Prologue


A lovely young lady sat contently, surrounded by a sundrenched garden while her younger sister picked from the flowering bushes, and in no way was she prepared for the events about to befall her.

The lady was known as Sae, the daughter of one of the many counts of Fu Naru kingdom. Her younger sister, or half-sister rather, was a cherub-cheeked nine-year-old with hair that gleamed like gold in the afternoon shine, and she was called Mealina. Sae and Mealina loved each other very much, though to look at them one would not think them related.

Unfortunately for Sae, she hardly appeared to be related to anyone in her family. Sae's stepmother, Lady Kiva, and her children, the rowdy twelve-year-old twins Josef and Evart and their younger sister Mealina, all donned identical blonde locks. Sae was raven-haired, just like her mother had been, and her father proudly bore a red mane. Her only assurance that she was her father's daughter, similarly to her half-brother Josef, was their matching rain-cloud eyes.

It didn't matter so much, Sae thought, as she gripped the stone bench she rested upon. As a child growing up she had been so upset, so worried because she did not seem to match the rest of her family. The only one whom she was told looked anything like her, her mother, she had killed. Her mother had died giving birth to her, and that made Sae the culprit. Sometimes she wished, oddly enough, that she could go back into the past and apologize to her mother. Nevertheless, these things didn't matter so much now, for it seemed she would not be a part of this family for much longer.

"Sister?" Sae blinked back into consciousness to find Mealina standing before her, having stopped frolicking about.

"You seem pensive. I hope it's not about what father was speaking of earlier. You are going to refuse the invitation, no?"

Sae smiled at her, plucking a sunflower out of the bouquet Mealina held tightly in her hands. "Refuse? Of course not. I've already accepted. Father had already begun penning a response when I left him in his study."

Mealina dropped her wild yellow flowers, her hands flying up to rub out the tedious salty drops forming in her warm brown eyes. "That's…that's horrible Sae!"

Sae shrugged. "I actually agree with father. This is for my benefit. It's really what any woman could hope for."

Mealina, however, wouldn't have that. She sniffled and bent down to recollect her poor scattered blooms. "No, it's not. I could never hope for that…how could you Sae? Don't you want to find your true love?"

Sae, obviously less distressed over her own situation than her sister, bit her lip to stop from smiling. The girl, Sae thought, really was adorable when it came to these things, but she mustn't laugh or Mealina would really be hurt. "I know, darling, how you love those tales you've been fed since infancy, of dashing knights and charming princes, but you must remember they are simply tales."

"That doesn't mean true love doesn't exist!" Mealina said, the ever determined romantic.

"What's this about true love now?" Both girls turned to see Lady Kiva entering the garden gate and walking towards them in her graceful stroll.

"Mama, Sae doesn't care for love! She has accepted the invitation from the Queen!"

Lady Kiva smiled at her daughter's sweet earnestness, as she took a seat next to Sae on the bench. "Well, Sae is being very sensible, very like her father I should say, in accepting the Queen's invitation. Not everyone, dearest Mealina, is lucky enough to marry for love. However, it would be foolish to agree to a marriage, whether it being advantageous for you or not, without at first making some effort in finding out if you are in the least bit compatible. Suppose Sae, that the two of you are ill matched and find yourselves in constant fights, ever longing to leave each other?"

Twirling the sunflower between her fingers, Sae replied, "There are people who have wed for love and have ended up in the same predicament. It seems to me that often it is a matter of chance. In some respects I do agree with you though; I suppose it is possible to be entirely incompatible with someone to the point where it is impossible to function harmoniously together. But you, Mealina, speak of something else, of true love. I only hope that the man I marry will be someone tolerable, whom I can get along with…but other than that I do not expect anything. To put it bluntly, true love is not for me. I have no use for it."

Mealina, as could be expected from her tender heart, was visibly horrified at the thought. Lady Kiva only smiled.

"A warning, Sae," she advised. "Those are cursed words you have just uttered, and it is quite known that once a determined young lady says them she has doomed herself to falling in love."

"Known where mother? Among storytellers? Is that not a warning a heroine would hear in a fated love tale? I'm afraid I live among the real."

The lady smiled on. "You'll be careful, daughter not of my own blood but certainly of my heart, for you may find yourself in your own tale soon enough with that attitude. Just promise poor Mealina and me that once behind those palace walls, you will not agree to any sort of marriage until you have thoroughly gotten to know the suitor and his family."

Sae nodded like the dutiful daughter she was. "Yes, I admit I am worried about this. I do have some fears…I, I just don't want to disappoint father. I know he wants what's best for me."

"I have no doubt he does, Sae," Lady Kiva said kindly. "But, you must be the possessor of your own will, or else it was pointless of your maker to give it to you. You've always been a passive child, and I know it's because you feel responsible for things that were not your fault dearest, but you must stand up for yourself because no one else will when you are living amongst the royals."

"Stand up for yourself, get to know the prince before you agree to marry him, and don't forget about us." Mealina added, taking her sister's hands in hers.

Sae laughed; a sweet, gentle laugh. "You all sound so sure of it. You forget, I am the—seventh lady, I think, to be staying at the palace since the Queen started inviting potential consorts over."

Lady Kiva nodded; her husband had informed her of the details as well. "There were four princesses from the surrounding countries who had come, and they all apparently failed whatever test the Queen set out for them. Then there was the marquess' daughter, the earl's young niece, and now you are the seventh, I think. It is lucky that the other counts, and most of the kingdom's nobility, do not have eligible daughters, though if you fail whatever it is the Queen has prepared for you I suppose they'll move on to the various barons and their female offspring next."

"I wonder what sort of test she has planned. I heard all four princesses practically fled the country the same day they failed, and the two maidens from our kingdom who were unsuccessful—"

"Have been positively tight-lipped about the whole ordeal." Lady Kiva finished for her. "It was all the ladies at Duke Eizer's ball last week could speak of. Their daughters had tried questioning the two girls, but to no avail."

Sae let out an uneasy sigh. "For myself, I admit I am not particular friends with them, so I did not feel the nerve to ask, though I saw the other girls try. The maidens certainly looked rather sour; I suspected they would not divulge their stories."

"Maybe they are not permitted to say." Mealina said in a whisper.

Both Lady Kiva and Sae laughed at such an idea from such a young girl, who was inexperienced with the ways of the world. Mealina, like most children, was quicker than her silly elder family members realized.

"I doubt what ever Queen Ryona has in store for me will be so scandalous that it must be kept secret. Mealina, you've got to stop letting your imagination run wild."

Sae had no idea how close these wild imagings of Mealina were to the actual reality she would soon face.

And so, this is where the story really begins.


Author: Thank you for reading this! The story is currently being edited due to atrocious crimes against grammar. If possible I recommend waiting until July (2014) before proceeding to read.

Some basic information about this story:

It is inspired by a manga, which I decided to convert it into a fairy tale because. The story has twists in it so I cannot reveal the manga until the end. I hope you will enjoy it

Thank you!

-Fable's Temptress