FATE #3 *(A ROSE IN BLOOM)*

WHEN TIME STOPPED*

GENERAL POV

She held onto his arm and leaned against it as they walked.
"Aren't you bothered about the rumours?" he asked when a brief silence fell between them.

She cleared her throat heavily.
"You should have considered that yesterday as well. When gossip turns into murmurs, I suffer the most-I hear everything. They make it sound like we're about to get married."

Lucious halted and furrowed his brow.
"Should we do that?" he asked lightly. "I mean, if it won't be news anymore." He laughed it off.

"Well, aren't you cute?" she scoffed. "No. As perfect as that might sound, let's take it slowly..."

She hurried ahead, and in hindsight, he realized she liked the idea. He followed, trying to catch up and hear her clearly.

After lunch, she slipped back into work mode, tackling the empire's paperwork by combining speed and sorcery. In the middle of it, she sensed a strange presence hovering around the study. A sinister smirk crossed her lips as she calculated the pace at which it was comfortably drawing nearer.

With a swift motion of her hand, she warded off the intruder's invisibility spell. Jemilla-fortunate enough to have her hood down-evaded exposure by camouflaging again and slipping out through the window, leaving the palace behind.

"I knew something was off about that person," Pearl muttered, returning to her work.

Lucious's earlier question about Devan's return suddenly bolted into her mind, and the connection formed instantly.

Later, she visited Devan's oubliette. Recalling the whispers in the guards' thoughts from the previous day, she smiled.
"Bingo," she murmured as she stepped closer.

"Well, well," Devan sneered. "Seems my stepdaughter can't do without me. Am I going to see your face every day now? That would successfully murder me, Pearl. Perhaps next time, send Kimbling instead-I might die faster without seeing your face."

"Too bad you fooled me so well yesterday," she replied coolly. "All I saw were his footsteps. Whatever you're secretly planning, Devan, trust me-I'm always a step ahead. And I'll make sure you rot here until your dying day."

He chortled at her expression.
"Are you living inside your head, stepdaughter? What's throwing your security off a cliff tonight? Am I renting a mansion in there? Tell me-how much is the rent?"

He inched closer to the door. Without another word, she backed away until she reached the exit.

"Oh, I almost forgot," she added. "Tell her that the next time she sneaks into my space, I'll feed her soul to the vultures. She'll definitely visit you again."

She flashed him a brief smile and walked out.

She had hoped to see Jemilla's face, at least once. Devan, however, wondered which of them was truly the most powerful.

Lucious later sent for Thessa regarding her father. Since Agyepong's death, he had stayed away from imperial matters, but now he had a message for her.

Her father wished to speak with her-to settle their differences and reunite as a family. As Lucious conveyed this, he noticed how eager she was for him to finish and leave her sight.

"Is something wrong?" he asked. "We've seemed distant lately. What's going on?"

"Huh? No-nothing," she replied quickly. "I think we've just both been busy. Don't worry, I'm fine. And we're fine too, alright?"

She sighed, patting his shoulder twice with a forced smile.

As she turned to leave, he caught her arm, noticing how tired and troubled she looked.

"Look," he said gently, "I may not be as gifted as Pearl, able to read problems from eye contact, but your eyes and mannerisms are saying far more than your words. Talk to me. I'll listen-and help you through it. Trust me."

She folded her arms and stared at him.
"Oh really? Thanks, but no thanks. I'm perfectly fine and don't need that. Excuse me."

She tried to leave again, but he stopped her once more.

Unseen, Pearl had camouflaged herself to visit him. She overheard part of their exchange and lingered.

He let out a short chuckle.
"Now I'm convinced something's wrong. You're holding something against me, Thessa-I can tell. Did I... did I do something wrong?"

She pulled her hand away.
"Lucious, everyone's stressed lately-you should know that. That's all it is. Why would I hide anything from you? I'm okay. In a few days, I'll be perfectly fine."

She walked out.

Pearl watched her from the doorway, sighing heavily, clutching her chest as tears welled in her eyes.

"How long can I keep holding this in?" Thessa whispered to herself. "Maybe I should isolate myself for a while..."

Pearl walked beside her silently, listening to every word that dissolved into the air. She sympathized deeply. After seeing her to her horse, Pearl turned back toward Lucious.

She entered his study without knocking and found him lost in thought. She cleared her throat, snapping him out of it.

"Oh-sorry if you knocked several times," he said. "My mind was far away."

"I didn't knock," she replied calmly. "And I didn't open the door either. You seem to have a lot on your plate."

"Yeah," he sighed. "And unfortunately, most of it is due next week-or in a month."

They laughed softly. He rose from his seat and sat on the edge of the table in front of her.

Their eyes locked. Lucious seized the moment.
"Thessa was here, and-"

She cut him off sharply.
"Do you feel obligated to tell me everything that happens in your life? Am I indirectly forcing you to do that?"

He studied her closely, then stood up, irritation creeping in.

"I thought that would be better than you stealing my thoughts, Pearl," he snapped. "I should know why you do it, but I've never had wicked thoughts about you. It becomes a problem when you can't trust me without invading my privacy. It's not fair-and it's not fun."

"Excuse you?" she shot back, rising to her feet.