the raven's crown

Posted originally on the Archive of Our Own at http://archiveofourown.org/works/31460069.

Rating: Not Rated

Archive Warning: Choose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Category: F/F
Fandom: Victorious (TV)
Relationship: Cat Valentine/Jade West
Character: Cat Valentine, Jade West, Beck Oliver, Tori Vega
Additional Tags: Renaissance Era, Alternate Universe - Renaissance, Star-crossed
Stats: Published: 2021-05-22 Completed: 2021-08-13 Chapters: 3/3 Words:
13397

the raven's crown

by reqlity

Summary

in which jade is a princess trapped in an arranged marriage with prince beck, but her heart
yearns for a peasant girl by the name of cat valentine instead.

Notes

hey this is my first multi-chapter fic! it is going to be pretty short, only 3 chapters, but i
hope you enjoy!
 white horse

Birds chirped fantastical melodies, echoing into the sky like whispers of freedom, each note
symbolizing every reason why being a bird is superior to being a human. The winged-creatures are
so free, living by their own schedule and their own rules. There’s no set meal times or day plans,
they just eat when they’re hungry and fly about like feathered clouds floating in a sea of blue.

Birds could go anywhere, for their wings granted them their freedom. They could explore the
welkin boundlessly, possibly migrating to the ends of the earth just to avoid the inconveniences of
cold weather.

Meanwhile Jadelyn West was stuck. She couldn’t eat certain things or at certain times, she had to
act properly and follow the schedule provided for that day, everything she did was on someone
else’s time. Well, if she actually followed the rules that is. Jadeyn was known for being quite
rebellious, refusing to even go by her full birth name and instead only answering to Jade.

Stretching before getting up, Jade was greeted by her least favorite lady. Tori Vega. “Goodmorning
Jade!”

“Go away.”

Jade never got to choose anyone that was supposedly responsible for her, and her parents had the
worst taste in people.

“B-but breakfast is in 15 minutes your highness-” Vega sputtered, still dumbfounded by the way
Jade talks to her despite having been there for years.

“I can get myself dressed. Just leave,” Jade ordered coldly, going as far as to physically push Tori
in the direction of the door. She couldn’t stand being constantly watched by people, constantly
checked on, constantly having things done for her. Despite being a member of the most powerful
family in her entire kingdom, sometimes Jade just felt so powerless. It was suffocating, having to
abide by everyone else’s expectations. Which was why she didn’t.

Strolling into breakfast ten minutes late, Jade greeted her parents and younger brother, “Morning
birthgivers, vermin.”

Her parents just gave looks of disappointment, having no clue what they did to raise such an unruly
daughter. “That is no way to talk to your parents, Jadelyn,” King Richard scolded bitterly, having
grown sick and tired of Jade’s behavior.

“Don’t call me that,” Jade warned darkly before proclaiming, “I’m starving,” as she began piling
eggs on her plate. As Jade began to eat, the king and queen exchanged looks, arguing back and
forth with their eyes over who would be the one that had to bring the topic of interest up.

Alas, Queen Helena spoke up, “Jadelyn-”

“Jade.”

“Jade,” she corrected, “You’re seventeen now-”

“Congratulations you figured it out. Never would’ve guessed,” Jade remarked sarcastically.

“Please don’t interrupt your mother,” King Richard reprimanded.

Jade rolled her eyes as her mother began talking once more, “It’s about time you married, and
we’ve found the perfect suitor. Prince Beckett Oliver from the Kingdom of Alynthi-”

“No.”

King Richard was livid, anyone could see his face flush with rage as he slammed a fist on the table.
“Richard calm down!” Queen Helena tried, putting a hand on his shoulder.

“This little brat-”

“She’s our daughter!”

“She doesn’t act like it!”

The tension in the air was suffocating, threatening to choke any soul that dared come near the
overly elegant table. The silence that overcame was brief, before King Richard took a deep breath.
“Jadelyn August West. It is your duty to your kingdom to marry in the best interest of it. This
marriage between you and Prince Beckett would solidify the peace we so narrowly achieved after
twenty years of war. Rejecting this marriage could lead to another conflict.”

“So that’s all I am to you? Some political pawn?” Jade questioned bitterly, her words dripping with
spite.

Jade’s mother tried to chime in, “Jade please, this marriage-”

“Yes mother, tell me all about this marriage. How you’re marrying your only daughter off to some
random prince across the ocean in order to help solve a conflict that began before I was even alive.
My feelings are completely irrelevant in all of this because nobody cares how a princess feels, I’m
just a woman!” By this point, Jade had stood up and was seething, absolutely teeming with fury as
her breathing grew all the more rapid the more she yelled.

King Richard threw his glass, the shattering noise causing everything in the home to go radio silent
as he stood up. “It is your duty!”

“I didn’t ask for this life! I didn’t ask for any of this!” Jade barked as her words bounced in the
large, open castle walls before storming off in a cloud of sickening ire.

“David!” King Richard called for his best guard.

“Wait, maybe we should send another girl, someone that Jade would be more willing to go with,”
Helena offered.

“Ah like Victoria-”

“Honey, our daughter can’t stand Tori. At that point you might as well go yourself.”

“Well what about her?”

Richard gestured to a castle servant cleaning up the glass Richard had previously thrown in his
tempered state. “What’s your name again dear?”

“Caterina,” The girl timidly replied.

“And does my daughter hate you?”

“Well we haven’t really talked-”

“Good enough for me. I need you to go find her and bring her back, she’d be more receptive to you
than one of my guards. Are you capable of completing this task?”

“Yes your majesty. I won’t let you down.”

As Caterina made her way out of the castle, she looked for any possible sight of the princess but to
no avail. Jade was fast.

The servant just followed the trail out of the castle, trying to rationalize where a girl unhappy with
her predetermined fate would go. Eventually running blindly towards the woods, Caterina felt
some sort of force pulling her that way, like she just knew where the princess was.

As leather shoes thudded along dirt trails, Caterina makes her way through masses of evergreens
and foliage before hearing violent screams of matchless rage awaken forest creatures, squirrels
skittering away from the ear-splitting sound. There’s the princess.

As Caterina approached, she was cautious to remain covered as she ducked behind a great peach
tree. Vision slightly obscured from the leaves Caterina peered through, a black and green blur
stomped around in a clearing in the forest before she was stilled, stopping to pick up a rock and hurl
it at a tree in front of her. The servant watched as the younger tree trembled, loose bark falling off
from the force of the stone.

Not knowing what to expect, Caterina stayed dead still, almost paralysed as she watched the
princess torment the forest life in her tantrum, her rage built with the force of dozens of men that
would probably cower in her presence upon seeing her current state.

Winds swirled all around the raven-tressed princess, providing an almost cinematic scene as fallen
leaves spun and floundered around on the forest floor. Another rock was thrown, smashing into the
peach tree Caterina was hidden behind. The tree shook angrily, a few peaches raining down like
pink hail, one of which hit Caterina right on the head. “Owie,” she whited softly, rubbing her head.

“Who the hell was that?” Jade snarled, picking up yet another rock and aiming in Caterina’s
direction.

“It was me, don't hit me!” Caterina cried out in defeat as she moved past the tree and into the
clearing, ducking underneath her arms in defense as she crouched in the grass.

Jade approached the girl that had cowered to the ground before grabbing hold of her arm and
yanking her upright. Keeping a firm grip on her shoulders, Jade barked at the girl, “My mother sent
you didn’t she? Well you can tell my mother that I refuse to return until she calls off the marriage
between me and whatever that insolent bastard’s name was because it’s not happening. I’m a
human being not a political pawn and I refuse to be treated as such, so you can take your innocent
little dirty dress back to the castle before hell rains down because unlike your face, it won’t be
pretty.”

With that, Jade shoved Caterina aside, almost making her collapse to the floor once more. Out of
everything a princess was expected to be: dainty, gentle, submissive, Jade was certainly none of
those things. “B-but-”

“What are you gonna do? Tell me that it's my responsibility too? Because my mother already tried
that and if you think for one second I’m letting you tell-”

“I was going to say I agree with you! You should marry for love.”

Jade appeared taken aback, steely eyes studying the brunette in front of her’s for evidence of deceit,
but all she saw were two adoring doe-like eyes staring back at her. “What’s your name?”

“Caterina Valentine! But people usually just call me Cat! Like the animal! Woof!” Cat rambled,
words spewing out of her faster than a horse-drawn carriage as her hands traveled around her in
untamed gestures. Well at least Jade figured out where the horses’ sugar had disappeared to.

“I believe cats meow.”

“I don’t meow silly! I talk! Like a human!”

“But you just-” Jade signed before pressing a palm to her forehead momentarily, “Nevermind.”

“Princess Ja-”

“Ugh I hate the title princess. It’s too prissy, doesn’t hold much power. Just call me Jade.”

“Jaaade, can you please come back to the castle so I’m not beheaded?”

“No.”

“Pleasyy,” Cat pleaded, eyes seemingly welling up in a cry of desperation.

Jade looked into her chocolate irises, the tears beginning to form in the corners of her eyes as a
cocktail of woe and trepidation bubbled beneath a glassy covering. She just couldn’t say no to
those eyes. “Ugh fine. But not yet. We’re going to have some fun.”

“Yay I love fun!”

Her moods were as fickle as the weather when living in a land within the jet stream, and she was
kind of annoying, but Jade figured she’d do as valid enough company to spend the morning with.

“You look so different,” Cat commented as Jade stepped out from behind the trees after changing.
The two had paid a visit to one of Cat’s peasant friends so Jade could get some commoner clothes
in order to avoid being recognized on the street.

“Good. That’s what we’re going for,” Jade replied in a “duh” tone.

“Thank you Robbie! You sure Gabriella won’t mind?”

“I don’t think anyone would mind the literal princess wearing their clothes,” Robbie responded,
still looking at Jade in absolute awe. His eyes had been saucer-wide ever since Cat brought Jade to
his place.

“Stop looking at me like that,” Jade demanded harshly before turning to Cat, “You ready?”

“Yeah!”

Jade put the attached hood to her shawl over her head, trying to conceal her identity. Grabbing Cat
by the wrist, Jade pulled her towards the market square. The morning market was truly a sight to
behold: All the villagers interacting around brightly colored stands adorned with glimmering goods
thanks to the plentiful resources of the kingdom. Jade’s irises focused on a bird, soaring above it
all, seeming all high and mighty with all the liberation in the world as its songs tranquilized the
people below it with its sweet harmonies.

“That’s a pretty birdy!” Cat exclaimed, placing a hand on Jade’s shoulder as she jumped forward to
get a better look at the specimen.

Jade pulled her hand off. “We aren’t here for bird-watching. C’mon.”

Cat giggled as she was pulled along withered cobblestone, her hand attached to Jade’s as they came
upon Mrs. Pletherfield, one of the farmers in the community.

“Okay Cat, you go distract that lady by talking to her.”

Cat smiled in response. “Kay kay!”

Bouncing up to the woman, Cat chirped out a pleasant greeting, “Hi Mrs. Pletherfield! How are
you doing today?”

“Oh why hello Caterina, I’ve been good!” The woman responded in greeting. Mrs. Pletherfield was
a stoutly woman, prideful in her harvest and her respectful children. She was quite pleasant, unless
you got on her bad side that is. “I haven’t seen you in a while dearie, they really have you held up
in that palace, huh?”

As Cat had a normal conversation with the farmer’s wife, Jade was fiddling with the gate on the
door to the cage that goats were being kept in so the side of the stand. Mrs. Pletherfield had the
goats out during the morning market because children love to pet them. “Oh my!” Mrs.
Pletherfield shouted as goats shot past the stand, wildly running about the market area like a
gaggle of headless ducks.

The woman wasted no time in chasing after them, trying to lure them back into the cage with feed.
Jade once again grabbed Cat by the arm and yanked her away as she laughed. This was the first
time Cat had seen Jade even smile, let alone laugh, and it was beautiful. It was messy and rough
but had a softness and rhythm to it that sounded like honey in Cat’s ears. Cat couldn’t help but
laugh along with Jade as they watched Mrs. Pletherfield scuttle around the square, dancing by
stands like a mad woman. Cat almost felt bad, but the goats eventually ran towards the cage and
Mrs. Pletherfield was able to slam the door shut the second they crossed the threshold into the
enclosure.

Jade hardly let Cat stand around long enough to see the look of relief fall onto the woman’s face
before dragging her elsewhere. There seemed to be a lot of dragging going on when hanging out
with Jade, but Cat didn’t necessarily mind it.

So there they were, dashing around the market, leaving shenanigans in their trail. Jade was like a
ninja, so stealthy no one even noticed she was there. She had to keep Cat from getting them both
caught. Cat felt a bit like an awkward duckling in the presence of a graceful swan, but she figured
that's what hanging out with someone as regal as the princess must do.

In their time in the market, they freed goats, knocked over produce, enticed children into a cult, and
made a horse chase its owner using a carrot. Cat had no clue anyone in the royal family could be so
fun, she felt that some of Jade’s actions were a little mean, but they were overly pretty harmless
and the servant had a great time out in the world.

“Okay, let's go back now before my father decides to behead you.”

Cat squeaked as she clasped brown locks in shaky hands, trying to somehow protect herself from a
guillotine that wasn’t present. “Calm down baby girl, I was joking.”

Neither of them had any clue where the nickname came from, or what it meant for them, but they
remained silent about it. After returning the peasant clothes to Robbie and getting her obnoxiously
lavish dress back on, they returned to the castle.

“Oh Jade! I’m so glad you’re home!” Jade’s mother tried to capture Jade in a hug, but Jade dodged
her embrace.

“Whatever,” Jade replied monotonously. Cat frowned. Smiley Jade was gone, and grumpy Jade had
returned to claim its throne on Jade’s face.

King Richard gave Cat a nod of approval. “Thank you,” He told the servant, before walking away
to confront other kingly concerns.

Jade stormed off to her room. She hated her parents for using her as a political pawn, in the age of
romanticism, this was the least romantic thing. She hated being trapped in an arranged marriage.
She hated the stupid castle walls that confined her. She hated being a princess. Getting out of the
castle and hanging out with Cat was the most fun she had possibly her entire life.

With such an intense lust for freedom, it was a miracle Jade didn’t just run away and never look
back. Normally, when Jade fantasizes about her great escape, she pictures herself going alone, but
this time, Cat seemed to creep her way into the picture, slipping through the cracks in Jade’s
normally empty heart like a pool of strawberry jam: sticky and hard to wipe off, but sweet and
comforting.

Jade heard a bird chirp outside the window, sitting on the bannister of the balcony. It looked like a
raven. Sleek black feathers coated it, a coat of freedom. Those feathers meant it could fly wherever
it wanted. Jade wished she had wings. Another bird flew in to join it, this one a white bird. A dove.
The birds appeared to be friends, so different in color and species yet they were the same. They
both were caught in a world of predator vs prey, but had an element of escape. Their wings. They
were lucky.

People weren't. They too were trapped in a predator vs prey world, never knowing who to trust and
who’s out to get you, who you can destroy, and who can destroy you. Humans were incredibly
capricious, their actions ruled by their moods. In a way, humans really weren't that different from
birds. The difference lay in the escapism of a bird, while humans remain dormant, prisoners within
their own societies.

People created kingdoms for a sense of control, but the weight of that control was suffocating.
Despite this overwhelming desire to escape, Jade was a control freak. She hated not being able to
control everyone around her, despite being a princess with royal privileges, she felt powerless as
her hands were tied to some duty for her kingdom. She could command servants all day, but the
one thing she couldn't seem to control was her destiny, and it drove her absolutely mad.

Her parents were also control freaks. All they seemed to care about was Jade following the rules,
her acting proper, her presenting a good image to the public. They didn't care about her, she wasn't
a son. She wasn’t important because she wouldn't get control over the kingdom. She's the daughter.
So all they could do was try to wind in this reckless force, tie down the loose end Jade was. They
aimed to control her.

Everything comes down to control. Everyone around her was a control freak. Everyone except
Caterina Valentine.

The short afternoon they spent together was a breath of fresh air. Cat didn't care for controlling
anything. She was just along for the ride. Something about her blissfully innocent spirit instilled a
sense of hope in Jade, that just maybe things could be different. Maybe if she spent her days with
Cat she’d feel more free.
So that’s what she did. Despite their contrasting personalities, Jade managed to spend every spare
moment with Cat.

Most notably was the time Cat walked in on Jade playing piano. Pianos were only owned by the
richest of the lands, so of course the monarchs had one. Learning to play piano was one thing Jade
was glad her parents forced her to do, for it allowed her to develop a love for music.

Cat had finished her duties for the moment and found herself wandering the castle, gazing upon
golden beams that stretched up towards the ceiling, curving with the rounded roof adored with
cherubs dancing across a cerulean sky. Various artworks by the most well-known artists of the
centuries covered lavish walls, as the marble flooring matched the statues sometimes lining the
halls. Cat couldn’t even imagine the life of the royals, everything around them was just so
luxurious-

Her thoughts were cut off by the sound of musical notes echoing through the halls. As a servant,
Cat had never really heard a piano before, she had been too young to serve at any of the past royal
parties where it was probably played, so the most she’s heard were very distorted rumblings from
upstairs as she remained in her quarters from the basement.

The smooth composition of the keys streamed into Cat’s eager ears like silk, rich yet airy. The
music traveled through the hallway in strings of satin ribbon and Cat grabbed onto one of those
ribbons, following it all the way into the ballroom where she saw the exalted princess herself, her
long elegant fingers gliding over the keys to form the most beautiful sounds Cat had ever heard.
She was absolutely enamored by the sight, feeling like she was watching a goddess herself
handcrafting the harmonious melody with a delicate touch.

It was such a different side of Jade from what Cat was used to, it was a softer, more vulnerable
side.

Jade felt a weight land next to her, and she was ready to scream at whoever dared interrupt her,
before a sweet voice interrupted. “That is so pretty,” Cat complimented, awestruck by how such a
beautiful noise could be created, “How do you do that?”

“Have you never seen a piano before?” Jade remarked snarkily before realizing, “Oh right. You
probably haven’t given your status.”

“How does it work?” Cat inquired, cocking her head in curiosity.

“You just push these keys, and sound comes out, like this,” Jade demonstrated, pushing a key down
as a C note filled the air, bouncing off the walls of the empty room.

Cat tried it, pushing a variety of keys but wincing when a series of mangled cries came out instead
of the enchanting harmonies Jade had played. “Why does it sound like that?” Cat frowned.

“Because some notes sound good together, while some don’t. You have to press the right keys for
it to sound good,” Jade responded, trying to maintain her patience but her tone getting mildly
snappy. She was impatient and didn’t like when people didn’t know things she did, and she hated
having to explain things to people. But Cat wasn’t just people, so Jade’s tone softened considerably
for her.

Jade demonstrated once more, playing a melody that actually sounded familiar to Cat as she moved
into the chorus of the song. Stars lit up within brown irises as her face erupted into an explosion of
excitement before excitedly chirping, “I know this song! My mom sang this to me all the time
when I was a little girl!”
Jade kept playing, the sound of an airy soprano mixing with the piano in a gorgeous bliss. “That
I’m not a princess. This ain’t a fairytale. I’m not the one you’ll sweep off her feet, lead her up the
stairwell.”

“This ain’t Hollywood. This is a small town. I was a dreamer before you went and let me down,”
Jade joined in, her rich deep voice contrasting deliciously with Cat’s honeyed silky register, the
two harmonizing almost instantly as Jade turned to face Cat, it was her turn to be surprised. She
never expected Cat to have such a beautiful voice but every word she sang was like liquid gold,
shimmering and shining as it rang throughout the lavishly decorated ballroom.

“Now it’s too late for you and your white horse to come around.”

Cat leaned against Jade. Jade would shove anyone else off of her immediately, but not Cat. It felt
like she was meant to be there, like there was some kind of magnetic force attracting Cat’s head to
Jade’s shoulder. It fit there perfectly, more perfect than a freshly tailored dress as piano melodies
continued to fill the room.

“And there you are on your knees,” Cat sang effortlessly.

Jade sang the next line, “Begging for forgiveness. Begging for me.”

Their voices intertwined, “Just like I always wanted but I’m so sorry.”

“Cause I’m not your princess. This ain’t a fairytale. I’m gonna find someone someday who will
actually treat me well. This is a big world, that was a small town. There in my rearview mirror
disappearing now. And it's too late for you and your white horse.”

Their eyes met, connecting instantly, “Now it's too late for you and your white horse to catch me
now.”

Jade swore she heard birds chirping along outside, and it was in the trance of the song where she
felt herself falling.
 the ball

A week passed following the piano duet, and servants were racing around the castle, darting from
room to room trying to prepare the castle for the upcoming party that would be occurring that
evening. Every spot had to be cleaned, every painting straightened, every dish cooked to
perfection, there was always a lot to do on ballroom days. Cat was assigned in the actual ballroom
itself, polishing the dance floor diligently.

“Just leave me alone!” Everyone working in the room abruptly jumped when the princess herself
stormed in there, all eyes trained on her as she stomped towards the center of the room. She had
barked the words, her eyes filled with fire, the same dangerous glow Cat had seen the day she was
sent to retrieve Jade from the forest.

“Jadelyn! You can’t just not attend the ball that’s meant for you! Don’t you at least want to meet
Prince Beckett?” Queen Helena questioned, stepping closer to Jade. Cat tried to focus on her work,
but it was hard to look away from a fight happening in the middle of the room.

Jade’s facial expression contorted as her eyes widened and her mouth gaped open as she looked at
her mother in warped shock. “Have you not listened to a single thing I said the entire time I’ve been
telling you this entire week? No, I do not want to meet some sleazy prince you’re marrying your
only daughter off to for some little alliance that could easily be formed without marital ties!” Jade
fumed, eyes darkening dangerously as she glared at the queen.

“Prince Beckett is royalty! He isn’t sleazy and I’m sure he’s very nice!” Queen Helena argued.
Jade rolled her eyes.

“I’m royalty, and I’m not very nice. Neither is dad. He threatens servant’s lives!” Jade spat, her
eyes connecting with Cat’s for a fleeting moment, irises barely grasping on to each other before
Jade turned back to aggressively stare her mother right in the eye, her stance having a tense effect
of all the servants desperately trying to remain focused on their tasks in the midst of the argument
between royals.

“You do not get to criticize the manner in which your father rules! Besides, it's not like you’re any
better. You are so mean to that poor girl Tori when all she ever does is try and help you!”

“Oh my god mom, I don’t need her help! She’s just annoying!”

The argument continued, going off into more obscure tangents from the main issue at hand as Jade
erupted into a flaming ball of rage, yelling louder and louder until she hit a breaking point. “Fuck
this kingdom, fuck this marriage, and fuck you!” Jade roared, pulling the tiara off her head and
slamming it into the floor, jewels shattering on impact.

Bits of crystal seemed to fly up in slow motion, like a million pieces of glittering flurry swirling all
over before spreading out onto the marble floor. Nobody knew what to do or how to react. Jade
took off just as soon as the tiara collided with the floor, and Queen Helena screamed at Cat to clean
it up before stomping off in the other direction muttering something about how she can’t deal with
such an untamed daughter.

Whisper’s of Princess Jadelyn’s outburst soon filled the room, Cat hearing words like
“psychopath” and “devil’s spawn” being thrown around constantly, but Cat saw the formation of
tears beginning for a split second as Jade ran off, and she knew Jade was hurting, but she had no
other choice but to continue sweeping fragments of jewels off the ground.
Cat thought about how much Jade hated that tiara as she cleaned, Jade believed the rainbow of
gems to be a mockery of her head. She couldn’t help but let out a small smile at the fact that Jade
would never have to wear it again.

The party rolled around soon enough, as guests began to arrive and crowd the opulent ballroom
which had been decorated to the nines. The floor was shiny as ever, and Cat felt proud of what she
had done as she now went around the party serving drinks.

One of the servers had gotten sick, and Cat just so happened to be there to be a replacement. It
seemed to happen rather often, Cat happening to be in the right place at the right time, like how
when she was there when Jade ran away and the King sent Cat to retrieve her. The 2nd biggest plus
of serving at such an event was getting to hear the music. An orchestra was stationed, playing song
after song, each combination of notes hitting Cat’s ears like a shot of heaven, but it didn’t sound
like when Jade played piano. Cat didn’t think anything could compare to that.

As for the 1st advantage of Cat working the ball, she was just about to arrive. “Everyone please
turn your attention here and give your fairest of greetings to King Richard and Queen Helena,” the
royal couple smiled and waved at their guests, descending from a grand staircase to join the party,
“as well as their daughter, soon to be married, Princess Jadelyn!”

Cat let her jaw drop as Jade came into view. She looked unbelievable. A silky black bodice hugged
Jade’s curves, showing more of her breasts than was considered socially acceptable, but Jade
wasn’t one for social customs. The bodice was embroidered with golden thread, forming intricate
designs along the fabric. The top of the bodice was lined with black feathers, reminiscent of the
raven Jade had seen a week prior. The skirt of the dress was extremely extravagant, flaring out into
a sea of black silk. The dress was sleeveless, and Cat took notice of Jade’s crown: golden with
black jewels. Her favorite. Dark makeup also encased Jade’s eyes, allowing the blue to really pop
as she entered without so much as a grin.

Her entire look screamed out in a vicious rebellion against her parents, purposely failing to meet all
of the expectations of soft colors and modesty, instead making Jade look like a complete badass
that no man would dream of ever marrying. Jade looked like she was the one in control of her fate.
Like she was the one in charge. Cat had never been more attracted to anyone in her life. Not the
guards that all of her friends seemed to fawn over when they were kids, not that one cute servant
boy all of the other female servants were in love with, but Princess Jadelyn August West.

“Everyone please welcome our exalted guests, King Edmund, Queen Eloise, and Prince Beckett of
Alythinium!”

The royals entered, everyone parting for them like the red sea. As they approached the other royal
family there, King Edmund leaned over slightly to whisper in his son’s ear, “I heard their daughter
is a rebellious one, keep an eye on her.”

These rumors were practically confirmed the moment Jade came into view, her icy glare boring
right through Prince Beckett as a wave of nerves washed over him, and he never got nervous. She
may have looked terrifying, but holy hell was she attractive. In fact, she was the most beautiful
person the prince had seen in his life.

The two royal families met, bowing for each other, but Jade’s mother had to tug on her arm to
remind her to bow. Beck caught a glimpse of an eye roll before she reluctantly bowed, body rigid
and tense. When their eyes met as they came up, the prince flinched as he was met with pointed
blades of blue. She seemed displeased by his existence, and no one had ever given him such a dirty
look in his life.

He was determined to break through her levels of intimidation though, for the good of his kingdom
and his future. It wouldn’t be much of a marriage if all she did was cast him looks sharp enough to
cut through a military grade shield.

“You two go off and talk, get to know each other!” Queen Helena ushered, beckoning for them to
go off with a wave of her elegant fingers.

Jade wordlessly walked away, leaving the prince to follow in her footsteps. She stopped dead in her
tracks, whipping around to face him. “Why are you following me?”

Her tone was aggressive, but the prince tried to not let it get to him. “I thought we were supposed
to get to know each other.”

“Well I have less than zero interest in getting to know you.”

“Oh. Well, I’d like to know you.”

Jade let out a long, exaggerated sigh before crossing her arms and opening her mouth. “Fine, but
only because I don't really have a choice.”

“So, Princess Jadelyn-”

“Never call me that. It's just Jade.”

“Well in that case, you can call me just Beck,” He smiled, placing a hand on her forearm.

Jade ripped his hand away immediately, she could tell that was his attempt at breaking the ice, but
it would take a hell of a lot more to even crack her icy exterior and she hated how he thought it
would be so easy.

“Okay Beck,” Jade spat, enunciating his name with enough venom to make him flinch once again,
“Why do you think you’re better than everyone?”

“What? I don’t-” he babbled, clearly disorientated by the sudden deep question. For someone who
didn’t want to get to know him she sure dug deep enough to deliver quite the punch in the face with
only her words.

Jade walked closer to him, him taking a step back every time she stepped forward until she had
backed him into a wall. “You just come in here, into my kingdom, expecting to be treated like a
god, expecting me to immediately fall into your arms at every one of your lame gestures. Well
guess what, I’m not that kind of princess sweetie.”

Her face was inches away from his, eyes cutting into his soul as he rapidly blinked in awe. She just
took any shred of dignity he may have had and crushed it under her heel. He couldn't let her get
away with that, he couldn't let her treat a prince like that, so he pushed her away. “This isn't even
your kingdom. It's your parents’. Maybe I do expect to be treated well, because that's how I’ve
been treated my entire life. You think you can just scare me away that easily, well guess what. I’m
not that kind of prince either. Unlike you, I’m actually willing to follow through and marry you for
the good of Alythinium, because I’m not a selfish little girl.”

Beck regretted what he said immediately as his back crashed into a stone wall, normally
beautifully elegant fingers digging into his forearms. “Call me that one more time and you’ll just
have to see what happens. I’m never going to marry you, ” she growled, voice low and raspy, her
words laced with venom as she lifted his chin with her thumb, before ripping her hand away and
going off to find Cat.

Beck rubbed his back as he watched her leave, the points of first contact surely bruising by now.
No one had ever laid a hand on him like that, and for someone- no, not just someone, a girl- to use
physical force on him? It was just unheard of. But he had to marry her, no matter what. He had to
get her on his side.

Cat happened to be watching the entire exchange, something in her tingling at the rasp in Jade’s
voice and the way she was so quick to assert her dominance over him. “I hate him.”

Cat giggled, “I could tell.”

“Give me some of this, ” Jade ordered, grabbing a glass of champagne off of Cat’s platter and
downing it.

Cat gasped in response. “Jade! You’re not supposed to drink that! You’re too young!”

Jade wiped the side of her mouth with her index finger before chuckling a little. “Well when you're
being forced to marry someone as annoying as Beck, you need all the alcohol you can get, ” Jade
claimed, going to grab another glass before Cat slapped her hand away.

“It's not good for you!”

Jade rolled her eyes but stopped trying to steal more champagne as a slow ballad began to play.

“Hey, Jade, ” a timid voice started, Jade’s body language becoming visibly tense as she whipped
around to face the owner of the voice.

“What do you want?”

His voice gained more confidence as we continued, deliberately avoiding her sharp gaze, “We got
off on the wrong foot and for that I apologize. May I have this dance to make it up to you?”

“I hate dancing.”

“Oh-”

Jade felt Cat lightly elbow her in the side and she sighed, “But I’ll dance with you anyways.”

Beck extended his hand for Jade to take, but she just grabbed his wrist as she led him over to the
dance floor, finally grabbing his hands so they could properly dance. She made sure to maintain a
fair distance between them, refusing to let him cross a certain threshold.

It just felt so uncomfortable, his rough hands scratching elegant fingers. He could dance just fine,
but his movements were sloppy, the lack of precision clearly coming from a lack of practice.
Letting him take the lead was uncomfortable, no matter how many times Jade had been forced to
waltz with other men and let them lead her, it never felt right.

“So-” he began, his voice nothing more than an annoying tick in Jade’s head.

“Don’t ruin it.”

Beck shut up, continuing to guide Jade through movements she probably knew better than him. As
the song came to a close, everyone in the room seemed to be watching the young royals. Beck spun
Jade, dress spinning like a spinning top as the sea of black beneath her rose, Jade feeling seasick
even as the twirling stopped and she gracefully fell into Beck’s arms.

The world stopped spinning when Jade did, as their eyes bored into each other, brown into blue. As
Jade looked into Beck’s irises, trying to find any amount of hope for their marriage, she just fell
short. Because when she looked into his eyes, she saw shackles and chains. She saw a bird in a
cage. She saw a mirror, her on the outside with her mother’s reflection staring back at her. She
couldn’t become her mother. She couldn’t be trapped in a cage forever screaming for someone who
would never come to let her out as she flew into the cage again and again, trying to somehow break
though unbreakable barriers, losing more and more of herself every day she’s confined until she
became devoid of life, trying to so hard flap her wings and break free when she couldn’t even bare
to lift the weight of them anymore.

Jade watched that happen to her mother. Part of the reason Jade resented her so much was because
Jade feared she was destined to become her. When Jade was little, her mother had a wild spirit,
taking Jade on many secret adventures outside the castle until their father found out she was taking
the young princess beyond royal grounds. Jade could still hear the screams as she trembled outside
the door of the throne room that followed the loud pop of skin making contact.

Jade wasn’t allowed to leave again. That bruise on her mother’s cheek symbolized the first crack in
her will. Her strong spirit withering away before Jade’s very eyes as she grew up, becoming
nothing more than another submissive wife. She used to be like Jade, but once her freedom was
taken away, she lost herself in the process. And Jade refused to meet the same fate.

Jumping away from Beck’s grasp like he was contagious, Jade ran away, ascending the stairs as
she left everyone in the ballroom puzzled.

Cat slipped past everyone, chasing after Jade, sneaking up the stairs as everyone looked away. Met
with a series of directions she could go, Cat just knew which hallways and doors were the correct
ones. She knew where Jade would be.

Opening one final door, Cat was hit with a rush of cool air. Jade leaned over the barrier of the
balcony, looking solemnly out on the horizon with glassy eyes. Cat was wordless as she took a spot
next to Jade.

Silence surrounded them, Cat watching Jade’s eyes flicker around as they attached to various
objects out in the world from grand oak trees to the constellations decorating an otherwise empty
sky. Everything around them fell in shades of grey as their only light source was the silver
illumination of the moon, softly shading the contours of Jade’s face with elegance.

“Are you okay?” Cat’s soft voice broke through the fragile barrier of silence, a weight which had
been dragging on Jade since she got out there as she was forced into introspection.

“No. I don’t want to marry him.”

Cat placed her head on Jade’s shoulder, a small display of affection that created a bloom of comfort
within Jade’s aching self.

“I know.”

Silence moved in again, before being interrupted by the faint sound of orchestral music from the
ballroom below. “Do you wanna dance?” Jade asked upon seeing Cat’s delighted expression as her
ears trained on the music below.

Cat looked at Jade, puzzled, “I thought you hated dancing.”

Jade took Cat’s hands in her own, them interlocking in a way that felt like they were always meant
to, and Cat never wanted to let go.

“Not with you.”

Cat felt like she was floating as Jade led her through the movements. Cat was also a bit sloppy
since servants only took a few dance classes as children to learn the basics, but Jade found it kind of
endearing. “Do you wanna spin?”

“Oh my god, yes!” Cat excitedly beamed as Jade lifted her hand above them and twirled her, the
smile on Cat’s face melting away all of Jade’s hidden fears as a grin of her own creeped up her
face.

Jade felt drunk on the moment at hand, feelings of giddiness she hasn’t felt before rising in her
chest as she almost made some stupid comment about how pretty Cat looked in the moonlight
because wow she was pretty.

Feelings that Jades wasn’t supposed to have took over, ones that were forbidden for so many
reasons. Jade was engaged to someone else, Cat wasn’t royalty and didn’t have an important
lineage, and Cat was a girl. There were so many rules laid out for Jade to follow, rules on who to
love and how to act and what to do and how to walk and talk and how to be. Millions of rules that
would be broken in an instant if Jade chose to act on how she was feeling.

But Jade was never one to follow rules.

Once the spinning stopped and their eyes locked, Jade didn’t see chains or cages or her mother.
Jade saw a light. A purifying light that felt more powerful than the full moon above them, a light in
the seemingly endless black tunnel she was trapped in. A glimmer of hope, the one she failed to
find in Beck.

And in the drunken haze of stupor Jade had suddenly found herself trapped in, Jade almost kissed
her. Almost. Their faces were mere inches apart, and Jade could feel the redhead’s warm breath on
her face, a stark contrast from the coolness of the night’s breeze.

Jade pulled back, continuing their dance among the stars. “Jade-”

“Shh. No talking. I just want to be.”

Jade’s hands fell from Cat’s to her waist as tanned arms snaked around Jade’s neck like ribbon.
Their bodies melted together as they gently swayed back and forth, the one movement within the
stillness of the moon’s silvery glow. They both felt at peace.

Too at peace to notice Beck’s piercing glare from behind the glass doorway, his father looming
behind him. “I know that look in their eyes, son. It’s love. And it's disgusting,” He spat, appalled
by the display of affection between two women.

“What do we do now?” Beck asked, looking to his father for answers as they walked away.

“We make sure the princess stays away from this vagrant.”

Beck thought about it as they descended the stairs to the ballroom. “She’s incredibly strong-willed,
I don’t know if we can.”

King Edmund turned to face his son, a twisted grin forming over thin lips. “Then we’ll just have to
break it.”
 starcrossed
Chapter Notes

i wrote the end of this and proofread when i was very tired so just ignore the errors that
will probably be there lmao

Blush-washed walls flushed out into a grand hallway, paintings depicting great images of grandeur
decorating the stone. The thump that occurred every time Jade’s heel foot collided with ebony
floors began to play a tune reminiscent of a funeral in Jade’s head.

The grand hallway flourished into an even grander throne room. The heavily decorated walls of
pale pink were capped off with a dome-shaped ceiling; a ceiling from which hung a glittering
chandelier, illuminating the room with the warm glow of the flames from the candles resting
within it.

At the end of the room lay two thrones, distinguished from the rest of the room by the raised
platform they rested on. Behind them hung a grand mural of rolling hills and sunset skies, the king
and queen sitting in their corresponding chairs as Jade approached, guided by a royal escort.

Her eyes met Beck’s who stood to the side of his father, and Beck looked down from her gaze,
leaving Jade’s eyes to trail onto King Edmund. Jade had never really gotten a proper look at him
before, and she was kind of glad she hadn't. Brown eyes lay sunken into tanned skin, bushy
eyebrows shadowing his scleras. His lips formed a thin tight line, seemingly frowning at Jade’s
presence. His demeanor was cold, much like Jade’s own father, but his eyes hid a sinister quality
only perceivable by careful examination of his features.

Jade bowed as she walked forward, hating every second she had to spend below Beck. “Greetings
from Eleuantria, your highnesses.”

“Hello, Princess Jadelyn, ” King Edmund greeted, nodding in her direction. Jade felt sick as beady
eyes roamed over her.

The tension in the room was almost suffocating, and Jade didn't quite understand it. She knew that
she had a problem with this particular set of royals, but what did she ever do to them? Didn't they
want Jade to marry their obnoxious son? She figured perhaps Beck informed them of her violent
outburst against him, or heard other rumours of such acts she's committed.

Every second she stood there felt like 10 minutes wiped off her lifespan as her lifeforce was
drained under the weight of the unease circulating the room.

”Are you kidding me?” Jade whined upon hearing the news. It was the night after the party and
this was the last thing Jade wanted to hear.

“No Jadelyn-”

“Jade.”

Her father let out a long sigh before reluctantly correcting himself, “No Jade, King Edmund and
Queen Eloise have invited you to their kingdom to spend some more time with Prince Beckett.”

Jade groaned, a little louder and more drawn out than necessary, before replying, “Well I decline
the invitation.”

“You’re going, ” King Richard stated firmly.

“But-”

“No buts. You need to spend time with your future husband and getting to know the kingdom you’ll
be living in can't hurt.”

Jade didn't even respond, at least not verbally. She just stormed away without a word, looking for a
particular servant with doe-like eyes to complain to.

“Beckett will show you around the palace, ” Queen Eloise explained, Beck descending the few
stairs between him and Jade before taking his place by her side.

It was all Jade could do to avoid rolling her eyes. “Well, this is the throne room-”

“I can see that, ” Jade replied coldly.

Beck let out an awkward chuckle. “Right. Uh just follow me I guess and I’ll show you the other
rooms.”

Jade crossed her arms as Beck took her around the palace. Rooms that were all too similar to those
Jade was familiar with in her own castle. Sure the decor may have been different, but in the end it
was all the same. More rooms, more walls, less freedom.

It was as if Jade was moving from one prison to the next. One warden to another. Instead of a
father to control her she would have a husband keeping her in line. The very thought made her skin
crawl.

No amount of velvet cushions or silk threads could change the fact that this was a prison. They
could hide vicious intentions behind blush pink wall decor all they wanted, but beneath it all was
still the empty shell of a cell they had the guts to call a home.

“This is where you’ll be sleeping.”

Despite being beautifully embellished, the room had a cold emptiness that clung onto Jade,
dragging her down under the weight of an unbearable future, drowning her in broken resolve and
vehement cries. Like the will of Jade’s mother being wilted away, or the cries that followed a
booming yell and sickening impact, haunting that little girl’s dreams.

The princess found her eyes in the mirror, caught in a staring match with her own reflection. Jade
wasn't that little girl anymore. Her youthful innocence was tainted every time she saw her mother
with yet another bruise, her naivety ripped apart by the hands of a tyrant who claimed himself a
King. That little girl was long gone, and Jade now craved a way out.

Her mother was once a little girl like her. Jade recalled how she’d tell stories about her adventurous
youth, a youth full of dreams and aspirations, before she was married off to a prince. A prince that
soon became a king that took those dreams and crushed them beneath heavy fists. As Jade stared
into the mirror, she found herself morphing into her mother, complete with her soulless eyes and
blind obedience.
The princess began to panic as the room shrunk smaller and smaller, walls closing in as her breaths
became rapid and shallow, the floor falling beneath her feet. Her mother staring back at her like a
ruthless reminder of what Jade was bound to become.

Beck’s eyes flushed with concern as he grasped Jade’s arms and babbled something that Jade
couldn’t comprehend. Tanned fingers became shackles cutting off her circulation as she pulled out
of his grip.

“I just need some air, ” Jade mindlessly muttered as she ran out of the room, Beck’s footsteps
behind her growing fainter and fainter as she eventually lost him within the maze of the castle.

Finally, Jade pushed open a heavy wooden door and a cool breeze washed over her, breathing some
life back into her as she lay in the earth, grounding herself as grass tickled exposed porcelain flesh.
Deepening her shallow breaths, she managed to get her breathing back on track right as a
mysterious black bird landed on her stomach without a care in the world.

Jade froze, not wanting to scare the creature away with any movement as she studied it, black
button eyes boring into her own. She’s never been this close to a raven before, but god was it
beautiful.

Sleek feathers that normally appear black transform into a midnight blue in the warm glow of the
sun, light reflecting off of rows of ruffles. Jade held her breath as she took it in, this bird that had
decided to land on her for absolutely no reason.

It had not a care in the world, not caring about where it landed or if the human was potentially
dangerous. Just simply going wherever it wanted, landing wherever it was most comfortable.

The bird eventually fluttered off of Jade, the princess letting out a deep exhale of relief. She’d been
holding her breath longer than she realized.

The raven hopped along the ground, occasionally using it's gorgeous wings to float further along
the neatly trimmed lawn. It kept turning back to face Jade, seemingly checking if she was
following.

Rising from the earth, Jade’s legs carried her in the raven’s direction. Passing through rows of
neatly trimmed rose bushes, the vines grew more and more unwieldy the further they went, bushes
becoming wildflowers as Jade found herself in the middle of lush forest, tall grass brushing up
against her knees as the sun sank lower into the sky. The air smelled sweet as brightly colored
flowers Jade would usually find obnoxious in any other circumstance brought peace and comfort.

The earthen shades of leaf and vine felt familiar as a great canopy of trees towered over her,
allowing small beams of light to filter through the branches. The entire area radiated comfort. It
reminded Jade of where she met Cat.

She was in a similar headspace at that time, angry and despaired over her lack of control over her
fate. She was a whirlwind of emotion until the storm was calmed by caramelized irises and
honeyed laugher.

The raven flew onto Jade’s shoulder. It seemed to understand her. She just stood there for a
moment, taking everything in, neptune irises absorbing the light off of the atmosphere.

The fickle sea of Jade’s mind was calmed, waves smoothly rolling as she heard Cat’s sickeningly
sweet voice in her head. Of course, that peace was fragile, breaking as storm clouds overcast the
sky and the raven flew away.
The creature was scared off by a gravelly voice. “Hello there princess. Were your sleeping
arrangements not suitable?”

Jade scoffed. “No they're just fine, I just needed fresh air, like I told your son.”

Jade’s tone was hostile as King Edmund came into view, deep brown irises seemingly glowering at
her. “You aren't like other girls, are you?” His tone was conversational but with undertones of
wickedness. Something about his presence was looming and uncomfortable, and Jade shifted her
weight.

“What do you mean?”

“You aren't the naturally submissive type. You don't like to do as you're told or behave, ” With
every sentence, the king stepped closer to Jade, “You’re unruly, a beast untamed, ” he grabbed
Jade’s hand as he looked her in the eyes, “A girl who needs her rebellious nature beaten out of her,
one way or another.”

His rough hand squeezed Jade’s, eventually enough to hurt as her fingers scrunched together. Jade
tried to pull her hand out of his iron grip, but couldn't just yet.

Pushing down any fear she may have had, Jade looked at him with stormy irises, the hurricane
beginning to take shape. “Let go of me immediately.”

The King didn't. “Caterina Valentine. That name sound familiar?”

He saw the flash of weakness in Jade’s eyes at the mention of her name. “My son and I saw you
girls dance together. The look in your eyes. It would be a shame if such news were to get out,
wouldn't you agree, princess?”

Jade said nothing, just glared with her signature icy expression.

“Your royal status might protect you from the scorch of the flames, but that sweet servant Caterina
would have no hope, being sentenced to a fiery death at the hands of the embers.”

With that, the hurricane grew into a category five as an incandescent glow shone through Jade’s
irises, her finally breaking free of his grip and shoving him into a tree at full force, his head
colliding with the bark with a thud. “Shut up.”

Much to Jade’s surprise, the King didn't even grow angry, no he was much too calculated for that,
he simply smirked as snake-like eyes stared into hers. “Assaulting Kings now are we? Tsk tsk
princess what will we ever do with you?”

Jade pulled him forward slightly only to slam him back against the wood. “What do you want?”

The King pushed Jade back, the princess stumbling backward before regaining her footing. He
grasped her chin in rough fingers, tilting her head up to his. “You are going to marry my son and
promise to be a loyal, doting wife. If you want to protect that pathetic servant girl, that is.”

Jade snapped her head back. “Fine, I’ll do it, ” Jade half-heartedly grumbled.

“I’m going to need more sincerity, and while you're at it, bow.”

Jade felt sick but she didn't really have a choice. Lowering herself, Jade was sullen as she spoke,
“Whatever you wish, your majesty.”
The rest of the visit passed by in a blur of desaturated colors. Jade felt like she had sold her soul,
but it was all in the name of protecting the girl she finally admitted to herself that she loved. The
thought of losing her hurt worse than anything. She’d rather be torn apart limb from limb, flesh
being fed to wild wolves as spiders build webs inside her intestines than have anything hurt Cat.

When Jade arrived back in Eleuantria, her eyes were duller and her heart heavier. Stepping off the
ship, the land was a welcoming feeling after being surrounded by water for a day. She felt like she
was in a fever dream as she got into the carriage waiting to take her back to her own castle.

Entering giant doors, Jade’s parents were there to greet her, looking upon her with excited eyes,
hoping she had finally formed a connection with her prince. Jade rolled her eyes as her mother’s
arms wrapped around her, body rigid in her grasp.

After what seemed like a million different questions echoing off the walls, Jade finally got out of
the interrogation as she walked through winding hallways of marble, eventually finding herself in
Cat’s quarters.

The moment Cat saw the flash of green lace and ribbon she let out a high-pitched squeal and ran to
Jade, literally jumping on her with a hug. A week without Jade felt like an eternity. Cat may have
gone 17 years of her life without personally knowing the princess, but now that Cat had her she
could hardly bear being apart from her.

Jade wasn’t usually one for hugs, but she caught Cat as legs wrapped around her waist and hugged
her like a magnetic force was pulling them together and wouldn’t let them leave. The embrace
lasted a good half a minute before Jade put the girl down.

“I missed you so much!” Cat gushed, eyes growing wide as they filled with stars. Her mind was
going a mile a minute, the filter between her brain and her mouth nonexistent as she rambled, “How
was it? Do you still hate him? You missed so much here! There was a feud between Mrs.
Pletherfield and one of the servants here and she refused to sell him the good bread and wow you
look so pretty and- did I just say that out loud?”

Jade couldn’t even pretend to be annoyed as she just looked at Cat with straight adoration, endeared
by her fast speech, capillaries in her cheeks expanding as Cat called her pretty. “Slow down, “ Jade
chuckled, the low tones of her voice having a soothing effect on Cat, “I’m kind of sick of castles,
do you want to go somewhere else with me?”

“Okay! My room gets stuffy when it’s hot anyways.”

Jade took Cat’s hand in hers as they snuck out of the palace together, Jade technically wasn’t
allowed off castle grounds unless it was pre-approved but it's not like it ever stopped her before.
They just had to make sure there were no guards in sight as they made their escape, the warm air
swirling around them a welcoming change from Alythinium. Their climate was quite a bit colder.

They had both discarded their shoes as they ran barefoot over olive grass like they were kids again,
giggling mindlessly once they had passed all of the guards. Cat’s childlike innocence seemed to
rub off on Jade, bringing out the playful side of her that had been chastised out of her since she was
a little girl in classes on how to act properly.

They both knew exactly where they were going. The scene was much more calming than the first
time they met there, probably because there was no wrathful princess ripping apart the landscape,
turning its very own organic matter against it. No, instead that princess was giggling with a pretty
girl practically attached to her by the hip
They made themselves comfortable in their environment, Jade sitting back against a tree trunk as
Cat leaned into her side, not wanting to ever break contact with her again in fear of Jade dissipating
into thin air. They were silent for a moment, basking in the radiation of the sun and each other’s
company.

“How was your trip?”

“Horrible.”

Cat giggled, “I like how you say ‘horrible’.”

Jade’s relaxed posture became stiff as she narrowed her eyes at Cat. “What's wrong with how I say
‘horrible’?”She questioned defensively, yelling in that higher-pitched tone she subconsciously took
on when yelling at Cat so her words would be softened.

Cat’s laughs continued, “You say it like there’s an ‘a’ in it, like hoarrible!”

Jade scoffed, “I do not!”

“Yes you do!”

Cat’s cutesy giggles eventually caused Jade to relax as she dropped it, elaborating on her answer to
Cat’s question as they quieted down. “It’s a little cooler over there. They don’t have peach trees
like we do, and their palace is similar to ours, just pinker.”

“How was Beck?”

An exaggerated sigh escaped Jade’s lips. “Annoying. I can’t decide who’s worse though, him or
his father.”

Cat’s eyebrows angled upwards as her pupils dilated slightly. “What’s wrong with him?”

Jade didn’t want to tell Cat about how he threatened her life or tried to crush her hand, so she
settled with a simplistic response, “He’s a dick.”

Cat laughed as she lightly hit Jade’s side, “Jadey!”

“What? It’s true.”

Another comforting silence fell upon them, blanketing the girls in each other’s presence. At some
point Cat fell into Jade’s lap as pale fingers stroked hickory curls. Cat smiled as she looked up at
Jade, her soft fingers a soothing presence against Cat’s scalp.

The thick peach grove around them made it feel like they were secluded from the rest of the world,
just two best friends relaxing together, fires of love and passion burning within both of them as the
pressures of the world prevented that flare from ever escaping their lungs and manifesting itself
into soft kisses and words of endearment. At least that’s the way it seemed.

As Jade looked down at Cat, entranced by her gentle orbs, she felt a flood of comfort as she looked
into those eyes. The warm, earthen tones of her irises seemed to birth the heat of a glowing hearth,
melting the icy exterior Jade had been frozen under as Cat’s sugar plum lips tenderized the
toughness of Jade’s beating heart when they curled up into the sweetest wondrous smile. Jade felt
her own smile spread across her face as the serenity of the moment allowed her to let down her
guard.
“Jadey?” Her voice came out as smooth as the honey cascading fresh out of the honeycombs,
smothering Jade in the sweetest sap.

“Yeah?”

“Is it normal for my heart to beat this fast whenever I’m around you?”

Jade studied her expression, completely smitten. Exhaling deeply, Jade formulated a response, “I
don’t think it is.”

“Oh.”

Cat seemed dejected as she looked down, her downcast aura lingering heavy on Jade’s soul. She
never realized how attuned she was to Cat’s emotions before, perhaps that's why she always felt
happier when she was around her.

Jade gently tilted Cat’s head upwards, “But my heart also beats like crazy when I’m with you.”

Before they knew it, their lips found each other in the sweetest kisses. There was something so pure
about it, just two girls that loved each other beneath a canopy of peach trees, smiling into the gentle
caress of their lips without a care in the world.

“Wow, “ Cat exhaled as they pulled away, looking at Jade like she was her entire world. “That
was- I think I’m in love with you.”

“I think I’m in love with you too,” Jade responded, voice breathy as she filled her lungs with the air
she lost during the period in which their lips were locked.

The moment didn’t last long, as they soon collided again, lips dancing together as the sky faded
from sapphire to coral. With the sky bursting into color around them, they pulled away and just
smiled at each other, feeling at peace with their desires.

Months flew by, Cat and Jade sneaking off together whenever they could. Their love was strangely
beautiful given their circumstance, but inside the fear of being caught was always laid dormant in
their heads. King Edmund’s threat never escaped Jade’s mind, playing like a broken record in the
soundtrack of Jade’s thoughts.

Everything they were doing was wrong. Every longing gaze in public, every connection of their
lips, every lustful thought, every whisper of sweet nothings, it could all get them killed. Well, Jade
would probably be spared like the king had suggested, but Jade couldn’t shake the thought that she
was endangering Cat. That said, a life without her saccharine lips and the sugar rush Jade felt
whenever they touched was a life Jade didn’t want to live, so she just did all she could to protect
Cat.

The night before the wedding crept upon them way too soon, and Jade had no clue how she would
ever cope. Locked in a foreign land without Cat’s sugar plum lips, instead with a husband as her
captor, her being forced to follow his every word if she didn’t want her feelings for Cat exposed to
the public eye, for her sweet beloved would be roasted into a charred crisp. That thought was
enough to break Jade. It broke her resilience against the wedding. It broke down her will, it turned
her into her mother. Because Jade would do anything for Cat, including becoming what she loathed
most.

The night before the wedding, Jade had snuck into Cat’s chamber while everyone was asleep,
water pooling in her scleras as her lips found Cat’s, the saltiness of her tears turning what would
normally be an affectionate kiss into a melancholic mark of goodbye.

Cat’s eyes were also teary, flooding the deep brown earthly landscape that reminded Jade so much
of their place in the woods. “Jade you can’t,” Cat mewled, words distorted by sniffles and cries.

Jade’s heart hung heavy in her chest, weighed down by absolutely everything. “I have to.”

“No you don’t. We can leave right now, we can run away together.”

“Run to what? Where would we go? What would we do when we got here?” Jade’s words had a
sharp edge to them, a sharpness that Cat rarely experienced from Jade. It made the girl flinch a
little, Jade immediately rubbing Cat’s arm in apology as she completely broke down, the small
drizzle of rain becoming a torrential downpour as Jade’s words came out in clumsy strings of
syllables, “They’ll find us. No matter where we go, they’ll find us.”

Jade sat down, on Cat’s bed, lips swollen and eyes reddened. How did everything get so fucked up
so quickly?

Cat joined her, wrapping her arms around Jade as she dug her face into Jade’s chest, wetting the
silk material of her ebony nightgown. “You can’t leave me. I'd rather die than be without you.”

Jade’s shaky hand found itself running along Cat’s shivering back. A million thoughts flooded the
princess’s head, suffocating her. She heard screams of agony and the rattling of handcuffs and
dungeons and iron bars. Images of bruises and mascara streaks. She heard her father’s voice morph
into Beck’s, her father’s pale hand turning olive as it slammed into her mother’s face that became
her own.

She heard her own choked cries replace her mother, she saw a cycle of misery completely
unbroken.

Jade couldn’t bear it, every thought was like a suckerpunch in the head, giving her the worst
headache she could ever feel as her eyes trained on the window. Her chain of thoughts was broken
as a bird approached the window. She almost missed it. The creature was so dark it blended in with
the night, Jade only catching it when she heard its beautiful song dreamily tantalizing the sullen
atmosphere of the dreary sky.

“You know what? Let's do it. Let's leave right now.”

“Uh your highness?” Jade’s lady Tori Vega approached, quivering in her steps as she approached
Queen Helena.

“What is dear?”

“The princess is nowhere to be found.”

“What?” The Queen’s voice was a mixture of confusion and rage, despite knowing it was just like
her daughter to run from her destiny.

King Edmund and Queen Eloise had arrived with their son and were chatting with King Richard
when Jade’s mother burst through the doors. “Jadelyn is missing!”

“Where could she possibly have gone?” King Richard roared, face glowing red as he realized what
had occurred.
King Edmund immediately put the pieces together, not hesitating to reveal what he believed
happened, “She must have run off with that lesbian lover of hers.”

“Lesbian lover? My daughter would never!” Queen Helena protested, Jade’s father too pissed to
even get a word out.

Beck spoke up, confirming what his father said, “We saw her at the gala, dancing with Caterina.
You should have seen the look in their eyes, it was pure love.”

“Guards!”

Still in their night clothes, Cat and Jade were running. Neither had any idea where they were
heading, all they knew was so long as they were together, they’d be okay.

The rush of euphoria Jade felt as indescribable as she ran through vivid vines and twisted branches
with the girl that was her entire world. She was doing it. She was escaping. The cycle was
breaking.

The amount of birds dotting the sky that day was astounding, chirping fantastical melodies of
passion as wind ran through her unruly tresses. She looked behind her, her girlfriend gleefully
bounding along the broken path of cobblestone and gravel.

Everything was perfect. Until it wasn’t.

The blood circulating Jade’s body froze as the clicking of hooves against stone was heard faintly in
the distance. Cat seemed completely oblivious to it, befuddled as Jade stopped and she crashed into
Jade’s back. “Why’d you-”

A hand flew over Cat’s mouth, the flash of flesh approaching startling the girl until she realized the
hand belonged to her girlfriend. “Shh. Do you hear that?”

Pupils dilated in hickory irises as she heard the pounding on the path creeping up, rapidly
increasing in volume as a horse soon approached the girls, armed castle guard sitting proudly upon
the great white stallion.

“Girls!” His booming voice yelled, causing both girls to flinch as he hopped off the horse in one
swift movement, running towards the frozen duo as they stared wide eyed. They've been caught.

A calloused palm locked around Cat’s upper arm as she screeched, “Jade help!” Her voice was
blood curdling, awaking the previously dormant storm within Jade as her protective instincts
towards Cat took full control.

“Get off her!” Jade’s voice was rough and hoarse, the sentence punctuated with a kick to his groin.
The guard let out a sharp yell, hands instinctively flying to the region, freeing Cat. Before they had
a chance to flee, the guard lunged onto Jade, dragging her into the dirt with him.

On top of Jade, he began restraining her as Jade flailed beneath him, screaming as her breaths
became shallow and rapid. She couldn’t stand being restrained, the contact of him against her too
much to bear.

Cat could hardly watch, feeling powerless as her girlfriend spasmed uncontrollably beneath the
grown man, haunting screams terrorizing her ear canals, torturing her boundlessly as tears clouded
Cat’s vision. “Leave her alone!” Before Cat knew what she was doing, she grabbed a rock and
threw it as hard as she could, the formation of stone making a brutal impact against his head.
Jade took his moment of weakness as an opportunity, flipping them over and grabbing the rock,
blindly slamming it into his head over and over again, fountains of crimson splattering against
Jade’s face before pooling in the dirt beneath them, Cat closing her eyes and covering her ears like
a helpless child, unable to watch her girlfriend going absolutely ballistic.

“Jade please stop! It’s over!”

Cat’s voice snapped Jade back to reality, eyes refocusing as they widened in horror at the sight
below him, the man’s deformed face staring back at her under a veil of blood, eyes devoid of life.
Jade’s hand leaped to her mouth, terrified of herself as she broke down again.

This entire time, Jade was petrified by the thought of becoming her mother, being forced into
submission by the man who legally owned her. She’d always imagined her future bound in chains,
tears stinging bloodied cheeks as heavy hands pounded at her again and again, making her bleed
out the very contents of her own soul until she was drowned in a pool of marred carnage, losing
herself within it.

As Jade looked down at the corpse below her, lifeless eyes becoming a horrific scar in her brain,
she realized she wasn’t becoming her mother, but her father. She was the one that lashed out at
Beck, bruising his back as she forced him against heavy stone. She was the one sitting on top of the
man she just killed, having stolen his freedom. The one thing she feared losing most.

She always had violent outbursts, making everyone around her a victim of her temper. Hell, even
when she met Cat, she dropped a peach on her head and roughly grabbed her and shoved her away
like a ragdoll. The entire time Jade feared being the victim, she became the abuser.

Jade shut down, face buried in painted red palms as fingers pulled at raven tresses. Her body
heaved with every sob, convulsing like her nerves were being tugged upon. Warm arms snaked
around her body, softly guiding her off of the murdered man onto soft grass. “Jade?” A
honeysuckle voice broke through the barrier of Jade’s inner thoughts, once again snapping her
back to reality as velvety fingers wrapped around Jade’s wrists, pulling Jade from the dark shadows
of her palms into the light of the world, Cat’s concerned face staring back at her. “Are you okay?”

“I should be asking you. You just watched me kill a man.” Jade’s voice cracked under the pressure
of her tears, her broken expression haunting Cat’s doey eyes.

“If it makes you feel any better, I didn't look.” Jade didn’t respond. “There was a grown man on
top of you, the second you had an opportunity to make it stop, you did. You were scared.”

Despite the soothing quality of Cat’s tone, it couldn’t calm the princess as she rambled
aggressively, “What about all the other times? Like when I hurt you the first time we met? Or
when I slammed Beck on that wall? Or all the other times I hurt people?” It was Cat’s turn to be
silent as Jade paused, collecting her thoughts before her voice escalated into a booming yell sharp
enough to slice arteries, “I’m just like my stupid father! I’m a monster!”

Cat hardly knew how to react, Jade breaking down again for what seemed like the millionth time
as Cat just hugged her, listening to her rapid heartbeat as her head rested against Jade’s chest. “I’m
just like him,” Jade whimpered, “I was so scared of being like my mother that I turned into the man
that made her what she is.”

“But that’s not you Jade. The real Jade is sweet and loving, well you’re kind of a meanie when
you’re annoyed but you always make it up to me! The real Jade may be all rough and tough, but
she’s also beautiful and amazing and she showed me a love I never knew I could feel, and I love
her.”
Jade’s lips formed a weak smile, leaning her head against Cat’s as she softly spoke, “I love you
too.”

The girls just sat there in the grass for a moment, composing themselves as the corpse beside them
continued to bleed, both of them tainted with carmine as they listened to the tune of each other’s
breath.

“Over there!” A rough voice barked, Jade immediately recognizing it as fear took over her body.

“We have to go.”

Before either of the girls knew what was happening, an entire army of horses began riding into
view, charging after them. Jade practically threw Cat onto the white steed the dead man had ridden
before jumping on herself, grabbing the reins and yanking them, the horse getting the signal as it
flew the opposite direction.

Cat held onto Jade’s waist for dear life as they bounced through the forest, Beck and Jade’s parents
approaching behind them with a platoon of guards. “Jadelyn August West!”

A tornado of voices soon came after the girls, screaming indistinguishable threats and insults as
Jade leaned forward, snapping the reins as the horse sped up, the landscape of earthly hues passing
by like a sloppy watercolor painting.

Cat felt like screaming as she clung to Jade, lungs burning despite the fact that she wasn’t the one
running. “Woah!” Jade abruptly barked as the horse came to a sudden stop, their bodies violently
jerking forwards. They had just managed to stop before the edge of a cliff, jagged clusters of rock
at the bottom threatening whoever dared fall with instant death.

The party soon caught up behind them, King Edmund getting off his horse with a twisted smile,
“Looks like there’s nowhere to run.”

Jade got off the hose, gazing at the chasm below her before facing the King. “Take me and spare
her!”

“No!” Cat cried, struggling to get off the horse before running to Jade and hugging her from
behind.

Jade ignored her, tears free flowing down crimson stained cheeks as she held up both hands. “I will
marry Prince Beckett, just leave Cat alone.”

“You’re in no place to negotiate,” King Richard sneered, eyes seemingly popping out of their
sockets.

Jade narrowed her eyes, facing down her father before growling, “Promise me you’ll spare her, or
I’ll jump, which means no marriage, which also means no permanent truce, because apparently you
war-hungry heathens cannot maintain peace without marital bounds.”

Before Jade’s father could refuse, King Edmund spoke up in begrudging agreement, “Deal. Our
son needs to marry royal blood.”

King Richard sighed before barking out the command. “Seize her!”

“Wait!” Jade bellowed, voice echoing down the chasm beneath them, “Let me say goodbye.”

Cat didn’t even wait for Jade to finish turning around before opening her mouth. “Jade, you can’t
do this. You hate it at Alythinum, and you hate Beck. Besides, I can’t possibly live without you. I
love you,” Cat quietly sobbed, holding Jade’s hands in her own.

Jade swallowed thickly, grasping the velvety skin of her cheek in a bloodstained hand, “Cat I-”

Two birds flew into the scene, a raven and a dove, casually sitting on the edge of the cliff, knowing
how easily they could fly away if something happened to the ground beneath their talons, their
wings providing an instant escape.

As her eyes trained on the two birds, affectionately rubbing against each other, Jade finally came to
the realization that she doesn’t need wings to escape. “-I can’t live without you either.”

The girls looked at each other, both knowing exactly what they wanted as their legs carried them
where they needed to be. Hand in hand, the girls jumped, holding each other as their bodies
plummeted hundreds of feet. Meanwhile, the raven and the dove flew up in the air, soaring high
above the chasm where the two lovers would be immortalized eternally.

“These violent delights have violent ends

And in their triumph die, like fire and powder,
Which as they kiss consume.”

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