Isla's POV
The wooden rod cracks across my knuckles.
I bite my tongue to keep from crying out. Blood wells up where the wood split my skin.
"Again," Lady Helena snaps. "Pick up the teacup properly this time."
My hand shakes as I reach for the delicate cup. I position my fingers exactly how she showed me thumb and first finger on the handle, pinky slightly raised.
The rod slams down on the table, making the cup rattle. "Your back is slouching! Princesses sit straight! Do you want the Dragon King to think he married a hunchback?"
I straighten my spine so fast my neck cracks.
We've been in this small study room for six hours. Six hours of walking, sitting, standing, holding cups, using forks, and getting hit every time I make a mistake. My hands look like raw meat.
"From the beginning," Lady Helena commands. "Show me how Princess Celeste enters a room."
I stand and walk to the door. Then I open it and step through, keeping my chin high and my steps small and graceful like she taught me.
The rod whistles through the air and strikes my shoulder blade.
"Wrong! You're walking like a servant trying to be invisible. Princess Celeste wants everyone to notice her. She takes up space. She expects people to move out of her way. Again!"
I do it again. And again. And again.
Each time, the rod finds a new place to hit my arms, my legs, my back. Lady Helena never strikes my face. Can't damage what the Dragon King will see first.
"Better," she finally admits when the sun starts setting outside the window. "Now sit. We need to discuss Princess Celeste's life story. You must know every detail."
I collapse into the chair, every muscle screaming. Lady Helena pulls out a thick folder full of papers.
"Princess Celeste Lumuria was born twenty-four years ago during a spring thunderstorm," she begins. "Her favorite color is pink. She hates poetry but loves romantic novels. She plays piano beautifully we'll tell the Dragon King your fingers are injured and you can't play right now. She once had a pet cat named Snowball who died when she was ten. She cried for three days."
I try to memorize everything. Pink. No poetry. Dead cat named Snowball. Piano excuse.
"She's allergic to strawberries. Her best friend growing up was Lady Margaret from the eastern province. She broke her arm falling from a horse when she was twelve left arm, clean break, healed perfectly. She kissed a stable boy when she was fifteen and got caught by her mother."
The Information floods my brain faster than I can organize it. Lady Helena doesn't stop talking for two solid hours, listing every detail of Princess Celeste's pampered, perfect life.
"Tomorrow we'll work on your accent," Lady Helena says, finally closing the folder. "You speak like a commoner. We need to fix that. Now, tell me three facts about dragons."
My mind goes blank. "Dragons?"
"Yes, dragons. The creatures that rule the Northern Kingdom. The Dragon King you're marrying. Surely you know something?"
"I… I thought they were just stories. Fairy tales to scare children."
Lady Helena's laugh is sharp and cruel. "Oh, you stupid girl. Dragons are very real. They're powerful, dangerous, and they can smell lies. Some people say they can read minds, though that's probably exaggeration."
My stomach turns cold. "Read minds?"
"The Dragon King is over six feet tall in human form. He has silver-white hair and gray eyes. He can transform into a massive silver dragon capable of breathing fire hot enough to melt stone. He's ruled the Northern Kingdom since he was eighteenten years now. His parents died fighting an evil sorcerer."
Each word makes the situation more terrifying.
"Dragons live for hundreds of years. They're stronger than ten men. Their scales are harder than armor. And they value honesty above everything else." Lady Helena leans forward. "Which means you'll need to be a perfect liar, or he'll tear you apart the moment he suspects the truth."
"How am I supposed to fool someone who values honesty?" My voice comes out as a whisper.
"That's your problem to solve." Lady Helena stands, gathering her papers. "We resume at dawn tomorrow. Don't be late. And don't even think about running away. Guards are watching every exit."
She leaves, locking the door behind her.
I sit alone in the study room as darkness fills the window. My body aches. My hands throb. My head spins with information about a life I never lived and a creature I never believed existed.
Dragons are real.
I'm supposed to marry one.
And if he discovers I'm lying, he'll probably kill me.
I curl up in the chair, hugging my knees to my chest. Two more days of this torture. Then I'll be shipped north to a frozen kingdom full of monsters.
But Thomas will be safe. That's what matters. Thomas will have medicine and food and a warm bed.
That thought is the only thing keeping me from screaming.
Hours pass. The moon rises outside the window. I can't sleep. Every time I close my eyes, I see dragons breathing fire and a silver-haired king discovering my lies.
Finally, I can't stand it anymore. I need to see Thomas. Need to know he's okay. Need to feel like something in my life is still real.
I try the door. Still locked. But the window opens easily we're only on the second floor. I've climbed down from higher places when sneaking extra food from the kitchen storage rooms.
The palace grounds are dark and quiet. I keep to the shadows, moving like a servant who's spent years being invisible. Guards patrol the main paths, but I know all the hidden routes between buildings.
The stables smell like hay and horses and home. I find Thomas asleep in his usual corner, wrapped in his thin blanket. His breathing makes that wheezing sound that scares me every night.
"Tommy," I whisper, shaking his shoulder gently.
He jerks awake, eyes wide with fear. Then he recognizes me and smiles. "Isla? What are you doing here? It's so late."
"I needed to see you." I sit beside him in the hay. "Are you feeling okay? Did you take your medicine today?"
"Yeah, but it's almost gone." He coughs into his hand. "We need to buy more soon."
"Don't worry about that. The Queen is going to" I stop. Can't tell him about the deal. Can't explain what's really happening. "The Queen is going to help us. You're going to get better medicine. The good kind."
Thomas looks confused. "Why would the Queen help us?"
"Because I'm I'm doing something for her. A special job."
"What kind of job?" His thin face fills with worry. "Isla, you're scaring me. What's going on?"
"Nothing bad. I promise." The lies taste like poison. "I just have to go away for a while. But you'll be taken care of. They're going to move you out of the stables. Give you a real bed. Give you medicine that actually works."
"Go away where?" Tears fill his eyes. "How long? Can I come with you?"
"No, you have to stay here. And I don't know how long. But Tommy, I need you to be brave, okay? I need you to take your medicine and get strong and"
"You're leaving me." His voice breaks. "You're leaving me alone."
"I have to. To save you. To keep you alive."
The stable door crashes open. Torchlight floods inside. Three guards storm toward us, hands on their swords.
"Found her!" one shouts.
My heart stops. They followed me. Or maybe they were waiting for me to do something stupid like this.
Thomas grabs my arm. "Isla, what's happening?"
The guards reach us. The biggest one yanks me to my feet. "Lady Helena said you'd try something like this. Can't follow simple orders for even one night?"
"Please," I beg. "I just wanted to see my brother. Please don't"
"Lady Helena also said to remind you what happens when you break the rules." The guard pulls out a sealed letter and shoves it into my hands. "Read it. Out loud."
My fingers shake as I break the wax seal. The note inside is written in the Queen's perfect handwriting.
I read it aloud, my voice cracking with each word:
"Isla Merrick you were told to stay in the study room. You were told not to contact your brother. You disobeyed within hours of accepting your mission. This is your only warning. The next time you break a rule, Thomas will pay the price. Remember what's at stake. Remember who's watching. One mistake, and your brother dies. Queen Morgana"
Thomas stares at me, his face white with terror. "Isla, what does that mean? Why would the Queen hurt me? What mission?"
I can't answer. Can't breathe. Can't think.
The guards drag me backward. Thomas tries to follow, but another guard blocks his path.
"Isla!" he screams. "Don't leave me! Tell me what's happening!"
They pull me out of the stables. Thomas's cries fade behind me, mixing with his terrible coughing. I twist around for one last look and see him collapsed in the hay, sobbing and struggling to breathe.
The last image I have of my brother is him alone and terrified, coughing so hard he can barely stand, calling my name into the darkness.
And I can't help him. Can't explain. Can't even say goodbye properly.
Because tomorrow morning, I'll be on my way north to marry a Dragon King.
And if I fail if I make one more mistake, break one more rule, show one moment of weakness Thomas will die.
The guards march me back to the study room and throw me inside. The door slams shut. The lock clicks.
I slide down the wall and press the Queen's note against my chest.
One mistake.
That's all it takes.
One mistake, and I'll lose the only family I have left.
The wooden rod waits on Lady Helena's desk for tomorrow's lessons.
Two more days of torture and training.
Then a lifetime of lying to a creature who can probably smell fear and deception on my skin.
I close my eyes and see Thomas's terrified face.
I have to survive this. Have to become Princess Celeste perfectly.
Because my brother's life depends on every lie I tell.