Enchanted | KYS

Prologue

The sound of hooves meeting the ground met the otherwise silent forest of Wonderland. Sky looked out of the little window in her carriage, observing the trees pass by in a flash. The forest was dense, with the canopy letting only small beams of sunlight pass through to reach the floor. The princess couldn't tell it was noon already if not for the little pocket watch she glanced down at every other hour. 'Can we rest for a bit? I'm getting a little dizzy.' She turned to her trusted bodyguard, twisting on her seat to crack her back. 

'I'm sorry, princess. It's too dangerous to stop here. We'll take a long break once we're out of the forest.' He sent her an apologetic smile. Sky nodded in understanding, going back to staring out the window and observing the different trees that went past her in a blur of green and brown. The carriage was taking her to the great city of Twilight, a beautiful city right at the border of the kingdom her father ruled with an iron fist. She sighed once again, dreading the events of the upcoming meeting scheduled for next week. Around the same time next week, Princess Sky would be betrothed to someone she had never even met in her entire life, a sacrifice she had to make to ensure the safety of her people. 

'Hey, Mingi.' She turned to her bodyguard, who was busy chowing down the little cookies from the tray right in the middle of the carriage. He looked back at her with an eyebrow raised, encouraging her to continue with what she was about to say. 'You've met Prince Izar, right? What's he like?' He finally put his cookies down, his face turning sombre.

'All I could say is that you're making a great sacrifice, Princess.' Mingi bowed his head, shifting to be seated right in front of Sky now. 'I've only met him once when I accompanied your father to an emergency meeting a few years ago. We only interacted for a few hours but I could still tell that man should be avoided at all costs unless necessary.' He stared right into the princess' eyes as he recalled the time he met Izar. Unlike the relaxed convoy of Wonderland, Izar's delegates always appeared to be on the edge, getting startled or horrified whenever the prince as much as turned their way. At first, the guard thought it was just his imagination, but as the day went on, his suspicions were confirmed. The people in Prince Izar's convoy were dead scared of him. He could tell by the way his ministers scrambled to grab the things the prince needed with shaking hands and wide eyes. The worst part of it all? Izar looked like he was well aware of the fear he inflicted on his people and seemed to enjoy it a lot. 

Sky shuddered as she heard of the incidents, dreading reaching the city even more now that she knew what her potential partner might be like. 'You know, if you really want to,' Mingi spoke up after a few moments of silence. 'I could help you escape out of here.' The princess' eyes widened as she looked around to check; no one other than her heard what the guard had said. 

'Are you out of your mind?!' She whisper-screamed.

'What? I don't want you to be married off to some crazy psycho either. You're my friend!' He pouted.

'And what if we get caught?' Sky folded her arms, staring down at the guard with narrowed eyes. 'What if you get caught, Mingi? You'll be sentenced to death.' She knew her father wouldn't go to that extent. He loved Mingi too much to even think of that.

'I could just say it was all your plan.' Mingi shrugged, going back to devouring his cookies. 

'Hey!' She playfully hit the man who threw his head in silent laughter, his eyes crinkling into small crescents, and his mouth opened wide. 

'But seriously, Princess. One word and we'll be out of here in a flash.' He took one of Sky's hands in his, staring right into her eyes with all the sincerity he could muster. 'Think over it carefully. This might be your last chance.'

'There's nothing to think about, Mingi.' The princess sighed, finally letting her hopelessness show. Though she was flattered that her friend loved her enough to go against someone he almost worshipped, she knew her fate was sealed. 'This is our last resort.'

'That is if the prince even accepts our proposal.' Mingi added.

Sky sighed, glancing back at the delicate pocket watch attached to her dress. She didn't even notice an hour had passed already. The carriage was now passing through a mountain, giving a stunning view of the forest at the bottom. The trees all swayed in the direction of the wind, and Sky could see a few birds sitting at the top of a few of them now. She observed a little blue one preening its feathers before taking off to the endless horizon, the blue of its feathers blending perfectly with the blue of the sky. She envied the little bird. Not only was it free to fly anywhere it pleased, but it could also disappear from the eyes of the world, although momentarily. There was nowhere for her to hide from her duties. As the eldest daughter of the king, she was first in line for the throne. It was a heavy burden to bear at such a young age. She was always under the observation of watchful eyes, looking for a weakness, one mistake, or one little blunder. She had an image to present, expectations to meet, and requirements to fulfil. Sometimes she wanted to disappear from the scrutinising eyes of the world. Just for a while, somewhere she could be herself. Somewhere, no one would place the burden of those expectations on her shoulders. It was hard to breathe in the palace, hard to breathe at the academy, hard to breathe everywhere else. She longed for a place where she could just live for the sake of living, maybe a little cottage on the top of a hill surrounded by a dense forest like the one they were passing right now. A place where she could be herself, smile if she feels happy, cry when she feels sad, and break into weird dances if she wants to. No one to watch her, no one to judge. A place where she could just be Sky. Not Crown Princess Sky of Wonderland.

But with the situation unfolding right now, it might not be possible in this lifetime. Prince Izar is the crown prince of Amenti, a nation whose good books her opportunistic father had always been trying to get into. It was massive, covering almost a third of the continent, but it had not always been like that. Five years ago, it was just a small fishing nation on the shore of the River Onyx. But something happened one day—no one is sure what exactly—but they started by merging smaller nations around it, initially for the sake of better trade and security. Then they attacked a neighbouring nation and came victorious. By the time the bigger nations recognised it as a big enough threat, it was too late. The nations that engaged in war with the dark nation always ended up in ruins. The destruction the Army of Amenti left on its trail was almost inhumane. No matter how big the opposing forces were, Amenti always came out victorious. It was really ridiculous how such a puny army was able to defeat one more than double its size. No one ever survived to tell how they managed to do it, and if they did, they were too traumatised to be able to speak or form a thought ever again. While other nations saw this sudden rise as a threat, Sky's father saw it as an opportunity to expand his powers. With the two biggest powers on the continent allied, the possibilities were endless. And here came the role of Sky. In layman's terms, she was a sacrifice about to be offered to the prince in exchange for a partnership and guaranteed security. She laughed at her fate, wallowing in self-pity at the turn of events in her life. The one who wished to break free would forever be chained to the weight of the entire nation's future. She stared at the bluebird, who seemed to have formed a liking for her carriage, following it as it trodded slowly on the risky part of the mountain. Sky reached her hand out towards the bird, not thinking much other than wishing to be free like the little one flying happily in the air. To her surprise, the little bird took that as an invitation to give its wings a rest and perched itself on top of the princess's hand. 

'Aren't you a sweet one?' She talked to the bird, who chirped back happily to the princess as if understanding what she said.

'There you go, attracting every single animal around you again.' Mingi spoke from his seat, 'You better let that one go before we're too far out. Its family might be looking for it.' The princess nodded, extending her palm out of the window. 

'Go on, little one. Fly away. At least, one of us could be free.' The bird looked at her with a tilted head, as if showing concern for its new friend that lend it a comfortable resting perch, before it shook its feathers and flew away, leaving one single vibrant blue one to land on her hand as a thank-you gift.

Finally!! It's out!!

Trigger Warnings!!: Murder, Violence, Deaths, fluffy!!!

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