The Crown's Entrapment



Bella slowly opened her eyes, and as expected, her sister-in-law Jayra and her brother Bartos were inside the tent.

"How are you feeling?" Jayra asked, offering a glass of water. Bella took it and quickly drank the entire glass.

Setting the glass down, she moved to sit at the edge of the bed, facing Jayra and Bartos.

"I want to hear the truth. The entire truth, so don't bother hiding a single detail from me," she demanded with a stern look.

"Things are very complicated Bella. Helena's identity required confidentiality since it's what the guardians deemed was best for Helena. She suffered from permanent memory loss, so they wanted her to start a new life without worrying about her past."

"I understand. Don't worry, I will keep it a secret. Tell me everything," Bella answered with a frown. She was mad at the moment, but she needed to know the truth first before she could ignore her sister-in-law and brother Bartos! She would definitely give them the worst silent treatment later!

Jayra took a deep breath and sighed before she began narrating everything. Bella remained quiet, as she listened to every detail of what had happened.

She pressed her lips together, striving to maintain a neutral expression through it all.

"Lena saved Osman…" she said after hearing the truth.

"Yes, she did. She gave up everything to save him. Now she's no longer the Queen Fairy but just an ordinary human without any memories of who she was once," Jayra remarked.

Bella felt sorry for what Lena had to go through and the sacrifices she had to make. If she were in Lena's place, she might have done the same thing as well. However, at that time, she wasn't capable of saving Osman.

"She… I know her heart remembers Osman and she's hurt," Bella muttered. "But, I'm also hurt and I don't want to lose him again t-this t-time…" her voice trembled as tears streamed down her face.

"Oh, Bella," Jayra murmured and hugged her tightly while gently stroking her back.

"I feel bad for Lena, I really do, but I can't give up on Osman despite knowing her sacrifices," she firmly declared. She felt it in her gut, a strong instinct that said that Lena still loved Osman. That was the reason why she couldn't open her heart to Seth or Master Kasper.

Lena was just as confused at the time, and she didn't understand the reasons behind her detachment from others. Now, it all made sense.… Because in Lena's heart, Osman still lived, even though she lost her memories of him.

"You suffered a great deal when you lost Osman too, Bella," Bartos spoke and Bella understood what her brother meant.

"Biased…" she managed to joke despite the seriousness of the situation.

Jayra chuckled and her brother joined in. Bella playfully nudged Jayra and pouted, saying, "I'm mad at the two of you, so leave me alone now. I can manage on my own."

"Ah, wait, where is Lena?" she asked.

"She's with the Queen. I think it's best that the two of you have separate tents for now, Bella. Lena's emotions are all over the place, and having the two of you together would just be awkward," Jayra said.

"That's why you shouldn't have kept things from me…" Bella mumbled with pursed lips.

"I am sorry Bella, we shouldn't have hid it from you. Also, Amon seemed worried. He's the one who carried you all the way here. He might not remember you yet, but I believe his feelings for you remain. A while ago, you and Lena both didn't look good but Amon's eyes were fixed solely on you," Jayra informed her. 

Now this information totally brightened her mood, transforming her previously dim expression into a radiant smile.

"Look at how partial and unfair you are. Just a while ago you were crying and acting grumpy with us, and now, after hearing Osman carried you here, you're smiling like crazy," Bartos snorted.

Jayra chuckled and got up, saying to Bartos, "Amon… We must get used to calling him Amon because that's his real identity." Then Jayra turned at her and said, "You seem to be feeling better now, so I'll leave you to it and get going. Since you're still mad at me, I guess I'll have to go to Helion camp alone later."

Bella blinked as her sister-in-law turned around to leave.  But before Jayra could take another step, Bella reached out and grabbed her wrist. She gave Jayra an awkward smile and said, "I… I guess I'm no longer mad at you, Sis."

"You.." Jayra teased.

"Fine, get some rest first. I'll swing by later, and we can go together.  I just need to wrap up some of my pending work for the day, and also check on Lena's condition" Jayra said.

Bella nodded as she released her grip on Jayra's wrist. She watched her sister-in-law and brother leave the tent. After just a few seconds, servants came to collect Lena's belongings and rearrange the tent for Bella alone.

"I wonder how she's doing," Bella murmured to herself the moment the servants left her tent.

[You can see her anytime, but I guess now is not the right time as it would be awkward. I believe Lena will need some time alone right now. She'll need some space…] her wolf, Poona, answered.

"Do you think Xenia told her everything? The entire truth?" Bella wondered. It would be unfair for Lena to not know everything about her past. She deserves to know it.

[She probably will…] Poona sighed.

"I should get ready now, Poona. I want to always be at my best whenever I'm around Amon," she said before getting out of bed and calling a servant to prepare a bath for her.

As the servants came to assist her, a parchment arrived. According to the servant, messengers from Helion were distributing these parchments to every tent in their camp.

Bella looked at it and then shrugged. It was Queen Mother Mona's announcement regarding the competition for the Queen's throne in Helion. 

It said that they would only allow one or two representatives from each kingdom. It also mentioned that only a select few kingdoms would be allowed to participate - those that were stable, powerful, and had a good reputation, like Cordon, Valcrez, Ebodia, Zion, Bethel, and five others.

[Do you think Lena will join?] Poona suddenly asked, making Bella gulp.

"I don't know…" 

Whether or not Lena joined, Bella's goal remained the same: to win the throne and be with the man she loved.

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