A maiden with no choice

[ Celestine's POV]What is happening inside? Why did he propose a marriage? Why? The only thing inside my mind was why. I could not marry him. He is a murderer. He has murdered humans. A lot of humans. Some directly and some indirectly. He also murdered a part of me. He murdered my heart when he said those words to his followers. I was a foolish and naive girl to believe that he would eventually fall in love with me. How can a man who has no heart ever fall in love? I am not going to live the fate of a toy again. Never. I will refuse."Miss Bell you are summoned inside"I sighed at the maid and went inside."Close the door, Celestine," mother said.I closed the door and went to sit down on the couch.For some reason, I had a bad feeling. Relax Celestine. I need to tell that I don't want to marry him. Relax. Take deep breaths. "Celestine, do you have something you need to say?" Tom asked. He further added "Answer properly. A lot depends on your answer, and I won't give you a second chance." Weird."Yes, I believe I do need to tell you something," I said. Now or never."What Celestine?" Mother said in a frantic voice.I took a gulp and said "Idonotwanttomarrytheemperor." "Come again?" Tom said with his brows raised in confusion.Looks like I said it too fast for anyone to comprehend. Shit! I have to do this again."I said I do not wish to marry you, my lord. I am sure you will find a much better woman than me to make them your lady." I said as calmly as possible while an internal storm inside me was wreaking havoc.pfft, I heard Tom laugh. Why the hell was he laughing? His arm was leaning against the armrest of the sofa while his hand held the red wine. God, why did you waste your efforts on this devil?Mothers' and fathers' breath seemed to have stopped."I am afraid dear that won't be possible. You unfortunately don't have a choice in this matter."I looked at him scared and confused.No, I have to be strong. "I don't see how I do not have a choice in my matter."Tom smirked at me. "Read this Celestine" he said handing me the letter he got a few minutes ago.I took the letter from him and started reading it.[Amelia's POV]The bed is so soft! I want to bounce on it, but Mom said no. Mom has been on edge since the check. I feel bad for her. When I knew my mom was a witch, I was excited for a moment but then I realized that she is probably a fugitive. What other reason was there to hide from this world? As far as I know, my mom's punishment would be a torturous death. I cannot live without my mom. No one but Mum loves me. My grandparents are awful. They were treating Mom like cattle. The emperor is supposed to punish Mom. If I could talk to the emperor just once and persuade him not to kill Mom. Just once.But these damn maids assigned by my grandparents are not letting me get out of this luxurious room."Young miss, look at this beautiful dress. Do you want to play dress-up?" my overly cheerful maid Lilah said.Anne is a new maid from what I have gathered. She is much better than the other maids who look like a body without a soul. They look scary to me. They look like they will scold me for my tiniest mistake."Young Miss do you want to play dress-up?" Lilah asked smiling brightly.She thinks I am a child to play with now. But dress-up is a big girl game and isn't that blue gown so pretty?"Yes, Miss Rosie," I said shyly. "Oh dear! no need to call me so formally. You can call me Lilah!" "Ok, Lilah!" I smiled at her.[Celestine's POV]No this cannot happen. How can he know? "Celestine, do you still think you have any choice in this matter now?" Tom asked with a smirk. He was leaning casually towards the armrest of the sofa with a look that said, 'I do not forgive or forget'.Damn Aesthetics! It's not time to think about these now."Yes, I still think I have a choice in this matter," I said confidently.Tom raised his brows."There are many single mothers in this world, my lord," I said as calmly as possible. I further said "And I aim to be a good single mother who can raise her child with good morals. Even though I was financially weak till now I am sure with my parent's help I won't face that trouble." I am sure they won't let their child and grandchild starve no matter how bad they are!Why the hell is that bastard still smirking?"Oh, Celestine! I forgot that you have not been in contact with the Wizarding world for a long time. You don't seem to know this law made by the internal relationship sector of the Ministry of Magic." Tom said with a mocking voice."What law?""If a witch who is a mother to a magical child is left unmarried then she must marry immediately to a partner assigned by the Ministry of Magic." he paused and continued "And since I am the biological father who is healthy and willing to take into care both the mother and the child you have no option but to marry me, my darling. "Why? No, this cannot be possible. I cannot marry him. My face paled at the thought.Tom suddenly stood up and went near my ears and whispered "I always thought that this law was not useful. But I might have to reward the internal relationship sector for this. Welcome back to our hell dear."