𝐅𝐎𝐎𝐋 𝐌𝐄 𝐎𝐍𝐂𝐄

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟏 - 𝐁𝐄𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐄

"𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐀𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄 𝐈𝐍𝐕𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐁𝐋𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆. 𝐓𝐘𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐓𝐎 𝐌𝐄?"

He was devastatingly handsome. A stark contrast to some of the old and worn knights. No, he was young and beautiful. A new incomer from some training camp, he had risen through the ranks quicker than any man before him. Since his arrival to the castle he had quickly become one of the King's favourites. He was only a battle away from an official Knight, joining the Knights of the King's guard.

Ironically they didn't guard the King, far from it. Their efforts were rewarded with lands, titles and money. The ability to live like the noblemen they had become, to chose a wife and live the rest of their life in luxury.

Joking around with the other soldiers, kvas in hand. It was stupid honestly. But I wanted him to drain the rest of his cup, just so I could come over and fill it back up, my hold of the jug of kvas had tightened at the thought.

I had it all planned, I would lightly brush hands when pouring, I had witnessed the other maids seduce men with less.

And if all I would ever get in life was to seduce a man, so be it, but I was going to seduce him. Saints he had this energy surrounding him, it wasn't necessarily a pleasant, bright one. But it made me tingle and twitch as if the man was made of lighting.

And I wasn't going to ignore a tingle, even if it was my poor hopeless romantic brain doing the talking.

Growing up in a castle sounds grand until reality hits you. Being born a bastard from a maid that died mere minutes after birth doesn't set you up for a life of luxury. But a weekly warm meal and food daily, a roof over my head and a bead, albeit made from sacks was more than most could enjoy in life.

And you would think that after hearing about the King's mistresses and the horrors of marriage from the Queen daily and witnessing the way that most nobles treated their wives would crush all dreams of romance out of one's mind.

But it hadn't, I believed in fate, soulmates and love at first sight.

That's how it started, how I made myself a fool, something I wouldn't do again.

It all started with a look across a crowded room, my stupid plan had worked. He had drained his cup and his eyes looked up and met mine, the look on his face is one ill never forget. Walking up and over to him, a task I had done for years without problem suddenly became nerve-wracking. But the slow, stunning smile that came over his face nearly brought me to my knees.

It was then that I was glad I had at least gotten a look from him, it was pathetic now, I know. But at that moment I felt like we were the only ones in a room, and I thought he felt it as well. And I could've sworn he felt the lighting when we touched, I remember resisting the urge to shiver.

His hair was as dark and lush close up, someone should have offered to weave gold through those strands.

Instead, I almost spilled the jug of kvas onto his hair. I knew I was a complete goner when his amused chuckle made me want to bottle the sound and become a painter to capture the sparkle in his eyes.

My cheeks must have been redder than the apples on the table, but that made his smile wider. That had made my stupid heart beat faster.

After that encounter, it was like something had snapped, that an invisible string tying him to me. It seemed like at every corner I turned he was there, giving me a secretive look, gazing at me as if I was something special.

I had never felt special before, until him.

Then it began, all with one kiss in a hall late at night. Then it became him stealing me away for secret kisses, as if he couldn't get enough of me, like he would die if he couldn't touch my lips and steal my kisses.

Then came the dates, he would take me out on his horse, out to our little spot away from everyone, as if he didn't dare share me. How naive I was.

Laying a blanket and feeding me luxurious meals that I only ever served, never consumed. He treated me like I was something to cherish, and I believed him.

And when his eyes would meet mine, I thought I saw the love in them, I believed that we had to be a secret until your last battle.

Unil he fought one last time, and then he would be Sir Barnes, a noble with land given by the King. A Knight with money and estates, and able to marry any women he desired.

And I thought he desired me, I had gotten to know that pretty face and electric soul. He had desired me when one of the kisses became passionate, and he took away the only thing that made me valuable in the eyes of men, potential suitors.

But I hadn't minded, I encouraged it because we were in love. And I was going to become his wife, a lady.

And I had become to hope, hope for a better life, something I had never let myself before.

I believed the look in his eyes when he said he loved me. Foolishly.

And when he was called for battle, one last battle? I was nervous, of course, but I was overjoyed. I didn't have to be a secret, wouldn't have to wait for tomorrow.  we could be married the night he arrived home. We would build a future and a family.

And I waited nervously, but tomorrow never came, I prayed to the saints for his safe return. And return he did.

He returned, not jumping with joy into my arms. He returned with a lady in his arms, a true lady, jewels and fancy dress and all. An overjoyed expression on both your faces.

She was a Noble men's daughter, beautiful, kind and funny. My dress was old, stained and torn. Hers was dyed a deep colour, multiple layers, expensive.

As if my heart wasn't shattering into a million pieces we ended how we started, with a look across a crowded room.

He looked at me, not with the love or secret smiles I was so accustomed to seeing, not even hate.

Indifference, I was once again a lowly lady in waiting, a maid. He was a Knight, Sir Barnes, now engaged to be married to a Lady.

He betrayed me, made me a fool. I was no longer a virgin, I had no hopes of marrying, he had doomed me to a life I didn't want.

But I no longer had love and passion burning through my veins, I had a deep hatred pulsing through me. Overcome with emotions I ran that night, ran deep into the forest, further than I had ever been before, even as the rain began to pour down, as lighting, that I was so used to running through my veins at hos touch lit up the sky, I kept running.

I ran until my legs gave out until I was heaving and hacking up dry breaths, desperate for oxygen. I didn't notice until it was too late until I felt the out-of-body experience until I felt every pore in my body fill with a strange sensation.

Until I woke up and looked around, still in the forest, a circle of golden fire surrounded me in a large circle. That was not the weirdest thing, the scratches that I hadn't even registered last night from my fall and the bushes in the forest were gold.

I was bleeding gold.

Later, as the years passed I would learn that, like that gold running through my veins, I didn't age, and I would never let another man make a fool out of me.

──────⊹⊱✧⊰⊹──────

First chapter, how do you guys feel about it? This is just the intro, the majority of the story is going to be set in Kerch (with a certain group of criminals;))

Also going to try include song lines, I included like three in this chapter (if you know you know)