"I'm glad we found you too princess," Dwayne had also found his way back to my room.

David had shifted to laying beside me above the covers as Dwayne took the other side, sitting like David had before.

"May I?" he gestured to the spot opposite of David.

"You may Chief Degotoga," I smiled and he slipped off his own jacket, shoes, and necklace off and placed them on the nightstand beside the bed.

"How did you choose Dwayne anyway?"

"Well it's hard to live after 1670 with the name that means Standing Together when that person was a proud warrior and he's supposed to be dead. I guess I figured I should at least start with the same

letter. It took a couple of names before I read a book where Dwayne stood out to me. " He laid beside me, and David dropped an arm around my waist.

I'd turned to listen to Dwayne and David just snuggled up right behind me.

As Dwayne recalled what David and Max had told him upon his first awakening, he seemed to have triggered some of my own should-be "memories".

I remembered my stark white hair and slowly my grey eyes. I was the same way I was when I had been cursed. That's what David and Max called it anyway.

It was about 1633 when our ship arrived on the new lands. The journey had taken about three maybe four months total. We'd sailed during winter in attempts to make it to the new world in time to start planting and settling before winter came.

We did well in the first few years. Unfortunately my parents had died on the way to the new world. I was taken in by a lovely girl's family whom I'd met on ship. Her name was Mary and she was a few years my junior. She was unmistakable with her deep brown doe eyes, unusually slim face (for a child anyway), and the longest brunette hair I'd ever seen. Mary was usually quiet, more of an observer really compared to the other children. I say children but the girl was one of the few preteens her age who'd made it to the other side. She was ten, maybe nine and I maybe thirteen? She tended to see things that most people would miss and due to this new land, paranoia seemed to have mixed her up quite a bit. She always saw people who weren't there; she was probably the most superstitious person I knew. If I saw her now, I'd surely owe her an apology.

Unbeknownst to me, I was regularly known around the colony as a witch. Now, I never performed witchcraft of any sorts. It was my unbelievably pale skin, white hair, and grey eyes. It was hard to believe I could have those features that were so different from my parents but the only reasonable explanation was the devil had changed my appearance when I agreed to do his biding. Absolutely ridiculous, but not actually wrong.. just wrong in this lifetime.

It was the beginning of autumn, I believe, when we'd run out of supplies. There was a group that was supposed to go to Jamestown, a town who's journey was perhaps 3 days away at most, to trade and receive help. The last group who went came back the night they left and they looked spooked. They would only talk to the town's leaders. A few more unsuccessful trips to Jamestown and the supplies were low and the people were angry and desperate. I tried to avoid listening to Mary's parents, to stay out of their business as they were adults and I was merely thirteen at the time.

The stress in the town seemed to disappear one mid fall day, everyone was somber but there wasn't a town death to my knowledge. Many people seemed as if they were staring at me throughout the day. Then Mrs. Winsome, the town's baker, had asked me to assist her. She gave me a basket and asked if I could pick some the berries I'd gotten for Mary's parents in the woods. Unable to deny the older woman's request, I took the basket with Mary who insisted on coming with me to the woods. It wasn't far into the woods if you followed the trail, it was a short walk to the berry grove.

I should have known things were off but my young ignorance brushed it off. Mary on the other hand jumped at every rustle of the wind and break of branches. I said it was the birds but she insisted it was men, watching us in the trees and bushes. I promised her it was alright but told her it was alright if she wanted to go home. When she didn't answer, I turned but saw she was gone. I thought she'd just turned to run home and I considered going after her but I knew Mrs. Winsome would need the berries. So I turned to continue my path and turned straight into a body. I went to scream but fabric had covered my eyes and mouth. I was tied up and thrown on what I believed to be the back of a horse.

It felt like many hours later when I was moved, perhaps not as carefully as I could have been, but moved nonetheless. I'd quit crying a while ago but my wrists were sore and raw. I tried to keep my panic to myself as I was moved about. I didn't catch a good glance at anyone as the first thing they did was cover my eyes. I hoped Mary hadn't been caught. I hoped she was okay.

The sounds of movement around me caused me to stiffen where I was sitting. Suddenly the cloth was moved from my eyes and I was met with deep brown eyes.

His eyebrows furrowed at my newly wet cheeks and the ropes around my hands and feet. I began to realize my arms had been bound to a bean behind me and the world was dark outside. I was inside a home, a teepee.

He'd said something too quick for me to figure out. He had paused, searching me with a certain air of anticipation about him. When I didn't answer, he asked again. Slower but not anymore distinguishable to me at the time.

With a sigh he pointed to himself," Degotoga," and then to me.

"Calista," I sniffed, I hadn't realized the crying I did earlier had severally dehydrated me.

The young man was quick to ask me another question. Another incomprehensible one at that. When he didn't get an answer, he pulled a hidden blade from the makeshift trousers he wore and cut the ropes holding me back. I made no move to escape but sat and rubbed my sore wrists.

"You," he started before gently grabbing my forearm and laying it next to his in comparison, "white," and made a motion of a headpiece, a hat? No. A crown. "Royalty?"

He thought I was of the royal family? I didn't laugh, if it were anyone else, I would have laughed and asked they refrain from making such jokes about me. I could tell by the genuine serious look he wore that it wasn't a joking matter.

"Ah, no, our queen and her family rule from our home country. I'm no sort of royalty," I explained lightly and as well as I could to him.

He nodded, brows furrowed once again. This time when he spoke, it was much easier to understand.

"Peace," he said pointing between himself and I. I nodded, although I tried not to listen to the inner workings of the town's issues, I recalled a slight issue with raiding Native Americans. The officials didn't know how to deal with the issues caused by the natives. Peace was an issue between us and them.

"Chief Degotoga," he put a single finger to the sky," peace by marriage, princess of the white man."

My head spun in the moment. We didn't have a princess. It wouldn't make sense for him to talk to me if he was supposed to be chief one day. Especially if he were supposed to be marrying our princess.

Then again, what's to say they didn't... they did.

"I would like to sincerely apologize," I said softly, taking his hands in my own, "I am not a princess or of any royalty."

I paused before swallowing whatever moisture was left in my mouth, and my hands began to shake ever so slightly.

"I am afraid whomever you made the deal with has lied to you. I am not of royal standing and I am not an equivalent of your equal."

The young man shook his head and lightly squeezed my hands, "You are equal. I do not care," he made a swirling motion to my head again, "of royal blood. We do not have to tell. But peace by marriage," he said looking at my face," will you do this for us?"

Marry him anyway for the sake of his people and my colony? A million questions and considerations rushed through my mind, mostly about Mary.

"The girl I was with. She was small, pale, with brown hair and big brown eyes. What happened to her? Is she safe?" I asked, looking into his dark eyes. He did not answer but called a name.

They spoke quietly, while the man who'd entered the tent looked me over with hard eyes. He'd given Degotoga short answers but they seemed to be enough for him. Degotoga waved the man off, and he wasted no time in leaving the tent quickly.

"She is safe. She was taken to the edge of woods, sent back home. She followed us for a time. It got darker and she left for home." He answer with a kind smile.

I could feel my whole body relax. It must have been visibly as well as he squeezed my hands. At that point I'd forgotten all my questions. None were important anymore. Mary was home safe and if I fulfilled the deal, she would have the means to survive and thrive.

"Chief Degotoga, it would be an honor to fulfill our end of the deal, if you so wish I will marry you," watching him, his grin grew to match my timid one

Looking back at our first meeting felt dream like. It may not have been conventionally romantic, but the journey up until the end was otherworldly.

I slipped my hand slowly across the bed and into Dwayne's.

"The way you became one of us wasn't good was it?"

"I'm afraid not princess... nothing good can happen to create creatures like us..."

It was good though. Life was. I was 19, and by then Degotoga was perhaps 22. The tribe was thriving, and I'd been accepted with open arms by many.

That was until we were attacked.

Degotoga was grabbing different things around our home, weapons mostly.

"Take the furs and some food in the satchel. Take it to the black mustang out on the southeast end. Get yourself and our lad as far away from here as possible," he paused slightly, turning to me, "be careful, be safe, and never forget how much I love you princess." A sweet kiss was pressed to my lips but was quickly torn away by the sound of screaming.

"I will see you again my warrior," I kissed him once again before strapping the satchel of food and furs to my side before grabbing our son.

His name was Langundo, he meant peace. Lad for short. He was 5 at the time, just turned a week before.

I hugged him to me as I sprinted from our tent and as fast as I could to the edge of camp. We were surrounded by white men. My own people were attacking. Except. They weren't my people anymore. No one looked out for me. I figured by the time I was 16 that I'd been given to the native americans because of my odd white hair. I had no parents to dispute the exchange with therefor I was given away in the form of a lie. Killing two birds with one stone I guess. Get rid of the odd one and trick the natives.

The horse Dego mentioned was there and it only took me a second to arrange my son and myself on the back of the horse. We rode away with the sounds of guns and the heat of fire behind us.

It wasn't long until our horse was shot and we tumbled to the ground. I raced into the woods, hiding my son in my chest. I could hear men yelling and my son began crying.

"Shh, shh Langundo, all will be well again baby," that's when I saw the woman.

A woman from our tribe. The voices were getting louder. I grabbed her and pulled her along with me into deeper woods. There were trees Dego had shown me that were hallowed inside and accessible for hiding.

I shoved her into the hallowed trees entrance and handed her Langundo.

"Please take care of him. I will lure the men away, just please protect my baby, Degotoga's baby. Please," I pleaded as I shoved the furs and food in the bottom of the trunk as well.

She nodded and kept absolutely silent as I kissed my son's head one last time.

"Goodbye my little boy, I pray to see you again someday," and with that I'd taken off into the woods.

I screamed and broke sticks and maybe noise as I distanced myself from my family. The beat of the hooves on the ground was deafening as they got closer.

The wind left my lungs as I was knocked to the ground. Men on horses surrounded me. The dirt burned the scrapes on my hands and blood formed in my mouth from a new split lip.

"Calista Rivers?" One of the men on horseback asked and they rode circles around me.

"No," I answered as I spit the blood from my mouth to the ground in front of their horses, " Calista, wife of Chief Degotoga.. but you already knew that didn't you?"

"You will return with us back to town, everyone has been worried about you since you left," a man atop a dark brown horse said.

I scoffed loudly," You speak as if I would be so willing to leave my people-"

"Your people?"

"Yes. My people. They accepted me when I was cast out by you. Besides what makes you think I'd be willing to go back to town quietly. Not only would I fight you the whole way but I want to know on what grounds do you attack my people? What did they do to deserve to be slaughtered in hundreds?" And no one said a word.

"Exactly. It's stupid of you to expect me to give up my life to return to the one I was forced from. What would be even more ignorant and foolish would be to assume I would let this pass. If I am forced to do anything but return to my husband and his people than surely if there is a hell you will feel the wrath of it," at this the men stopped their horses.

They shared a look before nodding," Fine. If you want to act, dress, and marry savages then we'll treat you like one. Tie her up boys."

I was attacked by all sides where my hands and legs were tied together and were attached to the saddle. With a quick whistle, the man kicked the horse we were off.

I can't remember the pain but I remember my screams. I don't know how long they dragged me through the forest floors before my body gave out.

I turned to Dwayne, tucking my head into his chest," These things really happened didn't they? We were slaughtered by the same people who banned together to take care of me," I hummed.

"More or less. You were dragged to death. But I died in battle. I tried to protect you and Laddie until the very end," he breathed out as he brushed his fingers through my dreads.

"What a tragedy,"

"Story of our existence doll," David muttered as he lit his cigarette.

"What about Paul and Marko?" I asked from the warmth of Dwayne's chest.

"You'll have to ask them sometimes,"

"Ask ya what?" Marko's sweet voice called.

"About your beginning,"

"Oh great," he laughed, "that story. You're not going to like this one either angel."

"When do I ever?" I sighed