Isla retreated to the cold, isolating sanctuary of her grand bedchamber, her heart utterly shattered and her bright eyes swimming with heavy, unshed tears as she desperately tried to comprehend exactly how and why this absolute nightmare had suddenly become her reality.
'I tried so incredibly hard, fighting with every single ounce of my strength to ensure that Lucier would never, ever find his way back into my new life,' she thought, her trembling hands balling into tight fists as a choked, bitter sob escaped her throat.
'I was brought back into this world with one sole, bloody purpose: to ruthlessly punish those four wicked bastards and subject them to the exact same agonizing torture they inflicted upon me!
I was supposed to entirely destroy them, but how on earth did it all come to this? I was meant to torture them, not be forced into a cursed, inescapable marriage with one of them!'
She paced the length of her room, her mind racing furiously as she began piecing together the tragic, suffocating parallels between her current fate and the doomed history she already knew.
'I absolutely refuse to repeat the exact same tragic, fatal mistake that the doomed Queen of the original novel made,' she vowed fiercely in her mind, wiping the wet tears from her pale cheeks.
'But oh gods, I am finally starting to realize the horrifying truth of it all! That original Queen didn't marry this despicable bastard out of blind love or sheer stupidity; she must have been ruthlessly backed into a corner and forcefully coerced into this exact same political trap by her own parents, just like I am being forced right now!'
A sudden, sickening realization struck her like a violent, physical blow, causing her to stop dead in her tracks.
'Wait just one second... does this actually mean that I am currently acting exactly like the same helpless, pathetic fool that the original Queen was?' she gasped internally, a wave of profound dread washing over her.
'Oh no... this absolutely cannot be happening to me!
However, as the initial shock began to wear off, her overwhelming sorrow rapidly hardened into a sharp, calculating fury.
'But the most pressing, deeply suspicious question remains: why on earth would my parents suddenly make such a massive, life-altering decision completely out of nowhere, without even giving me a single hint?' she pondered, her brilliant mind connecting the dark, invisible dots.
'Could it be entirely possible that that utterly vile, scheming bastard Lucier is actually the dark mastermind pulling the political strings behind this sudden betrothal? Because if he is truly the one responsible for manipulating my parents and orchestrating this entire nightmare, I swear to the heavens I will absolutely not spare him; I will make him suffer immensely!'
She was trembling with an unimaginable, terrifying amount of pure, unadulterated rage, and as she glared fiercely into the shadows of her empty room, her tear-filled, brilliant sapphire eyes violently shifted, bleeding effortlessly into a glowing, monstrous, and deeply predatory crimson red.
'Isla?' a gentle, familiar voice called out softly from the shadows.
She violently spun around, her heart hammering wildly against her ribs, but by the exact fraction of a second she turned to face the unexpected intruder, her terrifying, glowing red eyes had completely melted back into a normal, brilliant sapphire blue.
Seeing him standing quietly near the window, she instantly sprinted across the room, throwing her small arms tightly around his neck and sobbing heavily, burying her tear-streaked face directly against his chest.
'Isla, are you okay?' Dorian asked gently, hesitantly patting her shaking back.
'No, I am absolutely not okay, Dorian!' she choked out, her voice trembling with sheer, overwhelming frustration.
'But what exactly happened?' he asked, his tone laced with deep, genuine concern.
Isla pulled back slightly, sniffing loudly before suddenly freezing as a stark realization violently crashed down upon her. 'Wait just one second... what on earth are you doing here in my room? How did you even manage to sneak inside the heavily guarded palace, and why are you here? Did any of the royal guards see you coming in?!'
'Isla, please calm down,' Dorian whispered, offering her a warm, incredibly reassuring smile.
'You called me your friend, didn't you? So I am simply fulfilling my duty as a loyal friend.
Today is your grand seventh birthday; how could I possibly not come to see you?'
He slowly reached into his worn pocket. 'I actually brought something specifically for you.'
'For me? What is it?' she asked, hastily wiping the wet tears from her pale cheeks.
He carefully opened his palm to reveal a simple, beautifully crafted hair clip.
'It is certainly not incredibly expensive or grand like the things you are used to, but I thought it would look absolutely beautiful on you... how do you like it?'
Isla simply stared down at the small, delicate clip in absolute, stunned silence, her heart swelling with an unfamiliar warmth.
Misinterpreting her profound quietness, Dorian nervously rubbed the back of his neck, his smile dropping.
'Oh, I am so sorry, you probably don't like it at all.
I honestly don't know why I didn't realize that you must have received countless incredibly expensive, magnificent gifts from elite nobles today that are far more beautiful than this cheap little thing...'
Before he could finish his nervous, self-deprecating rambling, Isla leaned forward and quickly planted a soft, deeply grateful kiss directly onto his cheek.
Dorian instantly froze like a solid stone statue.
His eyes widened in sheer, unadulterated shock, and his cheeks rapidly flushed as bright red as a ripe tomato, burning with immense, overwhelming shyness.
'Isla... this...' he stammered awkwardly, entirely at a loss for words.
'No, Dorian, please don't say anything,' she smiled softly, her heart feeling genuinely light for the first time that entire exhausting day.
'This simple hair clip is the absolute best gift I have received so far today. Thank you.'
'By the way, Isla, why exactly were you crying so bitterly earlier?' Dorian asked, slowly recovering from his shock as his flushed face returned to a look of deep, serious concern.
'Actually, Dorian... the truth is... my parents have officially arranged my marriage to Lucier,' she confessed, a fresh, sickening wave of dread washing over her.
'Isla, do you mean the Prince of the Tiger Kingdom? Prince Lucier? Wow...' Dorian breathed out in astonishment, his eyes wide.
'What do you mean, "wow"?!' Isla snapped indignantly, her fiery temper instantly returning.
'I absolutely do not want to marry him under any circumstances!'
'But why not?' he asked, genuinely confused by her intense hatred.
*'Because he is one of the four wicked bastards I am destined to ruthlessly destroy, but I obviously cannot tell you that!'* she thought furiously in her mind.
'I am sorry, Dorian... it is just that I simply do not like him at all, that is why,' she lied smoothly, masking her dark, vengeful purpose.
'Oh, well, then this is an incredibly massive problem. Have you told your parents about how strongly you feel?'
'I practically screamed it at them, but they absolutely refuse to listen to me! And to make matters entirely worse, they already announced it in front of the entire party!' Isla groaned, dragging her hands down her face.
'So you tell me, what on earth am I supposed to do now?'
'There is actually one incredibly simple way out of this: right now, you should do absolutely nothing,' Dorian suggested calmly.
'What?!' Isla shrieked in a harsh whisper.
'If I just sit around and do absolutely nothing, I will definitely end up married to that absolute idiot!'
'No, listen to what I mean,' he clarified gently, placing a steadying hand on her shoulder.
'I mean you shouldn't do anything drastic right now; just live your life and grow up peacefully.
When the actual time for the wedding finally approaches years from now, you can do something massive and calculated to sabotage it so they have no choice but to cancel it.
Panicking and fighting your powerful parents right now is completely useless and will only get you into deeper trouble.'
Isla fell completely silent, carefully contemplating his words.
Slowly, she realized that his incredibly practical advice made perfect, flawless strategic sense.
She needed to bide her time and gather her strength before she struck.
'You know, Dorian, you arrived at the absolute perfect time tonight,' she murmured softly, looking affectionately at the clip in her hand.
'I was feeling incredibly lonely, completely helpless, and entirely overwhelmed... it feels really, really nice that you came.'
'Alright then, Isla, I want to make a firm promise to you right here and now,' Dorian said, his gaze locking warmly and seriously with hers.
'Whenever you desperately need me, or whenever you are feeling this incredibly upset and troubled, I will absolutely always come to find you, okay? Consider that unbreakable vow as my second birthday gift to you.'
'Do you truly mean it?' she asked, a teasing, brilliant smile finally breaking through her sorrow.
'You won't just tuck your tail between your legs and cowardly run away when things get terrifying or difficult?'
'I will never run away,' Dorian chuckled softly, his eyes filled with absolute, unwavering loyalty.
'And if the day ever comes when I actually have to run, I promise I will take you with me, and we will run away together.'