His Witch Queen

"I don't believe in destinies. Rather, my trust lies in fate. Our marriage was something that was bound to happen and was written. Now that we are a couple, I think we have to discuss some major things before we stay in his marriage." 

"Otherwise, neither can you see me without hatred, nor can I bore you." Cyrus was straight in his words. In fact, Alice realized that he wasn't only direct but also acting a bit warmly. 

Was this simply her imagination? Alice had to think twice and didn't feel so. It was all real, they were out of the castle..and he brought her up to talk? Why? They could have taken such a manner back in the castle too. 

'Or maybe, he doesn't feel comfortable talking back there when the possibilities of our talks being overheard by others are too high.' He liked to be cautious and this was easily concluded by her till now. 

"I..I..agree with you on this. We can't count until we know everything about each other. Or at least enough which will make us live together.." Alice didn't have any intention to make this wedding crumble down.

But she too didn't feel the need to be extremely distant from him. At the end of the day, he is her husband, despite being a vampire monster whom she disregards. 

Alice didn't move from the palace. Keeping the neutral expressions, her lips parted to speak, "I think..you are right. We can't live under the same roof until we have some understanding between us." 

"And to avoid any confusion, I brought you here because back in the castle, there are many who would not like to witness me living happily with you." He had told her honestly, which made her eyes wide. 'Why is that so?' She wished to question but her wits told her not to do so. 

Why? Simply because she had sensed others' resentments towards him too. Especially Queen Elizabeth and the Second Prince Alex. They were typically not too vibrant in showing their hatred, yet it was still very much clear.

Moreover, for the other ladies, she can't say anything. After all, she had interacted with only two till now, who have been nothing but at least been sweet, at least the faces. 

Meanwhile, Cyrus had tugged his hands back, before he walked closer to the edge. Looking straight at where his castle was situated, his lips curled. "I heard that Queen Elizabeth had called you today and...Lady Ashley gave you a tour of the castle." 

"Indeed." 

"So..How did that go? Since I don't expect Queen Elizabeth to mutter any golden words for me." His straight reply didn't surprise her. "She matched my expectations." 

Hearing this from her, Cyrus's lips only widened further. His eyes had shown a bit of sour glint but that didn't stay for much longer either. 

For the next few seconds, neither of them spoke. All they did was stand in the middle of the night, observe the view from where they stood. It was all a view to never miss....but in between then, Alice had slowly realized that her hatred for these vampires...is really deep.

"In the Gazelle Kingdom, ladies aren't involved with the Kingdom's affairs. That part is left to the makers." Cyrus suddenly blurry this out, to which a frowned curve on her forehead. Although, this wasn't any unusual self, since most of the empires practice this...but what is the meaning behind his actions?" 

"I do know that. They are supposed to not meddle in each other's affairs. That is forbidden.." 

"But I don't think that the same was there in your Kingdom. Was it?" he can't help but ask when he turned his face in her direction, to stare into her eyes. "You were a very active participant in your father's affairs. In fact, I heard that after your mother passed, you had played a very significant role in all the prosperity."

"T-that....I..did.." All of the sudden, Alice found his stare to be mesmerizing. It was shocking when he talked about her achievements. Knowing that it wasn't a big deal either but she can't help but feel her heart racing in the unsteady beats. 

But Cyrus didn't let this moment go away either. He was still, in fact, looking in her direction with the same mixture of eyes. "Seems like, I got a better wife to talk about the affairs..rather than a dumb one." When the words entered Alice's ears, she passed him a glare. 

But on noting that she had taken her words into some here he quickly added, "I meant..as compared to your sister. She was dumb enough to run away all because her father told her. That was the least expected out of her." 

On this, Princess Alice stayed silent. Neither did she raise her voice, nor did she comment back. Even her silence was enough for Cyrus to understand that this wasn't related to her or at least, least favorite topic to talk about. 

Similarly, for the next few minutes, none of them spoke a single word. It was, as they were ready to be mixed with the breeze, making each other comfortable in the position. But on the other hand, Alice's brain had thousands of doubts. 

She was scared, no doubt because she was in the vampire's den. But on top of that, Cyrus was behaving as if he had changed and taken a one-eighty degree turn. All the expressions were unexpected. 

"You had once said that...you will make my sister's life miserable. Yet you brought me here...to converse about well-being so that we can live properly?" Subconsciously, Alice had told him honestly, without even realizing what she had talked about. 

However, when it struck her mind, it was already too late to take the words back into her throat. Rather, she stayed in fact, to get a reply from him. A sigh escaped his lips when Cyrus finally turned around to look at her face, with the mixed sentiments flowing in and out of those beautiful eyes.. 

"Yes, I was actually interested in making your life worse than that of an animal. You were supposed to serve...and your treatment wasn't supposed to be as good. But...." he stopped in the middle, to lower his eyelids. "....Then I can't come to hate you or hurt you. I found that hurting you makes me feel vulnerable. I-I don't know what it is but... it takes a lot of courage to realize and say this out loud that..I'm willing to let our marriage work despite knowing that you are nothing but a human." 

"There are complications around us. You have yours to adjust out there, and I guess, back in your Empire, there must be plenty of them. Whereas I have too many enemies in this Kingdom. THERE are many who loathe my blood. If I make my own first wife my own enemy, I don't think I can win the battles against others." 

Each sentence hit Alice hard. Not because it was an unexpected confession but because the depth of each word touched her heart. At this moment, she could feel her heart skipping a beat. As if, her mind rotated all around, to finally sense numb and settle again, finding her husband looking at her... trying to find the uneasiness expressions. 

But there was no trace of discomfort in herself. She was happy...mixed with tons of things. 

In the end, she can't find herself refuting his words either. Was he acting too soft? God knows, because all the time she came across him, he hadn't been this gentle other. On the other hand, his ruthless words while they were in the carriage, had already made her settle with the determination that she can't look weak. 

If she does, they will simply use her to their advantage. 

So what if she was rebellious? So what if she was acting courageously? It was all because the new changes are hard to accept. She was wedded due to unavoidable circumstances. Neither did she get the time to actually remember how the vampires are..it was too new for her to act. 

At least for Cyrus, he knew that he was going to marry a human..he must be mentally prepared for the hustle. But she? Just one day, she realized that she would need to take the place of her cousin's bride, otherwise her father would be considered the defeated King... and the same every day, she had to leave her people, come and travel with this husband of hers.. 

While Alice had already raised her guards, she didn't hope for my sweetness from him. But now that she is found, there seems to be another trouble blooming in the Gazelle Kingdom itself for her Cyrus.. 

"I.I..Understand. If we both are at least on cordial terms, people around us won't be able to instigate us and use us against each other. That is the last thing we would be looking forward to.." 

"But my lineage needs to be continued too, Princess Alice." Cyrus's comment made her nod her head. "I know....but is there something more than that?" 

She had seen the saliva gulped. The nervousness on his neck started to outreach when the beat of sweat already dwelled near. 

"King Almen wants me to marry again... with another King's sister..." 

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