"You dare speak to me like that in front of witnesses?!", his voice was barely louder than it usually was yet the tone could have been used to cut through flesh and bones.
With a gasp, you stumbled through the room, pushed by the force of his anger and hit the hard wood table with such force that the quill and ink shivered.
"You're forgetting yourself!", you hissed while your nails dug into the surface of the wood to keep the magic from answering to the rage that burned inside your stomach.
"I forget myself?", he asked with his eyes widened in cold fury. "I'm the emperor! You dared to call me by my name as if you hold the position of a friend."
Every word that left his mouth seemed to burn while poison dripped from the tip of his tongue.
A bitter smile appeared on your lips.
"Well, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.", you managed to pull yourself back to your feet. "Let's say we both are fools for believing that the other makes wise decisions."
Almost immediately after the words left your mouth, he rushed forward to wrap his fingers around your neck.
With fire burning in those deep brown eyes of his, he pulled you so close that the warmth of his breath stroked your face.
He smelled as noble as it would have been expected from an emperor, like fine alcohol with a hint of something smoky like a bonfire.
There was a faint hint of lavender mixed into it which gave him a slight feminine touch.
With bated breath you met his gaze.
You weren't fearful of him. But you did know that you had to watch your words if you didn't want to end up with your head on a stick.
The way his eyes looked at you gave away how much he hated that you didn't shiver in fear.
He wanted obedience.
He wanted to feel powerful.
No man nor woman dare to talk to him like he was their equal, yet here he was, facing that one person that refused to see him as more than just a man.
No, his title did not impress you. Neither did the crown on his head or the empire that he held in the palm of his hand.
There wasn't a single being in this real that could have been bold enough to not be phased by that.
Not a single one but you, a creature of half human, half elven blood.
"Emhyr.", your hand reached up to wrap around his wrist.
It wasn't an attempt to make him let go. It wasn't to prevent him from choking harder.
But rather you wanted him to feel the warmth of your skin on his own.
He felt cold. Yet there was a hint of sweat.
"How dare you call me by my name?", he asked in a hoarse voice, almost shivering with anger.
"How dare you strip me off my title?", you replied without skipping a beat, offering him the same kind of cold anger. "How dare you disrespect my fathers achievements? How dare you call my mother a whore for falling for a man who's not human?"
Taken aback, the grip around your throat lightened.
But you forced him to stay in place with your grip on him instead.
You wanted him close.
You wanted him to look you in the eyes and see that there was nothing he could exploit.
"I'm not trying to disrespect you, but you keep disrespecting me for no apparent reason."
"You keep disobeying me!"
"I'm not your slave."
"But my accomplice. And even though you only serve me for your own benefit, I don't think that loyalty is too much to ask for.", in one harsh movement, he freed himself from your grip to bring some distance between the two of you. "The general is a loyal man and you made him break his vow to me so easily."
All of a sudden, something lit up in the back of your head.
Your eyes widened as realisation struck.
He wasn't angry that you had turned against his decision since it had turned out to be a success.
He was mad that you had managed to make one of his closest men falter in his loyalty to the emperor.
He was mad that you had managed to convince the general so easily despite being a stranger, a nobody.
With narrowed eyes you raised your chin to eye him for a moment before taking a step towards him.
Slowly, you drew circles around him.
"Perhaps...", you mumbled and bit your lips in an attempt to keep yourself from overstepping his limit any further. "Do you feel threatened by me... Emperor?"
You stopped right behind him.
Now, his back was turned to you while his eyes glared over his shoulder.
Not a single movement made him seem alive. He didn't even seem to breath.
"I fear nothing.", he answered, so cold, so unbothered.
But his eyes burned with a kind of fire that was more than a warning.
He wouldn't show mercy if you wouldn't put yourself back in your place.
But in that moment it didn't matter anymore.
You were already too far gone.
Besides, there was still not a lot to loose. Sure, he had returned your title but him taking it back wouldn't be as much of a fall as it had been the first time.
You just needed him to listen for once.
And this was a good opportunity to make him understand that you feared no creatures rage. Not even the one of an emperor.
With a well put together expression, you locked eyes with him.
"Fear and the feeling of a threat are too different things.", you explained, calm yet cautious. "I don't fear you, Emhyr. But I know that, if you wanted to, you could be the single most dangerous threat to my life that wanders this very earth."
His eyes flinched.
"Then tell me, (Y/N).", his eyes fell to the emblem ring on your finger. "What do I have to do to gain your loyalty?"
One of your eyebrows rose.
"If you can't defeat your enemies, make them your friends?"
"Perhaps... since neither gold nor any hand around your neck can make you snap. What do I need to do to eliminate you as a threat to me?"
YOU ARE READING
Emhyr Var Emreis x Reader
FanfictionAfter Cirilla declines the throne, the emperor of Nilfgaard is left without someone suitable to take his place. Nobles start to produce lies and intrigues while the countryside falls into riots and the uprise of a revolution grows. As a noble fallen...