Camalia was fighting sleep. But it had been hours since the last hinch of pain or whispers in her head, and she was slowly dozing off.

For the first time in a week, the prison was calm. It was so comfortable. She needed this. She needed to rest. But the fear was keeping her awake. It had to be a plan... They'll be... Attacking soon... She had... To... Stay... Awake...

It was nice. Nice and warm. No nightmares, no anything. Just a reassuring black box. Eveything felt so peaceful and fine. It was if all her problems went away. She was finally okay.

A violent push snapped her eyes open and she jumped on her feet. The dizziness of sleep not helping, she stumbled against the wall.

-I AM AWAKE ! I'm awake ! I can fight you, With' ! And now I've got- wait why is it dark.

The cell was completely black, the only light being the moon and the candles lighting up the corridor. She frowned. Has she really slept that long ? Did the snakes really let her sleep that long ? Something was up. They would never help her recover from their own torture.

She looked in the corridor, in the cells beside her... No, she was alone. No one was there to hold the curse. It was the snakes decision. It had to mean bad for her. She stood in the middle of the mess she called home.

-Uhm... Witheria ? Decaiera ? Hey, I am wide awake and totally cursable ! Wouldn't it be fun to uh... Curse me ?

Silence. Something was definitely up. She sighed. There was nothing she could do but enjoy this "night off". Camalia took her guitare and started playing in front of the wall, making a broom out of the stones. She took it and started swipping the floor. It would be a shame to hurt herself again when she'll be acting like a beast. She cleared the cell and repeared the pillow. The music mage couldn't really hurt herself with this. Might as well keep it.

She yawned.

Even if she slept the entire day, she was still tired. But something seemed to hold her back from diving into sweet darkness again. She shrugged it off. It probably was just her. She hoped. Camalia looked at her clothes, hair and skin and winced.

She really was disgusting.

Thanks to various melodies, a nice bath and some time, she wiped every trace of the past few days from her. Satisfied, she looked around. Well. There wasn't much more to do. Now, the cell was empty, except from her, the pillow and her guitare. Even the bed's chains didn't resist her rage.

She sat on the ground and yawned again. Maybe now she could sleep. She lay down and was about to close her eyes when she heard the loud noise of the prison door opening.

At that time of night, it must have been an emergency. She went to the bars and a chill was sent down her spine as she froze.

It was Varian.

With a third of the guards of the kingdom, of course, but it was still him. Camalia felt a wave of panic but she couldn't speak. Her throat was to tight, her mind was racing but with the same sentence over and over again.

"What do I do"

They started walking toward the stairs to go to lower level. It relieved Camalia a little bit. It wouldn't change much, but if she lost control, it would be safer than if he was right next to her. She looked at Varian and was put off by his angry eyes. She was about to say something to him when she spotted Captain at the end of the guards' chain.

-CAP !

The guard walked toward her. Camalia didn't even know what she was about to say. She just had to try something to put Varian in safety. Anything.

-Please, please Captain, you HAVE to put Varian somewhere else ! Somewhere far away from me ! Please ! I-I don't know what is going to happen this year. I mean, I'll think of something eventually, but if I don't... PLEASE, Cap...

Maybe Stan was right after all. If she feared for the boy's safety, maybe he should fear for the castle's.

He took a deep breath and was about to answer, when someone violently punched the bars beside him, making Cap jump.

-Oh, so even now you want to get rid of me.

Varian was set off by her noticing his dark gaze and IMMEDIATLY wanting to push him away again. So that how it was, now. He really had to get over the time they were friends.

The guards were ready to jump on him but Captain held them back.

-Varian, wha-

-Shut up ! I don't want to hear any of your lies again ! I know about your curse. I know about your people. I know everything, Camalia. I know you tried to manipulate me, that nothing was true from start to finish. You were never my friend, were you ? All you ever cared about was your curse. You thought you could use me and my alchemy, but when you realized I was useless, you just threw me away.

-N-No, that's not-

-Not true ? Then what was ? What truth did you let me see in your sea of lies ?

Camalia was frozen. Her heart was racing, so was her thoughts. She knew she was wrong, she knew it wasn't what she should have done. She knew everything and yet, she did it. The music mage broke her friend with her bare hands. She opened her mouth.

-I... I am your friend. But I was a bad one. You're right. I kept lying to you when I shouldn't have. I-I'm really sorry Varian. I was just... I wanted to... I'm sorry. I don't expect you to forgive me, but... I still care about you, and I don't want you to get h- to get even more hurt than now. Please, Varian. You have to get away from me.

Thinking about it, and hearing it from her own lips really was two very different things. So he was right. He was right all along. He felt sick and angry. He stared into her bright green eyes.

-Don't worry. I will never get near you ever again.

He stepped back and let the guards drag him away without another word. Captain was about to add something but he changed his mind and left. It wasn't the right time.

And once again, Camalia was left alone.

Soon enough, she felt the presence of one of the snakes behind her.

-It was your plan from the very beginning, right Witheria ?

She was mad. Mad at herself and mad at her curse. She was tired of surviving and agonising all the time. It was all that she put in her eyes when she looked at the giant black snake.

-Oh, come on, little plant. Don't give me so much credit. You're the one that messed up this friendship. I just made sure you suffer the consequencies.

The wheezing and falsy tender voice of the snake resonnated in the empty prison as she spoke.

-Yeah, well, geez, thanks.

-You are quite welcome, little plant. You know I always have the best ideas.

Camalia leant on one of the walls and let herself slid down. She sighed.

-So, what now ? Are you going to make me feel like there's fire instead of blood in my body ? Froze me in place for hours ? Choke me again ? Whipers unwanted truths in my mind ? Make me go insane ? Possess me ?

The snake slithered on the ground, weeling the small human with it's long body. Her black scales were shining in the light of the moon and her bright cold eyes were searching deep into the child's soul, like she had done for the past ten years. Witheria smiled softly.

-No~ I'd rather see you suffer quietly. You know manipulating mind is more of Decaiera kind of things.

Brutal doubts inserted themselves in the music mage mind. She sudddenly got up, her heart pounding in her chest. She couldn't speak loud, as if she didn't really want the answer to what she was about to ask. So Camalia whispered with terror.

-Did you... Did you put the idea of lying to Varian in my mind ? Did you convince me it was what I was supposed to do ?

Witheria's smile widened.

-Oh my, little plant. How dare you insult my sister like that ? She had no need to convince you. She merely suggested the thought.

Camalia tottered backward, shocked. She put a shaky hand over her mouth, feeling tears ran down her cheek. Is any of the decisions she ever made even her's ? Was she always just the puppet of her curse ? Was she this easy to manipulate ? No. No no no. Camalia, put yourself together. That's exactly the reaction the snake expected. She had to stay calm.

-You have to understand, my sweet and fragile little plant...

The snake tail softly brushed a tear of her face as she backed down in disgust.

-... He would have taken you away from us. But we don't want that. We need you to say it. We need you by our side forever, Camalia. We are your curse. You are our anchor. You can't get rid of us like you got rid of that alchemy boy. We'll always be there.

Rage filled Camalia mind and heart. She slapped the tail with violence and stepped forward, surprising the snake.

-I did NOT get rid of him. I do not BELONG TO YOU. And whatever you do, I will always fight you, until my last breath if I have to. I hate you, Witheria. With all my heart, I deeply hate you.

The snake angrily hissed.

-Don't be stupid, Camalia. Realize what you've done. You pushed the boy away from you, with some quite success I might add. And we belong to you as much as you belong to us. We are linked, my dear. And this link is unbreakable. Neither I or you can destroy it. Stop acting like a child and grow up for once !

This time, the music mage slammed the snake against the wall, and put her face millimeters from the muzzle of the animal. She had a threatning aura that deeply unsettled Witheria. She never saw her like that.

-No, now you listen to ME. I don't care if Varian hates me, I don't care if we are linked, I don't CARE if you will hant me for the rest of my days, and I don't care what you think. I am me, and I make my own decisions, my own mistakes, my own path, and NO ONE, not a stupid curse nor a lost friend will tell me what to do. NO ONE decide who I am but me. I lost my only friend, and it is all my fault. I decided to lie, I decided to be in prison, I decided to protect him. I. Make. My. Own. Decisions. And of all the things you have ever done, you will NOT take that away from me.

Suddenly a giant black tail, slightly lighter than Witheria's twisted itself around Camalia's waist and threw her on the wall on the other side of the cell.

-How dare you speak like that to my sister ?