Chapter 18: Chapter 18

Rose stayed rooted on her spot. It was her first time witnessing a vicious side of an Angel before. And to pile up the layers of her agony, that Angel was none other than Ariel.

Rose was Diana’s childhood friend; she was even Ariel’s bridesmaid on her big day. Rose always maintained a certain distance from Diana’s family. Being a commoner, she knew her limits and never engaged herself in the royal family’s matters. Ariel knew about this very well that’s why she went to her house to personally invite her to her wedding. She even requested her to be her bridesmaid. That day Rose understood that Ariel will be the one who will change the picture of Moonland. One day, she would be successful in eradicating the seeds of partiality, building a new Moonland.

A sad smile appeared on her lips. They all used to be so happy then, sharing each other sorrows and celebrating their joys. Those golden days today appeared like a dream to her as if they never even existed rather, it was all her imagination. Ariel was like her elder sister but today she was ready to kill her baby, Jasmine only because she defied her. Rose’s glossy eyes then landed on George who was smirking at her. The reality hit her like a whiplash, harsh and painful.

That means the yawning gap between them still existed. She was a fool to think of herself and Jasmine as a part of Diana’s family. They were just like a use-and-throw item for them, a pawn to save Diana. Only Diana matters to them and for that, they were even ready to shed blood.

But the way Diana matters to them, Jasmine matters to her and for her, she was ready to sacrifice herself. She can’t let these covetous, heartless monsters kill her only family. Moreover, her stubbornness will only risk her sister’s life.

‘Let’s accept it, Rose. There’s no way out now,’, she convinced herself with a heavy heart.

Battling with her heart which was still deterring her from taking such a dangerous step, Rose looked at George and spoke in a firm tone, “I am ready to marry you.”

Her words were like an alarm that brought Diana’s numb mind back to motion. Diana swiftly turned her neck and looked at Rose who was walking with George back to Moria to complete the ceremony.

“No, Rose, stop. What are you-“, she shouted in panic but was cut in midway by Rose who looked at her with glassy eyes.

“Let it be, Di. Ariel is right. We all are bound to Moonland by certain laws and regulations. I was thinking immaturely before but Ariel is the future Queen of Moonland. She would always think for the benefit of our kingdom.”

A scowl appeared on Diana’s face when she heard her fabricated words which didn’t sound genuine from any aspect. It was as if she was stressing herself from praising Ariel. She then strode towards Rose with heavy steps, “Your worries are only because of Calix’s threats, right? Then let me help you. I will talk with Zachary regarding this. I am sure he’ll make him understand. There’s no need to get married to George.”, she spoke while passing a glare to George. His jaw instantly got ticked by her words.

Now that was his last straw.

George was controlling his rage only because Diana was once his friend. Hurting Diana would ruin his plan and also, he didn’t want to vandalize his image more in front of Rose. But Diana’s continuous provocation drove him to the edge of losing his calm.

With a jerk, he pulled Rose behind him and looked at his guards. Diana kept staring at him with confusion but her eyes widened when she was dragged back by the guards away from George and Rose. Not only her but they also captured Jasmine who started shouting and screaming in fear.

Rose was horrified. She looked at Ariel who was staring at everything emotionlessly.

“NO!! YOU CAN’T DO THIS GEORGE!! ARI, TELL THEM TO LEAVE ME!!”, Diana yelled and tried to free herself but her hands were tied behind her back and she was forced to sit on the ground. Finding no other option, she closed her eyes and tried to mutter a spell but her heart jumped in fright hearing George’s furious voice.

“Don’t even think about using it or I will rip her head off!!”

Her eyes instantly shot open. A scream escaped her lips when she saw a guard piercing his sword in Jasmine’s neck. Diana looked back at Ariel who was avoiding eye contact.

She spat in disgust, “AND YOU CALL YOURSELF ANGELS?? SINCE WHEN DID THEY STOOP SO LOW AND STARTED PRACTICING SUCH MALFEASANCES? ARI, YOU TOLD ME THAT LORD ERNEST’S SON WILL BE THE SAVIORS OF THIS KINGDOM. IS THIS THE WAY THEY’LL SNATCH WHAT THEY’VE PUT THEIR GOLDEN FINGERS ON?? YOU ARE TRYING TO PROTECT THE GIRLS OF MOONLAND BUT YOU DIDN’T TOLD ME THAT YOU HAVE TRADED THEM TO THESE ROYAL JERKS!!!!”

*Smack*

Her face instantly got turned to the right. Ariel not only slapped her but even broke her heart as it was the first time, she had ever raised her hands on her.

Diana’s lips wobbled when she felt excruciating pain on her left cheek. But before she could overcome this heart-wrenching reality, her face was again turned harshly as another smack landed on her right cheek.

“IF THIS HAD BEEN DONE WITH YOU FROM THE STARTING ITSELF, THINGS WOULDN’T HAVE ESCALATED THIS FAR TODAY!!”, Ariel roared, her voice trembling as she was seething in anger.

“I always pampered and loved you as my child but now I think you never deserved my love. You spoiled brat; you are a disgrace to Heaven. I have stored so many dreams for you. Your parents never even spared a glance at you, they were only concerned for Arthur and how to prepare him for the throne but I’ve seen your potential. I know he is my husband but I won’t lie, you are much stronger, brave, and agile than him to handle the huge empire of Moonland. But they kept limiting your abilities by mollycoddling and never allowed you to make your own decisions, stand for yourself and voice out your opinions. That’s why I wanted to take you out from this cobweb and resettle yourself in a place that understands your worth. I was the one who compelled George to convince Lord Ernest to approve your and Theodore’s marriage. You would become the next queen of Heaven and bring prestige to our family, make us proud, and would work for the welfare of Moonland. But you’re only bringing shame and had made us a standing joke in the entire universe. You ruined my whole plan, Di. And now you’ve grown the audacity to raise your voice at me and question my decisions. That Zachary is teaching you very good manners, Di. He is ruining you and you are letting him do that like a BRAINLESS IDIOT YOU’VE ALWAYS HAD BEEN!!”

Diana started crying loudly as she was shattered by Ari’s harshness. Her cheeks were very throbbing badly and Ariel’s knife-sharp words were only rubbing salts on her wounds.

George was staring at Diana coldly but deep down he also felt a tinge of guilt watching her chubby cheeks that had turned swollen and red. Rose was shedding tears silently watching her best friend getting beaten and berated in front of everyone.

But Ariel was seeing red everywhere. The girl who couldn’t see a single tear in Diana’s blue eyes was today unbothered by her wails. Her cries fell deaf to her ears. All the pent-up anger and frustration surfaced in her mind like a tsunami. The humiliation she faced in the court of Theodore, those whistles and taunts which had been haunting her since the day she returned from the Theo dynasty started playing in her mind like a recorder.

Gulping down her rage, Ariel then closed her eyes and mumbled something. Diana who was crying non-stop flinched when a golden flame circled her. She panicked and was about to get up but that flame immediately vanished instead and got replaced by white ropes that bind her limbs tightly. Horrified, she looked at Ariel who only stared her down with contempt, “You had done enough. Now it’s time I take things in my hand.”

With that, she lifted Diana by her forearm and flicked her fingers in the air. Two female guards instantly appeared in front of them and bowed to them.

“Take Princess to Whitestone Citadel and look after her. Maids should be at her every back and call. Ela, you make sure that Princess doesn’t face any difficulties. Ara, you are in charge of her safety. Don’t let anyone enter the mansion except me, and make sure the princess doesn’t escape. I will handle Arthur and others myself.”

Diana gasped in shock at Ariel’s indifference, “ARI!!”

“Take her away”.

Ariel immediately dismissed them. The maids again bowed to her, grabbed Diana, and vanished in thin air. Jasmine and Rose were too stunned to react. They kept staring at Ariel in disbelief.

George looked at Rose who was staring at naught with wide, fearful eyes. Her face was soaked with tears and she looked awful. His heart clenched by her pitiful state. Grabbing her hand, he made her look at him and wiped her tears with his fingers. Rose flinched when his fingers made contact with her skin. His heart twitched in guilt and he immediately retracted his hands.

Clearing his throat, he backed a little to give her some space, “Our marriage will be in two days. I think you need some time but don’t you dare pull up any stunts.”

His words caught both Rose and Ariel off guard.

Ariel marched towards him before glaring him down, “What do you think you’re doing? I tried so hard for you and here you’re delaying it again. You should marry her before Calix and Zachary come to know about all this.”

George narrowed his eyes at her, “I know what I am doing, you don’t need to teach me. Moreover, once I marry Rose, I won’t her come back to Moonland ever. She loves Jasmine a lot that’s why I am giving her some time to give a proper goodbye to her sister. Because once she becomes my wife, I won’t let her have any relations with any person of Moonland.”

Rose clenched her fists. White-hot anger surged through her veins as she was done being their marionette, “WHO ARE YOU TO DECIDE THAT?? STOP PLAYING WITH US!! I NEVER ASKED FOR YOUR HELP IN THE FIRST PLACE. YOU ARE FORCING YOURSELF ON ME AND STILL, YOU HAVE THE GUTS TO SEPARATE ME FROM MY SISTER. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!! I DON’T CARE ANYMORE THAT YOU’RE THE PRINCE OF THE THEO DYNASTY!! BETTER GET THIS THING STRAIGHT IN YOUR HEAD, PRINCE GEORGE, I WON’T LEAVE MY SISTER, NOT NOW NOT EVER!!”, she screamed at the top of her lungs.

George glared in her red eyes that were shining with rage and resentment. He grabbed her nape with his left hand and with his right hand, he pinched her chin, “You’re taking me lightly Rose. If I want, I can forcefully cage you in my mansion and confine you in those golden walls till your last breath. Consider yourself lucky that I am letting you see your sister who is not even your blood.”

He whispered the last words. A strangling sob escaped her lips as she stared at George who flashed her a devilish smirk.

“If you don’t want me to let the cat out of the bag, better do as I say. Or I won’t hesitate to open your family’s secret to your baby sister.”

He grated out. Rose immediately shook her head in denial. She even forgot how to breathe. Never in a million years, she had thought that George would threaten her with this.

Watching her defeat, George flashed her a triumphant smirk before releasing her. Rose couldn’t maintain her balance. Her body swayed and she was about to hit the ground when Jasmine quickly rushed to her and grabbed her.

“You okay?”

Rose sniffed. Her soft voice increased the burden of remorse on her shoulder, crushing her last hope.

George then looked at Rose and raked a hand through his brown hair, “Two days. I am giving you two days and then you’ll be mine. I am being generous Rose, don’t make me use force.”

His voice dropped octaves making a cold shiver run down her spine. But she was too exhausted to reply and kept staring in space hopelessly. George and his army eventually left. Without sparing a glance at the two broken souls, Ariel also turned her heels and left.

Rose couldn’t hold it any longer. Dropping to her knees, she burst into heavy tears. Jasmine pulled her in her arms and started calming her down.

“Everything is over Jasmine. Because of me, both of you will suffer. Poor Di is captured and soon I will also leave you. Two days later was Di’s big day but see how these two clever people changed her fate. I am sacred for Di. What if Ariel gets her married to Theodore cleverly? What will happen then? Oh my God!!”, Rose started panicking as dreadful possibilities started roaming inside her mind. She looked at Jasmine and found her lost in thoughts.

Suddenly something clicked in her mind. Rose wiped her tears before turning back to look at her who was staring at one spot, “Jasmine, you’ve learned the spell on how to break into any secure place, no matter how guarded they are. Moreover, you’re the Angel of knowledge and have mastery of war strategies. If we both try harder, we can save Di. Come on Jasmine, we have to do that.”

Rose grabbed her both hands and spoke earnestly. Jasmine kept staring at her when all of a sudden, the corner of her lips lifted. Rose’s heart rejoiced when Jasmine winked at her and smirked.

“I have a plan.”

*****