Chapter 1: Shadows Beneath the Sun

The sun blazed high, merciless in its grip on the castle grounds. The stone walls absorbed its intensity, radiating warmth into the air, thick and dry. Sweat clung to the skin of those who passed, their movements sluggish under the relentless heat.

But I thrived in it.

I sat atop the wooden beams near the training yard, golden eyes gleaming in the sunlight, my fiery-red hair catching the light like flickering flames. While others looked for shade, I loved the warmth, let it soak into my skin, let it fuel me.

I lay on the wooden beam lazily. Then suddenly I heard my name screamed across the field.

“Ember!”

I turned to see Kasey rushing toward her, dark curls bouncing, frustration evident in her expression.

“Are you mad? This heat is unbearable!”

Kasey stopped short, hands on her hips, chest rising with sharp breaths.

"You could have met me at the well—why are you up there like some cursed hawk?"

I smirked, unfazed. " One, I did not tell you to come here, now did I?" "Secondly, it’s not that bad."

Kasey scoffed, rolling her eyes. “Not so bad? We’re practically melting!”

I stretched lazily, letting the sun settle against my skin. “That’s why I like it.”

Kasey shook her head. “…Sometimes I wonder if you’re even human.”

I laughed but said nothing.

I climbed down from my wooden beam, landing lightly beside Kasey, brushing ash from her fingertips. As they made their way toward the castle gates, I glanced toward the distant horizon, feeling the warmth pulsing in my veins, steady, unrelenting.

“…You keep looking over there. What’s going on?”

I hesitated.

I wanted to tell her.

Wanted to say that something felt different, like something or someone is waiting for me, but instead, I shrugged.

“Nothing. Come on, let’s go before my mom loses it.”

"I swear, I was meant for another family."

I kicked a loose rock, walking beside Kasey.

Kasey laughed, nudging me. "If you had a choice, you’d be my sister instead."

I smiled, but my chest felt heavy.

Kasey grabbed a strand of my hair, studying it in the sunlight.

“Your hair is weird, you know?”

I pulled away, rolling my eyes. "Thanks for that."

Kasey shrugged. "No, I mean it. It’s… different. Like something out of a storybook. No one else looks like you."

My smile faded.

I knew that.

It wasn’t just my hair.

My golden eyes, my skin, the faint marks on my arms that looked like feathers when the firelight hit them—

I had spent years staring at the silver mirror in my chamber, realizing I didn’t look like anyone else.

I sighed, lost in thought. Kasey hit my arm, tag you're it, she screamed, and ran ahead. I looked at her run, feeling relieved from the distraction. I'm faster than Kasey, so I let her run ahead before I decided to catch up. Kasey fell to the ground in front of her home. She was breathing heavily, lying on her back. I walked over to her, not breaking a sweat, and hovered above her. She looked at me and stuck her tongue out. I beat you fair and square, she puffed out in between breaths. Ember chuckled at her demeanor and helped her to her feet. Yes, Kasey, you beat me. I smiled at her, walking towards my home. I lived next door to Kasey. I opened the door and leaned out, but do me a favor when you get in I yelled out. Kasey eyed me suspiciously. "What is that?" she questioned, raising a brow. "Take a bath, you're sweaty and gross". I laughed at her. She stuck her tongue out at me again, and I disappeared behind the closed door.

The moment I stepped inside, the air around me felt tense, colder, and heavier despite the heat outside.

Then, a hand grabbed me, pulling me by my long red hair.

“What took you so long?”

My mother’s voice was sharp, unforgiving.

Before I could speak, I was shoved forward, landing hard against the wooden floor.

My pulse pounded, the stone walls looming over me.

I knew what was coming.

"I was with Kasey," I said, carefully trying not to anger her further.

Wrong answer.

My mother’s eyes darkened, fury twisting in the air.

“Did I not tell you to stay away from that filthy tramp?”

I swallowed. “She’s my friend—”

Slap.

The sound echoed, sharp and cold.

I screamed from the pain. My cheek burned, and I held my face, trying to stay calm.

My mother glared down at me, unimpressed with my false calm demeanor.

“To your room. I don't want to see you until morning, and don't you dare ask for food.”

I bit the inside of my cheek, holding back the words I wanted to say.

I got up and made my way to my room. Once out of my mother's sight, I exhaled deeply.

" What a bitch." I mumbled to myself.

I opened the servant room door and took in the dingy surroundings. I didn't dare go to the room my father assigned me because my mother would beat me senseless; she forced me to sleep in the abandoned servants' chambers. I slowly walk over to my bed, shaking my head. This bed was made for small children, but my mother forces me to use it when my father isn't around. If only he knew how she treats me when he isn't around.

I sat in silence, lost in thought, the candlelight flickering, casting long shadows against my chamber walls.

The spider webs cast shadows against the walls. I hated spiders

I reached for my parchment, trying to focus, to forget the cruelty.

But then a pull.

A whisper.

I looked up toward the silver old mirror against the far wall. It started shaking wildly.

I walked over to it, curious more than afraid, and then I saw her.

A girl in the mirror. She's beautiful, she has hair like frost that shimmers like glitter, and her eyes are like ice.

The girl looks at me and walks up to the mirror, and so do I.

My body froze, my heart hammering.

"Who is she?" I thought to myself.

I put my hand on the mirror. "This must be a dream," I mumbled. The girl put her hand on the mirror, on the opposite side of my hand.

I felt heat starting to build inside me. The mirror began to feel hot against my palm. I pulled my hand away.

Then I heard a crackling sound, like glass splintering, yet the mirror was whole. Frost covered the mirror, but it wasn't where I could touch it

The air changed, I feel cold and heavy, like something pressing down like a weight on my chest.

I start breathing heavily. A small, gentle voice in my head speaks quietly.

"You are not ready." The mysterious voice says to me.

I gasped, gripping the edge of my bed as the words wrapped around me like a tight grip.

Not ready? For what?

My hands shook.

I had never been ready for anything. All my life, I tried to act invisible. Stay out of sight, afraid that someone would kill me because I'm different.

I look back at the mirror, wishing that I would wake up.

The girl smiled at me, the frost in her hair glowing brighter, colder, the air plunging into a deep chill.

She looks just like me, but different. "Who are you?" I shout at her. My head starts hurting, and I slowly walk over to the small bed and

darkness crashes into me, swallowing me whole.

When I woke up, the room was still, wrapped in a thick silence that felt almost suffocating.

The cold still lingered, sinking deep into my bones, a chilling reminder of what happened.

I snapped my gaze to the mirror across the room, my heart pounding in my chest as if trying to break free from the confusion that wrapped around me like a fog.

My reflection appeared normal at first glance, just the familiar image of a girl with dingy clothing, tousled hair, and pale skin. But something felt distinctly amiss.

As I looked at my face, my golden eyes flickered unexpectedly, shifting for just a breath into something else entirely.

For a fleeting moment, they sparkled with a flash of ice-blue, a stark contrast to the warm hue that usually defined me. It was gone before I could even blink, leaving me questioning my own sanity.

Was it just a trick of the light?

Or something more, a warning perhaps, whispering a truth I wasn't ready to confront?

Whatever had just happened, I felt a power settle in my chest, suggesting that this wasn’t merely an anomaly to be ignored.

This feeling of unease lingered in the air, thick and ominous, like a storm just waiting to break.

The sensation was tangible, a pulse of power that vibrated beneath my skin, urging me to take action. I couldn’t shake the unsettling thought that whatever had occurred was just the beginning.

With a deep breath, I stood up and walked over to the mirror once more walking slowly as if something would jump out of the mirror. I stepped closer to the mirror, peering into my own eyes, searching for answers within. The familiar reflection stared back, yet now it felt different. I felt energized, like something had awakened inside me.