Reading my favorite book is always one thing that calms me whenever I feel overwhelmed with the happenings in my life, but re-reading it countless times now, it got me asking myself.
"What if the Princess didn't have to undergone all that? What if she stayed and choose to face the problem heads on? Will it change the story ending?"
Those questions are the most important points I wanted to know, but as I realized that it was just a novel, I was immediately pulled back to reality.
Now feeling the hunger I wasn't feeling earlier, I closed the book and put it back to the shelf before I made my way to the kitchen to eat, but before I even reach downstairs, my head started pounding badly and before I knew it, I already fell from the staircase, making me lose my consciousness.
After sometime, I finally regained my consciousness but, instead of waking up on the floor where I supposedly fell, I woke up in a strange yet familiar room.
Confused, I immediately sat up but it was then I felt the throbbing pain radiating all-over my body causing me to let out a screamish groan, as my body fell back down to the bed.
In only a split second after that, the door bursts open and came a familiar man, anxiously standing by the door frame.
"I-I heard you groan, are you feeling unwell?" It asked, without even trying to look me in the eye.
Still lying on my back, I looked back at him and said a familiar response. "W-who are you?"
Obviously taken a back with my question, he waltzed towards me and asked.
"What are you saying? I am your big brother!"
Scratching my forehead, I replied.
"But I don't know you, I don't even know who I am."
Now looking at me with a hint of both anger and disdain, he said.
"Are you seriously joking about this matter now, Zia?! Don't you even know how tarnished we are now because of you!"
Still confused to what is he saying I tried to speak out once more, but as I opened my mouth, my voice wasn't coming out.
Probably thinking I'm just acting out, the man who claimed to be my big brother then held my wrist up, yanking me to sit up.
Hurting and trying to fight back, I kept pulling my arms away from him, but with his force, my fragile and in pain body just can't withstand so once again I collapsed.
Perhaps driven by my subconscious, I then dreamt of the time I first finished the book "The Amnesiac Princess" and it was then I realized that the familiar man I encountered earlier was the First Prince Zione, the capricious adopted older brother of Zia, who allegedly is played by me.
"But isn't that just a novel? How come I am here? Did I just died from my world and is reborn here?" I asked myself.
Then a voice replied. "Stop asking and just get back to your senses."
As if cued, my sleep was disturbed and the moment I opened my eyes, I saw another scene from the story, a scene where the Royal Family just got to know that "Zia" is suffering with Amnesia.
"Mother! Father! She's awake!" Zione, said.
The King and the Queen then abruptly sat before me and asked what really happened to me and why did I end up like this.
Just like how the original story proceeds, I answered them, but the plot twist is that, no matter how I try to speak, there's just no voice coming out from my mouth.
Still puzzled with my lost voice, Zione asked the doctor. "Why can't she speak now? I swear that I am still hearing her voice before I got mad at her!"
The doctor then explained that the only explanation for that is trauma, saying that hurting me caused me distress and triggered my body to remember what I had suffered before I was found.
Nodding, Zione looked back at me then back to the doctor and as the doctor bid his farewell, The King and Queen instructed him to look after me for a while.
Having no choice, he just stood there with his ever menacing aura, and as I try to look away, he speaks.
"I don't know who did this to you, nor why he did it, but I swear! No one will dare to ruin this kingdom of ours if I am already crowned."
Not sure if he's boasting or whatever, but as Zia still doesn't know what happened to her at this moment, I do understand why I can't remember it as well.
Now lying on my right side, which is opposite to Zione's position, I once again closed my eyes, hopeful to get back to sleep, but as I started to doze off I heard him muttering.
"I hope my instincts aren't right, Zia. Cause no one would dare to mess with what's mine."
Getting chills with what he just said, I firmly closed my eyes and slowly digested his words, trying to remember if there's a plot like that in the story.
But all I can I remember is how cruel is he to Zia, always trying to invalidate her feelings and tormenting it until she's driven into the edge.
After sometime, Zione finally gets out of my room and the moment he was gone, I tried to remember what I can from the story, and the only information I could gather was.
He is the Dauntless and Capricious First Prince. Adopted by the king and queen at the age of 6 years old and is turning to 25 years old in the first part of the story, where he is ought to be crowned as the successor of the throne.
As for his treatment towards Zia, he sees her as a rival to the throne for she is the real royal one, so once he knew about her condition, Zione will do everything to prevent her from stepping up.
"If I am remembering the right plot, then why did he say something like that? Did I somehow altered a scene that made a difference?" I muttered on the back of my head.
But as I continued to think, my head suddenly started hurting again, making me roll over the bed in pain and eventually resulted me to fall from it.
With me whimpering in pain from all over, my door opened, revealing Zione in his night clothes.
"What the hell is your problem now?! Don't you know it's already past midnight?" He scolded me, as soon as he saw me.
But I couldn't care less about that, since I am aching everywhere and I can't even say a word.
Frustrated, he lifted me up from the floor and put me back down to my bed, but the pain didn't stopped, making me cry like a baby.
Obviously annoyed, he stormed out of my room and left without a word so I thought I am already done for, but came back with a tray in his hands, containing a glass of water and a pile of medicines.
"Sit up and drink this medications! I need sleep for Pete's sake." He said before shoving the pills in my mouth and pinching my nose as he made me drink the water.
Taken aback by the scenario, I laid back once again and even if I'm still in pain, the surprise of his sudden change got me speechless.
"What? cat got your tongue? Or was it that those medicines too effective that you forgot you were crying?" He asked in a sarcastic manner.
Now accepting the fact that I can't talk, I just nod and let him interpret it for himself since it's not like he will listen to me anyway.
After letting me be for sometime, he left the tray to the bedside table and went out of my room, leaving me questioning myself even more.
As the medicines slowly kicked in, I just found myself getting drowsy and the moment I fell into sleep, a nightmare begin.
"N-no, no! please don't do this to me!" I plead, crying desperately.
The men then started laughing at my pleas, and as if it riled them up even more, the men interchangedly used and defiled every inch of me and the only thing I could to was to cry and give myself up to them.
And as the men continued to satiate their lustrous desires on me, I saw a familiar silhouette of a man sitting in opposite direction, obviously satiating himself with the fact that I am being used in front of him.
Not sure if he's the mind behind of all this, but one thing is for sure, that guy is related to Zia, and the fact that I am remembering a key plot for this story as early as now could lead to something.
But as the dream came to end, I find myself being touched and the moment I opened my eyes, the view of Zione give me immediate chills.