My eyes flutter open and I hear small snores from Julian as he sleeps. Asra's even breathing indicates that he's also asleep. Julian is on his back with an arm draped over his eyes while Asra was on his side facing the wall. I rub my face and slowly slip out of the bed, careful not to wake them up. I make my way to the kitchen and quickly made a mug of tea. I wave my hand to light a lamp, careful to not make it too bright. It can't be long past midnight, but I'm not surprised that I'm awake. My mother's threat, as empty as it is, still runs through my mind. I know her well enough to know she will come up with a plan to either keep me quiet, or she'll try to force me to go back to the kingdom. I shudder at the thought of being back in that horrible palace.
"Rae?"
I turn and see Julian standing in the doorway connecting the kitchen to the hallway. He has a confused look on his face as he runs his hand through his hair.
"Why are you awake, Ilya?" I ask softly. "I'm sorry if I woke you."
"You didn't, my dear," he replies as he starts to walk towards me. "But I should be asking you that. What's the matter?"
"Honestly, it's my mother," I tell him before taking a long drag from my mug. "I know she doesn't really have the ability to force anything while she's here, but I know her well enough to know she'll plan something."
Julian sits next to me at the table and places his hand on my knee, rubbing his thumb on the inside of my leg. I scoot my chair closet to him and lean my head on his arm before letting out a sigh. We sit in silence as I finish my tea, just enjoying each other's company. I place my empty mug on the table before I stand up, planning on cleaning my cup and going back to bed, before Julian grabs my hips and pulls me onto his lap. Now I'm straddling him with a huge blush on my face. I instinctively place my hands on his shoulders to steady myself.
"What are you thinking, Julian?" I ask softly, moving my hands to fun my fingers through his hair. He closes his eyes and lets out a sigh.
"Just trying to get you to relax, dear. That's all," he mumbles. I smile and gently tug his hair to make him look at me, which he does. His eyes are slightly glossed over, but it's obvious there's desire in them. I move one of my hands to his cheek and he automatically leans into my touch. He bites his bottom lip and his eyelids flutter halfway closed, and the sight of him now makes my heart race. I feel a heat between my legs as well as a shiver going up my back. I slowly lean down and place my forehead against his gently.
"Ilya," I whisper. "What in the world are you doing to me?"
"I could ask you the same thing, Rae," he replies, his voice shaking slightly. He gently rubs his nose against mine, and it feels like he's asking permission to kiss me.
Permission I will willingly give.
I feel his lips on mine, soft as a feather, as he kisses me softly. I move my hand from his cheek to the back of his neck, pulling him closer as I kiss him back with passion. Julian moans and wraps his arms around my waist tightly as he pulls me closer, making me let out a small whimper. He takes this opportunity to move his lips from my lips to my jaw before kissing and nibbling his way down my neck. I let out a small hiss and tilt my head to give him more room. Suddenly, he bites down on the base of my neck. It wasn't a hard bite, but it also wasn't gentle. I automatically move my hips against his as I let out a semi-loud moan. Julian raises his hand and lays a finger softly on my lips, moving his head up to give me a smirk.
"Quiet, my dear. We wouldn't want to wake our Asra, would we?" he mumbles. I slightly shake my head as I let out a shaky breath. I could feel my shoulders shaking, and Julian takes notice. "Don't worry, my Rae. We won't do anything you aren't ready to do, alright?"
I nod my head and place my forehead against his once again, moving my hands to his chest. His heart was beating just as fast as mine was, which will always surprise me.
How can I have the same effect on Julian and Asra as they have on me?
~~~
Two weeks have past, and Asra, Julian, Nadia, my father, and I are all in the parlor of the palace drinking tea, coffee, and eating the breakfast pastries made from the kitchens. While I've had run-ins with my father, I've thankfully seen less of my mother. According to Portia, she's been too busy trying to help with a couple of festive rooms for the masquerade. My father held up to his promise and didn't push me about why I left, and we started to attempt to rekindle our relationship.
"Countess," my father starts, "How did you manage to be introduced to my little flower over here? I hope she didn't cause any trouble to you."
"Oh, no," Nadia laughs out. "She's a delight to have. As I mentioned when you and your wife arrived, Asra's parents are the palace magicians. One night, they invited him over for dinner, and he of course brought along his new found apprentice. She's been a dear friend since."
"Is that so?" my father says with a smile before he takes a sip of his coffee. "Raeleigh has always been able to make friends wherever she goes, I must admit."
"That's very true, your grace," Julian comments. "I met her at Asra's shop after she fell and nearly broke her arm. Since I'm a doctor, and I was there, I tended to her arm, and while doing so, she was cracking jokes and having full blown conversations with customers who came in."
My father let out a full belly laugh, which was accompanied with the chuckles of everyone else. My face flushed as I let out a groan.
"Are you done embarrassing me, now?" I grumble, taking a bite of a vanilla and lavender pastry. Julian plops his arm over my shoulders before giving me a hearty squeeze, letting go after doing so.
"Oh, come now, flower. It's not every day I get to embarrass my baby girl, now, is it?" my father jokes, sending me a kind smile. I laugh and shake my head, giving a fake pout. Before anyone else could add to the conversation, the doors to the parlor open and my mother walks in. The room grows cold the moment she gets a good few feet into the room.
"Good afternoon, Evalynn," Nadia welcomes. My father stands up and walks to my mother, raising her hand to his lips to kiss the back of it. My mother smiles, which could fool anyone who doesn't know her. I, unfortunately, can tell from a mile away how fake it is.
"Good afternoon, Nadia, everyone. I was simply trying to find Raeleigh. I need her opinion for some details for some rooms for the masquerade," she replies smoothly, taking us all by surprise. My father beams at me, hope in his eyes. I let out a small sigh and nod, standing up with my teacup still in hand.
"Why you need my opinions is beyond me, mother. You were known for your lavish parties," I mention as I make my way towards the door. "You're known for your impeccable taste for such things back home."
"That may be so, dear, but having some time with you would be welcoming," she says. She turns back to everyone in the room and bows her head slightly, saying, "I promise I won't keep her from you for too long."
"Have fun, Rae," I hear Asra call out. I turn and smile at him, and he returns the smile. As soon as the doors are closed, my mother and I make our way to the portion of the palace the masquerade party goers would be.
"Rae," I hear her mumble. "Is that what they all call you?"
"It is. Raeleigh is just too formal for me," I answer. "Rae feels more personal."
"I see," she simply states. The rest of the walk is silent with the occasional sips I take of my tea. Once we get to one of her rooms she will be designing, we walk in and I take a gasp. There are charms all around the walls, forming a circle of them. Light purple and soft, baby blue drapes cover the walls, silver designs on the blue while gold designs are across the gold. There's a stage at the far end of the room, gold and silver paint in the front, while a few servants are fussing over what seems to be flowers.
"I wanted your opinion on two things for this room," my mother explains. "The color for the flowers that shall be draped across the curtains, and I was thinking of floating lanterns for this room. I'd like your opinion on the colors for those, as well."
"What flowers are you thinking of using?" I ask her.
"I figure I'd leave that to your decision. You know the flowers around here are different than those back in Wrorin."
"Then I'd pick forget me nots. There's a field of them not far from here, and there's multiple colors. There's plenty of purple ones with blue down the middle of each petal, and I think they'd go well with the drapes you've chosen," I tell her. "As for the lanterns, maybe silver and gold with purple and blue designs?"
Mother lightly taps her finger on her chin before she nods.
"That sounds like a wonderful idea. It stays with the color theme, and the flowers have the perfect name for the theme of the room."
"What exactly is the theme?" I ask before drinking more tea.
"A remembrance room. I planned to have food and drinks here, as well, that will be enchanted that where you take a bite or drink, you'll be reminded of one of your happiest moments," she explains, catching me by surprise.
"That's... That's a really good idea," I tell her. She merely scoffs.
"Like you said, I'm known for my taste in decorations, Rae. However, it's nice to have some input from someone who knows the area," she says. I swear I can see the corners of her mouth tug up as if they wanted to smile. I can't help but let out a snort before I pause.
Wait. She just called me Rae, not Raeleigh. And are we- holy shit, are we bonding??
"Well, that's all I needed you for. I don't want to keep you from your friends for too long," she says, patting my shoulder lightly. "I'll probably see you all at dinner, if you're staying."
All I can do is nod before I bow my head slightly, rushing out of the room. I briskly walk towards the parlor, trying to wrap my mind around what exactly just happened. It felt nice to have a normal conversation with my mother, but I don't know if she was being genuine. I don't know if I can trust her, not after everything she put me through while growing up. I finally find my way up to the parlor, and before I enter, I take a deep breath and try to cast my thoughts away. I don't feel like being questioned, not right now. I finally open the door and walk in.
"Rae, welcome back," I hear Nadia greet me. I send her a smile and nod my head as everyone turns to look at me. It seems like they're all focused on something that's on the parlor's coffee table.
"What are you all up to?" I ask as I move closer. Once I'm in view, I see Asra's tarot deck on the table in a spread. "Reading cards for someone, hm?"
"Asra here was reading for me, dear," my father replies. "It's quite remarkable!"
"He is, isn't he?" I reply, sending a sly smile to the magician in question, who blushes before looking away.
"Speaking of, are you both staying for dinner tonight?" Nadia asks us. "And you, as well, Doctor Doverak."
"I think we've denied dinner with you for a bit too long, Milady," I answer. "We'd be honored to stay for dinner."
~~~
A week and a half passes and preparations for the masquerade are in full swing. Nadia and Portia have been so busy to the point we haven't heard from them the past few days. Muriel came to the shop after we closed to help Asra with masks we would sell to the party goers. Julian would come to keep us company, making us food and drinks while we worked. My mother was acting kind and caring more and more whenever I visited the palace, and I still can't help but be suspicious about her. I had mentioned to Asra and Julian what happened the day she asked me to help with a room, and they were just as surprised as I was. The only thing that changed out of everything going on is my father calling me Rae instead of Raeleigh.
It's morning now, and Asra and I had planned to keep the shop closed to shop for a masquerade costume. I had asked him about masks, but he told me he already had something planned for our masks. Once we were both dressed and ready to go, we left the shop and headed to the fashion district. We stop for snacks and warm drinks before we finally start shopping for costumes. I pick out a two piece outfit and give it a once over. It's a light lavender color, the shirt is see through with a body tight crop-top with no sleeves. The pants are much like harem pants, and surprisingly have pockets. There's a lace pattern across the see through top, as well as the pants, in silver, with the edges of the pants also colored silver. I quickly go to the merchant and pay for it before Asra could see it, and ask for a bag so he couldn't see. Not long after, Asra finds me with his own bag in hand and a grin on his face. We spend the rest of the day wandering around the market place, finding trinkets and accessories that would do well with our costumes. Shortly after the sun begins to set, Asra suggests we should go to the docks, which I gladly follow.
"So, why the docks? I know you and Muriel don't have very many fond memories of this place," I question him. He just nods and sends me a smile.
"Maybe not, but there's nothing stopping me from trying to make good memories here," he answers. He sits at the edge of the docks and takes off his boots before putting his feet in the water. I follow suit, enjoying the cool water surrounding my feet.
"So, Rae," Asra starts out. "With your parents here, and both of them seemingly trying to reconnect with you, do you think they'll try to ask you to go back with them?"
"I don't know. But I do know that if they ask, I'll just refuse it," I tell him. "I'm happy here. I have friends, family, you and Julian. Why would I want to go back to the place that holds my worst memories?"
"Maybe to try and make new ones," Asra mumbles. I sigh and take his hand in mine.
"Asra, that place holds no new memories for me," I explain. "The only place I want to make new memories is here. With you, with Julian. With everyone I call my friends. I'm not about to give that up for a possibility."
I see his shoulders visibly relax and I frown.
"How long were you worried about that?" I ask him. I see a blush crawl up his neck and settle on his cheeks.
"Ever since you mentioned your mother acting differently," he mumbles, not looking at me.
"Asra! Don't fester on shit like that for that long! If you're worried about something like that, you need to talk to me about it," I scold him lightly.
"I know, I know," he groans out, rubbing the back of his neck. "To be fair, Ilya was also worried about it."
"Good gods, what in the world am I going to do with you two?" I ask, faking an exasperated sigh.
"I dunno..." Asra starts out before giving me a sly smile. "You put up with our shit, which is surprising."
"You do crazy things when you like someone enough, don't you know?" I laugh out.
"Yeah, I think I do know that," he mumbles. I look at him and give him a small smile before leaning in and kissing him softly. He lets out a content sigh before he kisses me back, making my heart flutter.
"What would I do without you, Rae?" he mumbles against my lips. I snicker lightly.
"Who knows? Probably still pining over Julian," I joke. He starts to sputter as he blushes hard, making me laugh. "Come on, we need to rest. We're helping Nadia and Portia tomorrow in decorating the gardens tomorrow morning, we don't need to be late."
Asra nods before standing up, helping me up as well. I stretch and let out a content groan as my back pops and grab my boots, putting them on as Asra grabs for his. Once we're all ready and have our purchases from the day in hand, Asra takes my hand in his and laces his fingers through mine. I lean closer to him and nuzzle his shoulder as we start to head home.