Chapter 6- A Ring and a Promise.

Remi sat in a corner of her small room, drenched tears and hate. Hate for her family, her people, Shadowfell, and finally, for herself. As much as she would like to defend and love herself since no one else would, she couldn't deny the fact that she hated herself as well.

She approached the mirror, her movements deliberate, and began to remove the tattered remnants of her gown, the fabric hanging in shreds from the brutal assault by the stable boys. Her eyes blazed with a fierce determination as she vowed to herself that she would one day exact vengeance by brutally killing them.

She didn't take her eyes off the mirror as the tattered gown fell to the floor, revealing her naked body fully. Her skin was indeed fair, save for the little scars done by her family or by outsiders who knew her family didn't care about her. They didn't even need audacity to fear her or harm her. Her family name did not cover her. She had heard the rumours, the names her own people called her.

The hunchback witch.

The cursed princess.

The Luna swine.

She had heard them all and had endured their cruel taunts. Her breasts, recently begun to develop, were still tender and vulnerable, with delicate pink areolas and nipples that seemed to shrink from the harsh words. Despite their small size, her breasts strained against her chest as her back arched, forming a gentle crescent shape, and her head bowed forward as if seeking refuge from the painful jibes.

She turned to the side to look at her body shape. Curved like the crescent moon. They were right anyway. She was ugly. She looked ugly. Abnormal. Deformed.

Suddenly, Remi let out a blood-curdling scream that dissolved quickly into a despairing wail as she seized the candle stand from the locker and hurled it at the mirror, shattering the glass into a web of jagged cracks.

Perhaps she was a witch, a monster truly, but even monsters were loved by someone. Even the most fearsome creatures found love and acceptance in the eyes of another.

But not her. Not Remi.

Not the hunchback luna swine of Lupercus Pack.

She sighed, closing her eyes. The thought of remaining in Shadowfell was unbearable. She couldn't continue living in fear, trapped in a life she despised. Escape seemed like her only option, but fear held her back. Wherever she fled, her father's relentless elven army would inevitably track her down. In all of Shadowfell, there was no hiding place secure enough to conceal her. Moreover, her distinctive presence, her obvious physical deformity, made her far too conspicuous to evade detection.

Shadowglade... She could live in Shadowglade. She thought this. A quiet, lone wolf, living in peace, accepted by nature and simply her humble abode. The name whispered a promise of solace, and suddenly, her hopes were fueled. She decided in her heart that finally, she would summon all the courage in the world to ask this of her father, the Alpha King, who hated her more than anything or anyone.

*****

In the dead of night, as she slumbered, the faint creak of her door jolted her awake, sending a shiver coursing through her veins. The sudden realization that this was no dream, that her door had indeed shifted open, left her frozen in dread.

And in that moment, she knew with certainty who stood on the other side.

Boris.

"What do you want, Boris?" Remi sat up.

"Shhh," He said with a finger to his lips. The moonlight is shown into her window precariously, lighting her small room in a selfish way.

Boris found his way to her bed? and sat at the side of it.

Boris, her brother, whom she shared a very strange relationship with. The only person in the world apart from Aileen, who could actually speak to her like a human being and listen to her response. Although he was not brave enough to respect her or see her outside of this room.

"I heard what happened."

"What happened?" He was going to have to be more specific. Remi thought.

"In the stables, with the stable boys."

"From who? Mother?"

"No...The guards. I heard them talking about it."

Remi said nothing, and Boris proceeded to shift closer to her, swiping a hair out of her face.

"I am sorry." He said, finally.

"I...I don't need your pity." Remi said. Looking away.

"I do not pity you. I know you are strong. " Boris said,

"We haven't seen much of ourselves lately. I have been busy fighting for my position between Father and Thane. " Boris spat their name with a tinge of hatred.

"I know you've been busy too. Mother will not hear that you are taking leisurely hours. She says it's for people who actually deserve it. " Boris sighed and looked away.

"I have missed you too, brother." Remi finally said. "But don't you get scared that people will find out that you come to speak to me?" Remi asked.

Her room was at the ceiling of the Manor, the attic, where no one ever comes, because even the servants had their own wing.

"I doubt that. " Boris chuckled. "Remi...I heard something. And from the looks of things, you will not be with us for long."

"What? what...what do you mean?"

"You will find out soon. But for now, I came to show you something. "

"Brother, tell me what you mean.."

"You will find out!" Boris suddenly snapped, prompting Remi to keep her mouth shut. "You know, it is not you that is cursed as they say. It is this...family. Lupercus. We are physically okay, but we are monsters with blackened hearts. Father, Mother, Thane, Dantina..." He shook his head.

Remi said nothing. She couldn't. It could be a trap. It was always something with her family members. They were as dubious and sly as the red foxes.

But Boris was different in a way, which made the situation tricky. Sitting upright on the bed hurt her curved back, but she tried her best not to show it.

"I brought you something. " Boris said, removing a ring from the cloth which he had wrapped it with in his pocket. it didn't look special. It was made from iron, and it was thick and heavy, and Remi didn't like it.

"I've never been gi...gifted any...anything." She stammered as she took it from him.

"It's not just a gift, stupid." Boris said. "It's heritage. I don't know what this is, but it is your life."

"I don't understand. " Remi said, confused as ever.

"I don't, either. Just take it. And don't forget me."

"For..forget you?" Remi's eyes wavered. What was he saying? What was he giving her? Why?

"Don't ever wear it. Show it to no one. Until you are a thousand miles away from Shadowfell and from this family. Do you understand?"

"Ye...yes."

"Don't stammer!" Boris snapped again. "Do you understand? "

"Yes." Remi said firmly after a second of setting her tongue in place.

Suddenly, the quickened steps of someone running caused Boris to jolt in fear, and he rose.

"I have to go now."

"W...wait..."

But before she could speak again, Boris was out the door and creeping.