Though the sun blazed a golden hue in the sky, Fulgels dotted every nook and cranny of the town. Unlike Rowan who could not help but wished she could bury herself into the ground, the Fulgels thrived under the heat. From the elders to the smallest of toddlers, each of them basked in the light, skin aglow with its radiance.
The smell of freshly baked bread wafted from the baker’s window, enticing even to the nose of a Nyphillie. Warm spring breeze brought with it the smell of chrysanthemums, littering the street with pure white petals that painted the town a scene out of winter wonderland. A strike contrast to the myriad of colours that blazed across their peripheral.
Townswomen clothed in cotton smock of plain shades sat on cloths of brilliant yellows and red behind piles of fruits and vegetables Rowan had never seen before. More than a handful of men naked to their torso paraded around with at least two bunches of fishes tied to the pole perched on their shoulders. Children zoomed in and out of their bricked homes, at least a dozen recognized Anastasia and stopped to circle her for new stories.
Rowan inhaled the scene, bewildered as a young boy approached her with a stalk of white chrysanthemum in hand. It was the first time she had seen any child—or Fulgels, for that matter— who would approach her on his own and ran away with a smile upon his lips instead of screaming in horror.
The townsfolk turned towards them at the sound of the children, smiling when their gazes fell on the princess. Anastasia waved to them in return.
Though the way leading back to the castle was not far, they took a longer time than expected with Anastasia stopping by to greet any approaching townsfolk. By the time they passed the town, her entourage’s hands were dripping with fresh produces of the day.
“Is anything the matter?” Anastasia asked, pulling Rowan’s attention back to her. Her large purple eyes watched her, worried.
Everything, Rowan thought, forcing her muscles to relax. Her face broke into a soft smile as she shook her head. “Just tired.”
Anastasia’s face lit up immediately. “All the more reason you should see your room!” She jumped and pulled Rowan forward with her, hurrying her steps all of a sudden and caused her followers to gasp once more. “You’re going to love it. I had them added some roses just this morning and there’s the new dresses in your wardrobe and…”
All the way back to the castle, Rowan could hear nothing but the white noise in her ears.
Stray petals of chrysanthemum wafted down from the sky and continued to paint the ground with a thin layer of snow white. Her skin tingled, chilled down to her toes despite the scorching sun overhead. Only the spears of ice plunging into her bared back as she left burned her senses.
They had all looked at her and saw nothing but a shadow of the Fulgel princess. They had trusted her, smiled at her, only because the true princess was beside her and they loved her. Rowan was once again reminded that she did not belong here. Not before, not now.
She was never Lucidus’s beloved and never will be.
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