Although Simon's absence was noticed by many, it was not unusual for him to disappear like this. Sometimes he would get secret missions from Damien which he would have to handle by himself and be gone for even longer than a week. Nevertheless, Georgina felt odd for him to leave without saying anything right after what happened to her during their last training together. She forced herself to believe it wasn't because of her, but something told her that was precisely the case, making her uncomfortable when he suddenly stood before her by the training grounds.
"Good morning, Georgina." He gave her a faint smile confusing her further.
"Good morning, Simon; I didn't know you were back. Where did you go?"
"I arrived a couple of hours ago. There was something I had to take care of but never mind that. Since I am still the commander of the army and I am the evaluator of the soldier's exams today, it would be weird for me not to show up, don't you think?" His question was only meant sarcastically, so he was about to walk around her when he halted in his steps. "How is your training with Darrel going?"
Georgina was still processing his snarky remark when he asked his question. She looked over her shoulder, craning her head as he stood beside her, it was her first time seeing his eyes up close like this, and they were breathtaking. She couldn't take her eyes away from his attractive face, taking in all his features. Even though she had recognized his good looks since they first met, seeing him from this perspective enhanced her admiration for his charisma. His intense gaze blurred out her surroundings, and time stopped until he abruptly chuckled. "I hope your silence doesn't mean the training has been going badly?"
Becoming aware of how close he stood and that she had been staring at him, her cheeks flushed. "What? No, I- I ju-" Collecting her mind and taking a deep breath, she tried to express her thoughts one more time. "Training has been going very well. Darrel is a good teacher."
Gazing down at the shy creature in front of him, fumbling with her fingers and avoiding his eyes, Simon could barely hide his amusement. "I am glad to hear that. I must go check on the exams; see you later." Turning his head and walking away, he finally let out the beaming smile he had been concealing. Georgina, on the other hand, was anything but pleased with her reaction toward him.
The past six days in the woods had helped him overcome his issues and changed him 180 degrees. Damien had been right; he felt much lighter when he accepted his fate and could put things into perspective. It had been an intense experience because he ran wild the first three days in the woods, venting all his frustration and anger. Destroying countless plants and even killing some animals, Simon realized that no amount of destruction or killing would ever satisfy his hunger. There was only one being in the whole world that could do that, and that was a brown-haired, unpredictable, stubborn, but gorgeous human. And so, watching the sun rise behind the tree-filled horizon from the top of a hill on the fourth day, he finally found some solace. Understanding that he would never find peace without her, he decided to come to terms with the circumstances and change strategies. The rest of the time in the woods, Simon made plans on how to win over Georgina's heart, and unbeknownst to her, his demeanor a minute ago was on purpose.
He knew he had to make her see him as a man before she could build emotions, so he would use his charm without being obvious and wait until she would come to him rather than run after her. Being physically close was one of the tricks he had used on other women, and he knew the positive effect of it. Unsurprisingly, it worked on Georgina too, but he was determined not to underestimate her because he knew she was different, and it wouldn't be as simple as with the others.
With these positive thoughts, he met his soldiers, who were nervously waiting for him to start their exams. The yearly military exam would be celebrated the next day as the Mil Fest. Three groups of each 20 soldiers stood in rows behind each other. They saluted Simon when he entered the arena in unison, with their hand touching their forehead and then stretching their arm toward the sky. It was the traditional salutation of Agora and a prideful sight.
Standing in a corner in the back, leaning against the wall, Damien watched the event as an observer. Lost in his thoughts, he went through what Simon had reported upon his return. Apparently, there were signs of intruders camping in the woods by the Paxon border. The problem was that the magically created wall was still active, and it didn't seem like someone tried to enter Agora forcefully. The only positive point of this finding was that the tracks had been a couple of days old, hence matched the timing with the vampire attack, so the intruders were already dead, and they didn't have to worry about them anymore. The troubling part was that they managed to get through the barrier without alerting anybody, which indicated that the Paxon royals had found a solution to overcome the magic.
On a positive note, he could be happy about seeing his brother in a better mood. When he turned up in his study early this morning, he hadn't been entirely convinced that Simon had learned his lesson, but the force radiating from his brother this instant was proof that he had let go of his resentments. He hoped his brother would do a better job than him, as his situation had turned dire in the meantime.
He had given Eliana room just like his mother had suggested, but she never approached him to finish their dispute. Did she not care about their relationship? He had thought that she started to develop feelings for him as well, but now, he wasn't sure about that anymore. Not only did she not make a move to speak to him, but she also spent more time with Nigel and avoided him. Maybe listening to his mother had been a mistake?
Thinking of an idea, Damien made his way to the city, leaving behind his worries and the training grounds where the exams had started, and the soldiers fiercely tried to show their assets. There were three exams, one where each species would focus on their core physical strengths separately; for example, the werewolves would fight each other in wolf form, or enchanters would use their magic against each other.
The second exam challenged the soldiers' teamwork skills, where they would be mixed with other species and must strategize how to overpower the other groups in a competition. The final test was the hardest confronting the soldiers' mental abilities. They all were dropped into a deep dark hole, from which they had to find their way out, but in the darkness, they would start seeing and hearing things, tricking their mind.
During their struggles, Georgina watched them attentively from the sidelines, getting intimidated by the difficulties they were facing. She knew there was still so much she needed to learn, but she was willing to put in the effort and was dead set on working her way up to one of the top battalions. After she had composed herself from her spontaneous meeting with Simon, she had found a spot in the observatory and was now engrossed with what was happening in the middle of the training ground.
While Georgina was engaged with the exams, Eliana was back in the castle sewing the last bit of her dress for the Mil Fest. Since the girls didn't have the finances to buy new dresses, they decided to sew them themselves, and it took them all week to finish. Eliana's finger worked efficiently, although her thoughts abstracted her. She hadn't seen Damien for the past five days, making her gloomy, and the nightmares barely allowed her any sleep. At least Georgina didn't become aware of her decreasing mood because she was too excited for her comrades to pass the exam today and the Mil Fest tomorrow. This way, she didn't have to lie about her troubles.
Thinking of the nightmares, Eliana floated off. She had gone through the scenes in her dreams a million times but couldn't distinguish its meaning. Sometimes they were happy memories, and other times they were grotesque scenes. The blurry vision that initially obstructed her from seeing the memories in detail diminished so that she could now see the faces and hear the voices clearly. Sometimes she felt as if the people in those memories were familiar despite the fact that she was confident that she had never met them in her entire life. Furthermore, she didn't know how she knew those were memories, not just dreams.
What was the meaning of it? Not paying attention to her needle, she stung herself. Wincing in pain, she took her finger into her mouth to suck the blood when someone knocked.
She still had her finger in her mouth when she opened the door and was shocked to see Damien. Immediately pulling out her finger and hiding it behind her back, she looked flushed and embarrassed. Too nervous to catch her flustered reaction, Damien greeted her with a gentle "Hi."
Eliana's forehead wrinkled slightly in confusion, but she saluted him back. "Hi."
Drowning in the depths of her ocean-blue eyes, he almost got lost but managed to compose himself before it became weird. "Ehm, how have you been?" Calmly making small talk with her, he was holding a huge box in his arms. Evidently, he knew that a gift was not enough to make up, but he was hoping it would be a step in the right direction.
She looked at him, uncertain of what to do. Was he trying to pretend as if nothing happened? And if so, should she go along or clear things up first? "I have been well, thank you for asking. What about you?" She said reluctantly, and her strained voice, as well as the dark circles under her eyes, didn't go unnoticed by Damien.
"I have been good too, thanks." he lied. He couldn't question her answer without clearing the air first, but he also was indecisive on how to start the conversation. Standing there looking like a lost puppy, Eliana was about to address the elephant in the room, but Damien beat her to it. "As you know, tomorrow is the Mil Fest, and I thought maybe you didn't buy a dress yet…." He drifted off, seeing her holding a needle in one hand.
Following his line of sight, she understood his questioning expression. "Yes, I didn't buy a dress, but Gio and I sew a couple for us instead." He literally had the best mate in the world. There was nothing this woman couldn't do, and Damien felt a surge of pride in his chest.
"You can sew? That is impressive. - Since I didn't know about that, I bought you one. – Here, this is for you." He said, handing her the large box.
Pushing the box in her direction, she had no choice but to grab it. "Of course, you didn't know, but Damien, you shouldn't have. If this is part of your apology, it is unnecessary." 'Is he trying to buy my forgiveness?' Eliana thought angrily.
Detecting her mood change, Damien turned agitated. "Pl- Please don't misinterpret my gesture. I recognize that a gift will not be enough for my vindication, but I saw it, and it reminded me of you, so I bought it. That is all. But of course, I still regret my clouded mind accusing you."
Having a complicated look, Eliana nodded and placed the box on the floor. She had missed him so much and didn't want their fight to go on. He came to her room on his own, gifted her a dress, and mentioned his apology once more. These were signs that he didn't give up on their friendship after all. Maybe she had misunderstood him, and his aim had been to give her time to calm down. Why was it so difficult for them to speak about their insecurities? "I had some time to think about what happened, and I understand why you accused me. It is hard to trust strangers; we haven't known each other for long. So how about we start fresh?"
Damien wasn't sure if he heard her correctly. "You astonish me again, Eli. However, I disagree because I know you well enough and should have been greater in making a judgment. As I said on Sunday, I will prove to you that I will do better in the future. Nevertheless, does that mean you forgive my mistake?"
"You already apologized last weekend. There is nothing left to forgive."
"You have no idea how relieved I am to hear that. I would love to start fresh, and going to the Mil Fest together would be the perfect way to do so. What do you think?