"Sorry for the startle but the king's needs a word with you at the throne room, he requires your presence now ma'am. A carriage is already waiting for you" he said in a rush, he must have ran to catch up with her. She felt sorry for him and simply nodded and followed him to where the carriage was in waiting and saw the places and people whiz past her eyes as the horses galloped with a speed she didn't realize possible.
****
Nicolas could have screamed how much of a bad person he was, here he was trying to repent and he ends up breaking the princess's heart and calling their marriage a 'sham' and a 'willing sacrifice' who on Earth says things like that. That's right, he does. He didn't mean to break her tender heart but he loved Lily and it took him time to know it but he loved her, from the first day that he had seen her to this very moment, he couldn't deny Laura the benefit of having a good marriage, it just wasn't him and he was strict on repentance and he wanted to be a better person, it was just sad that it had to be her.
He was in his bedroom, thinking all sorts of things when someone banged in his door.
"Who's there?" He wasn't frightened at all because he knew how the palace worked " The king requests your presence in the throne room at once" he shouted and walked away. Well he had to face the king sooner or later.
****
Everyone was present now, lily, Laura, Nicolas and the king. Everyone was here at the door, about to be called in. Nicolas kept glancing at Lily with so much love and when he glanced at Laura, her face was turned away and the guilt ate him up alive but he wasn't going to apologize for been truthful.
They were called and Laura was the first to rush into the throne room and now in front of him, they heard him hug her and heard her shuffle her gown, next was Nicolas, his heart pumped with blood, blood he didn't know existed but he felt the rush and if he wasn't exaggerating, he probably turned red as well. He stepped in front of the man who he had taken his Kingdom away from and his legs shook like jelly on ice, it was nearly uncontrollable, he seated himself so much right now, his shock nearly made his heart give up as the king opened his arms and silently asked for an embrace, he thought to himself 'a stake through the back?, Well deserving' he walked on shaky legs to the king and fell into his embrace. He felt...relived in a way.
The next person to be called was Lily and immediately she stepped into the throne room, something changed. It wasn't the air that surrounded her or her fierceness, it was something else and the king was the only one to express it with a gasp and a finger to his lips.
"Come here, my child" he gestured with an open palm, lily walked towards him and stood at the same spot where the others stood and started to wonder if there was something on her bodice or if it was in this manner he treated everybody.
The king stood up from his chair and earning some looks from the people who were clearly in the room, not just the three people that stood before him but the council members and some astonished members of the village as well. The king never stood up to talk to anyone, majorly because he was the king. He circled her and made to touch her face, she turned her face away and he retracted his hand in a mock apology. His eyes never left her face as he took his seat back and for a while he was motionless.
"How did you come about the scar on your face?" He asked, shocking the room.
Lily was suprised that he cared about that and so she told him everything that the late priestess had told her and she watched as the king's face started to comfort and slowly as his hand palmed his face and he grew silent. She didn't understand what she must have said to spoil his mood, she didn't think she said anything wrong because even the court had grown quiet at this impulsed confusion growing rampant .
When the king raised his head and his palms, she saw the faint glisnt of tears as it cresended from his pear shaped eyes and the almost non shake of his shoulders. Was he...crying?
"My Lord, I believe I am confused. You seem upset, was it what I said?" The king cleared his throat and looked intently at her.
"Everything you know about your birth, is a lie" liky didn't understand what that meant.
"Sire, I don't think I quite understand..."
" Everything your priestess told you, everything you know about yourself is a lie. You're not from the river, your family didn't die, you are a were wolf, you are the child of Glory , you are the twin sister of laura and you are my — his shoulders shook uncontrollably now — child" Lily couldn't believe what she was hearing, was this the accolade she was expecting?She gave a short laugh because although it didn't fit the situation, it made sense to her. "What do you mean by that,how dare you tell me that I am your child. My parents died sir. Have some respect!" She shouted at him. The guards held their piked staff at her but the king waved a hand. He understood her shock and word have treated her outburst in no other way.
"I would prove it to you" he said and stood up from his chair. "Follow me" he said. Everyone was forced to follow him.
He moved quickly and somehow they found themselves at a cave, with a tiny stream that lead outside. He motioned to the walls and to a crystal ball that stood at the center of the room. He carefully touched the crystal ball and somehow an imagery floated above their heads and everyone looked at it. There, lo and behold, her birth and the way she had been disfigured by him.
They gathered back to the throne room,The king went on to explain everything from the beginning. He told them about his wife, bless her memory. He told them about the prophecy and about their birth, told than about how the rites were performed and they had obviously made a mistake and she had been cast out instead of Laura. He apologized and begged for each of their forgiveness, stating that he only wanted to protect the kingdom.
Laura had never wanted to walk out on her father as much as she wanted to do so right now. The meeting came to a close and everyone went to their bed chambers feeling different than usual. It all started to make sense and her pain grew so much over the night, so much that she could bear it no more. She took her cake knife and slit her wrists. She was the child of doom and indeed she had brought about the doom of the castle, she was too tired, she closed her eyes, tired of watching the pools of blood create a dark circle around her. At least she would free herself. It was in her right to do so.
****
Two days later, the death of Laura weighed heavily in their hearts but most especially the king's heart but that didn't stop him from blessing the union of Lily and Nicolas. He was sorry that he lost a child but in all reasoning, he was glad to still have another, his heart was torn but his soul had been repaired. He knew he would scale through and now all he needed was time, he hoped it would be kind to him.