I didn’t even get a chance to breathe before someone grabbed my arm.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoo2BwohCzN
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“His Majesty requests your presence,” a guard said, like I’d just been invited for cake instead of after confessing to murder.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTSYw4dSKIS
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Oh, sure. Totally normal post-manslaughter hangout.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaEKTsCtqYC
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The palace hallways blur past as they escort me. Gold ceilings. Velvet curtains. Way too much perfume in the air. Everything smells too clean for what just happened.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw9U3utr2HX
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By the time we reach the King’s chambers, my stomach’s doing gymnastics.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEFUJ688O7S
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The doors swing open with a heavy creak, and there he is — the King.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaztwZUESKz
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He’s older than I remembered. Tired eyes, gray at the edges of his beard, but when he looks up and sees me… it’s like watching the sun break through smoke.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9TAazSDC34
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> “Ariana!”14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr5qX4Vd6jE
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He rushes forward and before I can dodge, he hugs me. Full royal embrace. Armor and all.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUUb9232OnQ
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I freeze like someone hit pause on me.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIhNw8GNHBe
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My brain short-circuits.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOCRWmOl1xT
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Right. Hugs. With the guy who rules the kingdom. After a public murder. Totally fine.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsveasiieYD
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> “My dear, you’re safe,” he says, his voice soft but trembling. “When I heard what happened, I feared the worst. Thank the heavens you’re unharmed.”14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAjldDYA9GE
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He pulls back to look at me — and for a second, I see it. Real worry. Real love.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Zu8lAuwqZ
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And that’s almost worse.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9WugvXorH3
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Because I didn’t do anything to earn it.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7swM25rxhE
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The courtiers behind him stay silent.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbRkjvyOiq2
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They bow. Whisper. Pretend not to see the mess.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk0LJi99DPI
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No one mentions Clara’s name. Not once.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVvfM9Nvxrl
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Like she never existed.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiMnNU1T1Jd
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> “You must rest,” the King says gently. “The court will handle the details. You’ve suffered enough.”14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm4naaFSPWj
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I nod because what else can I do?14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2lOQ2a1Sdw
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If I open my mouth, sarcasm will leak out and ruin my life.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvlYkeiO7Ae
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So I just say,14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDh39oz6REp
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> “Yes, Father.”14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsns5YugjcU
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He smiles — relieved, maybe even proud — and calls for the maids to take me to my chambers.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRzlLI5D9QX
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---14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9YMFJQIiNs
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The walk back feels longer. Quieter.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡelvmN81e8D
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When they finally leave me alone, I collapse onto the bed.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZDTLyzTCC8
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The silk sheets swallow me whole, and for the first time in hours, I let myself breathe.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi33zaTdKnI
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> “So,” I whisper to the empty room,14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBXMvo2i1OK
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“confessed to murder, adopted by the King, promoted to favorite daughter. 10/10 quest rewards.”14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj0gfviCKc4
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I laugh a little — that weird kind of laugh that sounds dangerously close to crying.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPERX4oixMr
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Then I pull the covers up to my chin and stare at the ceiling.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrou7kHcaSU
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> “I’m so screwed.”14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrkeG0WAG15
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The gold chandeliers flicker overhead.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6jniq0TRSH
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Somewhere outside, the bells toll faintly, like the world’s trying to remind me what time it is.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqkN4RldFSO
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But I already know.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh0tPN3zWAu
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It’s the hour when fate stops pretending to be fair.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoP1ZRRAcA9
1234 copyright protection10ＰＥＮＡＮＡqu7NYMXkQW 尼I close my eyes, but his face won’t leave me alone.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx4HzkjwEe6
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Those blue eyes — calm even with a sword over his neck.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIFrbcdmLur
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Like he wasn’t scared of dying.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzyamSA4nko
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Like he’d already done it before.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOaY9Kf3FIm
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And that smile… no, not even a smile — more like quiet acceptance.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTuCPrmUmA8
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The kind that says, “I told you this would happen.”14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoaGxi2tgqh
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I don’t even know his name.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7uxmg4lDgP
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But when I think about him, my chest tightens, like I’m remembering someone I already lost.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhbAmrKZQEW
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Which makes no sense, because I’m supposed to be me. Lily. The girl who fell into a cursed fantasy soap opera.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1acW9uqfwF
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So why does it hurt like it’s not the first time?14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡegPkYKDBHl
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