Chapter 3: I'm not your lady!
"M-Milady Cordelia..." was the last of the demon lord's words before she quickly hugged the woman in front of her. Who she thought she would never see- hundreds of years roaming she has already seen many of her lady's look alike but...
This woman in front of her looked exactly the same as her lady! Even her scent! That's why it felt so familiar the moment she entered the pet shop before but she denied her guts and just thought of it as some sort of coincidence. "Omp! Whoah... um..."
Isabella was rather conflicted on what she should do.
She has just seen this very woman summon bricks in the sky making it fall into the heads of the loan shark goons and knocking them out. If she does something that might offend her she is afraid she'll end up with the same fate as them.
Azel cried her fill but then stopped after realizing she had been hugging her lady for too long. However... she's not truly her lady deep inside, she has just been swayed by both her looks and her voice of how similar they were to her dearest.
"Apologies. You just looked like someone... dear to me." she lets her go, taking back the arms that were wrapped around Isabella's waist.
Face a little flushed. How she wished she would continue to embrace her more!
Isabella's heart thumped by the last words of 'dear to me' but then composed herself knowing that it wasn't her. Was it someone else named Cordelia?
"No it's okay um..." she turns to the other goons still unconscious and even groaning in pain. Isabella even if she knew these people were about to sell her off, took her phone and dialed 911. "Yes... I need help. There's about eight people unconscious in this alleyway- uh they got hit by bricks that fell out from the sky?" she turns to Azel who crosses her arms looking at the box looking thing she used when communicating.
It was a cheap screen phone. Still, Azel was curious. She has seen them in books, magazines, but never one up close.
Huh... from telephones with wires to this- how impressive.
Is what the demon lord thought while her attention turned towards her 'supposed to be bride'. How very kind of her to call help for her enemies that almost defiled her body and mind. "You have some nerve calling for help when they obviously don't deserve it." (Azel) glared at the men who tried abducting her. They heard her words and if it weren't for the pain they feel right now they would be beating the crap out of her.
Suddenly a bird flew out of nowhere and... you guessed it, they left their excrement into the men's faces and flew away.
Isabella also heard her words and bit her lip. She finished the call with the dispatcher and hid her hand behind her back. "I... I just... I'm sorry." she looks down with her head, eyes meeting the dirty floor of the alleyway.
What was she saying sorry for?
Azel straightened her back and decided to lead the scared girl away from the scene. Soon more humans will come and help these crooks but it looks like Isabella needs more time to process things. "Come with me." she takes Isabella's wrist and walks away.
She can't teleport with someone in tow- and besides she's probably uncomfortable with how she used her powers just now. Surely, she'll be asking questions about the bricks falling.
Isabella's face stiffened when the stranger took her wrist- "No! Wait!" she shouted, taking out her phone again. "I forgot about my little sister! I was supposed to pick her up!" she dials the daycare center number and waits.
She was hoping that they daycare center was still open and that Emily was safe and sound.
Azel felt her wrist slipping and so she waited for the other party to finish her call, several emotions popped up on Isabella's face. From worry to relief, it seems that Emily was impatiently waiting since she was the last one to get picked up. "You have a sister?" (Azel) asks curiously once the call is over.
Isabella holds the phone in her hand tightly still not trusting the stranger in front of her but since she saved her... she decided to give the proper answer to her question. "I do... she's only five and I have to pick her up soon. The daycare will close soon so I have to um..." she was stating the fact that she had to go and pick up her sister 'alone'.
Azel didn't read the message but just decided that she'll tag along and protect her if any case of abduction occurs again. "Let me escort you there." she offers Isabella, her green eyes dilated when she walks closer to the other girl resembling the mistress she served all those years ago.
Isabella wasn't sure if it was safe to take the serious woman's over... but what if there are more of those men just hiding, waiting to corner her? "Okay... It's just a few streets away from where they took me. Um, follow me."
She couldn't help but hold her wrist where the mysterious beauty had held her tightly before. They were strangers but Isabella couldn't help feeling that there was something more... to their touch. Like a spark! As childish as it seems, she couldn't describe it very well.
It was her first time feeling like that it led the girl in a trance while walking in silence. A few minutes passed with no one engaging to talk first. It felt awkward.
Hmm... Oh! Right! She still hasn't asked for her name!
Isabella turned to her savior with a warm smile and said, "I never got your name- you basically saved me but I haven't thanked you properly for it." that smile nearly killed Azel. Our coldhearted demon lord had to pinch her hand in order for her to calm down, right she needed her name... so she should give her name!
"My name is Azel." Her introduction was brief and Isabella was waiting for more... Where was her last name?
"Do you have a last name?" (Isabella) innocently asked, she needed to know her full name so maybe she can search her socials later.
Azel replied, "It's just Azel. I don't have a last name."
Slaves were not allowed to have last names. She could only go by her first name that was given to her by her grandfather... Isabella stared at her in confusion but she explained thoroughly. "I don't have a family. I was too young to know and I was left alone." (Azel) looks away, biting her lip.
How naïve of her. Just because she had the same face of her mistress before- she... felt like she could tell her anything. Isabella didn't know what to properly react or say in the situation so she just trusted her gut in this. "I see... You know um... your name is really pretty."
Azel's heart thumped once more, it felt like it was about to leap out of her chest. Not only was her figure and face the same but her voice too. It was soft and clear, when she complimented her name she reminisced about the past. Even if things were tough and their relationship was destroyed by an arranged marriage they had their happy moments together.
Azel was also glad that the matter of the bricks falling down was soon forgotten because Isabella's priority was her little sister.
Still...
Knowing that this girl was not the same person, her heart turned cold immediately and decided to focus on the task at hand, noticing the daycare building was closed. In front of it was a little girl looking worried while a daycare teacher was trying to calm her down. "M-My big sister has never been late! Where is she?"
The teacher patted her head and assured that her big sister called and was on her way to pick her up. Isabella noticed the small figure of Emily and immediately ran towards her, enveloping her in an embrace. "Emily! You're okay!" (Isabella)
"Isa! You're late!" the small girl kicked her knee before reciprocating the hug. "I-I was the only kid left, you know! I thought you weren't coming back for me..." (Emily) muttered feeling happy now that her sister came.
"Thank you for coming Ms. Insley. I'm so glad you got here before the daycare closed." the teacher smiled politely, waving goodbye to her student. "See you tomorrow!"
Emily waved with her huge smile that showed her incomplete teeth but that just made her really adorable. "Bye! Bye! Mrs. Lina! I'm going home now bye! Byeee!" (Emily)
Azel watched the two reconnect and feeling her heart moved she smiled. Isabella found out that the mysterious beauty from this morning had actually waited for her to finish picking up Emily. "Oh! I'm finished picking up my sister now... you can um..." (Isabella) told her while the other girl shook her head.
"No, I will not be at ease until you both are safe when you get home." (Azel) told her honestly and waited for Isabella to lead the way.
Emily on the other hand was holding her big sister's arm protectively not knowing who Azel was. "Hey you! Who are you?" (Emily) gave her a suspicious look and the five-year-old seemed curious as well. Her sister never had pretty friends like her ever!
Azel bent down a little to meet Emily and answered seriously. "From now on I'm her protector, your big sister's protector." she wanted to add the bride part but she shouldn't tell that to a child who probably wouldn't understand just yet.
Actually... Did she even get the right girl?
No, of course she should've! Why else would she look like her lady Cordelia?!
Emily gasped in surprise seeing the stranger in a cool first impression. "Big sister has a bodyguard now?! Cool! Will you also protect me too?!" she asked enthusiastically.
Azel nodded seriously to Emily. "You are her sister. I would promise to protect you as well."
Isabella heard everything and covered half of her face with her hand and pulled her sister away from Azel's piercing gaze. "Em! Don't ask weird things like that! S-She's just-"
What is she actually exactly?
"She's just someone who helped big sister today." (Isabella) bites her lip remembering the falling bricks... she never got the chance to ask her how she did it but maybe that was just a coincidence? "So come on Em don't make her uncomfortable."
Azel smiles and fixes her posture enjoying the look of her face right now. "I am keeping my promise, milady Cordelia- I mean..." she stops her words realizing she said the wrong name. "Isabella."
Isabella blinked a few times and frowned. "I am not anyone's lady. Come on, Emily!"
Azel didn't understand... she called her by her real name at the end so why did she look rather mad? She kept quiet at the back while Emily talked and talked like there was no tomorrow.
Apparently their home was really close, Azel felt relieved but for some reason she felt something weird. Her eyes widened in realization looking at Isabella- for a whole half hour of walking they passed by some humans who didn't get affected by her bad luck!
What the hell?
What happened? Is her curse finally gone? Or is it because Isabella was just near her presence- no back at the shop she almost fell over some cardboard boxes but she saved her so would that count as bad luck or good luck?
"Azel? Hello?" (Isabella) called out to the beauty that seemed to have a lot of things on her mind.
"Yes?" she snaps out of her trance once more and looks straight at her caramel brown eyes. Emily seemed to be impatient, wanting to go home as fast as possible but Isabella urged her sister to behave.
"You don't need to accompany us anymore. Our small apartment is right there." she points at an almost run down apartment and bows slightly.
"T-Thank you for everything." (Isabella) said her face was getting shy so she turned around not looking back. "Be safe on your way home! Bye!"
Azel seemed to garner no other expression so it remained neutral. When she walked around once more in the human streets, the bad luck came again. This occurrence has rendered her thinking about Isabella for the whole night until she got home.
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Platymage