11: A dangerous wish

~Laith~

"Laith, Love," Zephirin's delicate lovely voice infiltrated the walls I put up. "Take my hand," he appealed.

I stretched forth my hand to take hold of his. To let him pull me out of this darkness. This terrible gloaming point seized possession of me. 

Prince Zephirin took hold of my hand and pulled me to him. I landed in his frame. My hands clutched the hems of his shirt firmly. I buried my face in his chest. 

"We need to start meeting on different spans," he let out. "Don't you run out of tears?" he teased. His hand patted the back of my head. 

I melted into his arms. "Don't leave me," I desperately pleaded. Burying myself deeper into him, to feel the warmth emitting from his body. 

"Have you any idea what is going on around you right now?" he posed a question. "Open your eyes and see," he persuaded lifting my head. 

My eyes peered at him. The one I cared to see in all the chaos, My evil savior. He raised his hand in the air, my eyes followed his movement. Blood fell on his palm from the skies. It was then that I noticed that it was raining blood instead of water. 

I took a step back and glanced at the world around me. Though it was morning, the land was immense in darkness. The sun hiding behind the bloody clouds in the sky. 

The ground beneath my feet was soaked with blood. My white silk habiliment was as black as night, it needed no holy water to change color. Vividly showcasing the stain in my purity. 

My heart fell. 

"The skies are bleeding with you, love," Zephirin brought to my attention. "Your tears are condemning Liradia to darkness."

I was speechless. I was merely an emblem of light for the people of Liradia from goddess Rezelna. It made no sense why my feelings would affect the nation.

Guilt weighed over my shoulders. 

Ba-thump! Ba-thump!

My heart thundered. The rhythm was unfamiliar, as though it weren't my own but someone else's. My body froze up as I locked eyes with Prince Zephirin. 

"I don't mind a little darkness though," he got lost in the sight before him. With the blood rain and red clouds, it was evident in his eyes that he loved the scenery. 

His lips stretched out into a smile. His white teeth twinkled brightly, the smile brought out his eyes. Concentrating a different light on him. Prince Zephirin seemed ageless and ethereal. 

The blood dripping off of his mask did nothing to sway his charms. He was almost magical. 

It was the first time I witnessed Prince Zephirin smile sincerely. The look suits him. 

"Beautiful."

Prince Zephirin shot me his soft gaze at the compliment. He blinked his eyes repeatedly, puzzled. Time stood still. His eyelashes flattered in slow motion. 

Ba-thump! Ba-thump! Ba-thump!

I tried not to freak out when he concentrated his gaze on me. The butterflies in my stomach fluttered uncontrollably. The prince was breathtaking. 

"Beautiful? What do you find beautiful?"

"You," I leaned in and whispered next to his ear. "You are beautiful when you smile."

"You need to freshen up. Bursting into tears too much seems to be messing with your head," he brought to my attention. "How can you think im beautiful?" he complained. 

He turned me around, I glanced ahead to find myself staring at my reflection in the mirror. In my room, by my dressing table. 

The black drape on my body made my skin itch. The evidence of the stain in my heart. A reminder of the moment my feelings for a man exceeded that of my goddess. 

I gulped. 

"Change, rest before you go back out there," he let out. My heart panicked. He spoke like someone who was leaving and I couldn't handle it. 

I clasped my hand around his arm to halt his movements. "Don't leave me," I pleaded. 

"You should take a ba..."

I snapped my fingers and a clean robe replaced the one I had on. Without letting him go, I changed into a different outfit. 

"Done," I claimed openly. I grabbed his arm and pulled over to my bed. Entitling all the decisions to my heart. "Will you sit with me until I calm down?"

Prince Zephirin blinked. Confused by my words and actions. He wasn't the only one stunned. The desires of my heart were dangerous but still, I chose to feed them. Without worry of the consequences of my actions. 

"I'm afraid I can't. I need to be somewhere else," he said. 

"Where!" I panicked. 

"I'm going to set a village on fire," Zephirin uttered. Unfazed by my presence to hide the reason for him leaving. He was brutally honest for an evil villain. 

That was the least surprising part. What stunned me the most was the desire blooming in my heart to accompany him and watch the flames of the fire he lit. The darkness promised by his side was alluring. 

"Can I join you?" I asked. 

"Everyone has good and evil inside them, love. It depends on which one we choose to feed," Zephirin let out. He took a seat at the edge of the bed and held my hand. "I know you are hurt, the pain seems unbearable right now but I won't let you use it as an excuse to feed your demons. The world needs your light, so rest up, and heal before making a decision. One you won't regret."

Unlike the rest of the world, I didn't have a choice of which demon to feed. The choice was made for me way before I was born. The path of goodness is written in my fate, a path that promises death to the one person I wished would live for a thousand lifetimes. 

"The world needs my light to protect them from you, the Evil one," I joked and forced myself to laugh. "But I wish that I could watch you set the world on fire. Watch everything burn to ashes," I admitted. 

"Aren't you afraid to be consumed by the flame?" he raised a question. 

"Why would I be? I trust you won't let me burn. The flame won't even come an inch of me," I spoke out confidently. The words I spoke surprised me. 

Prince Zephirin seemed taken aback by my words. I wouldn't blame him. It wasn't every day that I blindly trusted someone I hardly knew. That too my enemy whom I met only the previous day. 

"You should get some rest. Don't force yourself to meet anyone if you don't feel up to it," Prince Zephirin got up to leave. 

"When I open my eyes, I wish the first thing I see are your eyes," my mouth ran carelessly without giving my mind enough time to censor the words I uttered. 

"That's a dangerous wish, love," he let out and smirked. He vanished from the room. 

I spun around to sleep facing the window. My eyes darted on Rhon standing silently by the wall. My heart nearly jumped out of my chest in shock. 

I hadn't noticed him before. I heard him calling out to me when I was lost in myself before but I overlooked his presence when Zephirin appeared. 

"The de..deposed pr..prince is the evi..evil one," he struggled to say. "You and hi..him..." My heart skipped a few beats and my jaw dropped.