The Tyrant's Pet

"You've been standing there since hours ago."

Aries stopped several steps from the man standing in the vast expanse of the queen's courtyard. Her eyes studied his back, sighing as he didn't move a muscle.

"If being a statue is what you aspired to be, you could've told me," she said as she advanced in his direction, stopping beside him. "For how long will you stare in that direction?"

Fabian kept his eyes in the same direction that he had been staring at for hours. "You ordered people to step into that mansion."

"I did. It's only courteous to welcome them with a proper lodging."

"Lady Tilly will not appreciate that, my queen." Fabian slowly faced her, his usual smile was nowhere in sight. "Allow me to prepare their home for them."

Aries scanned his face before she shrugged. "If that will make you happy. You know I don't want to disappoint you."

"I appreciate that." Fabian peeled his eyes from her, only to set them in a particular darkness ahead. "I need to do something so I would get into less trouble in a few days."

"How strange that you become nervous at the thought of your previous master." Aries let out a short chuckle, shaking her head mildly. "How was Marsella?"

"She..." he trailed off, cocking his head back to ponder. "... the same."

"Maximus had been searching for her. Keep moving her. If she escaped, it'll be hard for us to proceed as planned."

"Don't worry about that, my queen. With two souls inside that body, Marsella wouldn't be able to act properly on her own." Confidence dominated Fabian's countenance at the thought of Marsella's well-being. "I, as well, wouldn't want more delays."

"It had been two years, after all. My patience is running thin as well." Aries rocked her head, thinking two years was too long for her. "We'll get rid of them soon."

She paused, turning on her heel to face him. She didn't speak until he quirked a brow, facing her, only to see her smile.

"Maximus, Javier, those aristocrats, and the Grimsbannes." Aries closed in, snaking her arms around his waist. "We'll get rid of them soon, love. And peace will come for the both of us."

Aries locked her hands on his back, smiling coquettishly at him. Fabian studied her stunning face, raising his hand to cup her jaw.

"Just tell me when, I'm prepared anytime." Her lips stretched from ear to ear at his response, watching him in silence as he lowered his head. Fabian tilted his head to the side while she narrowed her eyes until they were partially closed.

Half an inch before their lips met, Fabian paused while Aries's eyes sharpened.

"Abel sent Maximus a letter. It will keep him busy in the meantime," she muttered through her gritted teeth. "Make sure the Grimsbanne will step foot in this land without a problem and with no one noticing. Maximus will kill them."

The side of Fabian's lips curled up into a smirk until his eyes were squinting. He nudged the tip of his nose against hers before drawing his head back. His hand on her cheek remained, brushing her cheek with his thumb.

"What do I do with my queen?" he spoke out of nowhere. "Your wedding is coming up, and yet, my heart gets swayed despite how displeased I was being just a lover."

"Stop it." Aries brushed his hand from her cheek, rolling her eyes. "The royal palace has a lot of guests. I don't want them to think that the queen indulges in debauchery."

"Will their opinion matter?" Fabian smirked, taking her hand gently. "No one's around. Come. I'll show you something."

Aries let out a shallow breath as he dragged her back to the queen's quarters. The two of them looked like young lovers, about to sneak in to do what lovers do. At least, that was what it looked like to the person hiding in the shadow not far away.

"Nothing suspicious," whispered the person hiding in the shadow, keeping his eyes on the queen and her lover's figures. "However, it seems that they were moving Marsella from place to place and they were planning something. Though their plan wasn't disclosed."

The person in the shadow paused as if listening to the voices in his head. He nodded after a second, taking a step back, and just like a shadow, he became one with the darkness.

********

Meanwhile, in one of the glamorous estates in the heart of the mainland, several people were sitting at a round table. With several candles on the table, everyone's eyes were on the crystal ball in the middle. In that crystal ball, they could see Fabian leading Aries inside the queen's quarters.

Aries's smile was like no other; she would be with everyone and sport the same fake smile. Hence, getting used to that smile of hers, they could see the difference when she was with that butler, Fabian. They said it was because both of them were wielders of Maleficent, Aries and Fabian had an instant link and attraction for each other.

It wasn't impossible nor was it surprising.

"Maximus, Javier, those aristocrats, and the Grimsbannes," someone around the table repeated what they had heard from Aries. "I think she will start moving during the summit. Before she targets us, it'll be better if we get her on our side to take down Maximus, that thief Javier, and those troublemakers of the Grimsbannes."

"That is impossible."

"The Queen isn't someone who will work with her previous enemies."

"Are you saying we have to dispose of her before she makes her move?"

"Maleficent is the only person who can take down the Grimsbanne. Maximus isn't someone we want to deal with after what he did that night two years ago," another one chimed in.

All eyes slowly shifted to the last person who spoke. The last member of this council on the mainland was a young woman with clouded eyes that indicated her blindness.

"Let's just proceed as planned," she continued, sensing everyone's gaze on her. "The Queen had been looking for her people. We'll use them as leverage. Those witches wouldn't work with us, anyway. We might as well use them to our advantage."

The people surrounding the round table looked at each other before they nodded in agreement. It seemed they had no choice but to work with each other without anyone's help this time.

Surely, the mainland was filled with not just powerful vampires and witches, but also scheming and dangerous types. Everyone was a foe, and that was what Aries learned that night two years ago.

<strong>***NOTE:  </strong>

I just moved to another place and am still a bit busy with all the stuff. Will get used to the new place and current setup after resting a bit.