I silently scanned the text, deciding to privately see what this was about before announcing it to the world. It said:
'Dear Luna,
Happy thirteenth birthday.
I hope this letter doesn't disrupt you from ending your party in peace (even though I am aware it will worry you. But this letter was necessary). I'm the version of you that you don't yet know, and I have written this to warn you about something. Remember, don't trust the royal family.
Try not to worry.
Enjoy the rest of your party! Bye!
Love, Future You.'
My heart sank lower than it had ever done before. I knew that if this was from my future self, I couldn't tell anyone.
In Lumenfall everyone trusted and respected the royals more than anyone.
Any kind of disrespect like this counted as treason, so... that meant I had to hide it.
"What's the present, Luna?" asked Orion curiously, his eyes glinting with interest.
My breath caught as I came up with a clever lie.
I had to hide my gift.
"It's... a page that says I'll get the gift next year."
"Then why do you look so miserable?"
"I... wanted something now." I said, thinking he would believe me.
Orion avoided my gaze, and he looked like he knew I was faking it.
Aside from him, everyone seemed bewildered, and their eyes showed that they weren't convinced.
"No!" Aria whined, "Before that I'll already have my own gift. How can I wait so long?"
Everyone else also looked disappointed and confused, but at least they weren't pushing me to be honest.
That was enough.
For now.
Later I would have to hope that they wouldn't imprison me.
The party ended in a daze, and then I went straight to my room and grabbed a bulky book from the highest bookshelf, flipped to a random page in the middle, shoved the letter in, and placed the book back.
My room looked vibrant because of the decoration, but it seemed to blacken due to the fear clouded inside my mind.
I felt the blood rush to my head as I shook my head to clear it.
I walked toward the mirror to look at my reflection, and what I saw terrified me.
There was a deep worry crease between my eyebrows, and it was evident from my face that something wrong had happened. The confetti on my head fall down as I took off my party hat and shoved it onto the table.
How could no one notice?
Or maybe they did.
They couldn't exactly say, "Hey, Luna, you're lying, right? Can we invade your privacy and see what you got?"
I sighed deeply, setting myself onto my large canopy bed and frowning slightly.
Why didn't I get a real gift?
How did my future self send me that letter?
Suddenly, I heard a soft knock on my door.
I shuffled to my feet hastily and opened the door.
Both my parents walked in, looking extremely concerned.
"What's wrong? Can we see your present?" asked my father gently.
I looked at him, and whispered, "Er, I'm just worried because I got no present.
And out of worry I... tore the note apart."
My mother sighed and said they both turned away, "Tell us if you decide you want to."
That was when I thought about my lie, "Why didn't I actually rip it apart?
I reached for the book, and after some time of looking for it, I found the letter.
But something felt wrong. I couldn't tear it.
Maybe I would need it.
I stiffed it into a drawer, deciding I would try to guard it.
The next few days passed by in severe anxiety, as I was worried that someone might find the letter.
I even skipped school, saying that I wanted to have a few days off because I was sick.
And it wasn't completely a lie.
All the worry was giving me a pretty bad headache.
But in a little more than a week, an official scroll was sent to my house.
The giant scroll looked new, and the ink looked like it had been written very recently.
It was addressed to me.
I read it silently, but I could not prevent my parents from reading it over my shoulder.
It was an invitation for me to visit the royal palace!
But was I supposed to go?
*Don't trust the royal family.*
It didn't say not to visit them...15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIWMXvoLZn9
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