Reason #16: Only Troublesome Days Ahead (2)

**********

At Hensley Inn

That Night

Robbie escorted Ivy and Prince Leon to their room and helped them get settled.

"We'll bring you some of pop's old clothes, and Miss. Ivy can wear Khloe's gown and dresses."

"Thanks, Robbie, we can't thank you enough."

"Your welcome, Ms.Ivy. It's pop's fault, after all, for ruining your dress. I'm sorry about that."

"Oh no, It's not an expensive dress or anything. Please do let Mr. Hensley know that we are grateful for his hospitality."

"You are really kind, Ms. Ivy. We've already prepared the hot bath for you. It's just down the hall from here, so do feel free to use it at any time."

"We will, and thanks again."

Once Robbie left the room, Ivy turned to find that Prince Leon was already asleep in bed.

"He must be exhausted. It's surprising enough that he could last this long. Not only he hasn't slept yesterday night, but he also trained with father the whole night and ran around town for a few hours today."

Ivy sat by his side while she looked at him, sleeping comfortably.

As she gently strokes his hair, she silently hums a tune to him, hoping it can give the Prince some pleasant dreams.

"You can be so cute like this, if only you weren't so naughty all the time. Just thinking about the White Dove mask makes me really embarrassed again."

The Prince did not reply and continued to sleep away.

"—— Sigh, I guess I should let you sleep."

The moment Ivy stood up, she felt a strong pull from behind and made her fall into bed.

Before Ivy knew it, she was already cuddled in Prince Leon's arms.

"Le- Leon? What are you doing?"

Ivy asked nervously while being stuck in his clasp.

"hmmm..."

"Le-Leon? Is he delirious? Did he unconsciously pull me in his sleep?"

No matter how much Ivy called out to the Prince, the Prince did not respond as he continued to fall deeply asleep.

Try as she might, Ivy couldn't break free from his hug.

"How could he be so strong even in his sleep?! Ugh... What am I suppose to do now? I really want to take a bath... *sobs*."

While she was stuck trying to figure a way out, she heard the Prince mumbling.

"Ivy..."

"Leon? Are you awake?"

"Nmm... Ivy."

Seeing the Prince acting like this, Ivy has given up the chances that Prince Leon would wake up at all tonight.

"I guess I may just have to stay like this until he loosens his grip."

"Ivy... Ivy..."

"Yes, yes... I'm here."

The only choice that Ivy has now is just to play along with the Prince.

"It hurts..."

Ivy noticed that the Prince started crying, thinking that maybe he was having a nightmare.

<Poor thing> Ivy thought <He must be enduring this whole time from training. Father's training must've been terrifying for him.>

"There, there, it's fine. I'm here. I'll make the pain go away. They will never come near you as long as I'm here."

Ivy said to him softly while she reached out to his face and wiped his tears away.

"Ivy, don't leave. Stay with me..."

"Don't worry, my Prince. I'll stay until you find her. The girl that will give you true happiness one day. Once you do, I promise you that you will never feel pain like this anymore.

"I love you..."

To Ivy, the word "love" felt like a curse. She wishes that had she not been born as the story's villainess, she could imagine that she would have happily accepted this feeling that she has. But sadly, he is the hero, and she is the villainess. No matter how strongly she could've wished for it, she knows that they are just not meant to be.

With all the sorrowful feelings in her heart, she hugged the Prince back tightly and silently said

"I'm sorry that I cannot love you, but you will find someone better."

A few hours later, in the middle of the night, Prince Leon finally awoke from his slumber.

As he opened his eyes, he saw Ivy's face, sleeping right in front of him, and it made him wide awake with surprise.

He rose halfway from the bed, making sure that he was fully dressed this time.

After he checks that nothing was undress, he sighs in relief.

Then he turns back his gaze and looks at Ivy's sleeping face.

Every time Prince Leon looked at her, he felt calm. As if all the uneasiness that he had faced before disappeared, and this magical serenity exists only when she is around. He doesn't want to let go of her, to let go of this feeling that made his heart feel peaceful and happy.

As he gazed at her pretty face and her small body from top to bottom, his heart started pounding louder. He looks at her body, thinking that it is untouched and unprotected in front of him. He then touched her belly and said

"What if I put seeds in here? Would that stop you from leaving me forever?"

Although she did not reply, she unconsciously hugged the Prince by the waist, thinking that he was the pillow on her bed.

The moment she hugged him, the Prince blushed and covered his face with his hand.

"How could I have such dangerous thoughts? Even now, I only wish to devour you and make you mine."

Ivy did not reply but continue to snuggle herself into his chest cutely.

Prince Leon took a deep breath as he felt deeply frustrated with the current situation.

As he calms down, he looks at her once again.

"Hey, Ivy, are you falling for me a little bit more today?

When will you tell me that you love me?

You don't know how much I wish that day is today."

The Prince then softly kissed Ivy on her forehead and held her tightly.

"For you, I'll wait patiently. Even if that takes 100 years."

They then slept soundly throughout the night, only dreaming about each other and their future.

************

At Hensley Inn

That Morning

When the Prince woke up again, he rustled the sheets with his hands, felt the empty space next to him, and only then he realized that Ivy was no longer in bed with him.

"Where did she go?"

The Prince looked around the room while he tried to find traces of her.

"Her cloak and shoes are still here. Could she be downstairs?"

So the Prince decided to head out of the room to search for Ivy, but before he could turn the knob, the door unexpectedly opened.

It was Ivy that just came in. Her hair was in braids, and she was dress in an off-shoulder tavern girl's clothing. She brought in a tray of food with her and greeted the Prince's good morning.

"Ah, you're up. How are you feeling? Did you have a good night's sleep?"

She smiled at him looking refreshed.

"Where did you go? and why are you dress like that?"

"I was downstairs getting breakfast for you since we haven't had anything to eat yesterday. You fell asleep the moment we arrived in the bedroom, and you even pulled me into bed, hugging me all night, don't you remember?"

How could the Prince not remember as he recalls the dangerous thought he had in bed with her last night.

While the Prince was in a daze, Ivy touched his forehead to check on him and see if he was ok.

"Hey, are you ok? Do you have a fever? You don't look too well. I can't believe father put you through so much. He should consider a little bit more about your well-being. Let me know if you are in pain, ok?"

Seeing her care for him made the Prince feel good. He could only see him in her eyes, and he wanted it to stay that way.

He slowly removes her hands away from his forehead and places her hands on his cheeks.

"If I'm in pain, would you take care of me ?"

He looked at her with his gentle eyes.

"You do feel a little warm... maybe I should ask Hensley if he has some medicine. Let me just..."

As Ivy removed her hands and was about to head to the door, the Prince lifted her and carried her to bed.

"Le-Leon?!!"

Prince Leon's sudden move <princess carry> took her by surprise.

"What are you trying to do?!" Ivy yells

The Prince prowled at her like a predator while she squeals like prey.

"Are you not going to take care of me?"

He smiled sinisterly.

"I. I'll get medicine for you. So if you could just let me go out."

Ivy was trembling in fear, and she closed her eyes shut, afraid of seeing what came next.

While her eyes were closed, she felt something heavy just landed on her lap.

She opened her eyes to see Prince Leon laying himself on her lap again.

"Leon? what are you doing?"

"I'm not sick. I just need to sleep."

"Then sleep on your pillow!"

"This is my best pillow."

Ivy became speechless and was contemplating if she should let the Prince do as he pleased.

"Ivy, comfort me." The Prince said while he comfortably rested on her lap with his eyes closed.

Ivy looked at the Prince, acting like a cute spoiled child again, looking like he hoped to grab a mother's attention.

Feeling defeated by his cuteness, she gently brushed his hair, giving him the comfort he wanted, and it made the Prince silently smile.

"Hey, is this good enough? Are you sure you don't want any medicine?"

"This is the best medicine for me. I could feel my body healing already."

Ivy blushed, hearing his words.

<Deep breath, Ivy, deeeeep breath. This is just another pheromone attack. Endure it, endure it!!> Ivy's inner voice

When Ivy saw the awful scars and blisters on his hands, she couldn't help to feel sad when she imagined the pain he had to go through.

<It must've been tough for him. He did cry and had nightmares last night. I should be kinder to> Ivy's inner voice.

(Author: Ivy actually thought the Prince was like a sick child, and when a child is sick, a mother is usually extra nice to them and gives them whatever they want when they are sick. However, she continually forgets that he is not a child.) ε-('∀｀; )

"Do you want anything else? Or Would you like me to do something to make you feel better?"

The Prince's eyes suddenly widened as he was shocked to hear Ivy offering to do something for him.

Prince Leon was actually happy enough sleeping on Ivy's lap. He wouldn't dare to ask for more because he was afraid that it might scare her.

<But if she is offering... can I be a little bit more greedy?> Prince Leon inner voice

He looked directly at Ivy, and he wanted to confirm how far he could ask for.

"Can I really ask for anything?" He asked with a straight face.

"Hehe, of course! Silly. I'm here to care for you, am I not?" Ivy said proudly

"Just tell me, what do you want me to do?"

Inside Prince Leon's mind, there are a million things that he would love to do with her. But at that moment, he could only but think about one thing.

As he stared at her moist pink lips, wondering how it would taste, he slowly raised his head toward her and reached out for a kiss.

When Ivy noticed what he was trying to do, she immediately blocked his kiss with both of her hands, covering his mouth to stop him from going further.

"Uhm... anything but that," Ivy said awkwardly while the Prince looked at her with sullen eyes.

"Even though you said anything."

He then turned away from her and sulked at a corner as if she had just taken his candy away.

"I'm sorry." Ivy looked down, looking remorse. "I'm still new to this lover thing. I need a little bit more time."

When Prince Leon notices Ivy looking sad and shaken, he just scratches his head and stands up from the bed.

"It's fine. It's my fault for not considering your feelings. I was rushing things."

The Prince then went to her side, patted her head, and comforted her.

"We still have time until this trial period ends. I won't stop loving you so you can take your time to realize your feelings for me."

He smiled at her and then headed towards the door.

"I'm going to take a shower. You can eat breakfast first if you want."

As he closes the door, silence falls into the room as Ivy went deep in thought.

<I just want to buy more time until he leaves me for the princess, but why I feel so bad about this? and did look as if was cry?>

While Ivy's internal processor was sorting out its bugs and errors, the Prince stood still, reflecting on his actions on the other side of the door.

Prince Leon clenches his fist in frustration as he looks down to the ground.

"She looked scared. I shouldn't have done that."

Then he let out a deep sigh and covered his eyes with his hands as if not wanting to let people see him cry.

"Ivy, when will you tell me that you love me?"

************************