Twisted Beauty (A Sleeping Beauty Tale)

Chapter Forty-Five

Time meant nothing to me anymore.

I couldn't remember the last time I ate anything – every time I tried, my body would not keep it down. It left me thin and weak, and after being confined to my bed for so long, walking had become a struggle. The night prior, my legs had collapsed beneath me, and I was left crawling to the bathing chambers, trembling like a new-born lamb. I was too exhausted to be ashamed.

Night and day, Diane was by my side, attempting to comfort me, whispering sweet things to me in an attempt to cheer me up. She brought me tea daily – the only thing I could keep down without throwing up. I mostly lay quietly in bed as she spoke, listening as she told me about the current gossip of the kingdom. I was usually too tired to reply.

When I did have the energy to speak, I asked her about my mother, my friends and Katherine. But never once did she answer my questions. Instead, she hushed me and continued to talk of the latest gossip. I felt too defeated to argue.

Mentioning Drake was out of the question. The one time I said his name, Diane went deathly still and silent, giving me a cold, cold look before leaving me alone. She did not return for several days, and during that time, the cold beast of the room consumed me, until I was whimpering out of fear.

I did not mention his name again.

There was something about Diane that brought a warmth to the room, filling the aching hole in my chest with a lightness I hadn't felt in so long. When I was with her, I forgot about all of the bad things in the world. War, hatefulness, magic.

The thought startled me, and for a moment it felt like I was snapped out of a daze. I had long since realised that magic didn't scare me. So why had such a thought crossed my mind? I studied Diane as she talked, keeping my expression blank. Had she done something? I knew she possessed magic, but surely magic could not alter one's thoughts.

I must've frowned, for Diane stopped her talking, peering down at me.

"Are you feeling unwell?" she asked. "Perhaps I should fetch another pot of tea."

I shook my head, the movement making me dizzy. "I'm okay. My thoughts are just . . . jumbled."

"I see," she murmured. Her eyes became colder; more calculating as they examined me. "I still believe tea is the best solution. You must drink plenty of fluids if you are being ill so often – we can't have you being dehydrated."

Despite my protests, Diane rang a bell to call in a maid, who pushed a trolley with a hot pot of tea. It was as if she was waiting by the door, for she took less than a minute to appear. It was . . . unusual. That was the only way to describe it.

Humming a cheery tune, Diane poured me a cup and passed it to me, the porcelain warning my fingers. I obediently drank it, all the while being watched by Diane. It was unnerving, and I tried my hardest not to look uncomfortable.

"I had the maid add something extra," Diane said as I passed her back the cup. Her words made me pause, as realisation dawned upon me. Something was in the tea. "Just a tonic to help you rest. It should help you sleep through the night."

I began to shake my head, my hands already trembling at the thought of the nightmares that awaited me. But Diane just smiled and pulled the blankets over my shoulders, paying no mind to my blatant terror.

She knew about the nightmares. She knew that I woke up sobbing and screaming most nights.

And yet, she looked cheerful as she blew out the candles and bid me goodnight. I was too weak to run after her, and I immediately craved the lit hallways outside my room.

Slowly – too slowly – I pushed the heavy blankets off my body and tried to rise out of bed. Only to collapse onto the cold tiles. So icy cold. I sobbed, trying to drag my body towards the door. Towards the light.

But I was too late.

Before I had even reached halfway, I felt the darkness of sleep claim me.

***

The monster of ice was hovering over me.

I stared up at it, too weak to struggle, too weak to cry out. My body was a wreck, beyond repair. I had been ill for so long that I couldn't even tell the time anymore.

I knew it was a dream. I knew that the terror of death would fade upon waking. And yet . . . wouldn't it be so much easier to accept my fate? Every night, I had run and screamed and struggled, fighting to my last breath, even if it was nothing more than a dream. I didn't want to fight back any longer.

And so, I closed my eyes and waited for the best to kill me.

Death did not await me. After a few moments, I opened my eyes once more, to find myself standing in the mountains. Ice was up to my knees and the wind tugged at my hair. Not roughly, as wind normally would, I realised with a jolt. No, this wind was more . . . playful. It was harsh and cold, but it seemed to mean me no harm.

And standing before me, clad in a blue dress, was me.

The Belleza before me was pale and still, as if she had succumbed to the cold winter. But her face and body were full, and she certainly seemed healthy. The smile she offered me was warm and inviting.

"Who are you?" I asked, surprised to find my voice had gained some strength. In fact, I was surprised to find myself standing at all. Perhaps in this dream, my strength had been regained.

"You." An obvious enough answer. "Or a part of you. Didn't your king tell you that magic is a living thing? I am the magic that resides within you. I am you, and you are me. We are one."

My eyes widened as I realised – "You are the beast of ice." A single nod. "Why have you been tormenting me for so long? If you are me, should we not be on the same side of this all?"

Her smile dropped, and for a moment she appeared to be furious. Not at me, I realised, but someone else. "I have been trying to reach you. For so long, you have been blocked from me. Your body has almost weakened to the point where I will be cut off from you."

"But how? How am I being weakened? Surely if you have been with me the whole time, you know the cause of my illness." She stared at me – waiting, I realised. For me to figure it out by myself. I didn't want to admit that I had my suspicions.

Diane had wanted to blame Drake for poisoning me. And yet, as soon as I was with her, I had been feeling ill. But if she had poisoned me, how would she have administered it? I had been ill for so long, unable to keep food down, except –

The tea.

The Belleza in front of me – my magic – nodded, as if she understood my thoughts. "She has poisoned you for weeks, weakening you and shutting me out." Weeks. Had I truly been in Eshon for that long? What was going on between the kingdoms? Had war already broken out? Was it all too late?

"What do we do?" I finally asked. That earned me a smile, and not a pleasant one.

"I become a true part of you. And then we can destroy them for what they have done to us." Magic could consume me, I realised. It had caused Drake to become cold and cruel. Would it do the same to me? "Fear not. I hear your thoughts, feel your fears. Becoming a true part of you will not be me consuming you. It is more of a . . . fusing. I will be in your mind, whispering to you. It your choice, Belle, whether you choose to walk the path of cruelty."

I nibbled my lip, debating my options – not that I really had any. I was too weak to do anything by myself, and if I refused to accept my magic, I would wither away until the poison killed me. As long as I had Drake by my side, I was sure that I could resist the call of cruelty.

"Okay."

That was all I had to say before pain consumed me.