Threads of Fate

Chapter 5 ~ A Dream to Terrify

    Tissaia spent the remainder of the evening cloistered away in Kaius's bedroom after they'd managed to escape the ballroom. Talarion had joined them roughly an hour later, bringing news of the Prince's sudden outburst. Azael had broken a male's jaw, but no one could figure out why he would attack the counselor. He'd left the ballroom even before Talarion had, and no one had found a trace of him ever since.

    Tissaia already suspected what might have caused it though, and one glance at Kaius told her that he was thinking the same thing. The Prince must have seen them leaving together, although why it would upset him to that point, she didn't know. Or perhaps it wasn't the sight of them that angered him.

    Perhaps that counselor had pointed it out, or said the wrong thing at the wrong time. If there was one thing she knew about her betrothed, it was that underneath his cold, rough exterior, there was a wounded heart that felt all things deeply. And she had freshly carved it open. She'd seen the look in his pale blue eyes when she told him she wished she could hate him.

    He wished it too, but of course it couldn't be that simple for them. Rather than subjecting herself to pondering his behavior all night, Tissaia had turned her focus to her brother and Kaius. She spent hours draped on a chaise, just observing them and laughing at the stories they shared.

    Kaius had plenty from his days of wandering and Talarion filled him in on many of their own antics, though she noted that he refrained from mentioning any repercussions they'd faced. Eventually though, her exhaustion caught up to her and she excused herself to her own rooms.

    It hadn't taken her long to undress and slip into more comfortable nightwear, but exactly as she suspected, there had been a large bruise developing on her forearm. With luck, it would heal before a full day had passed and she had used her own healing magic to fade the marking as much as she could, but it would still be visible to those who looked closely.

    With that taken care of, Tissaia had buried herself in her overly large bed and was lost to a dreamless sleep for several undisturbed hours.

•༻☽☾༺•

    Azael knew he was being searched for. No doubt his father had recovered his wits enough to wish to scold him, but he wasn't in the mood to hear it. He already knew he'd acted impulsively and he could guess the damage it had done to their image. His small display of remorse wouldn't be enough to truly make it right, but what was done was done.

    He couldn't take back his actions, and he wasn't sure he would even if he had the option. But at the risk of repeating his offense, this time holding Kaius's face accountable, Azael had hidden himself in a secluded library on the other side of the palace. It was near the Twin's rooms, though he hadn't seen either of them since the ball.

    He had just assumed that it would be a safe bet that one of their rooms would be unoccupied, and the other one would be devoid of company, and he didn't want to be in his own rooms knowing what could be happening just down the hall.

    His stomach clenched at the thought once more and Azael shoved the thoughts aside with a disgusted huff. Sometimes he was absolutely pathetic. Jealous, pathetic, and a complete ass. He braced his forehead between his thumb and forefinger, jaw-length hair tumbling down across his hand and curtaining him from the dark walls around him.

    This was ridiculous. He was exhausted and still furious, but rather than resting like he obviously needed to, he was hiding. Azael shoved himself to his feet and ducked into the corridor. His legs almost seemed to carry him mechanically.

    He certainly didn't recall telling them to bring him in this direction. Further away from the Twin's rooms and into a smaller adjoining hallway that led to a desolate chamber estranged from the rest of the palace. Azael paused outside the familiar set of doors and gripped the once gilded handle.