The Dream
As soon as Missandra was gone, Cassandra couldnât help but cry again. Dahlia tried to get some
herbal tea prepared for her, but she didnât touch it and only sobbed in the War Godâs arms for a long
time. It was the first time Cassandra had felt so powerless and defeated. She could stand being injured
herself, but seeing her loved ones being injured was the worst thing possible for her. Moreover, she
had to wait for her sister to come back after her punishment. She wouldnât be able to do anything for
her until then. .
Kairen didnât say anything. He wasnât good at comforting her, aside from holding her in his arms, and
caressing her hair. His physical contact was the only thing seemingly able to comfort Cassandra a bit,
as she stayed curled up in his arms for a long time. Even Krai had arrived in the garden, growling so
softly it was almost a whistle, putting his head next to Cassandra, looking sorry for her. (2)
Kareen couldnât seem to sit still. The imperial Concubine paced around, ordering the servants to do
useless things. She kept going in and out of the garden, fidgety. Kareen was a proud woman and hated
being powerless. The young sisters had grown on her, even the belligerent Missandra. She felt partially
responsible for her punishment too. If she hadnât pushed for her to come with them⦠No, it wouldnât
have changed anything anyway. Vrehan had gotten what he really wanted⦠To harm Cassandra
indirectly, the only person he could openly attack in Kairenâs entourage. She felt even madder thinking
about that brat. They needed to be ready in case something else happened, or even better, give him a
payback⦠He probably had it, though. Though he had been careful not to show it, Phetra was his
closest sister, her downfall was probably somehow painful to him as well. Compared to that, the
punishment befallen on Missandra felt too light, even.
âI canât sit still,â suddenly declared Cassandra.
The young concubine stood up, surprising everyone around.
âLady Cassandra, we should wait for Lady Missandraâ¦â said Dahlia, worried for her.
âNo. Iâm counting mentally, again and again, if I keep imagining it without doing anything Iâll go crazy. I
need to do something. I want to prepare the medicine for when she gets back. I want to go to my
garden.â
âYou are not leaving my apartments!â Roared Kareen, wary like a lioness. âCassandra, you should stay
here for now!â
However, Kairen stood next to Cassandra and took her hand,
âI will go with her,â he declared.
Despite his apparent calm, Kareen knew her son was probably has frustrated as she was. He hadnât
said anything but seeing Cassandra so sad and miserable probably affected him as well. Krai stood up
too, looking curious about the change of situation.
The Imperial Concubine sighed.
âFine! But you two come back here as soon as that ointment is gone! Shareen will bring her back here
anywayâ¦â
Cassandra nodded, and left, followed closely by the Prince. Kareen sighed and sat in the deckchair she
had just left. Krai, who couldnât follow them, growled too and put his head on the Imperial Concubineâs
lap. 3
She scratched his snout.
âThose childrenâ¦â she sighed.
Meanwhile, Cassandra was hurrying back to the princeâs apartments. She was aiming right for her
herbal garden, still holding Kairenâs hand. She had nothing else in mind but her sister. She wasnât
scared at the moment, just focused.
As soon as she got there, she let go of his hand and started gathering everything she needed in a
hurry. In a few minutes, she had gathered enough herbs and water and started working on it at her little
table, a determined expression on. Her eyes were still red, but she didnât care at the moment.
Kairen let her do whatever she wanted. He understood she needed to keep herself busy to forget about
all her sadness and frustration. Something else actually caught his attention. One spot of the grass was
still humid and muddy, where the girls had fought with Phetra just a couple of hours earlier⦠He circled
the area, and suddenly spotted Phetraâs dagger, still lying at the bottom of one of the fountains. With a
frown, he took it out, observing it. It was a good weapon, but it hadnât been taken care of properlyâ¦
For a while, the garden was relatively silent. Cassandra was focused on making the best ointment
possible, crushing her herbs into a mortar, adding water and preparing some kind of green medicinal
paste. She then moved on to a second medicine, a pain-killer decoction. In the same time, Kairen was
sitting near her, and had begun sanding and sharpening the dagger. He scraped off all the unnecessary
decorations that added to its weight, letting the little diamonds and rubies fall on the grass without a
care. (2
After several minutes, Cassandra assembled everything she had prepared in front of her, shaking her
head.
âI donât know if this will be enoughâ¦â She said, looking defeated.
The Prince stood up, and looked at the table. She had made a pitcher full off ointment, and a large
glass of medicine, too. It would probably be enough, even for two people. »
âLetâs go back,â he declared.â
âMaybe I can make more,â she said. âI can find something else to ease the pain, or make it less biter, or
make more of itâ¦â
âCassandra, itâs enough, Letâs go back.â
âButâ¦â
âEnough.â
She bit her lip, and Kairen grabbed her chin to have her finally look at him instead of the medicine. His
deep black eyes almost took her by surprise.
âItâs been over an hour,â he said, gently but firmly. âLetâs go. Your sister will be back soon.â
âIâ¦â
Forced to confront his eyes, Cassandra suddenly felt like crying again. She shook her head, but the
tears came anyway. She covered her eyes.
âI⦠I had promised our mother I would protect her⦠I canât believe⦠Iâm such a bad sister⦠I
shouldnât have brought her hereâ¦â
The Prince sighed, and gently, had her let go of her tools. He took her into his strong embrace to try
and calm her down. It had been a while since she had cried so much.
Cassandra had only really cried three times since he had met her. The first time was out of fear for him,
when he was locked up by his father. The second time, it was out of anger, for the slaves, when the
slave trades showed no compassion. Now, she was crying for her younger sister. It seemed like that
girl always cried more for others than herself when she was the one who had been going through so
muchâ¦
Her own scars from being whipped so many times accounted to much more than a hundred or two.
There wasnât a spot on her skin that didnât have one of those white, thin lines he hated. Given that
Cassandraâs skin was among the whitest possible, the scars were sometimes harder to see, and
sometimes very visible, like little silver threads, but Kairen felt it under his fingers anytime he caressed
her. That precious, frail body he adored had been mistreated until it got like this. Her legs, her arms,
her back, her chest⦠There wasnât an area that had been
spared. She even had some on the back of her hands, and on her neck, though the spot where she
formerly had a collar had been protected by the metal. His blood would boil just thinking about all the
pain she had been inflicted.
âWhat if she dies? Kairen, if something happens to my sister, I.
âCassandra, look at me.â
She lifted her head. Her eyes full of tears were the most dangerous weapon against him. He put his
head around her neck, his fingers in her hair, and gently caressed her cheek with his thumb.3
âYour sister will be fine. As soon as she comes out of there, and can travel, I will send her to the
Diamond Palace with my mother. I will get her out of there, and as soon as those damn Celebrations
are over, we will, too. Itâs my promise to you.â
Cassandra nodded weakly, but her heart wasnât at peace. She felt like she was going to crumble at any
moment.
ââ¦Can I be honest for a minute?â She said.
âWhat is it?â
ââ¦I donât want you to be an Emperor.â
Kairen wasnât exactly surprised by her words, but it was certainly the first time she said something like
that. He frowned, a bit confused.
âI thought you saidâ¦â
âI know what I said,â sighed Cassandra, pushing him a bit. âI⦠Thereâs a part of me, a selfish part of
me, that wish we could leave, just the two of us, and our family, far from all the Politics, the murders,
the plots, and everyone who wants to harm us. I want⦠If I could leave in a dream, it would be
anywhere but this Empire. I⦠donât want to give birth to children and worry about which ones will be
killed. I donât want the jewels, the dresses, the fancy banquets⦠I just want you, our people, and our
baby, living in peace. I want to bear your children, and get old with you. I could hop on Kraiâs back and
let your dragon take us anywhere. Butâ¦â
She took a deep breath, calming herself down, closing her eyes.
âThere is also a part of me, that wants you to change this Empire. I hate⦠I hate this Dragon Empire,
Kairen. Everything wrong with it. I hate how you and your brothers can kill people without remorse.
How slaves and servants are treated like disposable livestock. How women are seen as merchandise,
even Princesses. How you see the destruction of my people as nothing more than some unfortunate
event from the past. I⦠I was raised with the idea that life and death are sacred, and must be honored.
Your people donât care about life, and they donât even respect the dead.â
âCassandraâ¦â
She shook her head, asking him to let her speak a bit longer.
âThat day, in the arena⦠I was ready to die. I didnât care about the Imperial Games. I wasnât scared, I
had no more expectations for life. However, of all people, you chose me. The moment when Krai took
me at your feet, and you put that little piece of your coat on my shoulders, something in me changed a
little. Since we met, every day, I have been seeing what a wonderful, loving man you are. You donât
care about gender when you interact with people. You respect your siblings based on their skills, not
their gender. You kill when you have to, not when you want. You protect those you love⦠and punish
those who shall be punished. You are not perfect, but⦠You are the kind of man that could change this
Empire into a country I can love.â
The Prince was very still, listening to every word. Cassandraâs voice was hoarse because of all of her
earlier crying, softer and huskier than usual. She was almost whispering.
âIf a man like Vrehan becomes Emperor, this will go on. People will die unfairly, women like Missandra
will be
treated poorly. Truth is, if I believed any of your brothers could do this better than you, I would root for
them to take the golden throne. But⦠I have seen what they can do, and it isnât what you can do. They
canât take an abused, damaged woman, forget her appearance to see her value and turn her into an
Imperial Physician. They canât respect their sisters like their equals. They canât have empathy for
slaves, servants, for their people. They live in golden palaces, while youâre fine with eating and
sleeping in a camp. You are not like them, my love. This is exactly why you only made me fall for you,
and why I believe you should be the next Emperor, even if it breaks my heart.â