Princess Bella - Chapter Nine

¨But… How?¨ I murmured. ¨How is that even possible?¨

I heard the sound of my own blood rushing through my ears and felt the need to lie down. Could it really be possible that my own mother was here, in front of me, all along? Sophia felt I became more agitated and she bit my hand assuringly.

It didn´t help. At all.

¨Princess, please sit down.¨ Queen Renee ordered me. I obliged. ¨I know this might sound unnatural, but my soul is trapped inside this body.¨

I looked at the fishlike features of my mother, her red hair and red eyes and couldn´t grasp what was happening. This could never be my mother! This was Victoria.

¨How?¨

Prince Edward patted my back. ¨Sitting might be wise for this one,¨ he said, while he guided me towards a fallen tree. I held his arm tightly as I didn´t think I could walk straight.

Also, he had some really nice arms. I found back some of my own strength in them.

¨How do I know for sure you´re speaking the truth?¨ I ordered.

¨Jacob is your favourite brother, you call him Jake.¨

I bit my lip. ¨Anyone in the castle knows that. And word travels fast.¨

"Alright. How about this then; you have a heart-shaped freckle near your bum."

I heard a soft chuckle behind me and wished I could disappear, smack that grin off his face or hide my reddened cheeks from him. Or all of the above.

"That doesn't mean anything," I said confidently. "Anyone could know that."

But of course, only a mother could see right through my facade.

"But not anyone knows you practised magic in secret, have a little rabbit names Sophia, secretly like your father more than me, hate sewing and have a little thing for malliakokkina," she winked.

"What's that?" Prince Edward noted.

I blushed and looked away. Damnit, was I really this easy to read? I took a deep breath and nodded. I gestured for her to continue since I knew she was speaking the truth.

"Alright. So, what does that mean? What happened?"

Queen Renee sighed. ¨It might be wise for me to start at the beginning.¨

I sat down and desperately fought the urge to roll my eyes. ¨You think?¨

She frowned at my sudden outburst but let it slide. ¨As you can probably guess, Victoria is the name of my twin sister. When we were born, people were afraid of magic and they still are. Our parents, your grandparents, didn´t know what to do with a shapeshifting witch for a daughter, so they send her away.¨

I balled my fists. ¨How could they do that?¨

"They didn't know any better, Bella," Renee sighed. "So they send her away, and I didn't know where. I was still so young when it happened, there were times I even forgot I had a sister."

"Where did they send her to?" I asked, without wanting to know the answer.

´The forest, I only discovered when I was a teen,¨ Renee sighed.

I looked from Edward to my mother. ¨But that doesn´t make any sense! Why the forest?¨

¨You have to understand, Princess, that your grandparents still loved her, in their own way. Victoria is still their daughter, only they hated what she was. They didn´t want her to die, but she had to be sent far away and no one spoke of her. Or course, there were still rumours…¨ Renee looked at Edward.

¨Rumours everyone knew off,¨ he continued. ¨For some reason, the story of Forks' two sisters became a legend. I mean, even I knew off it, but is was just lore. We never thought it would hold some truth.¨

¨Unfortunately, it did.¨

¨But… but what happened to Victoria? And what happened to you?

¨Believe me, child, but I have no idea what had happened to Victoria. When I found out she was held captive in the forest, I visited her to bring her food, mostly. But after a while, she suddenly disappeared and life continued. I married your father and gave birth, and my parents never spoke of it again. After a while, life settled down and there were days I forgot about her existence altogether.¨

Renee sat down. ¨As for me, I never practised magic and never saw anyone practise magic. Until one day, Victoria came back and made me into this… creature.¨ She gestured at her claws and fins. ¨My body must be out there somewhere.¨

¨But why would she do that to you?¨ I asked as I reached out to hold her hand, before realising that wouldn´t be wise.

¨Maybe she wanted to see what it´s like. To not hide yourself and just live your life. I mean, she hadn´t killed you, Queen, so that must account for something,¨ Edward explained.

I hummed and looked at my mother, before Edward´s words sank in.

¨Mother! If she wanted to live your life, that would mean you had to live hers, am I correct? Than she must have put your body in the forest!¨