Scars littered her knuckles, wrists, and back from various whips, switches, and at one time, even a mace allegedly brought back from King Richard's holy crusades.
She had unknowingly defined court fashion through the long-sleeved and high-backed gowns the Tsarina demanded upon.
She turned to tug the lace trim of her gown down a little farther as a trickle of blood appeared between her fingertips.
"Sashy!"
Anastasia looked up as she heard her younger brother, Alexei's, voice bound across the steps. While their time together was also monitored, he was one of the few joys in Anastasia's life.
Now eighteen and already two years married, he was the true pride of the Romanov family. However, whenever greatness was thrust upon him, he simply shrugged it off as if he knew that it would never be his.
She smiled, seeing his bright grin and blonde hair running towards her, "Yes, Alexei?"
"It's much too lovely a day for a book, dear sister. Will you come riding with me?"
One of the few pleasures that she was allowed — since her guard could so easily follow — Anastasia’s sanity had become dependent on her rides, especially with Alexei.
"I can deny you nothing," she grinned, her voice still quiet and repressed within the earshot of her attendants. Alexei laughed and gently grabbed her elbow, the two of them descending the steps and heading towards the stables, falling into easy conversation.
???
Anastasia and Alexei were out on the palace grounds, slowing their horses to a walk as they reached the perimeter.
This part of the gardens was surrounded by a small wood often used by hunting parties. It wasn’t large enough to hold any actual game, but trapped stags were frequently set loose here for a mockery of the hunt to be enjoyed by the often drunk lords.
Alexei was deep in a story of something embarrassing that a local emissary had done as Anastasia’s thoughts began to drift, staring at the edge of the dark wood. Something in it seemed to call to her, to encourage her to kick her horse and flee — just to see how far she could get.
One of the guards seemed to read her thoughts and moved his horse in between her and the tree line.
“Nyet,”his voice was low and angry as if he was ready for a fight. Something in his tone and the call of the land beyond her made Anastasia feel unsparingly bold, for once.
“I am the Grand Duchess Anastasia,” she straightened in her saddle, old scars flaring up like a sick warning, “You are tasked to watch me, are you not? So, watch —“
Her taunt was cut off with a sharp scream, which she recognized belonged to her brother Alexei.
Anastasia turned around in her saddle and saw Alexei’s horse rearing back, the young monarch gripping onto its sides with his legs to avoid sliding off. Her gaze flew past them to find a large wolf emerging from the underbrush.
She gasped and felt her blood run cold as the animal stared her down. She had never seen a wolf in person before and found herself shocked by its size, larger than a man and at chest level with Alexei’s horse.
Its eyes seemed to flicker red in the sunlight, with a beastly glow that if you blinked, you might miss. The creature stalked towards Alexei and the horse, struggling in one place as though it was tied by the bit to an invisible post.
Alexei shouted desperately and tried to kick his horse into motion, but its coat grew damp with sweat, and its foam-flecked face anguished as it kicked fruitlessly.
Anastasia could barely rip her eyes from the scene as she turned to yell at her guards for assistance, only to find that both of them wore vacant expressions.
The guards sat on their horses with their arms relaxed by their sizes, eyes glazed over as if they were toys that had suddenly been abandoned by a vengeful god.
Anastasia’s heart raced as the air seemed to electrify around her and static danced between her fingertips. She gasped as it tore quietly at the new lacerations on her knuckles.
No, no, no, no…her blood went cold as she remembered the very last time she’d felt this feeling.
Another sharp cry pulled her back into the moment as she saw the wolf lunge for Alexei, its maw spread wide. The horse pivoted to the right at the last moment, working with what small range of motion it seemed to be confined to. The wolf missed and landed gracefully, spinning with an efficiency that should be impossible for an animal that large. It went to lunge again, surely, Alexei right in its path —
“ALEXEI!” Anastasia screamed, throwing out both of her hands in fear as an ice-cold sensation flooded her body and burst through her as if she was exploding.
A great pulse went hurtling over the gardens in front of her and with a loud yelp, the wolf tumbled over as if it had been hit with a battering ram.
Anastasia watched in shock as the wolf hit the ground and began convulsing, twitching like a grotesque experiment, until its cries turned to screams.
