"I can control my destiny, but not my fate. Destiny means there are opportunities to turn right or left, but fate is a one-way street. I believe we all have the choice as to whether we fulfil our destiny, but our fate is sealed." - Paulo Coelho
LIL'S POV:
I mindlessly tap my fingernails against the wooden tabletop that sits in front of me. The air in the treehouse is warm, not quite hot or humid but just, warm. There's a cool breeze that occasionally wafts it's way to me, but it only lasts for a fleeting moment.
Beside me, Peter leans back in his wooden chair with arms crossed and one leg resting over the other. We've been sitting in here for what feels like forever, listening to Queen Madelyn drone on and on about what an "infidel' Peter is, and how much damage he did to the island.
"It wasn't even for that long!" Peter argues back, leaning forward speaking at the Queen.
She and her three fairy guards are sitting across the table from us. Literally on the table since they're too small to be seen anywhere else. Madelyn sits on a small throne, decorated with small jewels and made entirely of plant roots. Little flowers grew around it and added beautiful pops of color to the otherwise solid gold.
I see Madelyn shake her head, "It doesn't matter, Peter. While you were gone the island went into chaos. After only a few cycles of the moon the flowers began to wither, and within nine cycles they died entirely. The sky was clouded with gray wisps that I feared would unleash they're sadness upon us and drown us all with endless torments of rain. A chill enveloped the island and caused the Fair Folk to flee indoors, if we could find it. At night, the mushrooms and ferns would frost over with a light snow."
Peter rolled his eyes.
I could see where his frustration was coming from. It's unfair that he can't leave without there being such grave consequences. He likes to go have fun, wherever that leads him, and for that sometimes the island suffers. I'm not sure how that happened. How Neverland somehow became Peter's responsibility to look after. The island seems to be like a small child - who weeps when their parent leaves them, if only for a short time. It's strange, and yet so very magical that it's hard to comprehend.
Madelyn sighs, "I understand that you don't enjoy being in control of Neverland, Peter. But since you are, you have to take care of it. Otherwise, terrible things may happen."
Peter puts his leg down in anger and I can see he's biting his tongue. He averts his eyes to something on the floor, obviously not wanting to be yelled at anymore.
I lean forward on the table, one hand under my chin. This is becoming increasingly boring. I thought the Queen brought me up here to tell me about that word she called me.
What was it again?
Kuthem?
Kurethum?
Kulet?
The word sounded so foreign I couldn't bring myself to remember it.
Ever since Madelyn said it, Alina hasn't looked at me. She's sitting a distance away from her Mother, on an upside down seashell that was sitting on the wooden table. There was a whole array of shells and cold coins among many candles that lay scattered around the table.
Alina's unmistakable blonde hair fell around her small face, covering half of it from my view.
Every time I looked at her, hoping to clarify what exactly the Queen meant, she gets this look on her face, and turns away.
It's making me nervous. Maybe she knew something all along and that's why she befriended me. Maybe she doesn't really like me at all, and only pretended to. Maybe she brought me here on purpose.
"We done yet?" Peter asks, anger lacing his voice.
"Not quite," The Queen calmly says, "You and Alina must answer for what you've done."
"What?" Alina and Peter say in unison.
This makes me look up from the task I've been occupying myself with -- carving a small heart into the table with my fingernail.
The Queen looks sternly between them both, "You brought four mortals here. You understand that is strictly forbidden, and you also understand how seriously I take the offense."
"Woah woah," Peter defends, "I only brought Lilith. Her stupid friends followed her here. That's not my fault."
"Nor mine!" Alina jingled.
Madelyn shakes her head and points at me without looking,
"Was it not you two who lead the girl to the portal?"
There was a pause.
Alina speaks, "Well... yes, but-"
"And," The Queen interrupts, "Was it not you two who didn't warn the girl about the dangers of using the portal?"
Another pause.
"Yes." Alina sheepishly says.
"So then you are both to blame for bringing not one, but four mortals here. Her friends followed her because they care about her, which is more than I can say about the two of you. They saw her fall into that portal and what where they supposed to think? Mortals have no understanding of magic, and perhaps if you had warned the girl, it would be only her here."
"Hey," Peter casually says, "I was gonna warn her but-"
"It matters not what you intended to do. What matters is that you put the girl in harms way, and because of that it is now both of your responsibilities to keep her and her friends safe while they're here on Neverland." Madelyn demands.
Alina and Peter groan simultaneously.
"You both understand that Neverland is only supposed to be a place for children to visit in their dreams. 'Tis a blessing that I am letting them stay here at all." She finishes.
I sigh, still bored with Peter and Alina's punishments, and go back to work on my heart in the table.
"Now," Madelyn clears her throat and I see her turn to me, "Let us get to the real reason why I called this private meeting."
Finally, I think, The good part.
I look up at her, "Back there. You called me something. The... um... the..."
"Kulethe." She responded.
"Yes! What did you mean by that exactly?"
She took a deep breath, "Many thousands of moon cycles ago, a prophecy was written about a girl. The prophecy says she will be a mortal girl, from the mortal world, and will come to Neverland with a fire at her back- although she will arrive through the water, this flame would not be diminished. It says that this girl shall be called the Kulethe, and she will be unlike any mortal who has stepped foot on Neverland before."
I felt an involuntary shiver go up my spine.
"The prophecy says this Kulethe will have great strength, and many useful attributes - beauty being one of them." Madelyn contiuned, "As time wanes on while the Kulethe is in Neverland, she will defeat every obstacle in her path no matter the danger. Each person she meets, will know of her power, and beg to be let told of her secrets. Each foe she faces, will fall at her feet, until finally she stands victorious with all she desires by her side."
This was getting hard to believe.
How could the Queen possibly think this girl was me?!
It sounds nothing like me. This 'Kulethe' sounds brave... strong... beautiful. While I'm just... me.
"Look," I breathe as I lie my hands out on the table in front of me, "I'm flattered that you think I'm this great, legendary hero but... I'm no fighter. I don't have a 'fire at my back', nor am I anywhere near having the skills it sounds like this Kulethe possesses. You've definitely got the wrong person."
Madelyn gives me a sympathetic look.
"It is difficult for you, I know, but I tell no lies. The Kulethe possesses the qualities I described, and so do you, young one. You are one in the same. You are the Kulethe."
I shake my head, "But I can't be! I'm not written about in any prophecies! I'm just a simple girl from Ireland..."
She flies closer to me, "You doubt yourself. You are much more powerful than you think yourself to be. Lilith, your destiny has been spoken about for many hundreds of years. Every traveller who has stepped foot on the island knows of your story, of what you will accomplish. And finally, you have come. To fulfill you destiny, and discover what you truly can do."
I feel myself getting warm. The hairs on the back of my neck are sticking to the sweat that is slowly accumulating.
I take a shallow breath, "What is it that the Kulethe is prophesied to do?"
The Queen gently smiles and holds herself taller, "It is said that she will bring the change that Neverland has been waiting for since the beginning of it's existence. She will be the catalyst that brings a chain of reactions to make Neverland the place it was always meant to be."
My lungs feel like they're full of water. I can hardly get a breath of air into them without feeling myself wheeze. I haven't felt it before, but I realize now that my leg is shaking, my hands as well. I can feel my dress plastered onto my body. The thing suddenly feeling too constricting, especially around my neck.
I stretch it out with one of my fingers and try to take a deep breath.
I let out a nervous laugh and shake my head, "You think that's me? You think I'm supposed to bring some time of peace to Neverland and change it's entire meaning?"
Madelyn softens her expression, "It will not be an easy task, but yes, child. It is you. And though your destiny may not be the one you believed you had, it is inescapable. We have been awaiting your arrival for a very long time."
I couldn't take it any more. I shot up from my chair, sending it flying backwards into the wall and falling over. The walls felt like they were closing in on me. My head felt dizzy and everything around me was spinning. I stumbled to the side and tripped onto the floor. I felt the hard sting of my chin bashing into the hard, wooden floor and quickly tasted blood in my mouth.
"Lilith!" I heard Alina yell as she flew over to me.
Before she could get to me, I pushed myself away from her. She stopped, looking confused.
I continued to hyperventilate as I scooted myself away from her.
"You knew," I panted as I wiped blood that was streaming from my mouth, "You knew all along this prophesy and you kept it from me."
I bit back a cry, "You lied to me."
Alina shook her head, "No! I didn't know. I only suspected. But I meant to tell you!"
She tried to fly closer to me again but I screamed and she came no closer.
"Don't!" I cried as I threw myself to my feet, "Don't come near me."
As I looked around, I saw that Peter had gotten up from his chair. He looked concerned, his posture signaling he was ready to spring, but his eyes forgiving.
I felt the floor shifting beneath my feet and got a sudden flash of heat. My throat felt dry and I felt my legs trembling beneath my dress. Everyone was staring at me again and I felt like I was going to be sick. Right there. Right in front of everyone.
Before that was able to happen, I turned and bolted through the door, my dress swishing behind me as I ran out over the wooden planks. I didn't know where to go, but I ran nonetheless. There were bridges that connected from tree top to tree top, and I ran for the first one I saw. It wobbled under me as I ran, but I didn't stop to hold the rope rails.
I felt tears flowing down my already warm cheeks, and the taste of blood in my mouth continued. I picked up the bottom of my dress and ran even further away from the tree house. The bridges must have gone pretty far, because I ran for a long time. Eventually, they began to slant downwards, and after some time I found myself running along the forest floor. Leaves crunching under my feet and tree branches catching in my hair.
I was just stepping over a patch of fallen pinecones when I tripped over a branch I didn't see and tumbled into the dirt. This time I felt a burn on my arms, and as I pulled myself up against the trunk of a nearby tree, I looked at my arms and saw faint red burns. I was also completely covered in dirt, and bleeding in several places.
I curled myself up into a ball and cried. It wasn't even the physical pain that I cried from.
How could it possibly be me? How could I POSSIBLY be the Kulethe?
The Queen was so confident that it was me. She was so persistent that I was the one. The one that Neverlanders had been talking about since the dawn of this place. My destiny has been passed on for generations in the hopes that one day it would come true. That one day, I would bring some new change that everyone would rejoice about.
"It can't be!" I cried at myself.
It just can't. I can't be the one with all this pressure to do something I don't even know what to do!
The prophecy says I'll defeat 'many foes' and people will be 'begging me for my secrets'. What foes? What secrets?
I was prophesied to come here, from before I even existed, and save this place. But it can't be me!
I didn't even think this place was real until recently! There's no way that I'm this Kulethe!
No way, no way, no way!
I tightened my arms across my knees and sobbed into my chest. Each breath I drew hurt my lungs, but I couldn't stop the cries that shook my entire body.
Just then, I heard two soft crunches of something landing on the ground in front of me.
"Lilith?" A quiet voice gently asked.
I looked up from my ball of despair and saw Peter. His eyes were timid, his face a wreck of concern. His leafy attire was blurred through my hot tears, but I could see his recognizable blonde curls move side to side.
I realized what a mess I must look right now. Frizzed hair matted with sticks and leaves. Dirty, bloody arms. Tear stained, muddy face with a cracked lip and a bruised chin. Not to mention my dress was probably torn in one place or another.
He slowly walked towards me and sat down next to me. He pulled me into his arms and wrapped them around my shaking body.
"Oh Lilith," He sighed, "What have I gotten you in to."
A/N: Yay for an on time update!
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