Page 2 of A Heart Too Tender

An ancient voice purred from the shadows. “Come in, my queen, my prince.”

Theodora strode through the door, August at her side. He stopped abruptly just past the threshold. A feminine figure was bent over a cast-iron cauldron. Mists the color of twilight rose from the bubbling surface.

Prince August was struck mute, for the face didn’t match the voice. Long raven hair, unlined porcelain skin and eyes the color of sapphires stared back at him.

“I’m just finishing up your potion. If you’d like, you can go through the formalities and tell me what you require of me.”

Theodora chuckled, and the anxiety left August’s tense shoulders. “Celeste, I would never deign to give you orders,” She gestured to Prince August. “But we do require something, and I need to know⁠—”

“If it will even work,” Celeste mused. “It will. But he won’t like it.”

August shifted his attention from the witch to his mother, feeling like an overlooked bystander.

“Couldn’t you just tell us who my beloved is so we can be on our way?” August interjected.

Celeste snorted and brushed a lock of hair off her shoulder. “That’s not how it works. She needs to fall in love with you for it to last, and you with her. We can’t skip steps.”

August sighed, knowing for all the world that there would be much required in making his dreams come true. Queen Theodora rested a hand on his arm, offering some comfort.

“The falling is the best part,”she said, her face radiant with a reminiscent smile.

Celeste looked through them, her eyes turning glassy as her mind drifted through time and space.

“It’s time.”

She dropped a handful of peas into the cauldron and took a step back as the liquid inside surged and spun like a tempestuous sea.

“You’ll need six peas, and this potion,” Celeste breathed, as she ladled part of the iridescent liquid into a vial. “The woman of your dreams awaits.”

So this is where our story begins, a prince looking for a princess fit to be queen, a witch in need of a victory, and a mother wanting her son to find love at last …