Sirius obediently made his way back to the ballroom. To the part where the vampires decided to stay. He concentrated on the way the humans expressed their fear of the vampires' presence and how the vampires mocked the humans.
These poor unfortunate souls. He reflected.
All of this, this gathering, was predicated solely on his brother's schemes. And Descaera, signified the completion of his grand scheme.
"No. No. No." He tilted his head in surprise at the sudden urgency in Gwyneth's voice.
She seemed to be in a hurry all evening. What was she up to?
Exasperated, he bit the inside of his lower lip. 'Kieran, I want this blindfold off my face.'
'Enough. You have had enough freedom for the day.' Kieran answered right away, sounding very angry.
Sirius pursed his lips. 'But, she is smitten with me. She spoke kindly to me. And I think she recognized me!'
'Enough with your delusions. You are going to make me feel sorry for you.'
Sirius tensed his jaw, frozen in place. 'All I want is to get this blindfold off my face. Is that too much to ask?'
'You are at it again. You are trying to defy me because of that human.'
Sirius's expression fell. 'At this rate, she is no longer human.'
'Because of you. She will meet another tragic end if you are not careful, and I will see to it.'
Sirius made no comment. Responding to his brother's threats was not necessary.
Kieran was growing irritated with his Sunshine's presence. He did not want him anywhere near her.
"...because our goal is to bring our kind together to build a bright future!" Sirius could hear the king who had been speaking for a while now.
He got the message that the engagement was about to begin. And End...
End?
Leaving Descaera meant saying goodbye to her!
"Not on my watch!" Abruptly, he heard her voice thump loudly in his ears, accompanied by a faint metallic scrape. The next moment, she was standing right in front of him.
Though he could not see her, excitement was bubbling up inside of him so much that he couldn't control his smile. He looked down at her.
But then a really fascinating drama began.
"Gwyneth!" The king lost his temper.
"Enough of this madness, father!" Not only was Sirius taken aback by her commanding tone, but he also recognized what was about to happen.
Earlier, before he and Kieran even exchanged words, he could sense someone familiar with his Sunshine. However, his brother's threats prevented him from fully concentrating on their conversation.
He could hear Princess Imogen cry, but what really infuriated him were the remarks that the vampires and humans spilled about his Sunshine.
He would gain nothing by taking their worthless souls. That was their level of worthlessness.
But still...
'Do not even think about it.' Kieran spoke up out of nowhere.
Sirius remained silent. Rather, he continued to smile.
While trying to save her sister from her brother's clutches, Gwyneth called out to her, but her sister didn't move a muscle.
When the king abruptly ordered guards to surround his Sunshine, Sirius lost his temper.
She never had much success with her fathers. Which meant she would not be missing this one.
Suddenly, things took an unexpected turn. Kieran began speaking with her, and he sounded irritatingly arrogant.
No, no, no.
The prime issue was that Kieran had never communicated with her.
'What are you doing?' Sirius questioned, his tone as hard as stone.
But Kieran did not respond. He went on talking to Gwyneth, and she answered him fearlessly.
To be honest, Sirius was scared. But when he felt a cold steel pressed against his neck, shock overcame that fear, and he threw back his head instantly.
A knife?! Was she really putting a knife to his throat?
Another kind of excitement was bubbling over. Of all the people in the ballroom, she chose to threaten him! This meant that she only had eyes for him!
'Kill them all. NOW!' Kieran yelled out of the blue.
Sirius' smile widened, but all he felt was rage.
At that point, he felt her knife slip from his neck and a loud clatter reverberated.
"Oh?" Upon realizing what she desired to do, he asked, his smile and voice both beaming with excitement. His hand went to her wrist.
'Do not make me repeat myself once she takes it off.' Once more, and this time laden with fury, came Kieran's voice.
Time seemed to have stopped when she pulled it off.
Sirius's hand went over her eyes, his blood-red eyes flashing menacingly as the dark slit grew larger and more dilated.
Was he seriously going to do it? Was he really going to kill them all, including her sister, whom she was trying to save? His action was going to ruin her! She was going to despise him.
They were already bonding, but now she was going to despise him!
His pupils quivered. He was conflicted. But he could not defy.
Focusing his gaze on her, all the vampires and humans dropped dead, leaving only him—her and his serene-looking brother—in the wake of it all.
Sirius grinned brightly, his eyes gleaming, and he let out a deep, maniacal laugh that sent shivers down the spine of the castle.
Kieran's expression did not change. "Why is she still living?"
Sirius said nothing. He turned to face the frozen woman whose eyes he was shielding.
"W... what?" Gwyneth burst out, completely bewildered by the multiple thuds, the laughter, and the question!
She shoved Sirius's hand away from her face. Her heart constricting before beating painfully fast.
There were bodies all around her!
Her midnight blue eyes brimmed with tears. Bodies of vampires and humans, but she was glaring at Imogen, her father, and her mother.
Bewilderment, shock, agony...! She let out a loud scream. Everything was falling apart! Her world was falling apart!
She looked up at the person in front of her.
Through tear-filled eyes, she could see him clearly. His beautiful face was twisted into a worried expression.
Still, she found herself staring into those eyes. Those deadly-looking eyes did not rhyme with his worried expression.
He was not a vampire.
Shaking her head, she stumbled back. "Who... What?"
This was her second life. She was given a tranquil existence without knowing what was going on around her, but it did not matter as long as she was not treated unfairly.
All of those experiences were what her sister had been going through, and despite the fact that it was not enough, she had saved, counseled, and shielded her sister numerous times.
It was happening again.
She was losing her mind, and with it, everything and everyone!
Her eyes quickly found the vampire prince, who continued to look so composed and expressionless. She pointed to him. Her gaze inadvertently drifting to her sister's lifeless body.
"She is not dead." She denied, running to the corpse. Taking hold of her cold hands, she used all her strength to lift her and lay her on her back.
Grunting softly and fighting back the tears that were starting to well up in her eyes, she walked out without turning to face the beings that were staring at her.