Luna's Dilemma

“Good morning my princess, I’m here to dress you for the day”. I couldn't help but roll my eyes at the ridiculousness of the maid's words, I am a full grown woman and very capable of putting on my own clothes, why would my father send someone to dress me after telling him so many times that I don't need help?. “You are dismissed”. I respond as I continue to read the book in my hands, not once looking up. I could hear the maid curse under her breath, the thought of disobeying the king haunting her mind. “B… but my princess..”. “I said you are dismissed, don't make me repeat myself”. I make eye contact with the maid, making her go rigid at the weight of my words made heavier by the authoritative glare I give. The maid walking backwards exits my room, her footsteps slow, clearly dreading having to face the king after failing to accomplish her task. I turn back to my book, immersing myself once more in it's pages, finding comfort in the fantasy world I am led into. I groan out loud as I am interrupted, again. “My princess, your father request your presence”. Another maid says with a timid voice, head hung low, aiming to not annoy me more than I already am. I stare daggers into the maid's body before releasing a breath, calming myself down so I don't pour out my pent up irritation on the innocent girl, it's not her fault anyways. “Tell him I’ll be there shortly”. I respond curtly, sluggishly getting up to freshen up, not exactly happy that my reading was cut short. ……. Breakfast at the table is awfully quiet, my father surprisenly not in his usual upbeat mood, the clanking of cutleries making the atmosphere more uneasy. At this point I really wished I had brought my book with me to serve as a distraction to whatever tension seem to loom the table. I reach out to grab my cup of coffee and take a good gulp, but I feel a sensation in my throat and immediately spit out the residue of the liquid in my mouth, my hands flying to my throat as I fall to the ground. My father is beside me in seconds, cradling me in his arms. “Elle!, Elle!!, somebody call the doctor!”. He shouts out in despair, the panic on his face gravely noticeable. I begin to feel my airways close up, I gasp loudly, clutching my neck, my wide panicked eyes meets my dad's tear glazed ones, our fears clear as day. I continue to feel the burning sensation in my chest, as if it was on fire, the pain getting unbearable and my struggle to breathe making it worse. “It burns, it burns”. My voice comes out in a whisper, as I strife to stay conscious, tears flowing down my cheeks, thoughts of how things could escalate this quickly swarming my mind. My dad continues to rock me side to side, repeating assuring words to me while screaming commands at the servants, my heart breaking at the sight. But my efforts become futile as I begin to succumb to the pain, the commotion around me becoming distant as my awareness deteriorates, the last thing I see, a single drop of tear, from my father's eyes, drops on my cheeks. …….. I stir on my bed, slowly opening my eyes but quickly shutting it as a splitting headache shoots through my head, making me dizzy. After a while I attempt to open my eyes once again and thankfully the pain is reduced. With my blurry vision I make out a silhouette of a Wolf?. I quickly sit up on the bed, immediately regretting it due to the heavy pain that hits me afterwards. The quick motion statles the wolf making it turn to see me in a sitting position on the bed, massaging my temple. The wolf immediately turns to my father, rushing at me, a little sparkle in his tired eyes. “Elle, you're ok” he hugs me, squeezing me tight, too tight in my opinion but I didn't want to dampen his mood so I didn't complain. One look at him and I can tell he hasn't had a lick of sleep, for a day or two. “Of course I'm ok dad”. I respond with a small smile. He breaks away from the hug to look at me. “You scared me Hun, I thought I’d lose you…. Again”. His tone sombre as he scans my face, a tiny remnant of the fear I saw before I blacked out still floating in his eyes. I give a small smile, relieved to see him in a better state than last time. “When will you quit blaming yourself, it wasn't your fault dad”. Hoping my words will cushion the heart ache he is currently experiencing. “I…. I know Hun, but you got poisoned, I almost lost you, I should have been more careful”. His eyes glaze over with tears once again, his voice cracking at intervals. My eyes shoot wide, “poisoned?” Is all I could muster, stunned at the reason I was currently bed ridden. His eyes meet mine, releasing an airy sigh. “Yes, poisoned, a maid confessed, that she saw… she saw Dana put something in your cup”. This revelation rattles me to the core, Dana? She has been with us for 10 years, she babysat me so many times that we became close, she knew us, she knew what we had been through, she wouldn't. “No, that… that can't be right, Dana wouldn't hurt me, she loves me, she's said it so many times, she wouldn't lie to me, she..!”. I begin to choke up, starting to hyperventilate, shaking my head, choosing not to believe the betrayal to be true. My father wraps his arms around me, as I continue to whisper “no's” into his shoulder, struggling to keep his composure so he could effectively console me. My dad was right to worry, I wasn't safe from anyone, I almost died at the hands of someone I trusted with my life, I can't even imagine what my dad would've gone through if I hadn't made it. I heard footsteps approaching us, but I didn't bother to look, my dad pulled away, shifting to the side to see who was at the door way. Standing there was a man, a knight, with blood splatter on his face, his eyes still illuminating an amber yellow despite being in his human form. His chest slowly rising and falling, a stoic expression on his face, he takes careful steps towards us. “It is done”. He says with a bow. My dad looks away from the man, training his eyes on our intertwined hands. “Good”. He whispers with a bitter tone. “You can go”. I look away, not having it in me to talk, knowing whose blood splatter is on the man makes my head spin, my stomach churns as he turns and walks away. I can gradually feel the headache increase. “Let me leave you to rest dear”. I nod in understanding, I guess my discomfort was visible to him. I lay in bed, the atmosphere tranquil, suddenly feeling drowsy, the tiredness from all the earlier crying coupled with being in bed all day. I close my eyes immediately, falling asleep despite the pain coursing through my body. …….. A ray of light shining on my face causes my eyes to flutter open, sight still a bit blurry. I look around my room, first seeing the pills and glass of water beside it. But as my orbs continue to roam, I jerk up in surprise on seeing a pair of amber yellow eyes stare back at me. Attempting to get rid of the remnants of sleepiness, I rub my face and immediately fix my eyes on the silhouette in my room to see the same amber orbs, belonging to a strange man. I swiftly move backwards on my bed in terror, ready to scream for my dad. “Who are you?”