Dawn crept through the narrow window like an unwelcome visitor, casting pale light across the stone floor where I lay naked and aching.
My back screamed with every breath, the welts from Father's lash pulling tight against my skin as I shifted.
Leon's arm was still draped across my waist, his breathing deep and even in sleep.
For a moment, I let myself pretend this was how every morning could begin, wrapped in his warmth, safe from the world beyond these walls.
But the illusion shattered as reality crashed back over me.
Today marks my departure for Bartume. I carefully extracted myself from Leon's embrace, biting back a whimper as my body protested every movement.
My legs trembled beneath me, unsteady from both pain and the soreness between my thighs, a reminder of what we'd done, what I'd chosen. My gown lay crumpled beside us, and I gathered the pieces with shaking hands.
"Octavia?" Leon's voice was rough with sleep. “Stay with me.”
"Don't," I whispered, not turning to face him. "Please don't make this harder."
I heard him sit up, felt his eyes on my bare back as I struggled into my chemise. The silence stretched between us, heavy with all the words we couldn't say.
"You should go," I said finally, pulling my gown over my head. "The servants will come soon to prepare me for travel."
Leon said nothing. When I finally turned, he was sitting with his head in his hands, shoulders shaking with silent grief.
I stayed silent, watching him fall apart piece by piece, until he finally stood and walked out of my chambers without another word. Only when the door clicked shut did I let myself breathe again.
I pressed a hand to the edge of the table to steady myself, each breath a reminder of the choice I had made.
My virginity, the one thing Father valued about me, the supposed key to securing our alliance with Prince Darius's kingdom, was gone.
Given freely to Leon in a moment of rebellion that now felt both precious and terrifying.
What would happen when the Beast Prince discovered the truth? Would he cast me aside? Declare the marriage invalid?
Would our kingdoms go to war because I had chosen love over duty?
The questions circled in my mind like vultures as I made my way back to my chambers.
My ladies-in-waiting were already bustling about, laying out my traveling clothes and checking the contents of my trunks.
They avoided my eyes as I entered, no doubt seeing the evidence of last night's punishment written across my face.
"Your Highness," Lady Margaret said quietly, "shall we draw you a bath?"
I nodded, not trusting my voice. As they filled the copper tub with steaming water, I caught my reflection in the looking glass.
My lip was swollen, a bruise blooming purple along my jawline where Father's hand had struck. But it was my eyes that looked different, haunted, older somehow.
The girl who had defied him yesterday was gone.
In her place stood a woman who had tasted both love and sacrifice in a single night.
The hot water stung my wounds as I sank into the bath, but I welcomed the pain. It kept me grounded, reminded me that I was still alive, still capable of feeling something other than fear.
My ladies worked in silence, washing my hair and tending to my cuts with gentle efficiency.
By the time the sun had fully risen, I was dressed in a dark blue traveling gown, my hair pinned beneath a simple hood.
My trunks sat by the door, containing everything I owned, which felt like nothing at all compared to what I was leaving behind.
"Princess?" A steward appeared in the doorway, his face carefully neutral. "The carriage is ready."
I nodded and followed him through the corridors, my footsteps echoing off the stone. Servants and nobles alike turned away as I passed, as if looking at me directly might somehow taint them.
My father was nowhere to be seen, no final words, no embrace, not even a cursory goodbye. I was being disposed of like refuse, quietly and without ceremony.
The courtyard was filled with knights and guards, their armor gleaming in the morning light. They would escort me to my new prison, ensuring I arrived intact for my husband-to-be.
The carriage waited at the center of it all, black as a funeral shroud with silver trim that caught the sun.
I had planned to walk straight to it, to climb inside without looking back.
But something made me detour through the stables, some desperate need for one last glimpse of everything I was losing.
Leon was there, as I had somehow known he would be.
He stood beside his destrier, ostensibly checking the horse's tack, but his red-rimmed eyes found mine the moment I appeared. The other knights pretended not to notice as he moved toward me.
"Octavia." My name fell from his lips like a prayer. "There's still time. We could—"
"Don't." The word came out sharper than I intended. "Please, Leon. Don't make me choose again."
"But you don't have to do this," he said, his voice breaking. "We could disappear. Find somewhere beyond his reach. Remember when we used to dream of sailing to the Summer Isles? We could still-"
"Octavia!" Father's voice boomed across the courtyard, cutting through Leon's desperate words. "You're keeping your escort waiting!"
Leon stepped back as if struck, his face going pale.
I forced myself to look at him one last time, memorizing the curve of his jaw, the way his dark hair fell across his forehead, the love and anguish warring in his blue eyes.
"Goodbye," I whispered, so quietly only he could hear.
Then I turned and walked away, each step feeling like a small death.
The knights fell into formation around me as I approached the carriage, their faces impassive behind their helms. The door stood open, waiting to swallow me whole.
I hesitated for just a moment, my hand on the cold metal of the door frame.
Behind me, I could feel Leon's gaze burning into my back, and could hear the unspoken plea in his silence. Ahead lay nothing but shadows and uncertainty.
"Your Highness?" The captain of my guard gestured toward the carriage interior.
I climbed inside without another word, settling onto the velvet cushions as my ladies arranged my skirts. The door slammed shut with a sound like a tomb sealing, and suddenly I was trapped in perfumed darkness.
As the wheels began to turn, I allowed myself one last look through the small window.
Leon stood frozen among the other knights, his face a mask of devastation.
Our eyes met for a heartbeat, and in that instant, I saw everything we might have been, happy, free, together. Then the carriage rounded a corner, and he disappeared from view.
My father had said my purity was the kingdom's last hope, the key to taming the Beast Prince and securing peace. But what if he was wrong? What if love, even stolen love, wasn't enough?
What if I arrived at Mystcrest Castle only to discover that I had doomed us all with my moment of rebellion?
I had chosen love over duty once. Now I must discover what that choice would cost.