Peter

A door being unlock wakes me up.

I adjust my eyes to the weak light in the cell and see a guard step inside carrying something in his hands.

"Morning meal."

I sit against the wall and yawn, rubbing the sleep off my eyes. I pass a hand through my disheveled hair as a tin bowl and cup are placed down next to me on the hay.

"Has anyone spoken with my father?"

"There hasn't been any order from His Majesty." He says, looking down at me.

"How long do I have to stay here?"

"I don't know that information." He apologises and leaves, closing and locking the door behind him.

If my father wants me insane, he is succedding. Another day here and I'll start kicking the door. With a sigh, I grab the bread from the bowl and take a bite to calm my growling stomach.

Maybe I should start counting the days by carving lines on the wall. Lines that will erase the days I have been here and that will create others that mark time until the deadline.

I almost spit the milk. It's so sour, but I don't remember ever being this way. I wince when I take another gulp and place it back on the floor. I take another bite of the bread and stare at the wall, picturing the lines carving themselves on the wall.

...

Katherine

Cold, icy water is dumped over me and I have to seal my lips shut before I curse out loud.

"Nothing like a good ol' bath of cold water in the morning." The maid says.

You are certainly jesting me, I think to myself as more water is poured over my trembling body.

She pours more water over my head as she combs her fingers through my short hair. The remainder water is dumped over me and then a towel is placed around my wet and frozen body. I hug it tighter as the maid fetches a clean and warm chemise from the drawers inside the wardrobe.

I put on a pair of dark blue sandals and the maid stops me in front of the looking-glass. She brushes my damp hair as I look at my reflection. The dark shadows under my eyes are more prominant now. The memory of last night's nightmare still haunts my mind. The bloody and mutilated corpses and the liveless look on Peter's eyes as he stared at me, a dead corpse lying on a pristine floor.

After my hair is brushed and tied in a tiny bun, the maid helps me with a red dress and carefully adjust the skirt and the three quarter sleeves.

"A guard will take Your Highness to the His Majesty's presence. Your Highness just has to wait a bit." She says as she picks up the used towels.

I nod and she curtsies and leaves the room, closing the door.

I take another look at myself in the looking-glass. How can people believe I'm capable of leading a war when I look like a marionet in the hands of royalty? All of my wounds and scars are concealed by showy fabrics with intricate designs and expensive colours. I look around the room, trying to find a distraction but nothing looks familiar. Even the bed felt strange against my skin last night. I dart for the door and leave the room.

The entrance to the dungeons is unguarded. However, it doesn't take long for the guard to find me when I'm almost at the door of Peter's cell.

"What are you doing here?" He asks, annoyed at my presence.

"I'm surprised you haven't called me by my new name."

"You are not my ruler." He takes a few steps closer to me.

"I may not be, but I can order you to open the door to Peter's cell." I say.

"You have no permission to be down here."

"I won't hesitate to harm you, badly." I warn. "Open the door."

"Tell me, are you really deadly like the rumors or are you just a girl afraid to kill?"

"Do you want you to know?" My voice adquires a wicked tone and the guard tenses in fear. His light green eyes let his emotions shine, easily.

He passes by me and unlocks the door of Peter's cell. In a moment, he is opening the door and, in the next, he disappears inside the cell. I follow him and stop when I see him crotching beside Peter's sleeping form. There is something peculiar about the way Peter is resting.

"Peter?" I call his name as I enter the cell.

I get no response. The guard places two fingers on Peter's neck and glances up at me.

"There is no pulse."

I quickly kneel beside him and take his face in my hands. There is no answer to my touch. My eyes catch something red in his lips.

Blood.

"Get help!" I order the guard, thinking of ways to heal Peter.

The guard's footsteps echo in the hall as he goes to find help. Peter's face is as white as snow and I search for anything on his clothes. I wait for a miracle, but no one comes and the agony is unbearable. I stare at his serene expression and think he is only asleep...

The hall suddenly fills with noise and then I'm pulled away from Peter and out of the cell. I fight the person, but the hold is too tight. When I'm far from the cell, I'm turned around and my eyes meet a pair of green eyes.

"Katherine, calm down." Finnick says, his hands still on my arms.

"Is he... He isn't, is he?" I sound small and insecure.

"He isn't." Finnicks assures me.

"How do you know that?" I say, too loudly.

"Commander?"

Finnicks looks behind me and glance back to see who it is. A guard holds a cup on his hand.

"The prince has been poisoned."

...

Five days lived in oblivion.

Peter is well, according to the servants who come and go. I haven't visited him since that day. I wander the castle and the gardens, always keeping to myself. I take my meals in my room and I don't utter a word to anyone. The maids tell me the physician proclaimed not to be a trace of poison or damage in Peter's blood. However, he didn't know how to explain the miracle that is Peter's survival and recovery. He took a normal size cup of poison which it is enough to kill. Immediately, I thought of Coin, but she couldn't have done it without someone.

I'm startled from my thoughts by a knock on the door. I rise from my chair in front of the fireplace and open the door. A maid curtsies as soon as she sees me.

"His Highness is awake." She says. "He wishes to see you."

A weight is lifted from my shoulders at the sound of the words. I close the door and follow her as she leads me to Peter's room. She knocks when we stop in front of the door to his room and a voice from inside tells her to come in. She ushers me inside and then closes the door behind me.

My eyes travel to the four-post bed and I find a figure already staring at me. My heartbeat quickens and I can't hide the smile at seeing him healthy, again. I approach him and his eyes follow me as I take a sit at the edge of the bed.

"Hey."

He smiles, weakly and grabs my hand.

"The sight of your face has brighten my day." He says and I have to chuckle at his words.

"You didn't lose the jesting." I say, entwining our fingers. "How do you feel?"

"I feel like horse shit, to quote Finnick." He scratches his beard. I may enjoy the sight of him with a dark-blonde beard. "Now that you are here, I'm in much better spirits. And you?"

"These last five days were hellish." I say, bringing the dark shadows to his room. "There was no news of your condition. I was in complete oblivion."

"They told me you didn't speak to anyone." He says, concerned. "I wasn't dying, Katherine. You didn't have to push people away."

"You were dying!"

"Yet, in times like these, you have to surround yourself with people." He advises. "Promise me you won't do that again."

"I will try..." I don't look in his eyes, because keeping promises isn't my strongest quality. "But talk about yourself. I'm not the one lying in the bed because of poisoning."

"What am I suppose to say? I tasted poison and didn't die?"

"Do you remember anything after you fainted?"

"Well," He lets go of my hand and adjusts his position. "there is this unusual image in my mind."

His eyes hold mine and I see something strange pass through them.

"You were..." He swallows and I sit straighter. "I saw you put something in my food, sneakly."

I look incredulous at him. "I put the poison in your food?!"

"That is not what I'm saying."

"It is!" I snap. "You assume I did that to you? Why would you assume something like that?"

"I'm not assuming anything. My mind made up its own assumptions." He defends himself, but I don't believe him at the moment. "However, I don't believe them. I know you aren't capable of doing that."

"Right now, I don't know if I believe you." I stand up. "It's better if I go or else this conversation will turn for the worse."

"Katherine, please don't." He tries to get out of the bed, but I'm already at the door.

"I'll see you tomorrow." I open and close the door, never looking at him.

...

Peter

Katherine's parting words were uttered three days ago. The physician has visited me one time in these three days and he told me she has been present in some of my father's meetings. I know she is avoiding me and it is possible the reason why is the picture of her poisoning my food. I have a small suspiction that the poison touched a memory of Katherine and twisted it. She was already building her walls when she left my room.

I get out of the bed, wash myself and dress clean clothes. I'm recovered, still the physician advised me to wait one or two days before I left the room. However, I'm tired of my room. The halls are a welcoming sight and the cold air flowing through them soothes my tired body. I enter the throne room unannounced and all the eyes turn to look at me. They are all surprised to see me up and well. I find Katherine on my father's left side, staring at the parchments and maps on the conference table.

"I would like to speak to Katherine, alone." I announce. "If you will excuse her, father."

"Of course, Peter." My father allows.

The council leaves first, but not without wishing me a full recovery. My father is last and his hand lingers on my shoulder for two minutes.

"It's good to see you well, son." He says and leaves.

I glance back to see him walking away and the heavy red wine curtain blocking him from my sight. I look back at Katherine and her eyes are already looking at me.

"What seems to be the matter?" She asks, almost as if she doesn't know.

"Your promise to see me again after your visit." I answer, walking closer to the table.

"I was busy."

"My father would have allowed your leave from any meeting." She lowers her head, possibly ashamed. "Why didn't you keep your promise?"

"I couldn't deny your father's request to be present. The council is watching me."

"An entire country is watching you." I say. "The council doesn't matter."

"They all matter." She crosses her arms over her chest. "They can easily destroy my reputation."

"When did you start caring about appearances?"

"Since I was presented as who I really am and not just a made-up thief!"

I round the table and stop a few inches from her. "I'm trying to understand your refusal to see me."

"I didn't want..." She hesitates and looks up at me. Her eyes have a redness around them and they show me hurt. I don't expect her to hit me in my chest. "It's your fault!"

"Mine?" I'm taken aback by her comment.

"You brought me to Baluster to be a puppet in their hands. I dress like a princess and the queen won't ever remember me. You are wrong! She will keep looking for me and so, this is a pointless idea. I should have stayed in Dawsun."

"Yet, there is a part of me that thinks it's a stupid idea to go back to Dawsun. I can't leave, because of you. Because of what you have awaken in me. A thought of leaving and the emotions take over my mind and body. I hate these feelings, Peter!" She hits again, this time on my left arm. "I hate what you did three years ago and I hate what you did now. I'm incapable of leaving you."

I'm speechless with her confession.

"Say something."

"What can I say?" I'm so astonished I don't know what to say.

She pulls my face down to hers and then her lips are on mine. I'm surprised with her sudden attitude that I'm unable to respond correctly. Her lips move against mine with so much fire. She doesn't imagine the thoughts that run through my mind at the moment. I hug her to my chest and her hands move to my back. I feel her fisting the fabric of my vest as her lips part and our kisses turn into something that we never experienced. I pull away quickly before it escalates into something else.

"Say something." She insists, breathlessly.

One thought runs through my mind and I can already imagine the consequences.

"I love you."

Her body tenses beneath my hands and her arms fall to her sides. Her face is expressionless. I took it too far and now everything is ruined. She stands on her tip-toes and places a soft kiss on my lips.

"I know." She whispers against my lips.