>>Amber

"Makes sense," Hael guided me to the table, his hand warm around mine as we moved through his room. The space was filled with the quiet intensity that always seemed to surround him, a tension that made my heart race whenever I was near him. We sat down adjacent to each other and I could feel his gaze on me, "Bonewraiths aren't infected, so they can't be purified." Hael was thinking about it when my stomach decided it was a good idea to disrupt his thoughts.

And what did it do to disrupt his thoughts.

It growled.

It growled, or should I say moaned. Like a whale that was desperate for some action.

I froze as the loud noise came out of my stomach.

Hael turned to look at me with an amused expression, but the moment his lips curled up into a smirk, my face turned red.

"T-that wasn't me!" Stupidly enough, I blurted out an obvious white lie.

"Sure," He snickered softly, "Let's say it was me." His hand traveled under the table and he pressed a button, "Well, seems like I'm hungry," He looked at me with a haughty look and my cheeks burned even more.

"Why wouldn't I be hungry!" I balled my fists in embarrassment, "I was out for days!"

He smiled, making me purse my lips

"I didn't blame you," He said, "You were explaining something."

God!

He's being so expressive, it's making my heart feel weird! It's making me more shy!!!

"Go ahead," He said softly, "You were saying?" I guess this is better than dwelling on my stomach moaning.

I nodded as I slid my hands over my cheeks once, "There is something else Rosie mentioned. She said that they can't be purified but like corrupted beings but in the end they are what produce miasma and holy power can purify that."

Hael nodded, "I thought about that too. It simply means that their bodies aren't infected so they can't be purified, but the miasma can be," He paused, "Except they keep producing it."

"She mentioned a core." I said and saw him raise his eyebrows in response.

"Yes," He nodded, "There is a core." He pointed at his neck, "In the lower part of the neck, which is thick." He rummaged through his mind, "But since the bonewraith we had was dead, the core wasn't working."

"Rosie said that the core is what produces miasma, and when she used her power, the core cracked and stopped working."

"And the monster couldn't produce any more miasma." Hael added

"Yes,"

"This will help," He said, "If their core can be stopped, fighting them will be easier, because then the knights wouldn't have to worry about getting infected." I nodded, "Except the problem still stands that where we are going, the place is already filled with miasma."

"True..." I looked down, "Have more towns been taken?"

"Yes," He replied, "The miasma clouds are taking over everything that isn't shielded. It won't be long till it reaches here." He let out a sigh, "Autum has started," My heart skipped a beat, "Maybe when winter starts everything will be consumed by miasma if not stopped." I shot my head at him as my heart began to pound.

That's right.

I spent days sleeping!

Autumn has already started?!?! My face went pale.

"What's wrong?" He noticed immediately.

I gulped.

I didn't know what to tell him. I'm just afraid that when winter comes you'll die.

On my life! I hope you are not the performer!

I looked down at my knees, placing my hands there, I clutched them nervously.

That's right!

There's a chance he wasn't the performer. There are two other people who could have performed the spell!

"My Lady?" Hael placed his hand over mine, startling me

I let out a soft gasp.

"Oh!" I looked at him, "Sorry," I tried to calm myself down, "I got lost in thoughts." Calm down. Let's believe in good things!

If Hael chose me to retain my memories, to have another chance with me, why would he be the performer? That just means he'll die.

He wouldn't bring me back just to spend a few months with me

...

Right?

I stared into his eyes and he looked back into mine.

But why? I frowned. Why were you broken? Didn't you hate me? I don't understand, Hael and it's frustrating that I can't even ask you!

"Okay," He grabbed my chair, "There's clearly something wrong." He pulled it closer

!!!

The jolt snapped me out of my thoughts, "Woah!" The impact made me go backward but I stabilized myself since it wasn't long.

"What's wrong?" He asked firmly. His face was very close to mine, "Your face, your expressions they're off,"

"I-" I can't ask him anything but I want to say something, "I'm afraid."

"Afraid?" His voice got softer, "Of what? Going to the rift?"

That was good enough

I nodded

"I'll be there with you, you don't have to be afraid."

"It's a bit sudden," I glanced out the window, the sun was going to come up soon, "I'm not really ready..."

Hael's gaze went down for a second as he thought about stuff before coming back at me, "I should have woken you up before."

...

I stared at him. Then I looked down at his hand that rested on mine.

"No," I kept staring at his big hand that covered my small fist, "I wouldn't have gotten this info about bonewraiths." I let out a soft sigh, "I-"

Just as I was about to speak, a knock on the door interrupted us. Hael's eyes flicked to the door, and he called out, "Come in."

Hmm? Who could it be at this time? It's so early.

The door opened to reveal a low-ranking magician, his posture stiff as he entered the room, a plate in his hands.

Hmm?

I've never seen any lower ranked mage come to Hael's room before. I stared at the skinny pink haired boy wearing a trainer's robe.

I glanced at Hael.

Is he abusing his power or something? I wanted to ask him why the mage boy was here,

But then the scent hit me first—fried chicken, warm and savory, the smell alone enough to make my stomach growl with anticipation. The magician stepped forward, offering the plate to Hael, who removed his hand from over mine and took it with a nod.

"You can go," Hael said, dismissing the magician with a wave of his hand. The boy ran out, closing the door behind him, and we were alone again.

Hael turned to me, holding the plate of fried chicken, and for a moment, the tension in the room seemed to heighten. He placed the plate in front of me, the golden-brown pieces of chicken almost gleaming in the soft light. The smell was intoxicating, and my hunger flared, but curiosity got the better of me.

"Eat," He said, "I knew you'd be hungry after waking up so I did the preparations."

!!!!

Oh... So he wasn't just making fun of me when he laughed at me. He chuckled because he knew he was right.

"Here," He slid the plate closer to me, "They're not poisoned,"

"Right," I looked at him, "Did you test them for poison?" He was my poison tester back when I was still a noble.

"Well since I made them myself, I didn't need to, since I didn't add any."

!!!

Wait, what?

I gulped, "Who made this?" I asked, looking up at him. Did I hear that right?

His gaze met mine, and for a moment, there was something unreadable in his eyes. "I did," he said, his voice steady but with an edge of something deeper. "For you."

And there it went again.

My heart, jumping around like it was on fire.

I looked down at the plate, tearing my gaze away from Hael, "Why this dish?" My cheeks began to flush

"You seem fond of it for some reason. You even cried while eating it once."

I pursed my lips. He seems to remember. I didn't think he'd remember such a small detail.

"Thank you," I whispered and then I began to eat. I tried to focus on the plate in front of me while I ate, but all I could think about was him—how close he was, how much I needed him, how much I feared losing him.

I couldn't eat much though. Two thigh pieces and I was full.

He passed me a napkin and I wiped my hands and mouth. It was a wet napkin, so I was clean after using it.

"Feeling better?" He asked and I turned to look at him

No,

My heart wouldn't calm down.

I can't stop it!!

"Yes," I nodded but my thoughts were consumed by him.

He sat right in front of me and I couldn't think about anyone else.

The thought of him slipping through my fingers, of him leaving, made my chest ache with a need so intense it was almost painful.

"Hael,"

"Yes?" The sky began to lighten, the darkness in the sky slowly fading away.

"If you wanted something so badly, you wouldn't risk your life to get it, would you?" These feelings simmering inside of me needed some sort of answer.

"A strange question to ask," He said,

"Just answer me," I said, "If there was something- or some person, you wanted to have very badly. But the only way to get it was to put your own life on the line, would you still do it?" I stared at him and he looked back with his beautiful gray eyes, "Would you risk your life for that person?"

"..." He didn't answer immediately, "To get a chance with them?"

I nodded, "Yes," I licked my lower lip, "A chance, maybe a few months at most. Would you risk it?"

He kept his eyes on me, analyzing me. I know he has no idea what I'm talking about but if he considers it thinking about me, what would his answer be?

His gaze was soft, "There is only one thing that I crave so much, so badly, but would I put my life on the line for it?" I stared into his eyes, I've thought this many times, but I could just get lost in those mesmerizing eyes.

I leaned closer, "Would you?" I whispered. The soft words were loud enough in the serene silent room. Soft wind blew in through the translucent curtains, the stars slowly fading away as Hael gave me his answer.

"I would,"