Rocío enjoyed the breeze on her face, running through her hair and giving her fresh crisp air to breathe. She'd lost track of how long she'd been standing there, but it had been long enough that her fingertips burned in the cold spring air. Her eyes had already adjusted to the darkness of the evening, making sense of the blobbed shapes of the dark trees, and the grooves of the cobblestone floors, and she began to hug herself to keep warm. She couldn't force herself to face her father just yet, unable to look at his bright smile. Ever since Renata's passing, he'd kept his distance, staying clear of her and practically never looking her in the eyes, not even during family dinners. The night of her own debut, with only a handful of guests, her father wasn't to be found among them.

Rocío took a deep breath, the cold air entered her lungs and sobered her up from her messy thoughts. She was glad no one had interrupted her after the man had left, even her friends had known to give her space. She found the contrast of her solemn retreat to the party behind the doors was rather comedic, but she didn't laugh.

"Rocío, what are you doing here all by yourself?"

Rocío jumped at the voice of her sister. She turned, looking as if she'd been caught with her hand in the cookie jar, ashamed. "E-Elena," she stuttered. "Shouldn't you be inside?"

Elena frowned as she crossed her arms over her chest, the poofy sleeves of her dress flattening where they'd crossed. "I could ask you the same thing..." Then her frown softened and so did her voice as she asked, "Is everything alright?"

Rocío gulped and nodded, fixing her dress to soothe herself. "Of course, is there any reason it shouldn't be?" She tilted her head and raised an eyebrow.

Her sister sighed. "No...are you still feeling tired?"

Rocío gave a bashful half-laugh before discretely biting the inside of her cheek. "Well, yes..."

Elena stepped towards her and took a hold of her arm, pulling her towards the ballroom. "Well, you should come back in. First, it's horribly cold out here and you could catch a cold if you stay out any longer. Second, you promised you'd stay at my debut ball the whole night."

Rocío wrapped her arm around her sister's and nodded. "Very well, let's head inside," she agreed, "And I will keep my promise, I just stepped out for fresh air. That's all, believe me."

"Perfect!" Elena's face immediately lit up with mischief. "Because you won't believe who I saw!" She squealed in delight.

Rocío knew her sister too well when she squealed in such a manner, it had to be some young man on her mind. "Who did you see?" She asked more out of duty than curiosity.

"I mean," Elena pouted her lips, "I don't exactly know who he is..." She stopped just as they entered the ballroom again, taking Rocío's hands and squeezing them.

"Then?" Rocío's nose stung as the warmth of the ballroom seeped into her body, caressing her ice-cold skin and making her loosen her stiff posture. The music flooded into her ears almost immediately and so did the sound of the chatter around them. Still, she preferred the silence of the spring night beyond the balcony doors.

"Oh, he's divine Rosie," Elena sighed romantically, "you must see him!" She gushed. Elena pulled Rocío through the crowd, making sure to avoid the dancefloor that was crowded with couples.

Rocío stopped dead in her tracks, pulling back Elena abruptly. "Elena," Rocío sighed, "I'm not keen on meeting men right now." Her free hand lifted to pinch the bridge of her nose.

"Rocío, I promise you, this is different, all I want is for you to see him, we might not be able to actually meet him because it would probably be hard for us to be introduced. But trust me! He has the most dreamy eyes." Elena held her hands to her heart as she stared at the ceiling. "And he's tall, he's got gorgeous wavy dark hair to his shoulders, the most beautiful eyes you've ever seen, and–" she looked back at Rocío with hearts in her eyes, "–he's a knight!" She all but squealed.

"Elena, you must behave, this is unbecoming of a lady who has just debuted," Rocío scolded as she crossed her arms over her chest. "What would people think if they heard you talking like that?"

Elena rolled her eyes. "Yeah, whatever, mother," she groaned. "Just come look at him, it's all I ask of you!" Her blue eyes began to plead. Rocío didn't know how her sister managed to look like a cute puppy when she begged with her big blue eyes.

Rocío sighed in defeat and followed her sister to the northern side of the ballroom where there were a few groups of men scattered about talking amongst one another. She caught sight of her brother talking to a man a little taller than him who was dressed in the dark green royal knights' uniform and was leaning against the wall next to the doors of another balcony quite leisurely, with a drink in his hand. She couldn't see the man's face but looking at the smile on her brother's face she knew he must've been his friend. It was nice to see her brother talking to his fellow knights.

"This is perfect!" Elena squeaked, stopping in her tracks once more.

Rocío turned to her with a frown on her face. "What is?"

"Santi is acquainted with him! He can introduce us!" She couldn't help but do a quick happy dance.

Rocío's eyes grew as she shot her head back to her brother and his companion. "No, no I agreed to see him, not meet him."

Elena groaned, "Oh Rocío, can't you just be fun for once? You're always so boring!" She huffed, "I'm not asking you to marry him! We are just going to introduce ourselves, that's all. Where's the harm in that?" She crossed her arms over her chest. "Now come on!" She fumed.

"You said he's handsome, why don't you go alone, that way his eyes are solely on you," Rocío suggested, doing her very best to avoid greeting unknown men.

"No," she scoffed, "he's clearly older than me, so I think he'd be perfect for you."

"Seriously, Elena? This is what your goal was? To set me up with some man?"

Elena pouted her lips as she avoided her sister's gaze.

Rocío gave her sister an even look. "I told you, I'm not interested in courting anyone."

Her younger sister glared at her, beautiful blue eyes turning into icicles. "You're coming with me, and that's final."

Against her will, Rocío was pulled towards her brother and the other man. Oh how she dreaded meeting new people. She could swear that Elena was doing this under their mother's request, or maybe it was just a plan Elena had masterminded all on her own...she couldn't exactly put it past her with how mischievous she could be.

It took merely a few seconds for them to arrive where their brother was, but each of those seconds made Rocío's stomach churn in dread and her heart sink. She'd rather eat dirt.

"Santi!" Elena called just as they arrived before the two young men.

Rocío avoided her brother's gaze as he turned towards them. She wanted to turn around and run back to the solitude of the balcony she had been in less than five minutes prior. Maybe she should've gone to bed in the first place and her sister wouldn't have bothered her. Maybe she could've been tossing and turning on her bed instead.

"Elena, Rocío," Santiago's smile was heard through his voice. "Oh I should probably introduce you!"

Rocío took a deep breath and mentally encouraged herself before she looked up at her brother, plastering a smile on her face, but avoided so much as glancing at the man next to him at all costs.

"I would like you to meet Marquis Félix de Valentina, fifth son of the Duke of Zorro," Santiago introduced as he turned towards the man. "Marquis Félix, these are my sisters; Rocío and Elena."

Both Elena and Rocío gave a small curtsy. As they stood straight, the man reached out to Elena first, taking her lace-gloved hand and raising it slightly in a greeting. "Congratulations, Lady Elena."

Elena's smile was as wide as it could be, her eyes had become like the crescent moon that lit the night. "Thank you, Marquis Valentina," she giggled bashfully, causing Rocío to roll her eyes.

"Please, I prefer if you'd call me Sir Félix."

Once he let go of Elena's hand, Rocío knew it was her turn to greet him. She closed her eyes briefly and opened them as he reached out to her. She turned to him and let him take her hand. As he raised it, she forced herself to look up at him.

Her heart caught in her throat and she froze.

"It is lovely to meet you, Lady Rocío, your brother speaks highly of you." There was a soft smile on his face, brightening his already handsome features.

But Rocío couldn't look away from him.

His eyes. His eyes.

Those soulless, lifeless, cruel emeralds she saw in her dreams. They stared down at her. They might not have looked as they did when they haunted her at night, they might have been full of kindness and light, but she knew. It was him.

She couldn't speak as she drew a shaky breath. Her hand dropped with the weight of a war horse once he let go, falling limp by her side. A sensation that felt like burning flames travelled from where their fingers had met, up her arm, and into her chest, igniting her heart like a steam engine, causing it to beat wildly. She couldn't look away from those dreaded eyes of his but she knew she had to.

"Rocío, are you alright? You look awfully pale..." The voice of her brother finally pried her eyes from the man before her.

"I–" she was breathless. "I–I should excuse my-myself."

Concern knitted Santiago's eyebrows and he tilted his head. "What's wrong?"

Rocío glanced at her sister, noticing her equally worried expression. "I..."

She heard Marquis Félix say something but she couldn't dare look at him or hear him past the ringing that began in her ears.

"I'm not feeling well...I should...I should go." The room was starting to spin around her and she did her best to keep her breathing in check.

"Should I escort you?" Her brother asked, taking a step towards her..

Rocío shook her head. "I can manage," she breathed.In, out, in, out, she directed herself.

"I'll inform Leticia to see to you," Elena offered, and after Rocío nodded, they let her go.

She somehow managed to make it to the hallway while keeping her composure, but as soon as she was far enough from the ballroom, she couldn't contain herself. She began to breathe erratically, her quick hoarse breaths were not enough to make her lungs feel satiated and instead she needed more and more air. The room was waltzing around her and she leaned on the wall, slipping to the floor once her knees could no longer support her weight and that of her dress. She brought her hands to her collarbone as if they somehow would keep her composed. Her vision blurred and within seconds the sobs escaped from her mouth, the tears streamed down her cheeks and there was nothing that could control her.

The hallway was filled with her cries and she wanted to get up and move, but her body had lost all its energy. She rocked herself forward and backwards, hitting her back against the wall rhythmically so as to ground herself. Between the sobs and her erratic breathing her throat had become hoarse and she could hardly breathe, making it worse.

It was him. He was real. It wasn't just a dream. He would kill them. He would kill her.

The dream flashed through her mind. The tall flames, the ashes and embers around her, the fearful look in Leticia's eyes, and the horrible knowledge of the death of her family.

Most importantly, however, she remembered his eyes.

Those soulless emerald eyes.

She started to see light and dark spots in her vision and before she knew it, her vision went black.