hannibals-right-ball

[hannibals-right-ball]

The Jester

The fragrance of blooming jasmine filled my senses as I drew in a deep breath. It eased my nerves, if only slightly, as I rode swiftly from the castle upon my horse.

“Wed a stranger? Marry a man I do not love?” The further I rode from the place I once called home, the lighter my heart became. "Ugh, this is absolutely absurd!" I muttered under my breath, brows furrowed. It is not my home anymore. It is a prison. Now I do not know where I am. Perhaps I am being dramatic. Running away? What on earth am I thinking. I cannot truly be lost. I have always cherished the wild, the thrill of nature, and the call of a little adventure so this shall not be difficult. I am aware that I will surely get in trouble for my runaway. Still, mayhap I’ve gone too far this time but I am in a deep need of the silence, the wild air, the freedom to clear my mind of all the madness.

The hour is not yet late, but a chill rides in the wind, prickling my skin. The air itself feels... strange. Heavier. My gaze shifts and there, through the trees, I spy ruins.

Like an old castle. Or what remains of one, like a war itself ruined it, leaving only a skeleton behind.

Should I?

Aye. I should.

"Shhh, good lad. Wait here." I leap down from my horse, the leaves crunching beneath my boots as I draw closer. It seems abandoned and truly, who would choose to dwell in such a place? Still... curiosity burns within me.

I step inside.

The air shifts the moment I cross the threshold. It is thicker here, almost unnatural. A strange scent meets my nose. Not rot, but something...older. Forgotten. Dust lingers in the air, stirred by the quiet sound of my steps on the creaking wooden floor. The walls are cracked, heavy with age. Nothing interesting, just ruins and mess.

Then I see them doors. Not grand, nor gilded, merely plain. Lifeless. And yet… not entirely ruined. They are calling for me. They are feeding my curiosity.

This place reeks of death, and still, something compels me forward. As though I am meant to find something.

I reach for the door. My hand brushes the handle, cold and still, and as I open it a warm breeze greets me.

The torches in this large room are lit.

I hesitate. Why are they lit? Someone must dwell here. I will just take a brief look and leave, I told myself.

This single room, quiet… and at its center, a mirror. Tall and regal, its frame adorned with delicate, ancient flowers wrought in gold.

I step forward, breath caught in my throat.

And there, in the glass, I see myself.

My reflection.

And then a glimpse of someone.

Another reflection of someone.

Panic washes over me and I turn around swiftly. No on is behind me.

"Alright, not bad." A teasing voice echoed around me like a smoke. It was a male voice. Rough and raw. Like he hasn't spoken in a while. "You have got guts. And lovely hair aswell."

I stepped back, eyes wide. "Who is here?"

"Oh come one. Rude. You broke into my home and ask me that?"

"Reveal yourself!"

"I am. You are just not looking the right way." The voice spoke, a bit lower and more amused.

I turned to the mirror again.

There he was. Standing behind my reflection with a sly grin. He held my gaze while I was too busy observing his fine form. His coat fluttered though no breeze stirred the chamber. Too handsome. Too dangerous. Dark eyes, gleaming like embers, eccentric garb that marked him noble—but unlike any I had seen. His jaw, sharp as a blade. I feared if I touched it, my fingers would bleed. He was towering over me, keeping his sly grin. "How is this possible?" I furrow my brows with my eyes wide open...but with a glint of curiosity. I turn my head again. He is not behind me. I turn it back. He is behind me.

"Having fun?" He says amused but he does not expect my hand reaching behind me to touch him. "You clever little thing!" He gasps and I turn around. He disappeared. "Come back!" I yell and spin around searching for him. "I want to know who you are!" My voice rang through the chamber, echoing off ancient stone and cracked mirrors.

Nothing.

Silence, thick and suffocating.

“Curious, aren't you?” I spun again as I heard a voice right besides my ear. I felt shivers down my spine and could hear my heart pounding. "Stop messing with me!” I demanded.

“Hmm…such fire. So demanding. Very well.”

And just like tha, he stepped out from the shadows behind a column, as though the darkness had been keeping him hidden. The room dimmed slightly, the flames in the torches flickering, responding to him. Magic. It clung to him like a second skin.

He stood before me now, solid and real, and far too close. And too handsome.

“Is this better?” he asked with a smirk looking down at me.

“Well yes...” I whispered and took a step back. I cleared my throath and found the courage to ask more. "What is your name?"

“Let's go with Sorin. For now.” he replied, brushing invisible dust from his sleeve.

“For now?”

“It would be unpleasant if I revealed my identity so soon. You never know when a name might become inconvenient.”

He was playing. Still teasing. "Now I would love to hear your name, lady the brave."

I squared my shoulders. “Asterin." I answered. "Beautiful name for a beautiful woman." He grinned. "What if I call you Asty, w-" "You are a wizard?" I jumped into his sentence cutting him off.

His grin faltered a little. "And you are lady the brave...and curious." For a brief moment—barely a breath—something in his expression cracked. "And a little demanding." He finished with a smirk playing on his face. The firelight caught the scar on his lip. I remembered something. Magic. Wizard. Scar on a lip. This is no Sorin. "I know who you are!" I said quietly with fear backing away.

“Oh is that so? Not so brave anymore, are you, Asty?" Still smooth and amused.

“You served my father,” I continued. "And tried to poison him and you were banished!" I yell with my brows furrowed. "Jester." My voice barely a whisper and that is the moment when his eyes changed. The aura in the room was darker. The air too thick and suffocating. His expression cracked.

A sound—like wind reversing direction—rushed through the room.

“No,” he said, almost to himself. “No, not yet.”

The mirror shimmered.

“What are you doing!" I scream scared of what he is about to do. Is he going to kill me? Revenge because my father banished him?

“Forgive me,” he said, voice low, strained. “You weren’t meant to find me yet.”

Before I could reply, his fingers twitched, and the mirror blazed with golden light. I felt myself pulled—torn backward without touch, weightless, like falling without falling. But it felt good. It felt so light and tender.

Then—

Darkness. Am I dead?

And then—

My room. I am not dead. The same window, the same bed. A soft breeze rustled the curtains as if nothing had happened. I stand there in shock and confusion. What has just happened?

"My horse!" I shout as I remember leaving Brie in the woods but in the mirror across the chamber, for just a heartbeat, I saw him watching me smiling and waving at me. Arogant. But it was comedic. Jester.

Then he was gone.

And I hear a loud neigh behind me. I turn around and Brie is in my room chewing on a hey that was sticking out her mouth.

"Wow, thanks. Ridiculous." I scoff with a glint of amusement. This crap is... quite funny but how am I supposed to get her out of my chamber? "Your highness!" I hear an annoying voice behind my door. "Oh great heavens." I whisper to myself hiding my face in the palms of my hands. "The king has requested to see you!" I hear, once again, this annoying voice of commander Kyren. "I wish to be alone!" I hope I made myself clear. I have had enough of my fathers demands. "Asterin, the king is questioning your absence and he requested to talk to you as soon as possible." Kyren said behind the door and knocked. I look at Brie and panic. What do I say? Oh, I met the Jester and he put my horse in my room. I look back into the mirror. "You idiot." I whisper and scoff under my breath. I turn back and Brie is gone. She is nowhere to be seen. "Wha-...Thanks." I scoff. But then I cannot help myself and laugh. Is this even real? I step out of my room finding this face that has been bothering me. Commander Kyren. He is a pain in the arse. "Where have you been, Asterin." He furrows his brows.

I crossed my arms too, narrowing my eyes at Kyren. “I went for a ride. Needed air. The palace reeks of suffocation lately, have you noticed?” He frowned. “You were gone for hours. The king is worried.”

“The king is worried,” I repeated dryly. “He’s worried I won’t obediently marry some lord whose name I can’t even remember.”

“That alliance is important, that lord wants a war and-”

“Then you marry him.”

His mouth opened, closed, opened again. “You’re impossible.”

“I try.”

He took a deep breath, clearly restraining himself. “Please. Just come. And clean the hay off your cloak before your father sees it.”

I glanced down. Hay. From Brie. Who somehow vanished from my room. “Right. Of course.” I brushed off the hay and tried to keep myself from laughing.

"Thanks you arse." I mutter to myself quietly as I think about my previous meeting with the Jester.

"What did you say?" Kyren turned to me.

"Nothing."

Was it real? The thought clawed at my mind. I felt the echo of Sorin’s voice, warm and teasing. I could almost hear him laughing again. No. Not almost.

“You're welcome, Asty.”

I froze mid-step. Kyren looked at me. “What is wrong with you?”

“Nothing.” I forced a smile. “I’m just… tired.” He gave me a long, suspicious look. “Be careful, Asterin. You’ve always played too close to the fire.”

I smiled to myself as we walked. If only he knew how close I’d gotten.

And how much I wanted to dive back in.

The tall, cold doors groaned as they opened before me. The throne room was darker than usual, its high stained glass windows casting fractured colors across the stone floor. At the far end, my father sat upon his gilded throne, one hand clenched around the lion-head armrest, the other drumming restlessly on his knee.

“Asterin,” he said, voice calm but taut like a string pulled too tight. “Come forward.”

I walked, each step echoing louder than it should have. Commander Kyren remained behind, and for once, I was grateful not to have his prying eyes.

“You left the castle without permission. You vanished without a word. Again.” He did not shout. He never did. His disappointment was always wrapped in steel, precise and quiet.

“I needed air,” I replied.

“You could have walked in the gardens. You could have ridden within the grounds. You chose the wilds. Do you understand the danger of the forest, especially now?”

Something in his tone prickled the back of my neck.

“What danger?” I asked. His eyes narrowed ever so slightly. “Father, what’s in the forest?”

He rose, descending the steps of the dais. “You are not a child anymore, Asterin. You cannot afford to act like one. We have enemies. Whispers. There are things that stir in the old lands—things I banished long ago.”

My breath caught.

So he knows.

“Like… the Jester?” I said, carefully watching him.

His jaw tightened.

“Do not speak that name in my hall,” he said, voice low.

“I didn’t say his name.”

His gaze sharpened. “He is gone. Gone because I made sure of it. That chapter is closed.”

“Then why are you so afraid?” I challenged.

He strode closer, and for the first time in years, I saw something under his polished exterior: fear.

“You don’t understand what he is. What he was becoming. Magic corrupts even the cleverest minds, and his was always... unstable. He was dangerous. He still is, if he lives.”

“Did he poison you?”

His eyes widened just slightly. “Who told you that?”

“I heard things,” I answered. “Servants talk. Old stories. I was a child, not deaf.”

"Asterin, I am not talking about pointless things right now. The ball is in three days and your soon to be husband will come too." He stated and I clenched my teeth. "So you better prepare and behave yourself." I looked away not wanting to hear more. "Do you understand?!" He yelled at me. I took a look at him. He was very red. Angry. "I do understand. I speak this language and I am also not deaf, father." I smiled.

"Go to your chambers. Kyren, make sure she doesn't run off again." Father said and waved his hand signaling for us to get out.

That night sleep came easy. I kept glancing at the mirror here and there. No flickers. No Sorin. His voice kept haunting me. His grin. The mirrors pull. I felt him everywhere. But after some moments, sleep took over me. And I was glad it did.

"Asty." I hear a whisper. That whisper.

"Are you ready?" I hear his voice and a soft touch around my hips. I gasp and turn around. "Ready for what?" I ask him glancing in his dark eyes. He looks at me like I am a treasure. "The truth." He touches my cheek.

I open my eyes. A dream. But it felt so real. Was this a message? 'You weren't meant to find me yet.' I repeat his words in my head. The truth. What truth? I am too tired for this right now. I lay again and close my eyes.