I feel a feather like touch on the back of my shoulder and turn around suddenly, it's too dark to see clearly but I recognize the walls, the high ceiling above, I'm in the grand hall, it must be another event.

Another touch at my elbow has me turning but no one is there. Am I meant to be dancing with someone? I can't hear any music.

"What a pretty pet you are." I hear Aeris' voice, only it isn't the voice he uses with me, it's not his real voice. "You're learning your steps so well."

I turn again looking for him as I move but don't see him. My dress grows heavier with each turn, like I am drowning in layers of gold satin and silk.

"Of course she is, all that reading had to do some good." Alvaryn says, his voice is different as well, cold and removed. "And practice makes perfect."

"Wouldn't it be wonderful to have a perfect pet?" Aeris says, I can hear the smile in his voice and I turn again, spinning and stepping through the darkness as I struggle to stay on my feet. My breath comes out in short gasps and my heart hammers in my chest.

"We could keep her right here." Alvaryn says as I feel a shove at my back. I stumble forward and hear the clink of a lock falling into place.

I turn around to find gold bars in front of me, I turn again and see them surrounding me, like a cage.

"There she is, our pretty little pet." I see Aeris walking towards the cage, then Alvaryn step up beside him.

"Well done brother, now we will have her exactly where we want her." Alvaryn smiles.

I grip the cage bars, shaking them with all my strength but they don't move. Aeris and Alvaryn only laugh and I feel like I can't breathe.

"Why are you doing this?!" I scream at them.

They step closer, their smiles gone, their faces stone like and impossibly beautiful.

"Because you are a human, you are here to serve us, and this is what we desire." Alvaryn answers, his dark silver eyes boring into mine.

"We want a perfect pet and every pet needs a cage, this will be yours." Aeris says running a finger along the smooth gold bar.

"You can't keep me here! You said you loved me!" Tears track down my cheeks as I grip the bars to keep myself standing.

They look down at me with pity and disdain.

"Oh Dearest, it was too easy to make you fall for us, too easy to have you abandon your family and your home, it was becoming boring. So we decided it would be much more fun to keep you here." Aeris replies, his black eyes soulless and void of anything but condescension.

"Alvaryn please, please don't do this, don't keep me locked in this cage!" I beg, willing him to hear me, the real him, he has to be in there somewhere, it can't all have been a trick.

"Dae we chose you out of all the other human women that were offered to us. You should be thanking us for this great privilege, to have the honour of serving us." Alvaryn replies, stepping closer to the cage, his tall imposing frame covering me in dark shadow.

"This isn't what I want! I don't want to be caged like a slave!" I scream, the bars becoming cold under my touch.

They both laugh at me, their voices wrapping around me and sinking into my skin.

"But you have always been caged Daella, and you always will be." Their voices echo as they fade into the darkness.

The cage tightens around me, the gold bars are freezing to the touch and I shrink back, pulling away from them. I can't breathe as the darkness spreads further, becoming darker and thicker until I am choking on it.

I sit up suddenly, gasping for air as light fills my vision and my room comes into view.

I feel my bed underneath me and feel the sweat soaking my nightgown as my hands roam my body desperate to rip the gold dress off from my nightmare.

I look around finding the candles I had left burning.

My heart races in my chest as I try and focus on breathing normally.

I get out of bed, wincing at the ice cold floor against my bare feet.

I walk closer to the fire, adding another log to the low flames. I wait for the dry bark to catch and hold my hands over the flickering light.

I glance back at the bed and know I won't be getting back into it any time soon.

I walk to the window and see the grey in the distance, it's almost sunrise.

Without thinking about it for too long I pull on a pair of shoes and wrap a long cloak around me. I can't stay in this room with the remnants of that nightmare still lingering.

Guards snap to attention as I open the door but don't stop me as I make my way down the corridor. Servants move quietly as I pass them, making my way outside.

I'm not sure where I'm going at first or if I should have put on more layers before leaving my room but before I know it I am in front of the kennels and the familiar sound of soft whines draw me in closer.

I hadn't visited the puppies in some time and surely the kennels would be warmer than being outside.

I find their stall and stop and blink at the familiar shape on the floor.

"Aeris?" I smile as I see him sitting with a puppy in his arms and two more playing on his lap.

He looks up and smiles. "Dearest, what are you doing here so early?"

I walk in, closing the gate behind me and wrap my cloak a little tighter.

"I, uh, had trouble sleeping, and I didn't want to stay in my room anymore." I shrug, bending over to pet one of the puppies who has come to inspect me.

"Come, sit, you must be freezing, you're not wearing nearly enough." He laughs as I sit beside him and one of the puppies immediately starts crawling onto my lap.

"I didn't really plan my morning adventure very well. You're not dressed for being outside this early either." I reply, scooping up the puppy and running my hand over the smooth warm fur.

"I don't feel the cold." He shrugs. "Having fire magic has it benefits." He smiles.

"Why are you here so early?"

"I'm always here this early, soon this place will get busy with trainers and hands cleaning the stalls and feeding the dogs." He answers simply. "You however are still dressed for sleep." He says nudging my shoulder with his as he takes in the slip of nightgown showing through the gap of my cloak along my legs. "Why were you having trouble sleeping?" He asks more seriously.

I don't answer, I don't know what to say, or more so, I don't want to talk about it, I don't want to think about it, I don't want anything to do with those nightmares and how very real they feel and look.

"Was it a nightmare?" He asks setting his puppy on his lap and reaching out his hand, his palm cups my cheek, smooth and warm he turns me to face him and those beautiful dark eyes that were so soulless in my nightmare study me.

I nod, afraid if I try to speak I will start crying.

"Oh Dearest," He pulls me closer, wrapping an arm around me as I bury my face into his neck, feeling the heat radiating from him. His scent fills me as his hand runs up and down my back in smooth calming strokes. "I'm sorry it is still happening, I thought once the magic took hold they would be gone for good."

"I just didn't want to stay in my room alone."

"It's okay, you are always welcome here, or wherever I am, I would prefer it if you were inside and warm," He laughs and I can't help but smile. "These nightmares won't last forever." He says pulling me back to look at him.

"How can you be sure?"

"We can teach you how to build a magical shield, it will protect your mind." He shrugs like it is as simple as that.

"But wouldn't that only work if I had my own magic?"

"Theoretically, yes, but Quirin said you could develop magic, and you do feel different, there is a space inside you that wasn't there before. In those with magic it is where their magic resides." He explains.

"I just want them to stop." I say wiping the tears from my eyes.

"I know, so do I, it's difficult to think about what you were put through and that it still affects you while knowing that the one who did this to you is still out there." He stops himself, looking away as his jaw tenses. "I promised to keep you safe and I didn't do that, you have no idea how sorry I am for not keeping my promise to you."

"You can't blame yourself, I wasn't the only one attacked." I reply quickly.

"No but I am the reason you were attacked, or Alvaryn, or both of us. Either way, you should never have been in that position. I don't expect you to forgive me for failing you."

"There is nothing to forgive Aeris." I say quickly placing my hand over his.

"The selection was meant to be the day when I chose you and we were betrothed." He says, expression earnest. "I don't want to wait for the next selection, I don't care what my father has decided, I already know who I want to spend the rest of my life with."

My heart stutters as memories of last night in the observatory come to mind. Aeris takes my face in his hands, his thumb smoothing over my cheekbone.

"Daella, you are all I want in this life, I want only you and nothing will ever change that. Everything I have is yours, everything I am is yours, all I ask in return is for you to agree to be my wife." His words fill my ears and I can't stop the tears from welling in my eyes.

I nod quickly, smiling into his hands.

"Really?" He asks, grinning in disbelief.

"Yes, of course I will." I smile as his lips crush into mine. I can feel the puppy squirm free of my lap as I turn towards him, my lips move with his, my hands find his shoulders as I move closer towards him. I feel his hands move around me and then he is lifting me and setting me on his lap.

"You shouldn't be sitting on the freezing cold ground." He says pulling back for a breathless moment before his lips find mine again.

My body feels like it is on fire as I feel his body underneath mine. Again I want more, there is too much space between us, I want to feel his skin against mine, I want to know what it feels like to have his hands touch me in places I have never been touched. But then there is a part of me that pulls back, a part that says I'm not ready.

His kisses slow, his lips leaving a trail along my jawline and over my cheek.

"I can't..." I begin but he stops me with a kiss.

"I know, and I would never ask you to, especially not here, like this. All I wanted was for you to agree to be my wife, everything else will happen in time when you are ready." He smiles.

"Last night, Alvaryn, he asked me the same question." I tell him softly.

"Great minds think alike." He grins happily.

"You're not mad he asked me first?"

He laughs, shaking his head. "Maybe once I might have been jealous he beat me to it, and if I hadn't been cooling off after our discussion with father I might have. But no, I'm not mad, I know he loves and wants you just as much as I do, and for him to ask you instead of waiting only proves it."

"What conversation with your father?" I ask.

"Alvaryn and I spoke to our father but it's nothing for you to worry about." He smiles, tapping the tip of my nose.

I felt there was more to this conversation he wasn't telling me and while I wanted to know what they spoke about, right now I wanted to be happy in this moment.

"Alvaryn said you both plan to have a ring made for me." I say, playing with a strand of his hair.

He smiles, eyes twinkling. "Did he now? Giving away our secrets. Well, in truth, my brothers and I were going to choose one of our mother's rings each to give to whoever we chose at the selection. But, seeing as how Alvaryn and I have both chosen you, we decided that it would be more fitting to have one made. Our relationship is unique and we want your engagement ring to be the same."

"Well I will tell you the same thing I told your brother, you could tie a string around my finger and I would be ecstatic. I don't need a specially made ring, or any ring, my mother never had a ring." I shrug, a strand of his long his hair twisting through my fingers.

"That may be the case, but as our future princess and my future wife, you need to be prepared to be spoiled with lavish gifts relentlessly." I laugh as he presses kiss after kiss on my cheek.

"Not too many I hope."

"Oh you have no idea, each and every day you will have a new gift, I will scour the streets, search the markets, track down the travelling merchants. For every time you make me smile, for every moment you make me happy, for every time I make you laugh."

"You can't possibly do that, if I did that for you the gifts would be endless." I laugh at the idea.

"Precisely!" He nods with a straight face before it breaks and he laughs.

"How about birthday's and anniversaries?" I reply, his arms wrapped around my waist as I smooth his hair away from his face.

"Not nearly enough!" He shakes his head.

"I suppose we could make up our own anniversaries." I suggest.

"Well this day would be one, the night I first met you would be another."

"Are you sure you remember that night?" I tease and he pulls back.

"Of course I do, you were hiding away from all the other fae, scared of being asked to dance. I threatened I could force you to dance, just to see your reaction." He replies.

"For the record, I wasn't scared." I correct him and he only smiles back at me. "But you didn't force me to dance." I remind him.

"No, maybe I should have, maybe I would have seen who you really were sooner."

"I was too angry to let anyone see me." I shake my head, remembering those early days.

"But your anger is what made me keep coming back to you, I mean yes, you were beautiful, and those eyes were memorable, but it was your spark, that flame inside of you that kept drawing me in. You reminded me of myself, you spoke to me like no one else did, you saw me for exactly who I was pretending to be, and then you gave me the chance to be someone else, to leave the mask behind, to stop pretending." I press my palm against his face and smile.

"And you wanted me just as I am, with all my anger, you encouraged me to speak my mind, teasing me until I couldn't hold it in any longer." I laugh and he smiles back at me.

"You have no idea how glad I am that you agreed to be my friend."

"Even though you only wanted to be my friend to compete with Alvaryn." I remind him.

"At first, yes okay that was my main reason. But, after that first day, when I bought you here and we spent time alone together and I realised how easy it was being myself with you and how much I wanted to do it again, then, I wasn't doing it to compete with my brother, I was doing it just to see you. I had never felt anything close to how I felt when I was with you." He smiles, and I press my lips against his, kissing him softly, trying to show him how much his words mean to me.

The sound of doors opening and closing makes me jump and I hear males talking close by.

"It's alright, it's just the trainers and the kennel master getting ready for the day. Come on, I'll walk you back to your room." He says, as I stand and he follows me. He pets Moira before leaving the stall behind me.

He takes my hand, twining our fingers together as we walk across the fog covered grass and warm orange light fills the sky.

We reach my room and he walks me inside, I take a deep breath, filling my lungs with the warm air.

"Your servants will be here soon." He says pulling the cloak back from my head and smoothing my hair down.

"And you will have meetings to attend to." I reply stepping closer to him.

His thumb brushes my forehead, before trailing over my cheekbone and under my jaw lifting my face to his. He kisses me softly and I don't want him to stop, I don't want him to leave.

"Unfortunately I will, but at least I will have you to think about until I can see you again." He smiles and I feel my heart flutter in my chest.

"Thank you for asking me by the way, for not waiting."

"I would have asked you a lot sooner if I had known how you felt about it." He replies with that cocky smile of his.

"Well I suppose it's good to be able to keep you on your toes." I tease.

He grabs my waist suddenly and opens his mouth ready with his reply just as there is a knock at the door and its opens.

Lyari is the first to walk in, with Saena right behind her.

"Forgive me Your Highness, I didn't mean to interrupt." They both curtsy, looking away nervously.

"It's quite alright, I was just leaving after our early morning visit to the kennels. Make sure her bath is nice and hot, she nearly froze her toes off walking all that way." He smiles down at me.

"Thank you for escorting me back safely." I smile up at him, he bows, taking my left hand in his, he kisses my ring finger before standing upright and winking at me.

I can't help the smile that reaches my face as the door closes behind him and my servants move around the room.

They had both asked me to marry them instead of choosing me, they had both given me the choice instead of making it for me.

I didn't think I could love either of them anymore, but somehow they proved me wrong.