Summary: A desperate monarch makes a pact with another king that will one day force him to give his headstrong daughter to the king's harsh son. Within the castle walls lay many secrets, including a deadly curse with one year to break. Let the fairytale begin.
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Chapter Nineteen
"Sister, dear," snarled The Dark Mage, his eyes lighting up wonderfully, "I was wondering when you would show up. It's not the same without you."
The Enchantress frowned disgustedly. "It seems you have not changed at all, have you, Brother, darling?"
"And change the game?" The Dark Mage laughed. "Never."
"Let Cecilia go, Brother," The Enchantress said quietly. "I think we both know that the real battle is between you and me."
"I am curious," The Mage said, "how did you come to be here? I know that usually you make a point not to specifically meddle in human events." His tone and look were meaningful.
"You are right," The Enchantress said. "Usually I don't. But since my darling nephew was involved," a quick flash of warmth was directed to said nephew, "I knew that you would not be far behind. And besides," she said, her gaze going to a small figure on the ground, "I was informed by Cecilia's father, who summoned me."
Derek's eyes, so transfixed on Cecilia, finally looked away and found her father, standing, he realized dazedly, on the side of the Freench, towards the back of the cavalry. In his hands was the book that Keleigh had stolen from Derek, the one containing all of the information on the Curse and the Enchantress's role in it.
"Traitor," snarled Adrian at Cesario, who straightened his back.
"I am loyal to only two things," he responded, and Cecilia was startled at how he acted remarkably like his old self, "my country and my family. If anything, it is you and your father who have betrayed me."
"Silence, mortal," hissed the Dark Mage, making a move for Cesario, but was blocked by the Enchantress.
"Think, Brother," she warned him. "It is not worth it to harm Cecilia. You forget that you too have a weakness."
"And what is that?" He taunted.
The Enchantress flicked her wrist, and Adrian, who had been on the ground below, shot up to her grasp. "This."
The Mage paused, his dark eyes livid, but both he and the Enchantress knew that he would concede. Adrian was, after all, his only link to his past wife.
His hand left Cecilia's arm and she was shocked to find herself not plummeting towards the ground. The Enchantress did the same to Adrian, who looked stunned to be there. The two were lowered to the ground, simultaneously, as the frozen figures watched, in awe. Only Cesario moved, pushing his way towards the front to be with his daughter.
Once the two were on the ground, however, the Dark Mage grinned. "Of course," he said mockingly, "when have I ever played fair?" Magic sprung from his fingers as he a powerful spell hurled down towards Cecilia.
"No," yelled Derek as he hurtled off his horse and took of at a sprint, trying desperately to reach Cecilia.
But he was too late. Cesario reached her first, shoving his eldest out of the way, and the spell, deadly accurate, killed him in an instant.
Derek reached the fallen girl and gathered her up in his arms. After recovering from the shock, she began to struggle against him, wanting to go to her father. "Let me go, Derek—let me go!" she sobbed, trying to twist out of his arms.
"No," he said firmly, though pained by her suffering. "I can't let you go out in the open now. He might try and kill you again."
Though he needn't have worried; the Enchantress, her infamous temper boiling over, sent a flash of light towards the Dark Mage. It struck him directly in his left shoulder and caused his clothes to begin to smolder and smoke.
Caught unawares, he howled in agony. "You shouldn't have done that," he hissed at her ominously. He was still a moment and then went on a rampage, firing bolt after bolt of energy. In his rage and due to his bad arm, his aim was faulty and the Enchantress was able to dodge every one, albeit sometimes barely.
The Enchantress sent a steady tidal wave of power back at him but his shielding abilities were superb. A pane of dark energy projected in front of him and when her light beams hit them, they were swallowed whole by the darkness. However, by the end of her barrage, the Mage was clearly weakened. But he wasn't defeated yet and judging by the mad glint in his eye, his next attack would be his last—and finest.
Sensing his counterattack, the Enchantress braced herself, readying her defense powers.
"Trying to prepare yourself, sister dear?" He cupped his hands together and opened them, revealing an incredibly large swirl of dark energy. "You may try, but your powers are no match for mine."
The Mage thrust it at her and she brought forth her shield, where light released and cocooned around her like a panel of glass. The energy clawed at the shield but it held firm, despite a few moments of struggle. With a strong push, the energy bounced off the shield and hurled back towards the Dark Mage.
Despite her impressive defense, he Enchantress's eyes widened with fear as she saw what—or who—was near the Dark Mage.
Adrian, using all of his powers to levitate himself, was several feet below his father, trying to propel himself to his father's side to try and take down his aunt. His eyes were wide as well, for he knew what was inevitably to come.
The Dark Mage's own energy hit him square in the chest, causing him to be obliterated instantly, his body incinerated into millions of pieces, exploding through the sky.
The impact reamed Adrian, propelling him into the ground, where his neck broke. He was killed instantly.
There was a long moment of silence. Stunned at the display of magic they witnessed, the men and their horses stood shock still in awe. Finally, one soldier broke the silence and the troops began to rejoice, but the Enchantress looked forlorn as she floated, silently, to her nephew. Derek released Cecilia, as she ran to her father, who, despite his ways, had still given the ultimate sacrifice: his life for his daughter.
Derek saw the Enchantress. Leaving his beloved to grieve in peace, he went to the Enchantress and knelt down beside Adrian. "You could bring him back to life, you know," he told her, softly.
The Enchantress shook her head. "It wouldn't be fair," she said. She looked over at Cecilia. She was instructing four men to carry her father's body. It was placed in a carriage and took off for Italle, where it would be buried in the family tomb. "How fair would it be if I brought Adrian back to life and not Cesario?"
Derek was silent for a moment. "You're right," he said. "But I don't know… I think that for everything you've done for us, you deserve to be a little selfish, a little happy." He looked over at Adrian. "And even though I have no reason to at all, I think that he deserves a second chance. From what Cecilia's told me, he's had a rough time of it. You know? If there's anything I've learned in my life, it's that I think I everyone deserves a second chance."
The Enchantress smiled at him. "You are a good man, Derek of Fraanc," she told him.
"Don't I know it," came a new voice, as Cecilia attached herself to Derek's arm.
He gave her a sympathetic look.
"I'll be all right," she told him, although her eyes were melancholy and rimmed with grief and tears. She looked at the Enchantress. "I think you should bring Adrian back to life," she said. "He deserves it."
"If I did," she said, "I would give him a completely new life. A new name. So he wouldn't have to remember all of this."
"Good plan," said Cecilia.
The pair left the grieving aunt. They dismissed the troops, both theirs and Adrian's, saying to meet at their respective camps for payment and food. They found Tristàn then, who helped them take Cesario's body. From there they journeyed back to Pareis, where it all began.
Upon their arrival, Ana and Marguerite burst into tears when they saw them alive and unharmed. Recounting their tales, the women grew solemn at the mention of Cesario.
At dinner the night after, they had a toast to Cesario and his life. The next day Cecilia would leave for Italle, to fetch her sister and prepare her father's burial—and her own coronation ceremony as queen.
Marguerite was unusually quiet and Derek frowned. "Mother?" He said. "Is something wrong?"
She wiped away a few stray tears. "I'm so happy that you're alive," she said, her eyes glistening, "but—you'll be stuck with the Curse still for the rest of your life! And although you have Cecilia it's just—it's just… We were so close to succeeding."
Derek grinned. "But we did succeed," he told her. "Have you not seen Cecilia's hand?"
Cecilia held up her left hand. There, sparkling, winking in the light, was a gold ring, with a round diamond in the center and two rose-colored rubies bordering it.
"Does that mean…?" Marguerite blinked.
"We are already married," laughed Cecilia. "When I came to Derek the night before his birthday, I had summoned the Enchantress as well. We were married that very night."
"The ceremony was only for the three of us," Derek told Marguerite quietly. "And we did not have time to tell you."
Marguerite looked at Ana and Tristàn. "You two knew?" She shrieked. "And didn't tell me?"
The siblings flushed sheepishly. "We thought you knew," Ana snickered.
"Well I—" Marguerite stopped. "I suppose it doesn't matter now," she cleared her throat, returning to her usual decorum. "You do realize that I will plan a proper ceremony soon though, don't you?"
Derek sighed, squeezing Cecilia's hand. Another dratted ball to attend.
Everyone turned in early, for although their spirits were high, it did not feel right to be so celebratory, especially in remembrance of the recently dead. Cecilia would leave for Italle in the morning to settle all of the affairs, including her father's burial, and to be there with her sister. She sat at a desk, writing out all of the things she needed to do. A warm hand plucked the quill from her fingers and settled on her shoulders. "Come, my love," Derek whispered into her ear. "There will be time enough for that. Let us just enjoy this time that we have together tonight." He would be staying behind in Fraanc for another week before joining Cecilia in Italle. He was needed there to rebuild the damage the brief skirmish had produced.
Cecilia went to the balcony and Derek followed. In their new chambers, they savored their time together, finally. The newlyweds stayed outside for a long time, thinking and talking lowly to each other.
"Who would have ever thought," Cecilia murmured, "when I first arrived here, that I would be your True One?"
Derek looked at her softly. He had never felt so content, so at peace before. The ceremony the Enchantress performed was painless, surprisingly, and he felt like he was being reborn in a way. And despite the pain he and his relatives suffered, Derek found himself not caring. It did, after all, lead him to Cecilia. He smiled at his wife, saying, "Well, out of all the girls in the world, I'm glad that it was you."
Cecilia gave him a bright smile, feeling so loved and cherished. She tilted her face up and, catching her meaning, he lowered his own for a kiss. It was hard to believe that a year ago, she had never met Derek. Her life had always been mapped out for her and blindly, she believed that plan, believed that she would be a spinster queen whose only love was her country.
Breaking the kiss, Cecilia laid her head on Derek's shoulder. She knew better now. By his side was where she was meant to be.
The End
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Notes: (Wipes away a tear) It's finally over! It only took three years... When I first wrote this story I never imagined what it would turn into and what a great response it would get. Thank you thank you thank you to everyone who has reviewed and read and nagged at me to finish this story. Despite the long months of waiting and not writing, I'm glad that I stuck with it.
And…
There is a sequel.
You know. If you really want it.
While this story is more focused on plot, the sequel (set in the future) is going to be more of a character piece. However, a good plot will not be compromised. And here's a summary…
The One Who Knows: The youngest daughter of the legendary "Cinderella," Eliana, or Elia, has a life that is anything but a fairy tale. Lonely but lovely, she knows that she is an unwanted and unnecessary addition to a household that already has one daughter and one son—a child to marry off and the other to inherit the throne. When a dashing foreign prince, the son of the equally famous King Derek and Queen Cecilia, comes to win the hand of her sister, Elia garners more hatred from her family when instead, the prince finds himself falling in love with her…
