A/N – Sorry for the wait guys! I've been so busy, and I attempted to post both a new Harry Potter fic and an original fic at fictionpress.com (pen name NosilaRider) but since no on has reviewed (except for the lovely Natassha), I think I'll take them both down. Anyway, on with the story!
*~*~*~*~*
The carriage pulled up to the castle, rain hammering the windows. The twisted castle rose up for what seemed like forever, and lightning flashed across the dark sky.
"Get out," the duchess ordered. Ivy numbly got out of the carriage and was instantly soaked to the bone. The duchess grabbed her firmly by the arm and pulled her toward the castle.
Once inside, Ivy stared around. Everything was dark, and pointy, it seemed. The grand staircase loomed in front of her, and there was an eerie glow about the place. The duchess, however, smiled.
"Welcome to your new home," she said sadistically. Ivy felt a wave of fear come over her.
"Why am I here?" she asked.
The duchess only smiled. She grabbed Ivy's arm again and led her up the stairs. They went up and up and up until they reached a tiny room at the top of a tower.
"Get in there," the duchess said, throwing Ivy into the room. Then she closed the door, and Ivy heard the click of the lock. She slumped helplessly against the cold, damp brick wall, and sat down. She coughed, feeling a sickness coming on. Her ball gown was torn and soaked, and her hair was sticking to her face. She wiped the rain off her forehead, and tried to clear her head.
Regret filled up inside of her. She had had no right to direct her anger at Adrian. She wasn't mad at him, it was her stepmother! She loved him… She desperately wished she had thought things through. His face had looked so hurt…oh, this was all her stepmother's fault. And why was she here, anyway? What did the duchess want with her? Fear and sorrow welled up inside of her, and she began to cry.
*****
Adrian had gone straight to his room. He sat on his window seat, watching the rain fall down against the window. Why would she lie to him?
Why wouldn't she lie to you? a voice said. Don't you remember what you were like when you first met her?
She could have told me the truth, he thought.
No she couldn't. What would have said? You would have turned her away.
He sighed. You're wrong, he thought.
I'm not wrong, I'm your conscience! She was angry at her stepmother, she didn't mean to hurt you.
Yes, she did. She meant to hurt me from the start.
She loves you! And you just handed her to her doom! You know that duchess is no good. She'll kill her!
Well, maybe I don't care.
Oh, you'll care. I will never cease until you care.
Ivy's face flickered in his mind. It did make sense…no, she had meant to hurt him, and, though he wished to not admit it, hurt him she had.
******
Ivy had finally fallen asleep listening to the sound of the rain. The morning sun had broken through the clouds, but it did nothing to cheer her. The tiny window in her tower let in a weak ray of sun, causing her squint. She coughed, her lungs and throat burning. The damp room, the cool air, and her wet hair and clothes had all joined together to make her terribly ill and miserable. She shivered, clinging to the remnants of her dress.
Suddenly, the door opened. The duchess stood there, but not as Ivy had ever seen her before. She was dressed all in black, a shimmering black that glinted in the sun. She carried a staff that held a shining black orb at the top. Ivy was oddly entranced by this orb, and it began to swirl.
"Eat this," the duchess said coldly, thrusting a plate into Ivy's hands. "It's all you will have to eat today." Ivy nodded stupidly, still staring at the staff. The duchess shut the door, and Ivy snapped out of her trance. She looked down; on the plate was a crust of bread. She sighed heavily, and decided to save it, completely forgetting about the staff.
******
"That stupid girl. I knew I should have done this years ago." The duchess paced her chamber, her two daughters watching her nervously.
"Mother, she's sick. Can't you at least move her to a better spot in the castle?" Parveneh asked anxiously.
The duchess whirled around, glaring daggers at her daughter. "She deserves no better." Parveneh fell silent.
"When will we go through with the plan?" Souzan asked nervously.
"Tomorrow night. While the girl sleeps in an eternal slumber, you shall take her place as the queen. You will be her, and he will forever be under your spell, and at the appointed time you shall reveal your true self."
Souzan smiled, albeit apprehensively.
The duchess stirred the cauldron, making it emit a hissing noise. The rose now hovered, suspended in midair above the cauldron. Its troubling blue light filled the room with an unearthly glow. The duchess smiled up at it, her eyes filled with the light, making her appear stronger and more fearsome than ever.
"We shall see if true love really conquers all."
********
Ivy fell more and more ill. She now lay on the floor of the tower, a feverish sweat adorning her forehead. The night fell, bringing with it a cool breeze. Ivy smiled, slightly delusional, as the breeze danced through the room. She coughed, rolling onto her side. She thought of Adrian.
"I have no prince to save me," she murmured to herself. She pulled herself up onto her elbows, sagging against the wall. "But I am a damsel in distress!" she cried, bringing her knees up to her face, the tears starting to fall.
"I need my prince," she whispered.
She sat like that for quite some time. Her eyelids were heavy and she felt an odd feeling of serenity, as if she were parted from her ailing body.
Somewhere, far off, she heard music. She immediately fell under its spell, listening to it intently. It gradually grew louder, with Ivy falling deeper and deeper into a trance. It was now loud enough that it sounded as if it was right outside her door. She stood up unconsciously and walked toward the door, which opened silently. She saw, rather than heard, the music; a playful breeze blew outside her door.
She walked down hallways, and up a long, spiral staircase. Her green eyes were fixed on the wind, which grew ever stronger. Up and up she went, the music growing faster and intense. Her pale face was still beaded with sweat, and the tattered train of the dress trailed behind her.
She finally reached a small room, which was filled with a soft blue light. Still strongly entranced by the music, she saw a sharp spindle glinting in the light.
Her arm outstretched, she could think of nothing but touching the spindle. Her feet carried her slowly toward it.
"Yes," came a voice. To Ivy, it sounded warm and inviting. "Touch the spindle."
Ivy reached the spindle. Her hand reached out, but it hesitated.
"Go on." The breeze blew strongly at her back.
She lowered her hand, and pricked her finger on the point. She fell to the ground, and knew no more.
********
"She is gone."
The duchess appeared in the chamber, her face twisted into a horribly ominous smile. Parveneh gasped and held a hand to her mouth, but Souzan only smiled.
Their mother walked to the cauldron, bubbling like mad. She stirred it, making it sporadically gave off sparks and sizzles. Souzan was as pale as a ghost, but she nodded and stepped forward. Parveneh stood in the corner, biting her nails so furiously they began to bleed.
The duchess reached a hand out, and the mirror on the wall swirled into an image of Ivy, lying as if peacefully asleep on a bed. Holding her staff aligned with the mirror, she stood between the mirror and the cauldron. Suddenly, a force of green, sparkling light crackled from the mirror to the staff, and the orb on the staff changed from black to green. The duchess smiled, her eyes alight with the green glow. The image of Ivy had changed; her arm now fell, dangling off the side of the bed. The duchess then held the staff over the cauldron, and the green light nearly poured into it. The brew gave a great crack.
"Come, my daughter, the brew is ready," the duchess ordered. Souzan stepped onto the platform that held the cauldron. She looked up, the rose glowing menacingly down at her. She took a deep breath, and nodded to her mother.
"Until we meet again," the duchess said. Then, she lifted her arms, and sent a ray of light into the cauldron. An explosion blinded them, and then suddenly Souzan was enveloped in a beam of blue light. The duchess and Parveneh watched with horrid fascination as Souzan's golden locks became brown, and her features took on the shape of Ivy's. Then, with a blast of light, she was gone.
********
Adrian stayed in his room for days on end, not knowing what to do. His heart was very heavy, and his conscience would not leave him alone. He knew, somewhere, deep down, that he loved her. But his pride would not let him believe it.
He avoided everyone, including his family. On more than one occasion, someone had tried to call on him, but he needed the time to think and figure things out. And think he did. He came to the conclusion that love was nothing but façade for when people want something that they would not normally be able to get.
One night, one of the first nights he ventured out of his room, as he was standing on his balcony, he saw a girl standing below. A strange feeling came over him, and he was immediately entranced. A haze came over his eyes, and he saw her smile a peculiar smile. For once, his conscience was silent.
It was her. It was Ivy.