LEAD

Chapter One

She felt the brisk air pushing against her cheeks as she ran through the forest. "I can make it," she thought, praying that somehow time would stop for a minute. "Father will kill me if I'm late again!" she thought again, trying to push away her fear of what he would do to her. She was racing against time to get to the castle by sundown, for there was a grand ball her family was hosting. Her father, King Alastor, takes great pride in letting his people know he is superior. The king also wants to find Sage a suitable husband. Suitable in his mind is "Rich, handsome, and powerful."

But that's not what Sage wants. It's not what she wants at all. She wants adventure, happiness, and love, not wealth and power. She wants Evren, her platinum haired servant. She knows she can never have her. Not in a million years.

When Sage finally bursts into the castle, she's greeted by Evren. "SAGE! Where have you been? You know your father is going to be furiou-" Evren whispers. "I know, Evren. Good thing he won't know I haven't been here, right?" Sage whispers back. "Of course," Evren replies. "Good. Now, where is my dress?" Sage asks, failing to hide her fear of her father. "I'll get it for you, follow me," Evren instructs. Sage silently follows Evren, into her bedroom, then into her closet. Sage starts taking off her hunting clothes and slips into the silk gown. "Do you.." Evren starts, but hesitates when Sage looks at her, top exposed. "Hmm?" Sage asks, urging Evren to finish. "Do you need help with the ties in the back?" Evren stutters. "Uh- sure," Says Sage, trying to not seem flustered.

Evren comes up behind Sage and puts her hands on her torso. Sage shudders a bit at her touch, but eases into it. Evren starts tying the ribbons into intricate bows, and as she does she gets the sudden urge to let her hand drift down Sage's spine. "Why am I thinking this?" Evren questions in her mind. Sage feels a strange sense of security when it's just her and Evren and she doesn't know why. She feels like this moment should be intimate, regardless of how she was raised. "It's wrong," she argues with herself. "I shouldn't be feeling like this," they both think. "Hey Sage?" Evren says quietly. "Yes?" Sage responds. "Do you- ever feel like what you're thinking is wrong...?" Evren says. "Yeah, I do. It feels so lonely," Sage replies. "It does," Evren whispers. "But is it ever about... love?" she questions. "That's all it's ever about," Sage says. At this point Evren finishes Sage's ties and they are now facing each other. "Well hi there!" Sage says playfully. A smile forms on Evren's face, but it quickly fades as she looks to the side.

"Hey, what's on your mind Ev?" Sage asks sympathetically. "I just feel different. And what I'm feeling is wrong. At least we've been raised to think it's wrong," Evren responds. "Wow..." Sage whispers in response. "Actually, I feel the same way. We can tell each other anything right?" Sage asks. "Yes, of course!" Ev says back. "Well, I have those feelings. But about other girls. I don't want to marry a man," Sage says nervously. "Sage I-" Evren stutters. "I feel like that too. Are we bad for feeling this?" Sage sits and thinks for a minute. "I don't know Ev." Right as Sage finishes her sentence, they hear Alastors voice screaming Sage's name. "Shit!" Sage exclaims. "We have to get to the ball," she says, grabbing Evren's hand and dragging her out of the room. Evren likes the feeling of her hand in Sage's, it feels natural. "COMING FATHER!" Sage yells back, arriving at the doors of the ball room. "I better go," Evren says, slipping her hand out of Sage's grasp and sprinting down the hall.

The room goes silent as Sage walks in, her ivory gown and long curly hair flowing behind her. All eyes turn to gaze at her beauty. Prince Mael is in awe, standing next to Alastor he lets out a small gasp. Alastor is pleased, knowing that Prince Mael is extremely wealthy. Sage makes her way over to her father. Before she can even get there, Alastor starts talking. "Sage, this is Prince Mael. He is one of your suitors," he says. "It's a pleasure to meet you Princess," Prince Mael says softly. "Charming, this one," Sage whispers to her father. "It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Mael." Sage looks him up and down, studying him. He is dressed in the finest clothes, decked out with gold. However, despite his wealth, he holds himself in an anxious stance. He looks frightened, almost like he doesn't want to be here either. "Care to dance?" he asks Sage. Sage doesn't answer, but takes his hand and drags him to the center of the ball room. "So," Prince Mael says while they are slow dancing. "Are you an only child?" Sage is surprised by the question, as it's very random. "I am now. I had a brother before, though I don't remember much about him. He died in battle when I was 5," she replies. "I'm so sorry," Prince Mael says, sympathy taking over his facial expression. "It's fine," Sage says as she goes back to studying him. "You're quite interesting..." Sage adds. "How so?" Mael questions.

"You're different from the other suitors, the other princes," Sage says. A look of confusion spreads across Prince Mael's face. "You're nice," Sage continues. "Everyone else is focused on my kingdom, not me." she says. "Well I think you're pretty interesting too," Mael exclaims, a smile spreading across his face. "Oh really?" Sage questions, urging him to go on. "You have a mysterious passion within you. For what I'm not sure, but it's definitely there," Says the Prince.This surprises Sage, and she stops to think for a moment. As she does that, Evren peeks her head around the doorway, trying to lock eyes on Sage. As she see's Sage and the Prince dancing, she feels a sort of jealousy. She can feel the heat rushing to her face and a lump forming in her throat. "Hm," she whispers. "I don't even know what my "pasion" is for," she says. "Not everyone knows. Some people never find out," Mael says softly. Except Sage knew what it was. She could just never say it. "We should probably go talk to my father," Sage says, walking over towards him. They're met with Sage's father and Mael's parents, laughing and seemingly having a good time. "Oh good, my daughter is here," Alastor says with a sense of false excitement. "I think she'll be a perfect fit for our son!" says the Queen, Mael's mother. "What?" Mael says, obviously confused. "Well my daughter has been unmarried for far too long, so me and your parents have made a deal," Alastor says. "A deal? You made a deal without me?" Sage says, growing more angry. "We've decided you two shall marry, and we will have a connection to each other's kingdom," Alastor says while a sly smile. "YOU'RE MARRYING ME OFF?" Sage yells, growing more and more upset. "I don't like it either," Mael reassures Sage. "Sage calm down, it's good for our kingdom!" Alastor claps back. "WHAT'S GOOD FOR OUR KINGDOM IS ME LEADING IT. ALONE!" Sage yells. "YOU ARE A WOMAN! I WILL NOT HAVE A WOMAN RULING MY KINGDOM AND TAKING OVER MY LEGACY!" Alastor screams at her. "WHY NOT?" Sages replies, still yelling. "BECAUSE YOU ARE A WOMAN. WOMAN CAN'T.." Alastor yells, pausing at the end. "WOMAN CAN'T WHAT?" Sage claps back. "LEAD! WOMAN CAN'T LEAD!" Alastor finally yells. Sage inches closer to Alastors face. "When I rule this kingdom, you will see how wrong you are," She says in a calm voice before strutting away to go find Evren. "This is not okay," Mael says to his parents as he leaves.

Sage spots Evren peeking around the door, and she rushes over to her. "Hey, what's wron-" before Evren can even finish, Sage collapses into her arms and starts crying. "He's marrying me off," Sage says between sobs. "He- He is?" Evren says. "Yes!" Sage replies. "To whom? I thought he said none of your suitors were good enough," Evren asks, holding Sage tightly in her arms as they sit on the castle floor. "To Prince Mael, the man I was dancing with earlier," Sage replies, trying to regain her cool. "Oh," Evren says softly. "Do you.. like him?" she asks. "He seems nice enough but I-" Sage starts. "I don't want to marry him! I don't want to marry anybody!" she says. "I know," Evren replies, still holding Sage tightly.

A couple minutes pass and the two girls eventually get up and start walking towards Sage's bedroom. "I might need help getting out of this dress," Sage says sniffling. "Alright," Evren says while undoing the tight bows she tied hours before. Sage feels a certain way that she can't explain, almost as if she wants to be close to Evren. Closer than what is accepted. "Evren?" Sage's whispers. "Yes?" Evren replies. "Do you remember earlier, when you asked me about your feelings and love?" Sage asks. "I do," Evren responds. "Do you ever feel that way about anyone?" Sage asks quietly. "I'm not sure..." Evren replies. Sage slips out of her dress and puts on her nightgown. "You should probably get some sleep, Sage," Evren says. "Yeah... Goodnight Ev," Sage says. "Goodnight Sage," Evren replies.

Sage layed down but nothing came of it. She couldn't sleep with all of the thoughts invading her mind. "Why" was the most common one. "Why am I getting married off?" "Why am I having these feelings?" "Why can't women lead a kingdom?". At some point her tiredness consumed her and she drifted into a light sleep.