𝑨 𝑻𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝑴𝒂𝒈𝒊𝒄 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑨𝒔𝒉

Solaria – One Thousand Years Ago

Lily

The night they stole the princesses, the moon refused to rise.

Lily stood at the edge of the royal nursery, her heart pounding like a war drum beneath her ribs. The twins lay sleeping — miraculously, silently — nestled side by side in a cradle carved from starwood and wrapped in silk, violet and silver, both stitched with protective runes. One bore a faint sun-shaped birthmark, the other a crescent moon — Poppy and Luna. Opposites in name, but twins in soul.

They looked nothing like the forces of nature they were born to become. Just babies. Just breath and softness and stardust.

But Lily had seen the vision.

So had Grayson.

And they both knew what was coming.

“They’re ready,” Lily whispered, turning to her brother.

Grayson stood guard at the gilded nursery doors, sword strapped to his back, scanning for shadows even magic couldn’t detect. He looked older tonight—not in age, but in grief.

“They shouldn’t have to run,” he muttered.

Lily swallowed hard. “No. But if they stay, they die.”

Gabriel had made sure of that.

He had smiled during the blessing ceremony. Kissed Queen Alyssa’s hand. Held both infants with tender precision. But Lily had seen it — the flash in his eyes. Not joy. Not love. Envy. Hunger. He knew the truth: that the throne had passed over him. That not one, but two heirs had been born under Solaria’s sacred moon. Twin legacies. Twin threats.

And Gabriel wasn’t going to wait for them to grow into their power.

He was going to steal it.

The seal would protect them for a time — their gifts would be locked until the moment was right — but if it failed, if he found them...

Queen Alyssa had begged Lily to flee with them. King Dorian hadn’t spoken. He’d only pressed the twin amulets into her hands — ancient Solarian wards that would shield the girls from tracking spells. His face had been carved from ice, but his hands had trembled.

"Take them. Hide them. Keep them safe. No matter what it costs you."

A soft coo broke Lily’s thoughts — one of the twins stirred. Luna, then Poppy. Grayson moved quickly, lifting both girls into his arms, cradling them with all the reverence of a dying kingdom.

“We have minutes. Maybe less,” he said, voice sharp with urgency.

Footsteps echoed from the hall.

Lily’s breath caught. “Go. Through the mirror. Now.”

The ornate mirror shimmered with a soft glow — the portal they had carved in secret. A door between realms, sealed by blood and fate. Once they stepped through, Solaria would vanish behind them, unreachable.

Grayson stepped into the portal with the twins.

Lily turned back for one last glance.

The nursery glowed with moonlight now. The cradle. The books. The toys untouched. She’d rocked Gabriel in this room once. Told him stories. Held his hand after nightmares.

He had been a boy once. Now, he was something else.

She touched each twin’s brow — Poppy with her fire, Luna with her calm.

“I swear to you both,” she whispered, “I will not let the world break you. Even if the rest of us must burn.”

The nursery doors burst open.

Gabriel’s voice cracked through the silence like lightning.

“Don’t you dare.”

But it was too late.

The mirror swallowed them whole.

And the kingdom of Solaria burned behind them.