Chapter 1, Part 1

The story of a princess and a sorcerer.

This was a few months ago. Since then, The Queen ensured that I never leave Charlie's side, save for a few occasions. I was to help her whenever she wanted/needed it, to guide her around, to help Charlie in any way possible. The Queen told me to do this because, and I quote, “You are her best and only friend. She trusts you the most. I think it would help her if it were you by her side.”

And so it was. Charlie would link arms with me, and I would guide her. The Sorcerer and I offered to help in more ways than this, such as giving her a magic amulet. This amulet would allow the wearer to see auras (and all living beings have auras), so it would give her more sight than she now has. She politely refused, insisting that she wanted to embrace this weakness. “It marks me.” She had said. “This,” She would gesture to her silver eyes, “will make me stronger. I just need to work with it.” Charlie and I would then go to the meadowed courtyard at the center of the palace, where The Great Wysteria Tree rested. She would leave my side and guide herself around, clicking her tongue while she leaned forward with her arms outstretched. Charlie would rest her hand on the twisted bark of the ancient, powerful tree. She would sigh, lean on the tree, and allow herself to sit on her shins as she whispered her troubles to it. The Wysteria would then sigh as well in the gentle breeze, and shower Charlie with pink petals. I would put them in her hair.

Gradually, things returned to normal. As normal as they could be, at any rate, though I noticed a dramatic increase in guards since the original incident. The Queen wasn't the only one taking extra precautions, as I began to bring my wysterian wooded staff wherever Charlie and I went... just in case. Charlie tagged along to my Sorcery lessons, and indirectly, she learned regular magic as well. She couldn't cast spells like sorcerers could, though she did inherit some of the magical residue that was left around the area after Khione and I practiced our magic, which I'm sure strengthened her natural healing magic. The magic helped Charlie to grow healthy faster, which I appreciated, so I brought her to our practices as often as I could.

Though, as the months went by, I continued to grow nervous. Every time there was a sound out of place, I would reach for the staff on my back, only to discover that it had been a pan dropping in the kitchens or one of the wooden doors creaking with age. “Calm,” Charlie would say, resting a small hand on my arm. Though it was difficult to do. We all knew that whoever had poisoned Charlie in the first place would try again to finish the job, and this time would perfect their plan so that those of us who cared about Charlie couldn't spoil it. Because of this, the general mood of the palace had darkened, though this only made Charlie, the ray of sunshine, shine brighter.

Sometimes, though, she would ask to be alone. She insisted that she wanted time and privacy to think, and would playfully push me out of the entrance to her room and shut the door. I heard her guide herself to the other side of her room, and listened to the cushions creak as she settled herself into the bay window that overlooked the town, and, in the distance, the ocean. I would hold my staff and position myself in front of the door, nodding to anyone who passed by. Sometimes I heard Charlie sobbing. After around an hour, she would knock on the door, and was ready to continue her day. I never asked what she thought about. I didn't need to; she was smart, and if she thought she should tell me, than she would.

Today was Charlie's Fifteenth Birthday, which meant that she was of age for the Companionship Bond. It was an overcast day, and it threatened to rain. Thunder rumbled in the North, near the mountains, and I was excited and yet nervous at the same time. The Companionship Bond was a special event, in which case Animal and Human would become Companions, bound to each other for the rest of their lives. It was a special ritual, one that started a thousand years ago when the war between the animals and the humans ended. It was rare when two creatures become Companions without The Bond, though it had happened before. However, everyone benefited from The Bond, so we Sorcerers helped it along.

I paced in front of Charlie's door, my hands held behind my back, and Khione sat a few feet away with her tail elegantly wrapped around her. My boots thumped in the hallway and reverberated off of the white marble walls, though I was unaware, absorbed in my own thoughts. Sometimes The Bond didn't work. Sometimes the Animal Companion was quite simply too wild to adapt to life in human society. Anything could happen.

Disturbingly similarly to the rain clouds outside, negative thoughts swirled in my head, fogging my real process. Whoever had originally poisoned Charlie might take today as an advantage, maybe by purposefully Bonding her to an animal, one under his or her control. This would be extremely dangerous. If Charlie Bonded with an animal and was then separated from them, then she would lose something even more important than her sight...

I heard a gentle tapping to my right. “Ready!” Charlie called cheerily through the doorway. My anxious expression quickly melted into a small smile, and I breathed out a curt sigh. Stepping to her room in brisk strides, I gazed towards the door as it opened.

There stood Charlie. Her mid-back length white-blonde tresses were pinned elegantly atop her head, resembling a braided crown. Her silver eyes sparkled. Her moon white skin seemed to glow with an ethereal grace and beauty. Small, blue flowers with red marks decorated her hair, and she was positively beaming, her happiness washed over me like a wave in the ocean, flooding me with euphoria. I was speechless.

“Is everything okay?” She asked when I didn't respond, resting a hand on the door frame and guiding herself out of the room.

“Everything is perfect!” I replied, sweeping her into a hug.“You look beautiful. The flowers are a nice touch; it's been a long time since I've seen you wear them.”

She gave a small curtsy as I released. “Thank you.” Charlie beamed, linked to my arm, then together we walked down the hallway, Khione trotting after us. Charlie chatted to me for a little while as I led her through the palace, and I responded with an occasional (and very articulate) grunt or warning her of steps or uneven cobblestones. She would nod in appreciation, and then prattle on, oblivious to her blindness being an obstacle. She amazed me, every single day.

And then we reached the front door.

Author's Note

I wrote this story when I was eleven years old, corrected it dramatically when I was thirteen, and have occasionally revisited it over the years in the hopes to maybe finish the story and improve upon it. It's a beloved favorite of mine because it was among my first novels. I feel as though it deserves to be revisited and I would appreciate constructive criticisms as well as suggestions about how to continue the plot after reading the final part.