The fact that some dark haired people, who were considered the elite of the society, could be forced to live in hiding was a strange notion, but it was the best one Lucian could come up with at the moment.
'Why did Edmund come to my mind just now?' Lucian tried to find the source of his sudden suspicion. It wasn't a completely unfounded one that it had something to do with the Rocheforts, 'Is it because he was so enthusiastic about learning how to blend in, not standing out, and not drawing attention to himself?'
Lucian felt that he was a bit paranoid about it.
'She keeps saying that nobody will be able to touch us. That I shouldn't worry...But why am I worried then?'
The biggest duchy was still the duchy of Rochefort, that was a fact. The wealthiest, the most influential, and the strongest of all three.
And yet, Lucian felt it was a false sense of security, a lie she was telling herself and him.
'She can't fight the whole world. She may be smarter than most, but she is not omnipotent.'
Celine was a genius, and geniuses had a tendency to forget they were not perfect and could make mistakes. They were prone to overestimate themselves and overlook their weaknesses.
How did Lucian know?
Loreno was one, Mumbai (Cansan's wife) was one, and the list of geniuses around Lucian kept on expanding.
His Vices might not be the smartest themselves but they had to be good at recruiting and managing those who were. Those good with numbers, new ideas, or had the skills they needed. The best ones were always those who were a little bit mad.
'Maybe it's the price they pay for being so ahead of their time,' Lucian thought, 'They have to be detached from the reality that is holding them back.'
The gap that he found too big to overcome, suddenly didn't seem that big anymore.
He had a feeling that he could make up for it in a different way. That he could be a support that Celine needed to keep her feet grounded in reality lest she flew too far from it and burned her wings.
'We are both dreamers. She's the type that would risk everything on one dice and be sure to win, and I'm the type that will have a backup plan, in case I lose. We are a good match, aren't we?'
Even though he never saw Celine lose for real, he was convinced it could happen.
'Her confidence scares me a little bit...she will have to have a taste of failure to know her own limitations.'
Lucian thought about his own experiences with failure, and how they made him the person he was now.
Their worlds were too different, yes, but they couldn't be exact opposites, could they?
He had dipped a bit into hers and she had done the same to his.
'I can't marry her yet.'
He couldn't do it yet, for her sake. She would understand that.
'Yes, she would. My Celine is smart after all. She will see it.'
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What Lucian didn't expect was that Celine was of the same opinion as he was, thinking that he should be grounded in reality more and stop acting like a hero from the fairy tales.
He rushed toward the capital and ran into her on the way. They traveled together, though they kept their distance, and ended up at their wall-sharing hideouts.
She insisted on exploring the second floor of his shop, refusing to stay in his office room, where they would have the most privacy. In the end, he had the second floor cleared for her.
Lucian's body froze as he tugged at the ribbon around his neck, with a small bell attached to it.
Celine was sitting on his lap, her legs wrapped around his hips.
The Honeybell lane was a busy street. People and carriages were coming and going, so of course the first thing she had to do was open the window and look outside.
Lucian dragged her down before she could wave her hand at the crowd, and cause them to stop and stare.
That's how they ended in this position of her on his lap, under the window frame.
They had fought for a bit, her trying to climb out of his lap and him trying to keep her in his lap, until she was out of breath and exhausted.
She gave him a 'what do you think you are doing' look, but he returned a 'what do you think you are doing' look of his own.
"Tsk," she clicked her tongue, "Now that you are a bronze knight, you think you can challenge me?" she pulled at his shirt to match his eye level.
"Shhh...someone will hear you," he said against her lips, covering her mouth with his.
It was a terrible way to make her stay quiet. Lost in the kiss, his neck was suddenly squeezed by a ribbon to the point of being strangled. He coughed, letting her go.
And that's how he ended up with a ribbon around his neck.
"Who are you trying to dominate with brute force, huh? Who?" Celine hooked the bell onto it as he coughed. Dangling the bell, making sure it was functioning properly. Each swing made the little bell sing with a clear chime.
Lucian took a few deep breaths as he looked up, demanding her to loosen the grip. Maybe he went too far with the roughness, "I was just trying to─"
"─assert dominance," she said, loosening the ribbon. She didn't seem to be angry with him, more like she was trying to correct his bad behavior.
He was here to correct her bad behavior, okay? Not the other way around.
"You are the one being rough and trying to push me down and assert dominance," Lucian pointed out the double standards that she didn't seem to realize she had.
"You started it."
"After you risked our safety to prove your superiority to the world," he emphasized.
"You are exaggerating," she retorted, "If I wanted to reveal our relationship without your permission I would have done so a long time ago, with a lot of fanfare to boot."
"..." Lucian was at a loss for words, "So you admit you are doing it to get a rise out of me?"
"Don't we do that to each other all the time?" she asked, as if she was not aware that she had done something wrong.
Lucian sighed, knowing he had to be the responsible one and the bigger man, "Are we going to start every meeting with a fight from now on?"
Celine shook her head, "Only the ones that are worth fighting for."
"..." Lucian sighed, pulling her closer into a hug, not giving up, not surrendering, and definitely not letting her win, "Why is there a collar around my neck?"
"It's not a collar. It's a medal, made of silk and gold," Celine corrected him, playing with the bell, "I was going to give you a prize for becoming a bronze knight. But since you were so rude to me, I had to turn your prize into a punishment."
'Stay strong, Lucian. Resist!' Lucian thought to himself, ordering his heart to stay inside and not jump out, 'Do not get enchanted by her cute and adorable ways. No matter what, don't let her charm you into becoming her obedient pet!'
╔═══ Author's note ════╗
This is the end of arc 3, with Lucian and Celine trying to fix each other.
Not because they hate the sides of themselves.
They are afraid the world would separate them if they continue this way.
We are getting closer and closer to the main conflict, I think arc 4 might be the one.
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