Her fingers tangled into the scraps and tears of her skirt. The crown had lost much of its shine. There was far too much grime and stains on it to glint and gleam like it did the day the Seven first brought her to the castle. Her reflection tilted its head, blinking back at her. The reflection touched the harsh red marks on her face; Mari hissed in pain. Was it normal for burns to be the same shape and size on both sides of her face? They were perfectly identical on both cheeks and under her eyes, maybe she should ask about it.

She frowned. She had to focus. One deep breath later, Mari tried to shut out all the lingering pain from the red patches decorating the rest of her. She didn't know what she was going to say; that wasn't new for her, but this was important. This time it mattered what Mari said. She had to convince them. She could not bear to think of what it would mean if she failed.

Mari forced her shoulders to relax. Dainan always seemed to have the right words naturally. If he could do it all the time, surely she could manage it just this once. Mari had to convince them not just for her own sake.

The crown stayed on the dresser when she left the room. Sharp pangs shot up her feet and legs as she walked. The harsh red marks on the bottom of her feet scraped the rough stone. Mari bit her lip, trying to ignore the pain. She nearly split her lip open when she reached the bottom of the stairs. She fought to keep her expression neutral so the guards wouldn't suspect anything. Their eyes flickered towards her, and their brows creased as they took in the state she was in. The urge to sprint away from their gazes hit her, but she forced herself to maintain her pace.

It seemed to take much longer for her to get past them than usual. If Mari didn't know better, she would have sworn their eyes scorched more patches into her skin. Once she was out of sight, she let out the breath she'd been holding in. Mari increased her pace knowing no one was around to think oddly of it. The speed seemed to help occupy her mind. At the very least, it gave her something to do with her nervous energy. She reached the hall connecting to Dainan's cell. The guard was there. He had not noticed her yet, which surprised her. Mari thought he would have heard her footsteps. Mari froze, trying to collect her thoughts and her words.

Her pained steps rang out, and she cleared her throat. The guard looked up and his face twisted as he noticed her skin. He bowed his head and turned to walk down a connecting hallway.

"Wait!" Mari's voice grated across the air like stone pulled across stone. Her voice had not fully recovered from the day before.

He froze. Mari's breath caught in her throat. He turned back to her, asking, "What is it, your Majesty?"

Mari coughed, trying to ignore how her throat ached. She could not force her voice to be any louder. "Take me to the scholars. I have a matter of importance to discuss with them."

"Of course, your Majesty." The guard bowed. He straightened up stiffly and walked towards her.

Mari looked up at him. His hair had specks and streaks of gray mixed in it. His face had several creases in it. He didn't really look like anyone else she had seen before. Mari asked, "What's your name?"

The guard stared at her as if she had said something she wasn't supposed to. He frowned and shook his head slightly. Mari wondered if she had broken some unspoken rule of conduct. She just wanted a name so she wouldn't have to keep calling him the guard.

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

"Helmuth." He didn't wait for a response from her. The echo of his boots rung in her ears, drowning out the sound of her own bare feet as they walked in the direction of the dungeon. He led a few steps in front of her as they turned down a hallway. Helmuth did not look back at her, but rubbed at his forehead every so often. Mari decided it would be best to wait until they had the scholars before making her next attempt to speak. If she was going to make a fool of herself, she only wanted to do it once.

Her pace slowed as the dungeon came into sight, but his did not. He went up to the men at the door. They spoke in quiet, shaky tones. They glanced at her and she straightened her posture, twisting her face, letting her discomfort show. She knew they would see it differently than how she truly felt.

The clinking of the keys filled the air, and the door was opened. Mari followed Helmuth into the dungeon. The others kept their heads down as she passed. Mari heard one of them draw in their breath as well. She clenched her fist. They were afraid of her, or the Seven, or both? There was no difference between her and the Seven in their eyes.

She repressed a shiver as the cold air hit her. It took her eyes a moment to adjust to the dim light. Helmuth was a step ahead of her, but he didn't go too far ahead of her. The whisper of chains mixed with the sound of their footsteps. Like last time, Mari paid no mind to the small voices that would filter through the air when she walked by cells. Helmuth would glance in the direction of the voice, twisting his face up, but their words meant nothing to Mari.

Mari stopped when she spotted the cell she was looking for. The man, Prentiss, scrambled to a sitting position, keeping one hand on his leg.

"What do you want now? You've already taken Lady Regan from us! We don't care what you do, no one will tell you anything!"

A pang of fear shook her heart. Would anything she said matter? How could she possibly convince someone to trust her when they had already made up their mind about who she was?

The guard turned to Mari, saying, "Your Majesty, are you—"

"Yes," Mari said. She already knew what question he was about to ask; she had just asked it as well. She was certain she had to do this, no matter what. The guard hesitated, but unlocked the door. As Helmuth placed restraints on Prentiss, he pulled away, lashing out at the guard as best he could. Helmuth forced him down, moving his leg and causing him to cry out.

Once Helmuth finally forced Prentiss' hands behind his back, the sound of heavy metal locking rung in Mari's head. Prentiss' nose dripped blood onto the ground. Mari watched. It seemed somewhat fitting in a way that he be injured after he had cut up her cheek by throwing a rock; however, Mari found no pleasure in it. She didn't really want to restrain him in the first place, but Mari knew it was necessary. The guards and other prisoners would talk if she did not; they had with Regan. There was also the high possibility Prentiss would attack her again.

The guard hauled Prentiss up, frowning at the fact Prentiss could not support his own weight. "Your Majesty, he is restrained, but still dangerous. He can barely walk, but with the way he reacted—"

"He comes," Mari cut him off again. Something was off with Helmuth. There was something about him. Mari couldn't put her finger on it, but it reminded her of herself when the Seven were with her. Mari shook her head, trying to focus on the task at hand. She frowned. "There is no way he cannot walk on his own?"

"Of course I can't!" Prentiss' voice rose. "You're the one who broke my leg in the first place! You horrible—"

Helmuth jostled him halfheartedly. Mari blinked and turned to the guard. "Broken leg or not, he comes."

He grunted and heaved Prentiss over his shoulder like a sack. Prentiss fussed and tried to resist, but could do nothing to Helmuth who reminded Mari of a large rock. The only discomfort Helmuth showed was from the noise rather than any of the blows Prentiss struck. Mari didn't even pay attention to the racket. She had certainly heard worse and sounded worse herself.