"Why do you put up with me?"
"Because you're fire and I have been cold my whole life"
A.R.Asher
She stared intensely at the man in front of her to see if probably she had mistaken another person to be Leondre. Her gut feeling told her that she was right about the person that stood in her presence.
But why did he seem so cold? His eyes were devoid of any emotions. It was just a blank stare towards her
Leondre on the other hand played the ignorance card. He pretended not to know who she was but deep down his insides were screaming her name.
"You are in my way" He finally spoke few minutes later
Cyane blinked once then twice before she understood what he had said.
"I'm sorry" she moved aside.
Leondre gave her a once over scrutinizing her outfit and without saying a word he walked away.
She stood at the same spot and her eyes followed his trail.
Did he know it was her?
If he did then why was he like that?
The questions remained in her mind even as she watched him enter the brothel.
She was astonished at what she had seen but her aunt had already put her through that the men at Ixar found joy being in brothels.
She pivoted and walked back to the tavern. The walk was long and tiring, she pondered on how she even managed to have gotten so far.
When she got to the tavern, she was exhausted and sweat trickled down her face, she was looking messy.
Malina was already seated outside the tavern with her arms folded and when their gazes met Cyane knew what was coming next.
Lectures were one of things that she always tried avoiding from Malina because she would go on and on about how something was supposed to be which bored her a lot.
There were times when she would zone out and let Malina keep talking until she was done. Sometimes when Malina figured out that Cyane hadn't been listening to her she would get infuriated and start all over again.
"I couldn't let the money go just like that" Cyane waved the pouch from where she stood for Malina to see.
Malina maintained a straight face and turned her gaze to her side, she was trying so hard to control herself from bursting into laughter right in front of Cyane.
She stylishly used her hand to cover her mouth.
"It's ok you can laugh" Cyane shrugged her shoulders, "You are free"
And then all broke loose as Malina burst into a fit. She held her stomach after a while as she had slowly began running out of air but couldn't reign in the laughter.
Cyane felt shy, she knew why she was being laughed at. She had made a fool of herself in the process of trying to get her money back.
Malina held onto the wall for support as she kept on laughing, Cyane couldn't help but manage a smile. It was very embarrassing and if the tables were turned, she would also laugh at Malina.
"At this rate Cyane, we are not going to have any money left" Malina palmed herself in the face.
The coins placed on the table further proved her point.
They had gone to a place to sit and luckily there was a table there.
It wasn't surprising when Cyane had told her how she had given the boy some coins and not just some but seven pieces.
How much did she earn?
Why was she generous to the thief? At times she couldn't wrap her finger around her friend's character, It was appalling.
Malina had the urge to sit her friend down and lecture her on how she needed to put herself first in some situations. She couldn't treat a person's wound in battle when she had an arrow stuck in her hand but Cyane wasn't ready for that kind of conversation.
"Well I haven't stopped working and neither have you? We would make double the amount in no time."
"Cyane, you know what I mean, you can't keep giving away our savings" Malina pulled the seat before her harshly and sat down. Her palms covered her face and she took deep breaths, when she let go Cyane was distracted.
"What are you staring at?" Her eyes followed Cyane's gaze and it rested upon a little girl in the streets.
She knew what had crossed Cyane's mind and she had to intervene before they went hungry because of her friend's generosity.
"I think I would be the one holding onto this" Malina packed the coins that were on the table back into the pouch and held it in her hands.
"Why are you..." Cyane was confused, she couldn't understand why Malina was so keen on being the one to hold the money
"Before you give everything away to charity" she interrupted her. Her face was void of any emotion.
"What do you mean?"
Malina gestured with a tilt of her head towards the little girl that stood outside the tavern.
"I wasn't thinking of it like that" Cyane had tried to lie. She had definitely thought of helping the little girl out.
"Oh really? Well I'm glad I acted fast then before the idea creeps into your head" Malina adjusted the chair backwards then stood up causing the chair to make a sound, "So are we still going to the beach?"
Cyane nodded.
It was already evening by the time they got to the beach, the ocean tided on the bare sand moving forth and backwards with the current.
The girls sat on a rock watching the people that came. The beach was almost empty except for the fishermen who were returning on their boats after having caught some fishes. Their boats were filled up almost causing it to tumble.
The boats weren't much so the men opted to release some fishes back into the sea. They did it precisely to avoid their hard work going in vain that was if all the fishes happened to go back into the sea.
Malina moved from where they sat and walked closer to where the boats were. She had barely gotten to the shores before the men arrived.
They dragged the boats out of the sea. The fishes hardly squirmed as they were almost out of air.
Cyane watched, trying to see what Malina was up to.
"Would you be kind enough to help a Lady with few fishes? I'm willing to buy them"
One of the men there turned to her, his eyes had the brightest shade of blue and he had a fuller upper lip.
"How many would you like?"
"The amount that I can carry" She replied shyly.
Within few minutes, the man had already put some fishes into a bucket and handed it to her.
"Careful though, it is quite heavy"
She nodded and took it, the weight of the bucket shook her almost out of balance.
"Are you alright?"
"Yes, I can manage, thank you"
The man smiled at her and she couldn't return it. Her mind was on the bucket that she carried, she hadn't imagined it being that heavy.
"I could help you, you know?"
"No, it's ok, I'm fine" she managed a smile and the man mirrored her gestures.
"You are new here" it sounded both like a question and a statement.
"Yes, I arrived a week ago" she slowly walked away from him towards Cyane who had stood up to help her with the bucket.
Malina quickly remembered that she hadn't paid and went back to the fisherman.
"I'm sorry, I forgot to pay" she opened her pouch and brought out some coins, "How much is it?"
"There's no need to pay"
Malina was overjoyed but couldn't let it show, "I'm sorry, I really want to pay"
"It's ok, you don't need to"
She obliged and left, she was grinning when she took the bucket from Cyane.
She had to suppress the giggles that would erupt to avoid the man knowing that she was happy in case if he was a wolf. She didn't want his enhanced hearing picking up on her light chuckles.
"Are you satisfied now?" Cyane teased
"Yes, very" A smile found its way up her lips
The moon was already out when they had made it to where people gathered. For some reason even at night, the people in the capital were still up and vibrant.
It was as though the town had gotten much alive.
They passed through the streets before Cyane saw him again.
She was sure that she wasn't mistaken earlier, the person looked so much like Leondre from what she remembered except this one looked much older.
"Excuse me" she said before leaving Malina
"Cyane?" Malina tried to call her back but she was already gone before she could say much. She shrugged and kept walking back home. Cyane could definitely take care of herself, she was a big girl after all.
She blended into the crowd with the fish that she carried trying not to bring unnecessary attention to herself and not long after she was home.
Cyane lingered around the building she had seen Leondre come out from. It happened to be thesame brothel that she had bumped into him earlier.
Why was she still standing there?
What was her business though if it really was him?
Would he still remember her?
The thoughts clouded her mind shrouding all others. In that space of time she had forgotten that she hadn't had food since the tavern and her stomach growled.
She opted to enter inside the building
but then hesitated at the door.
Was it worth it?
Was trying to see if he was really the one going to help her out?
Would it really put food on her table?
She decided against it, it probably wasn't worth her time. She walked down the steps of the building before she came face to face with a juggler. The object that was being juggled almost hit her on the face but she was quick to duck and it hit the floor.
The man turned to her with a remorseful look and she accepted his apologies. Just when she was about to leave something or perhaps someone caught her eye in the corner
And she found her self walking towards it, she had barely gotten close before the person turned to face her almost immediately and she gasped.
She hadn't expected the person that she had been looking for to be right in front of her. Her eyes had deceived her then because he never went into the brothel.
"Care to tell me why you have been following me?" He asked rather adamant.
She had been caught and she wasn't going to give in that easily
"Following you? Don't think too high of yourself" she wanted to tell him that she was merely looking around but decided to withhold that piece of information to herself in case if it backfired.
He responded with a raised eyebrow and a scoff, "If that's so then what were you doing back there?"
"What are you doing here?" She pressed on, she had wanted to give a sarcastic reply but chose not to.
"That's none of your business" He gave her a once over, "You are a monk" A smirk tugged on his lips, it wasn't as though he didn't know about it before but he opted to play the pretense card, "Monks aren't seen in this town and not to talk of a place like this" he gestured with the wave of his hand towards the brothel.
Cyane followed his hand movements, he was right, ever since she had arrived she hadn't laid eyes on a single monk which led her to believe that monks weren't in the capital.
"I'm not a monk" that was true, she being raised by them didn't mean that she was one of them.
"Your clothes say otherwise"
She glanced at her dress and realized that he was indeed right, she wasn't fully in their attire but she was in one of the outfits that if looked at carefully one could identify her as one of them.
She had worn a dress to make it seem less noticeable to people but somehow the man in front of her knew.
"I didn't think it looked that way"
He scoffed and turned his face away, his actions doing nothing but infuriating her, she noticed the way his eyes darted round the place.
She guessed he was watching out for something or perhaps someone.
He had asked her earlier if she was following him and judging by the way his eyes scanned the place she felt he was paranoid.
But of what?
She couldn't seem to fathom what it was that had him on an edge.
Leondre's eyes caught hold of a silhouette from the corner of his eye and before anyone could comprehend what had happened he pulled Cyane to his side. Cyane was opportuned to also see thesame thing and it happened to be a man dressed in a guard uniform.
She was shocked at the sudden pull towards him and before it could register in her mind, he ducked with her still in his hold, she had no choice but to do the same.
They hid beside a cart and after few seconds she wanted to ask about what was going on when suddenly his hand covered her mouth and he signaled for her not to say anything.
They heard the footsteps as people passed them. After sometime he let go of her mouth and they both stood up quietly.
"What was that all about?" She blurted out.
"It was nothing" he deadpanned
"What do you mean that was nothing?" She was doubtful about the person who stood in front of her, her expression suddenly went from confusion to fear, "Are you a thief?"
She had already had enough of thieves after being robbed earlier in the day. Leondre stared at her like she had lost it.
"A murderer?" She took a step back.
As much as she would love to stick around, she was an unshifted wolf and unshifted wolves were equal to humans in strength alone. If he happened to be a murderer she couldn't take him down alone so the better option would be to run.
"No" He took a step forward with a smile on his face.
"A rapist?"
His smile faltered only to be replaced with a frown, "What? I would never stoop so low to force myself on a woman" he chuckled with no emotion whatsoever, "Why would I when I can simply snap my fingers and they all come running to me" he gestured with his fingers snapping it to further elaborate his point.
She stared at those fingers and then back at him. He seemed to have made a point in her but she wasn't too willing to accept it immediately. If only she hadn't let her curiosity lead her she would be at home at the moment with her Aunt, Malina and Boris.
She didn't want to stay further so she turned to leave but he suddenly grabbed her hand, "Where do you think you are going? "
"Let go of me" she wriggled her hand in his hold but he wouldn't budge, "Let go" she raised her voice a little bit higher
"Shhhh, you would only cause a scene, in case you haven't forgotten where you are, let me remind you monk, we are in front of a very known place in town. Look around" her mind followed his words because in no second had he said it that she was glancing around and she suddenly realized what he meant. They were still in front of a brothel, "Do you know what's running through the minds of the people passing by and seeing us together? They think that you have agreed to spend the night with me"
Her eyes widened and her heart palpitated which didn't go unnoticed by Leondre as he was enjoying the moment.
"Let go of my hand" she pleaded again and then added a please which made Leondre smirk.
"I remember being on my own before someone came over to me.."
"I didn't come over to you" she interrupted his moment, "I was just doing what every other person seemed to be doing and that was just passing" she lied.
Leondre didn't seem to believe that, he had heard her footsteps earlier and her heart beat sounded much closer for someone who seemed to be passing and it wasn't like he was on the road. He was beside a cart that was parked close to the brothel.
"You are not a very good liar, are you?" He grinned.
"I don't care what you think, all you have to do is to let go of my hand"
"And what if I don't want to" he teased her further, "After all someone accused me of being a rapist"
"Which you denied" she wriggled her hand again but he still wouldn't budge
"Stop it before I hold the other hand too" His threat seemed to get to her because she had stopped what she was doing. He smiled at her again and pulled her forward as they began walking away from the brothel, he tried putting an arm around her shoulder but she bent her head avoiding it in the process.
"What are you doing?" She was stunned at his sudden action towards her, first he had held onto her hand not willing to let go then he tried to put an arm around her shoulder.
Could her day get any worse?
"Just follow my lead"
She didn't say anything else as she silently followed him, he took her away from the place and further into town. The bright lights from the lanterns illuminated the place.
"Where are you taking me?"
"I won't hurt you, that I promise" That was all he could say to her. For some reason she felt that she could trust the person in front of her who she barely knew. They got to another building and he started to walk in when suddenly her legs got stiff at a spot. He glanced at her and she shook her head indicating that she would not follow.
"You can stay out here on your own or you can come in with me besides.." he looked around noticing the people that lingered around the building, "The man from before might make an appearance you never can tell"
"He doesn't know me"
"Your scent"
"What?" She furrowed her eyebrows in utter confusion, the cloud on her forehead only seemed to further reveal her state.
"He knows your scent now. He's a wolf so if you don't want to be found being an accomplice of a thief, muderer or rapist, I would advise you to come in with me"
"I already apologized for that, I'm sorry if it hurt your feelings"
"You accused me"
"I'm sorry about it"
She felt like she had stepped on a thorn because he didn't seem like he would be letting go of the accusations anytime soon.
"Sorry?"
She nodded
"I would let it all go, If I see you on the way again, I promise to walk past you like a stranger but only on one condition. That you step in here with me and you have my word like I said I wouldn't hurt you at least not yet"
She narrowed her eyes at him, "Relax, I'm just joking. So what do you say, monk?"
She simply nodded and before she knew it she was already inside the house, she was greeted by a man at the door who closed it after they must have entered when suddenly her eyes widened and she realized where they were," How many of these places do they have in this town?"
Leondre chuckled, it was a lovely sound to her ears. On another day and a different circumstance she would relish in its sound but today was different. She had only put herself into trouble, she felt like she had just walked into a wolf and this particular one was ready to play with her until she gave up before it went in for the kill.
"As many as there can be" he kept on walking. Cyane couldn't help but glance around the place that they happened to be in or perhaps that she was forced to be in. It was none other than a brothel, and a different one from the last.
She guessed that Leondre was really versatile with probably all the brothels in Ixar.
She had gotten lost in her actions that she failed to notice his absence and it had her walking forward. She opted to use that moment to escape but pondered on what if Leondre was right and the person following him already knew her scent.
She hadn't masked it like she had heard her Uncle talk of wolves doing where they used a leaf called Garbane to hide their scents from others.
The leaf wasn't easy to find not like one could stumble upon it in the market and it was also rarely grown. Only few people knew about it and it had somehow gotten to the possession of the Royals but it wasn't grown in the Royal garden either.
It was kept in a place where only the king knew about it and in this case his son happened to know about it too since his scent happened to be masked.
Leondre's scent being masked didn't mean that his face was unrecognizable. Anyone who knew him could point him out even within a crowd.
Cyane had gotten lost in the brothel, it really was an unfortunate day for her because she had taken a wrong path and as if the misfortune was further teasing her she opened a door thinking that it was where Leondre might be since she was looking for him. Only for her to see a man on top of a woman with the sheets covering their naked bodies. She covered her eyes and apologized then walked away.
Her Uncle would reprimand her if he knew where she was and her dear Aunt too. Seden might tell her that it wasn't her fault but would also give her a piece of his mind. Then coming to the Abbot, when she thought of him she felt shame. The Abbot would turn in his grave at this moment.
She walked with her head bent. Malina would laugh if she found out what just happened to her.
She turned a corner and found Leondre sitting with four women as they leaned on him. The women were flocking round him and he was enjoying the attention.
One whispered something in his ear which caused him to laugh. Cyane came to where he sat and the women took a quick glance at her before their gazes returned back to Leondre.
Cyane took a seat on thesame table where Leondre sat. She felt uneasy being in the place she was unlike Leondre who was rather enjoying it. Two of the ladies ran their hands round his chest in a slow manner and Cyane threw her face away repulsed by the act.
Was this what her Uncles warned her about?
She cocooned herself in the seat while also failing to notice a man from the corner who had his eyes on her. He had been silently watching her and after few minutes of watching, he made his way to her. His sudden arm around her shoulder caught her off guard and she jerked.
"Easy darling" the man tried to calm her down
"I, I'm not.." She stuttered as she tried to tell the man in front of her that she wasn't a slut. How could she tell him that the only reason why she was in such a place was because she had accused the man in front of her and he had made her come before he would let go of it, "I don't.."
"It's ok my love I would be good to you, you are really beautiful" he raised his hand to touch her cheek but Cyane threw her face away letting his hand fall, "You are a shy one, are you new here? Well you have nothing to be worried about, I would take good care of you. Such beauty like you need to be handled with care"
She felt irked by his words and she looked at Leondre for help but he was engrossed with the women as they fed him mouth to mouth with a strawberry from the plate before them. He seemed really familiar with the women from the conversations they were having.
"So my love" she inwardly cringed at the man's voice, "How much for a night? I would make you scream.."
That was the last straw for Cyane as she kicked with all her might at Leondre's foot under the table. It got his attention and his gaze snapped towards hers then she gestured to the man beside her
"She's with me" Leondre spoke and that was enough to get the man arching an eyebrow
"But.."
"I paid for her" The man was still doubtful about it, "For the night" Leondre finished his words.
Cyane was unhappy about it as she felt very insulted but at least the man beside her would leave her alone and he did just that.
Cyane clenched her fists, She was pissed with Leondre then she stood up angrily and began leaving the place.
She was no whore.
She left the building, cold air hit her just as she stepped outside, her footsteps were quick, she was going home.
"Wait" Leondre called after her and she turned to face him
"What is it, Leondre?" Leondre smiled at his name being mentioned, it didn't come as a surprise to him, "I have already paid you back even though you insulted me by bringing me here. I hope you have a good night rest" She turned and walked away from him not sparing him a second glance.
The people were few on the streets now and her sense of smell took her home. She didn't know the part of the town she was in therefore relying on her wolf senses.
She got to their residence and was about to enter the next house where she stayed alone with Malina when a voice spoke behind her.
"Looks like you had quite some fun tonight" she stopped and turned around slowly, she hadn't expected to see the person in front of her as he was not supposed to be back yet.
Charle stood with a smile which reached his eyes and he began walking slowly to where she stood fixated on her spot, "I can smell it on you" he was talking about the fragrance on her dress. Such scent was only found in the brothels as the women there always had it on them. It was said that they also prepared it themselves. Then he began walking away and into the opposite house before uttering the remaining words, "But don't worry your secret is safe with me"