A Kiss A Day

2: The Prince

"You fight like a princess!" Garrett laughs and immediately gets a snowball into his face. The snowball was without its usual ice shard inside and was not thrown too strong, but hard enough to shut his mouth before she launched her next attack which sweeps her sparring partner off his feet and lets her put a sword made of ice to his neck.

"That's cause I am a princess," she smirked and looked to her right where the twins, Eliana and Dalton were trying and failing to stifle a laugh. She realized then that it was a mistake. She was distracted for a second. And a second was all it took for Garrett to knock her down. He skillfully swiped the sword off his neck with his water orb, kicked her legs, and moved on top of her, holding her hands over her head, firmly keeping it apart so that she can't summon her ice.

Breathing heavily, she was suddenly aware that he was too close than he should have been. It made her blush, "And the prince always beats the princess," Garrett wriggles his eyebrows and smirked.

The Princess from the fallen House of a prominent Duchy, struggled against the Northern Prince's hold in vain. "Not fair! I already won!"

"I told you, in real life situation, you cannot hesitate or get distracted like that or you'll be dead!" Garrett reminded her in a very strict-teacher-like manner which irked the princess.

"You know well enough that in real life situation, if you weren't the prince, the moment my sword touched your neck, you're dead." She countered with a grunt.

"Oh really? Alright, say I wasn't a prince? What if I was only Garrett, your childhood friend?" He raised an eyebrow and she opens her mouth to speak but she couldn't answer.

"Even then, Peia!" Garrett frustratingly states, "your life is worth more than mine. You're the Dragon Maiden! Never hesitate if the choice is between your life or mine." He implored the princess.

And that is why he will be a great King. He has his priorities straight. It's no wonder the House of Ceres has the strongest army in Cyranda. Their commander is always calm and centered, logical and decisive. He should have been the Chosen, not me, the princess thought.

Growing up together in the palace, it was ingrained to the four of them as nobles to choose duty and loyalty to Cyranda above all. But she always found it hard to reconcile how it was her duty to choose her life over that of her friends and family.

"If you die, the dragon dies with you. And we cannot afford that in these times of war."

She rolled her eyes and huffed which made Garrett smirk. He knew that it was her signature move that means she understood but was just too stubborn to admit she lost.

Garrett chuckled before letting her go. He stood up and held out his hand to her. The princess stared at it for a moment, contemplating whether to take his hand and pull him down as a last ditch effort to win.

"Don't even think about it," Garrett warns her as if he read her mind. Pointing with his thumb without looking to his back at the hourglass in Dalton's hand, "Time's up, I win. You're wearing blue at the wedding." He winked.

She groaned as she imagined walking down the aisle in a deep blue dress instead of the traditional black. Garrett wanted her to wear a color that matched their eyes. She sighed as she took his hand and bounced back up, dusting herself off before crossing her arms to pout at the prince. "But that wedding dress your mother gave me is so gorgeous!"

"But you look gorgeous in any dress anyways," Garrett cooed. He was a head taller than her, so it was easy to ruffle her long silver hair. A gesture he always did since childhood to stop her from pouting and accede to his requests.

"Fine! But if I get in trouble for wearing a different color, I'm telling the council that it was you who made me do it,"

"I'm the prince. What can they do?" Garrett snorts and comfortably rested his arm on her shoulder. Walking back to the castle, he wrapped his arm around her neck in an embrace before grinning widely at the princess.

She looked up to her prince and couldn't resist but to mirror his smile when a sharp pain pierced her chest.

"Ahh!" she screamed, dropping to her knees and clutching at her heart.

"Peia? Peia!" Garrett shook her with alarm and concern. "What is it? What hurts? Say something! Was it me? Did I hurt you earlier? Please, Cassiopeia! What's wrong?"

He almost never calls her by her full name which means that he is really worried and scared at the moment. Barely able to breathe, she shakes her head in an effort to tell him it's not his fault. She clawed at her chest where the scorching pain seem to originate. Garrett tears off the top buttons of her shirt to help Cassiopeia look for the source of the pain and see her dragon mark glowing in dark blue light. Garrett immediately backs away and lets go of her like he had been burned.

"Eliana!" He called her lady-in-waiting who was already running towards them when she saw Peia collapsed to the ground.

"What happened?" She asked breathlessly as she inspects the princess, "she's freezing!" She quickly removed her coat and put it on Peia's trembling shoulders, rubbing her hands together and placing it on the princess' cheeks who is losing consciousness. "We have to get her to a fire, she's so cold." Eliana tried to lift her up, "Uhh, a little help please!" She looked at the prince who was still glued to the ground. Seeing his pale face and haunted eyes, and the glowing mark on the princess' exposed chest, she realized what's happening and instead looked at her brother for help. Dalton immediately carried the princess bridal-style back to her chambers.

Peia woke up four hours later, sweating in her bed where she is covered in fur and thick quilt, candles on her bedside drawer were lit and her fireplace was burning high.

"What happened?" She asked Eliana who was sitting in the corner, fanning herself.

"You fell in love," Eliana deadpanned. "I can't believe you didn't tell me!" She looked properly crossed.

"What do you mean?" the princess asked innocently but unconsciously put a hand over her mark.

"Seriously? Your mark cannot lie! And with Prince Garrett of all people?"

Just when she thought she couldn't feel any hotter, her face warmed with embarrassment. "Does he know?"

"I think so, he wouldn't touch you earlier once he saw the mark. He was so afraid that his mere presence would hurt you that he hasn't even entered this room to check on you."

Mortified, Peia covered her face with her hands.

"So, I guess he's not your tether."

The princess peeked through her fingers at her friend, "I guess not." She whispers before completely dropping her hands to stare at Eliana who shared the sadness in her eyes.

The Mark of the Chosen is both a blessing and a curse. A blessing in that the Mark means you are chosen by the patron Saint of the North, the Water God, to be a worthy ruler of the Kingdom and thus gifting the bearer of the Mark the enhanced power of the water element: ice. It is a curse, at least for Cassiopeia, that the Mark also grants the bearer the power to control the great immortal beast that will reside inside the body of the Chosen: the Cerulean Dragon, with all its divine powers.

According to legend, the gods were threatened by the Dragons' immense powers as it could rival their own, and so they cursed the beasts and split their souls. The dragon is bound to forever seek love that is only found with its other half. Their other half are called Tethers because they act as chains for the dragon. Finding them makes the dragon vulnerable. Though the beast regain their full power, once united, the death of the tether becomes the death of the dragon. And there is an irresistible pull to unite with the tether at the mere sight of them. And while it is possible to go about life without ever meeting the tether, loving and being with anyone other than the tether will kill the dragon along with its vessel like slowly being poisoned.

Eliana stood up and walked over to sit on the bed and hugged Cassie. "I'm so sorry, honey." She consoled the now sobbing princess. "I should have known the moment you started having chest pains around him." She rubbed her back, "are you sure you still want to get married?"

Peia looked up, "of course!" She wiped her tears. "Nothing changes. We're still at war, we still need the prince's army. This marriage alliance is the only way to save our people."

Eliana only saw determination in the princess' eyes, no fear or any hint of self-preservation. She hugged her tight. "But what if your power consumes you like this again because you marry someone who's not your tether?"

"It doesn't work that way, silly!" Peia giggles in between sniffs and bumped their heads together, "What's forbidden is to love and be with someone who's not my tether. If anything, I'm now certain that I won't die tomorrow after the wedding... because I'm marrying someone I don't love, the Western Prince of the neighboring Empire of Drakonia."