The Bald Princess

~4~

Dance with me, oh devil, hold my hand and sway me around. Don't be shy, look into my eyes and love me, like you've never been loved before.

Atarah

I often met myself in the quietude of the forest. They always said me, forests are dangerous. Here you find the creatures hiding in the dark, ready to pounce on you. But they all said the same thing about me. And seems like darkness allured darkness. I felt calm here, no-one to judge, no-one to understand. I meet myself when I feel myself the most lost. They say, you meet the truth in the tranquility and your heart screams the most in silence.

Being born in a kingdom where being a bald woman is a sin, I like being alone. The disgust and fear people have in their eyes when they see me never failed to hurt me. Like someone kept stabbing me in my chest. They say, you get used to the void. That you get used to the pain but every time someone looks at me like I'm a monster, a new part of me dies. My heart dies a little everyday with the pain of not being enough. My soul curls for not being beautiful enough.

I took a deep breath, feeling the cold air blowing around when I heard footsteps behind me. My heart almost jumped out of my chest when I felt a presence behind me. Like a pair of headlights flashed at me, I stumbled back in fear. My eyes widened in fear when a pair of glowing ruby eyes looked at me with curiousity in the darkness. I could see nothing else. No body, no-one but just those glowing red eyes. Like someone whispered something in my ears, I took some clumsy steps away from those eyes before I started running in the forest.

Vampires. He's a vampire, Miss Atarah. Bailey's warning echoed in my mind as I ran as fast as I could. The thorny branches cutting my arms and some thorns pierced my feet but none of those pain made me stop. Only the mighty lord knows what would happen if I stop and those blood sucking creatures would suck me dry. Will anyone cry if I die? Or would they be happy that a cursed woman died? The thought of escaping my own pain and miseries for once made my feet to cease.

As much as painful my thought were, it felt liberating at the same time. The idea of escaping the pain and bullying of people appealed me to stop and face the creature. And as soon as I turned around, my eyes met the dark, esoteric eyes, gazing at me with such impassive orbs that it made my insides to shake and curl. Standing in front of me was Warrior Ansel Duncan. Dressed in his dark cloak, his hands were tightly gripping his sabre as he looked at me with his predatory gaze. Something inside me made my calmness to vanish and something else, something more to evoke.

"Sir Duncan." The words escaped my mouth before I could've stopped myself. His eyes darkened a bit when I said his name and I knew it was one of my last mistakes committed today. Calling out for a royal, especially when I was clearly ordered not to wasn't going to be left unpunished.

"Healer," He said, almost like a forceful greeting. I couldn't help but gaze down at his abdomen, I had stitched, not even a week ago. And he looked fine. No traces of pain on his face. He fought the war, he won the war and the kingdom had been celebrating his victory from past one week. "I hope, you do know, you're in the restricted territory of the kingdom. It's where my warriors and I camp."

He said, his dangerously low voice made me shiver. I was looking anywhere but at him. One, I wasn't allowed to. Two, I couldn't. His eyes were just too bold, too intimidating for me to look into. And three, I was never good with eye contacts. I didn't like seeing my reflection in their eyes. My hideous reflection. But of course, Warrior Duncan had to see it as a sign of disrespect.

"I didn't realise, I went deeper into the woods, Warrior Duncan. And I don't know the boundaries set for our kingdom, I plead for your forgiveness, great warrior." His dark eyes stared at me like a dog stares at the meat. Ready to attack. Danger and malice surrounded him like stars surrounded the moon and yet I wasn't scared of him as much as I should be. My heart seemed to be at peace. I was fearfully calm. Especially when Warrior Duncan took a small, threatening step towards me. My eyes gazing at his sabre, sharp enough to slit me into half.

"You're not aware about the boundary of your own kingdom, healer?" I gulped as I shook my head.

"Isn't that a bit suspicious, healer? Being a citizen of this kingdom, you are not aware that two miles into the forest and you can be prosecuted for trespassing." His voice was turning darker and lower. Almost a whisper. And yet I heard him, crystal clear. I took a step back when he took another step forward, only increasing his anger. His lips curled up in a snarl when I took a few more steps away to keep a safe distance amid us.

"Healer........"

"I'm a bad omen, Warrior Duncan. Please keep a safe distance from me. I don't want my catastrophe to hit you for defying the almighty Lord's order." I saw his brows scrunching together in confusion as he took a deliberate step towards me.

"Bad omen? Who told you that you are a bad omen, healer?" I swallowed nervously at his calm question. Like he didn't knew about my baldness. Or was it another way to humiliate me? Either way, I was used to this humiliation, though the pain accompanying it never reduced.

"Who doesn't, Warrior? My touch, my gaze, my presence is nothing but dark...... destructive. And if you wish for your safety, stay at a safe distance from me. Who knows when my curse can destroy a mighty warrior like you." He was looking at me with a strange emotion in his eyes. Something was different about him at that moment. As if, he was trying to look into my heart, my mind, trying to read my thoughts. Only if, he knew how destructive my thoughts were. How much pain I endured every day and how much pain and suffering, I carry with myself.

"Ironic how, darkness warns the night to be ware of its darkness, healer. You can't destroy me when I am the destructor. Tell me, healer, what were you doing in the woods at such hour? Aren't you afraid of creatures lurking in the dark?" He asked, his sabre mocking me as I looked down. His dark, dangerous eyes seemed too much for me to look into. For some reason, he didn't treat me like others treated me. And for some strange reason, it felt good. Normal. For someone to look at me like a normal human. Like I wasn't a cursed woman, who can bring them harm.

"Darkness doesn't haunt me, Warrior Duncan. The creatures hiding in them doesn't scare me as much as the creatures living with us in the light do." I smiled as I said. The warriors with him were looking at us— me, with disgust and slight fear.

"You didn't answer my first question, healer. What were you doing here? When this is the resticted area." He said, his eyes unwavering and I licked my lips as I looked at the barely visible moon. I wish, I could fly away from here and stay in a world, I would be respected for who I am.

"I didn't knew, this was a resticted area, Warrior."

"And I never saw you here before. Why today?" He asked and I dared to look into his maliciously gorgeous, dark eyes.

"Are you interrogating me, Sir Duncan?" I didn't knew how I got the courage to sass the warrior chief when I knew he could kill me in a split second. I saw a slight twitching in his lips but other than that, he stood painfully rigid and impassive. It was like, he wasn't amused a millisecond ago. Or maybe, I imagined it.

"If I would've been interrogating you, healer, you wouldn't have been showing me the sass, standing in the restricted area without any cuffs and restrains. Hm?" My eyes widened at the threat that rolled out of his mouth so effortlessly, making my insides to twist and curl. I didn't knew how I felt the sudden rush of confidence and it drained out of me as soon as I felt in entering my body. I didn't felt courageous anymore.

"Now, if you would answer me, healer. What were you doing here?" He asked and I sighed. Running from a very possible vampire who was chasing me.

"I couldn't sleep. So came here to clear my mind. And I was too absorbed in my thoughts to realize, I had gone too deep into the woods. I normally never cross the boundary." He looked at me with his raised brows as his dark eyes bored into mine before he took a step forward towards me.

"You're lying." He said in his bone chilling voice. My eyes widened at how easily he knew I was lying. Something flashed in his eyes as he took another step towards me, standing too close to me now. I have never been this close to any person in my whole life.

"I— I—"

"Do not take a step back because you fear you'll bring me harm." He said, his voice low and firm and I suddenly couldn't breathe.

"Why aren't you scared of me? Even the King and Queen are scared of my presence around them. Why aren't you, Warrior Duncan?" I saw his eyes moving up to my scarf, I had wrapped around my scalp to hide my baldness with curiousity and frown. I felt him touching me and he wasn't even touching me. But how?

"You won't harm me, healer. Why do you wear a scarf on your head?" He asked instead and I blinked twice at his question. I took a step back, feeling a stabbing pain in my chest. Was he trying to make fun of me?

"So that I don't scare people more than I already do." I replied softly and he looked at me with his intense and daunting eyes. His gaze made me feel my soul burning under him. Why was his questions sounded so curious than mocking? Like he was genuinely curious and not trying to hurt me.

"This isn't the only reason, no, healer?" I pressed my lips together as I gathered the courage, I had never mustered in my whole life before.

"And to hide my ugliness, Warrior. To hide the truth. Because that's the only way I found out to hate myself a little less." I saw his lips parting in shock. He opened his mouth to answer me but closed it back. He didn't had an answer. Nobody did. I smiled sadly at him. He suddenly didn't feel like a royalty to me. But like a long lost friend. Who had no answer to my question. But why was I even seeking one from him?

"It's getting late, healer. You must leave. And remember, this is the restricted area. Do not cross it when you're alone. I won't be as lenient again. And you never know what's waiting for you here. And trust me, there's nothing good in this area. Hm?" He said and I couldn't help the next question that escaped my mouth.

"If there's nothing good here, why are you residing here, Warrior Duncan?" He looked at me, his eyes suddenly darkened as his lips curled up in a predatory smile.

"I never said it's not good gor me. Maybe I'm the creature you should be hiding from, healer." I was too shocked to reply, so he continued. "I'll drop you out of the restricted area. Be fast on your steps."