CH.28 Running away from myself
The sun was slowly creeping into the world as she returned to the palace.
The morning rays of the sun clothed the landscape in a golden shroud.
The birds sang merrily, welcoming the new day.
Iris crept through the gloom as a reminder of the night.
She had just caught the changing of the guard.
The rested guards were replacing those who had been guarding the palace's security all night.
They were not very vigilant. She managed to slip inside.
She left her horse in the gardens. She could not return it to the stables. It was already too bright.
She ran through the palace corridors. Her magic cloak hid her from the eyes of the servants who had been working since early morning. She quickly ran to her chambers before anyone noticed she was gone.
She stormed in. She slammed the door behind her.
Before she could take off her hood, however, she saw the prince lying in her bed.
He woke up to the sound of her slamming the door.
He looked around the room. Fortunately, he didn't see her.
He didn't see her in her true form. Her gaze fell on her mother's hairpin lying on the desk.
The prince got out of bed and went to look in the hallway to see what had made the sound.
Iris took advantage of his momentary absence, grabbed the hairpin, and hid in the bathroom.
She threw off her cloak and pinned her hair with a golden snake. She wished she could be Anastasia again. She looked at herself in the mirror. She still saw her true face. She didn't understand what was happening.
"I want to become Anastasia," she said out loud, but still nothing.
"Don't tell me the enchantment stopped working," she was beginning to panic. "I want to become Anastasia! Now!"
She shook the mirror as if it could help her, as if she could scare it and make it stop showing her illusions.
"Anastasia?" she heard the prince behind the door. "Are you there?"
"Give me a moment."
He opened the bathroom door. Iris was about to slam it in his face when she tripped on the skirt of her dress, lost her balance, and fell. Her head hit the bathtub.
"Anastasia!" the frightened prince immediately ran to her aid.
He took her in his arms. Iris looked in the mirror. She took a deep breath. The false illusion shrouded her in the form of her stepsister. A trickle of deep red blood ran down her face. She reached for her forehead. It hurt terribly. Her fingers turned red with her own blood.
"Iris..." she heard Luc's voice. He must have felt her physical pain.
"Are you okay?" Prince Edmund asked her.
"Iris..."
"I think I see stars," she said. "Or are they fireflies?"
On the ceiling, streams of light flickered, reflecting off the shiny tiles. Shadows danced with the light. The prince laughed briefly. He helped her to her feet. Iris's head was spinning. The whole room was spinning with her. The prince had to catch her so she wouldn't fall again.
"Sit down." He pulled out a chair for her.
"I'm a terrible clumsy person." She blushed.
"You're not the first person to trip over your own foot. It happens to me too. You just have to be more careful. I don't want anything to happen to you."
"I'll try. But it won't hurt to always have you around if the earth pulls me closer."
"I'm always at hand, love."
He soaked a towel and gently wiped the blood from her face. The water was cool, refreshing. He moved to the open wound, from which drops of fresh blood were still flowing. He pressed it carefully. Iris flinched. It hurt a little.
"Iris..."
"Sorry," the prince told her.
"You have nothing to apologize for. I should have been more careful."
"Where did you spend the whole night?" he asked her. "Couldn't sleep again?"
"Yeah, so I went for a walk," she admitted. "I was looking at the stars. I forgot myself and ended up watching the day being born after a dark night."
"Do you like the dawn? I've always considered the sunset to be the most respected. Even poets sing about it."
"The sunset tells the story that even death can be beautiful, but the dawn, the dawn carries the promise of a new chance. A better tomorrow."
"I should watch the sunrise with you sometime."
He took her in his arms. Iris whimpered softly at the sudden movement. He carried her to the bed and lay down next to her.
"What are you doing? I need to change. Your mother, the Queen, will be waiting for me."
"You've been up all night. You need to rest. And if my mother comes to get you out of bed, I'll tell her you're hurt and can't. And that I won't take my eyes off you all day."
"What have I done to deserve you, my prince?"
She rested her head on his chest and listened to the quiet beat of his heart. His heart beat differently from the eternal heart of a demon. So mortal. In every beat echoed the fragility of his existence.
"You have cast a spell on me, Anastasia," he said. "I am completely and utterly enchanted by you."
Iris laughed nervously. "That's because I'm a witch," she said.
"You are my witch, love." He laughed too.
"He just signed his death warrant.You are mine, my little witch."