“PJ, what did you just say?!” Kiki placed a hand on my daughter’s arm, standing next to her as she sat cross-legged on the counter. Penelope furrowed her brows in confusion and stared at her aunt, “He’s Mommy’s forever, Aunt Kiki. I saw it.”

Kiki’s eyes darted to me then back to her niece. “Ok, sweetheart,” she soothed in the calming tone I recognized from growing up. It was as if she spoke to a wild animal. “Help me understand how you saw it.”

My daughter huffed a breath, as if annoyed with the audacity of her aunt to ask. As if we should see as clearly as her. “Aunt Kiki,” she tapped the side of her head, “I saw it in here. The future. Mommy and Roomy. They’re together. Their hearts are one.”

I bit my cheek, swallowing down every rattling instinct to scream. My daughter, my beautiful angel, had a vision. Of me and her father no less. “Baby…maybe you only saw what you wanted to see,” I offered, trying to explain away this unfathomable development. Only seers in our world possessed the ability to see the future. The ancient dieties created the seers long ago and never gifted a god with the power. From my studies, I read the ancient dieties worried of the potential disaster if a god also knew of the future. No, instead, we just bent the future to our will with all of our other powers.

Penelope balled her fists at her side, the precursor to an ensuing tantrum. She scrunched up her adorable face and reiterated, “No, Mommy, the witch told me. What I’m seeing is real.”

My vision blurred, and I held onto the counter for support. Steadying myself with deep breaths, I glared at Kiki, “Kikana, I asked you and Alexi to stay with her and not let her out of your sight? What the fuck?!”

Kiki’s mouth dropped open, and PJ scolded me, “Mommy! That’s potty language.”

“You’re right, my love, I’m sorry,” I rubbed her arm, and Kiki explained, “Birdie, I swear it on all of Clydonia, PJ never left our sight.”

“The witch came to me in my head, Mommy,” Penelope explained, reaching up and grabbing my face, “it’s ok.” My heart broke as I looked into my child’s golden-hued eyes, so full of innocence. In one day, I managed to rip her from the comfort of her own home and thrust her into an entirely different planet, so foreign and strange, and shatter every truth she held about me and herself. And here she was, comforting me, telling me it was ok. Failing as a mother must have been genetic. A knock on the door startled us all, and I walked over ready to tell whoever was there to bugger off.

“Oh!” I startled once more, surprised to find Rune standing on the other side instead of Hulda, who I assumed impatiently stalked off to sulk. “Everything ok?” His face was drawn together, and beads of sweat gathered around his forehead.

“Your Majesty,” he panted and dipped his head, “I should be asking you the same thing.”

“Why?” I asked, genuinely confused, wondering if he heard our entire conversation.

“You–you screamed,” he got out through gasps of breath.

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“Rune,” I gently touched his arm, “I did no such thing. Why are you out of breath?”

He stopped himself from fully rolling his eyes, “I heard Your Majesty scream from outside in the gardens.”

My hand flew up to my chest, “It wasn’t me. What if it was my friends? Oh dear gods,” I cried, hanging onto the handle of the door to keep myself from sinking onto the floor. “Hulda!” I called out, “Get here right now!” My voice rang through the halls.

Rune shook his head, “My Queen, I swear it, I heard your scream. No one else’s. I can differentiate.”

Kiki came up behind me, Penelope in her arms on her hip, “You know my cousin’s scream so distinctly? Really, Rune, care to enlighten us?”

His gaze darkened, and I whipped around to scold Kiki, “Absolutely not, Keek.” She chuckled, but added, “Her Majesty did not scream, Rune, I promise.”

He rubbed his fingers along his temple, “Then what was…”

“You summoned?” Hulda joined Rune in the doorway, looking very annoyed. I placed my hands across my chest and straightened my back, emanating the queenly presence I learned at a young age, “Hulda. The screams a few moments ago…did they come from the palace dungeons?”

Her genuine confusion shone through, “Screams? Your Majesty, I heard nothing. And I’ve been in the hall waiting until it’s deemed appropriate for me to re-enter the kitchen. But no, there were no screams.”

Rune’s baffled expression caused me pain, so I lightly touched his arm and encouraged, “Get some sleep, ok? It’s been…well, I don’t even know what it’s been, but I think you need to rest. And that’s an order from your queen.”

The side of his mouth ticked up in a smile and he said nothing before bowing and taking leave.

“Am I allowed back now, Your Highness?” Hulda addressed my daughter who ignored her and buried her face in her aunt’s neck.

“Hulda, I want my friends back. Now,” I demanded, tired of playing her games. She smiled a familiar smile, one reminding me of my mother. “Your Majesty, the council feels it’s appropriate to hold them here until we can determine their loyalty in not speaking of this to anyone back on their home planet. But not to worry. We’re taking care of them.” Her nostrils flared infinitesimally, a tell of hers I learned long ago when she lied. I managed my anger, quelling the urge to rip out her throat. “Please inform the council of the blood oath every one of them took, securing their allegiance to keep Clydonia a secret.”

She lifted her hand up to her face, placing a finger over her lip, another tell, “Might I remind you, Your Majesty, of my involvement on the council? I am not a messenger. But when we reconvene, I will include the information regarding the blood oath.”

I had the equivalent of twenty Earth years on this planet before I fled. And while I wasted away the first thirteen of those enjoying the spoils of childhood, the moment I saw my mother murder someone in cold blood was the moment I started paying attention. And maybe no one realized. Maybe all they saw was a child clinging to the skirts of her mother, unable to separate and enjoy a normal life. So maybe they didn’t see how I watched them, observing every action and counter-action, playing spy and learning the secrets of the court. They opened their doors, finding my general shy demeanor unthreatening. But when I slipped into my fits of rage, usually provoked by my mother’s heinous behavior, the council was split. Some found it detracting from my potential as a future ruler while others thought it boded well to continue the reign of terror. Either way, they groomed me, taking me under their wing, all the while, I bided my time, thinking of how to take each of them down. The moment my father died, every thought of my future reign dissolved. And the moment I learned of my pregnancy, shortly thereafter, I created a way to escape. By myself. I never had any intention of bringing Kiki or Alexi with me. Until my mother revealed her list. And it changed everything. But now here I was, playing the game again, hiding all my motives and creating the facade of adhering to their rules instead of destroying them with a flick of my wrist.