My F*cked Up Fairytale

TEACH ME HOW TO FIGHT - CHAPTER FOUR

Unfortunately for me, Dorian is still alive, though from what I gathered from Selene over the past week, he has been bedridden from his injury. I can't say I'm upset by any of this. Since Dorian is confined to his room, I'm able to do as I please without the word 'human' following behind me. It's honestly a blessing in disguise. I can walk around in the gardens whenever I please, then, of course, besides that, there's Dorian's study. That seems to be the only place where books are kept in this manor.

As of right now, I'm currently reading a book about a heroine much like myself. I roll over so that my back is pressed to the grass decorated with sparkling morning dew. A cold bit of wetness seeps through my clothes, but I'm too immersed in the final pages of the book to give a damn.

The heroine is face to face with the man she intends to kill. She screams at him, declaring that this is where he will take his last breath, but instead, it becomes her. One shaky, fleeting breath of air is taken inward before she collapses in a pool of her own blood, knife still buried deep into her heart. The man she was supposed to kill stands above her, smiling victoro–...

    "Ah, to hell with this book!" I yell, abruptly closing the book in frustration. "That heroine could've totally killed him. I bet this damn book was written by an old man!"

    Yes, I'll admit I'm as biased as biased can be, but it is only because the heroine was so similar to me. As I read, it felt as though I were reading a story depicting the future between Dorian and I. If failure is what lay in store for me, then I definitely need to do everything in my power to avoid it. But, the only way to be able to change my ending is if I become someone who can rival Dorian. The only problem is Dorian is an all-powerful being, one that no one seems to dare to challenge, not even that elf, Aeolus. It's silly for me to think that I can take him down with my current knowledge. I'll need to learn how to fight in order to complete such an impossible task.

Determination pumps through my veins as the book worm in me wiggles out to be replaced by a bad ass warrior...Yeah, who am I kidding? I'm no bad ass warrior, though I truly wish I could say otherwise. Still, that doesn't mean I can't at least try to work my way to toward being one. I rest the book at my hip as I walk over to where Selene stands off to the side. Her red eyes follow me closely until I'm standing before her.

    "Can you take me to Dorian?" I ask as sweetly as I can to cover up the plan brimming in my head.

    "May I ask why?"

    "Because...because I want to visit my dear fiance. I haven't been able to see him for days now."

    What I said wasn't exactly a truth or a lie. A part of me does want to see Dorian. After all, he did save me from plummeting to what could have possibly been my death. But, then again, the other, more overwhelming part of me wants to never see him again.

Fortunately, Selene does not pick up on this, and she silently begins leading me back inside the manor. I half-expect Selene to lead me to a grand bedroom, where Dorian is probably snoring away in, but instead, I'm brought to an all-too-familiar door. The engravings of a sun and moon taunt me as I walk inside, willing myself to not turn around and go back to wandering the gardens.

I only take a couple steps into Dorian's study before coming to a stop. There, sitting behind the large oak desk, is Dorian, tirelessly working away through a stack of documents. For longer than necessary, I study him as he goes through the same cycle over and over again. Grabs a document, scribbles words on a few lines, sets the document on the ever growing pile of papers to his right, sighs, winces, and repeats. It's like watching a well-oiled machine, one that clearly is still broken.