I tugged on my cloak, pulling it closer to my body, keeping it from rustling the leaves. I need to be as silent as possible. 

I walked carefully through the forest, the candle up ahead my only source of light, praying that Edward wouldn't blow it out. Praying he wouldn't realize the crunching leaves where caused by me, not the animals. This was my chance. I couldn't blow it. 

Edward has been leaving the palace for months now, shielded by the darkness. Little did he know I had been watching all along. His trips unsettled me. You can't be going into the forest on your own this late for good reason. But more than anything, Edward has been acting different. He's been quiet. Subdued. Almost as if he had been waiting for something. He's been waiting a while. Three months to be exact. Until today. Today he was happy. Excited. To say it concerned me would be an understatement. 

I continued following Edward as he sped up. All my instincts told me to run back to the palace but I couldn't. Something was happening. In all my nights of watching his forest escapades, I've never seen him walk at such a brisk pace. 

I had a good reason for thinking Edward had changed. In the past, the mention of my upcoming inheritance of the throne would elicit protest from Edward. He believed my claim to the throne was unjust. Despite my being the oldest child, Edward thought he should be King. According to hundreds of years of Mysteria's  history and law, the oldest son got to inherit the throne. My great-grandmother had changed that. She was the first woman to inherit Mysteria's throne. She changed the law, believing that women deserved an equal shot at the throne. This was something that Edward had always resented. He had always assumed that since he was the oldest son, he would inherit the kingdom. Unfortunately for him, it was decided at my 21st birthday that I would be the one to be queen, that all future inheritance will be decided according to our great-grandmother's reforms. Henceforth, the oldest child would inherit the throne. Ever since then, Edward has protested. Argued. Glared at me with such fury and coldness that it could've freeze the sun. Except a few months ago, that had changed. The morning after his first night into the forest, he no longer protested. He had seemingly accepted my rule. My parents were delighted. But I didn't trust him. That much resentment couldn't have just disappeared so suddenly. I knew it was still lurking under his indifferent exterior. 

Suddenly the tiny pinprick of Edwards candle went out. I panicked. What if he found me? Just as I was about to hide behind a nearby tree, I heard rustling. I squinted. Up ahead of me, I could vaguely see Edward entering a tall bush. I waited until the rustling ended, and quickly walked toward the bush. I experimentally stuck my arm inside it, making sure that Edward was truly on the other side. After feeling nothing, I stepped through the bush. I could feel the tiny branches scraping the exposed buts of my skin, my cloak catching on the brambles. Suddenly, my foot got caught on something, tripping me. I managed to catch myself before falling, quickly realizing that I was out of the bush. I got up, praying that by some miracle Edward hadn't heard me. When my eyes adjusted, I could see that I was in a large field, surrounded on all sides by a tall bush. No. Not a bush. A hedge. 

Under the pale light of the crescent moon, I could see Edwards silhouette, standing in the middle of the field. I stepped back, pressing myself against the hedge, ready for a quick escape. But Edward did nothing. He just stood there. 

After a few silent minutes, I decided I should head back home. Just as I was about to turn back, I heard something rustling. Someone stepped out of the hedge on the other side of the field. He walked toward Edward and stood in front of him. Suddenly, there was a lot of rustling. I stood in shock as dozens of people came out of the hedge, all going to stand in front of Edward. What the hell is going on. I slowly stepped back into the hedge, making sure there was enough space between the branches to see properly. Despite the lack of light, I could still vaguely see what was going on. 

Two large sticks were brought to each side of Edward. Suddenly the tops burst into fire. I could now see that all the people were dressed in black from head to toe, excepts for Edward, who was  still in his daily attire. 

Edward raised his arms. "Brothers!" he said loudly, his voice echoing across the field. "Tonight is the night we've been working toward for the last 3 months! Tonight, our kingdom's traditional ways will be restored! For tonight, we dispose the people who have corrupted it so!" 

I gasped. He couldn't mean-. No. Edward would never he was family. 

"Tonight, our army, hundreds strong will reveal itself! Join me as we march towards the palace, bringing with us the fiery wrath of our ancestors, who would be oh so ashamed to see what this kingdom has come too! Join me as we usher in a new age!"

All the people cheered, a sound so loud I was sure it could be heard back at the palace. I remained in the hedge, petrified. 

"But we cannot have a new age while the relics of the old one remain," he continued. "We must first kill the royal family, so that we can start anew!" All of the people roared, raising what must have been muskets into the air. 

I finally came to my senses, doing the only thing I could think of doing. Run. 

I turned around, fighting my way through the hedge. Once on the other side, I ran back as fast as I could towards the palace. I had to warn my family. Edward was coming. He had been planning this for months. Years maybe. When I got to the palace, I shoved through the large back door, something I would never be able to do so easily had adrenaline not been fueling me. I rushed up the stairs and dashed through corridors, making my way to my parent's wing. The sound of my frantic running filled the halls. Everything else was quiet. Too quiet. I ran faster, pushing myself to my limits. 

When I got to my parents wing, I pushed open the doors, yelling as I ran to their bedroom. 

"MOM! MOM! DAD!" I shouted as I raced to where their bedroom was. The door was open. I ran inside, looking around frantically. "MOM!!! DAD!!!" Tears streamed down my face. They couldn't be. They just couldn't. I ran back down their wing, sobbing as I continued to call for my parents. "MOM!!!! DAD!!!! WHERE ARE YOU!!!" 

"Oh Josephine." 

I turned around. 

Edward. 

"Edward! What did you do to mom and dad!" I yelled at him, my fear quickly turning into fury. 

"Oh Josephine," he repeated, "I'm afraid they've been gone for a long time. Maybe even since you ran out of the palace, foolishly deciding to follow me. Maybe if you'd stayed, they would still be here." He said, smirking at me. 

I exploded. 

"YOU LITTLE-" I lunged towards Edward, but was pulled back by two people. They pinned my arms to my sides, holding me back. 

"Oh Josephine. You really must learn to control that temper." Edward gestured to the people behind me. "Brothers. Take her to the dungeon. The new age begins today."

～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～

Hi!!!!!!

So this is really random, but I felt like writing it for some reason. Don't ask why. 

I will continue writing this, I have lots of ideas. I don't really know how to follow this. Ummm... I hope you liked it. Please let me know what I can do to make it better!!!

Love,

Crystal