For the next few days, we got by with no issues. Oswald being with us while we were outside always meant we weren’t being watched. At least by the shadow warlock’s spells. Though in the crowd, it was hard to make out whoever was surveying us.

I avoided Gerta like the plague, fearing what she would say to me. After all, our conversation ended with me being the biggest hypocrite. She was the one person I feared figuring me out the most. I thought I had it planned out, but with the rumors of me laying with Alistair.

Everything was thrown out the window. Though I didn’t care if she called me out for being a phony. It was true. I was sleeping with Loki. That I had broken my word when I said I wasn’t going for the prince.

I wasn’t in my right mind when it began. But now? I was more than stable to know what I was doing was wrong. Though I still didn’t expect a relationship with him. Nor did I… No, I couldn’t say I didn’t want it.

Gerta, surely, would call me out on it. Sadly, I didn’t know what to say to her anymore. Most of the castle called me a whore, though I didn’t mind. But her… I think I couldn’t shrug it off as I did with others.

So, instead, I stuck near Loki, who didn’t mind it at all. Gerta wouldn’t dare to speak to me about my relationship with the princes while he was around. Though, during the mornings, I would also spend some time talking to Alistair.

Whenever he was done with the spar, he could come chat for a while. Especially while Loki was washing the workout off. No other ladies had attacked the princes while they showered. Well, for the time being.

What would the eldest prince and I talk about? Simple things. Even though his maids always glared at me like I was robbing the spotlight. He craved attention, but not the one he usually got from the females.

It was sad to see how much he just wanted to talk. I guess that was why he had taken a liking to the female maid that was pushed out. She had been emotionally comforting to Alistair. Something the other two maids didn’t like.

He was sad to see her go. Instead of fucking, they would talk the nights when he brought her over to his room. Of course, he never got too deep into his sexuality, but it was nice to have someone to connect to.

And now Alistair found that on me. Though, unlike the previous maid, I had pushed into his sexuality. Not that he minded me knowing. I had made myself clear I told no one who would hurt him.

Whenever Loki was done with his shower, he would also join us. Though the brothers would usually bicker if anything else. Even then, one could see how Alistair cared for his robust younger brother.

Though it would be far from what people would say: a perfect sibling kinship. Yet, there were rarely perfect. Luckily, thanks to the princes’ demeanor around me, most of the royals always stayed on the sidelines.

Well, all but one. Lucas was uncontrollable. He seemed to be too high energy. The way he gazed at Alistair. It made me wonder if those old feelings from their childhood still were present.

The more I got to know about the destined murderer, the more I realized he was nothing like I imagined. There had to be something I was missing. He appeared to be more down-to-earth than most people I had ever met.

In fact, I rather enjoyed the small talk that I got in before Loki stepped in between us. Though, six days into the same routine, it all came to a blissful moment when he called me…

“Little lamb, you’re a good friend and a good listening ear. I really enjoy my talks with you. Well, before my bore of a brother comes to ruin them.” Alistair rolled his blue orbs.

He had noticed Loki stomping his way over after his bath. And he wasn’t pleased with being called a bore. Though my heart stopped the moment those words came out. No one had ever called me that.

I became silent enough to catch the boys' attention when I held my hands up to my chest. The weirdest sting was coming through.

Am I a friend? Or a foe who dresses up as friendly?

I meant no harm to Alistair. Well, anymore. When I first got here, I wanted to get rid of him. Surely, that would’ve been the biggest mistake of my life. He didn’t know that I once was keen on killing him.

If he knew, would he still name me a friend?

It hurt. I wasn’t good at all. I had just believed my mother’s warning with no proof. Without knowing a damn thing about the boy, I was so willing to doom him. For a moment, they stared at me, not knowing what to say or do.

I appeared close to crying, though. Loki had heard what Alistair said. So, he knew I had probably been touched by being called that. The prince sat next to me before tugging on my dress somewhat.

I gazed at Loki, unable to figure out what I wanted to say back at Alistair. Those words were so foreign to me. I never thought I would ever hear them. The older brother studied me, bewildered by my response, before shaking his head and patting my head lightly.

Unable to take it, I grabbed onto his hand. I wasn’t a Lycan to be patted. But I didn’t mind it.

Why do I have to care?

It was so much easier when I did not.

“I… don’t think I deserve to be called that, Prince Alistair,” I mumbled, trying to hold my emotions in check.

Friends were something I never expected him to say. Especially when he didn’t know a single thing about me. If he knew the truth, then. Surely, he would hate me. He gazed at me, sitting beside me, much to Loki’s annoyance.

I could feel my vampire’s hands grab my waist. At any strange movement, he would’ve yanked me away. Gazing down, Alistair quickly noticed his younger brother’s mood. It triggered him to roll his eyes again.

“Hm… just call me Ali. And…” he began leaning towards me.

“You’re the only one I had the pleasure of calling that in a while. Also, thank you for listening to me ramble day after day.” Alistair simpered in a low tone.

Though he knew the world was listening to us. He hoped I would be the only one to hear from him. I gazed up at him and smiled back.

“I… enjoy it too,” I confessed, feeling it wholeheartedly.

It was fun talking about random things with him. Sometimes we got philosophical, but it was also joyful. We would challenge each other’s views in every aspect. Even with the living gods, I dreaded so much.

“Then that means we’re friends.” He assured standing up from the table, gazing at his two annoyed maids.

I had gotten used to the ugly looks I got everywhere. Well, where they recognized me with the princes. Though it had gotten worse. Loki was being more possessive and affectionate while we were in public.

Though I guess that was my fault too. I dragged him into an alley and had sex with him there before the world knew we were fucking. At least he hadn’t kissed me in public again. Though he was touchy.

Not that I minded feeling him there always.

“Oi, should I be jealous?” my prince growled, gripping me firmer.

Alistair just shook his head, shrugging.

“I don’t want your girl, little brother. Though if you’re a bore, she’ll leave you.” Ali chided Loki, who scowled in return.

Even though my prince knew of his brother’s situation, he still acted like he didn’t. Probably wanted Alistair to tell him directly. Though, part of me also thought he wasn’t pretending to be jealous.

After all, even though Ali rowed for the other boat. It didn’t stop him from being gorgeous to look at. And he had a history of having sexual meetings with females. Though that was more out of spite.

Lately, he seemed to have a lighter air around him. Old habits died slowly, but having someone to speak to normally was filling him in ways that his sexual encounters didn’t. After all, his maids were angrier than usual.

If they grabbed me alone, I probably would hear it.

“Oi…” Loki went to complain, only to be interrupted by Lucas plopping down on the table.

Their cousin appeared beat by the spar. Though the moment he came, Alistair took his leave. Lucas’s crimson orbs watched the older brother go before turning to Loki, who still seemed annoyed.

“Why do you never give me any pity?” Lucas asked, placing his head on the table.

He usually was a bundle of energy, though this time he seemed tired. I hadn’t noticed the ringer Loki had placed him on. Though I heard it from behind me while I spoke with Alistair.

“How else am I supposed to thank you for breaking my lip almost a week ago?” Loki snickered.

Eli slithered from his summoner's neck and onto my shoulder. Lucas seemed deeply hurt by Loki’s words. Though I couldn’t take my eyes off Alistair, who was headed to the showers.

Is all of this really okay? Can I be a friend?

I wouldn't know. No… not until…

“I apologized for that!” Lucas squealed, not happy to hear Loki’s revengeful side was to blame for his aching bones.

A small bicker broke between the two while I pondered on what happened. In truth, I was luckier than I first thought I would have been when I came here. When I first got here, I thought I would be alone.

But I had gained a possessive lover and a friend. Oswald was an ally, and the girls I had come with had become closer than I expected. Though Loki and I hadn’t confessed our feelings for one another.

Every night, we showed it. The passion didn’t change, no matter how many times I kissed him. No, in fact, with every day, all I felt was it getting stronger. And now, I had my first friend.

So many experiences were opening up for me. Though I couldn’t say that was the same for everyone. Emma and Oz weren’t on the best of terms. She was usually missing from our excursions to the town, while Zoe would tag along for Leo’s sake.

Between the pup and witch, a nice friendship blossomed. I didn’t know what happened between the two troubled souls after their talk. But it seemed Oswald asked for space to think. After all, unlike Loki, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to pursue a relationship with someone from the organization that killed his parents.

Oz was right to be hesitant. After all, unlike me, Emma was fiercely loyal to the coven. Her relationship would always be placed second to the needs of our organization. I only spoke to Emma once while she was leaving to work with Gerta in the morning.

Emma told she didn’t blame me for outing her as the enemy. Or for putting a strain on a relationship that wouldn’t work out either way. Even though she said everything was fine, I couldn’t help but apologize.

Though it was one she didn’t accept. Instead, Emma hugged me, smiling brightly before telling me it was unnecessary. We had come here for a job and she planned on doing it. Even though she couldn’t face Oswald as she wanted.

To her, her duty came first than any emotion. She didn’t care if her relationship with the prince worked out or not. In fact, she appeared to have fresh air around her after they spoke. It was like she had said everything she needed to. And so had he.

Though whenever Oswald and she interacted. It was like he seemed conflicted while she had moved on. I couldn’t help but admire her finesse and devotion towards our coven. Dad had made the right choice when he picked her.

All of that made me wonder if I could be strong like her for the time I had to leave Loki.

Will I have the power to move on like a normal mortal? Or is it true that gods could only love once?

That was something I couldn’t answer until the time came. My soul was one of a goddess long ago. So perhaps those rules applied to me too. Fenrir loved only Valdios. And though Valdios found ‘love’ in someone else during the time, he was away from Fenrir.

It wasn’t a real one. That made me wonder if what I felt for Loki was real or fake. But I knew I desired him. Maybe what defined love was how far we would go for the other. Alijah, who was Valdios in his past life, hated the world.

But he stopped his vendetta to live a normal life with Rem, Fenrir’s new life. He sacrificed his feelings and trauma to live with the soul of his love in his past life. While Rem would give up on her love to let him be happy with that mortal love he once had long ago.

Their story would ring through the ages of time. Once gods, now mortals. Yet they would always be together. They would always love each other until the end of time. While I… wouldn’t be as lucky.

No, Loki was a mortal boy. One that I adored, but it didn’t change. He was a mortal soul. There was a story my father used to love to tell me every night. It was about a god who loved a mortal woman once, long ago.

It happened at a time before my soul was born. One would think it would’ve had a happy ending. I mean, we gods could accomplish the impossible. The laws of the mortal realm didn’t define us, but we had other ones to live up to.

And sometimes, those rules were more of a curse for loving a mortal. Although our power was unlimited compared to those of the mortal realm, we lived by different standards. We gods never aged and could only be killed by another divine.

We even could absorb the dead god’s power for ourselves. Well, somewhat. It was why the ones in the soul cairn were only a fraction of what they used to be. Luckily, the living gods could only absorb some of their powers.

And even then, we could revive if they didn’t separate our souls from our bodies in time. We were truly immortal beings. And that was where the downfall came for loving mortals. No matter what we did. They would always die.

Even eternal witches who were our shrine priestess couldn’t ward off sickness. Or the fatality of being a mortal. After all, they died of the simplest things. And that god would find that out when he was suddenly called back into the Celestial plains for his duties.

He had forgotten how time worked differently for mortals. A simple mistake an immortal being can do. Sadly, this meant when he was done with his task. It was too late. When he returned to the mortal plane, he noticed the woman was gone.

The place where they had shared their love vanished. It was ashes, as if someone had burned it down to the ground. In a state of panic, the god tried to find the woman’s soul. To accomplish this, he bargained with the current god of death for her whereabouts.

But the other god couldn’t tell him where the soul of his beloved was. Even though he accompanied the souls through death. It had no way of telling the souls apart. It was taboo for gods to love a mortal because of this.

However, it didn’t deter the god from trying to find the love he wished to have. It took him thousands of years, and when he found her. She had moved on. One life, she had been abandoned by him, and the next she had continued to build a family.

The mortal woman appeared happy and wishful in her current life. This angered the god, who had sworn his life to her. A serious vow between us gods. And she also had done the same. But in the face of rebirth, vows didn’t matter.

The mortal woman had forgotten her previous life. And when the god brought back her memories through force, she wasn’t pleased to see him. Once a new life had taken hold of the soul, it was impossible to overwrite.

All they would ever experience are moments of a life they would never comprehend. It was very much like seeing a movie where one was the protagonist. A simple actor… And it didn’t change the current life.

Even though she remembered him, she didn’t love him. No, she loved her husband and family. He was but a stranger she once knew long ago. This turn of events made the god rabid with anger.

“How dare a mortal woman love someone other than me?!” the god howled into the night sky before making a vow to change the death cycle.

This wasn’t an effortless task, though. However, to us gods, it was unforgivable how she had forgotten him. Once we swore our lives to one another, nothing would do us apart. Yet it didn’t bound mortals to this rule.

And he blamed the god of death because of this. He hated the cycle of life so much that the discord he had been born with developed a new branch in his power. This gave him the ability to overthrow the god of death who only reigned supreme in the mortal realm.

The god that had done the divine wrong used to be peace-loving. One who slowly guided the souls into the afterlife. He didn’t care how corrupted they were in their current lives. It would be a clean slate the moment they were reborn.

That used to be a cycle where all the souls found their new meanings. Either a bird or a fish. It didn’t matter what their previous lives were. Sadly, to our angered god, this didn’t matter. He had been wronged.

This part of the story was a warning for me to control my emotions. They were so tied up in our powers that rage could be cataclysmic in the mortal realm. It was why my father gave me the brooch to keep my abilities from going over the top.

Though that didn’t stop me from fearing losing control of the powers I already possessed. Let alone develop new ones I couldn’t control. Though in this case, the god felt so betrayed that he challenged the god who governed over death.

It was a grueling battle, but sadly the god of death went down thanks to the sheer power the other divine possessed. This god, who was ravenous, was known as the god of darkness. He was one of the first gods created by Orenz, the god of chaos.

With this victory, he absorbed the power over death. All before casting the god into the banish realm of the soul cairn. With this new power, he created his version of the cycle of death. Of course, without understanding the souls of mortals.

This broke the stable cycle the previous gods had made. To fix this, the new god created a daughter in the girl's image he once loved. He had used the god of life to create this new divine. This combination gave the girl the flames of rebirth.

With her birth, he set her to govern over the souls of the mortals, who had become lost and forgotten. Mortals would see this goddess as a mighty golden phoenix with white flames. She could look into the mortal’s lives in ways never seen.

This allowed her to connect with the mortals in ways the new god of death always wished for. Sadly, this wasn’t where the story ended, though. The new god of death took the mortal girl's soul for himself.

He yanked her off the cycle before placing her in a box. One that he kept with him at all times. No one knew if he killed her to claim her or if he waited for his love to die. The tale happened before I was born.

After my birth, it brought discord to all the gods, and a war ensued to gain the power I possessed. Mom told this story to my father when she was still around. And he used it as a cautionary tale for me. As an eternal witch, I could stop time for my body.

Like I had done to my reproductive organs with the help of another. Essentially, I could be an immortal, being immune to the passage of time. But I never saw the lucrative part of living forever.

I knew father meant it more in the sense of what a love went wrong could do to me. Well, what it would do to me now that I had fallen for the prince.

But can it be fake?

I could only wish. Sadly, I had never felt this way before. My desire to want Loki in my life was overwhelming. Though I wouldn’t allow him to drag me down. Nor would I bring him down. So, I could only wish I had the strength Emma had.

Can I harden my heart? Or will I end up as deranged as the god who destroyed the life cycle to mold it to his own?

Before then, souls could never get trapped in the mortal realm. Of course, he sent his daughter to clean up the mess he created, but then he went and killed her, too. No one was left to gather the souls.

Though his daughter, Midnight, didn’t stay down. No, she moved her pieces from the soul cairn. Though her story aligned itself more with Rem than with mine. After all, she loved Fenrir with all her being.

Though her love didn’t corrupt her. No, she was a selfless being that gave everything up for Valdios and Fenrir’s love to come to be in the mortal realm. Midnight even linked them together for all eternity. Something I could never do.

Even though I was the only god ever to come from the goddess of order and the god of chaos. I lacked the understanding of what to do with this ability. They only used my power for others rather than myself.

But back then I didn’t have a will nor the ability to speak my mind. No, I was a tool. A fucking thing people used. All without a care what happened to me. Yet, there was untapped potential within me. Though I wished I would never find it.

I just wanted to live a mortal life. According to Edna, my mortal mother, no one could absorb the powers of my divine mother and father. Even half of it was too much to handle for the living gods, thus they separated them into fractions of that.

She lacked the knowledge of who were the ones who had them, though. We could only hope the living gods would never come. After all, the world was already fucked up enough as it was. Well, as they left it.

Rem was becoming a good balance between the world of the living and dead. But there were many other aspects broken. Dad spoke about a time when Mom warned him that calamity was coming.

Though she would refrain from saying what it was. The only thing she allowed him to know was that I was the key to stopping it. If I wished. After the coliseum we went to find Oswald, only to see the castle was almost fully decorated.

The workers were placing the finishing touches, but we could see the theme it was going for. All the pieces had a white, black, and gold color scheme. The dress code would be everyone wearing masks.

When we found Oz and headed outside, there were even more stalls added than the prior day. It was almost overwhelming to see how many there were. The king had gotten them for all the commoners to come and play games or buy different food.

However, they wouldn’t be allowed inside the castle where all the royals would be. But at least they had a festival out here to enjoy. One would almost think that Asher was a wonderful king. He was also well-loved by his people.

But with his family, it appeared he ruled with an iron fist.

Is Asher trying to prepare the boys for what the world expected of them? Or what he wanted?

I didn’t know or care to. After getting closer to Alistair, I could see the king was out of his mind to bend the poor boy to his will. He might be the one after Loki’s death, too. There was no way to know.

Though, of course, the eldest prince and I would never talk about that in public. No, we talked about simpler things. He truly was a kind soul. Though he loved to mess with his younger brother whenever he had the chance.

Something that I envied. Though, I could do nothing about it. After all, I was a single child, and would always be. Loki and I were still going steady. Well, hot and messy, more like it. We filled our nights with one another, while in our mornings we went about our daily tasks.

Luckily, no more craziness happened while I was with Loki. Since I was his maid, they didn’t expect me to do anything other than serve the prince. Though Emma volunteered to help on the ball just to stay away from Oswald.

Rumors about my relationship with the prince exploded. Not that I cared. Though I would never leave his sight for long. And if I was out of his sight, either Oswald or Alistair had to be around. Eli would also stay with me.

Even when we walked down the town, Eli had his watchful eyes on me. When we got to the Café, Ro was wonderful, like always. Oswald was drinking his coffee when I suddenly felt faint. I had always had issues with memories arising.

After that dream, they had become accompanied by dizzy spells. They were becoming more often and muddled ever since the night of the dream. Though most of the memories were a blur. It seemed my rise of emotions of that day caused the seal on my mind to weaken.

The moment Loki noticed me cover my face with my hands, he asked if I was okay. Suddenly I found myself stuck in between both boys' gazes. Zephier had been using me as a bed while we waited for the food to come.

And Eli, well, he never took a chance to be away from me. He was comfortable around my neck. Oz’s familiar had taken a liking to me, much like he did. Though for the snake there was a deeper connection, while Zephier enjoyed me in other ways.

 She probably sensed the soul within me, but couldn’t identify it. In fact, the little cat called it an attraction she couldn’t quite understand. Not every soul that was placed into the soul cairn was malevolent.

Though, I suspected those that bonded with the summoners. They were more benevolent than the ones I feared. Perhaps because I was composed of the two gods that they branched off from. Orenz and Aster, though, I was the only daughter they made by themselves.

“I’m fine, Loki. Just hungry I guess.” I smiled politely again.

I didn’t want him to worry. Though that seemed to be given. He always knew when I felt off. And usually never allowed me to downplay it. Instinctively, he frowned, narrowing his eyes.

“Why don’t I believe you?” he sighed, shaking his head a bit.

A second later, he placed his arm around my waist. I rolled my eyes at him. He was too caring.

“Sounds like your problem, hon,” I answered, snarky.

Loki smirked, wanting to tease me. But before he could answer, Oswald had enough. He was always cranky before the caffeine kicked in. Though that was more of a baseline, anyway.

“Oi… keep your lover squabble behind closed doors.” He sipped his cup, annoyed by our quarrel.

Taking the chance to bother his twin brother, Loki turned his attention to the grumps. A bicker between the two would follow.

“Ozzy, just because your relationship went up on fire. That doesn’t mean I have to tone it down.” Loki pointed out before sticking his tongue out at his brother.

His words caused Oswald to frown, placing his cup on the table. He appeared about to say something, but I wouldn’t let him. The slight discomfort I felt was too much to handle them two going at it.

The memories again seemed too incoherent to understand. Not even the voices were…

“Why are you such an annoying thing to deal with?” I mumbled, wanting some peace, but of course, I wouldn’t get it.

No, nothing about this vampire ever allowed me to get a clear head. He just made everything much worse than what it was. Not that I minded if we weren’t in public. He had no filter. Leaning into my ear a bit, he would make me eat my words.

“Oh sweets, you love me in bed, though.” Loki teased, gripping me tighter around my waist.

He didn’t care who was hearing him. No, he flourished when he saw my cheeks burn red. In an instant, I forgot those messy memories. He filled my mind with him.

“You know what? Alistair was right. You’re such a bore even in bed!” I snapped, gazing towards Oswald, who seemed amused by my comment on his brother.

Loki, however, was less entertained. He appeared more ticked off.

“Why can’t you be sweet?” my vampire huffed, knowing full well I enjoyed my time with him.

No matter what shape or form it came in. Every minute I passed with him was precious. Though of course, I wouldn’t allow him to know. I ignored him, directing myself towards the less crazy twin.

He was taking a sweet sip of his coffee.

“Oswald… can we put him somewhere where he’ll be safe? While also out of our hair?” I questioned harshly.

It caught both of the boys off guard. Though Oswald wouldn’t let this opportunity go. He appeared to have placed thought on how to protect his brother before today.

“Hah?” Loki breathed, unable to believe what I had said.

I turned my head away from my prince while Eli snickered, amused by our conversation. Though before his summoner could say anything, his brother would speak first.

“Hm… That’s an interesting premise. Since they linked us to the book, we can’t place him in the soul cairn or else the dead gods. Well, you saw what happened before. Though it would’ve been a great place to hide him in.” Oswald answered, catching the more robust brother off guard.

In an instant, I regretted my question. That place…

“Oi… You actually considered that once?!” Loki asked, annoyed by the turn of the conversation.

Though he quickly cooled off when I laid my head against his arm, smothering myself on his shirt. That would be the last place I would ever sent him. It was full of the gods who fought in the war, much like Oswald had pointed out.

They either hated me or wanted to control me.

“Anything… but the soul cairn,” I mumbled; regretting having asked that.

I guess the tone in my voice caused Loki to calm himself before leaning into me, too.

“I’m not going anywhere, Vivi,” Loki reassured me.

It was pathetic. I had run myself into that question. Yet he was the one comforting me.

“Pfft, I can’t even use it because of that. Well, I can summon shadow demons, but going to the soul cairn is out of the question. Grandma’s the only one who can do it safely. To a point.” Oswald pointed out, grumbling somewhat.

He didn’t enjoy the affection his brother showed me, but he couldn’t deny we cared for one another. Our conversation took a drop, though, when Leo came running from a store that was nearby.

He had gone to buy a game that people played for entertainment. I lacked the knowledge of such pleasantries, though. Lately, Loki made me watch movies on the tv in his room. He only used it for that purpose. Though, before I came it usually was Oswald who accompanied him.

It all started when I said I had never seen one before. I had read all kinds of books, but the concept of films and games escaped me. Well, it was something that Loki remedied right away. Though usually, right after or in between the movie, we would have other things in mind.

“I finally got it!” Leo beamed happily, sitting next to Oz, who appeared less impressed.

Books were more his thing. While the game actually caught my prince's interest. They spoke for a while about things I didn’t understand. Though, surely our food came. The pup devoured his food before turning to us.

Even though he seemed somewhat disappointed at not spotting Zoe with us. What came out of his pretty little mouth next would cause me to shudder in fear.

“Oh, Mom’s coming tonight,” Leo announced.

I almost choked on the drink I was seeping.

Rem?! Oh no…

“What?” Loki mumbled, surprised too.

Oswald appeared to not expect it either. We all knew she would arrive by tomorrow morning. But it seemed it would be sooner. Loki and I had spoken briefly about Rem. And how I needed to avoid her at all costs.

But I never went full depth on to why.

“Yeah, she called earlier. She wanted it to be a surprise, but… You know I’m not good with secrets. So just act surprise okay?” Leo wagged his tail, grinning widely.

Oswald seemed to shake his head, rolling his eyes.

“Oh, Ma and Pa are coming to the ball, along with grandpa and grandma. Forgot about that. Hey, we’ll see our uncles too. Probably embarrass us for good measure, too.” Oz sighed, not looking forward to the family reunion.

To him, it appeared it would be a hassle to deal with all of them.

“Yeah, but mom wants to see you both tonight. Before the ball. She had me plan this stupid thing to lure you there, but honestly, I don’t have the energy to do that!” Leo complained with a slight frown.

He seemed to not agree with his mother’s methods.

“Tell her I have plans.” Loki sighed, not happy about the surprise.

Although he loved his stepmother, he also knew I couldn’t be near her. And he needed to be near me in case a rogue vampire came. Well, one that didn’t believe Alistair. Luckily, the false claims of the elder brother seemed to reign true.

“What?” Leo said, confused.

After all, a family reunion was overdue. It was almost a month since they last saw each other. Leo, being so young, probably missed his parents. Though I was sure they spoke every night.

“I can’t drop them just because Remi is coming. She always expects me and Oz to drop everything for her.” Loki complained, grabbing onto my hand underneath the table.

Is he worried about me? Is this for me to know he’ll be on my side no matter what? Such a foolish boy.

It made me happy though. I could barely stop myself from smiling. Though knowing that Leo was around, I couldn’t afford to allow my emotions to show. A little hand-holding wouldn’t be so bad either.

It wasn’t like Leo’s eyes were all-seeing. I gazed away, intertwining my hand with his. In response, he tightened his grip.

“Ah… Well, she doesn’t like to call you ahead of time because she thinks she’ll bother you.” Leo informed, feeling disappointed that Loki didn’t want to be there when his mother arrived.

Oz didn’t seem to be fully on board either.

“Maybe she should. All I ever get is texts and voice messages from Pa. How does she expect me to know what she wants if she won’t tell me?” Loki huffed, annoyed.

It appeared Rem doing this was a pattern. Though I suspected Loki always gave in. But this time, he was more determined to keep me away from his mother. Part of me feared if Rem would recognize me.

Though I didn’t appear like I used to. I had grown into a woman.

If she touches me, will the necklace protect me from her power, too?

That was something I didn’t want to figure out.

“I don’t know if Mom will listen to me. She really wants to see you, Loki. Especially with everything that happened.” Leo simpered.

Loki rolled his eyes, shaking his head.

“Well, if she shows up in my room, then I’ll handle it then.” My prince sighed.

He didn’t budge. The little brother shook his head a bit.

“Okay. Thea and Luna will be disappointed, too.” The pup tried one last time to guilt him into giving in.

My prince paused, rolling his eyes again. He wouldn’t give in, no matter what he tried.

“They shouldn’t be.” Loki chuckled in disbelief.

“They’ll see me the next day.” He added, shrugging.

Leo wasn’t happy with that answer, though. The poor pup was looking forward to a family outing tonight.

“Yeah, at the ball, with all those people.” He scuffed, pouting somewhat.

It almost made me feel guilty. I shouldn’t have been placing a strain on their relationship. In the end, Loki would have them, while I would always be the enemy. I loosened my grip on his hand. This wasn’t right.

“Well, she needs to know I’m grown now,” Loki argued.

The entire time, Oz had been sipping his coffee without a care for the world.

“Well, I doubt she’ll listen.” Leo pointed out.

That would fall with Rem’s personality. She would give the world to her children. I was intruding.

“Pa will make her.” My vampire continued.

“Eh, I’m sure he wants to see you too.” Leo wasn’t giving up either.

“Well, that’s an issue they’ll have to figure out. I have my relationship to look—” Loki tried to finish.

I couldn’t let him. Pulling away from his warmth, I wouldn’t be the excuse for this.

“Speak for yourself. Don’t use me. I’ll be fine by myself for a couple of hours.” I snapped at a surprised vampire.

He wasn’t expecting me to jump in or act so hostile toward him. I had been too sweet these past few days. They had been peaceful. But now…

“Well, she can come. I’m sure Ma will love her.” Leo beamed, changing the conversation.

For a moment, everyone stayed silent. I stared at the naïve boy. His mother would murder me if she could.

“I-I… shouldn’t intrude. If anything, I’ll pass the time with Alistair.” I announced, gazing away from everyone.

My voice trembled a bit. Not because I feared being with Alistair alone. No, it was the thought of Rem catching me before I saved Loki. With her here, I couldn’t go to my Plan B of taking the twins hostage.

No, I would have to do Plan C, destroy everything. And that was far from ideal. My words caused Loki to grab onto my hand.

“Hm… Not happening.” My prince denied my spontaneous idea.

“Well, it isn’t your choice! I can do what I want in my after-hours time!” I growled, not wanting to be controlled or forced to do something.

“Unless I ask for you. And sweets, consider yourself needed all hours of the day.” Loki smirked.

I felt my eyes gloss before landing them on Zephier, who was still snoozing away on my lap.

“That…” I mumbled, poking the little cat with my free hand.

He wouldn’t let me go. This would be a problem when the time came.

Shit…

I was happy. Happier than I probably should’ve been.

“Leo, I won’t be meeting Ma tonight.” Loki finished, pulling me up from my seat.

Poor Zephier ended up on the floor, while Eli clung to me tightly. We were leaving.

“But…” Leo began.

My prince wouldn’t allow him to finish what he was going to say, though. No, he bid farewell before leaving coins to pay the bill. Without a second thought, he pulled me along back to the castle.

I didn’t know what would happen next. Rem was coming tonight, and I felt like our fates would clash. The ball was only hours away and I would have to not only dance around the nobles present there.

But every enemy that was there. Rem and Alijah were the most concerning ones. Though, I didn’t know that my path was about to cross with the person I blamed for everything. While Loki led me back, I couldn’t help but stop in my tracts the moment I spotted her.

No, it wasn’t Rem. Although she shook my world and labeled me as an abomination. I didn’t blame her for the death of Nene.

No… that’s…

“Tania!” Loki called out the moment he saw her by the castle entrance.

My world froze. I didn’t know if I had it in me to not kill her. After all, she killed Nene. If she hadn’t chased us and cornered us. Nene would still be around.

Will I control myself for the sake of the one I loved? After all, she’s his aunt.