(Hmm…)
Slowly opening her eyes and adjusting to the light, Ciara's view was greeted by an unfamiliar ceiling.
(Huh?)
Where was she? That was the first thought she had. Before she could fully process what was going on, she heard a low mumble outside her door.
"Is she awake?"
It sounded like a female's voice... and strangely enough, it felt familiar.
'This is certainly the first time I'm hearing that voice, so why does it sound like I know it?' she thought.
"How the hell did she survive that, after all I went through to kill her?" Ciara heard the same voice complain.
'Are they… my killers? Wait, I'm sure I was killed. There is no way I survived that. So, what on earth is going on?' she continued to ponder, remaining skeptical.
'I need answers.'
"Ker, you there?" she called out to her wolf, but no response came.
"Ker?"
Still nothing.
Alarmed, she focused on her connection to her wolf, and when she couldn't feel it, she finally panicked.
What was going on? Was she in hell?
No… this place looked too good to be hell.
"Ciara?" she suddenly heard her wolf call out, making her sigh in relief.
"I'm here, Ker," she replied, but her wolf continued calling.
It was as if she couldn't hear her.
'The hell?'
"Ker, I'm right here!" she said out loud, raising her voice.
"Oh, my goddess, Ciara! I was so scared. I couldn't sense or hear you. What happened to us? Aren't we supposed to be dead? And why can't we use mind-link to communicate?" Ker fired off questions the moment she understood their situation.
"Relax, Ker. I also don't know what's going on," Ciara replied helplessly.
She herself was just as lost.
Clack.
They heard the door open.
A young lady who looked about eighteen walked in, brown hair tied in a neat fishtail halo, downturned green eyes, a small button nose, and pouty lips.
"She's pretty," Ker commented.
As if triggered by the girl's presence, memories that weren't Ciara's began flooding her mind.
She was in the body of a young lady named Katherine Montrose Mooncrest, daughter of Marques Villard Mooncrest of the Celestia Kingdom.
The young lady who had just walked in was her half-sister, Rose Ashford Mooncrest, daughter of the marques' second wife, Lady Victoria Ashford from a baron family.
And also… the reason why the original Katherine died.
Katherine's mother was Lady Genevieve Montrose from a count family. Her marriage to the marques was arranged, so he never loved her, or her daughter.
Two weeks after Katherine was born, the marques married a second wife, Lady Victoria, who gave birth to Rose six months later.
The official story was that Rose was born premature, but everyone in the household knew it was a lie.
Lady Victoria had already been pregnant before entering the household.
Which meant the marques cheated on his pregnant wife.
A few years later, when the girls were five, the Mooncrest household received an edict from the king, one of the marques' daughters was to be wed to the crown prince.
The honor naturally went to the eldest daughter, Katherine.
As they grew older, comparisons were inevitable.
Rose was smart, confident, and charming.
Katherine, on the other hand, was shy, meek, and lacked confidence.
Everyone believed the title of crown princess suited Rose better, which made Rose believe she was superior.
So, what if Katherine was the marchioness' daughter?
She had no spine to be crown princess.
When the girls were ten, Katherine's mother died from an unknown illness.
The marques wasted no time naming Lady Victoria the new marchioness, instantly lowering Katherine's status.
From that moment on, her life became hell.
Her allowance was cut so drastically she couldn't even afford a proper dress befitting her status. People assumed she simply had no taste.
Rose bullied her constantly.
And because Katherine never fought back, even the servants began to disrespect her.
The only person who brought her comfort was her fiancé, the crown prince, Darian.
She had always known she would marry him, so she naturally fell in love.
She cherished the little time they spent together… even if he rarely gave it.
She believed they would have a happy ending.
That belief shattered a week ago.
On Rose's eighteenth birthday, she caught them together in the garden, far too close.
(Step… step…)
Heart pounding, she forced herself forward.
"How can you do this… with your fiancée's sister?" she asked, tears in her eyes, barely holding herself together.
(Swoosh…)
The wind swept through the garden, rustling hair and fabric.
"I'm sorry, Lady Katherine… but Rose is the one I love," Darain said, without even a hint of remorse.
Whatever strength she had left disappeared. She couldn't stay there any longer, so she did the first thing that came to mind...
She ran.
Back to her room.
Back to solitude.
She stood on her balcony that night, staring at the sky, completely empty.
No tears left.
Her whole life came crumbling, the one thing she had left to hold on to was taken away by her "ever so sweet" half-sister...
"She takes everything." she cried.
(Creak…)
The door opened.
She didn't bother turning.
"Oh, sister… I'm sorry. I was going to tell you. I just didn't know how," Rose said.
But her tone held no apology.
Only mockery.
(Smirk.)
"Darian and I have been together for a while now. He said he'll tell the king he wants to marry me… not you."
She stepped closer.
"But it's not easy. The king needs your statement first... saying you don't want the engagement. But we both know that will never happen..."
Her voice dropped.
"So, I thought… if I can't get your statement… I'll get one from your corpse."
Before Katherine could react__
She was pushed.
"Katherine? Can you hear me?"
Ciara snapped back to the present as the memories ended.
"I was really worried about you. Did you really have to jump off the balcony just because the prince said he would marry me?"
Rose looked genuinely concerned.
Ciara watched her quietly. She wasn't too sure about the memories she just had, but she was certain that the girl standing before her was the one that pushed the original owner of the body... So why was she pretending to care about her sister?
(…Hmm?)
Then she noticed him.
Prince Darian.
And everything clicked.
'Oh… so that's why she suddenly cares...'
The prince stood beside Rose, dressed in regal gold befitting his status. His posture was composed, his expression calm.
Too calm.
Not the face of someone whose fiancée had nearly died.
Ciara said nothing.
She simply observed.
(Sigh.)
"I didn't think you'd stoop so low as to commit suicide just to stop your sister and I from having a normal marriage," Darian said, disgust evident in his voice.
"Were you hoping people would see Rose as the villain who married her late sister's fiancé?"
Ciara stared at him.
She wasn't even listening anymore.
Just… watching a dog bark.
He wasn't extraordinarily handsome. Just… average. Blond hair, blue eyes.
The only thing impressive about him was his title.
"You know, I'm trying to see what's so special about this guy," Ker muttered. "From his scent alone, I can tell he's a scumbag."
Wait, calling him a scumbag felt too kind.
Even a joker had more dignity.
Ciara silently agreed.
"I love Rose. Can't you just be happy for your sister? It's not like we ever had anything special..."
"Let's call off the engagement."
Ciara cut him off with a smile. Anything to make him shut up. she wasn't interested in some love story between cheating scumbags.
"I think my sister is far better suited to stand by your side than I am."