The Tyrant's Pet

When Aries walked back inside her chamber, she looked back and stared at the door. She was about to close it but hesitated.

"Knowing him... he probably met with my brother," she murmured, leaving the door slightly ajar. "He's not the type to prolong his own issues... or rather, he had delayed it for a long time."

Aries pursed her lips and let out a deep exhale, marching towards the settee inside, instead of going to bed. As soon as she plopped her butt down, she raised her gaze towards the bed where the light from the balcony couldn't reach. She sat there in silence, becoming one with the darkness and finding comfort in it.

Deep in her heart, she wished to not address this matter — at least, not now. However, Abel wasn't the type to put things on a pause just because she wasn't ready. She needed to be prepared at all times and use her head and decide at the most crucial time.

Therefore, despite her reluctance, she knew she didn't have that much time.

"He will come..." she whispered, fluttering her eyelashes ever so tenderly when she heard a faint thud outside the balcony. She clutched the armrest when her eyes caught a man's shadow with large wings. The light stretching from the balcony and to the bed's foot couldn't even show.

Her heart trembled as coldness seeped into her bones, watching the silhouette of his wings bent until it shrunk into nothing. In this darkness and silence, she even heard the faint crack as if bones were breaking.

Aries took a deep breath when she saw his figure reach for the knob and counted how many seconds before he pushed it open. The moment he crossed the threshold, she blinked, and the fear in her eyes dissipated without a trace.

"I must say those wings are quite huge... or perhaps it was just the shadow?" she broke the silence with a calm voice, watching him look in her direction. "I've been expecting you, Your Majesty."

Abel slowly cocked his head to the side. "You were expecting me?"

"For someone who cannot stand the guessing game, yes — I've expected your presence." Aries rocked her head, keeping her composure under his menacing gaze. His crimson eyes were brighter than usual, like those beasts in the middle of a vast forest watching their unsuspecting prey.

"Don't tell me you came here, expecting I was asleep?" she continued out of plain curiosity, propping her jaw against her knuckles. "That will be very disappointing, Your Majesty. I thought you knew me better than that."

His lips curled up as his eyes fastened with amusement. Even in the darkness that was shrouding her, he could see her fearless eyes looking back at him.

"I know you're not asleep," he confessed indifferently. "And I also know you are waiting for me. I can hear your breathing from a thousand miles away, darling. So, I know when you're asleep or awake."

"Yet, you still came knowing my intentions," she responded, pushing herself up. "I wonder... why?"

"You know why."

"I don't." She shook her head mildly while keeping her eyes on him. "As slow-witted as I am, I don't know your reason for coming in here. Perhaps a night of passion?"

Abel went silent for a moment, running his tongue across his inner cheek. "You're trying to get into my nerves?"

"I'm not." She shrugged. "I am simply expressing my dismay without being too bold about it."

"A lover's quarrel, I see."

"Relationships are full of challenges, my dear." Her smile didn't reach her eyes. "They said after the honeymoon stage, a married couple will love and hate each other to the point they can kill their partners. Maybe we're at that stage."

"Speaking from experience?"

"From my previous marriage? Yes." Aries chuckled in ridicule. "I killed — was about to kill my first husband. I hope that won't happen to my second."

His smile stretched broader, sizing her up from head to toe. She held her chin up, no vestige of fear in her eyes. But alas, the distance between them thrives the longer this conversation lasted.

"And what gave you the impression you can kill your second husband?" he asked, batting his eyes lazily. "How will you kill him? I would love to hear your murder plan."

Silence was the only answer he got from her. They looked at each other in silence before he advanced in her direction.

"I might contribute some inspiration since I'm a connoisseur of murder," he continued when he was standing toe to toe with her, bending over, staring at her up close. "Tell me, darling. How are you going to kill him?"

"You... don't scare me," came out a low yet firm voice, staring at him straight in the eye whilst shaking her head. "You don't --"

Her breath instantly hitch when he suddenly wrapped his arm around her waist and dragged her to the wall next to the window to see him properly. He was so fast that her heartbeat couldn't even keep up until her back hit the wall. However, no pain came to her as he slammed his hand against the wall and pulled her waist against him to stop her from crashing.

When she recovered, she blinked countless times and raised her eyes.

There, for the briefest moment, she held her breath at the sight of his sharp fangs while he hissed at her. His pupils constricting, tilting his head from one side to the other.

"Still not scared, darling?" his tone sent a shiver down her spine, making her feel the fear she never felt before. This time, her lips quivered as she answered with a muffled, "no." But alas, his lips stretched broader like a maniac.

"Your body says otherwise, though," he pointed out, feeling her back with his palm gently. "You're shaking."

Her breathing was suspended as she took a deep breath. He was right. She was scared to death, and no matter how she perfectly hid it from this false bravado, her body was something she could control with limitations. After all, Aries practiced hiding her anger, but never her fear. She didn't have any fear of this empire or the people in it, so there was no need for it.

"If I am scared a bit... will that matter?" she asked with an almost shaking voice, keeping her fearless countenance on instinct.

"It will, darling."

"Why?" she queried once more. "What will you do?"

"I don't know, darling... and that uncertainty alone should scare you out of your wits." He narrowed his eyes and licked his fangs. "Because if you show me your fears... I will feast on them."

Aries looked at those dreadful pairs of crimson eyes for a moment, before unraveling the layers she had worn through the years until there was nothing left in her eyes aside from what her heart felt at that moment: fear.