Chp.28: A vicious cycle.

"Will she be here?" he asks his friend with a little nervousness.

"Hmm, sure." Said his friend with an utmost bored tone.

It was the banquet hall on the ground floor of his friend's mansion. Harrison and his childhood friend, Deborah. She was a runaway and lived as an orphan in the capital city of the kingdom. But then how did she get rich enough to buy a mansion in the city?

"I insist you stop waiting for her Harry." She said in a blunt tone as a tease but was a little anxious.

"I know Debo, what you are trying to insist and now this is the last time when I am going to ignore this. We are friends right?" said Harrison with a sharp tone but a smile on his face.

Deborah was caught off guard with his expression but said, "You changed a lot, Harry. A lot since we last met." She declared.

The preparations to invite Hera was already done. There were flowers and glitter and Harrison was nervous and excited at the same time. He took out his pocket watch and waited for her in the office room's balcony of Deborah.

"She might be here anytime now." He thought to himself and had a slight smile. Deborah, who was just sitting there sipping her tea noticed it and had a bittersweet smile.

The carriage arrived. Harrison in his full speed ran down towards the mansion's door and hugged Hera. Hera also embraced him tightly and a few tears of happiness became the highlight of the moment.

He blindfolded Hera and took her inside the hall. The mansion was completely decorated, he took her to the special room, and then he went down on his knees.

"Marry me Hera." He said with hopes in his words but a little nervousness in his eyes.

"What will happen if I say no? Hmm?" she teased him. His shining puppy-like eyes went down like a child who just got his chocolate stolen.

"Pfft. You are just becoming cuter day by day." She said with a giggle.

"Of course, I'll marry you. This is the best surprise I've ever got in my life. You are the best person, Harrison." He put on a ring on her finger and she hugged him tightly.

It was their moment. The sweetest moment they ever had. Probably the only one?

Hera saw Deborah standing on the stairs of the mansion as she hugged Harrison.

"I know you are a witch." Deborah mouthed the words as she glared directly at Hera's eyes.

"I know you are a witch too." Smirked Hera as she was hugging Harrison. Deborah gave a diplomatic smile and went down the stairs.

"Let's go down for lunch. I bet you are hungry Hera." Said Harrison as he felt a little bashful. "You know that you are cute right?" Hera teased Harrison.

They went down to the dining room. "Wow, this is a rather huge place." Thought Hera as her eyes traveled from one end of the room to the other as she walked.

"This is Deborah." Said Harrison as he introduced them. "And this is my fiancée, Hera."

"Hello, I am his childhood friend Deborah." Said She with a commanding tone. "And you know who I am." Asserted Hera with her strong aura.

"I chose the right woman." Thought Harrison to himself. They sat down had lunch. They talked to each other about many things and Harrison prevented the conversation from getting awkward between Hera and Deborah.

Their lunch went smoothly. And it was almost evening soon. Harrison took his leave as he had some work to do.

"How did you meet Harrison?" asked Deborah as she walked into the balcony where Hera was standing.

"Miss Deborah seems to be a very interesting person indeed. Was he maybe your first love?" asked Hera as she put her hair behind her ears with a touch of sarcasm in her actions.

"You are sharp miss Hera." Said Deborah who found Hera's behavior a little childish.

"Nevermind." Said Hera with dejection in her tone.

"I am a runaway and an orphan. So, his father always hated me for that. Harrison was a sweet kid as a child, I remember." Said Deborah with the orange tint of the sun reflecting in her green eyes.

"Hmm?" Hera was caught off guard.

"Harrison grew up twisted and he was changed when I met him as a teenager. But I always thought he belonged with me." Said Deborah making a sharp point.

"How does it feel to get the illusion broken?" said Hera with a sense of pride as her shoulders got raised. Deborah said calmly, "You know you are very childish." Shifting the topic.

"But still you didn't answer my question." Hera raised her guard. "I work in the Sun market. And that's how survived this hard and cruel fate." Said Deborah with a sigh.

"Sun market? Prostitute?" thought Hera to herself.

"And I can see that you will be coming there soon." Said Deborah as an evil smile took the place of the calm expressions on her face.

"What? What makes you think that?" asked Hera who was trying to look brave. "Can she see the future?" Hera thought.

"I can see the future that's my power. That's right. That's my power." As Deborah had an outburst of evil laughter. "And let me tell you one more thing." She said as she held are stomach from laughing,

"Your second daughter will end there too." Said, Deborah.

"In the rags and trash that lies in the darkness of this world. A place where there is no respect and a place where you can only have the freedom to breathe and nothing else. Hera you made a mistake even after countless warnings." Deborah suddenly said in a serious tone.

"What are predicting you bitch. Are you cursing me?" Hera yelled at Deborah as she clenched her fists.

"So this is your real face after all. With all the façade of the plain pure a girl, poor Harrison got tricked." Deborah again started with her evil and sarcastic laughter.

"Get out." Yelled Hera.

"Ok I'm leaving, I'm leaving." Said Deborah with her hands up in the air as a sign of her surrendering. "But let me give you one last gift before I leave." She walked towards Hera.

"Since you didn't stop and accepted Harrison's fate. Your daughter will do the same mistake. But the worst thing that will happen to her is she will get forever dragged into this vicious cycle of dark love. Also, Harrison manipulated you, because I am the first witch he met and he didn't fall in love with me." She said with a calm and manipulative smile.

"What?" Hera was still trying to control her anger which clearly showed as her eyebrows got furrowed.

"Everything that you are living right now Hera is just one side of the decided destiny, the brighter side. But your daughter will live the darker part. But you can stop this if you uncover the world of secrets you got dragged inside by your will. Though the fun part is, your daughter will become the ultimate reason for your life. And her life is destined to be ended sooner than you can imagine." Deborah laughed and took her to leave.

Just like a storybook that got opened to the pages it shouldn't have in the first place, Hera only had one thing going inside her mind after everything that Deborah said.

"So that what was going to happen. How stupid am I?" Hera laughed at herself and looked at the setting sun.

"I will control my destiny. Our destiny. I will not let my second daughter marry a cursed man. Then it will be fine right?" she started laughing. A laugh of someone who lost the battle before it even began. The laughter that was decorated by the tears flowed down her cheeks as she didn't know what she was supposed to do.

And twenty years later.

"I'll have to marry him." Said Janice as she tricked her mother and everyone into believing how she thought Noah Gilbert was the injured Crown prince Kyte. All because she was blinded by her love for the guy she only once saw.

Neither Janice nor Hera knew that the vicious cycle that was started decades ago wasn't going to stop anytime soon, or will it?