Remember

Prologue

It was a warm night, just at the brink of dusk. The stars were shining, the birds were quiet. A giant palace-like mansion was stationed in the middle of a field of luminous, glowing flowers. Only one pathway was leading to and from the house. Soft music and sounds of laughter were coming from the open windows.

Beyond it lay a small, lush forest. Somewhere near the center was a circular clearing, where two, distinctly out of place, figures lay.

A majestic black tiger, blending into the night was standing guard over the small girl of about 7 in a white, elegant yet simple gown.
She had platinum blond waist-length hair and two slightly pointed ears were peaking through the curtain of shimmering hair, which was currently spread around her head like a halo. She was staring at the clear sky, devoid of clouds, lost in thoughts.

" Rosie darling, we must get back to the gathering before they notice we left"

purred a silky voice in her head. This was no shock though, Rose was accustomed to these conversations. The voice belonged to the fearsome tiger next to her. She was Rosie's Anima (in Latin that means soul) who was a kind of protector and took care of her.

"Noctis (in Latin that means night) you know I hate it when you call me darling"

She winked at Noctis. An amused purr broke the silence of the night.

"I am terribly sorry princess of the Arathniel Kingdom. We must must leave this humble place and venture back...better?"

God, Rose just loved sarcastic Noctis- always a joy to have around.

"Only if we race back. This time I'm gonna win"

Rose answered with a wicked grin apparent in her moss green eyes.

"Agreed"

Noctis replied, smirk visible in her tone. Rose took of like lightning but before leaving she said lightly

"And you know I hate it even more when you call me Princess. I don't wanna be reminded of it every time you say something"

***

About 20 feet away from home, Noctis yowled a warning just as all the windows shattered due to an explosion coming from inside the house. Horrified, Rose came to a stop 5 feet in front of the charred remains if her home, where thousands of memories lay.

"Mom! Dad!"

She screamed into the ruins. No answer. Everything was silent, no laughter or music. Nothing. The glass had stopped falling. It had all happened so quickly.

A twig snapped behind them and as they spun around about 20 figures clad in black glided towards them.

Suddenly they parted and there, in the middle were her parents! They were slumped in an awkward position in the middle of the crowd.

Before Noctis could stop Rose, she rushed over to her parents.

"Mum, dad! What happened? Who are they? What do they want? "

She sobbed, the questions pouring out of her. Her mother shushed her and telepathically answered her.

"We only have a few moments and I want to give you something, Noctis will explain it to you"

Suddenly there was an unfamiliar weight in Rose's pocket. It was the 'Arathniel' heirloom, an elegant bracelet. It was an important artifact, but why was she giving it to her? It was of no importance as far as she knew.

Her mother was just about to say something when she was dragged away. Her dad shouted something out that sounded like 'run!' And then there was an ear splitting sound and her parents crumpled to the ground, blood seeping into the ground.

Rose screamed- a heartbreaking sound of loss. She staggered away a few steps away before falling to the ground, grief-stricken.

A shape loomed over her. It was a boy, startlingly handsome about two years older then her.

He held a metal leash, which Noctis was struggling to get free from. In the other hand he held a whip.

Surprisingly, the boy held his own against Noctis and gave her a nasty lash with the whip. Noctis whined and Rose wanted to get up and comfort her, but a foot pressed her to the ground.

She glared at him with all the force she could muster.

He really was beautiful, but his eyes were cold, devoid of emotion. How could a nine year old be so evil and expressionless, the little girl wondered.

He pressed his hand to her mouth and the world swirled. She tasted something bitter that was making her woozy und disorientated.

The last thing she thought of was that her parents died because of her. She could have- no she should have saved them. Instead, she had watched them die, murdered in front of her.

The sleepiness took over and she fell into a forced slumber, hand clutched tightly around the bracelet.