THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES | Coriolanus Snow

part I: the mentor | 6

Coriolanus was momentarily paralyzed. "You can't lose something you never truly had" echoed in his mind. What did that mean? A biting remark about their arranged union? Why was it his fault? And why should he care about someone else marrying him gladly when Lupinia had been promised to him practically since he could remember? Nothing would deter him from going through with this. The thought of marrying someone else was unbelievable. She was a more than suitable match - from a wealthy family and even Coriolanus couldn't deny her breath taking beauty. And now that the Snows had quietly fallen she was even too good of a match for him. But selfishly he still wanted to marry her despite the mutual animosity not just for his family and their financial problems. The enigmatic allure of Lupinia had a profound effect on Coriolanus, stirring a complex mix of emotions within him, that he didn't want to admit, so he tried to bury them inside. But there was an undeniable magnetism between them, a force that alternated between pulling them irresistibly close and pushing them vehemently apart. Despite the constant clashes and disagreements, Coriolanus found himself drawn to her, unable to resist the magnetic pull that seemed to bind them together.

It was as if they were caught in a cosmic dance, a play of opposing forces that dictated the ebb and flow of their relationship. The intensity of their connection both fascinated and frustrated Coriolanus. At times, the attraction was so powerful that he felt like he was being inexorably pulled toward her, unable to resist the gravitational force like yesterday when he couldn't resist caressing her thigh or even just a few seconds ago when he couldn't let go of her hand. However, in other moments, a forceful repulsion would take over, creating a distance between him and Lupinia that seemed insurmountable.

Coriolanus struggled to comprehend the complexity of his feelings for Lupinia that lurked deep inside him - locked away. Her stubbornness and strong-willed nature clashed with his own, yet he found himself unable to stay angry with her for long. There was an addiction to her presence, a gravitational pull that transcended the logical explanations of their arranged union. Coriolanus couldn't help but wonder if there was something more profound at play, something beyond the constraints of societal expectations and family arrangements.

But if it was this way for him - did she feel the same? Did she, deep down, experience it too - the inability to take her eyes off him, as if she couldn't pull her hands away from him? Did she have the same desire to be close to him? Because, locked up inside him, he felt precisely that way about her. However, he couldn't let these questions and thoughts in. They were better locked up deep inside him. Lupinia hated him, she had made it clear many times that she despises their arrangement and also him. He needed to get out of his head and hurry to class, and that was exactly what Coriolanus did. He shook off the thoughts and feelings as he entered the academy.

Pulling himself together, he walked into the classroom and spotted Lupinia already seating next to Arachne Crane. Coriolanus knew that while Lupinia and Arachne weren't particularly close, the Evergreens occasionally engaged in business with the Cranes. Coriolanus and Lupinia had grown up in the presence of the Crane girl. Determined to talk to Lupinia and make things right between them, Coriolanus took a seat next to her.

However, Lupinia seemed to be engrossed in a lengthy and seemingly unimportant conversation with the Crane girl, purposefully ignoring him and adding to Coriolanus's irritation.

Eventually, she concluded her discussion with Arachne and turned around to face Coriolanus. One glance into his striking blue eyes momentarily disarmed her, prompting a brief forgetting of the reason for her anger and let her question if she had been too hard on him.

"So, Coriolanus, what did you want?" Lupinia inquired calmly, making a conscious effort to steer the conversation in a positive direction.

"I wanted to continue our conversation from earlier. I want to make things right between us," he admitted sincerely. But their exchange was interrupted by the entrance of the professor.