Viva La Vida.

EPOV

The dice fell to the table, rolling, undecided. All eyes watched, some nervous, others confident as they spun uncertainly, randomly.

I looked into the eyes of my enemy, who was watching the dice as if they held the secret to life. His hazel eyes etched with fear. I smirked.

The dice ended their deadly waltz and lay still on the table.

Four.

Six.

I win. My enemy's eyes now held defeat, he had finally given in. Deposited in my palm was my prize.

It all seems so natural. I fight. I win. I've never lost.

Some would say I was the luckiest man in all of England.

Some would say I was the dirtiest cheater to ever play the game.

And some… Some would say I was the prince. As if this explained everything.

I examined the prize for whichever reason they chose. A necklace. A simple silver chain with an opal attached. The moonlight shone upon the opaque stone, igniting an orange light to radiate from its misty depths.

I was about to dismiss that whom I defeated, but a gruff voice called out to me.

"When the time comes, you will know," the hazel eyed man had said. He then pulled on the hood of his cloak, mounted his horse and rode off down the cobblestones.

I took one last look at my prize as the crowd dispersed. The opal was about the size of an infant's first tooth, just as brilliant, twice as miraculous. The chain was definitely silver, but glinted oddly in the moonlight, as if I were missing part of it. I examined every detail until I was the sole occupant of the alleyway.

I placed the necklace in my cloak pocket and mounted my silver stallion, Volvo. I galloped in the moonlit night to the castle, the sound of his horseshoes to the stones easing my nerves.

I galloped for long, contemplating what the man had meant. As the castle drew nearer, as did my nerves.

I am Prince Edward the Second of England, and I am seventeen years old. My father and mother, King Edward the First and Queen Elizabeth, were soon to retire from the throne, but this could only be done once I married. It has all been arranged.

In four months I am to marry Countess Tanya of Yorkshire and assume my place as King of England. It was frightening, but unavoidable I suppose.

I trotted Volvo into the stable and dismounted. A stable hand took the reins and led him off as I walked into my home.

I pulled the necklace out of my pocket and stared as I thought of what was to happen. I had met Tanya but once, respectable girl, but I felt no connection to her.

She was beautiful, of course, strawberry blond hair, fair skin and eyes of ice. They were like frozen ponds, and I hated it. I hated her light hair, too fair to allow adjustment from my eyes. I hated her skin, not unlike mine, which had no traces of any labor or dedication. I hated her eyes, frozen, cold, not soft and warm like I would imagine my wife's eyes would be.

But I'd have to set it aside, because we would marry in four months. She would bear my children and think she was the luckiest woman in our world. The brown-haired, ice eyed children would look up at me with adoration, but still only with eyes of ice. I would never love them.

I entered my chambers, the necklace still in my grasp, the warm glow soothing me. I changed into my evening robes and was off to sleep, dreaming of a better future.

I awoke to the sounds of birds chirping beyond my window, the morning sun stroking my face with its warm touch. I roused from my bed and walked toward the intricate stone balcony, greeted there with the crisp morning weather and concentrated rays of golden sun.

I looked down upon the orchard, the apple trees were blooming, their brilliance stretching on for miles of the estate. The colours of green were almost fluorescent and seemed to greet the day with their outstretched leaves, begging it to stay. Beyond the orchard, a thicker forest of evergreens thrived. Deer, elk, geese, hares, bears all inhabited what was to be mine. I could see a small clearing where a doe and her speckled fawn drank from a crystal pond. It seemed so innocent, so beautiful. This was how the world was meant to be.

I retreated, no longer wishing to look upon nature's fine beauty, and found my discarded cloak on the hardwood floor, wrinkled in carelessness. I reached into the pocket and pulled out the necklace again. The orange glow was brighter than before in the new dawn, a stark contrast to the grey-green of the walls, and I envied it. To show its inner light without a thought, an involuntary reaction if you will. I now realized that the chain was anything but simple silver. Embedded within the links of silver were tiny, almost non-existent, perfectly cut diamonds. This must be what I had missed the night before. They shimmered in the sun and brought the silver metal, cold in comparison to the stone, to a dazzling reality. I saw no beauty. The diamonds were stealing away what belonged to the opal, I was tempted to find a new chain. When the time comes, you will know…the words of the man from last night echoed in my head, and, instead of changing the chain, I placed the necklace into a box, not expensively decorated as a jewelry box is per the norm. It was bound in brown leather, soft as satin to the touch, with a small lock on it, the key kept with me at all times.

I relocked the box and placed it back on its table, taking one final look as I walked to breakfast.

The smell of sweet meats and fresh bread wafted up the stairs, toying with my senses as I descended to the first storey.

I entered the dining room, the marble floors and ornate wall décor greeted me, unlike my parents, who sat eating their food. I sat in the furthest chair from them and picked up a piece of bread, dipping it into the melted butter and ate, chewing being the only noise. We never spoke during meals alone, we hardly ever spoke at all.

I finished what I was going to eat, they wouldn't nag me to eat more. I strode to the stables and had Wolfgang tack up Volvo for me. I hopped on and rode into the crowded streets. I looked down upon the townsfolk from my point, all of which bowed slightly as I passed. Long live the King.

I passed a happy couple watching their children playing in the street. The smiled and bowed their heads, the joy in their eyes made me yearn for the same, a simple family and loving wife. The children stopped playing and stood up. The boy bowed grandly and I laughed and reached down to ruffle his hair. His answering smile was innocent and blinding. The younger girl also stood and curtsied. She had long brown curls and fawn eyes. I pulled to a halt at her and dismounted my horse. I reached into my robe and pulled out a barret in the shape of a butterfly, shaped of gold with small rubies embedded on the wings. I placed the barret delicately in her hair and her face lit up in a brilliant blush.

"Thank you your majesty," her delicate voice tinkled and I smiled at her.

"You are very welcome." I stood and addressed the parents. "You are both very lucky. I ask that you cherish your family, in the end it is all that matters. Goodbye." I mounted Volvo again as the boy and girl waved jubilantly at me. I allowed myself a small smile, one that was guaranteed to always be slightly crooked, and rode of down the street, nodding a the people of my land as they in turn bowed slightly.

I rode the entire day, stopping only once to purchase a honey bun from a haggard looking vendor. I deposited more than enough for ten into the woman's palm and her smile lit up the kiosk. I smiled as she thanked me kindly, and remounted again.

I eventually ended up on the far side of the forest on my estate, and the night was growing near. I cantered lightly through the thick brush, occasionally sighting the retreating form of an elk, or the chirp of a nightingale gracing my ears which had risen from it's slumber at the noise.

I noticed soon after the night fell that I saw none of the animals, not a single bird or bear to be heard or seen. Volvo was seeming very uneasy and skittish, so I picked up the pace a bit, pushing into a hasty gallop.

We galloped for what felt like hours, when I felt a prickling sensation on the back of my neck. I pulled up to a walk, still moving forward, but slowly, cautiously. I broke through the brush and fully recognized the clearing I had seen from my balcony that morning. The pond reflected the pale moon, I'm late for supper. Across the still pond was the fawn, or a fawn, standing and shaking like it was cold. I looked on, confused. I dismounted Volvo and still, the fawn did not didn't it run away?

I waited with my head cocked to the side. The night was warm and the fawn looked old enough to have a thick enough coat, though it was still speckled.

Then I realized as the prickling intensified. It wasn't cold.

It was petrified.

I turned and saw a creature, pale as the moon, crouched behind me, eyes black as the starless sky, looking worn and savage, black hair hanging down to just about it's eyes. I had no time to scream, for in that second, the creature pounced, it's eerily white teeth aimed for the jugular.

I felt the teeth grasp around my neck. Then, the burning started.

Through my agony my eyes shifted across the pond.

The fawn was gone.

Iris:

OK, so this story really has me excited. I love Viva la Vida by Coldplay, and its story, if you read into the lyrics, will be told through this story, also Twilight stuff will be thrown in, a little edited, but it's in here!

This is a collab between Iris of the Rainbow (myself) , and Too Afraid To Cry Out (Ria, my best friend) . We've never written a collab and my updates will be slower than TATCO's, so be patient with me. This was both of us, the only chap that will be both of us, so enjoy ; )

Loves

Iris

Ria:

Yes, I'm writing with Iris (thanks for using all the interesting news, by the way) , and we are having a blast. This will be posted on both our profiles as Viva la Vida, and my updates will be within a week of Iris', mostly because I've got to work out my writer's cramp waiting for reviews for Starcrossed. If you get a chance, check it out and tell me you likey! Kay, next chapter is Iris', so sorry you'll have to wait * Iris blushes * oh, and disclaimers will be here, not at the top.

Disclaimers: We own none of these fabulous songs or Twilight. Also, King Edward and Queen Elizabeth were never married, but we wanted them to be here, so butt out. Oi!

Never fear!

…that's my job. Ria.