Caspian's POV
The knife pressed against my throat before I even saw the attacker.
"Your coin purse. Now."
I froze. The marketplace crowd flowed around us like water around rocks. Nobody looked. Nobody cared. In the Shadow District, people minded their own business or died trying to be heroes.
"I don't have any money," I said quietly.
The thief laughed. His breath smelled like rot. "Everyone says that. Hand it over or I'll cut your throat and check myself."
My hand moved toward my empty pocket. The letter crinkled. The royal letter that could get me killed just for carrying it.
Before I could decide what to do, someone slammed into the thief from the side.
Packages flew everywhere. Apples rolled across the cobblestones. A basket of flowers scattered like colorful snow. And the thief went down hard, his knife clattering away.
"Oh no! I'm so sorry!" A woman's voice. Panicked. "I wasn't looking where I was going!"
The thief scrambled to his feet, swearing. He looked at the woman, then at me, then back at the woman. Whatever he saw in her face made him decide we weren't worth the trouble. He ran.
I could breathe again.
"Are you okay?" The woman knelt, gathering her scattered packages. "Did he hurt you?"
"No, I'm fine." I bent down to help her. "You saved me."
"I knocked into you. That's not saving, that's being clumsy." She laughed. The sound was like music. "I'm terrible at walking and thinking at the same time."
I picked up an apple and handed it to her. That's when I really looked at her.
She was beautiful. Not the cold, perfect beauty I'd seen in paintings of nobles. This was different. Real. Her silver eyes sparkled with humor. Her smile reached those eyes. And when our fingers touched passing the apple, I felt something electric.
"Thank you," she said softly.
"You're welcome." I couldn't stop staring. "I'm Caspian."
"Ana." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Just Ana."
We gathered the rest of her packages in comfortable silence. I noticed her hands. Smooth. No calluses. Not the hands of someone who worked for a living.
"You're not from around here," I said.
"Is it that obvious?" She smiled again. That smile could light up the entire Shadow District. "I wanted to see the marketplace. The real one, not the fancy shops near the palace."
"Why?"
"Because real is more interesting than fake." She stood, balancing her packages. "Don't you think?"
I thought about my stolen books and tiny room. My whole life was about surviving, not finding what was interesting. "I guess I never thought about it."
"Then you should." She tilted her head, studying me. "You look like someone who thinks too much and lives too little."
"Excuse me?"
"Your eyes. They're sad. Like you're carrying the weight of the whole world." She said it matter-of-factly, not meanly. "What makes a young man so serious?"
I should've walked away. Should've made an excuse and left. But something about her made me want to talk. To be honest.
"I got a letter yesterday," I heard myself say. "From the palace. They want to meet me."
Her expression changed. Became more focused. "The palace? Why?"
"I don't know. That's what scares me." I touched my pocket where the letter waited. "People like me don't get invited to the palace. We get arrested there."
"People like you?"
"Poor. Hybrid. Nobody." The words came out bitter. "I'm probably walking into a trap."
"But you're going anyway." It wasn't a question.
"Yes."
"Why?"
I looked at her silver eyes. Really looked. "Because what if it's not a trap? What if it's a chance? I've spent my whole life being told I'm worthless. Maybe someone finally sees something different."
She was quiet for a long moment. Then she smiled. Not the happy smile from before. This one was sadder. Wiser.
"You're braver than you think, Caspian."
"I'm terrified."
"Same thing, sometimes." She shifted her packages. "Walk with me? I don't know this area well."
We walked through the marketplace together. She asked questions about everything. The fruit vendors. The blacksmith. The children playing in the street. She listened to my answers like they mattered.
I'd never talked this much to anyone. Ever.
An hour passed like minutes.
"What's the palace like?" I finally asked. "You live near there, right?"
Her expression shuttered. "It's... cold. Beautiful but cold. Like living in a museum where you can't touch anything."
"That sounds lonely."
"It is." She stopped walking. We'd reached a fountain in the center of the market square. "Caspian, can I tell you a secret?"
My heart beat faster. "Okay."
"I ran away today. Just for a few hours. Because I'm tired of being what everyone expects. Tired of being perfect and proper and never making mistakes." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "I just wanted to be Ana. Just for one day."
I understood completely. "I get it. I really do."
"I know you do." She reached out and squeezed my hand. "That's why I'm glad I bumped into you. You see me. The real me. Not the—"
"Princess Selene!"
We both jumped apart.
Guards in silver armor pushed through the crowd. Six of them. Their hands on their sword hilts. Their faces grim.
"Princess?" I stared at Ana. At Princess Selene. At the heir to the entire Fairy Empire who I'd just spent an hour talking to like she was a normal person.
Her face had gone pale. "I can explain."
"You're Princess Selene." My voice sounded hollow. "The Princess Selene."
"Yes."
"And I just—" I'd complained about the palace. Called myself a nobody. Told her I was scared of meeting royalty. "Oh no. Oh no, no, no."
The guards surrounded us. Their captain bowed to Selene. "Your Highness, the Emperor is furious. You were supposed to attend the morning council."
"I know, Captain Renn." She straightened her shoulders. The laughing, free girl from moments ago vanished. In her place stood someone regal. Untouchable. "I lost track of time."
"We need to return immediately." Captain Renn's eyes flicked to me. Cold. Assessing. "Who is this?"
"Nobody," Selene said quickly. "Just someone who helped me with my packages."
Nobody. The word cut deeper than the thief's knife.
"I should go." I backed away. "I'm sorry for—"
"Wait." Selene grabbed my arm. The guards tensed. "Caspian, wait."
"Your Highness, we don't have time—" Captain Renn started.
"Give me one minute." Her voice held authority I hadn't heard before. The guards stepped back.
She pulled me aside, away from listening ears. "I'm sorry. I should have told you who I was."
"Why didn't you?"
"Because everyone treats me differently when they know." Her silver eyes pleaded for understanding. "You talked to me like I was human. Like I mattered beyond my title. Do you know how rare that is?"
I shook my head. My brain couldn't process this. I'd flirted with a princess. The princess. The woman who would one day rule the empire.
"The letter," Selene said suddenly. "The one from the palace. Was it sealed with the Dynasty crest?"
"Yes."
She bit her lip. Thinking hard. Coming to some decision. "Meet me tonight. Midnight. At the old fountain three blocks east of here. I'll explain everything."
"I don't think—"
"Please." She squeezed my hand again. That electric feeling came back. "Trust me. Just one more time."
Captain Renn called out. "Your Highness, we must leave now."
"Midnight," Selene whispered. "Don't tell anyone. Come alone."
"Princess Selene!" The captain's voice was sharp now.
She let go of my hand and walked toward the guards. Her posture changed completely. Back straight. Head high. Every inch a princess.
Just before the guards surrounded her completely, she looked back at me.
Her lips moved, forming silent words I could barely read.
I sent the letter.
Then she was gone. The guards swept her away like a tide. The crowd swallowed them.
I stood there, frozen.
She sent the letter.
Princess Selene sent me the letter that said "come alone or die."
Why would the empire's heir send a death threat to a hybrid from the Shadow District?
What did she want from me?
And why did my gut tell me that going to meet her at midnight was either the best decision of my life or the one that would get me killed?
The marketplace continued around me. Vendors shouting. Children laughing. Life moving forward.
But my world had just turned completely upside down.
The princess knew my name.
The princess wanted to meet me again.
And something in her silver eyes told me that whatever she wanted to say at midnight would change everything.
I touched the letter in my pocket one more time.
Then I started walking toward the old fountain three blocks east.
I had twelve hours to decide if I was brave enough—or stupid enough—to meet her there.