Nothing is ever as simple as it seems
Prince Sombra had seen more than his fair share of war and loss, and of betrayal. Like many others he had built a dark and mighty crystal castle to keep out the world of pain and grief and for the most part he felt safer inside those walls though, occasionally, it got a little lonesome.
One evening, Prince Sombra was looking out from his castle contemplating, as he did from time to time, if he would ever venture out in search of companionship again when, much to his surprise, a woman on a pale horse appeared over the ridge, riding fast towards his gate. She reached the drawbridge, and seeing that the gate was barred she pulled up short, lifting her gaze to where he stood on the many balconies around his castle.
As their eyes met her lids, which were already heavy, closed and she fell in a dead faint hitting the ground with a thud. The woman was badly wounded; the Prince could see an arrow lodged deep in her chest, but he's learnt that nothing was ever as simple as it seemed in this world, a valuable lesson he's taken to heart.
The world was full of tricksters, charlatans and people playing games for their own ends, and she was no doubt one of these. So paranoid was he in fact, that he never allowed servants to stay in his castles for extended period of time, only to attend to basic duties and immediately leaving afterward, with the exception of a few guards. However, as cautious and suspicion he was, he was no monster; without his help the woman would surely die, so tentatively he opened the castle's gates, lifted her gently in his arms and carried her inside. He learnt that nothing was ever as simple as it seemed, a lesson he's taken to heart.
He took this time to observe the woman he was carrying more closely. He'd be the first to admit that she was quite gorgeous; Beautiful face, pale white skin that almost seemed to glow, shimmering blue hair and a petite but womanly figure. He then noticed an entrancing necklace in the shape of a crescent moon with an radiant aqua pearl in the center just above her moderate bust; all in all, she looked quite enticing Shaking his head from such dubious thoughts, he decided to examine her wound. Sure enough, the woman's wound was deep and she'd lost a lot of blood. He tightened his grip on her and hastened his way to the infirmary. He had work to do.
It took all his skill and several days of nursing before she opened her beautiful teal eyes again. Smiling softly she whispered a heartfelt "...Thank you", but Prince Sombra remained suspicious. Many years of experience had taught him that nothing was ever as simple as it seemed. Women in particular had a way of saying one thing and meaning another. She probably had some ulterior motive for being here, but for now she asked no more than a place to rest while she recovered. So he agreed to her let her stay, just until she was well enough to ride. There couldn't be any harm in that now, could there?
"Tell me, what is you're name, my fair lady?", he asked cordially as he figured there was no harm in at least knowing the woman's name.
The woman's eyes seemed to widened momentarily as she herself began to forget that detail. The Prince's heart skipped a beat as the woman gave him a warm smile as she spoke.
"My name is Luna."
As Luna slowly regained her strength the Prince took her on short walks around the castle. He didn't show her much, just the parts he felt comfortable about her seeing, but it was more than he'd shown anyone in a very long time. Occasionally she commented on how odd it was that such a handsome prince should live alone, but generally she didn't ask too much and she respected his privacy by not prying into his business. Actually she was kind of nice in an oddly refreshing sort of way. Still many years of experience had taught him that nothing was ever as simple as it seemed. She was probably "playing him" somehow or another, he just hadn't figured out what the game was yet. But he admitted she was kind of cute and if he played his cards right he might even perhaps bed her. There couldn't be any harm in that now, could there?
Weeks passed as Luna was almost fully healed and the young woman thanked him for his kindness and told him she should probably go soon, before she out stayed her welcome. Sombra didn't really want her to leave; he'd got kind of used to having her around and, curiously, she made him feel more comfortable than he had in a long time. But many years of experience had taught him that nothing was ever as simple as it seemed and saying "Please don't go" would make him look like weakling, so instead he started an argument and after some heated words she walked out in a huff. He'd expected she would do that eventually anyway, so it was probably best for all concerned that it happened sooner rather than later.
Luna barely got as far as the gate before she realized that, despite their angry words, she didn't really want to leave him. She felt good just having him around and unless she spoke up, he might never know that. So swallowed her pride, returned to his side and told him how she felt. The Prince smiled, after all he'd kind of wanted her to stay around. Many years of experience had taught him that nothing was ever as simple as it seemed, but at least for the moment whatever the game was, it was going his way. He'd let her stay a little bit longer, in fact, he might even invite her to share his bed. That would improve his chances of bedding her, but even if he didn't, he liked having her near. There couldn't be any harm in that now, could there?
So, the Prince took Luna to his bed and, much to his surprise and delight, she kissed him the way he'd wanted to be kissed, and she touched him the way he wanted to be touched, and she looked at him with wonder and told him things he wanted to hear, like how handsome he was. But, strangely enough, she never once asked him to tell her that he loved her. Many years of experience had taught him that nothing was ever as simple as it seemed and obviously there was some catch to this. There was no such thing as a free lunch; people never gave without expecting something in return. He couldn't work out what it was she wanted yet, but he was certain it was just a matter of time before she started making demands and getting annoyed when he couldn't give her what she needed. In the meantime, he was enjoying himself and so long as he didn't go getting attached to her or anything, he might as well have a little fun. There couldn't be any harm in that now, could there?
Sombra woke suddenly one night, with a chill of someone walking over his grave and silent alarm bells ringing in his head. Luna was gone from his side, gone from his bed. She wasn't gone altogether, but was somewhere about the castle, and he had a terrible feeling he knew where. The Prince ran to his treasury, a strong room that he kept firmly locked. It contained many mementos of his life, reminders of his wars, his losses and his betrayals, but most of all it was the safe, impenetrable place he kept his most a protected possession, the empty ball of glass that was his heart. Somehow Luna had undone the locks and bars of the door, tip toed past the sleeping guard dogs, and defeated all manner of magical traps and alarms; all of which he'd so carefully placed, to keep this room from ever being entered. There she was, just as he had feared, hovering over his precious possession, with her crescent necklace in her left hand and the right hand about to close around his cold and fragile crystal heart.
Many years of experience had taught Sombra that nothing was ever as it simple as it seemed, and finally the Lady's evil plan finally was exposed. Obviously this had been her intention from the beginning. Obviously it had all been a ruse to get access to this room. Obviously his enemies had sent her, or maybe she was here on behalf of women-kind in general to avenge whatever crimes they held him responsible for. Obviously she'd been intent on stealing from him all along. And if she took his heart, she would break it, he KNEW she would!
"STOP!"yelled the Prince, shattering the silence so suddenly that the startled young woman dropped the necklace. Turning to his guards he shouted "Throw her out and never let her in again!" Luna opened her mouth to protest, begging to be allowed to explain, but the Prince clamped his hands firmly over his ears and turned away from her. Many years of experience had taught him that things were ever as simple as they seemed. If he listened she'd just spin him some intricate web of lies, beguile him with her charms and twist this whole thing around so it was somehow his fault. So he refused to let her speak and had his guards cast her out in to the cold of night.
The Prince turned back to inspect his cold, crystal heart. Yes, it was safe. Luckily she's only brushed it lightly, not enough to do any real harm. He picked up the necklace and considered shattering it, out of spite. But he found the necklace admittedly too beautiful to destroy, so instead he placed it on the pedestal next to his heart. The necklace would keep for a good decoration he thought and it would make an excellent reminder to be more cautious in the future. The Prince then reset all the traps and alarms and locked the doors, making sure that all was safe and secure once more. He then made his way back to his room and laid himself to rest, trying his best to ignore the dull ache in his chest. After all, nothing was ever as simple as it seemed.
Luna looked back as the fortress gates closed in her face. There was no point protesting, his mind was made up and nothing was going to change it. Battering at the doors would only make his anger hotter. So she mounted her pale horse and rode sadly away. Many years of experience had taught her that things were often exactly as they seemed.
People who threw up walls around themselves were lonely because they were too fearful to let anyone in. Those who couldn't find true love often couldn't see it under their noses, because they'd forgotten what it looked like. And hearts that were lock up for their own protection were still just prisoners condemned to live in darkness. The only thing you could never be sure about were enchanted necklaces, and her necklace was just where she'd meant to leave it, sitting next to the heart of glass, locked deep in within the class.
Reaching the top of the ridge she turned her horse and looked back to where the Prince once stood when she first met him, watching from the balcony. She placed her hand over her heart, then held it out palm towards him, whispering those words she knew he'd couldn't bear to hear out loud. At that, within the chambers of the crystal heart, the necklace shed its disguise and began to beat gently, giving off a soft, warm glow. Many years of experience had taught the Prince the lessons he lived by. Wars, losses and betrayals had eaten away at the core of him, and open, fearless hearts such as hers were things he simply no longer believed in. Luna was just an accidental visitor to his gate, but in the time she'd spent with him she'd seen that the Prince had a generous and tender spirit.
So when she'd heard his lonely heart crying out to her in the night, she'd gone to it, wanting to comfort it. She didn't have the power to turn back time, or to make his pain and fear evaporate so, instead, she given him the only thing she had to give. True, the enchanted necklace was just a little piece of her heart, but it was alive and very real. Perhaps it would be just enough to bring a little light into his darkness.
Author's Note
This was the first story I've written in a long time. And a first on this site, so tell me if you enjoyed it. I'd love to hear any criticism or praises (hopefully praises).
그 때까지 나중에 보자. 
