Engagement doesn't represent love. From the start, Lexi had been in love with Theodore and she was still in love with him but she married Raphael who loved her intensely since they were young. To keep the reputation of her family she also had to marry Raphael and as a mother, she must ensure her child's safety and that was the only way.
As Raphael gazed at Lexi with a loving gaze, Theodore who hid on top of a tree felt jealousy tug his heart. Lexi should be in his arms, not Raphael's. However, this remained as an imagination since he couldn't reverse the past.
Swearing to himself, he whispered, "I promise to keep our daughter safe."
With that he silently and painfully vanished without the duo noticing. However, unbeknownst to them, a pair of red eyes watched the couple intently. The eyes sparkled like a rekindled piece of wood in a hearth. A few minutes later the eyes vanished, this clearly was a bad sign. Since most immortals bore red eyes, the ascent meant only one thing, trouble.
The next few minutes, Lexi and Raphael headed back to the village. However, Lexi's heart remained in the forest as she painfully walked beside Raphael. Despite the hidden pain in her heart, the night ended peacefully.
Meanwhile, in the forest, the owner of the red eyes revealed himself. He wore black attire from head to toe making him look like a viper.
His eyes scanned a dimly lit path by the moon and smirked lightly.
"My dear brother, Theo. So this is the foolish mortal lover of yours that made you betray your father? Let's see how long you'll maintain your so-called love after she...perishes!" he smiled brightly, revealing a pair of enchanting canines. A hazy red mist filtered into the forest as the silhouette vanished with a swoosh.
The next day, Tyra and her mother, Lexi paid a visit to the eldest Queen, Tyra's grandmother. As usual, Tyra went to play with the rest of the kids outside. Lexi sat uncomfortably opposite to her worried mother with her head low.
"Yura, what's wrong? You can tell me what's bothering you," began her mother who held her hand gently.
Looking at her mother with watery eyes, she hugged her mother and burst into tears. Her mother knowing her daughter, caressed her back silently, leaving her to reduce her pain. Lexi stayed in her mother's embrace for some time.
She finally broke the embrace and looked at her patient mother, "I'm sorry mum. I shouldn't have cried just like that. Look at me, I'm still a cry baby."
Ruffling her hair, her mother smiled, "Silly girl, you're still my baby girl. Cry if it makes you better, ok? mum's here. Now tell me what happened."
"Mum, Yesterday I met him. He called me in the forest," narrated Lexi to her mother.
Her mother's expression turned gloomy the moment Lexi told her whom she met with. She hated the man to the core, she wouldn't have refused if he had wanted to marry her daughter. But instead, he ignored her daughter's feelings not only that he impregnated her. How could she not get upset about it?
Her mother's silence bothered Lexi as she knew she was upset. Lexi immediately held her mother's hand and quickly explained, "Mum you know I wouldn't betray you. Don't be upset ok? ok, mum?"
Staring at her daughter who held pitifully and pleading eyes, how could she be upset with her daughter?
After their brief serious chat, the mother urged her daughter to stay away from Theodore. Meeting him for the next time may cause trouble to the village and besides, there was a huge grudge between the two races.
Meanwhile, Tyra tried to play with the rest of the kids outside but none was willing to play with her. Suddenly, one of the kids pushed her hard as he fell.
"You red-eyed freak, we don't want to play with you. Mama said, red means trouble, so you're trouble," rebuked the kid who pushed her down.
Tyra ran with watery eyes towards a tiny path that led to the forest until she reached a pond with many lotuses. She sat beside the pond and hugged her knees while she sobbed silently. Her small shoulders shook while she sobbed. The harsh words of the kid rang in her mind like an alarm. Tyra didn't want her mother to worry about her.
Feeling a bit better, Tyra stared at the pond and looked at her reflection. It had red eyes. Tyra's eyes were blue with a tint of golden but whenever she got sad or angry, her eyes would turn red. That was why the other wolf kids didn't want to play with her as they found her strange.
Suddenly, a dark silhouette clouded above her as she busily stared at her reflection in the pond. She felt cold chills run up her spine. She immediately turned to face the shadow and came face to face with a red-eyed man with a masked face.
"W...who are you?" she stammered with fear.
The mysterious man crouched on his knees and stared at the little girl. He gently ruffled her hair and said, "I'm not going to hurt you ok?"
"Who are you?" repeated the girl with wary but fearful eyes.
"You can call me uncle T," replied the man.
"You swear you won't hurt me?"
"I promise I won't hurt you. So may I please sit here beside you?"
Tyra meekly replied, "Ok, you can sit."
She resumed her staring process leaving the man to suit himself.
The man meticulously stared at the little girl beside him and noticed her frowning. He felt his heart clench, he mustered up the courage and asked, "What's the wrong little girl?"
The question somehow triggered the little girl as she burst out in a series of painful sobs. The man beside her quickly pulled her into her hug consoling her not to cry.
"The other kids won't play with me because I have red eyes," she lamented painfully.
He felt his heart tug as he heard little Tyra's words. He felt more painful for her, for goodness' sake, that was his blood but how could he tell her?