A week went by before anyone could notice.

Caroline and Phoebe were thinking of ways to contact Cheryl and Violet.

Margaret and Andy were celebrating the fact that the latter was free.

Lux had arrived at Daniel's kingdom and was looking for Tristan, who was nowhere to be found. She didn't have anything of his either, so she couldn't really track him with any sort of spell.

Cheryl and Violet were getting ready to continue their trip, unaware of the fact that Phoebe had no way of contacting them.

Crystal and Scott were getting ready for a ball that was about to go terribly wrong.

Initially, they were going to go dressed in their normal clothes but when the innkeeper's granddaughters found out, they practically kidnapped Crystal to give her a makeover. They would attend themselves, but they were grounded about something they didn't really clarify, and decided to make sure that at least two people, who were going, would have fun.

It all happened while Crystal and Scott were discussing the ball a few hours before they were supposed to attend.

“Did you say that you're going to the ball?”, one of the innkeeper's granddaughters interrupted them.

“Yes, are you?”, Crystal asked her.

“I wish! Grandpa won't let me or any of my sisters attend... We are grounded.”, she replied bitterly.

“What did you do?”, Scott narrowed his eyes at her.

“Long story. It includes dirty dishes, a cactus and a break-up that went really wrong.”, the girl shook her head bitterly. “Anyway, what are you going to wear?”

Crystal was curious about the details of how the girls got themselves grounded, but didn't dare ask. “Whatever we're wearing, I guess...”, she shrugged.

“No way!”, the girl covered her mouth. “Anastasia! We have an emergency!”, she called.

Scott and Crystal exchanged a worried glance. “What?”, Scott asked in confusion.

“Okay, so my sister and I bought our dresses for the ball before we got ourselves grounded, but they're just going to go to waste now... How about we give you one of them?”, the girl clasped Crystal's hands. Scott eyed her suspiciously.

“I don't know...”, Crystal muttered.

“It will be our pleasure, really!”

“What about my friend?”

“Right.”, the girl clicked her tongue. “Anastasia! Grandpa! Get over here, dammit!”, she called.

“What's your name again?”, Scott asked her.

“Teresa.”

“What do you want?”, another girl, presumably her sister, stormed towards them.

“She said she's going to the ball.”

“So?”, Anastasia tilted her head.

“In her current clothes.”, Teresa hissed.

“Oh, you're definitely not going to the ball dressed like that.”, Anastasia agreed with her sister. Crystal felt a little offended.

“Grandpa!”, Teresa screamed.

“What is it?”, her grandfather yelled from another room.

“I need your help!”, she yelled again.

Her grandfather grumbled and came in. “You have ten seconds to tell me what you want.”

“Help this guy get dressed for the ball, because there's no way we're letting him go in the clothes he's wearing right now.”, Teresa rushed.

“Wh--”

“Thanks!”, she said before her grandfather got the chance to reply, then grabbed Crystal's wrist and dragged her to the room she shared with her sister.

Crystal kept laughing hysterically. Scott was frozen.

“So... You're going to the ball, huh?”, the inkeeper asked him. He nodded. “Are you going as friends, or as something else?”

“I don't know, but it's probably going to mean goodbye. She doesn't know though.”, Scott sighed.

“Oh... Well, then, you should look good. That's the only way it will be a good bye.”, the old man chuckled. “Come on.”, he motioned at Scott to follow him. Scott obliged.

“I don't think there's any way it's going to be good.”, he sighed.

“Then why is it going to be there at all?”

“It's complicated.”

“It always is.”


Meanwhile, Anastasia and Teresa were having a fight with Crystal's hair.

“How long has it been since you brushed it?”, Teresa asked.

“I don't know... I- ouch!”, Crystal exclaiming, touching her head. Anastasia slapped her hand away.

“Don't touch it.”

“But it hurts!”

“Wait... Are those leaves in your hair?”, Teresa's eyes widened.

“Probably...”, Crystal cringed.

“What's going on in your life?”, Anastasia asked in surprise.

The princess sighed. “You wouldn't believe me, even if I told you.”

“Alright, then, keep it to yourself.”, Teresa chuckled.

“So... What's going on between you and that guy you're with?”, Anastasia asked again.

“Scott? Nothing, we're just friends.”, Crystal blushed. “At least I think so... I don't know...”

“So... It's complicated.”, Teresa concluded.

“You could say that, yeah.”, Crystal agreed.


About an hour later, the two sisters were finishing off with Crystal's hair.

“I know it was stupid of us to do your hair first, but we thought the dress would take longer...”, Teresa muttered.

“We were obviously wrong.”, her sister added.

“Okay, so we have these two...”, Teresa led Crystal to the closet and showed her two dresses.

They were both long, down to the ankles, but that's about how similar they were.

One was dark blue with deep red sides and long sleeves, while the other one was light gray with small, silver flower patterns.

“This is a tough one...”, Crystal muttered. “They're both beautiful!”, she told the girls. “Are you sure you don't want to keep them for some other occasion? I could just to with what I'm wearing, really!”

“No way! Choose one or we'll have to choose for you.”, Anastasia glared at her.

“Come on!”, she pouted. She felt as if she was taking advantage of the two girls, despite their immense desire to help her out.

“Crystal, let me rephrase that; do you want to look good to impress Scott a bit? I mean, he's obviously head over heels for you already and you hadn't brushed your hair in a month. Imagine what his reaction will be if you show up all fancy.”, Teresa told her.

“Oh, shut up Teresa... Don't listen to her. Dress up for yourself, don't feel the need to be validated by some guy. Do it to feel good yourself, everything and everyone else is optional.”, Anastasia told her.

“Fine...”, Crystal grumbled. “The gray one.”, she sighed in defeat.

“Great!”, Anastasia cheered. “Let's get you dressed up.”


Scott was impressed by the clothes the innkeeper presented him with. They were fancy, but also simple enough and perfect for the occasion.

“I haven't worn this in many years and don't think I'll wear them again any time soon... You're free to keep them if you want.”, the old man shrugged.

“Thank you, but I couldn't possibly do that.”, Scott replied.

“Oh, please! Stop getting on my nerves. Just put the damn clothes on and get out of here. I'm only doing this out of guilt for not letting my granddaughters go to the goddamn ball.”


Scott didn't believe that, but didn't say anything.

He put on the white shirt and dark gray vest Mr Fawn (that was the innkeeper's name) gave him.

“There you go! Now do something about that nest in your head.”, Mr Fawn cringed.

“That was a little offensive.”, Scott said jokingly.

“The entire world is offensive! You have to get over it or it will keep ruining your life! And, trust me, life stops being better at some point, when you've reached the best you can have. It's the worst that's never ending. You can keep falling down the dark pit, hit the bottom and then keep digging. You can drown in misery, but you can never truly swim in happiness.”

“It sounds like you're speaking from experience.”

“I'm so old that I can only talk from experience. There's not much my eyes haven't seen.”, the old man shook his head.


Scott finished his hair off and sat on a chair in the room.

A couple of minutes passed, when he heard voices from outside.

“Would you look at that! They finished up fast.”, Mr Fawn said proudly and walked out on the lobby as his granddaughters came down the stairs. “Come on.”, he told Scott, who got up and approached him.

Thats when Crystal started going down the stairs, trying really hard not to trip over her dress.

Her hair had been braided and caught up in a loose bun.

He couldn't stop staring at her.

“Okay, you're making me feel awkward...”, she told him.

“Sorry...”, he muttered, looking away. “You look beautiful.”, he blushed.

“You too.”, she blushed even harder.

“Are you ready to go?”, he asked her. She turned around and glanced at the other two girls, who winked at her.

She nodded. “Let's go show these nobles how to party.”, she smiled.

“Have fun!”, the Fawn family told them as they headed out of the inn.


When they arrived at the palace, the gates were open and people were already hanging out outside in the gardens. Crystal and Scott went inside immediately.

They spent most of their time near the buffet, until they felt stuffed and Crystal managed to pluck up the courage to ask Scott to dance with her.

“So? Are we going to dance or what? This is a ball, after all.”, she told him.

“Uh, sure...”, he replied shyly.


When they started dancing, though, they stared at each other awkwardly.

“I don't know how to dance...”, Crystal burst out laughing.

“Me neither.”, Scott chuckled. “Let's figure it out as we go.”

“Fine by me...”


They didn't figure it out. They kept stepping onto each other and on everyone else around them, and eventually gave up and went out on an empty balcony, to get away from all the people who were glaring at them.

“Here, check this out...”, Crystal told Scott. She opened her palm and a white rose sprouted out. She started giggling like crazy.

“What's so funny?”

“It tickles.”, she confessed. “Here...”, she took off the thorns and placed the rose on Scott's ear, then smiled goofily.

“Um... Thanks?”

“You're welcome!”, she grinned.


They turned to stare down at the small city. Crystal laid her head on Scott's shoulder and he wrapped his arm around hers.

And after a few moments of silence, when they turned around to look at each other, they couldn't help but start leaning in again, in another attempt to meet each other's lips.

Don't do it, you'll only make matters worse, Scott's inner voice reminded him. You don't want to break her hear any more.

So he stopped again, and pulled away.

“I'm sorry, princess... I can't do it.”, he frowned.

“You don't have to apologise. I get it.”, she placed her hand on his shoulder.

You really don't, he thought again.

“It's getting cold. Let's go back inside.”, he smiled weakly at her.

They walked in just as the king got everyone's attention and started making a speech about how grateful he was for all the people that showed up and thanked them all.

Crystal couldn't focus on his words; all she could think of is how much Daniel resembled Alastor.

“Princess, it's okay. It's not him.”, Scott told her, as if he was reading her mind.

“I know, but he looks like him.”, she bit her lip.

“It's not Alastor. Calm down.”, he took ahold of her hand and started rubbing it with his thumb. She nodded, closing her eyes.

“He even sounds like him.”, she said after a while.

“I know, but it's not him. Alastor is back in his palace, sitting on his throne and wrecking things because you finally got away from him. He can't get to you anymore.”, he reassured her.

“Yeah. You're right. I shouldn't let him get in my head.”, she replied stubbornly.


After Daniel was done talking and the people scattered all over again, Crystal and Scott returned to the buffet for another snack.

Then Scott started staring at something across the room. “I'll be back in a bit. Don't go anywhere.”, he told Crystal.

“Okay...”, she replied. She was curious but didn't get the chance to say anything because Scott walked away. She lost him in the crowd after that and gave up looking.

But he started taking too long. She lost track of how much time had passed and she was getting worried.

So, naturally, she started looking for him. After realising that he'd left the particular room, Crystal sneaked past a couple guards and up a flight of stairs, then started roaming the corridors, looking for Scott.

A few minutes later, she stopped abruptly when she heard him shouting at someone.

“You and your brother are the same! You don't care about others think as long as you have your little throne and crown to show off your power!”

“Wath your mouth, Scott! I'm nothing like Alastor! I'm willing to grant my daughter her freedom, I just want to keep her safe until this whole thing dies out! My brother is more dangerous than ever!”, she heard none other but Daniel Cornel shout back.

“Oh, please! Did you even ask of that's what she wants?”, Scott yelled again.

“It's a matter of safety! And dont forget that I wasn't the one to kidnap my own nephew and raise him as my son! And neither did I track down my well hidden niece to also kidnap her and feed her the lie that she's my daughter!”

What?!, Crystal stifled a gasp.

“Did you even try to take your son back? You knew Alastor had him, but you didn't seem to care up until now, when you want to take the strategical advantage away from your brother!”

“You think I knew where he was? That witch, Lux, had cast a confusion spell on everyone! Olivia was never pregnant a second time! The only kid she ever had with Alastor was Caroline!”

“And you want to tangle up your daughter in this mess? Why can't you just leave her and Tristan alone?”

“Agnes and Grayson will only be safe here, with me. Alastor wouldn't dare cross the border let alone approach my own home.”

“No matter what names you gave them when they were infants, you'll never change the fact that their names are Crystal and Tristan now. Not Agnes and Grayson. As far as your people know, Agnes and Grayson died sixteen years ago.”


Crystal's hand slipped from the doorknob and accidentally pushed the door open. She stood there, frozen and unable to say a word.

Scott and Daniel were just as shocked.

“Princess, let me explain--”, Scott started. Crystal shook her head in silence and started walking away. “Crystal, wait!”, he ran after her. Daniel followed closely behind.

“Leave me alone Scott!”, she yelled at him.

“Princess, please--”

“No! I don't want to hear another word! I've heard enough!”, she started running down the stairs, careful not to trip over and fall.


Then she headed straight for the gate and walked out on the garden, wiping her tears.

With blurry eyes, she managed to recognise someone she thought she'd never see again.

“Tristan?!”, she exclaimed.

“Crystal?!”, he rushed towards her. “What's wrong? Why are you crying?”, he asked her immediately. She stared at him, sobbing, but clearly making out the dark bags under his eyes and the exhaustion I'm his posture.

“We have to get out of here.”, she shook her head.

“What are you talking about? I'm here to talk to our uncle--”

“He's not our uncle, Tristan.”, she interrupted him. She assumed that Scott had lost her in the crowd.

He looked taken aback for a second, but then his expression turned neutral again. “How did you find out?”, he asked her.

“You knew about this?!”

“Violet told me everything after we got drunk one night. I acted like it never happened, mainly because it made too much sense and was too painful to think about. She'd been travelling with our mother, so she knew.”


Daniel and Scott barged outside and ran towards them when they spotted them.

“Tristan? What the hell are you doing here?”, Scott asked him.

“Let's just go.”, Crystal sobbed at her brother, pulling him away.

“Did he make you cry?”, Tristan asked his sister, glaring at Scott.

“Tristan, please, let's go...”, she repeated. Her brother ignored her and turned to Scott.

“Caroline and I both warned you, Harrow.”, Tristan hissed, pushing Scott backwards.

“Stay out of this!”, Scott growled at him. “You have no idea what's going on.”

“Well, it looks to me like you broke my sister's heart. I don't need to know anything else.”

“Tristan, please...”, Crystal tried to pull him back.

“But--”

“Let's go.”, she said again.

“Hey, your majesty?”, Tristan called the king. “Your brother is planning to attack your kingdom and besiege you again. I'd be careful if I were you.”, he warned him.


The young prince was about to turn around and leave with his sister, when out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of something flying towards Daniel.

“Watch out!”, he yelled. The king was too surprised to realise what was going on. Tristan leapt in front of him, the arrow piercing him through the heart.

“No!”, Crystal shrieked and ran to catch him as he fell down. Scott and Daniel were too shocked to move.

And behind some bushes, Lux stood frozen, tears screaming down her face, as she saw the killer perfectly and they stared back at her.

And another promise went to waste. Another person she was supposed to protect, falling dead.

“Tristan, look at me! Please don't close your eyes, it's going to be fine!”, Crystal sobbed harder than before. Scott made a move to approach them but she looked up and glared at him. “Don't you dare.”, she hissed.

And somewhere far away, in the middle of the woods past the border, Violet gasped for air, then clutched her heart.

“V, what's wrong?”, Cheryl asked her.

“Tristan...”, Violet started hyperventilating.

And at the same time, Crystal was clutching Tristan in her arms, begging him to stay alive.

“Tell... Tell Caroline... Tell Caroline I'm sorry...”, was the last thing he said, before his head fell limb on Crystal's lap.

“No, no, no! You can't die on me, Tristan! I forbid it! Open your eyes right now!”, she yelled at him. “Please!”

Violet fell on her knees, clutching her heart and screaming in pain, feeling as if she was being torn apart from the inside. All the pain, physical and emotional, she'd ever felt and would feel in the future trying to take over.

And she was sure, that it wasn't just her own pain she was feeling. All the pain Tristan had felt and would have felt if he hadn't died was attacking her too.

She screamed louder than humanly possible, Cheryl rushing to her side and clutching her shoulder, trying to help.

Violet screamed harder, as a long cut formed on her chest over her heart and blood started soaking her dress.

And the forest went back to being quiet as ever, as Violet collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

“I hate you!”, Crystal shrieked, though no one was sure to whom she was talking.

“Princess--”, Scott started, but didn't get to tell her whatever he wanted to say. A bright flash of white blinded everyone present, and as the sun rose and the the sudden light died out, Scott noticed that Crystal was no longer kneeling by her brother's dead body.


He started calling her name, but she was nowhere to be seen, and as he ran a hand through his hair, the flower she'd given him before fell off his ear and to the ground, quickly withering.

And even further from the two witches in the middle of the woods, Caroline Cornel shot up awake, in tears and soaked in sweat, knowing that her nightmare had come true.


{END OF BOOK ONE}
😇