The Fire Didn't Stop Her

Did I Just Get Engaged ... Again?

First of all, if you think Scarlet was just being careless by telling Winter that her cousin wasn't really kidnapped, she wasn't. For one, the girl was so broken up about Cinder being taken – and then almost being killed – that she started hallucinating and seeing blood on the walls of the room. Also, Scarlet had seen enough crazy people in her life to know that Winter was one of them. If she told anyone, she doubted that they would believe her.

A few days after their conversation about Cinder, Winter came back. Surprisingly, she brought food stuffs with her.

"I brought you candy to eat, my redheaded friend," she smiled with a strange twinkle in her eye.

Winter pushed a box through the bars and sat in front of the cage. She was acting like Scarlet was her pet, or her toy, that she could dress up and make eat whatever she desired.

"I'm not your doll, Winter," Scarlet scowled.

"It's better than being the pet of an aristocrat child," she said as she fiddled with her fingers in her lap. "They're mean. They play tricks with their glamours."

Though Scarlet knew Lunars liked to mess with Earthens by using their glamours, she was curious to know what they really did. After all, she'd never been manipulate before she met Sybil.

"What do they do?" Scarlet inquired.

Winter flinched and closed her eyes. "They can make bugs crawl on your skin and knives jab into your heart. Torture is entertainment to them."

Both of them shivered at the thought. Still unsure of Winter, Scarlet asked, "Do you use your glamour?"

The girl shook her head. "I made a vow to never use it again."

"Wow," she added, shocked. "Then you have the looks to be a princess."

The girl's head tilted and her childish eyes fixed on her, confused. "I am a princess."

Scarlet rolled her eyes. "Yeah, sure. Whatever you say."

"But I am," she enforced. "Princess Winter of Luna. I don't like to be a princess. But I am."

She froze in her cage. This girl, the one acting like a little kid in front of her – who was also giving her food so she wouldn't starve – was a princess. Well, whoever came to rescue this girl had better be the best darn prince between Earth and Luna. Because if she was kind and compassionate enough to help a lowly prisoner in a cage among animals, she deserved the best possible person out there.

But if this girl was a princess, then she was related to Levana. How could she be so kind? Then again, Cinder was Levana's niece, and she turned out alright ... for the most part. Still, it was odd. Winter doesn't use her glamour and is slightly immature. Wouldn't that not be tolerated with someone of her status?

UGHHH!!!!! This whole situation was giving Scarlet a headache!

....................

Kai sat at his desk chair after his long meeting with the other Earthen leaders. He'd made the decision that he'd been dreading for the past week and a half in that meeting.

To cancel the ball that took place every year in the E.C.

Even if he hadn't canceled it, he wouldn't have gone. The only person he would have wanted to go with was Cinder. Besides, he had to focus on the search for her. It was proven that she was alive days .. almost a week ago. She could be dead now.

And then there was the satellite that entered Earth's atmosphere three days ago. The one that no Earthen leader had any sort of record of. So not only was Levana using an unauthorized satellite in the Earth's orbit. She was also creating a wolf-hybrid army for some reason.