A boy of nine he was when he laid eyes on her for the first time. Glued to her father's side, little hands clenched onto his mantle, grief shadowing over her angelic face, witnessing the flower-covered glass coffin being lowered to the ground, tears overflooding her opal-blue eyes softly glinting under the afternoon sun.

So captivating, Suarus's sorrow was regal, delicate, and bewitching.

It was on that day, at that very moment, that he knew she would be the one to rule over his heart for as long as he drew breath—a goddess, promising him everlasting love. 

Lanesirus looked down at his fragmented visage through the looking glass shattered across on the floor of his dim bed-chamber, his mind drifting once again to the past.

Laying on a blanket of dandelions in the vast meadow, a gentle breeze tickling her golden curls,  bathing under the dancing sunlight escaping the branches above, her gaze melting into his,  their fingers entwining, her lips coyly muttering the words he yearned to hear for so long. 

What a wretched fool he was, drunken by love. Blinded from seeing the change happening in front of him.

He kneeled, glass cracking under the pressure of his knee, reaching for the largest piece closest to him, holding it between his thumb and forefinger, examining its sharpness before pressing its tip on his palm, piercing through, slitting across, slow and steady. Beads of crimson welled to the surface, dripping, splatting over the marble floor.

Like fire, the pain traveled through his arm, down his fingers, yet it was not enough to wake him up from the dream he had lived. 

He squinted, observing the bobbing greenish vein of his wrist.

A slit there will drain him slowly out of life, giving him enough time to relish on her memories. What was living worth if not lived with her.

He rose off the ground, a bitter laugh escaping his lips, releasing the piece of glass, watching it splinter, glittering by his bare feet.

Such a cowardly notion from a renowned hero of the realm. The kingdom will not only be ruled by a fool but a cowardly king as well.

The purple hue of the rising sun cascaded into his chamber, gliding over the ground, touching the scattered glass, temporarily blinding him. With its shock came the recollection, cold and startling—pieces of a lost memory emerging from underneath the thick mist of anger clouding his mind.

Suarus gasping for her life, disappearing into the overlapping waves of bright green, the agony of her suffocation alive in his chest.

He exhaled, beads of sweat across his ashen face.

What was it that he saw, a forgotten dream? A vision? Or was it his deepest desire for revenge?

Lanesirus moved away from the light, dropping himself onto the bed, bloody hand reaching over the rippled bedsheet, reaching for the sun pendant, the white ribbon tied to its chain.

Bitterness rose to his mouth. His lips muttering Suarus's name over and over, his moist eyes following the swinging pendant before shifting to the darkest corner of the chamber.

He must be slipping into madness because it was she who he saw hiding in the shadows.

His lips parted, breathing her name. He saw her move, taking a step forward towards him, vanishing with the abrupt knock on the door.

'Lany, are you well?' Nelus's muffled voice came through.

He forced his eyes shut, a deep sigh escaping his lungs.

'I am well, sister. What is it that you want at such an hour?' he replied, glancing at the shadows.

'Can you open the door, please?'

Lanesirus frowned, knowing that his persistent sister will not be satisfied until she saw him. He huffed, standing, taking a long look at the pendant in his hand before carefully placing it in the drawer of his nightstand, hiding his injured hand behind his back.

Nelus stepped back, hands folded over her chest, peering into the ajar door.

'Are you well, brother?' she asked, studying his face.

'Yes, what is it that you want? Why aren't you asleep?'

'I heard a loud thud and realized it came from your room.'

'The floor mirror tipped and broke. There is no need to be alarmed. The servants will clean it up later. You can go back to sleep.'

Her brother was not telling the truth. She knew him too well to know. Unable to resist, she forcefully pushed the door, casting him aside, walking into the chamber, gaping, a hand over her mouth, wide eyes traveling back to her brother, scanning his towering figure.

'Who's blood is this?' she asked shakily under her breath.

A long moment of silence dominated over them before he finally brought forward his hand.

She exclaimed, reaching for it, inspecting the wound.

'A little cut from the mirror. Nothing serious little sister, it's not gonna kill me.' he chuckled.

His sister's eyes welled, eyebrows frowned, dashing towards him, hugging him tightly.

'Don't you joke about such a thing, ever!' she uttered, burying her face into his chest.

A sullen look shadowed over his face as he glanced down at her, his arms wrapping her.

'Forgive me...' he whispered.