A slight surprise came on Elise's face when feeling his heart was beating because last time she put her hand over it didn't move like hers did, "It moves... how?"

"I often let my heart stay still, and last time I was showing you whether or not I will die if my heartbeats stopped. But now, my heart seemed to leap on place when I am near you," it was as if he had lost control over his heart, but it was great on its own way as for the first time he felt like he was truly alive. Only Elise was able to do this to him. No one else could and that only make her more special than she already was to him. "What about you? Which Season do you prefer? Winter?"

Elise's smile ran to spread over her lips, "Me too. When I was young I dislike winter," she said honestly, when closing her eyes the remembrance of the past came over her where she was hungry with nothing to eat and her hands were numb from frostbites. When she opened her eyes, she then saw Ian looking at her. 

People often think red eyes as blazing as his would be taunting to be seen, and could make one feel pressured; But Elise could only feel warmth. He was her solace, and she thought he needed to know that, "The only memory I have when Winter is when I was alone. Cold was bearable at one point as my body grew numb over it. But loneliness was different. The pain which is not visible to the eyes gouge deeper than the wounds on my body."

Ian pulled the black laces on her dress which was on her back, and on her words, his eyes narrowed. After tying the laces, his hand slowly moved to hold her hand. "You know it makes my heart break to think that you were alone during your hardest moment. You were young and yet the world wasn't kind to you," whispered Ian. If he had a list of people who had harmed her, whether when she was a child or now, Ian would have took the list and hunt down the people. He knew Elise wouldn't like that, but sometimes revenge are what needed for the person to repent. 

"But that was what you felt too," Elise looked to his eyes, "We share the same pain," she whispered. Deep down she knew there was more happy moments she felt in her past, but what about Ian? She hadn't heard about his past, but she could tell how deep his loneliness was.

"Mine was bearable," Ian said, and somewhere she doubted he was telling the truth, because Ian was the type of person who would hide his pain to the person and Elise could tell it was his habit— something that reflected from his past where he had to endure things and convince that he wasn't hurting. "You did great surviving everything on your own."

"You too," whispered Elise as she fixed her dress. "But now, I think I have begun loving Winter and that's because of you. You make my days full of warm, and that's also because you are a warm person."

Ian swipe his finger under her eyes, his smile wasn't full of mischief but kindness and gentleness one could never guess they would ever seen from him. "Sweetheart, you have gotten smooth in seducing me aren't you? Sometimes it worries me that you could seduce people while not knowing it. How do you like the dress?"

Elise who was now covered felt less nervous than before. Turning to the mirror, her eyes stopped at the red dress. The color was almost the same as Ian's eyes which burnt red that complement her pale skin and red hair. It looked heavy but when Elise tried to move, she noticed how light it was despite the man layers she wore. She wondered if she could go running with this.

"It's the best ever gown I've ever worn in my entire life," she said with a tone of delight. If a dress was enough to make Elise happy he would have made more, thought Ian.

"Don't say the best of your entire life yet, we still have the future ahead us. Come here, princess we still have one thing left from you," Ian went out of the divider for a moment while Elise questioned what he meant. The gown was enough than what she needed. 

It didn't take long for Ian to come back with another box which was round. He patted the round seat that she had sat on before, telling her to sit and Elise calmly. Taking the seat she then felt his hand taking the sole of her feet, pulling to her surprise. 

"I told Martha to made this. She stopped halfway after her father's death which worried me that she wouldn't complete the work. But it seemed that she was as competent as her father and managed to complete the shoes." 

Elise saw how his hand nimbly pull out the shoes which was made with a higher heel. There was delicate stone work which was of the same tune as the dress, and the laces was red while the covers were colored in black. 

When Elise tried to stand up, he held his hand for her to stand. She couldn't tear her eyes away from the gown or the shoes. It was more than she could ever wish for. Since the past, Elise had been a very simple girl, and a single wild flower was enough to make her happy as a gift, but what Ian had given her was something she had never received before.

"Thank you, they are very beautiful that I am at loss of words, Martha and the seamstress has worked very well on them," she said, her amazement unendingly glittered on her eyes. Martha lost her father, but she was able to complete her work which made Elise to be more impressed with the woman.

Ian took her hair, pulling it to one side of her neck, "They are not more beautiful than you as they're only here to compliment you. I love your hair, will you put it down for me?"

Elise nodded and he smiled, watching her appearance to see what he had created for her and how it had adorned her, "I think I did well. I will wage for you once you are ready, don't take long. I can't be too far from my heart for a long time." Ian kissed her cheeks, making a giggle to slip from her lips.

"I will go fast," Elise said before watching Ian leaving. She took one more sight of her dress, and was still impressed of the dress which made for her. Not wanting to make anyone wait, Elise quickly sat on the dressing table to fix her hair with her smile crinkling over her lips that couldn't leave.

Downstairs, Ian who had left Elise's room had changed his clothes to a formal one. Dressed in a black suit, he swept his hair to the back, letting it to stay combed back while leaving some falling untamed to his forehead. He stepped out from his room, meeting Maroon who bowed to him, "The carriage should be ready in another couple of minutes."

"There's no need for hurry. A lady needs time to doll herself," Ian said. "That's right, you can use your shovel from now on." Maroon wondered what he meant but he didn't ask. 

"Mr. Beel request to attend the Winter Ball. Should I stop him?" Maroon understood the difference in power between him and Beelzebub. The blonde-haired Demon might appeared to be nonchalant, but he had seen the man's power before. It would be difficult to stop Beelzebub but not impossible, thought Maroon in silence.

"No let him do what he want. I can see the mark," Ian said and this had Maroon to narrow his eyes. "I see that you have gotten close with Elise. You can keep your eyes red or are you still regretting that you have turned to a Demon?"

Maroon's eyes instantly lit up and he shook his head, "That can never be, milord. It was my last promise with her," he said in a whisper, "She wanted me to stay the way I did in the past."

"Lilith you mean," Ian looked at Maroon. Like him, this man knows what it felt to lose the person they love. But it hit harder for Maroon who lost his wife and Ian had never felt that before. When he imagined Elise dying, his blood boiled, and somewhere he could form an understanding with him now. "Keeping a promise is important. I learned it too before, but you should soon accept that everything change. Like weather and even stone change by time with rain and air around them. I'm not stopping you to keep your promise Maroon. I want you to move on."

Maroon's lips that had always set in a straight line pulled slowly, forming a small smile, "It wouldn't be easy."

"Believe me I know. Nine hundred years weren't enough if I were in your position. But you should be able to do that soon," Ian spared one more look at the butler and his servant. "There is still time ahead for you. That should be plenty." To forget someone was not easy, especially in Maroon's case when he didn't have a chance to bid his goodbye before Lilith's death.

Ian shifted his eyes to the window once Maroon had left, when he noticed a grim reaper with a scythe colored in bloody red. The reaper stood next to a tree as if it was searching for something or perhaps waiting for something.

Knowing what the red scythe meant, Ian took a longer walk. He stopped only when he reached toward one large window, opening it to see the snow falling. 

"You're here," Ian said without looking back to where the Demon was standing behind him.

"I-Ian!" The Demon yelled behind him, without looking Ian could hear the Demon's breaths behind him huffed as if he didn't have enough air to fill his lungs. Ian had walked far from to the side of the castle where less people would be around. Most maids were afraid of the particular hallway because of the rumors that was sent around the castle of how there was a ghost roaming around the place even when there was none. 

"Speak freely," Ian said, his eyes were still on the window pane. "You can't possibly come and ask for a tea to chat, are you?"

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A/N: Don't forget to vote, it's very helpful for me as the book would get more new reader if you vote, each day you could vote more than two powerstones. If this book is well received I plan to make a new book with the same genre in the future ^^