Heavy silence hung in the air, only the sound of feet kicking sand could be heard as the horse galloped through the night. The cold wind blowing against it's mane as it danced in the air.
Seraph looked at the road behind, not daring to look at Sebastian, not after what happened earlier. She couldn't believe she had cried like that and not in front of anybody else, but him..Him!. What would that jerk think about her now? After claiming to be all strong and mighty she broke down because of a few mere words.
She clutched the necklace, admiring the green gemstone embezzled in the centre of the necklace. She focused on the necklace, partly to admire it, but mostly to avoid looking at Sebastian.
"Are you feeling better?" He had to break the silence. Seraph clenched her jaw before speaking. "Yes."
She said shortly, then faced him. Although his back was to her, he could feel her gaze on his back. "Listen, whatever happened earlier... forget about it." She snapped and he chuckled. "What? You think I'll mock you for It?" He said and she scoffed ignoring his words.
"You're a demon but human as well. You have the right to be sad, it's not something I'd laugh about." Even though his words gave her some sort of assurance, it still hurt her pride that she had cried before him.
"Listen, I've told you forget I ever cried, okay." She said with a tone of finality and he smirked. "Okay. Cry baby." He whispered the last part loud enough for her to hear and she didn't know when her neck and cheeks flushed red. "You asshole!" She sneered and he laughed.
This was the first time he laughed and the sound felt so sweet and genuine. She hated it.
"Shut up." She huffed and stared at the trees which disappeared as they moved. Suddenly her eyes lids felt heavy, the wind felt a bit more comforting than before as she adjusted in her seat. She tried to keep her eyes open but failed miserably as exhaustion wrapped around her and she drifted off to sleep.
Sebastian noticed that she was unreasonably quiet and turned only to see her sleeping. She looked so peaceful, so calm and beautiful.
Her hazelnut hair poured in waves over the travel bag which she used as her pillow. Her longs lashes danced as her lids moved, her stance calmed and it made something stir within him. He wanted to keep seeing her this way. So peaceful and calm. Even though she wasn't happy now, he would try his best to make her happy.
"Mine..." Boax muttered, his voice low and husky. The sound reach his ears and heat spread across his face. Lustful thoughts invaded his mind, which made him snap his gaze away from her, so he wouldn't do something he would regret.
******
The sun peeked at the edge of horizon, it's soft rays casting a delicate glow over the sleeping figure. Seraph eyes moved, the sunlight disrupting her slumber.
She stirred in her sleep turning her face away from the sun but it wasn't working, the sun was out and ready to wake her up this morning.
With a groan she sat up, blinking the remains of sleep from her eyes. "Are we there yet?" She asked and Sebastian turned to her with dropped shoulders and dark circles shadowing his eyes, she couldn't help but feel sad, she had slept off, leaving just him to ride the horse throughout the night, she was sure he didn't get any sleep. "Good morning and we're almost there—" he answered with a yawn. She couldn't let him continue, he looked pathetic.
She brushed through her hair, straightening the rough strands and stretched her limbs. "Stop the horse." She stated and he arched his brows. "What do you mean?" He asked, confused.
"I know you're tired and you want some sleep so stop the horse, I'll take over from here."
"It isn't far right?" She asked as she waited for him to the stop the horse but he wasn't stopping it. "I'm fine, I'll get some rest when we get there and also, you don't know the way there and I can't trust you with my life." He laughed and she felt a bit sad when he said that but pretended not to care.
"Whatever, at least I tried to help." She huffed, her hands crossed over her chest. "We're here!" He said excitedly, as he tried to mask his exhaustion but she could see through it and it made her scoff.
"I can't trust you with my life." She mimicked in her head. What a stupid excuse!
He turned back when he noticed she wasn't talking and sighed. "I'm sorry." He muttered and she knitted her brows. "What do you mean sorry? You didn't do anything wrong?"
He faced the road again, still speaking to her. "I know you want to help me but I'm fine. I promise." He assured and she rolled her eyes. "Whatever." She mumbled and he couldn't help but laugh at her reaction. She was so cute when she tried to act ignorant.
His tone turned serious. "Now look, if they ask. Tell them you're a princess from Deveina and I'm your bodyguard who escorted you to the royal ball."
"Okay."
"And also if they ask you why it's not in their map, you tell them your father wanted independence so he started a small kingdom separately, far away from your grandfathers."
"So...you made up a kingdom and story. You're a bad liar." She smirked and he smirked back at her. "What can I say, it's one of my best qualities." He said smuggly and it made Seraph chuckle.
Soon, they reached the large imposing gates of the kingdom and the gates alone made Seraph gasp. She felt so small beneath the giant gates, the size overwhelmed her.
It was a fine craft of wood and silver. The wood was properly chiseled and that silver lined the edges of the door. Two huge towers stood beside the gates which seemed to house the guards.
One the guards stepped down from the tower. His sword tightly clasped between his fingers, his gaze unreadable as he stepped forward not dropping his guard for a minute.
Sebastian stepped down and closed the distance between them, bowing curtly. "Good day sir."
"Good day and what business do you have here?" He asked in a unfriendly tone and Sebastian smiled. "Oh sir, we were invited to the royal ball by the king himself."
The guards laughed. The royal ball. Them. In that. They didn't think he was stupid did they?
Most royals would come here with huge swarms of guards surrounding them, elegant carriages, well tamed horse but these two were different. How could they come here with their barely fed horse, run-down wooden cart and simple clothes and expect him to open the gates for them?
Well if they thought he would open the gates for them, they were wrong. Very wrong.
The guard narrowed his eyes, a mocking smirk twitching at his lips. "The king invited you? With that?" He gestured toward the thin horse and battered cart. "Where's your royal escort? The parade of nobles? Your kingdom's emblem?"
Sebastian kept his posture straight and tone calm. "My lady's kingdom is newly established, sir. Small but noble. We prefer simplicity and humility, unlike others who flaunt their riches." He added the last part with a hint of challenge, letting his gaze lock briefly with the guard's.
The guard's lips twitched, not amused. He glanced at Seraph, taking in her straight posture and regal expression despite the plain clothes. She met his stare unflinchingly.
She knew how to look royal. And she did.
"Stay here." The guard finally said, turning around and ascending the tower steps. Seraph let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.
"Do you think he bought it?" she asked under her breath.
"He doesn't need to buy it," Sebastian said. "We just need a chance to step inside. Once we're in, no one will question us."
"Hmm, sounds like something a criminal would say."
He smirked. "Do you want me to show you how criminal I can be?" And she cringed from his words, although she couldn't deny it stirred something in her chest...Not butterflies. Something.
The guards came back with a scroll in hand, he unravelled the scroll and faced them. "Name." He said.
"Princess Seraphina Venpelt." He answered smuggly. He knew their name wasn't in that list he just wanted to stall, long enough for Boax to recharge and when he heard Boax's growl, he smirked.
The guard looked up. "There is no Seraphina Venpelt."
"I know." Sebastian said, a voice layering over his. His voice cold as glaciers. The guard wanted to send them back but he caught sight of Sebastian's eyes, he froze. He badly wanted to look away but just couldn't, the orbs pulled him in with an invisible force.
The air around them tensed and Seraph could feel it. Which made her wonder what Sebastian was doing to the guard.
(INSIDE THE GUARD'S MIND)
The guard opened his eyes and saw himself in the lake of fire, the heat spread across his skin, his pores leaked out sweat. Wasn't he at the gate just now? How did he get here?" He thought when he saw a creature sat elegantly on a throne made of skulls.
His breath caught, his hands trembled with fear. "Where...where am I" He stuttered, colour washed from his face.
The demon smirked. "In hell."