"Isn't it abuse of your powers to bribe your way like that?"
"Isn't the secret safe between us, Lady Vivia?" Zerath smiled meaningfully.
How dare he point at my righteousness!
"You just used too many trickeries to get inside," Words failed to express Vivia's disbelief.
He gently tugged at her chin, inching her closer towards him. Their warm breaths mingled in the silent, cramped space between them.
"I'll use any number of trickeries to meet you, Vivia."
The beats of her heart ramped up like a never-ending onslaught of storm. Her fingers lifted in response as she gingerly traced the outline of his jaw.
"I wanted to meet you one last time but…" she breathed out softly, an ache gripping her eyes.
His lashes came to a gentle close as his cheek dropped in the tempting hold of her fingers, savoring every bit of her warmth and touch. His fingers slid on top of her knuckles, his soft lips grazing past them. A feathery peck ever so slightly tickled her, wondering if this fresh wave of dizziness was due to her sickness or Zerath's undeniable warmth.
"It won't be the last time you see my eyes, Vivia. Nor would it be for me," his voice dropped to a gentle whisper.
His grip over her hand turned tighter as he observed her cheek. The faint crimson swelling left behind by Elvin's slap had nearly faded away, but it barely diffused even the slightest flicker of his fury.
"Elvin is still outside. I should take this chance to settle some scores," his golden eyes greyed with an impending overcast.
"Don't worry. I returned the favor by tenfold, hoho."
"Which I'm proud of, but you didn't deserve this."
When it looked like his trembling body would storm out of the carriage at any moment, her arms wrapped around his neck, steering his face to look at only her.
"Do you want to waste our precious limited time on somebody as useless as Elvin?"
"You don't understand, Vivia. If he could do this so fearlessly on foreign soil, then what would he do to you on his own turf? I don't want you to go, Vivia…Not to a place where I cannot see you and protect you."
She leaned down, bumping her forehead against his. "I'll be fine, Zerath. Clairette bore everything with a head lowered in fear, but I won't. I haven't allowed anyone in my life to ever bully me nor will I allow so in the future. Trust me. I'll protect myself."
He knew. He knew that Vivia was different from Clairette. She would throw back any punches that came her way multiplied with the deadly force of her own ire. Yet in this moment, he wished desperately that he could just…snatch her away from the world, to a place beyond violence and threats.
"I trust you," he whispered with a helpless smile.
"Good. That solves it. But, I've got complaints from you though! We got engaged, and I was clueless the entire time," her eyes squinted.
An innocent light shimmered in his eyes, casting the golden hue back.
"Thank you for the wonderful brooch, Lady Vivia. Our engagement was sealed thanks to your wonderful confession."
"That was just another one of your tricks!"
"Sshh. Everyone outside will hear you."
To see her own warning thrown back at her face, Vivia was struck with a loss.
"Please forgive me, Vivia."
"Why are you apologizing? Wait, I wasn't really offended," she coughed.
He dimly smiled. "I firmly believed that it was a chance to make our future a possibility when you pinned the brooch on me. So I hastily grabbed onto it. I thought I was smart in steering the discussion tactfully. It wouldn't go down without resistance, but I'd push it back with rational explanations."
His gaze lowered. "But I failed, Vivia. I irresponsibly forgot those families who had been quietly and unjustly suffering for their ancestors' love. Though it's frustrating, Prince Aeren did make valid arguments. As the Crown Prince, I shouldn't have only solely thought about my selfish interests. I sparked a hope within you without giving it a proper thought out of haste and desperation, which only left you disappointed in the end. I feel too ashamed to face you."
His lashes fluttering downcast erupted a painful squeeze across her chest as if it was stabbed. She held his face and lifted it to meet her eyes whether he wanted it or not.
"If you say that again, you can kiss our relationship goodbye for good! You must always hold your head high with pride, not shame. Why are you taking all the failure upon your shoulders? I had tried just the same as you. I was just as selfish. Yes, it didn't work out as we had expected, but that's fine, isn't it? We learned that we must be patient. Don't ever feel that the burden is all upon you."
His immediate response was to turn his head away and blink with rapid bursts of speed.
"Are you crying?" She poked his cheek.
"Demons don't cry," he said with a hoarse voice.
Her lips twitched. "Don't demons have tear ducts?"
"We refuse to use them."
Her eyes rolled.
You're using them right now though.
The tip of his nose sniffled, though the accusation was conveniently upon the chill rather than his turbulent emotions.
"May I?"
He pointed at her neck to her surprise and she blinked twice, puzzled. "Yes."
Her breath was caught in her throat as his fingers grazed against her neck like the first rays of the soothing dawn. Lifting her hairlocks to the side rattled her heart to the unknowns, but it was a soft metallic click that brought her back to the present.
A sleek golden chain hung down from her neck with a delicate lavender pendant dangling at the center. The lavender gemstone scintillated like the shade of the sky at the edge of dusk and dawn. As the pendant's luster pulled her towards its beauty, a certain conversation of the past echoed in her ears.
'Simply out of curiosity, what color were your eyes as Vivia? You always praise my eyes, but I don't know anything about yours.'
'Ah, they were lavender,' she awkwardly replied. 'It isn't a very common color, so at times I was isolated. All I know is my mother was a foreign beauty, and I inherited her eyes. But I never liked them…'
He blinked once, his lips curving into a warm smile.
'Lavender is a splendid color. You must've looked beautiful in them.'
"You remembered…" her voice whispered at present, a slight reddish hue forming in her eyes.
Zerath pressed their already touching foreheads further. "I won't forget anything you tell me."