The sky grew dark and Hypatia had her Knights create a bonfire. I was grinning as I felt the heat from the fire on my face. I felt oddly relaxed sitting by this fire surrounded by friends. It felt good. Almost too good to be true. It's calming moments like these that make me feel the most uneasy.

A creeping sensation of fear gradually came over me.

"They are all going to leave you." The other me leaned forward and whispered in my ear.

I am not alone. They won't leave me. They won't. They can't.

The other me laughed and laid on her back by me. She held up a shell to the moon, "How is it that you can feel so alone even though you are surrounded by people? It really is an all too common phenomenon."

I tried to ignore her.

She sat up and smiled at me, "You can't ignore me. I am you. And you are me."

You aren't me.

Her head rolled as she laughed, "I wonder just how long you will keep thinking that. You really don't think you are alone? Just wait. Tonight you will see. You will be left by every single person here. One by one. They will all leave you."

Hypatia spoke startling me out of my negative emotions, "I can teach you all about the stars if you would like."

Mary's face lit up from the suggestion, "Oh please! I would like to learn."

Hypatia began her lesson of the stars and I realized just how similar the night skies were to my previous world. Even the constellations had the same name. Perhaps our worlds really weren't that different.

Another Knight came over and whispered into Hypatia's ear causing the lesson to stop. She smiled, "Ah, I am terribly sorry, but I must leave. Something seems to have come up and I am needed elsewhere. However, this beach is perfectly safe and close to the Palace. If you wish to leave, the servants will escort you."

We thanked her as she left. Mary looked at me, "Seri. Do you know how to swim? I noticed that you didn't go near the water at all today."

I played with my hair, "Yeah. I had an accident when I was a child. Now I am not very fond of water. I can swim, but I have no desire to."

She tilted her head, "What accident?"

William spoke, "She decided to jump on a lake that wasn't frozen. So she fell through."

I frowned at him, "It's not like I purposely went to jump on a not-so frozen lake."

Mary giggled, "I can't believe you were even troublesome back then as a child. I would have loved to spend time with the child version of you. I bet you acted so adorable."

My face twitched in irritation. I wasn't a child back then. Maybe physically. But certainly not mentally. Is she calling me immature?!

I stood up, "You know what Mary?"

She looked at me with an innocent expression, "What?"

"Let's see if you can swim."

"Eh?" Before she could fight back, I ran over and picked her up. I charged at the water as she screamed, "NO NO NO! I DON'T WANT TO GET MY HAIR WET!"

With a simple toss, Mary went flying into the water. I stood appreciating my handiwork as she splashed around shouting for help. I hope she knows that the water is only knee deep and that she can still touch....

Oh well. I am sure she will figure it out soon.

As we all watched Mary struggle, Dante sighed and started walking toward her to "save her". William stood behind me and spoke earnestly, "Do you think you have a moment? I want to talk to you about something in private."

I looked at him in surprise, "Huh? Oh. Okay"

The others didn't notice our absence since they were too focused on Mary drowning. Even Millie was enjoying watching Mary fight for her life. Dante went into the water to grab her, but she just continued to splash him making his rescue much harder.

I followed William to a part of the beach that had large boulders. He sat down on one with a complicated expression. I swallowed hard.

Did he know? Did he know about the deal I made with Simon?

I sat next to him and stared at his face feeling my heart race. He refused to look at me which just made me more anxious. The moonlight washed over him, illuminating his features. Even despite the ponytail, he was still extremely handsome.

He spoke slowly, "I have always loved you."

My eyes widened in surprise. Well that was totally unexpected. It wasn't that I didn't know this. I was just surprised he decided to say it now. Why now?

A creeping feeling crawled into my heart. It wasn't one of love. Instead...

It was one of absolute fear.

Fear of what will happen after this.

He continued, "Ever since we were children, I have loved you. You were the only one who could see the real me and still want to talk to me. Whenever I was sad, you were there to cheer me up. You never compared me to anyone else. You would never do anything to hurt me."

I bit my lip when I heard these words. I have never hurt him? All I do is hurt him. Just like when I made the deal with Simon. Just like now. I looked away clenching my fists.

I spoke with difficulty, "William, you should know... I like Dante. I don't know if I will marry him, but I intend to be with him for a while if not forever."

He scoffed, "Of course I know. I see the way you look at him. It's not the same as the way you look at me nor Millie." He turned to me with a pained expression, "But why?! Why am I not good enough?! Why am I never good enough!?"

I was startled by his sudden shout, "William. You are good enough. You are a wonderful person. It's just that... We just aren't compatible."

"Why aren't we?!"

I spoke softly and looked at my rough hands, "You are a good person. But... But I'm not. I'm a terrible person. You deserve to be with someone who is good just like you."

He crossed his arms and spoke in a mocking tone, "Hah. You are just saying that to be nice. The truth is that Dante will always be superior than me." His face grew dark, "You and my father are the same."

I felt as if someone had just stabbed me. "I am nothing like him."

William spoke in anger, "You are. You are just like him. You chose Dante over me. Even my own father would rather Dante was his son instead of me. He is always telling me that Dante is better than me. Dante is smarter. Dante is better at swordsmanship than me. Dante this. Dante that! What about me?! Why not just make Dante the King if he is so great?!"

I reached out to grab his hand, "No! William! You are your own person and you are just as good as him. Please don't sell yourself short."

His hand pulled away from mine. He sighed, "I-It's not that I thought I had a chance with you... I always knew you liked Dante... It's just that... It's just that I had to at least try."

"William..."

He looked away from me and spoke in a somber tone, "Could you just leave me alone for now? I just need a moment to myself."

I looked at his pained face and felt as if my heart was being crushed. Even though I didn't feel that way about him, I still valued him as a close friend. I could tell I hurt him immensely. However, there was nothing I could do. You can't force yourself to feel a certain way.

I could only walk away; leaving behind the hurt William, knowing that I was the one who hurt him. That same uncomfortable feeling crept into my heart as I walked.

The other me walked with me, "I told you he would leave you. First goes William. Then goes Dante. Soon, even Millie won't want to kill you."

"Shut up." I snapped at her. I saw the others in the distance and stopped in my tracks. Dante had successfully pulled Mary out of the water, leaving her drenched.

The other me grinned underneath her hood, "See? They look pretty happy without you."

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. When I reopened them, she was no longer with me. I forced a smile on my face and walked out to them.

Mary was gasping for deep breaths and glanced at me, "Where's William?"

"Oh. He's back there."

Mary looked in the distance, "Hmm..." Then she walked over to her bags to grab something. Without any explanation, she ran off in the direction of William. I watched her leave expressionlessly.

That's right. In the end, William will have Mary.

Dante silently observed my face, "Do you want to walk along the beach? We can look for seashells."

I turned back to him, "What about Millie?"

"She's busy."

I followed where he was looking and saw Millie at a tidepool laughing maniacally as she jabbed defenseless hermit crabs with a stick. My face twitched. I guess you really can't rehabilitate serial killers.

I smiled at Dante as I grabbed his hand, "Then let's find some seashells down by the seashore."

_____

William sat looking at the moon while biting his lip to hold back his tears. He couldn't cry. He wouldn't.

He was a Prince.

And Princes didn't cry.

He had to remain strong. Yet, he felt like his heart was breaking in two. It took his breath away painfully and made him feel like crawling into a ball. Was this what it meant to have a heartbreak?

As he looked up at the moon, a sudden hand appeared with a makeshift puppet covering it. The puppet spoke in a weird voice, "Oh my! Is that a Prince I see? It must be my lucky day!"

William's face twitched as he tried to hold back his laughter. He couldn't help himself. This scene in front of him was just so cringeworthy.

The puppet spoke, "I am just so smitten! Perchance I may have a kiss from this sweet Prince? I promise I will turn into a real person once I receive a kiss!"

William finally smiled, "Mary. Stop playing around."

She popped her head up, "How did you know it was me?"

"Your voice is very distinctive."

She frowned and muttered to herself, "I really thought I changed my voice in a convincing way though..."

She turned back and smiled at William. She spoke through the puppet once more, "Why the long face Prince? Are you feeling homesick?"

He shook his head, "Not it's... Something else."

She looked at the puppet and spoke in her regular voice, "Ah, missus Puppet. I recognize the look in his eye. I actually understand how he feels right now. Unfortunately, there is no cure for heartbreak."

She changed her voice to act like the puppet, "There is a cure! Would you like to hear it?"

William watched the strange play in front of himself feeling slightly entertained. Mary turned to William, "Well Prince William? Would you like to hear it?"

"Uh... Sure." He said in uncertainty.

The puppet suddenly started "kissing" his face, "Muah Muah! Puppet kisses cure the soul!"

He laughed from the tickling sensation, "Mary! Mary stop it!" She pulled her puppet hand back with a gentle smile. He smiled back and chuckled, "You are so weird."

She smiled tenderly at him. The deep pools of her eyes reflected his now smiling face. "Prince William. You look best when you smile."

He paused and looked away. She leaned against the rock and looked at the moon, "I meant what I said. I understand how you feel. We were both rejected. If you want someone to cry with, I am right here."

"... Thank you Mary."