A strangled gasp sliced through midnight blue silence, followed immediately by the shifting of fabric as bed sheets were tossed, the weight of the comforter drawing them almost entirely to the floor as the woman who had been previously dead asleep beneath them sat up, damp with sweat, heaving for breath as she clutched at her own throat.
The layers of her hair and her bangs clung to her forehead, also damp, but ice cold, as her eyes slowly refocused on the pale pastel peach fitted sheet she was planted on, the remnants of the nightmare ebbing away second by second. She closed her mouth and swallowed, finding it to be dry. Her throat hurt, ached, she was parched. Water.
She needed water.
Throwing her long legs off the bedside she quickly crossed the shiny white, polished tile floor of her apartment in favor of throwing open the glass door that led to her balcony. Set into it was a still, serene pool, lit dimly by aqua lights just underneath the edge to catch excess from spilling over. It butted right up against the thick glass railing, so when she jumped in and sank down a good eight feet, floating in the water, her head immediately thrust into a different kind of atmosphere that was ice cold with the night, she could open her eyes and see the neon lights of the city through the blurred vision.
The heavy oak doors were swung with a surprising amount of gusto for a girl so small. She was thirteen, but the doors were easily three times her height as she charged into her father's study. Her face was smeared with blood from the corner of her mouth, a bruise already starting to swell on her left cheek, but she didn't care. She didn't care.
"I DID IT!" She screamed, screamed so the heavens could hear, so all of Aedolis could hear, for she had done what everyone had told her was silly, impossible, couldn't, and shouldn't be done.
"You should've seen the look on Markus's face when I beat him to the ground, sir!--"
Her eyes fell on two distinct shapes, sitting in wingbacked chairs across from each other with the drawing table between them. Each had a coffee cup, filled recently for they were both steaming, and an untouched chess board with all of the pieces lined perfectly in their starting positions.
Crap.
Crap.
She skidded to a stop, her breath catching in her throat as her heart momentarily stopped beating in horror. They were never, ever supposed to bother him when he was with a guest. She'd seen her oldest brother, Markus, do it once. His ass was beaten black and blue. Behind her, she heard the skidding, squeaking shoe steps of the maid that had tried to stop and catch her, seeing she was already far too late and gasping in fear as well, because she wouldn't be getting away without being reprimanded, or worse, either. And both of them knew it.
"So--Sorry--" She squeaked, the maid still too much in shock to say anything, mouth covered by her hand.
She only saw her father's face; the other person's chair wasn't facing her. He was unreadable, her father--but they weren't allowed to call him that. Only "Sir." His fingers were laced with each other, elbows on the armrests of his chair, hiding his mouth. He was dressed in a sleek medium gray blazer and matching slacks, the white button down underneath fastened up to his adam's apple, and his black leather shoes so polished they caught the dim light of the lit fireplace, which currently made the only noise in the room. Crackling, snapping.
His slender, almond shaped silver eyes were staring right at her. Right through her.
If she'd ever had to describe her father, she'd have said he looked like a badger. He was refined and cunning, but not exactly slender like a weasel. Sturdy, would be a more fitting term. Broad-shouldered, with long limbs, long fingers, sharp cheekbones and a narrow face. His hair was layered, shrinking in length to the buzz at the nape of his neck, the length on top slicked back so well not a single hair would ever fall out of place.
They looked absolutely nothing alike.
"It's alright, Andromeda."
When he spoke, his voice was deep. It resonated a chord within you that whenever you heard it, you hoped you never had to hear it ever again. He spoke with finality, crisp clarity that left no room for questions. It was fitting, for who he was. A general of the Aedolian military, held in some of the highest regards and one of the highest ranking officers still left standing. His strategics won many battles in the war, and the government was all the more happy to keep him well paid because of it.
Her gaze immediately dropped from his, and something else caught her eye, to the left. He said something to her maid, and footsteps faded away in the background, but she didn't really pay attention to it. Instead, her sights were fixed quite steadily on the piano sitting in the room, on a rug with the bench tucked neatly beneath.
Why was that there...?
"Andromeda. Since you're here, why don't you play a song for us?"
Her gaze snapped back to him, and again her heart almost ceased to beat. Automatically her legs moved, fear propelling her to obey without question, every muscle in her body tense and rigid as she walked straight, with purpose, shoulders back, chin held high, to hide the overwhelming sense of anxiety that threatened to make the room go dark.
She pulled out the bench with slightly trembling hands, seated herself upon it and held her fingers poised perfectly over the keys.
"What would you like, sir?" Her tone was strictly formal, robotic.
Why? Why? Why is this here? This has never been in his study before. It was always kept downstairs. Why did he have it moved?
"Play us your favorite song."
She swallowed hard but the lump in her throat that made her felt as if she was slowly suffocating wouldn't go away. She dared stare at him again, shocked and left without words. She didn't understand. Why?!
"You know, sir, my teacher today, she said I'm absolutely stunning, and she said that if my mother saw me she'd be proud! Don't you think she'd be proud?"
"No. Your mother had no appreciation for such things." His gaze at her back then was exactly as it was now.
"You look just like her."
Despite the slight shake she tore her gaze from his and decided to stare at the reflection on the back of the piano instead as her fingers moved on their own, playing a beautiful rhythm that was quick, light hearted, and playful. She'd always felt like it was very captivating of her personality. She liked to have fun, liked to go on adventures. This song made her feel pretty.
"You see?" She overheard her father speak, and it almost made her hands falter, but she continued on, for he hadn't told her to stop.
"Yes, I have to admit. You weren't kidding."
She could practically hear her father's smile all the way across the room, and she never felt more isolated or alone before than she did right then.
"Andromeda."
She froze.
"You beat Markus today, didn't you?"
She blinked and looked over at him, the rest of her form unmoving, hands still poised over the keys as if she expected him to yell at her since he hadn't directly told her to stop. She nodded.
"Good. I have a mission for you--one that only you can do."
She blinked again, and her breath caught in her throat. A mission..?
"Yes, sir? What is it?" Suddenly, it was hard to hold back a grin--maybe, maybe this wasn't what she thought it was. She'd bested Markus, did that mean that she was the best now, of all of them? This must be! If only she could do this, then..! This was her chance!
"I'll do anything you require of me, sir!!" The excitement bubbling up in her voice was undeniable, but her father's level stare was absolute.
"I know."
Andromeda Messiere threw the sheets back in a cold sweat, clutching desperately at her throat as she panted and gasped for air, windpipe still feeling crushed. Water.
She needed water.
Throwing her long legs off the bedside she quickly crossed the shiny white, polished tile floor of her apartment in favor of throwing open the glass door that led to her balcony. Set into it was a still, serene pool, lit dimly by aqua lights just underneath the edge to catch excess from spilling over. It butted right up against the thick glass railing, so when she jumped in and sank down a good eight feet, floating in the water, her head immediately thrust into a different kind of atmosphere that was ice cold with the night, she could open her eyes and see the neon lights of the city through the blurred vision.
The heavy oak doors were swung with a surprising amount of gusto for a girl so small. She was thirteen, but the doors were easily three times her height as she charged into her father's study...
