I swallowed down my nerves as I reached it. I peered over the edge.
My eyes widened, and I stumbled backwards, tripping over a twig and landing flat on my back. I opened my mouth and began to scream.
The world around me shifted, the dream-like edge to what was happening disappearing and becoming less tangible.
I thrashed against an unknown threat, finding my arms and legs were getting impossibly tangled.
My screams continued to fill the space, and my eyes snapped open to find the dim light of dawn streaming through my windows.
A dream. Just a dream.
My heart pounded, and my breathing came rapidly as I tried to process what I’d just seen. What I’d been seeing every night for a long time, but now I remembered it. I remembered it clearly, looking down into the coffin. My breathing hitched as I remembered her face, serene like she was asleep except she wasn’t.
Mother.
I wrestled the sheets off me and swung my legs around. My robe lay over one of the chairs next to the bed, and I grabbed it, throwing it on.
"If you're leaving the room like that, then it's almost an improvement," the mirror quipped as I passed it.
Instead of retorting, I ignored it and headed out into the corridor.
I banged on the door to my parents' room but didn't wait for either of them to answer. This was too important. Parts of that dream had felt far too real for me to be completely at ease until I'd seen Mother's face and heard her voice.
She had to be alright. Had to be. If she wasn't, then I didn't know what I'd do.
"Kelis?" Father asked, sleep clouding his voice.
"Is Mother alright?" I asked, moving around to her side of the bed.
Her chest rose and fell in the rhythm of sleep. Could this be enough? It would be cruel to wake her up when she was sleeping so peacefully. And yet, the echo of my dream was so strong it almost demanded that I did.
Father sighed and shifted in the bed so he was sat upright.
"Kelis, what's the problem?"
I glanced at the floor. It would sound stupid to say it out loud.
"I had a dream. Mother...she was in a coffin in the middle of the woods."
One look at his face and I knew it was the right thing to tell him. He understood the panic.
"I wouldn't have come here," I continued. "But it felt so real, and I just had to reassure myself that she was alright."
Father smiled and nodded, but it didn't do anything to hide the concern in his eyes. "I used to cast a spell that would wake me up every few hours so I could check she was still alive," he told me. "It took years for me to realize she was safe, and that nothing like that would ever happen again. It was a long time ago that she was cursed. Your dream was probably your subconscious remembering the story of it. Have you been reading our history books again?"
I nodded. “I was reading one last night.” But it hadn’t had the story of my mother’s curse in it. Could that really have been all it was?
I wasn't completely reassured, even if Father understood how I was feeling. But she was sleeping soundly and plainly alive and well. “I'm sorry, Father,” I whispered. “I didn't mean to wake you.”
He chuckled softly. "I'm glad you did." He paused and studied me. "How about a distraction? I have to go to the train station to pick up your cousin and his friends in a couple of hours, Why don't you come with me?"
I perked up. That would mean a chance to see Jake earlier than planned. That was something I was on board with.
"That sounds good, thank you, Father."
"You're welcome. Why don't you go get ready, and I'll meet you by the front doors when it's time to go."
I nodded, relieved to have a plan that would keep my mind busy.
The racket of the train entering the station was almost too much to bear, but I stood next to Father with my best regal smile.
The train screeched to a halt. Nerves began to flutter in my stomach. Jake was onboard, and soon, he'd be a guest in our palace. As excited as I'd been up until now, a sliver of self-consciousness started to take hold.
What if he still saw me like an annoying kid?
I smoothed down my leggings, a habit I'd no doubt picked up from Mother at some point in my life. I looked good, or at least as good as I could. I would make more effort for tonight's banquet.
The door hissed as it opened, and my cousin stepped out, his thick dark hair slicked back with magic. One of the many advantages people had in Enchantia was that they could use magic to make themselves look good. Hair, makeup, keeping clothes hanging right, and most people used it to their advantage.
"Uncle." Adam reached out his hand to shake Father's.
"Did you have a good trip?" Father asked.
"We did, yes." He gestured to the four people who'd gotten off the train with him. "You remember, Jake, Your Majesty?" he asked.
"I do, good to see you again," Father said politely.
My heart skipped a beat. Jake. Tall, handsome, completely put together in a way no girl would be able to ignore, and with a face that looked like it was chiseled by the gods.
He didn’t even notice me as he stepped toward my father. I bated my breath, ready to say hello when he lazily draped his arm around the shoulder of a petite blonde girl.
"It's a pleasure to be here, Sir," Jake said to Father. "This is my girlfriend, Lyss."
The bottom dropped out of my stomach at the dreaded word. Girlfriend. What was I going to do with that?
"These are two of my other friends, Rhi and Topher," Adam
