51. Rosalina
51
Rosalina
S uddenly, it’s so very dark.
I gasp, falling to my knees and clutching the briars that tear my hands. That’s what they hadn’t told me… That’s what Caspian knew.
They made me believe they were wrongly cursed, but the Enchantress had spoken of past misdeeds. What exactly had each of my princes done?
But a more pressing urgency clutches at my heart.
Time is running out.
I scramble across the floor, not caring as the thorns bite into my hands, until I reach the roses. Each one is bowed, the petals drooping toward the dirt. Twenty-five years they’ve been cursed… How much longer do they have?
I must save them. They can’t be cursed forever. Not just the princes lost to the beasts within, but the staff too. Astrid, Marigold… trapped as animals for the rest of their lives. And without the princes’ magic to stop the thorns, Castletree will fall to Caspian.
“No, no, no,” I cry. I dig my fingers into the dirt. There has to be something I can do to buy us more time. If I could give the roses some magic, keep them alive longer…
A soft sound swishes, and a few brambles wriggle toward me. “Help me,” I whisper. “Keep the flowers alive.”
The brambles slowly creep up my body, lacing around my arms. But I’m not afraid. It’s like a shiver of energy passes through me. We can do this together. Tears fall from my face, and idly, I notice they shimmer purple. A strange violet glow illuminates beneath my skin.
“I can break the curse, promise. I just need you to bloom for a little longer.”
My fingers, laced with thorns, drift over the flowers. First, the rose of Spring. It trembles. I think of Ezryn, of his hands on mine as he healed my wound. Of the strength holding all his broken pieces together. He’s a mystery, one I desperately want to solve.
Then, I carefully run my hands up the rose of Summer. I think of Dayton’s secret smile, the rarest treasure. The heat of his kiss, the warmth I felt in his arms. He has so much to give; I will see he has the chance.
My heart thrums as I caress the rose of Autumn. My darling Farron. The first person in my whole life who I would consider a true friend, one who truly knows me. I want more days in the library with him, and I want the chance at a night too.
The flowers I’ve touched… Their stems straighten. The petals bloom. They’re not whole, but there’s life there.
But I’m not done. Last, I touch the rose of Winter. My Winter Prince. My Keldarion. My captor and my savior. I need to tell him that. Tell him he saved me in so many ways. Tell him he can save himself. I know he can.
His rose blooms beneath my touch. More, I can give more to them—
A roar sounds in my ears, and suddenly I’m sailing across the room. The brambles reach up and catch me, landing me on my feet.
And Keldarion paces before the flowers, the image of death upon his face.
“You are forbidden here.” His voice is a beast made sound. He turns his back to me, quickly checking the flowers. “You don’t know what you could have done!”
Fear races through my chest. Even when Keldarion first captured me, I never saw this rage within him.
“You never told me you were running out of time,” I breathe.
Keldarion storms over. “What are these?” He grabs the brambles wrapped around my arms and tears.
I scream as the briars rip from me, and I feel helpless before him.
“You have no idea what you could have done!” he roars again and rushes back to the flowers, ripping the nearby briars from them. It’s like a darkness has cast inside him, a place where light goes to die.
Sounds clatter in the doorway, and there stands Ez, Dayton, and Farron.
“Rosie,” Farron’s voice shakes, “what are you doing here?”
But I’m tired of being blamed for things that aren’t my fault. “You lied to me. You all did. Made me believe the Enchantress was evil. But what have you all done?” Fear ensnares my heart. “She called you beasts. All of you!”
“Caspian is the monster!” Kel cries. With a roar, he snatches a cluster of briars from the ground and rips them. The castle shudders.
The other princes stand stricken in the doorway, but I clamber up. Keldarion runs to a wall and pulls more thorns from their hold. A great crack! sounds as part of the roof collapses. A massive branch lands and I scream, cowering against the wall.
But Keldarion doesn’t stop. More and more, he rips the briars from the walls and ceiling. The castle moans, almost a cry of agony.
“Kel, stop!” I scream. “You’re making it worse!”
“Everything is ruined,” he snarls. Blood drips between his fingers as the thorns cut into his flesh. “It’s all over!”
My plan failed; I’ve only made this worse for him. Forced him to face the people he’s hidden from. And now I’ve discovered his greatest secret.
With a massive heave, Kel rips up two fistfuls of briar. Stones shake loose from the walls, and I scream as a huge branch breaks through the windows, showering us in colored glass.
“The castle is coming undone!” Ezryn cries. “Hurry, it needs more magic!”
The princes rush forward toward the roses, falling on their hands and knees in a circle.
“Channel your energy into the tree,” Farron instructs. “We have to hold this place together.”
Dayton looks up, panic across his face. “Kel, we need your help.”
But Kel is deep in blood and briars. He looks up through his sweat-damp hair, eyes burning with blue flame. His gaze locks on me. “You don’t belong here. Go away.”
“Kel,” I whisper.
“GO AWAY!” he roars.
And with the castle, my home, crumbling around me, I run.