Chapitre 2: A Bizarre Dream

With hot tears running down her face, she turned to her right, not afraid of crumpling her dress, and looked out of the window. The royal palace was rapidly disappearing from her sight; she would never see it again.

It was the place that had been her only home; the place that rightfully belonged to her, even though she never truly belonged there. And strangely, she felt no regret or sorrow.

Once the palace was no longer in her line of vision, Lorelai leaned back against the soft, padded back of the coach seat, closing her heavy eyelids.

The poison was already working; she began to pray that she would be long dead and gone before the carriage reached its destination.

Lost in her prayer and lulled by the rhythmic sound of the horses' hooves dancing against the cobblestone road, the princess did not notice that their entourage had already left the Capital and was moving through the large sunflower field.

Lorelai looked out of the window once again and something unpleasantly heavy filled her body from the inside.

The skies were dark, covered with thick black clouds, and the big and bright heads of the sunflowers were all looking down at the black earth, as if reflecting the princess' own emotional state.

'How ominous... and yet so fitting.'

She wished time would pass quickly so that her boring and useless life would end sooner.

With nothing else to do, Lorelai closed her eyes again and leaned back in her seat, struggling to find a somewhat comfortable position. The corset of her wedding dress was suffocating enough, but it was the growing effect of the poison that made her feel so restless.

She was beginning to feel sleepy while every single muscle in her body was starting to ache.

'I just need to wait a little more. Soon, this all will no longer be felt.'

Suddenly, Lorelai flinched as she heard the loud sound of a horse's neigh, followed by a blunt thud of something heavy hitting the road.

The same sequence of noises seemed to repeat itself several times before the princess finally understood what was happening.

They were being ambushed.

'Bandits?'

She tried to move and look out of the window again but her body was already too heavy and even the slightest movement made her shiver from pain.

Her mind was cloudy and distorted; the noises outside the coach all mixed together and seemed to be distant and faint, but she knew that the knights assigned to escort her were fighting.

Lorelai felt lucky. Even if they were ambushed by bandits, it did not matter anymore. She was dying; she was almost gone.

A somewhat sly smile tugged at the corners of her pale lips as she thought about the man she was to marry. How unfortunate for him. How deserving.

Her body was giving up.

Feeling incredibly heavy, cold, and sleepy, Lorelai closed her but opened them again right away as someone's large, incredibly warm hand reached out to her through the open door of the carriage, gently grabbing her by her tiny waist.

"Lorelai?"

She did not recognize that voice, but it continued to repeat her name.

"Lorelai? What is wrong with you? Open your eyes!"

'A man?'

The unfamiliar low voice definitely belonged to a man. Someone strong but unbelievably warm. His large arms held her close to his body, his hot fingers brushing over the cold skin of her cheek.

Struggling, the princess tried to lift her heavy eyelids again, but her vision was too blurry to see what was happening.

The only thing she could discern was a pair of bright amber eyes that reminded her of burning coals.

"Lorelai, please, open your eyes!"

Lorelai's heart contracted with pain––the man was almost crying, pressing her cold, lifeless body against his broad chest.

His trembling voice continued to call out her name, urging her to open her eyes.

"... open your eyes... Your Highness? Wake up!"

Lorelai blinked several times, allowing her eyes to adjust to the light.

Marianna, her personal aide, was leaning over her bed, her wide gray eyes rounded with worry. "Your Highness? Are you sick? You have slept through breakfast and Her Majesty the Queen sent me here to check up on you. We were all worried you had fallen ill!"

Lorelai moved on her sheets, assuming a sitting position. She still could not truly understand whether what was happening to her right now was a dream or reality.

She offered Marianna a rather empty look, then shook her head, and wiped her eyes.

"No, I am not sick. I just... had a bizarre dream."

"A dream?" Marianna flapped her black lashes in bewilderment and Lorelai shook her head again, dismissing her concern completely.

"It's not important. I did not mean to cause you trouble by sleeping so much, I am sorry. Have the maids prepare my bath and a dress, I will head straight to my study after I am ready."

"Very well, Your Highness."

The woman bowed and went back to the drawing room, urging the maids to start the preparations.

Once Marianna was gone, Lorelai closed her eyes again, leaning back against the headboard of her bed.

That was indeed a strange dream. It was so vivid and clear that she could still feel the ache in her muscles and most importantly... See that bright, burning amber glow of the eyes she had never seen before.

'Who was that man? Why did he know my name? And why was he crying?'

"Your Highness, the bath is ready." One of the maids notified Lorelai, jolting her back to reality once again.

The princess nodded and shifted in her bed, carefully placing her feet in the soft silk slippers strategically placed next to her bed the night before.

Two maids immediately rushed to her side, ready to offer her their assistance, but Lorelai shook her head, denying their help, and reached her right hand for a long, elegant wooden cane next to the nightstand.

"I will walk on my own."

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