Kiera and her three Captains were silent on their carriage ride back to the main palace. None of them knew what to say to each other after they spent a fair amount of time with the Third Prince. She could tell their Captains wanted to speak, but they didn't want to anger their General.
She was already rather angry at herself. Another added situation would push her past her tipping point. Her Captains had only seen her angry a few times, and they all did not wish to bring out her ire.
"We'll pick up training tomorrow." She said to them after the carriage arrived at the main palace. Then she left her Captains to themselves and hurried into the guest wing of the palace.
She couldn't even begin to understand the thoughts that raced through her mind. Her heart ridiculously fluttered every time she remembered the Third Prince's words and she knew she was forgetting herself. She had known the prince was a dangerous existence to her, and yet, she still agreed to his outlandish proposal. What had gotten into her?
Three months, he had told her to wait three months before she rejected him. Did he honestly believe she would give in to him in three months? Would it be possible for the stubborn Beast General to change her mind so quickly?
He had said to her that he wanted her love. He had said so many other things but the words that stuck to her were his very first ones. Her love, he had said.
What did her love even look like?
She scoffs as she arrives in front of her quarter's ornate doors. She reaches out her hand to lean on the doors, hanging her head down as her other hand covers her eyes.
"~Kiera," the singsong voice of the brown haired man crashes down at her and she whips her head up, her eyes landing on the figure of the tenth Beast General as he walks closer to her. Gaspar gives her one of his usual mischievous grins.
"I've heard a little birdie say that you've been having a lot of fun lately." He circled around her, clasping his hands behind his back as his dark eyes focused on her. She swallowed back her sigh, mentally preparing herself for what was to come out of Gaspar's mouth.
"First, a little scuffle with one of Solomon's Knights, and now, I hear that you have a Human lover?" His eyes mockingly widened as he brought up his palm to cup his cheek. "You have truly outdone yourself this time Kiera."
"What do you want Gaspar?" She was in no mood for his childish taunts. She only wanted to go inside her room to rest for the night and the tenth General was preventing her from doing just that.
"Oh Kiera," he shook his head at her, "is that any way to speak to your elders, especially those who became a General much earlier than you?" Eyes flashing, he looked from the length of his nose down at her.
"I guess it has been some time since we last fought each other."
He stepped closer to her to whisper into her ear.
"This time I won't lose so easily."
She rolled her eyes at him, refusing to be the first one to step away from his obvious provocation. Her inner Beast detested being talked down to and she could feel her Wolf gnashing her fangs, eagerly waiting for a chance to make the tenth General submit to her.
The tenth General was undoubtedly a strong opponent. Even she had extreme trouble winning against him during their last Challenge, but wherein Gaspar's strength laid in his incredible speed, Kiera's strength was her adaptability and quick wit. She would always find a clever way to outmaneuver the Leopard Beast.
"Another time perhaps." She glared her cobalt eyes up at him. "All I want to do right now is to turn in for the night. I can win a fight with you some other time."
"You're too confident in your own skills Little Wolf." He smirked at her as he stepped away.
"But before I go," with his palm facing up, he made a sweeping arc with his hand, "a word of advice."
"Don't let the prince turn you into his pet Beast." He said, indignant with even the prospect of becoming another Kingdom's pet.
"You're one of the twelve Beast Generals. Let him see that."
"Oh, but if you do end up becoming his pet…" His words trailed off at the end, but she knew what he was going to say next.
"I expect you to resign from your position as the twelfth Beast General."
With those as his final parting words, he turned and continued walking down the palace hallway, waving his hand back at her as he did. She saw his retreating back leave, turning the corner into another hallway.
She hated to admit it, but his words did serve as a reminder to keep true to herself. Kiera had to remain impartial as one of the Beast Kingdom's Generals. Her relationship with the Third Prince had to stop before it progressed any further. Or she might end up having to choose between her homeland or her Mate.
Kiera would wait the three months if they even lasted in Solomon for that long, but after that, she will reject the Third Prince no matter if he successfully manages to make her fall in love with him. Her position as a person of importance to her Kingdom, her homeland took priority. She will not abandon her purpose in life: to punish all Lawless Beasts, and to protect as many innocent lives as she could.
She had no need for flowery words, nor did she have the time to chase after something so frivolous as love. She could not, no, she would not let her resolve be shaken up by some tenderhearted emotions towards an enigmatic prince.
With her resolve newly ignited, she opened the door into her room and shut it quietly behind her after she had entered.
She had kept up her appearances, accompanying her King to the next Golden Rose Treaty negotiations. She ignored the Third Prince whenever his eyes landed on her. Her cold and stony expression only hardened if he so much as smiled her way.
Helios was confused by the sudden change in atmosphere between the two. Occasionally, he would shoot off glances in her direction or mockingly shiver as if he could physically feel her icy attitude radiating off of her.
She ultimately ended up ignoring him too.
The meeting ended as it had done the other previous days, an utter failure as the Kings refused to come into accordance with each other. Her King was the first to leave and both Helios and Kiera followed him out of the royal conference room.
"General Kiera!" She heard Prince Sam call out after her as he also left the conference room in their wake.
She wanted to continue walking, but King William stopped her.
"Go see what the royal Prince wants." His amber eyes looked down at her in repose, and somehow she thought he appeared as if he was stopping two children from being angry at each other. She found his incessant meddling into her affairs infuriating but did as she was told.
Both King William and Helios left her behind as she waited for the prince to catch up to her.
"Good day to you your Highness." She said curtly, hating the way his green eyes looked at her. For once, she couldn't tell if he was hurt by her coldness towards him and she was glad.
"Kiera," he began, "what good is it to make a deal if you do not even let me get closer to you?"
She scoffs at him, "Is this not another part of the game? Do I also have to make your conquest easier for you?" Again, the words that left her mouth were words she would have never said if she wasn't so desperate to get away from him. She knew her callous words would be enough to make anyone angry at her, but to her surprise, the Third Prince's face did not twist into one of anger.
She was taken aback when she heard Prince Sam let out a twinkling laugh. Kiera watched with incredulation as the prince before her then straight out and gave her a wispy smile.
"If you want to treat this as a game, we'll have to actually play together." There was a glint in his eyes that Kiera did not know what to make of. She still couldn't figure out the prince's thoughts as he grabbed her hand.
"Let's go Kiera." She moved along with him as he gently tugged at her hand, his feet walking towards an unknown destination. She let him take her away for she did not know if she could shake off the prince's hand. She also did not want to hurt him if she shook him off with more force than necessary.
"Go where?"
"To play." He responded over his shoulder to her, his smile gleaming at her with what she believed was as intense as the burning sun.
"And where will that be?" She let her exasperation show in her voice to which he retorted with a lighthearted chuckle.
"You'll see."