THE POISONOUS QUEEN

TWENTY-ONE YEARS AGO IN THE MAGICAL REALM Lady Ruby lungu, wife of lord Davon lungu warden of the Great Mountains in the Crystal Kingdom is known for her Magic. She is one of the few witches who can perform magic using all four elements of nature. She is mated to lord lungu even though she is not his fated mate. After the war that almost wiped out the entire magical realm, her family arranged for her to be mated to lord lungu even though she wanted to wait and find her mate. Her parents convinced her that the possibility of her finding her mate was slim because of the war. But last year after lord lungu found his mate she wished she had not mated with him but what could she do? She already has two daughters with him, the older one is five, and the younger one is three years old. All she can hope for is that the dragon princess does not change her mind about not wanting to be lord Lungu's second mate because If she changes her mind and comes back to the Crystal Kingdom lady lungu will lose everything. Princess Rose has more claim on Lord lungu than Lady Lungu because she is his fated mate. Their bond was blessed by Amoraea and Votalis, the god and goddess of union themselves. "Lady Ruby," Lady Lungu hears someone call her name snapping her out of her mind. She looks around in the garden where she is sitting and finds no one. "Lady Ruby, it's me, Princess Rose. I need your help." Lady Lungu turns around and finds a raven in front of her. "Princess Rose?" Lady Lungu asks in confusion. The last person Lady Ruby expected to hear from is Princess Rose. "Yes, it's me, lady Ruby. I need your help." The Raven responds in Princess Rose's voice. "What kind of help?" Lady Lungu asks. "I can not tell you this way. Can you come meet me in the dark gardens and please don't tell anyone that I contacted you, not even Davon for the safety of your family." Princess Rose says. "Why do you want me to meet you in the dark gardens of all places? Are you planning on killing me and taking my place? Is that why you don't want me to tell anyone? I will not fall for your tricks." "Lady Ruby, listen to me, it's a matter of life and death. If it was not important I wouldn't have contacted you. Please come and meet me, you are my only hope." Princess Rose says desperation in her voice. "Okay, I will come and meet you and I will not tell anyone but if you try anything sinister I will make you regret it." Lady Ruby says. "Thank you so much lady Ruby. I will be waiting for you and please don't tell anyone you are meeting me" Princess Rose says as the raven falls dead on the ground. Lady lungu sighs and goes back into the house. Before lady lungu leaves to meet Princess Rose, she puts a protective spell on herself in case it is a trap. "Are you going somewhere?" Lord lungu asks startling her with his sudden appearance. "Oh, yes, I am going to take a little walk in the dark gardens and maybe gather some herbs in the forest on my way back," Lady says, carefully not to arouse any suspicion. "Are you sure? The way your heart skipped when I came in suggests otherwise." Lady lungu swears in her heart at her mate's statement. She sometimes forgets that he is a very powerful hybrid. Who can hear every single sound, so of course he didn't miss how her heart skipped the moment she heard his voice. "I am fine, I was just so surprised by your presence that my heart skipped. I have been feeling restless lately. I just want to clear my head and get some herbs that are not in my garden." Lady Lungu says to her Mate trying to convince him that everything is alright. "Okay, don't forget to carry guards with you, there is some report that the Brotherhood has recruited the dark witches, you know how those can be. The times are hard and we don't know who to trust anymore, for all we know someone from our ward could be one of them." Lord lungu says. "I don't need any guards, I will be okay. I am not going far so you don't have to worry. I will not be long." Lady Lungu says as she takes a basket she uses for picking herbs. "At least go with one that way I won't worry about your safety." Lord lungu says. "Even if they come along the guards won't be able to go where I am going, you know that most species are afraid of the dark gardens." Lady lungu tries to explain to her mate without letting anything out. "There is nothing I can say that will convince you to carry guards is there?" Lord lungu asks with amusement. Lady Lungu's heart skips a bit at seeing a smile on her mate's face. She rarely sees him smile these past few months. He stopped smiling the day Princess Rose rejected his proposal to be his second mate. And now It's like he is a different person. "No, there is nothing you can do or say to make me change my mind." Lady Lungu says. "Okay, then I will let you go, but please be careful and come back before it gets dark." Lord lungu says as he leaves the room. Lady lungu sighs the moment her mate leaves the room touching her chest. She stays in her potion room for a few minutes to calm her racing heart. After her heart is calm enough she leaves the room and heads to the dark garden. Even though Lady Lungu has agreed to meet Princess Rose in the dark garden. She Is a bit scared of the spirits that still roam the gardens. The dark garden was once the most beautiful and most cherished. It was considered sacred until three years ago when some witches and warlocks cast a forbidden spell to stop the war, the spell worked, and the brotherhood was defeated but the witches and warlocks who performed the spell died after casting it. One of the warlocks was Lady Ruby's grandfather, one of the most powerful warlocks to ever live. The dark garden is still beautiful but most species are afraid of visiting it because of the spell which was cast on its sacred ground. Lady Ruby visits the garden from time to time to be close to her grandfather. As Lady Ruby walks toward the dark garden she can feel someone's eyes behind her. Lord lungu must have told one of the guards to follow. Lady lungu lets out a chuckle as reaches the entrance of the dark garden, the guard will not enter the garden because of fear of the spirits of the dead witches and warlocks like most species do. Lady Ruby notices Princess Rose the moment she enters the dark garden. She looks just as beautiful as ever. Her beautiful long hair is down as always. "Lady Ruby, how are you?" Princess Rose greets her. "I am fine thank you, how are you?" "I am trying." The two women stare at each other for a while not knowing what to say to one another. The last time they spoke, Lady Ruby was begging Princess Rose to agree to become lord Lungu's second mate. That was months ago, they haven't seen each other since then. "Thank you, Lady Ruby, for agreeing to meet me. I know this is not easy for you. I am sure you were not expecting to hear from me at all." Princess Rose says after some time with a sad smile on her face. "Well, it is not every time that my mate's fated mate who happens to be one of the most powerful beings in the realm sends a raven to summon me." Lady Ruby says. "I know I am sorry for what happened the last time we spoke. But I need your help with something." A smile breaks on Lady Ruby's face. "Wow, today must be my lucky day. The greatest hybrid needs my help. So tell me, Princess Rose, what do you need help with?" Princess Rose looks at Lady Ruby with sadness, tears coming out of her eyes. She tries to hold her tears in but she fails. Lady Ruby looks at Princess Rose in confusion not understanding why she is crying. "Princess Rose, are you okay?" Lady Lungu asks, still confused by Princess Rose's tears. "I am fine, I just want all of this to end. I am so tired of all the pain." Princess Rose says between sobs. "What do you mean?" Lady Ruby asks. Princess Rose looks at Lady Ruby and then places her hand on her stomach revealing her pregnancy.