Thalia yawned as her maids got her ready for the day, Cassie, a young maid with black hair and short stature worked on her manicure. "My lady, you're hands are so pretty.." Cassie said as she massaged lotion onto Thalias freshly manicured hands. "Really? Thank you…" Thalia said shyly, looking at her reflection in the mirror as Monica brushed her hair. A soft knock got there attention and a maid walked in with a gift wrapped small box, Thalia smiled excitedly. "Who is it from this time?" She asked happily, she constantly received gifts everyday so this was something she expected. "It's…..from Lilith…" the maid said a bit worried. Cassie raised her eyebrows. "What? That's strange…what is that witch planning…" she said. Thalia looked at her upset. "Witch? What makes you say that." "Oh…well, I hear Lilith reads a lot about plants and herbs…usually witches are the ones to do that…" Cassie said a little confused by Thalias reaction. Thalia frowned. "Don't ever call her that again." She scolded. "I'm sorry my lady…" Cassie said ashamed. "Also speak respectfully, she is Lady Lilith to you. To all of you." Thalia said as the maids looked at her ashamed. "What is the gift?" Thalia said as she moved her attention to the gift. "It's a small strawberry cheesecake.." the maid said looking inside. "That sounds delicious, I shall eat it during tea." She said as she stood excitedly. Cassie took the box from the maid. "I will bring it out together with the other desserts and and snacks." Cassie said. The maid bowed and exited the room, heading back to the kitchen. Cyrus was walking around the garden looking for Lilith, he knew she loved walking here most of the time. He finally found her, she was kneeling on the ground in front of some strawberry plants. She had a basket full of figs, strawberries, persimmons, and grapes. She hummed softly, paying close attention to the tune he couldn't recognize it. An idea of scaring her made him smile, he began to walk slowly towards her quietly, a low growl got his attention and Tatsu stepped out from behind some bushes and standing in front of Liliths turned back. Cyrus was stunned when he saw how much Tatsu had grown, he was three times bigger than the day they brought him from the black market. "Hey Cyrus.." Lilith said as she turned around, a small pout on her lips, clearly not excited to see him. She rubbed Tatsus ears to calm him down. "Down Tatsu." She said, he huffed as he laid down, keeping his eyes on Cyrus. "He really listens to you.." Cyrus said impressed. "Yes, it took a lot of work though…it was almost impossible without a treat." She said standing up. Cyrus nodded awkwardly. "That's interesting…." He said, scratching the back of his head in torment. She raised and eyebrow as she placed the basket of fruit on her hip to hold it. "Want to walk with me?" She asked, she could tell he was trying to apologize by how frustrated he looked, and it made her strangely happy to see him so bothered. He cleared his throat and walked with her on the stone path. "You know, I have had tea with Thalia, and we've had a few good conversations, but you need to understand that friendship can't be forced, it takes time and understanding." She said. "You seemed to become friends immediately with lady Millard." He said. "Yes…but I felt something with her, a familiar presence, she reminds me of someone I loved deeply, a person I believe to be my soulmate." She said, and it was true, Odette had a lot of similarities to Yuki. "So you felt a connection with her that you don't feel with Thalia…" Cyrus said, wondering who the person she loved was. "Yes, I am not a person that connects easily, I am not a person with many friends, but the friends I do have, I love them with every part of me. I will go to the ends of the earth, walk through hell if I have to, just to see them smile." She said, her eyes sad and pace slow. Cyrus looked at the ground, this was the first time he was able to talk with her like this, and he was surprised that it wasn't so bad. "Also, I know you love Thalia more than anything, but you need to give her some space, let her fix things with friends without you butting in, you will make it hard for her in the future." She said. "I didn't realize I was being so obvious…" he said. She looked at him almost offended. "What!? You were being incredibly obvious! Literally everyone knows you want to marry her…" she said shocked at the fact he thought he was being discreet. A sheepish smile overtook him. "Right…do you usually go around picking fruits?" He said, trying to change the subject. "Yes, I also collect medicinal plants and herbs, it can be convenient to have them." She said. He cleared his throat, trying to mentally prepare himself to say sorry. "I see….I also wanted to….I want to…." He said, unable to bring an apology to her. She smiled knowingly, looking straight into his eyes, hearing him apologize would be a big step in their relationship and she didn't want to rush him. He seemed to realize she knew what he was trying to say, and that she wanted him to hear him say it. He swallowed his pride and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry I called you a whore." He said quickly, she put the basket down and hugged him softly. "I'm sorry I beat the shit out of you." She said as she patted his back. When she let go and looked at his face, they chuckled at how childish they had acted the day before. As he watched her pick up the basket, he thought of all the family things they had done without her, everyone had a painting or statue in the mansion, or at least something that would leave a trace that they were there and they existed. However, Lilith had nothing, if she were to leave the next day there would be no traces of her existence in their home, the only person who had images of her was Mathew. "I'm going to head back inside." She said. He walked with her quietly, but he realized she was heading to the kitchen. "Why are you going to the kitchen?" He asked. "I got a lot figs and strawberries, I was hoping to make some desserts." she smiled. "You can cook?" He asked a bit shocked. "Yes, a little bit." She said. "Well, I guess i'll see you later.." he said awkwardly as he walked away, it was almost time for his training. Lilith just put the berries on the kitchen island and went back to her room with Tatsu following. After mentioning Odette, she realized she missed her and wanted to see her again, so she thought of inviting her over the next day for tea. The duchess and Thalia were having tea and snacks. "I wonder what Lilith is up to today, I saw her pass by with a basket through one of the windows." The duchess said. "One of my maids mentioned she like harvesting plants and stuff like that, maybe that's what she's doing." Thalia said. The duchess saw the one portion cheesecake sprinkled with what looked like brown sugar. "What is that?" She asked curiously. "It's a gift from Lilith, I saved it so I could eat it with tea." Thalia said happy. "Oh that's nice, I am so happy you girls are getting along." The duchess said, she was constantly worried about them getting along since her sons had made it obvious that they didn't want Lilith around Thalia. "Yes i'm so happy, it's like have a big sister." Thalia said. She got the small cake and started eating it, she wanted to share with the duchess but since it was a gift she wanted to really appreciate it, either way it was a one person portion. "I wonder where the hunting competition is going to be this year, the date is getting really close." The duchess said. Thalia smiled. "Honestly I think Lilith would win." She said. The duchess chuckled. "Did you see Cyrus when they fought? It was clear who won that fight." She giggled. Thalia laughed too as she remembered their faces when she walked into the room. "I would say he let her win but from his reaction, I don't think it was the case." Thalia said as she laughed. The duchess slowly stopped laughing as she noticed that Thalias pupils were becoming very dilated. Thalia started slurring her words and she looked out of it, like she might have been hallucinating. "Do you hear that? It sounds like…music…" Thalia said as she looked around delirious. The duchess didn't hear any kind of music, and she slowly approached Thalia. "Thalia…are you feeling alright?" The duchess asked. Thalia laughed a little, she looked like a drunk. "Ya know, you're like a mother to me…" Thalia said. "Ya know?? What is that? Thalia are you feeling okay? You are acting bizarre…" the duchess said starting to worry. Thalia nodded, and made a weird face, like she was trying to hold something back. The maids started approaching worried and Thalia vomited all over the skirt of the duchess dress. The duchess gasped as Thalia fainted. "Call the doctor! Quick!" The duchess said. Her eyes landed back on the cheesecake, with a heavy heart she decided to take it with them so the doctor could see if it was poisoned. Lilith was peacefully looking at the sketches of her parents, reliving happy moments with them in her head. She smiled as she pet Tatsus ears. "Those are your grandparents." She said in a baby voice as she pointed at the portrait. She had just finished working out and her body was shaking a little bit, thanks to the orange juice she drank before every workout she didn't feel too much pain and the shaking was manageable. She heard fast footsteps approaching her room and she hurried to hide her sketchbook back in its hiding spot, then jumped onto bed and pretended to be taking a nap as the door swung open. "My lady! Please get up now we have a problem." Natalie said panicked, a bit of sweat on her forehead as she took off Liliths gown in a hurry to put a proper one on. Lilith was surprised at how nervous Natalie looked, she wasn't one to show much expression. Now that she had a proper dress and heels on Natalie dragged her out by the hand, rushing down the halls. "What's going on Natalie?" Lilith asked confused. "Thalia was poisoned, the doctor is on the way." Natalie said. When they barged in to a guest room she saw Thalia with a feverish look on her face, a bucket next to her bed, and the look in her eyes delirious, like she was looking past them. Cyrus looked pissed and the cheesecake she made was on the nightstand next to the bed. However, Lilith noticed there was something that looked like brown sugar from where she was standing. "What happened?" Lilith asked cautiously. Vincent looked at her an anxious look in his eye. The duchess gulped. "We were having tea…and she suddenly showed signs of being poisoned…" She said. Lilith looked at the duchess nervous glance at the nightstand, where the cheesecake she personally made was sitting half eaten. "Is that the last thing she ate when she started showing signs?" Lilith asked. Cyrus and Vincent looked at the cheesecake and walked over to see it. "Does it have brown sugar?" Cyrus asked. "I didn't add brown sugar when I made it." Lilith said, she walked over to it and pinched up a small amount, there some small dry petals on it as well and as she sniffed it and inspected it she realized what it was. "This is nutmeg…in insane amount of nutmeg, and these are from the lily of the valley, that's why she was poisoned." Lilith said looking at Thalia with wide eyes. "What does that mean?" The duchess asked with tears in her eyes. "Nutmeg in small amounts can be used for desserts or savory dishes, but anything more the 2 teaspoons is enough to poison, it causes hallucinations, vomiting, and spasms, the lily of the valley is stronger, is causes similar symptoms but these two together can be…deadly…" Lilith said. Cyrus glared at her. "How did you know that?" She knew he was implying that she added it on the dessert on purpose. "I can tell because of it's scent and feel, I made this with Natalie, Melinda, and Betty watching. They are my witnesses that I never added anything weird into the dessert I made as a gift." Lilith said. Cyrus always became so aggressive when he was near Thalia, almost like he was possessed. "Well…I suppose love makes one act irrational…" she thought as she tasted the powder. Vincent smacked her hand down and with a handkerchief he grabbed from Cyrus suit pocket, wiled her tongue. "Why would you that!" He asked worried. "I wanted to know if there was anything else added…but there isn't…the amount it appears she ingested will have her weak, hallucinating, vomiting, and sleeping, but she should be fine." Lilith said. Cyrus scoffed. "Guess we just have to wait for the doctor to give her an antibiotic." He said as he put the back of his hand on her forehead. "There is no antidote or cure, she just needs to drink a lot of liquids and rest." Lilith said as she sat down. The doctor walked in and checked Thalia thoroughly, stating the same facts Lilith mentioned, and recommending liquids and rest. The duke came in with the Natalie and the girls. "Natalie. Did Lilith do anything suspicious when she made the dessert?" The duke interrogated. Natalie shook her head. "No master, she didn't do or add anything strange to it, when I put it in the gift box it didn't even that brown powder on it." Natalie said. Lilith couldn't help but wonder why Thalia would eat it when it had the nutmeg and flower petals on top. "Did she think it was part of the decor? Or did she eat it intentionally?" Lilith thought as she looked at the cake again. "The amount she ate is perfectly at the borderline, where she would het poisoned enough to get sick, but not enough to die." Lilith thought. She already knew they were going to blame her for this, so she was mentally prepared for the accusations. Thalia started sniffing, like she was going to cry, her eyes opened and she looked around the room scared. She began to cry and Cyrus rushed to her side, along with the duchess and they held her hand to comfort her. The doctor gave them a prescription to help with the pain and nausea and left since there was nothing else he could do. "We need to find whoever is responsible for this…" the duchess said sadly. Cyrus kept glaring at Lilith, as if she was the one that poisoned Thalia. Vincent put his hand on her shoulder, getting her attention. "Was anyone in the kitchen after you left?" Vincent asked. "No, I went straight to my room after it was put in the box." Lilith said, watching him intently to see if he was suspicious of her. Cyrus watched him confused, Thalia was here in pain and scared, and Vincent wasn't trying to comfort her, instead he was with Lilith. Thalia seemed to be looking at Vincent sadly and Cyrus wasn't liking it. "Vincent since when do you ignore Thalia when she is in pain?" Cyrus asked. "No it's fine, i'm feeling a little better, I know Lilith wouldn't poison me, right Lilith?" Thalia asked sweetly. Lilith felt that the question was strange, it felt like Thalia was trying to redirect the poisoning back into Lilith. "Yes, I have no reason to do this to you, but if you need any help with anything please let me know." Lilith said. Natalie had been anxious for too long, she wanted to get Lilith out of the room, she could see everyone looking at Lilith with suspicious eyes. "My lady, we should go now.." Natalie said, grabbing her wrist. Lilith smiled softly. "Okay….I will be in my room if you need me." She said and bowed. As they walked out Vincent followed, she could hear him quietly following but didn't think much of it. "Was it really….not you?" He asked. She felt offended by the question, after spending every day with him for at least one meal she thought they had gotten closer. Was everything going back to how it was in the beginning? Turning back to look at him, the expression on his was conflicted. "Do you believe it was me?" She asked, frowning at him. "No…at least..I genuinely hope it wasn't you…" he said. "At least he's not blaming me like the other times something happened." She thought. He scratched the back of his head. "I'll see you for dinner tonight, I have to go back for now." He said as he walked away, they still needed to find out who poisoned Thalia. As Lilith laid in bed with Tatsu, the thought of the nutmeg and lily of the valley combination was so strange. If she had it correct, that kind of thing could only be bought in the black market since it was illegal to harvest or plant lily of the valley. "It most likely had other things in it too, huh Tatsu." She said as she scratched his belly. The door banged open and two guards walked in, followed by Cyrus. He didn't look as angry as before, instead he seemed to have mixed feelings. Tatsu jumped up off his back, standing on Liliths legs putting himself in front of her. He growled and the fur on his back stood, the guards stepped back a bit, placing their hands on the hilts of their swords. Lilith felt fear strike her heart. "Tatsu. Down." She ordered, Tatsu laid down with his head on the blankets, she got off the bed and looked them dead in the eye. "What is going on?" She asked as the guards started searching her room. Vincent rushed in with wide eyes and a scowl on his face. "Cyrus! Is this really necessary!?" He asked. "Yes." He said, although his voice seemed to have a bit of doubt. "Found something." A guard said pulling out a hand sized satchel from the wardrobe. Cyrus grabbed and poured a little bit of powder onto his hand. "It looks the same as the one on the dessert…" Cyrus said. Vincent turned to look at her, a clear look of sadness in his eyes from her "betrayal". "What? It wasn't me. I was framed." She said firmly. "How can you possibly say that? We just found evidence hidden in your room, and it would make sense how you knew exactly what it was made of." Cyrus said. "I have witnesses that oversaw what I was doing, I made sure to make it while the cooks and maids were in the kitchen, right after I went outside to harvest more fruits. You and I walked together a little aferwards." She said looked at Cyrus expectantly. He nodded. "That's right….but youcould have time to do it if someone wasn't looking." "Well Sebastian worked with her this morning as well and he said everything was normal." Vincent said. Cyrus seemed unconvinced, and as the guards walked over to Lilith Vincent stepped between them. "Let's not be quick to blame, she could have been framed. We haven't exhausted all our options, have we?" Vincent said as he frowned in disappointment. Cyrus sighed. "Fine. We'll conduct an investigation, however, if it is brought to light that it was you Lilith, the punishment will not be light." He said. She raised her fist and gave him the finger, although he was angry, he knew better than to pick a fight with her. They left the room and Vincent turned around to face her. "I'm sorry, I don't know what's wrong with him, he just…changes…when it's about Thalia." Vincent said. "I'll say, he's so hot and cold." She said as she sat down on her chaise. He sat down with her confused. "Hot and cold?" He asked. "Yes, it's like he has a split personality, this morning when we hugged I thought our relationship would improve, but it's like a flip switched." She said frustrated. "You hugged him?" Vincent asked, feeling a little offended. "Yeah, I thought we were going to be friends…but it seems that's not the case, now that my gift was sabotaged, theres a chance I might end up dead." She said. Vincent was shocked at what she said, he thought it was excessive that her mind went straight to execution. "I won't let that happen…" he said firmly. Suddenly his head felt like it was going to split in two, he flinched at the pain and held his head in pain. She put her warm hands on his cheeks, making him lift his face to look at her, his eyes were a little red and teary from the pain. In panic, she just held him close, holding him tightly, as her sweet scent reached him, he felt the pain diminish. He let go of himself and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close. She saw him gradually relax, his forehead now on her shoulder. "Are you alright?" She asked. "Yes…let's just….stay like this awhile…" he said, taking a deep breath. "Alright…." She said softly. She was nervous, even though it appears she made progress with Vincent, it was unusually hard to get on Cyrus and the dukes good side. They seemed like nice genuine people, so why was it so impossible to get on their good side? Is there an outside force causing this? How can they accept a child into their family but not one of their son's wife? Even though it was an arranged marriage, and the problem with her father was a whole other issue, by now they should at least doubt that she would poison Thalia. After a few minutes passed, he let her go. "Are you feeling better?" She asked. "Yes…thank you…" he said, looking at her bashfully. She smiled softly, her eyes accidentally landing on his lips, without overthinking it she slowly leaned towards them. He seemed to realize she was leaning in for a kiss, and the temptation was too great to resist. They met halfway, their lips softly caressing each other, she turned her head to get comfortable. Her tongue lightly teasing his lips, he parted his lips and she swept in, tasting him as he began to take the lead. His left hand creeping up her back to hold the back of her neck softly, running his fingers across her skin. The sweet taste of her kiss made his brain go numb, he couldn't think of anything else besides the beautiful woman in his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck, she lifted her left leg over his so she could move and sit on his laps. Running her fingers through his hair as his hand wondered around her waist and thighs, she grabbed his hair firmly and pulled his head back a little as she separated her lips from his. The feverish look on his face made her bite her lip in anticipation, she kissed his chin, moving down to his jaw, and between kisses she suckled on his warm soft skin. Moving her lips down to his neck, she placed a kiss on his Adam's apple, making him gulp. He breathed heavily, catching his breath as the pleasure had overtaken him. She stopped going at his neck and smirked proudly at the hickey she left on his porcelain skin. She went back to his lips and they became more aggressive, he grabbed her hips, pulling her as close as he could. Smiling into the kiss she grinded against him, lightly biting his lower lip and tugging softly. His eyes were clouded with lust, he was so docile she was sure he would have done anything she asked him to. When she took too long to kiss him again he flipped their position and he kissed her aggressively. She never expected to take the lead like that but she didn't mind at all, their tongues tasting each other desperately as their hands explored each other. Her legs wrapped around his hips and she locked him in, making sure to hold him close. The door opened and a gasp scared them, they looked at the door with wide eyes. Natalie was watching them with a hand covering her mouth. "I apologize!" She said and called Tatsu over, closing the door behind them. They sat up, she cleared her throat and looked down at her feet. Her heart still racing from their make out session. When she looked at Vincent and how embarrassed he looked she started laughing. He blushed heavily as he tried to keep a serious face, but in the end he laughed as well. When they stopped laughing they finally relaxed, she smiled at him as she leaned her cheek on her hand. "I should go help them with the investigation…i'll see you later?" He asked. She knew he meant for dinner and nodded. "Yes, see you later." She said as he stood, his eyes lingered on her lips and she raised an eyebrow teasingly, deciding not to tell him about the hickey she left on his neck. He seemed content with her answer and he left the room, she smirked as she replayed the last few minutes in her head. "What even was that.." she thought embarrassed. She stood up and stretched, deciding to use this moment of privacy to write in her journal. "We need a list of all the personnel in the kitchen this morning, as well as anyone who made contact with that box." The duke said. Sebastian bowed. "Yes sir, I will have everyone gather in the meeting room." He said and left. "Father, what should we do about Lilith?" Cyrus asked. "Well, they found the poison in her room, so far she is the culprit. However we still need to interrogate our staff and make sure we find out if she was framed." The duke said. Cyrus frowned, but he knew he was out of line before for immediately blaming Lilith. Even his mother glared at him in disappointment, and she scolded him severely after she found out he went and invaded Lilith's room with two guards. However, he did find the poison there, after comparing it to the powder on the dessert they concluded it was the same. "I'm going to see Thalia, I want to make sure she's being taken care of." Cyrus said. Vincent walked in after lightly knocking. "Father, i'm going to join Sebastian and look for evidence." He announced. "Alright, be sure to be thorough." The duke said, suddenly noticing the hickey on Vincents neck. Vincent rushed out before he could ask anything, the duke was left speechless, looking over at Cyrus to see if he saw correctly. Cyrus sighed, rubbing his temples in stress. "I'm going to see Thalia…" he said and left. The duke scoffed, and quietly continued with his paperwork.Thalia yawned as her maids got her ready for the day, Cassie, a young maid with black hair and short stature worked on her manicure. "My lady, you're hands are so pretty.." Cassie said as she massaged lotion onto Thalias freshly manicured hands. "Really? Thank you…" Thalia said shyly, looking at her reflection in the mirror as Monica brushed her hair. A soft knock got there attention and a maid walked in with a gift wrapped small box, Thalia smiled excitedly. "Who is it from this time?" She asked happily, she constantly received gifts everyday so this was something she expected. "It's…..from Lilith…" the maid said a bit worried. Cassie raised her eyebrows. "What? That's strange…what is that witch planning…" she said. Thalia looked at her upset. "Witch? What makes you say that." "Oh…well, I hear Lilith reads a lot about plants and herbs…usually witches are the ones to do that…" Cassie said a little confused by Thalias reaction. Thalia frowned. "Don't ever call her that again." She scolded. "I'm sorry my lady…" Cassie said ashamed. "Also speak respectfully, she is Lady Lilith to you. To all of you." Thalia said as the maids looked at her ashamed. "What is the gift?" Thalia said as she moved her attention to the gift. "It's a small strawberry cheesecake.." the maid said looking inside. "That sounds delicious, I shall eat it during tea." She said as she stood excitedly. Cassie took the box from the maid. "I will bring it out together with the other desserts and and snacks." Cassie said. The maid bowed and exited the room, heading back to the kitchen. Cyrus was walking around the garden looking for Lilith, he knew she loved walking here most of the time. He finally found her, she was kneeling on the ground in front of some strawberry plants. She had a basket full of figs, strawberries, persimmons, and grapes. She hummed softly, paying close attention to the tune he couldn't recognize it. An idea of scaring her made him smile, he began to walk slowly towards her quietly, a low growl got his attention and Tatsu stepped out from behind some bushes and standing in front of Liliths turned back. Cyrus was stunned when he saw how much Tatsu had grown, he was three times bigger than the day they brought him from the black market. "Hey Cyrus.." Lilith said as she turned around, a small pout on her lips, clearly not excited to see him. She rubbed Tatsus ears to calm him down. "Down Tatsu." She said, he huffed as he laid down, keeping his eyes on Cyrus. "He really listens to you.." Cyrus said impressed. "Yes, it took a lot of work though…it was almost impossible without a treat." She said standing up. Cyrus nodded awkwardly. "That's interesting…." He said, scratching the back of his head in torment. She raised and eyebrow as she placed the basket of fruit on her hip to hold it. "Want to walk with me?" She asked, she could tell he was trying to apologize by how frustrated he looked, and it made her strangely happy to see him so bothered. He cleared his throat and walked with her on the stone path. "You know, I have had tea with Thalia, and we've had a few good conversations, but you need to understand that friendship can't be forced, it takes time and understanding." She said. "You seemed to become friends immediately with lady Millard." He said. "Yes…but I felt something with her, a familiar presence, she reminds me of someone I loved deeply, a person I believe to be my soulmate." She said, and it was true, Odette had a lot of similarities to Yuki. "So you felt a connection with her that you don't feel with Thalia…" Cyrus said, wondering who the person she loved was. "Yes, I am not a person that connects easily, I am not a person with many friends, but the friends I do have, I love them with every part of me. I will go to the ends of the earth, walk through hell if I have to, just to see them smile." She said, her eyes sad and pace slow. Cyrus looked at the ground, this was the first time he was able to talk with her like this, and he was surprised that it wasn't so bad. "Also, I know you love Thalia more than anything, but you need to give her some space, let her fix things with friends without you butting in, you will make it hard for her in the future." She said. "I didn't realize I was being so obvious…" he said. She looked at him almost offended. "What!? You were being incredibly obvious! Literally everyone knows you want to marry her…" she said shocked at the fact he thought he was being discreet. A sheepish smile overtook him. "Right…do you usually go around picking fruits?" He said, trying to change the subject. "Yes, I also collect medicinal plants and herbs, it can be convenient to have them." She said. He cleared his throat, trying to mentally prepare himself to say sorry. "I see….I also wanted to….I want to…." He said, unable to bring an apology to her. She smiled knowingly, looking straight into his eyes, hearing him apologize would be a big step in their relationship and she didn't want to rush him. He seemed to realize she knew what he was trying to say, and that she wanted him to hear him say it. He swallowed his pride and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry I called you a whore." He said quickly, she put the basket down and hugged him softly. "I'm sorry I beat the shit out of you." She said as she patted his back. When she let go and looked at his face, they chuckled at how childish they had acted the day before. As he watched her pick up the basket, he thought of all the family things they had done without her, everyone had a painting or statue in the mansion, or at least something that would leave a trace that they were there and they existed. However, Lilith had nothing, if she were to leave the next day there would be no traces of her existence in their home, the only person who had images of her was Mathew. "I'm going to head back inside." She said. He walked with her quietly, but he realized she was heading to the kitchen. "Why are you going to the kitchen?" He asked. "I got a lot figs and strawberries, I was hoping to make some desserts." she smiled. "You can cook?" He asked a bit shocked. "Yes, a little bit." She said. "Well, I guess i'll see you later.." he said awkwardly as he walked away, it was almost time for his training. Lilith just put the berries on the kitchen island and went back to her room with Tatsu following. After mentioning Odette, she realized she missed her and wanted to see her again, so she thought of inviting her over the next day for tea. The duchess and Thalia were having tea and snacks. "I wonder what Lilith is up to today, I saw her pass by with a basket through one of the windows." The duchess said. "One of my maids mentioned she like harvesting plants and stuff like that, maybe that's what she's doing." Thalia said. The duchess saw the one portion cheesecake sprinkled with what looked like brown sugar. "What is that?" She asked curiously. "It's a gift from Lilith, I saved it so I could eat it with tea." Thalia said happy. "Oh that's nice, I am so happy you girls are getting along." The duchess said, she was constantly worried about them getting along since her sons had made it obvious that they didn't want Lilith around Thalia. "Yes i'm so happy, it's like have a big sister." Thalia said. She got the small cake and started eating it, she wanted to share with the duchess but since it was a gift she wanted to really appreciate it, either way it was a one person portion. "I wonder where the hunting competition is going to be this year, the date is getting really close." The duchess said. Thalia smiled. "Honestly I think Lilith would win." She said. The duchess chuckled. "Did you see Cyrus when they fought? It was clear who won that fight." She giggled. Thalia laughed too as she remembered their faces when she walked into the room. "I would say he let her win but from his reaction, I don't think it was the case." Thalia said as she laughed. The duchess slowly stopped laughing as she noticed that Thalias pupils were becoming very dilated. Thalia started slurring her words and she looked out of it, like she might have been hallucinating. "Do you hear that? It sounds like…music…" Thalia said as she looked around delirious. The duchess didn't hear any kind of music, and she slowly approached Thalia. "Thalia…are you feeling alright?" The duchess asked. Thalia laughed a little, she looked like a drunk. "Ya know, you're like a mother to me…" Thalia said. "Ya know?? What is that? Thalia are you feeling okay? You are acting bizarre…" the duchess said starting to worry. Thalia nodded, and made a weird face, like she was trying to hold something back. The maids started approaching worried and Thalia vomited all over the skirt of the duchess dress. The duchess gasped as Thalia fainted. "Call the doctor! Quick!" The duchess said. Her eyes landed back on the cheesecake, with a heavy heart she decided to take it with them so the doctor could see if it was poisoned. Lilith was peacefully looking at the sketches of her parents, reliving happy moments with them in her head. She smiled as she pet Tatsus ears. "Those are your grandparents." She said in a baby voice as she pointed at the portrait. She had just finished working out and her body was shaking a little bit, thanks to the orange juice she drank before every workout she didn't feel too much pain and the shaking was manageable. She heard fast footsteps approaching her room and she hurried to hide her sketchbook back in its hiding spot, then jumped onto bed and pretended to be taking a nap as the door swung open. "My lady! Please get up now we have a problem." Natalie said panicked, a bit of sweat on her forehead as she took off Liliths gown in a hurry to put a proper one on. Lilith was surprised at how nervous Natalie looked, she wasn't one to show much expression. Now that she had a proper dress and heels on Natalie dragged her out by the hand, rushing down the halls. "What's going on Natalie?" Lilith asked confused. "Thalia was poisoned, the doctor is on the way." Natalie said. When they barged in to a guest room she saw Thalia with a feverish look on her face, a bucket next to her bed, and the look in her eyes delirious, like she was looking past them. Cyrus looked pissed and the cheesecake she made was on the nightstand next to the bed. However, Lilith noticed there was something that looked like brown sugar from where she was standing. "What happened?" Lilith asked cautiously. Vincent looked at her an anxious look in his eye. The duchess gulped. "We were having tea…and she suddenly showed signs of being poisoned…" She said. Lilith looked at the duchess nervous glance at the nightstand, where the cheesecake she personally made was sitting half eaten. "Is that the last thing she ate when she started showing signs?" Lilith asked. Cyrus and Vincent looked at the cheesecake and walked over to see it. "Does it have brown sugar?" Cyrus asked. "I didn't add brown sugar when I made it." Lilith said, she walked over to it and pinched up a small amount, there some small dry petals on it as well and as she sniffed it and inspected it she realized what it was. "This is nutmeg…in insane amount of nutmeg, and these are from the lily of the valley, that's why she was poisoned." Lilith said looking at Thalia with wide eyes. "What does that mean?" The duchess asked with tears in her eyes. "Nutmeg in small amounts can be used for desserts or savory dishes, but anything more the 2 teaspoons is enough to poison, it causes hallucinations, vomiting, and spasms, the lily of the valley is stronger, is causes similar symptoms but these two together can be…deadly…" Lilith said. Cyrus glared at her. "How did you know that?" She knew he was implying that she added it on the dessert on purpose. "I can tell because of it's scent and feel, I made this with Natalie, Melinda, and Betty watching. They are my witnesses that I never added anything weird into the dessert I made as a gift." Lilith said. Cyrus always became so aggressive when he was near Thalia, almost like he was possessed. "Well…I suppose love makes one act irrational…" she thought as she tasted the powder. Vincent smacked her hand down and with a handkerchief he grabbed from Cyrus suit pocket, wiled her tongue. "Why would you that!" He asked worried. "I wanted to know if there was anything else added…but there isn't…the amount it appears she ingested will have her weak, hallucinating, vomiting, and sleeping, but she should be fine." Lilith said. Cyrus scoffed. "Guess we just have to wait for the doctor to give her an antibiotic." He said as he put the back of his hand on her forehead. "There is no antidote or cure, she just needs to drink a lot of liquids and rest." Lilith said as she sat down. The doctor walked in and checked Thalia thoroughly, stating the same facts Lilith mentioned, and recommending liquids and rest. The duke came in with the Natalie and the girls. "Natalie. Did Lilith do anything suspicious when she made the dessert?" The duke interrogated. Natalie shook her head. "No master, she didn't do or add anything strange to it, when I put it in the gift box it didn't even that brown powder on it." Natalie said. Lilith couldn't help but wonder why Thalia would eat it when it had the nutmeg and flower petals on top. "Did she think it was part of the decor? Or did she eat it intentionally?" Lilith thought as she looked at the cake again. "The amount she ate is perfectly at the borderline, where she would het poisoned enough to get sick, but not enough to die." Lilith thought. She already knew they were going to blame her for this, so she was mentally prepared for the accusations. Thalia started sniffing, like she was going to cry, her eyes opened and she looked around the room scared. She began to cry and Cyrus rushed to her side, along with the duchess and they held her hand to comfort her. The doctor gave them a prescription to help with the pain and nausea and left since there was nothing else he could do. "We need to find whoever is responsible for this…" the duchess said sadly. Cyrus kept glaring at Lilith, as if she was the one that poisoned Thalia. Vincent put his hand on her shoulder, getting her attention. "Was anyone in the kitchen after you left?" Vincent asked. "No, I went straight to my room after it was put in the box." Lilith said, watching him intently to see if he was suspicious of her. Cyrus watched him confused, Thalia was here in pain and scared, and Vincent wasn't trying to comfort her, instead he was with Lilith. Thalia seemed to be looking at Vincent sadly and Cyrus wasn't liking it. "Vincent since when do you ignore Thalia when she is in pain?" Cyrus asked. "No it's fine, i'm feeling a little better, I know Lilith wouldn't poison me, right Lilith?" Thalia asked sweetly. Lilith felt that the question was strange, it felt like Thalia was trying to redirect the poisoning back into Lilith. "Yes, I have no reason to do this to you, but if you need any help with anything please let me know." Lilith said. Natalie had been anxious for too long, she wanted to get Lilith out of the room, she could see everyone looking at Lilith with suspicious eyes. "My lady, we should go now.." Natalie said, grabbing her wrist. Lilith smiled softly. "Okay….I will be in my room if you need me." She said and bowed. As they walked out Vincent followed, she could hear him quietly following but didn't think much of it. "Was it really….not you?" He asked. She felt offended by the question, after spending every day with him for at least one meal she thought they had gotten closer. Was everything going back to how it was in the beginning? Turning back to look at him, the expression on his was conflicted. "Do you believe it was me?" She asked, frowning at him. "No…at least..I genuinely hope it wasn't you…" he said. "At least he's not blaming me like the other times something happened." She thought. He scratched the back of his head. "I'll see you for dinner tonight, I have to go back for now." He said as he walked away, they still needed to find out who poisoned Thalia. As Lilith laid in bed with Tatsu, the thought of the nutmeg and lily of the valley combination was so strange. If she had it correct, that kind of thing could only be bought in the black market since it was illegal to harvest or plant lily of the valley. "It most likely had other things in it too, huh Tatsu." She said as she scratched his belly. The door banged open and two guards walked in, followed by Cyrus. He didn't look as angry as before, instead he seemed to have mixed feelings. Tatsu jumped up off his back, standing on Liliths legs putting himself in front of her. He growled and the fur on his back stood, the guards stepped back a bit, placing their hands on the hilts of their swords. Lilith felt fear strike her heart. "Tatsu. Down." She ordered, Tatsu laid down with his head on the blankets, she got off the bed and looked them dead in the eye. "What is going on?" She asked as the guards started searching her room. Vincent rushed in with wide eyes and a scowl on his face. "Cyrus! Is this really necessary!?" He asked. "Yes." He said, although his voice seemed to have a bit of doubt. "Found something." A guard said pulling out a hand sized satchel from the wardrobe. Cyrus grabbed and poured a little bit of powder onto his hand. "It looks the same as the one on the dessert…" Cyrus said. Vincent turned to look at her, a clear look of sadness in his eyes from her "betrayal". "What? It wasn't me. I was framed." She said firmly. "How can you possibly say that? We just found evidence hidden in your room, and it would make sense how you knew exactly what it was made of." Cyrus said. "I have witnesses that oversaw what I was doing, I made sure to make it while the cooks and maids were in the kitchen, right after I went outside to harvest more fruits. You and I walked together a little aferwards." She said looked at Cyrus expectantly. He nodded. "That's right….but youcould have time to do it if someone wasn't looking." "Well Sebastian worked with her this morning as well and he said everything was normal." Vincent said. Cyrus seemed unconvinced, and as the guards walked over to Lilith Vincent stepped between them. "Let's not be quick to blame, she could have been framed. We haven't exhausted all our options, have we?" Vincent said as he frowned in disappointment. Cyrus sighed. "Fine. We'll conduct an investigation, however, if it is brought to light that it was you Lilith, the punishment will not be light." He said. She raised her fist and gave him the finger, although he was angry, he knew better than to pick a fight with her. They left the room and Vincent turned around to face her. "I'm sorry, I don't know what's wrong with him, he just…changes…when it's about Thalia." Vincent said. "I'll say, he's so hot and cold." She said as she sat down on her chaise. He sat down with her confused. "Hot and cold?" He asked. "Yes, it's like he has a split personality, this morning when we hugged I thought our relationship would improve, but it's like a flip switched." She said frustrated. "You hugged him?" Vincent asked, feeling a little offended. "Yeah, I thought we were going to be friends…but it seems that's not the case, now that my gift was sabotaged, theres a chance I might end up dead." She said. Vincent was shocked at what she said, he thought it was excessive that her mind went straight to execution. "I won't let that happen…" he said firmly. Suddenly his head felt like it was going to split in two, he flinched at the pain and held his head in pain. She put her warm hands on his cheeks, making him lift his face to look at her, his eyes were a little red and teary from the pain. In panic, she just held him close, holding him tightly, as her sweet scent reached him, he felt the pain diminish. He let go of himself and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close. She saw him gradually relax, his forehead now on her shoulder. "Are you alright?" She asked. "Yes…let's just….stay like this awhile…" he said, taking a deep breath. "Alright…." She said softly. She was nervous, even though it appears she made progress with Vincent, it was unusually hard to get on Cyrus and the dukes good side. They seemed like nice genuine people, so why was it so impossible to get on their good side? Is there an outside force causing this? How can they accept a child into their family but not one of their son's wife? Even though it was an arranged marriage, and the problem with her father was a whole other issue, by now they should at least doubt that she would poison Thalia. After a few minutes passed, he let her go. "Are you feeling better?" She asked. "Yes…thank you…" he said, looking at her bashfully. She smiled softly, her eyes accidentally landing on his lips, without overthinking it she slowly leaned towards them. He seemed to realize she was leaning in for a kiss, and the temptation was too great to resist. They met halfway, their lips softly caressing each other, she turned her head to get comfortable. Her tongue lightly teasing his lips, he parted his lips and she swept in, tasting him as he began to take the lead. His left hand creeping up her back to hold the back of her neck softly, running his fingers across her skin. The sweet taste of her kiss made his brain go numb, he couldn't think of anything else besides the beautiful woman in his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck, she lifted her left leg over his so she could move and sit on his laps. Running her fingers through his hair as his hand wondered around her waist and thighs, she grabbed his hair firmly and pulled his head back a little as she separated her lips from his. The feverish look on his face made her bite her lip in anticipation, she kissed his chin, moving down to his jaw, and between kisses she suckled on his warm soft skin. Moving her lips down to his neck, she placed a kiss on his Adam's apple, making him gulp. He breathed heavily, catching his breath as the pleasure had overtaken him. She stopped going at his neck and smirked proudly at the hickey she left on his porcelain skin. She went back to his lips and they became more aggressive, he grabbed her hips, pulling her as close as he could. Smiling into the kiss she grinded against him, lightly biting his lower lip and tugging softly. His eyes were clouded with lust, he was so docile she was sure he would have done anything she asked him to. When she took too long to kiss him again he flipped their position and he kissed her aggressively. She never expected to take the lead like that but she didn't mind at all, their tongues tasting each other desperately as their hands explored each other. Her legs wrapped around his hips and she locked him in, making sure to hold him close. The door opened and a gasp scared them, they looked at the door with wide eyes. Natalie was watching them with a hand covering her mouth. "I apologize!" She said and called Tatsu over, closing the door behind them. They sat up, she cleared her throat and looked down at her feet. Her heart still racing from their make out session. When she looked at Vincent and how embarrassed he looked she started laughing. He blushed heavily as he tried to keep a serious face, but in the end he laughed as well. When they stopped laughing they finally relaxed, she smiled at him as she leaned her cheek on her hand. "I should go help them with the investigation…i'll see you later?" He asked. She knew he meant for dinner and nodded. "Yes, see you later." She said as he stood, his eyes lingered on her lips and she raised an eyebrow teasingly, deciding not to tell him about the hickey she left on his neck. He seemed content with her answer and he left the room, she smirked as she replayed the last few minutes in her head. "What even was that.." she thought embarrassed. She stood up and stretched, deciding to use this moment of privacy to write in her journal. "We need a list of all the personnel in the kitchen this morning, as well as anyone who made contact with that box." The duke said. Sebastian bowed. "Yes sir, I will have everyone gather in the meeting room." He said and left. "Father, what should we do about Lilith?" Cyrus asked. "Well, they found the poison in her room, so far she is the culprit. However we still need to interrogate our staff and make sure we find out if she was framed." The duke said. Cyrus frowned, but he knew he was out of line before for immediately blaming Lilith. Even his mother glared at him in disappointment, and she scolded him severely after she found out he went and invaded Lilith's room with two guards. However, he did find the poison there, after comparing it to the powder on the dessert they concluded it was the same. "I'm going to see Thalia, I want to make sure she's being taken care of." Cyrus said. Vincent walked in after lightly knocking. "Father, i'm going to join Sebastian and look for evidence." He announced. "Alright, be sure to be thorough." The duke said, suddenly noticing the hickey on Vincents neck. Vincent rushed out before he could ask anything, the duke was left speechless, looking over at Cyrus to see if he saw correctly. Cyrus sighed, rubbing his temples in stress. "I'm going to see Thalia…" he said and left. The duke scoffed, and quietly continued with his paperwork.