"Crowns topple easily. Thrones crumble like dust. Hearts cease to beat. Thorns draw blood."
In a country torn into two, there should have been no room for mistakes. Especially not at the very core of the royal family. That was what she was. Yes, a...
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Aleksander stepped into the Grand Palace, feeling the warmth from all the lit torches seeping into his skin and chasing away the bite of the cold.
If he were being honest, he barely felt the frost from the snow outside. After spending years moving from place to place, he had to be adaptable. Ravka, being his home, didn't feel any different than it did years ago.
The princess in his arms told a different story. When Aleksander's eyes landed on her form, he had thought that she was a mirage, an idea conjured by his own mind to preserve his sanity.
What else could he have thought upon seeing a woman of ethereal beauty, with hair seemingly spun of gold, pale porcelain skin, and glassy blue eyes? But when Irina spoke, he knew that she was real. She is real.
His instincts told him to run to her, to kiss her senseless, to hold her in his arms, and never let go. The only problem was that the sensible part of his mind took over and he opted to stay put even if everything in him wanted nothing more than to sweep her away from this wretched place.
He looked down at the girl in his arms, recalling the words they exchanged. It hurt. To hide such things from her. No one ever said it would be easy to lie to the ones you care for.
He watched as small shivers wracked through her form, despite the two cloaks draped around her shoulders. She was still fragile. The poison did a number on her regardless of the coal treatment.
Even with the power thrumming through her veins, the poison was still strong. No one could have emerged unscathed from that. Not even a Grisha of unparalleled power.
After all, she was mortal. Like the rest of them. Like all those who had passed him by. Or so he believed.
Aleksander walked the halls, headed for Irina's chambers. A route he memorized by heart from the days when he would pretend to pass her chambers by coincidence when really, he only wished to see her.
Vasilka trailed after them, the cub's endearment going beyond her master's and to the one her master cares for. The cub was intuitive, knowing that there was a fragile fondness between the two. It was the reason why she warmed up to Aleksander in the first place.
Aleksander pushed open the double doors leading to Irina's chambers, the empty room smelling of soap and charcoal as if the medical wing had transferred to suit the princess. He shut the door, kicking it behind him to ensure no nosy eyes from penetrating the chambers Irina was comfortable in.
He walked to her bed, laying her body upon the white mattress, her head falling upon the feather pillows. He looked upon her, wondering how he was so lucky as to have garnered her affections, for at least a little while. A temporary thing really.
He let out an exhale, tucking a strand of Irina's hair back and pulling the blankets up to her chin, making sure to cover all the way up to her feet.
He knew how cold she could get and how she always hated the feeling of her feet freezing in the middle of the night. She used to say that it disrupts her dreams on the nights when she drifted off to another place, another time.
