-EDITED CHAPTER-

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"Your nightmares follow you like a shadow, forever."

 ― Aleksandar Hemon

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FIRE WAS A PIECE of her burning soul. It was her only gift from the devil itself. It was hers to keep forever. And no way in hell was she going to give it up.

Helene sat on the edge of her queen bed with her favorite weapons sprawled around her in a mess. Their sharp blades glinted under her bedroom light, urging her to pick them up and use them in a fight. But so far, she hadn't used them other than to train with her sister. Sometimes, she would stop by Cas' house and they would walk to the closest training center to train until both of them couldn't get up. Other times, Helene snuck out at night if she was ever angry and took her frustrations out onto her training, punching a bag or mutilating a red dummy. On good days, the four, including Helene, Cas, Ella and Raylan, would hang out after their training together; grabbing ice creams or wrestling in a nearby park. The best days were when Helene got to read under her blanket, be absorbed into her novel and romance. Those days were her favorite.

She tried to face everyday like a normal Scar. But after the ceremony where she had been chosen, she always woke up excited, dancing for the week to pass and the day they were going to leave. But of course, the world wanted to torture her the best way possible and managed to make the days pass in a snail's pace. The universe hated her guts and loved to surprise her with unnecessary and nasty things.

When the day finally arrived, Helene didn't know what to make of it. Was she supposed to be excited? Jump around perhaps? Ella had been packed and ready to go the night before, and she could hear her squealing on top of her lungs next to her bedroom.

Helene sighed and closed her eyes tiredly. She wanted her bag packed. She hated packing herself. There was a sudden knock on her door and she looked up as it opened. Ginger, her mom, walked in, eyeing her room warily.

"They have already loaded up the car. Are you planning on staying or something?"

Helene rolled her eyes at her mother's sarcasm. "Going, of course."

She approached her suitcase and began to pile all her weapons inside, causing a lot of clanging and banging. Ginger brushed her aside quickly, yet gently. "Move out of the way Helene. You are such a disgrace. Go downstairs and I will bring the suitcase to the car in a few moments."

Helene accepted the help and gladly disappeared down the stairs and out of sight. The twisty staircase led straight down to the clean living room, with a gallery wall on one end and an array of pictures on the other. The theme was set in black and white, and sometimes grey. The rug was a mixture of the three, giving the room an interesting, yet amusing look.

Kevin, Helene's 10-year-old brother, skidded to a stop in front of her and peered up at her with curious eyes.

"When will you come back?"

Helene pursed her lips and managed a small smile. "In a little while. I promise. "

Kevin huffed in an annoyed tone. "That's what you said the last time you went to BlackWell. And you came back two months later."

"I know," Helene gave him an apologetic smile. "How about I get you something from there? Maybe an antique?"

Kevin's sad expression morphed quickly to an excited one. "Promise?"

Helene grinned. "I promise."

Kevin nodded and walked away yelling, "See you later" and "Have fun." Grabbing her long leather boots, Helene slipped them on and was off out the door, running to the car that waited for her just outside her house. Alec, her father, was inside, along with Ella, who gave Helene a disapproving look as she climbed in.

"Where's your suitcase?" Alec asked her from the driver's seat.

Helene pointed to Ginger who was tugging a heavy black suitcase after her, struggling a bit. "Right there. On its way to the trunk."

"Whatever," Ella rolled her eyes which was the one thing she excelled in. Rolling eyes and being angry.

Helene turned around as the trunk of the black shiny car opened with a heavy click and Ginger pushed her suitcase inside with a little difficulty. Helene felt bad for making her mother do all her work and so when she looked up at her, Helene offered her the sweetest smile she could muster. It was the best she could do.

Ginger rolled her eyes, and automatically Helene muttered, "I see where Ella gets that from."

Her mother ignored her and instead smiled. " Enjoy, yeah? Kick back and do your best. Don't let the losers win."

Make me proud.

Neither of them said the unspoken words that lay between them both. It was obvious.

Slowly, Ginger stepped back and closed the trunk with a huff. Then she walked back to the house, not looking back even once. Helene leaned back and buckled in, ignoring the looks she earned from the rear view mirror by Ella. As soon as the car started, Helene had already drifted off to another world.

THE SHIP WAS DESERTED except for a few other people who were now the top ten, the guests, Legion, the guards and their traveling agent. A few families were here and there, but most were below deck eating or sleeping. They were in the sea for the fourth day and Helene was getting tired of watching the water from the ship's railing. The water was boring while Helene wanted something fun and exciting to pass her time. Cas had ditched her and went to hang out with one of the top ten girls whose name Helene had purposely forgotten. She didn't understand why she was jealous, just that he was her friend and that girl could screw herself for all she cared.

During those tiring and boring three days, Helene had talked to no one, not even during meals or free time. Cas didn't seem to notice and he never approached her, which made her blood boil angrily.

"How dare he forget about me like that?" Helene kicked the railing angrily. "I never do that to Erza and Lavynder-"

Suddenly she gasped dramatically and groaned, "Shit! I forgot to say goodbye!"

She fished for her phone out of her pocket as fast as she could. She knew there would be no wifi until they arrived at the SwynCrest castle and it would automatically connect with her phone. Either way, she clicked her messages and pressed their group chat hoping they had texted her anything.

There was nothing.

Helene frowned in disappointment.

All her previous anger came crashing back and she savagely threw her phone into the water. It landed with a small plop. Helene looked over the railing, her anger vanishing by an inch. She stepped back, realizing what she had just done.

"I did not just throw my freaking phone into the water," Helene rubbed her face. "Why-"

Someone coughed behind her. "As interesting as your very dramatic temper tantrum is, I cannot stay longer to watch. Cassius Lonsay, the one and only, is calling you."

Helene whirled around to give the person a piece of her mind, but froze when she saw Legion. "Ugh. I can't even say anything bad to you."

Legion raised a dark brow in amusement. "You can't?"

"Leave me alone. And since when have you become a message carrier for Cassius and I?"

"Oooh." A female voice chuckled. "Not Cas? You are really angry."

Helene closed her eyes for an irritated second. When she opened them, she found Ella standing beside Legion, looking happy at her anger. This made Helene angrier. "Goodbye," she snapped and left, ignoring both of them.

She headed to her chambers and lay down onto her unmade bed, counting under her breath until her eyelids fluttered with sleep, and she drifted off.

THE ROCKING SHIP had finally come to a halt hours ago, but Helene continued to feel as if she was still swaying with the ship. It made her go nuts.

They had arrived at the SwynCrest palace hours back on horse carriages, making her feel as if she was in the ancient times. The carriage had apparently rocked as well - though harder than the ship - and made her want to puke to the side. She would have if Cassius wasn't watching her like a hawk and with Legion on her right and the girl named Lilith on her left. The same girl that Cas had ditched Helene for.

After a few hours of riding on the carriage, they had come to a sudden halt in front of a beautiful palace decorated with colorful lights. Gardens surrounded the castle, adding greenery and fresh air. Statues stood around it, some holding swords while others were weaponless. Vines were twined around the stone works, showing an intricate touch to things. It was as if the palace had stepped out of a fairy tale.

After being shown to their rooms, the guards outside her door showed her the way to the main hall. It was swarming with other Scars living in the castle and the royal families as they headed to their seats in the front. There were seats decorated and sitting a little apart from the rest of the tables as well. Helene guessed that they were for the top ten and the guests. Legion was already seated on the royals table near the king and queen of SwynCrest, despite the fact that this was not his country. They had sat him down near them as a way of honouring the heir to the throne of Belwick, an ally to SwynCrest. He was eyeing Helene from where he sat, as if he knew as soon she had entered. Helene gave him a wink and made her way to the rich brown table with most of the top ten already seated.

Helene slipped into a seat across from Ella. She had already befriended Carry and Mick, who sat on either side of her, talking and laughing as if they had known each other forever. Helene huffed and looked down at the empty table.

Someone sat down beside her and without having to look, Helene knew who it was.

"What do you want Cassius?" She asked tiredly looking up.

Cas gave her well-created confused look. "What are you talking about?"

"I mean," Helene glared, not bothering the fact that she was still fuming. "Did you just realize I exist?"

As soon as he opened his mouth to reply, a voice drawled from above them. "She wants to sit with me actually. There's one spot saved just for her right beside me. Right, Helene?"

Helene smiled sweetly up at Legion, "Of course. How could I forget? Let's go right now, shall we?"

Without looking back, Helene stood up grabbing Legion's arm and pulling them both away from the table. She quickly turned to him worriedly, "You didn't lie about the saved spot, did you?"

Legion grinned. "Nope. Follow me."

Helene sighed in relief and followed him as he weaved through the bodies of people sitting and standing to reach the front of the hall where the royals sat. As soon as they arrived, Helene noticed them looking at her in disdain. Helene nearly huffed and snapped at them to continue talking, but refrained, remembering that they were the royals and she would get into deep trouble if she did. She held herself back from looking down at her simple clothes, which were nothing compared to the gorgeous suites and dresses along with fine jewelry they wore.

"This is my friend Helene Seelie Galane. She has been invited by my father to Valston, SwynCrest." Legion smiled sweetly as he sat down on his chair and tucked himself in.

Helene pushed the chair beside him out and sat in, trying to give everyone staring at her one of her sweetest smiles.

The girl sitting beside the king and queen licked her pink lips, tossing her jet black hair over her shoulder. "Princess Ciara." She waved to herself then pointed to a boy beside her with the same turned up nose and full lips, "And this is my younger brother Damien."

"Nice to meet you," Helene said.

Ciara clicked her tongue. "I'm not sure I can say the same for you."

Helene opened her mouth to reply, but was cut off when Damien shot her a shy smile. "Sorry, she doesn't like meeting new people. It's nice to have you here though."

Helene gave him a small smile. "Thank you."

There was a long awkward silence and Helene began to wish she had stayed back with Cas. Ciara stared at her and Damien stared at her. The queen and the king stared at her. Their relatives stared at her. Finally, tired of all the staring, the queen waved her hand. "Let's get some food, shall we?"

Just as Helene had suspected, the dinner was unpleasant. It seemed as if they were more interested in how she ate. It wouldn't be a surprise if they asked how she dressed and soon about her underthings.

During the entire dinner, Helene shifted and moved around in her chair uncomfortably, not exactly sure what to look at. While eating, sometimes she would look at the decorated golden doors that stood tall and proud in the very back of the hall. Sometimes she would peer longingly at her only friend and her sister as they enjoyed their food. Other then times her eyes would search for something to look at, she stared down at her food, sometimes playing with it and cutting it into small tiny pieces.

"Do you normally cut your food into tiny pieces like that?" Ciara asked, nosy as ever.

"Do you normally ask that many questions?" Helene muttered under her breath.

"Excuse me?" Ciara snapped, putting her spoon down. "Watch who you bad mouth to Helene. Not everyone tolerates people like you."

People like you.

Done with all the staring and the comparing, Helene sighed and put her spoon down as well. Slowly, she got up off her chair and gave Ciara the meanest look she could make. "Yes, princess."

She turned around and left.

The walk from the royal table to the doors of the hall was short, but as Helene walked, people stared and the walk there seemed as if it would never end. As time slowed down, Helene increased her speed until she was practically sprinting out the main hall. The talking rose back to normal as soon as she made it outside. There, she took big breaths, inhaling and then exhaling trying to control her bubbling anger. Those were the girls Helene hated. They were the ones that made her mad.

She began to rush to her room and passed hallway after hallway, door after door when she realized she was lost. She had no idea how long she had been outside for and stood in the middle of an open corridor looking up at a picture. Its frame was decorated with brown and golden paint with a picture of a man inside. At the bottom it said:

KING VAL THE III

Helene ran her fingers over the name which sounded familiar to her ears.

Where had she heard of him?

"That's my grandfather," A voice said behind her. "He named my father Luke because he didn't want him to be named after him. He died half a year ago when the mortals attacked."

Helene turned around to meet a sad Damien, "That's..."

"Tragic? Sad?" Damien offered. "I don't know. We weren't close. Ciara and him were though. He used to tell us stories about our castle. He said it was haunted. There was this one time..."

As Damien trailed off, Helene inspected the painting more closely. There was something off about it. Something she couldn't quite pick out...

"Some paintings are doorways." Damien was saying, "But my father shut them all down after his death. Said it's easier for the enemies to break in."

Helene frowned. "So there's like one button for all the doors? That's not the best idea."

"What? No," Damien shook his head confused. "Every door has a different way to get in. Sometimes there would be a liver or sometimes a pulley. Maybe a button in a painting or a picture. Even a clue engraved on a statue near the paintings. It depends. Anyways, are you lost?" Damien asked politely. "You have been roaming around for a long time and I guessed you were looking for your room."

Helene raised her eyebrows. "You were following me now, hmm?"

"I-what?" Damien flushed. "No. My room is this way. I caught you when you turned from the gallery. I thought you were exploring but then I heard you cursing something about a big castle."

It was Helene's turn to look sheepish. "Yeah about that..."

Someone cleared their throat behind her. Damien raised his dark eyes and looked through his long black eyelashes at the person behind Helene, "Legion." He smiled, "What a pleasant surprise."

"Pleasant indeed."

Helene turned around. "Damien was just about to show me to my room since I - well you know - got lost."

"I can show you where it is," Legion smiled politely at Damien. "You look tired. It would be disrespectful for you to make him walk you to your room when you have a guide who would never bore you with his handsome looks - not that you would bore her Damien - and is fully capable of showing you your way."

Helene mimicked him. "I am also fully capable of showing myself to my room without your help."

Legion said. "It's bad to mock a prince."

Helene rolled her eyes and looked in Damien's direction. "I will see you tomorrow?"

"Of course," Damien said with a withdrawn look and waved goodbye as he walked past them and down the hall, disappearing from their view.

Legion turned to Helene with his back straight, lifting his chin up and pretending to think. "Hm. I think you did not enjoy the dinner tonight."

Helene snorted. "You think?"

"What's your room number?" Legion asked instead.

"551. Floor 4 I think?"

"Floor 5 actually."

"How do you know?"

Legion gave her a sideways smile as they began to get inside the open elevator. "I know things. Now let's hurry up. My bed is calling."

"I didn't know you could hear it from all the way here." Helene retorted.

Legion shrugged nonchalantly. "It's wailing actually."

Helene rolled her eyes. "Ha ha ha. Very funny."

The rest of their walk was short and quiet. They quickly made their way to her room and only stopped when they got there. Helene turned the doorknob and was ready to go in when a hand dragged her back.

"No goodnight kisses?" Legion asked.

Helene pretended to make a disgusted face. "Ew, no. Not for you."

He smirked at her knowingly. "Sleep tight Helene. See you tomorrow."

As he began to make his way back to the elevator, Helene called after him, her voice echoing loudly. "And I am not joining in at the royal table tomorrow! You'll be a loner!"

His reply was a deep, promising chuckle and a 'goodnight.'

Helene smiled and closed the door behind her. She made her way to her ready bed where two ladies stood ready to help her get changed for bed. After a lot of changing, talking and moving, Helene was finally under the covers, being consumed whole by the dark, concluding her first day in SwynCrest.

So far, so good.

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