Word Count: 2371

Midnight snack time.

Pressing against my door, I silently pray I won't bump into Tai's strange friends. Especially Arnix, who received a rather firm warning from Tai to stay away from me. Whether he has any reason to listen to his friend or not is another question.

I jump as a figure appears in my peripheral vision, standing right at my door.

"Marek?" I breathe, realising who I'm looking at. He leans against the wall, no weapons in sight, but he wears his partial hunting outfit, the black fabric pressed tightly against his arms and torso. I forgot that some nights he is here now, ensuring no one can get in without being acknowledged first.

"I'm your personal guard remember," he murmurs, the deep tone of his voice dancing along the surface of my skin. He firmness of his tone makes my stomach twist, reminding me that we aren't where we were a few weeks ago. "I'll be standing post outside your door tonight."

I close my bedroom door, leaning against it. "You really don't have to do that. I'm safe."

In reality, I'm grateful for a watchful eye. The emotional wounds have been harder to battle since the attack. It's the smaller, unavoidable things that bother me the most, like every time the shower water turns on I flinch, or the slightest hint of heat on my skin makes me shiver. But Marek can't protect me from that.

"Nothing can be left to chance. Not again," he murmurs, turning to look straight ahead.

Part of me wonders if he blames himself for what happened, even if none of us could have anticipated it. As I lean my shoulder against the door, I look over him carefully like he often does to me. The dull lights of the hallway that chase the nights shadows away glimmer in the depths of his icy blue eyes, but do little to lighten his expression.

"I'm sorry I haven't spoken to you much since everything happens. I've been worried about what might happen if we are alone together again," I breathe, rubbing my arms as a cold breeze lingers down the hallway.

Marek's gaze finds me, fluttering down to my lips. He knows what I'm insinuating, even if I would never admit it in the open like this. Marek and I are drawn to each other, a magnetic connection leaving it impossible to be away from each other. Even though we have been keeping our distance, we always seem to lock eyes across the room, or wordlessly bump into each other in the hallway.

"You don't need to explain, I understand," he mutters drily.

"Don't hate me," I half plead, taking a daring step forward. Immediately his pine and cinnamon scent washes over me, alighting my senses. "I don't think I could take that."

He breathes in deeply, eyes telling me what his lips struggle to say. "I don't hate you Akara. Far from it-"

He cuts himself, looking over my shoulder. Turning around slowly, Tai emerges from the shadows, wearing what I had seen him in only hours previous, however he has since discarded his decadent rings and lavish jacket.

"Is everything okay?" he asks, looking between Marek and I.

"Tai, what are you doing here?" I ask quickly, turning away from the hunter to face the King. Tai's gaze first tracks my movements before shifting to Marek, narrowing slightly. I'm waiting for punishment, yet at this point, I doubt Tai has the energy to enforce it. Marek is going his job.

"I thought we could talk," he murmurs, motioning to my room. Whatever he wants to say, it cannot be uttered before Marek.

Looking between them, they almost appear to share the same expression. It's one of mistrust, of uncertainty. Green eyes on blue, they examine each other like threats, leaving me standing in the middle uncomfortably.

Marek remains stoic, unmoving. "In her room?"

"It's a personal conversation," Tai mutters.

"It's okay," is all I can muster, nodding at Marek as if any of it might comfort him. Instead he looks away, mustering the strength to keep his expression emotionless.

Tai steps forward, gripping Marek's shoulder tightly. "You're doing a great job, Hunter."

He doesn't wait for the permission he doesn't need, brushing past and into my room, leaving an empty sense of coldness between Marek and eyes. Excuses, apologies...they all fall quiet at my lips. It's not use explaining that Tai isn't here for the sinful intentions Marek likely assumes. He's already suspicious after the night I never returned to my room from Tai's.

I close the bedroom door behind me as I step inside, eyeing Tai sitting on the edge of my bed.

"That was unfair," I growl through gritted teeth. "You don't have to belittle him every opportunity you get."

They could be forced to stand outside and fight and it still wouldn't dissolve the anger between them. It's obvious who would win, yet again, it wouldn't matter.

Tai shrugs loosely, unbothered. "I wasn't. I was just ensuring he knows who he works for."

It takes all my inner strength not to yell at him, to curse him for being so foolish. Instead, I close my eyes, allowing calm to envelope me for a long moment before coming to sit beside him on the bed, keeping a fair amount of space between us. The last thing I need is for a repeat of that night weeks ago, when we fell asleep together on the bed. I couldn't explain it away to Marek if Tai left in the morning.

"What are you doing here anyway?" I question, bracing my arms back as Tai lays on his side as if this is his own bedroom. I suppose technically he is. He owns everything in this room, including me, to a disturbing degree. I refuse to accept that.

"I wanted to talk to you, about the ball coming up," he admits, smoothing the wrinkles from the duvet.

I glance at the door, hoping Marek can't hear. "What about it?"

"Clearly we will be attending together, as an engaged couple," he notes, looking up at me through a fringe of dark curls, anticipating my reaction. I summon a breath. Of course, this is the façade we are meant to keep up.

"What are you proposing?"

"With your permission of course, I need you to act like my fiancée, like you're in love with me," he breathes, a hesitation to his tone.

My heartrate falters, as I consider. This is political step, to ensure those who oppose us see a united front. Those who work here already gossip that we aren't truly lovers, as we are rarely seen together, nor sleep in the same room. This is what Tai needs, to finally begin convincing his followers.

"Seriously?"

"It's just for one night, and it's not like you have to do much. Just tolerate me I suppose," he mutters, raking a hand back through his hair, each curl finding it's natural place again. As he looks away, refusing to meet my gaze, I'm reminded of how youthful he really is, for a King. His experience with this seems low, not appearing as natural as it does with Marek.

Yet he still has that inescapable beauty, that dark temptation you can't look away from.

"I guess I can do that," I exclaim, knotting my hands together before me.

"Thank you," he breathes, closing his eyes for a long moment, visibly relieved. This rebel concern is getting under his skin, I can see it. "It's just so my people believe they are going to have a loving, capable Queen."

I shiver at that word. Queen. It's the last reality I would have ever imagined finding myself in, yet here I am, sitting before the King. Part of me doesn't want to believe it could ever be true...it won't be, we don't plan to ever actually marry.

"Or, so they know their King is in his rightful place on the throne," I remind him.

Tai sits back up again, face uneasily close to mine. "It's just one night."

One night, just a few hours in that role. Maybe I won't pull it off though, maybe people will see through it and target me once again. Shaking the thought from my head I concentrate on Tai. It seems more believably that people will see through my façade as they struggle to make sense of why I'm actually a Queen over any other girl who has stumbled into his court.

"What do I get in return?" I ask, raising an eyebrow. In all honestly, I don't need anything other than for Tai to stay true to his word to help me kill the Beast. He is already providing my family with all they need, and I have everything here.

"I have something special planned. You will just have to trust me," he murmurs.

For a long moment, I'm transfixed by his words, by the hidden meaning behind his words that make my stomach flip over. Silently cursing that traitorous feeling, I instead concentrate on anything else other than him sitting on my bed, looking at me with a lethal focus. Recently thoughts have been entering my mind about him that I don't want to explore.

"Before you go," I note before he can get to his feet again. "How bad is this rebel presence? I mean, what are they so angry about?"

A shadow passes over his face. "People are getting desperate for power, and the only way to get it is by drinking from the Forbidden River. Since it's...well, forbidden, due to the horrific affects I'm sure you're aware of, people can't get new power into their bloodline, which makes them desperate."

I shiver. Of course.

If there is anything I learnt about that was outside my village is the Forbidden river. It runs through every province, forged from pure magic itself. It's the origin of all magic in this world, the original people having once drunk from it to acquire powers they didn't know they could ever possess.

But it came with a price. Only a small amount of those who drank from the river received the magic into their body, transforming them into half-magic creatures like Summoners or full-magic creatures like the Tani that dwell within the natural environment. The rest of the people did in horrific, painful ways. Since that day, the river has been forbidden, and no one has touched it since, or desired to.

Until now, I suppose.

"Why target you? Shouldn't that be an issue for Tyrien?" I question, noting the King of the entire known land. He deals with such important issues, not a King like Tai.

"I'm not exactly sure," Tai says with a shrug. "Anyways, you should get some sleep."

I ignored the way he said that, the hesitation suggesting he knows more than he's telling me. Instead, I follow him to the door, promising myself that soon I will be out of here, and none of his complicated politics will mean anything.

And all these conflicting feelings will vanish.

Tai doesn't mention anything to Marek as he walks away, laving me with a departing nod. I wait until he has disappeared into the shadows of the dark hallways before turning back to Marek, who stares blankly ahead, hands shoved into his pockets.

"It's not what it looks like," I admit, although just saying that makes me feel foolish.

He looks at me for a long, quiet moment. "It's none of my business, Akara."

"I want you, Marek," I say suddenly, unsure of how or why that came from my mouth. His head slowly turns as his gaze takes me in, eyes narrowing slightly. "I want you, but here, I can't have you. And yes, that's the worst feeling, but there is nothing I can do."

He doesn't respond for a moment, his eyes a tumultuous storm of unknown emotion. We aren't touching, but the tension between us almost feels as though it's pulling me toward him, daring me to fall into his arms to let him do whatever he was insinuating the barn that night. I glance back into my room, considering how bad it would be if...no, what am I thinking?

"I will be gone from here soon," he claims, raising an eyebrow at me. It's a tentative admission, wondering if I would chose to join him.

"And I can't come with you," I remind him. "But if I could..."

I break off, not knowing what more I can say without giving us both false hope.

"If you could leave with me right now, I would take you far from here, where we could finally be truly alone," he breathes, voice lowering as he steps closer, the shadows of the hallway intensifying his icy blue gaze, the silver of his marking. "And then, I would take you as my wife, if I were so lucky."

My breath hitches in my throat as he says it with no hesitation, looking me straight in the eyes. What would it be like, to marry Marek? I've never allowed myself to think like that...not yet.

He doesn't give me the chance to reply, although I'm not sure there is anything I can say. "But I shouldn't say that. I shouldn't put either of us at risk. But I know for certain that something is coming, and it will be time to choose your fate."

The darkness in his tone, the way he says it makes me shiver. He's right, though. Soon, I will be forced to choose Marek, or my life here.

And I don't think I'm ready for that.

💜••💜

If you guys want to read ahead, you can read more of KING'S POSSESSION on Radish! It's chapters ahead of Wattpad (:

👾••👾

I'm officially rewriting Alpha Jasper's story now on Radish! It will be following the same storyline with the same characters, but with revised scenes and some new ones!

I love Jasper's story so much that I wanted to go back and rewrite it. I hope you guys will enjoy it, you can find it now on Radish (:

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~Midika 💜🐼