Chapter Text
Summer waited. Today was the last possible day for her esteemed guest to arrive. She was sitting on the edge of her bed, staring at the large and impossibly heavy door. Her room was a big one. Her bed is massive. It was soft and had silk sheets and feather pillows. Any girl's dream. There was a desk up against one wall. It had a few books and parchment. She had used most of it to draw. There wasn’t anyone worth writing to. That she knew at least. She was sick of living everyday here.
Ever since she was young she was betrothed to Prince James Ironwood. He was prince to a neighboring kingdom that they were trying to become allies with. The betrothal is what was keeping things together. Both countries had agreed though that both the prince and herself were too young at the time to be wed. Now, ten years later, they had decided that it was time. Last year they met in person for the first time. Everyone she knew saw James as this magnificent, perfect, heroic and charming prince. Lots of girls would happily take her place. But right away she noticed something was off. The more they talked she knew for sure. It was like at any moment he could snap and do something awful and just justify it with some stupid line like “I’m going to do everything I can to defend this kingdom. No matter the cost.” She rolled her eyes.
Summer had told her father but he just shrugged it off as if she was still just a dumb ten year old girl. She groaned. Her father knew her position on the marriage arrangement. He also knew her semblance. She went to bed one night and woke up here. A big room in a tall tower. Locked behind a massive door. Guards always outside. Food and books were pushed through a small gap under the door that got locked afterwards. There was a window. Wood shutters that opened up to an amazing view… and giant metal bars. They crisscrossed and were impenetrable. She tried everything, from a chair leg to whatever acidic food they gave her. Even after 6 months of trying to wear them down or bend them they hadn’t changed. She also tried to scrape the walls and door with whatever she had, but they hadn’t changed either. She wondered if maybe it was all protected with magic.
After that is when she tried to hurt herself. She thought that maybe if whoever was outside heard or realized what she was doing they would run in. With the door open she would make her escape. But no. They had some sort of gas, or possibly someone with a strong semblance outside that would make her pass out. Once unconscious her body would use its aura to heal her. Which is also why drowning never worked. It had been nine months when she started to request specific books. She learned about a tribe of people known to take kids with powerful semblances and teach them to be assassins. Supposedly they had a ritual for communication.
After reading between the lines and two and a half months of failed attempts she finally had it. She wrote her request, sealed it with wax (made soft by the sun) and held it as she worked on the next step. She drew a rune on the stone taking care and making sure it had all the glyphs it needed. Then she bit the skin on the pad of her thumb hard. She drew a cross on the rune with the blood that pooled there. Summer placed the letter onto the Rune and put her hand on top of it. She activated her aura. The rune glowed. She chuckled hysterically. Finally! The letter sunk into the stone. She stared at the empty space, not knowing what to do next.