N.B. Feel free to listen to this song when you see this symbol ; ☾



The smoke was beginning to encapsulate the emperor as he now resorted to picking the lock. He could feel the heat of the flames through the metal door, threatening to burst in any moment. Finally, he had heard a click after fiddling with the lock and flung the door open to be met with a raging fire growing with each passing moment.

He takes in a deep breath in an attempt to protect his lungs from the smoke and dashes through the fire, bolting out of the building. Throwing himself on the dew and ash ridden grass outside, he takes in a deep breath and feels several burns sustained on his body. At least, he was glad to make it out alive. After all, he still had an Empress to save. He wanted to keep his promise of spending his rest of his life to you.

However, he ignored the pain of the burns on parts of his legs, he didn't want to stop his search until he found you. As he looked around, he noticed that thankfully, his horse was only a small ways away. However, the other one that had been tied to a tree had disappeared, most likely used by that bastard of a human Vernon to flee the scene.

Takahiro noticed that Eugene was still missing from the scene but he was sure he would be able to track him down soon too, if not the other way around. After all, Takahiro had killed not only his mother but his father now too. It was only in due time that he was to find out.

Getting onto his feet once again, Takahiro sighed. Whoever had taken you away from him would pay. He would not spare them a single glance for that matter.

Takahiro takes in a deep breath of relief as he took a minute to process matters, pursing his lips as he stood there deep in thought. The sky gently began to cry rain droplets, helping the fire to die down. Scorching the fire to sleep, the rain slowly intensified, beating down at a greater tempo onto the emperor's frame as he still stood there in thought, planning his next steps.

He had decided to go through with his initial plan of going back to search the cottage and to interrogate those living at the small, rural village for any details or information. After all, he had the money to bribe those poor souls into telling him anything he wanted. If not, he was undoubtedly much more strong than them and could easily torture them in their own homes if they didn't comply with his wishes.

As the tracks once there began to die down, the emperor climbed back onto his horse, not panicking as the way back to the village was a simple route which he could easily lead himself back to despite it being quite a long way away from where he currently was.

In the meanwhile, you and Octavi had finally arrived to the cottage once again as it began to rain upon the snowed upon earth. It was fairly chilly in this region of Intuuin, especially since it was near the mountains after all. Octavi had wrapped a well-made and insulating blanked over your shoulders and arms to help shield you from the cold.

As Octavi jumps off the wagon, he ties the horse down once again before proceeding to go to the back of the wagon and take you into his arms, carrying you bridal style into the run-down and ancient looking cottage. Placing you down onto the olive green sofa that pricked your [S/C] skin that now laid upon it, Octavi proceeded to lock the door behind the two of you.

Noticing that he had not taken any luggage with the both of you, you decide to ask why. "Octavi, why haven't you taken any luggage? All I have are these clothes that I had been changed into and all you have is that stuffy uniform," You point out. Since your night gown had been soaked with blood from the incident and torn terribly, it was pretty much unwearable as well. With that, you had no clothes other than your current ones to wear.

"Well [Name], I decided to take the bare minimum with us. The less of a trace we leave behind, the better. I don't really have female clothes and if my clothes were to disappear from the manor suspicions would arise, would they not? After all, I need is you," He explains before picking up a dust pan from the kitchen. "Now, you have some rest as I clean up this broken window. Take a nap, it'll aid you in your healing process," he instructs you, disappearing into the master bedroom.

You looked to the door, biting your lip. Escape was so close, yet so far. After all, you were incredibly weak. Deciding to adjust your position to a more comfortable one, you feel a sharp pain pierce through your body, causing you to drop back down into the one you had been laid in. You sigh, feeling defeated. Deciding that perhaps a nap truly was the best course of action, you gently laid yourself back and closed your eyes.

As you rested yourself away, Octavi returned with the glass shards on the dustpan, dumping them into the trash before returning to the bedroom once again. There was nothing he could really do to fix it, so he probably had to get a new window pane or some wooden boards to seal it off. Sighing, he returned to the living room once again.

A small smile eased upon his features as he looked at you sleep, how cute you were to admire. He couldn't help but stand there for a moment or two, inspecting your elegant features, simply taken away by your beauty before leaving the cottage abruptly. Locking the door behind him just in case, Octavi decided to venture to the opposite side of the minute village to inspect the few shops set up.

He stopped in front of a small tailor's shop. It looked exactly like every other cottage in the village except it had a sign in front of it, highlighting in bold words written in cursive: Swan Tailors. Not particularly blown away by the name, he shows no reaction to the exterior of the shop before treading within.

As he pushes the door open, a small metal bell rings a fine little tune to alert the tailors in the shop of somebody's entrance. The two women at their work stations, presumably looking after the store for this current day jumped up, as if the ring of the bell was something they barely heard. They were both around the same age and looked eerily similar, most likely sisters. They wore plain ivory rags and tied their brunette hair back into a bun.

"Ah, hello," Octavi greets the pair of women, who seem to instantly fall in love. A small rosy dust on their cheeks and backs now straightened, one of them cleared their throat.

"Yes, how may I help you sir?" She questions, a welcoming smile on her features.

He shook his hand as though to wave her off, signalling he didn't require any assistance, "No thank you, I'll be alright. I'm just having a look around," He rejects the invitation for assistance, now slowly making his way through the tailor's shop.

The women continued what they were doing, yet still glanced up every now and again to sneak a look at the young man. After all, there wasn't much of a selection of young men in their village after all, so Octavi was desperately needed eye candy for the ladies. As they inspected him, they noticed him circulating around the women's clothing, causing them to become fairly puzzled.

One of the women even looked to his ring finger, which was empty. She breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that such a dreamboat of a man was still on the market was pleasant news. So, she decided to speak up a bit and make some small talk as he ventured throughout their shop.

"Are you looking for anything in particular, sir?" She asks, not wanting to pry but she was curious as to why he was only looking at female clothing.

"Not really," He responds plainly, before coming to a halt in front of a [F/C] dress. He remembered that you had told him that this was your favourite colour and considering the dress was fairly traditional, well-made yet simple as well he thought it would suit you perfectly. A small smile came to his lips as he turns to the two women, giving them the money shot of his glorious smile.

They couldn't help but smile back, waiting for whatever he was about to say with great intent. "I'll take this dress," He states.

They jump slightly before nodding their head, "Alright sir but I must warn you that that piece is our most expensive dress. It's made with high-quality material and took quite a while to tailor after all. It's about 50 silver coins," They state.

Obviously these two women had no idea how much dresses could cost up in Yunoaiu. A small yet smug smirk now on his lips, he waltzes over to the counter and pulls a gold coin out of his pocket, gently tossing it in front of the women. "I believe this should suffice, yes?"

"Yes- Yes sir!" One of the women exclaim, ogling the golden coin as if it were a fine treasure.

"Keep the change," He insists, before his eyes wander over to a small [E/C] gem with a matching pair of purple ones, as if specially made for you and Octavi and that was showcased in a glass box on the far side of the counter among other fine gems. Wandering over to it, intrigued by its beauty, he points to the gem.

"I'll also take this [E/C] jewel and the matching purple one. It will look quite nice on my uniform," He says, pointing at the gem from the opposite side of the glass barrier.

"Of course, sir!" The woman then stood up and got the dress and jewel that was on a silver brooch. She gently began packing these items into a bag as her sister continued stirring up a conversation with Octavi.

"I haven't seen you around before. Are you a traveller? Or are you here for business?" She asks, battering her eyelashes.

"I'm just here with my fiancée for now," Octavi tells them, not wanting them to get their hopes up or to get the wrong idea. After all, he only had eyes for you.

"Here are your items sir," The woman cuts in with a defeated undertone at the news, handing him the paper bag.

Octavi timidly takes the bag before taking his leave, "Thank you for your service ladies," He waves goodbye, now leaving the store and returning to the cottage. Placing the bag down by the kitchen counter, he then locks the door behind him to find that you were still fast asleep.

☾

He hums, deciding to do some more things to make your stay with him more comfortable. He goes into a small storage room, where your night gown was hung to dry. Octavi had cleaned it as best as he could, and now it was inevitably spotless. After all, he was in charge of the military so would know how to effectively remove dirt, grime and blood from cloth.

Now all that remained were a few tears in the dress. Taking the dress out of the storage room, he returned to the kitchen. He perched over the counter, opening a small sewing kit he had purchased for you but now he decided that he would at least try and fix the dress since you would physically struggle to do so.

Leading the ivory thread through the needle and knotting the end, he slowly began sewing your dress back together. He hummed gently as he did, making sure to do so in a hushed tone so he did not awake you. Fixing the tears and faults, he ended up pricking his finger several times.

Thankfully barely any or nearly no blood would come out, so he could continue without needing too many bandages or plasters. He was no professional and this was one of his first times sewing, so it was bound to be quite messily done.

Now completed fixing the dress, he looked at it with pride. It was messily done, and the fabric ended up scrunching together quite horribly in some areas but it was still wearable and that was good enough for him. He decides to look at the small tag on the back of the dress' neck and embroider his name into it. This was his first 'creation' or 'fix' after all. It looked as if it had been done by a child, yet he still was fairly proud. Folding the ivory nightgown neatly, he set it to the side and decided to prepare a late lunch. You had not eaten for quite a while and with Vernon gone, Octavi could now look after you properly.

However, a fateful knock could soon be heard on the door.

Surprised that somebody even realised there were residents in the cottage. Deciding to investigate, he walks over to the door. Due to there not being a peep hole, he simply inches the wood and metal door open, revealing Vernon stood in the doorway.

"I figured you'd be here," Vernon chuckles dryly, his voice painfully choking from his throat as if he were unwell.

"What are you doing here?" Octavi interrogates, his muscles tensing up at just the sight of a black snake member even relatively close to you.

"You can't just join our group then leave, Octavi. In fact, you'd be a powerful ally. If I return empty-handed and having accomplished nothing, Eugene is bound to be fuming. So, I have decided to give you a proposition. Come with me, and the girl doesn't get hurt. We have thousands of men that we can send after her, who are bound to be able to personally greet her with the face of Death. If you come back to the group, we will grant her immunity from our attacks and if you help us successfully take down the emperor, I promise that we will let you have her. Does that sound like a deal?" Vernon proposes, his pale with illness as he hunches over the doorway now.

"That sounds more like a threat than a proposition, Vernon. And why would I do that when I have her with me now anyways? I can protect her for as long as I live," Octavi responds.

"Well, do you think you can protect her from all of us? Forever? What if we blabbed to the emperor about this, hm? You know you can't protect her from the fucking emperor of Intuuin, Octavi. This offer I'm giving you can give you everything you want in due time," Vernon speaks harsher now, not caring at all about your snoozing figure not too far away.

"How do I know you aren't lying like before? You said she wouldn't get hurt but she nearly died under your care when I was unable to do so for just a few moments," He hisses back, his words spitting pure raging venom back to Vernon.

"God fucking damn it Octavi, just fucking trust me this time! Look, I'll give you this ring as well," Vernon takes off a golden ring with a snake engraved into it from his ring finger and hands it to Octavi. "You know what this ring means to me. Not only that, it also shows my dedication to the black snake group and Eugene," Vernon tells him.

"I'm still not sure if I trust your words, Vernon."

Vernon lets out a tiresome sigh before banging on the door frame, nearly shaking the whole house and causing you to wake up. Octavi looks over to you, noticing you now beginning to tumble around slightly.

"Would you rather let her die or take a chance of being with her for the rest of your life if you can help us succeed?" Vernon asks, pursing his lips.

Letting out a defeated sigh, Octavi turns away from the door and picks up the small brooch from the insides of the bag, admiring its [E/C] shimmer before gently pinning it over his heart. He gives you one last glance and decides to scribble down a note before you could properly wake up.

And with that, Octavi's presence left the cottage and the door closed behind him, this time not locked. Now out in the pouring rain, he feels the droplets beat down onto his skin. All he wished is that you would realise that he was doing this for you. And that he still needed you. However, he had no hope of you ever waiting for his return. If the emperor did find you, he could tell that you would easily forget about him as if he were just a lost memory, or a ghost in the past.

At least he was able to protect you from his own mistakes. And so with that, Octavi climbs onto the back of Vernon's horse, having to help the young man onto his horse as he seemed to stumble around quite a bit, as if he had been drugged or was unwell in general.

And with that, Octavi left from your life once again, yet this time very much alive and perhaps this time, an enemy who you could not bear to fight against in the future.

As the door slams shut behind Octavi and you hear the small gallops of a horse fading away, you finally come to your senses and inspect the room. Had Octavi gone out to get something in the pouring rain?

Barely even managing to sit up, you look around to notice a small note on the table by a paper bag neatly placed down. Trying your best, you stumble onto your feet and fling yourself over to the counter, now slumped over it as if for dear life.

Taking the rough note into your fingers, you decided to read it in your head to yourself.

Dearest [Name],

The time has come for me to depart from your life, much sooner than I had initially hoped for. All of this happened due to my own mistakes, and now, I have been forced to leave you once again by the snakes in exchange for your safety. Once my service to them is done, expect me to meet you once again. All I ask is one last favour, and that is to not forget me.

When you look at the moon, think of me. I will be watching over you in the blue moonlight, and if you ever desperately need my help or are in danger, I will try my best to protect you from that. My heart already aches dearly to miss you, even though I haven't even left yet. I can tell that this is a feeling I can not get used to, and from this moment on I fear that I will be emotionally numb until I can meet you again. Until I can hold you once again, my dove.

Though it seems that my love for you is much defeated by the fate this world has forcibly bestowed upon us, I will try my best to prevail and be the man you love one day. I hope that you live out your days in dear harmony, and that you enjoy what is left of me in your memory. I am guessing you will most likely return to the palace or will eventually be found without my aid. So just know if you ever feel hurt, or even isolated in the confines of that cage that dares keep my dove from flying free with her beauty, just know my office and private quarters are still left there, very much untouched until my little brother is ready to serve in my stead. I ask you treat him kindly in his days there and to not let him walk down the same treacherous path that I have.

Consider all my belongings left at the palace to be yours and my little brother's. I am sure you will find some entertaining inventions from across the globe there, or even an embarrassing photograph or two.

With that, I give you this last goodbye, as much as it pains me to drift from your side once again. I am very much in love with you, and I fear that just about nothing can change that, even if you reject me countless times.

Waiting eagerly to see you once again,

Your Octavi Kirayo

You looked at the parchment paper in pure disbelief. It seemed as though everything was falling apart, and as though nothing seemed to go your way. You let out a sigh, looking over at the paper bag.

You gently take out a brooch with a purple gem on it, twinkling just like Octavi's eyes would. If anything, it looked as though somebody had been able to transfer the man into a single item of such beauty. Gently pinning it onto your outfit, you look into the bag once again to see a beautiful dress in your favourite colour. You let it rest on the counter, thinking to yourself.

Did you want to go back to the emperor now, or did you want to continue running away from his grasp?