"But Sir, she was trespassing." The guard said, his grip on her tightened. She looked at his hand, then back at him with a scowl.
Xavier walked forward, each step screamed elegance, his coat dancing in the wind. "Didn't you hear me? Let her GO!" He said, his voice rising.
The guard knew what happened whenever Prince Xavier got angry so he hesitantly dropped Seraph, with this look on his face and Seraph could tell he was displeased. She didn't care, as long as he wasn't touching her.
Xavier strolled to her, his eyes filled with genuine worry. "Are you okay?" He said and she nodded. "I'm fine, thank you."
She straightened her gown. "You're welcome, I'm Xavier." He stretched his hands out for a handshake. She smiled. "And I'm not interested, thank you."
She said and walked away. He smirked—she didn't know who he was, if she did she wouldn't have acted that way. "I guess she isn't from around here." He said and walked in a different direction.
Seraph reached the courtyard only to see a worried looking Sebastian. She had walked off when he told her to stay put, he must've been looking for her. She smacked her forehead and walked to him and when he saw her, he snapped. "What part of stay put do you not understand?"
"I'm sorry, I was just distracted by the beautiful flowers and wandered off, I didn't mean to worry you.." she apologised.
"What if you had gotten hurt, do you know what dangers lie behind these palace walls?"
She frowned, this was too much. "Why are you upset, you didn't even tell me to stay put, you just walked away leaving me here and I just took a stroll that's all...I don't get why you're angry, it's not like we have anything special, we just want to help each other out that's all, we both want to get into the palace and this is the only way to do it so why do you care if I got hurt? You easily can replace me if something happened to me..."
She reduced her voice knowing they were surrounded by guards and people.
He was silent. Unsure of how to respond to her words. He reached for his pocket and brought out a piece of paper. "Fill in the form and give it to me, I'll go submit it." He said and walked off.
Seraph stared at his retreating back and bit her lip, maybe she was a bit harsh, he was just worried about her, even though he was just using her to get into the palace he genuinely cared for her.
She needed to apologise to him. She followed him, almost loosing him in the crowd. When she got to him, she placed her hand on his shoulder and turned him to face her. He had this look in his eyes and it made her feel worse than she already felt.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say that and I didn't mean to worry you—"
"It's fine, you're not a child and you can do whatever you want." He said, in this cold—carefree voice,turning his gaze from her.
Yes, he shouldn't care, she was just a tool for him to get into the palace and find who he was looking for.
She pinched him lightly, not enough to hurt him but to make him look at her. "I said I was sorry.... please. Forgive me.**" She said with a pout.
He sighed and rolled his eyes. "Fine, I forgive you but don't wander off again." He warned and she nodded.
His eyes moved to the form. "You haven't filled it yet?"
"I came running after you..and also you didn't give me a pen" she replied and he reached into his pocket and pulled out a pen. Then walked her to a bench and they both sat down as she began filling the form.
After some minutes, she was done and handed him the paper. Their fingers grazed for some seconds and it made her feel gittery inside. His touch felt so familiar, like she had known him for a long time.
What in the world was this feeling? She barely knew him.
He read through the paper, making sure she filled it properly and she couldn't help but study his features, the way his hair moved in the wind and the way his eyes danced across the piece of paper. His plum pink lips and chiseled jaw line. She couldn't deny, he was a catch but she wasn't here for that....
"Alright, let's go." He said and pulled her up and they both walked to the submission table and dropped the form. They were about to go back when she met Bianca from the previous night.
Bianca approached her, she almost couldn't recognise her from her dress. "You look beautiful, I love your dress." Bianca chimed and she smiled.
"Thanks."
Seraph's eyes scanned her outfit. "You aren't participating?" She asked and the girl smiled. "Oh, no. I'm already a maid in the palace, we aren't allowed to participate and also, I don't believe in that kind of love, I would like to know more about the person I'm getting married to and decide if he's up to my standards."
Seraph nodded understandingly. She too didn't believe in this kind of love, she believed in the kind that her parents had. Yes it was forbidden but they both loved each other, they both cherished each other. Even though her dad tried to act all tough she could tell he was hurting. She could feel his pain, he did loose his beloved wife.
Sebastian just stood there silently, watching the two talk and it made him wonder what was going on in Seraph's head. She was always thinking and thinking. He hoped she was okay.
"Is he your master?" Bianca asked and Seraph blinked. She was lost in thought again.
"Um, no he's my bodyguard."
"I'm her brother."
They both said simultaneously which made Bianca furrowed her brows. "So which is it?"
"He's my brother."
"I'm her bodyguard."
They both said again and Bianca laughed. They were cute. "I'm her bodyguard but she sees me as a brother because I tend to be protective." He answered and Seraph smiled awkwardly.
What a lie....She didn't see him as anything but a guy who would help her put her mission in motion but she couldn't say that so she thanked him mentally.
"You're welcome," a voice echoed faintly inside her head.
She stiffened, looking around. No one. That voice… it felt like it came from inside her. Was she imagining things? Or… was something trying to speak to her?. "Did you hear that?" She asked which made Sebastian and Bianca look around.
"Hear what?" They both asked her and she shrugged it off, she was probably imagining things, she hasn't eaten in hours so her mind was probably playing games with her.
"It's probably nothing, I think I'm just hungry."
"Where do we wait for our turn?" Sebastian asked.
"Follow me." Bianca said and started walking into a big hall which was filled to the brim with girls of different class and status, all looking exquisite in their expensive gowns and overly decorated hair.
When Seraph saw her competition, she couldn't help but feel underdressed. Yes she was pretty but they took the word beautiful to another level. They were all heavily adorned with makeup and expensive jewellery. Their hair were decorated with fresh flowers. While she just wore a simple but elegant dress and rocked her natural curls.
Bianca showed them to an empty seat. "Good luck." She muttered walking away. Seraph really needed that, she hoped that she would get chosen even if she didn't get picked she could easily kill the girl who gets picked and possess her body.
She could have easily killed a maid or a queen and take her place but she wanted to help Sebastian. He did take care of her and give her a place to stay for the night so she had to find a way to pay him back or else, she would feel indebted to him.
Sebastian turned to her. "Are you hungry?" He asked and she nodded immediately. "Starving."
He chuckled and walked out of the hall and minutes later, he was back with some light snacks. He handed the pieces of bread to her and settled beside her.
She hungrily devoured the food, forgetting to ask if he would want some and when she saw the way he looked at her, She faced him with a cute pout. "I'm sorry I didn't know you wanted some."
He chuckled. "It's okay. You need all the strength you can get."
"Why, was I going to fight to prove myself to the king?" She asked.
"No." She let out a breath. Thank goodness. She wasn't quite good at that aspect. "But you'll answer some questions."
"What. Questions? That's easy." She replied licking the cheese off her lips. He reached for her face with a towel and wiped off the little bit of cheese on cheek.
She froze when he touched her. "But I've heard that people tremble when they stand before the king and that the prince has a kind of cold and intimidating aura." He replied gently wiping the bits of cheese off.
His words pulled her from her fantasies. "Mmmm." She rasped, peeling her gaze from him and focusing back on the food.
What was happening to her...