Aaron and Russell wouldn't leave my side.
And they would stand in the way of anyone who wanted to get close. The other men from my Kingdom followed us, restraining themselves from attacking their mortal enemies.
On foot, the road to the castle was very long. But I was not going to complain, I would keep walking even if my feet started to hurt.
Near the castle, I witnessed a horrible scene.
Two men were whipping something hidden in an alley. I approached, leaving the course towards the castle. Everyone who was with me was frightened, but they followed me without hesitation.
'What are you doing?' I shouted at the two men.
They both turned towards me and I could see what they were hitting.
It was a white horse, a beautiful white horse that they were hurting mercilessly.
'Stop that right now!' I demanded, without thinking.
'Who do you think you are?' One of them came up to me.
'It's my horse, I do what I want with my horse,' said the other.
'How much do you want for him?'
The two exchanged curious glances.
Having grown up in Bieno, I had learned something fundamental. All the citizens of the kingdom cared about nothing but money. Money was what paid for food, and alcohol as well.
'How much are you willing to give me?' the horse's owner asked me, in a disgusting tone.
'Don't you come near her,' Russell warned the man.
'Are you a princess or something?' questioned the other man, looking at me closely for the first time.
'How much do you want for him?' I wasn't going to let him divert the conversation.
'Three gold gallons.'
A ridiculously high amount of money. But nothing was going to stop me.
I approached Russell and asked him to tear a cloth from one of the soldiers' suits and tie it up like a bag.
I knew I had to save my strength, but I couldn't let that horse get hurt.
He handed it to me and I put my hands inside.
Three gallons of gold. Three gallons of gold. Three gallons of gold.
To a person who knew nothing about magic, they would never have suspected that I had used a magic trick.
'Here,' I threw the bag at him.
The man's face was turned as he saw that he was the owner of a treasure.
'By the Gods, this is madness.' He threw himself at my feet and kissed them. He took the bag and before leaving with his partner he warned me. 'That animal is crazy, and you are also crazy for what you paid, it's not worth it.'
The horse and I were left alone in the alley.
I approached slowly but the horse stopped on two legs.
'Easy, easy, boy.'
The horse remained on the defensive.
'Princess...' I heard Russell from the end of the alley.
I raised my hand to keep him quiet and took a few more steps.
'You're okay, no one else is going to hurt you, I'm going to take care of you, and you're going to take care of me.'
The horse seemed to listen to me and stopped trying to attack me. He stood still.
I came a little closer.
Another little more.
I stretched out my hand and stood still.
'You have to trust me.' I said to the horse.
I left my hand in the air and waited.
I was sure of what I was doing.
And slowly but surely, exactly what I expected happened.
The beautiful white horse came a few steps closer to me and let his muzzle come in contact with my hand.
'Good boy,' I said, petting him. 'You're a good boy, Lightning.'
The name came directly from me. This was the horse of my dreams.
My dreams... Could my dreams come true?
I didn't know, I didn't want to think about it. I only knew that I had found my friend, my partner.
'Let's try one more thing, shall we, Lightning?' I went over to his side and noticed the injuries the whip had caused.
He was too hurt.
I knew I had to save energy, but I used my power again.
Heal, heal, heal.
In between neighing, each of Lightning's injuries closed, until they disappeared completely. A few seconds later, Lightning caressed me with his muzzle.
He bent one leg, as if bowing to me, and in a way invited me to get on. We came out of the alley together, stronger than ever.
'How did you do that?' Aaron asked me. 'That horse looked too wild.'
'Not everyone is what they seem.' I answered, and we continued on our way to the castle of Bieno.
Lightning and I were among the men who were walking without showing signs of fatigue.
Until we reached the feared and dark castle of Bieno, which this time invited me not to a dance, but to the final battle.
The road was shorter thanks to Lightning's company.
It was hard to explain, but he felt like a friend I hadn't seen in a long time, and I finally found. We were both full of scars, which even though they were hidden, were felt deep in our skin.
We moved forward at a safe pace, at least for us. The men who were with us, including Russell and Aaron, were startled by the image of Bieno Castle.
The day was not helping.
Black clouds had covered the sky, hiding the Sun and leaving the landscape dark and sinister.
I noticed that it was cold, something I hadn't noticed the first time I had been there.
We followed the path, climbing the hill until we reached the entrance to the Castle.
The soldiers of Bieno rushed to show their claws, insulting us and making bad faces.
I, without giving place to any of their offenses, just exclaimed.
'I come to see my future husband.'
The comments continued unabated.
'Look at the traitor, she runs away and now she's back playing the big shot.'
'Who does she think she is?'
'The rat princess.'
I got off Lightning and without looking at their faces, I entered the Castle, practically covered by my men, who had taken up their swords.
I knew Russell was holding back, otherwise he would have attacked everyone just for looking at me the wrong way.
I made it to the main entrance and headed for the butler.
'I come to see the prince and the king.'
The butler, tall and thin, with remarkable dark circles under his eyes and a crooked smile, said to me amidst strange smiles.
'Right away.'
He began to pace himself in the direction of the dance hall. I followed him, together with my guards.
I hadn't walked that much of the castle the first time I had come, but I sure hadn't missed much. The same endless corridor, the same floor covered with the red carpet. Great candlesticks, the images of the Gods on the ceiling.
Although there were valuable possessions, the place did not seem worthy of those decorations.
In truth, unlike the first time, this time I felt danger with every step I took.
My intuition screamed at me to get out of there. But I had not yet learned to listen to it.
We arrived at a huge door, much like one I remembered from my father's memories.
'The throne room,' I whispered, though the butler heard me.
'Indeed, this is as far as your men go,' he said, looking at those around me.
'We will not leave Her Majesty under any circumstances.' Aaron was the one who stepped forward. He was as tall as the butler but much sturdier. I wouldn't want to go head-to-head with someone like him. He exuded physical strength.
The butler was not intimidated by Aaron's bearing and justified his reasons.
'You must understand that their Majesties will not want to be locked up in a room with a dozen enemy soldiers. They will not take any risks.'
'Likewise, we will not risk leaving our princess alone in a room with your two leaders.' Russell was the one who intervened this time.
Even if they didn't understand, I needed to be alone with both of them. It was the only way to make sure I wouldn't hurt anyone else by creating the explosion.
'I'll go in, but my guards stay here,' I replied without looking at the faces of those around me.
'Princess...' Russell wanted to address me.
'I have to learn to trust them, after all, we're going to be family,' I replied, making sure to sound convincing to the butler, who still looked down on me.
'This way, miss,' the butler opened the door a little, just enough for him to come in and me behind him.
I looked back and could see Russell's gray eyes glowing with concern.
I tried to tell him I loved him, but the words wouldn't come out.
I just hoped he could feel it.
Once inside, the butler closed the doors.
We were in complete darkness.
'What's going on?' I asked at once.
My instincts screamed at me that it was a trap.
But I only needed the two of them to be there, even if they tried to kill me, there only had to be the three of us.
Two claps were heard around the room and the lights suddenly came on.
At the end of the room, sitting on the throne, with his legs crossed, his crown misplaced, and a mocking smile, Prince Jonah was watching me excitedly.
'Welcome back, little traitor,' he said from the throne.
Without fear, or perhaps a little fear, but with all the inner strength I possessed, I moved towards him.
We were alone, the butler had slipped out the door.
I continued to walk forward until I was in front of him.
I didn't remember him so well until I saw him again.
He was still coldly beautiful. His blonde hair had spread a little longer, leaving him almost with long hair. His eyes were still the same exquisite light blue color, shining with the same intensity as the first time I saw him.
'Prince Jonah,' I forced myself to take a bow.
As I stood up, I noticed how his smile turned into laughter.
'It's so rewarding to see you at my feet, asking for forgiveness again like the filthy rat you are.'
I stood up and held my head high.
'You have no right to speak to me like that, I am the same as you, even more than you actually.'
Jonah's frantic laughter was not intimidating, but rather disturbing.
'That you are the same as me...' He kept laughing. 'You are nothing but a petty traitor. You made a fool of me, so you deserve nothing more than to be called what you are.'
I wanted to answer him on the spot, or rather I wanted to attack him with all my might, but I managed to contain my magic, remembering the voice that had calmed me down.
Where was the voice now?
'I suggest that you change your attitude, otherwise I will leave right now.' I told him, thinking like a fool that it would worry him.
But I realized at that moment that things were wrong.
Very wrong.
'That won't be possible, you see, you won't get out of this room alive.'