Page 2 of The Cursed Queen

"I'm sorry you're disappointed, Sera. I know it feels like life has dealt you a bad hand." Vivienne turned me around so she could pull me into her warm embrace. I buried myself in her hug, letting the loving warmth envelop me. This type of loving gesture was only given to me by her, never my mother. It used to bother me in the beginning that my mother would never be loving and nurturing to me, her only child. But my love for Vivienne grew as she regarded me likefamily. Vivienne was more of a mother to me.

"I know your life is not what you would've wanted it to be," she said as her fingers ran through the curls of my hair. "Between your father's death, the curse, and not becoming adragon rider, it seems your problems are weighing you down. But my darling princess, your life is more blessed than you realize."

"How so?" I asked, pulling back from the hug.

Vivienne shrugged with a smirk. "Well, for starters, you're the most beautiful young woman in all of Iferia."

"I am not!" I shouted in outrage, though my cheeks warmed at the compliment.

We both chuckled before she continued. "You're also a princess, and important to the Atheynia Region. Someday, you will take your mother's place as queen, which means all druids will look to you for guidance."

"But how can I rule over all druids if this blasted curse makes me powerless in magic?" I asked, feeling the pressure of taking the crown from my mother soon. My people would want a ruler who would follow in my parents' footsteps. Someone strong enough to lead our people and maintain our stance as the most powerful kingdom in Iferia.

Someone who wasn't me.

My pool of magic wasn't as high as other druids. Casting enchantments was nearly impossible, and even if I were lucky enough to succeed, my energy would drain faster. If that were to happen in the heat of battle, I'd be left vulnerable, and a liability to my knights. I couldn't do that. I would never be strong enough.

"Ruling a kingdom is not always about power," Vivienne countered. "Nor are you weak, Seraphina Warbrook."

Oh dear, she full-named me. That meant my statement truly upset her. Sighing, I walked over to my vanity on the other side of my bedchamber. I sat, looking into the mirror and staring at my reflection, staring into the face of a sad excuse for a princess. My normally olive skin tone grew paler by the day. Dark circlesformed around my silver eyes. My hair still had its vibrancy but felt dry to the touch.

From the corner, I saw Vivienne approaching me. She stood behind me, bringing my hair back before grabbing my brush and slowly running it through my thick curls.

Closing my eyes, I hummed at the pleasurable feel of Vivienne brushing my hair. Already, the tension within my body melted away. I was succumbing to relaxation that I almost didn't hear her voice as she said, "You're so much more than your magic, Sera. You have a heart filled with love. For the Zeffari Kingdom, for all the people in the Atheynia Region, even the dragons. You have a thirst for knowledge, and the drive to do your best, even with the odds stacked against you. I believe, within time, you will make a fine queen. You simply have to follow your heart and know that I will always stand beside you."

"You're too good to me," I choked out, eyes welling with tears. "You deserve more than a life of servitude. I wish you'd accept my offer to buy your freedom. You could then leave this place. I'm sure you'd want to do more with your life than this."

"You see?" Vivienne stopped brushing to point at my reflection. "That right there is why you'll make an excellent queen. Because you care. You have compassion. You have a heart of gold, Sera. Let no one take that away from you. As for me, I couldn't imagine myself being anywhere other than here with you."

She leaned down to press a kiss to my temple. "Now then, let's get you dressed for the day."

Nodding, I stood up and walked to my bed, grabbing the gown Vivienne picked out for me. Once I had it on, Vivienne helped by tying the pink ribbons along the back of my corset. Now fully dressed, I stood in front of the mirror, inspecting my appearance. Opening my jewelry box, I pulled out the necklace my father gave me as a baby, a round black pendant with anamethyst jewel in the center. Vivienne helped secure it around my neck before I went to work painting my face to prepare for the day.

Once I was all dressed up, I moved to the full-size mirror to inspect my appearance. Running my hands down the length of my gown, I took a deep breath to compose myself. Mother and I would have a busy day ensuring preparations for the Dragon Crowning ceremony were in order. Not to mention whatever she had planned for my upcoming birthday. It was time to put on a brave face and continue my duties.

"You know." Vivienne's voice broke me out of my mental trance. "I believe Virgil should be out in the dragon stables right now, and you're not scheduled to meet with your mother for another hour. Maybe if you hurry, you can convince Virgil to let you see the dragons up close. I'll cover for you until you get back."

I gaped at her as hope ignited in my chest. "Really? You would do that for me?"

Vivienne winked as if that were answer enough. "Finish with your breakfast, then hurry on out of here. Make sure the guards don't see you."

"Yes, of course! Thank you. Thank you so much, Vivienne. You're the best."

Vivienne made her way out of my chambers while I scarfed down my breakfast, not tasting anything, but needing to fill my belly. After forcing it all down and drinking the rest of my tea, I cleaned myself off and gave my reflection one last look. Satisfied with my appearance, I rushed out of my chamber and headed down the corridor to the stairs, taking them two at a time before making my way to the dragon stables. Unbeknownst to me, at that moment, the bottle that contained my medicine was left on my nightstand, untouched because I had forgotten to take it.

Sera

My stealth was welcomed as I ducked to every corner whenever I spotted a druid knight in black and royal blue painted armor walking by. Once the coast was clear, I moved towards the castle's right side, where I knew the dragon stables would be, my heels clicking against the stone floor. The roaring of dragons drowned out the cacophony of voices in the distance.

In hindsight, it shouldn't have been this easy for me to bypass the knights to escape the castle. Though I was grateful for not being spotted, I was still the princess of this kingdom, and our lives were in the hands of the knights. I couldn't help feeling conflicted. Maybe there was a way I could convince Mother to tighten security without giving my endeavor away?

Well past the training field was a row of stables used to house the dragons we'd collected. On one side were the dragons already chosen by their riders. The other side was the ones that would be selected during the ceremony. This was where Virgil would be, scoping out the mighty beasts and finding one he believed would suit him best. I dashed forward before anyone could spot me. Up ahead, I saw three knights conversing in front of the gates of the stable farthest to the left. Before they could see me, I ducked behind a tree, looking over my shoulder and waiting until they went their separate ways.

I recognized one knight to be the man I was looking for: Virgil. His body was shielded by the black armor he wore, the white training sash draped from his left shoulder went around the right side of his hip. Once he was knighted as a dragon rider, the sash would be switched to a violet one with royal blue outlines and a symbol of a dragon embroidered in the center. Devoid of a helmet, his pale moon-colored hair was spiked up, and practically glowed with the help of his sun-kissed skin. He was facing the other knights, so I only had a view of his right side, a dimple forming as he laughed at something one of the knights must've said. I sighed dreamily, admiring how handsome he'd grown over the years. Gone was the scrawny young boy I grew up knowing, and in his place stood a man—tall, muscular, and proud. Soon, he'd move on to the next stage of his knighthood.

After five minutes of hiding and waiting, the other two knights finally said goodbye to Virgil and walked away. I waited another minute until they were out of sight before making my presence known and strode over to where my childhood friend was still standing. When he looked my way with those beautiful lavender eyes of his, they widened before whipping his head around to make sure I wasn't spotted by anyone else.

"Hello, Virgil," I said as politely as one would expect from a princess. I even curtsied for the dashing knight in front of me.

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