“Once, we were allies.”
Ravenna's words remained in my mind long after we left the garden.
I kept thinking about the stone carving.
A black rose.
A white rose.
Growing from the same stem.
If humans and demons had once stood together, why had we gone to war?
Why had no one told us?
I wanted to ask.
But when I looked at Ravenna's expression, I decided not to.
Not yet.
There was something in her eyes that told me the answer was not a simple one.
So instead, I asked the first question that came to mind.
“Where are we going?”
“To your room.”
“My room?”
“Yes.”
“I thought we already had a room.”
“We do.”
“Then why do I need another one?”
Ravenna stopped.
She looked at me.
Then she pointed toward a door.
“This is yours.”
I stared at it.
“You said our room was ours.”
“It is.”
“Then why do I have another room?”
“Because you might want somewhere private.”
I blinked.
Ravenna looked almost embarrassed.
“I thought you might need a place that belongs only to you.”
She opened the door.
I stepped inside.
The room was beautiful.
A large window overlooked the eastern side of the castle.
There was a writing desk beside it.
A bookshelf stood against one wall.
A soft white rug covered the floor.
There were fresh flowers on the table.
White Roses.
I slowly walked toward them.
“You prepared this?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“Before you arrived.”
I touched one of the petals.
It was fresh.
Delicate.
Beautiful.
“You knew I liked White Roses.”
“I read the reports.”
I looked back at her.
“You really did read everything.”
“I had to.”
“Did you read my favorite foods too?”
“Yes.”
“My favorite books?”
“Yes.”
“My favorite tea?”
“Yes.”
I stared.
“What is it?”
Ravenna hesitated.
“Jasmine.”
I smiled.
“You remembered.”
“Of course.”
Something warm settled inside my chest.
It was a small thing.
Almost meaningless.
But somehow, it mattered.
“Thank you.”
Ravenna nodded.
“You're welcome.”
She turned to leave.
“Ravenna.”
She stopped.
“Yes?”
I looked around the room.
Then at her.
“It's beautiful.”
Her expression softened.
“I'm glad.”
She left.
I stood there alone for a moment.
Then I looked at the White Roses.
The Demon Queen had prepared a room for me.
Not because the treaty demanded it.
Not because the kingdom needed to impress me.
She had simply wanted me to feel comfortable.
That was dangerous.
Not politically.
Personally.
Because kindness was much harder to defend against than cruelty.
My first full day in the Demon Castle began with breakfast.
It ended with a dragon in my room.
I had no idea how the second part happened.
I had been sitting at my desk, trying to organize the books I had brought from the Holy Kingdom, when I heard scratching at the door.
Scratch.
Scratch.
Scratch.
I opened it.
The tiny blue dragon from yesterday stood outside.
It looked up at me.
I looked down at it.
“No.”
The dragon tilted its head.
“No.”
It chirped.
“I have work to do.”
The dragon chirped again.
I sighed.
“Fine.”
It immediately marched into my room.
I stared after it.
“You are very confident.”
The dragon climbed onto the rug.
Then it rolled onto its back.
I laughed.
“You're ridiculous.”
It closed its eyes.
Five minutes later, it was asleep.
I sat at my desk again.
The castle was quiet.
For the first time since arriving, I could hear the ordinary sounds of the place.
Footsteps in the hallway.
Someone laughing downstairs.
The clatter of dishes.
A distant voice calling for someone.
The faint sound of music somewhere in the castle.
It did not feel like a fortress.
It felt like a home.
That thought surprised me.
I looked out the window.
The Demon Kingdom stretched beyond the castle walls.
Dark forests.
Rocky mountains.
A river shining in the distance.
And, far beyond that, the lands of the Holy Kingdom.
My old home.
I wondered if anyone there was thinking about me.
I wondered what they were saying.
Perhaps they were afraid for me.
Perhaps they thought I had been taken prisoner.
Perhaps they believed the Demon Queen was keeping me locked inside this castle.
I almost laughed.
I was sitting in a comfortable chair while a baby dragon slept on my carpet.
It was difficult to feel like a prisoner.
A knock came at the door.
I looked up.
“Come in.”
Ravenna entered.
She was wearing a simpler dress than the one she had worn yesterday.
No crown.
No cloak.
Her black hair was tied loosely behind her.
For a moment, I barely recognized her.
“You look different.”
She stopped.
“Is that bad?”
“No.”
I smiled.
“You look more relaxed.”
She looked down at herself.
“I am not wearing the crown.”
“I noticed.”
“It is heavy.”
“You don't have to wear it all the time?”
“Unfortunately, some people become nervous when their queen walks around without a crown.”
“Why?”
“I don't know.”
She glanced at the sleeping dragon.
“Is that the same one?”
“Yes.”
“You named it yet?”
I blinked.
“Do dragons need names?”
“Everyone needs a name.”
“Do you have one?”
Ravenna stared at me.
“I have a name.”
“No. I mean, did you name it?”
She looked at the dragon.
“No.”
I thought for a moment.
“Then I'll call it Blue.”
Ravenna frowned.
“That is a terrible name.”
“You have a better one?”
“No.”
“Then Blue it is.”
The dragon opened one eye.
“See?”
“It didn't agree.”
“It didn't disagree.”
Ravenna sighed.
“You're impossible.”
“So I've been told.”
A small smile appeared on her lips.
I noticed.
She noticed me noticing.
The smile disappeared.
“You wanted something?”
“I came to ask if you wanted to see the kitchen.”
“The kitchen?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“You said yesterday that you liked sweets.”
“I did.”
“The chef wants to meet you.”
I stood.
“Now?”
“Yes.”
I glanced at Blue.
The dragon yawned.
“Should we bring it?”
Ravenna shook her head.
“It will probably follow us.”
It did.
Of course it did.
The kitchen was enormous.
I stopped in the doorway.
“That's not a kitchen.”
Ravenna looked at me.
“What is it?”
“A small restaurant.”
The kitchen staff immediately began laughing.
One of them stepped forward.
He was a large demon with dark gray skin and a white apron.
“Welcome, Your Holiness.”
“You can call me Elara.”
He looked at Ravenna.
Ravenna nodded.
“Then Elara.”
He smiled.
“I am Garin, the head chef.”
“It is nice to meet you.”
“I've heard that you enjoy sweets.”
“I do.”
“Excellent.”
He placed a plate in front of me.
On it was a small pastry.
Golden brown.
Covered in honey.
I took a bite.
My eyes widened.
“This is delicious.”
Garin beamed.
“I knew it.”
Ravenna watched me.
“Do you like it?”
“Yes.”
She looked pleased.
“You should try the tea.”
“I will.”
Garin looked between us.
Then he smiled.
Ravenna noticed.
“Don't.”
“I didn't say anything.”
“You were about to.”
“I was only thinking.”
“That is usually worse.”
I laughed.
The kitchen became strangely quiet.
Everyone stared at me.
I stopped.
“What?”
Garin smiled.
“Nothing.”
“You're all staring.”
“We've never heard the queen laugh this much.”
Ravenna's face turned red.
“I laugh.”
Garin raised an eyebrow.
“When?”
Silence.
Ravenna looked at him.
Garin looked away.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
I covered my mouth to hide my smile.
Ravenna leaned closer.
“You're enjoying this.”
“Very much.”
“I regret bringing you here.”
“No, you don't.”
She looked at me.
Then away.
“No.”
She paused.
“I don't.”
My smile softened.
Neither of us noticed the servants exchanging looks behind us.
That afternoon, Ravenna took me outside the castle.
The town beneath the hill was much smaller than I expected.
Demons walked through the streets.
Children played beside fountains.
Merchants called out to customers.
Someone was selling fruit.
Someone else was repairing a roof.
It looked ordinary.
Almost painfully ordinary.
I watched a little demon girl run past us.
She stopped when she saw Ravenna.
“Your Majesty!”
Ravenna crouched down.
“Hello, Mina.”
The girl's eyes immediately moved toward me.
“Is that the Saint?”
“Yes.”
“Your wife?”
Ravenna froze.
I almost laughed.
“Yes.”
The girl smiled.
“She's pretty.”
“Thank you.”
Then Mina looked at Ravenna.
“You're pretty too.”
Ravenna blinked.
“Thank you.”
The girl smiled.
“Are you going to have a wedding?”
Ravenna looked confused.
“We already had one.”
“Oh.”
Mina thought about that.
“Then are you going to have another one?”
I laughed.
Ravenna looked at me helplessly.
“I don't know.”
Mina looked between us.
“You should.”
Then she ran away.
I watched her disappear into the crowd.
“Children are very direct.”
“Yes.”
“You're popular.”
“I suppose.”
“Do they all know you?”
“Most of them.”
“You remember all their names?”
Ravenna looked surprised.
“Of course.”
I stopped walking.
She took another step before realizing I wasn't beside her.
“What is it?”
“You really care about them.”
Ravenna was silent.
Then she said,
“They are my people.”
There was no pride in her voice.
Only responsibility.
I looked around the town again.
The stories had never mentioned this.
They had never mentioned the baker.
Or the children.
Or the gardens.
Or the small dragons.
They had never mentioned that the Demon Queen knew the names of the people who lived beneath her castle.
Perhaps the stories had never wanted us to know.
That evening, I found Ravenna in the library.
She was sitting alone beside a large window.
A book was open in her hands.
I approached quietly.
“What are you reading?”
She looked up.
“A history book.”
“About the war?”
“Yes.”
I sat across from her.
“About the Black and White Roses?”
Her fingers stopped moving.
“You're curious.”
“Yes.”
“So am I.”
She closed the book.
“There are very few records.”
“Why?”
“They were destroyed.”
“By whom?”
Ravenna looked toward the window.
“I don't know.”
“You don't know?”
“No.”
She touched the cover.
“Human records say demons betrayed the humans.”
“And demon records?”
“They say humans betrayed the demons.”
I frowned.
“Both sides say the other started it.”
“Yes.”
“That doesn't make sense.”
“No.”
She looked at me.
“That's why I don't trust either version.”
I was silent.
For the first time, I realized something.
Ravenna wasn't defending the demons.
She wasn't blaming the humans.
She was searching for the truth.
Just like me.
“Then we'll find out.”
Her eyes widened.
“We?”
“Yes.”
“You want to investigate this with me?”
“Why not?”
“This could be dangerous.”
“So is being married to the Demon Queen.”
She stared at me.
Then laughed.
A real laugh.
This time, she didn't try to hide it.
I smiled.
For a moment, the library felt warm.
Not because of the fireplace.
Not because of the candles.
Because we were no longer speaking like representatives of two kingdoms.
We were simply two women who had found the same unanswered question.
Outside, the night settled over the Demon Kingdom.
In the garden, the Black Roses moved in the wind.
And somewhere beneath the castle, something old stirred in the darkness.
A single white petal appeared on the floor of a sealed underground chamber.
It had not been there a moment before.
Then another.
And another.
A faint silver light spread across the ancient stone.
At the center of the chamber, an inscription slowly awakened.
Two roses.
One black.
One white.
And beneath them, words written in a language forgotten by both kingdoms.
When Black and White bloom together, the sleeping king shall awaken.
The light faded.
The chamber became silent again.
Neither Ravenna nor Elara knew what had happened.
Not yet.
For now, they were still only newlyweds.
And tomorrow, they would have breakfast together again.