The silence hung between them, heavy and slow like thick honey. Her breath caught - just a fraction. - as the words he'd spoken echoed in her mind.
"I'm not sure I can protect myself from who you are either"
She turns towards him, fully now. Knees brushing. The night air was cool, but the space between them felt impossibly warm. Her voice was quieter when she spoke, as if it was afraid it might shatter the moment.
"Why did you say something like that?"
"Because they are true," he murmured, gaze dipping to her lips before rising again, sharp and uncertain. "Even if I shouldn't say them."
A faint breeze swept past, rustling the trees overhead and lifting a strand of her hair.
Instinctively, he reached out - brushing it gently behind her ear. His fingers lingered there, the touch feather - light but burning.
"I dont want to be the reason you hold yourself back." She whispered.
" You already are," he said, his breath hitching. " But I don't mind it, not really "
Her heart was pounding now, loud in her ears. "Then stop pretending "
His eyes searched hers, "if I stop pretending... I might not stop at all."
The distance between them closed like a slow collapse. His hand slid from her ears to the curve of her jaw, thumb grazing her cheeks. Her own hand came to rest over his, anchoring it there.
"I dont want to stop, " she breathed
The moment cracked.
He leaned in, his forehead resting against hers, lips only a breath away. Every heartbeat felt like a drum against their ribs. The grand Gias roared in his chest, rumbling below, as if it was waiting for this exact moment to tighten it's hold.
Then-
A sharp knock echoed in the distance, somewhere near the corridors doors.
The king pulled back an inch, cursing softly under his breath. She exhaled, eyes still close and lips parted in something between a sigh and a laugh.
"Saved by the interruption." She said.
He smirked, but his voice was hoarse. "Temporarily."
After that night, the bond between the both of became closer. Although the moment was never set right again to share a kiss, because no one wanted to initiate it first, they always had afternoon tea together.
The late afternoon sun spilled golden light across the palace garden, turning the leaves a dreamy shade of green. A soft breeze danced through the wisteria vines that curled around the marble pillar of the gazebo, their pale blossoms swaying above the tables were they sat - alone- but not in silence.
Maltherion poured her tea himself,
The silver teapot catching glints of light, his movement graceful, practiced. She watched him with quiet fascination, always struck by how gentle his hands could be for a man so feared.
"Chamomile, " he said, offering her her cup.
" The one you like."
She smiled as she accepted it, their fingers grazing for just a moment - warm skin against warm skin, her heart fluttered.
"Thank you, " she sipped in silence for a while, the hush around them broken only by the flutter of birds overhead and distant trickle of the fountain. But her heart had a weight on it. Something she needed to ask - something that had lingered in her chest since morning.
"I saw the notices," she said quietly, her voice barely rising above the breeze, but Maltherion heard her clearly. " The wedding, the end of this month."
His eyes were immediately on her, " Too soon?"
She hesitated, then shook her head. " No. Only... it's all happening too fast. And I.. I want my sister here before it does."
His brows drew together slightly.
" She's in Vermont," she went on. "You sent them far away. I dont really know why. But I don't blame you for it. At first I was angry, but now I don't really see reasons to be. But I miss her. I need her. Just for a while, to help me breathe"
There was a bit of silence.
" I don't want to walk into the next chapter of my life without anyone holding my hand." Her gaze lifted, soft but steady. " Not even if I'm walking towards you."
Something in his expression cracked open, the storm in his eyes quieted.
"You were never meant to do this alone." He said, his voice low, intimate. " I'll send for her.
She will be here before the week is out."
Relief, bright and sudden, flooded her face. She smiled, radiant.
"Thank you" she whispered.
Maltherion reached across the table, this time fully taking her hand in his. His thumb brushed gently over her knuckles - no command, no possession, just a promise.
"You are not alone," he said again, softer now. " Not anymore."
That night, sleep found Xandria slowly, she drifted off beneath silk sheets and moonlight spilling across the chambers floor, but her mind wandered somewhere deeper than dreams.
She stood in a forest of silver mist. The trees stretched impossibly tall, their leaves whispering secrets in a language she couldn't understand. Somewhere ahead. She saw movement, a cloaked figure, hood drawn low, walking quickly down a path that hadn't been there a moment ago.
Xandria followed, barefoot, but never touching the ground.
The figure stopped at a clearing, where another shape waited. This one was different. Older. Bent. She didn't speak, but her presence filled the air like thunder held in a whisper.
"I received an invitation," the cloaked figure said. Her voice - it was her sister's.
The older woman tilted, the shadows of her face never revealing her expression. "You're going to the powerhouse?"
A wind stirred the trees. Xandria stepped closer, heart racing, wanting to call out - but her voice wouldn't work.
"Everything is in motion now," the older woman said, " don't lose you way."
And just like that, the world shattered like glass.
Xandria gasped awake, heart pounding. Her skin was cold, slick with sweat, even though the room was warm, she sat up slowly, fingers gripping the sheets.
The dream left an unusual feeling deep within her. Feelings that she did not dare voice out.
The feeling lingered with her even through morning tea and gentle greetings from the palace staffs. She tried to shake it, to dismiss it as nothing more than a trick of her mind.
But when she stepped into the corridor, she saw Anaya - her friend, her maid - pausing at the edge of a window as if she too had woken up from a place she wasn't meant to go.