The Same Dream

Against her own will sleep overcame Diana but for some reason, she felt calm as Alex carried her in his arms and laid her down on the bed. It was the same dream again. The same one Diana kept having before she stopped going to sleep around three weeks ago which was just after she arrived in Fortis.

"Mummy!" the young Diana was yelling happily as she ran up to her mother they were in the field near the palace around Dianas fourth birthday. Only two years before she realised that they never loved her and how cruel and menacing and deceitful and heartless her parents truly are.

'How cruel showing me memories of my past no matter how painful they are. Truly how cruel.' Dians thought to herself as she runs to her mothers embrace smiling happily.

Then like a rope pulling Diana along she was thrust into another memory but this one isn't a happy one. She was still acting like a mindless puppet bowing down to her parents every word like an obedient dog.

When Diana saw some guards tormenting a pair of young servant girls who were crying and begging for them to leave them alone but the guards just kept on further harassing the poor girls as though the maids had never said a word.

"Leave them alone!" Diana demanded as she walked down the corridor anger evident in her tone everyone looked stunned to hear Diana's command. After all, she had been an obedient little puppet for the last four years and had been forced to turned a blind eye to their vile ways but not anymore. The four guards surrounding the poor maids quickly regained their composure and just laughed.

"Haha, what are you going to do about it?" one of them said laughing at Diana without any respect.

"Yeah, your highness," another of the guards taunted after all, everyone had long lost respect for her especially when she became a pawn to her parents. Diana lost everyone's respect especially those who used to believe in her. After that incident Diana was hidden away from prying eyes not even allowed to step foot off the palace grounds. She hated it with every fiber of her body, she had become a caged bird with no where left to fly.

"You're just a pawn to your parents," a third sneered at her mockingly.

"How dare you," Diana sneered back her voice full of authority "I am still your princess," she reminded them her voice turning cold "now leave them alone," she ordered her eyes burning.

"Or what?" the fourth one sneered while the others looked at Duana in astonishment.

"Your just a puppet like your brother," the second guard sneered.

"You're right," Diana agreed with them making their smiles broaden even more "however, it seems you have forgotten that I am my parent's daughter and I will not tolerate these barbaric actions any longer." They all looked at her in surprise as fear crossed their eyes and a raging fury burned ferociously inside of Diana.

"She's bluffing," one of the guards managed to say between jittering teeth.

"Am I?" Diana asked an eyebrow raised "Would you like to test that theory?" the soldiers slowly backed away and then ran down the hall.

"This isn't over!" she heard one yell back as she went and helped the two young maids.

"Are you okay?" Diana asked them sincerely as she helped them both to their feet.

"Y-yes thank you so much, your highness," one thanked her tone full of gratitude.

"Thank you so much," the other one agreed a smile on her face.

"There's no need to thank me I'm happy to help. Now why don't you go and take a breath before going back to work," the girls just smiled at Diana happily before leaving to take a breath.

Naively Diana had thought it was over but that night just as she was about to get some sleep after reading a book, they barged into her room.

Before she could even breath a word two of the guards pinned her to the floor while the others beet her. Kicking and punching her as hard as they could, Diana's left arm came out of its socket, her haw got dislocated, not to mention her ankle got broken and distorted. Diana's body got covered in bruises and scars and her eye swelled as they beet her repeatedly and her parents just stood watching from the shadows.

No matter how hard Diana struggled she couldn't escape their fingers indenting themselves on her skin. She bit back her cries of pain as well as her tears but some managed to break free.

"Ahhhhh," Diana screamed as she was forced to relive this horrendous event where they had beaten and tortured her.

"It's okay Diana," she heard a distant voice say like it wasn't in this memory but far off the voice sounds familiar "It's just a dream," it sounds like Alex's voice.

Somehow those words calmed her down and she was able to get through this nightmare before being frown into another memory where she'd escaped from the palace and was running in the woods happily. The sound of leaves crunching under her feet, the wind blowing through her hair it was magical until she was pulled back to the palace by a group of guards.

Then Diana was pulled into another memory this one was the same as the last one when she was on the outside looking in on the two people on the bed cradling their young baby girl close to their hearts.

"Who are you?" Diana asked just like the other times there was no response from them as they admire their baby girl "Please," she begged, "who are you?" Diana asked again. but still no answer came.

After a while, they started talking but they're too quiet so Diana can't hear them. She tried taking a step closer but then she felt a strong pain like needles stabbing at her mind.

"Ahhhh," she screamed as her face contorted from the pain "Ahhh," Diana screamed again through gritted teeth as she took a few more steps towards them.

"Diana it's alright its just a dream," she heard Alex's voice again and it gave her enough strength to continue trying to get answers.

She can feel her head beginning to pound an excruciating pain spreading throughout as it feels like daggers are piercing through her skull and then she can feel an agonising headache building. However, soon she felt someone massaging her forehead releasing the pain as she continued trying to get closer but the pain in her head continued to grow with every step she takes.

"W-who.....are you?" she asked through gritted teeth as she continued trying to get closer but every step doesn't seem to be getting her any closer to the people on the bed.

"Please tell me who you are," Diana begged before the pain forced her to her knees. "Ahhhhhhhhhhhh," she screamed.

"Diana it's alright it's just a dream," Alex said from far away his voice calming as Diana felt something holding onto her hand. Giving her the strength to try and stand through the pain but just as she took another few steps she felt the pain become worse with every step before waking up.

"It's okay Diana," Alex said soothingly as he calmed her down "it's okay it was just a dream," he said consoling her worries as she slowly calmed down. After a few minutes, he asked "do you want to talk about it?"

"It was the same dream I had before I stopped sleeping, just different memories. Most of them were bad ones, like when I was ten and four of the soldiers who serve my family were harassing two maids. I defended the two maids and I thought that was the end of it until that night. The four soldiers came back and beet me my parents just stood there and watched after a while they left but the men continued well into the night." explained to him what happened.

"I'm so sorry Diana, that's awful," Alex said as sge saw how his eyes showed a look of sorrow.

"It is awful, but it's not the worse thing that ever happened to me far from it actually. My parents have done hideous deeds before like when I was six I ran away from home with my best friend we were trying to escape. My parents found us though and they killed my best friend even though they could have taken us both back without any need for force but they chose to kill her. She died because of me and she breathed her last breath in my arms before my parents hauled me back to our house but not before I killed some guards in my anger." She explained to him remembering all their despicable deeds.

"No wonder you left," he said squeezing her hand.

"Well that wasn't even the worst bit at the end of the dream it was different,"

"Different how?" he asked curiously.

"I'd never seen these people before but they seemed familiar and it was different from the other ones this time I was looking in on the memory whereas in the other memories I was reliving them," she explained to him as best she could.

"Is that why you were asking who someone was?"

"Yeah, but I didn't get any answers it was like they couldn't hear me."

"How about I help you figure out who those people are?"

"Really?" she asked unable to stop herself from smiling.

"Of course we're friends after all,"

"Thank you so much," Diana thanked beaming no ones ever been as kind to her as her friends here in Fortis and she's glad she chose to come here.

"The others came by earlier and invited us out,"

"That sounds like fun," Diana said smiling.

"Want to spar?" he asked smiling back.

"Sure," she agreed as she stood up and put on her boots as he passed her, her swords and they went for a morning spar.

'You act so closed off and yet you have such a beautiful smile,' Alex thought as they walked down the corridor 'I'm glad I met you in the forest.'