She cracked. The princess didn’t fight me as I wrapped an arm around her shoulder and tucked her into my side. The sobs wrenched from within her were driven by the deep wounds slashed into her soul.
“After you get this out, let’s go set everyone straight, shall we? Nobody will fuck with you after today,” I said in a firm yet gentle tone. “If you ever feel alone, know that I’ll always be there as your friend, princess.”
The princess’s eyes scrunched in confusion. “What do you mean?” she asked. “Why?”
“Because I’m going to train you. No one can hurt you if you can hurt them worse.”
“But—”
“Princess,” I cut her off before she could argue anymore. At my tone, she flinched again. “You are fourteen—the age you should begin your training. You just awakened your magic last year,” I stated matter-of-factly. “You’re getting trained.”
Isat on the barstool in my family’s kitchen, elbows propped on the countertop that oddly resembled the princess’s hair. The black veins reminded me of the dark strands that blended into the white.
“What’s got you so twisted up?” Hazel asked from beside me.
I shook my head. “Just ready to get this meeting over with.”
“Did you finally meet with the princess today?” she asked, eyes narrowing. “That’s what Chrome asked you to do, right?”
I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, I talked to her,” I mumbled. “She’s scared to death, Hazel.”
Hazel’s brows furrowed. “Of what?”
“Existing, I guess…” I said, my vision losing focus as I remembered the unhealed bruises on her legs.
How often did she get punished?
It was a question that had been poisoning my mind since the public display the other night. The intense urge to protect her hadn’t wavered since. I needed to check on her, to see her. Make sure she was safe. Even from her father.
The front door banged shut in the foyer, indicating more members of the insurgency had arrived.
We didn’t have much of a plan yet, but maybe with the new information Chrome and I had just gleaned from the Elemental Regent King Orion, we could piece together something more concrete.
“Hazel,” Onyx greeted, his ever-present optimism higher than usual. “Looking delicate as a little rose as always.” His signature smile lit up the room, typically melting the hearts of others around him.
Hazel, not fazed by his antics, rolled her eyes. “This little rose will slice your throat as you choke on its thorns,” she quipped with a sarcastic smile.
Onyx laughed. “Damn,” he said, his hand going over his heart in faux hurt. “Your words wound me enough, little spark.”
I chuckled at his nickname for her. Hazel’s hair was the color of copper, the metal used to conduct electricity. “Careful, she’s had a sharper bite lately.”
“Good. She can channel it in training and kick Marigold’s ass tomorrow,” Onyx replied, sobering. “Right, Hazel?”
Hazel’s snarky expression loosened. “Yeah,” she responded, dejected. “Hopefully.”
I snapped my attention to face her, noting her scrunched brows and bitten lip. “Hey…” I placed my hand on her shoulder, attempting to comfort her.
“There he is!” Onyx called out as Chrome sauntered into the kitchen, vigilant as usual. His short-cropped hair was pushed to the side as he lowered his hood. Onyx met him and tapped his fist with his own. “Where you been, man?”
Chrome shrugged, a slight smirk on his face. “I don’t know. Why don’t you ask Royal?” he teased, trying to get under Onyx’s skin.
Onyx’s face soured. “Ew, don’t do that.”
Chrome tilted his head back and laughed, shoving his hands into the front pocket of his hoodie. “I wouldn’t be the first, and you know it.” Chrome would never touch Royal with a ten-foot sword, but there was a satisfaction in watching Onyx get worked up over someone so wrong for him.
Onyx shook his head before he laced his fingers through his starlight hair. “Gods…” he groaned.
“Dump her, dude. You don’t need that kind of stress,” I begged for the thousandth time. Onyx and his girlfriend, Royal, were notoriously toxic. It had reached a point that when we joked about their relationship to him, it didn’t even phase him anymore. “Where is she, by the way?”
