Capturing the Crown

Chapter 8- Just a dream

Astrid

When Atlas leaves is when I exhale. My breaths come in slow motions then as tears fall down my face my breathing becomes more rapidly. I wish I never told him the things I said to him. I wish he'd never told me he loved me, never met me, never kissed me. But then I think to myself do I really wish he'd never done these things? I bring out my dagger and sharpen my nails with its tip, frustrated. At myself, at Atlas. At this stupid society of a world we live in. Eventually, I climb into my bed and try to drift off asleep. But I can't seem to do it. I toss and turn my body, aggressively pushing my blankets and pillow, trying to get comfortable. I bring my nose to the blankets. The blankets smell like him from where, just a few hours ago, he had been laying on. I pull my nose away from the blankets and I throw off my disheveled blankets, grab my black coat and walk to my window and sit on its edge.

Atlas
I awake to sweat dripping down my forehead and my chest feelings like a heavyweight. My heart is beating fast and rapidly. Thump. Thump... thump... thump.. thump thump thump thump thump. My whole body feels like it's on fire. I tear the bedsheets from my body. I try breathing in to calm my unsteady heart. It was just a dream, Atlas. Pull yourself together. The dream was set up something like this: A battlefield full of Ravenbane's warriors and the Outsider's warriors. The warriors all held wide and narrow swords, and the Ravenbane's people have bows with sharp arrows. The arrows are very toxic. Certain arrows can mean different things. The arrows have a variety of colors that hold different meanings. For instance, the red colored arrow means instant death. However, fortunately for the Outsiders, the violence doesn't usually get to vicious for the people of Ravenbane to use it. The outsiders only know what the red arrow means. We don't know what the others result in. So, we've always been vigilant with our enemies. Anywho, in the dream, we start fighting. Not just a normal fight. A bloody battle. A fight for the throne. My father stands over beside me, and Astrid stands across the battlefield beside Queen Freya, who is Astrid's mother and the queen of Ravenbane. My father will do anything he can for the throne. If you kill the Queen of Ravenbane: you would probably get her kingdom. And: if you die trying your son or daughter in the family will have the opportunity to take the throne. In this case, it would be me. If my father were to be killed in the action, I would fight for the throne. My mission would technically be to kill Queen Freya. And if I were to not kill Queen Freya I would be exiled from the Outsiders and I would be named a traitor of my own kind and I would be exiled to the outside world. Unless, the daughter or son of Freya were to kill my father. Then, they would have the chose to either exile me or keep me as their own. Either way, I would still feel shame to the Outsiders. To my father. The fighting continued in my dream, swords clashing, people yelling, screaming, everything nothing but chaos. I caught Astrid in my dream, a bow in her hand, protectively guarding her mother. Astrid caught my eye, determination in her blue-grey eyes. She was wearing grey armor that looked absolutely deadly yet gorgeous on her. Then out of nowhere, in my dream, my father came out of nowhere and stabs Astrid in the heart. I just stared as blood came pouring from her mouth, her lips red, her eyes full of shock and pain. I just stared. As my father took away his sword, all I could see was Astrid gasping my name, "Atlas." Then she fell to the ground. She was killed. My father killed her. In the present, I try to close my eyes and I roll my head to my pillow again, trying to erase the dream. It isn't real. She isn't dead. My brain hates me. I overthink What if she isn't okay? What if the dream could be a sign? I sigh, the temptation to go see her crawling at me. No. It's too dangerous. I say to myself No. You can't go see her, Atlas. That will just make you want her more. You can't have her. You are enemies. You can't be together. You must hate her. If you see her you will just fall more deeply in love with her and then in the end you could watch her die. Despite my temptation, I stay put. If I don't see her, she will be safe. She will be safer without me than with me. We can never be safe. I don't know when I fall asleep, but I find myself being kissed by the pitch darkness of my room.

-Author's Note-
I hope you guys loved this chapter( it was kind of a long one haha) but I hope you enjoyed it and more is to come my little warriors ⚔️🥀~ Jasmine