Chapter 26: Chapter 26

DUSK.

I wondered how Ethan knew I had a seal, because it didn't make much sense to me.

He came to me and sat on the staircase close to us. I went to join him.

"Ask your questions." He said, and I looked at him.

"How did you know I had a seal? Did Seline tell you?" I asked, and he laughed out loud.

"I urged Seline to help you with the seal. I've known about your seal even before you did." He said, and my eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"You urged Seline to help me remove it?" I asked, and he nodded.

"I knew you needed your powers. It was the only way you could survive in this palace, and I can see you're making good use of it." He said, and I felt grateful.

"How do I thank you? You've always been looking out for me. Those times I didn't have food too, you were the only one who helped." I said, as I remembered all the times Ethan helped me.

"I only helped because of Lucius; most of the things I do, I do because of him." He said, and I sighed. "You know, Lucius has always been an odd one amidst the others." He continued and he started to tell me about Lucius; he told me his story, but even after telling me that, I wasn't feeling the way he probably thought I'd feel.

"I know Lucius is nice and all, but I just can't forget the day he forced himself on me. If there's a reason I can't bring myself to forgive Lucius for everything he's done, it's that. It was inconsiderate and selfish, and it was probably one of my worst days. He didn't have to do that, you know. He could have just left me." I said as I recalled the horrible moments of that day.

"It wasn't his intention, and I'm sure he regrets it." He said, and I scoffed.

"And how sure are you that he does? He hasn't said anything about it. We talked a lot today, but he didn't say a thing about that day. It was nothing to him; it was just something that was so easy to forget." I said, and Ethan shook his head.

"It was the reason you didn't see him after that day; he was sad and feeling guilty; he probably wanted to apologise so many times but just didn't know how to go about it; trust me, I know Lucius a lot." He said, and I decided to believe him even though the memory was still etched in the back of my mind.

~

The next day, I wore clothes suitable for hunting, and I found Lucius already waiting outside. We got into the carriage, and as we passed the town, I looked at the rings.

Then I spotted the woman, whose ring was stuck on her finger. She had gotten more pretty rings, and they were so beautiful I couldn't stop looking at them even after we drove past.

Then Lucius stopped the men, and he took my hand, and we got down from the carriage.

"Where are we?" I asked, but I saw he was staring right at the lady selling the rings.

We got there, and he looked around.

"Which do you prefer?" He asked, and I pointed to one with a rather exquisite design.

"Is that all you want? You're sure you don't want anything else? Necklace? Bracelet?" He asked, and I smiled and shook my head.

He took the ring and put it on my finger.

It was really pretty, and after that, he kissed my fingers and made me blush.

He was suddenly being so sweet.

Then I saw two ladies coming, and in one of their hands was the love potion I had seen the other day. I wondered if it really worked for those girls to look so happy.

All the way to the forest, I stared at the ring on my finger, and when we got there, I took my bow and arrows, and I and Lucius began to hunt.

"I'm tired. We haven't spotted a single animal since we came here." I said as my legs began to feel weak.

"Do you want to sit over there?" He asked, pointing to a log, and we both went to sit, and we stared at the beauty of the forest.

"I'm sorry." He said, and I looked at him.

"For what?" I asked, and he in turn looked at me.

"For forcing myself on you. I have no excuse; the only thing I can do now is say I'm sorry; I wasn't thinking right." He said, and I smiled because it seemed like his apology was what I'd been waiting for.

As he watched me, his expression grew soft, and he seemed to be thinking about me.

And shortly after, he kissed me, and I accepted his kiss.

We kissed for a while in the large forest, and in minutes, our clothes were on the floor while we were tangled with each other on the grass.

After making love, we rested on the grass, talking and laughing. Then we got up and dressed and ended up playing a game. It was a game of who could hit the highest branch with an arrow, and it was one I enjoyed even though I kept losing.

As we went back to the Palace in the carriage, the sun was going down, and Lucius had been so exhausted that he fell asleep, and I watched him intently.

"Are you only doing this because you can't bear to be rejected?" I asked because that was the only suitable explanation for his actions.

Then I began to wonder how it would be if he were truly in love with me, if he truly wanted to give his all to me, and thought by thought, I was led to the potion.

"It wouldn't hurt. I'll use it once. I want to know what it's going to be like if he loves me." I said to myself and guilt filled me over what I was about to do.

"Ah, I can't do it." I sighed minutes later.

~

Hours later, I was in my room, looking at the little bottle in my hand.

The little bottle filled with the liquid that would make Lucius fall madly in love with me