The Fairy and the Twin Swords

　　Alice stared at the little carved duck she had in her hands for the umpteenth time and smiled.

　　It was a bitter smile, a smile she would never get tired of showing.

　　It was a small gift from the most precious being she had ever had in her life and she would never get tired of keeping it as her possession.

　　There was a low knock on her door shortly and her maid Lara came in, she and Lara had been friends for a long time and she had picked her to be her maid when her father the king asked her if she wanted a maid to accompany her to her hidden castle, she had agreed to it and picked her best friend, not that she wanted to make her serve her but because she wanted to stay with someone who was her friend and she could talk to.

　　"Alice, his highness asked for your presence in the royal castle and had sent two carriages to escort you down to pitburg royal hall at once.

　　Alice sighed and shot her a sad look.

　　"So the king actually remembered today was my birthday? Of course, he would, it will be a shame if a princess does not get engaged on her eighteenth birthday as the traditions imply.

　　I knew this would come sooner or later, just didn't expect him to remember my birthday, I thought I would be let off the hook since I'm the invincible one but he actually remembered."

　　She smiled bitterly and said to herself.

　　She didn't know when tears had begun to roll down her cheeks.

　　Eight years ago she was just a normal kid who lived happily in the castle with her mother and father who were both king and queen.

　　She didn't expect something tragic would happen and snatch away her happy life from her.

　　On her tenth birthday while she and her mother were throwing her a noble party she excused herself to go look for her father who hasn't shown up to give her her birthday gift yet, but she didn't expect to come across something as shocking as that.

　　While at the doors to her father's chambers she heard him talking to a woman, they were arguing. Her ten years old self at that moment was very smart and already register what they were talking about.

　　The lady was claiming of him being the father of her child while he was pissed and asked the lady to keep quiet about it, the woman threatened him and his family. She said if she and her daughter do not get the title they deserve then she would make sure to tell everyone about their hidden child.

　　She was peeping in through the half-opened door and the lady happened to catch a glimpse of her, the lady smiled evilly at her and that was the beginning of her nightmare.

　　Although she ran away and her father didn't notice her, later that night she lost everything she hold dear to her heart.

　　While her mother was tucking her to bed something happened, a masked man broke into her room and killed her dear mother in cold blood, the dagger was aimed at her but her mother took it ok her behalf, seeing that the mission to kill the little princess has failed the masked person ran away, leaving the dagger in the hands of the little princess who cried and hugged her mother on her laps as her mother spent the last moments she could with her.

　　She could clearly remember her mother's last words " don't cry sweetheart, I will never leave you. Here, take this and be strong for me, you are stronger than you ever know, daughter."

　　Those were her last words before she died and tugged the little carved duck into her hands before breathing her last and giving up.

　　She clutched onto her bleeding mother and the dagger as the door flung open and suddenly her father walked into the room in a rage.

　　Seeing his beloved queen lying on the floor in cold blood and the dagger in his daughter's hands he didn't know what to think anymore.

　　"You...did you kill your mother Alice?"

　　He asked with a shaky voice but the little girl only shut him up with and dangerous and murderous look.

　　"She stood up with the dagger and approached him with red bloody eyes, her father was shocked and moved back.

　　"You.. you killed mother, you killed her!"

　　The girl threw the dagger at him in rage and ran out of the room.

　　For days she was missing and was eventually found in the woods after five days, her father was blinded by the rage he had towards his queen's death and blamed her for it.

　　A grand burial was held for the queen and the people mourned her for months, Alice was stripped of her rank as the crown princess and the name and title were given to her new stepsister, the daughter of the woman she has seen with her father the other time.

　　She was then sent to the hidden hills of punthurg and banned from the palace or any other village till her eighteenth birthday, she has termed evil and the killer of her own mother the queen.

　　Her father never visited her for eight years and only sent food supplies to her at her hidden dark castle, he let her keep one companion which is her friend.

　　She had a deep hatred towards him over the years, she found out through Lara that the king married that evil mistress only a year after his wife, her mother's death and they have been living happily as a family along with her stepsister.

　　She hated everything that had to do with the throne and the king and never wants to have anything to do with them.

　　Turning around and looking out the window to see the carriage she felt thirsty for revenge.