The Fall Of Astraea

13. The plan

I returned to the room and made an effort to relax. Despite having access to so much magic, they refused to aid those in need. Even worse, I was unable to leave the place no matter how furious I was. If I met Lykos right now, I would be done for. I walked back and forth and wondered what plan I could come up with. The only thing I could think of was to beg them to help me. The old me wouldn't have done that. The old me was a princess who didn't have a care in the world and barely thought of her people. But ever since the last conversation between my father and me, and the awakening of the magic within me changed me. It opened my eyes and it was like I suddenly knew what to do.

I sat on the bed and took off the hijab so much for being representable. It wasn't long before Malik came rushing into my bedroom. He looked annoyed as well but he calmed down when he saw me and sat next to me. "Don't worry Lena. I will make him say yes," he said, determined.

"Thank you. I wish I could convince him but I am just a stranger to him even though he claims to have known my father." I said as I placed my head on his shoulder. "I don't like him."

"I don't like him too. I usually agree with his decisions and I barely question him but this is your home. I am not going to let it burn to the ground." He said as he held my hand and I looked at him with a smile.

"Thank you, Malik, for everything. You never had to do all this." I told him softly.

"Well at the beginning you were just a mission. Then you became my friend and now....." he looked at me softly before he leaned down a bit and gently kissed me. All my nerves calmed down in an instant. I was getting a lot of butterflies in my stomach. He never took his eyes off me as his lips pressed on mine again except more fiercely this time. It ended up with both of us falling back down on the bed. I giggled as he muttered an apology. I grabbed his tunic and brought him closer to me as I kissed him passionately, my hands moving to his back. He lifted himself with one hand and the other was on my hip. He nibbled on my lower lip, making me moan and grabbing his tunic tighter. We heard a knock on the door and we both sat up so quickly that I had no time to assess my hair. I just removed it from the bun and ran my fingers through it.

"Come in!" I called out and Zahra came walking in. She spotted her brother and said,

"Oh you're here. Father is looking for you."

"Father can wait." He said as he held my hand. Zahra's eyes went wider with a grin as she said,

"Malik the bad boy, huh?" She laughed and I did as well. She sounded too funny.

"You're laughing with her as well." Malik said, sounding betrayed making me laugh more.

"What? She's funny." I said with a giggle and I looked at him with a smile. "Are you pouting, right now?" I asked. I had never seen him pout in a long time. Ever since the whole ordeal with Anastacia marrying Attor he had become someone else. Now his old self was coming out. It was nice to know that it wasn't an act.

"No." He said with a frown but Zahra and I started laughing.

"Let's get out of this room. It's too dark and your new room is ready." Zahra informed us and I was surprised that I was getting a new room. We walked out of the room, hand in hand with Malik as she lead us to my new room. I got to see more of the castle. It didn't have the grand decorations that my castle had. We walked on a lot of stairs before we finally reached the hallway that we were looking for. It was bare but had a painting of Malik and Zahra that filled up one side of the wall. There was four doors in the hallway. She showed me her room and Malik's room then finally mine. It wasn't as grand as mine back home but I was grateful for the more space and better lighting. She gave me a tour and opened the closet that already had clothing in it. She showed me a thing called a light bulb that was on the ceiling. She showed me how to turn it on and what different colors the light could be. I was amazed.