I was pacing back and forth within Niko's bedchamber. I'd been doing this so long that I had already lost track of time as my thoughts turned in my head over and over. Even if I was wrong, I felt entirely correct; Lady Aurora didn't do anything to harm me beyond sly words over meetings. And that wasn't enough reason to end someone's life.

When the door finally opened, Niko stepped in looking at first exhausted, but then a smile graced his features when his eyes landed on me. He was far too handsome for his own good. I almost forgot everything I wanted to say to him.

"I need to talk to you," I told him, firmly refusing to allow my thoughts to scatter.

"Oh," Niko stepped closer to me slowly, "Those aren't usually nice words." He gripped my waist with one hand and lifted my chin with the other before lowering his lips over mine. His kiss was intoxicating. I wanted to push him away, but instead I stayed for more.

After some time, before he could push further, I finally found my thoughts again and frowned before turning my face away. I looked back to him, pouting with bruised lips, as he smiled with amusement.

"I wanted to talk about Lady Aurora," I finally admitted. Niko's mood soured almost immediately, the smile leaving his lips and a look of distaste replacing his amusement.

"What about Lady Aurora? She's already been taken care of," He replied cautiously. He obviously thought I didn't know anything of her true situation and would rather I assume she was dead.

"I went to see her," I admitted truthfully.

"What?" Niko responded with fresh anger. "You shouldn't go down there. It isn't a suitable place for you."

"I went with Gio and Sir Anthony, so I wasn't alone," I explained, but this didn't seem to make him feel any better. If anything, he threw a punishing look at the door as though meaning to go say something condemning to Sir Anthony being that he was nearby.

"It doesn't matter, you shouldn't have been allowed to go," Niko said with a sigh.

"That isn't the point. I spoke to Lady Aurora and I want you to set her free," I declared with determination. On this fact, I would argue with him for days and nights. I hoped he could sense that as I stared his startled form down.

"Have you gone mad? Did you forget she's tried to kill you probably several times now?" Niko questioned me with heated confusion. His mind seemed to settle on something and he continued with an even tone. "If it was her suffering that's bothered you, I will go execute her now. Then she'll be free, okay?"

"No!" I shouted much unlike myself. Niko stood stunned for a moment as I huffed before him. "I have reasons to believe Lady Aurora made no attempts on my life. If she'd been the one to do it, why was there another attempt after she was already in prison? It makes no sense, Niko."

"I can't let her go," He said firmly despite my words.

"Has she even confessed to a single thing, even after the... interrogations?" I asked accusingly.

Niko was silent for a moment as we stared each other down determinedly.

"I won't let her go," He repeated, but paused, "But I can change her punishment, if that's really what you wish." I wanted to consider the compromise, but I wasn't sure what he meant. Changing the date of an execution, for example, wouldn't be much of a punishment change. Plus, I was certain of Lady Aurora's innocence and didn't want her punished at all.

"What do you mean?" I inquired carefully.

"Instead of execution, she can spend a certain amount of years imprisoned before being released," Niko suggestion and I frowned at the idea. Where would she be imprisoned? In a place like the dungeons? I thought for a moment and then had an idea.

"Fine, but she'll be imprisoned in her own home," I demanded firmly. Niko made a noise with his throat. Before he could say anything, I continued, "And she won't be stripped of any titles or land. House arrest for... for... five years."

"Five years is nothing to us," Niko complained, but I could tell he was growing tired of this debate. I stepped closer to him, clasping my hands together pleadingly.

"Please, Niko. I'll do whatever you want," I begged sweetly. Niko looked at me in surprise at first, but then looked away in thought as though an idea had come to him that he very much enjoyed. I watched him curiously, but waited for a response.

"Anything I want?" Niko repeated, turning to look to me. I nodded mutely. "Fine. Five years house arrest; no titles stripped or land taken. If she makes any attempts to break arrest, it'll be an immediate execution." I didn't like the idea of having a threat of execution in the process, but I had to agree to what compromise I could gain.

"Okay," I agreed with mostly satisfaction before pausing. "What is it you wanted?"

"Oh, that," Niko said teasingly, stepping closer to me. He lowered his lips over my ear sweetly and proceeded to slowly whisper an extremely vulgar statement. My flesh immediately turned red and my fingers lifted to my lips in surprise as he stood before me with amusement.

"You're worse than Kol," I accused him, my voice quieting shyly.

Niko laughed and shook his head, walking easily to stand behind me. "Kol has far worse ideas than me."

I grew curious, despite my embarrassment, and looked over my shoulder to Niko carefully.

"What kind of ideas?" I asked slowly. He began to pull at my dress, undoing it slowly. I gasped as his lips lowered over my shoulder sweetly. He finished undoing my dress and it fell to my feet, leaving me in the slip underneath. His lips lifted from my shoulder up to under my ear and I inhaled sharply when he suddenly griped my chin roughly.

"He wants to have you here," Niko said lowly before capturing my lips with his hungrily. He grasped my breasts, groping them luxuriously before releasing me from his kiss. "And between here." I turned red from his statement immediately.

"Of course here," Niko growled, lowering his hand between my legs possessively. I leaned my head back against him as he massaged me, whimpering with delight at the responding pleasure. And then I gasped in surprise when he moved to grasp my bottom, squeezing and spreading me against him. "And he wants you here."

I was both alight in pleasure and red in embarrassment as I turned to face him swiftly.

"You're right. Kol is worse than you," I struggled to say shamefully. Niko laughed and then pulled me to him into a passionate kiss. I helped him begin to take his own clothes off before lowering my slip to the floor below us. I continued to kiss him as he lowered onto the bed under me.

I'd never been the one in control and so I found myself feeling vulnerable and shy. But this had been what his request was; for me to be on top of him. Only, I wanted to do more than that. I wanted to do for him what he'd done for me many time before.

I trailed my kissed from his lips to his neck, over his chest and stomach, until I was stepping off the edge of the bed. In a moment of bravery, I lowered myself and reached for his hard member.

"What are you-" Niko began, but froze as I gripped him carefully.

"I don't know," I teased and licked him, making him groan most deliciously.

My touch was delicate, probably too delicate, but I'd never done anything like this before. I licked him again, but then began to pull his member into my mouth carefully. I took him in as deep as I could handle before releasing him and trying again. I wasn't sure how long I repeated the process before I was determined to have him inside of me.

I released him and crawled on top of him, instead aligning him against my core. Before I could start, Niko sat up and pulled me down over him roughly, making me gasp at the sudden fullness of him inside of me.

He didn't wait for me to adjust. He immediately grasped my hips and pulled me against him over and over, forcing me to grind against him in a pace too fast for someone with my stamina to keep up with. I wrapped my legs around him and clung to him, crying out as I felt my body spark with overwhelming pleasure around him.

"You're so beautiful," Niko huffed as he looked at me, laying kisses on my body as he continued to have me grind against him in a slower pace. I felt shy at his comment, but before I could say anything, I yelped as he rolled over until he was the one grinding into me.

He began to thrust into me with renewed vigor; the hunger of it enough to make my body explode again. He kept a grip on my hips as he took me again and again. It didn't take long. I suspected my actions had made it harder for him to hold off for a longer period of time. After pushing into me for some time, Niko buried himself deep into me and groaned. I lay panting under him, and I reached to pull him against me as though I could pull him deeper into me.

"I... I wish I could have a child with you," I said to him without meaning to, a shyness enveloping me. Niko jolted in surprise at the statement. For a moment, I thought he might react badly to the idea, but then a look of deviousness appeared on his features.

"Well, we'll have to try again," Niko responded and I felt him already hardened within me.

"W-wait," I yelped as he began to push into me once again.

~...~

I woke up to the sound of sharp knocking on the door. It was completely dark in the bedchamber and I was alone except for the presence of Prince on the end of the bed in his smaller form. Being that Niko was no longer here, I knew it must be extremely early into the night, so it was odd to have someone knocking for me.

Three sharp knocks rapped on the door again, so I began to pull myself from the bed and looked for some clothes I could quickly put on. I opted for Niko's shirt and a pair of his boxers in the wardrobe within the room and placed a robe over this. It was either this or a slip and for some reason I wanted to be mostly covered. Then I approached the door as three more knocks impatiently came.

I opened the door carefully to see a tall and stern looking guard I'd never seen before.

"Yes?" I asked softly, as though the night were too early for voices.

"The King is requesting your immediate presence," The man said stiffly. I glanced behind him to see Sir Anthony or any other guard was not present at the time.

"A-are you my guard for tonight?" I asked hesitantly.

"I am. I will escort you to the King," He replied firmly.

"Can I get dressed properly?"

"The King is requesting your immediate presence," The guard repeated, growing impatient. I supposed if the King wanted an immediate presence at this hour, he wouldn't expect me to be dressed formally to greet him. I turned to look at Prince who was standing stiffly in the shadows behind me. I felt a sense of relief. At least someone I knew would be with me.

"Okay. Please escort me, Sir...," I waited for him to introduce himself, but he only turned away and began to lead me towards where I knew the throne room to be. As I followed him, I glanced behind me to catch brief shifts of shadows in order to know Prince was following me. Then I began to wonder what reason the King would need to see me so early and so immediately.

We arrived to the throne room, the doors opening without any introduction, and I followed the mysterious guard to the end of the room where King Cyril was sitting on his throne waiting. Once I was in range, I bowed respectfully and waited for him to address me.

"Lady Corrine, rise up," King Cyril said to me firmly. The first thing I noticed as I stood was that his voice lacked the usual pleasantness that it usually held when speaking to me. I looked up to him and paused, looking away from those chilling crimson eyes immediately.

"Your Majesty, I've come immediately as requested. Is there something you need from me?" I asked as bravely as I could manage. I moved my hands behind my back, clasping them together nervously. I didn't like to be under the spotlight.

"I've heard of the reduced sentence given to Lady Aurora. Have you?" The King asked carefully. I glanced up to him in surprise, but looked away again. Why was he interested in Lady Aurora enough to call me forward for it?

"Yes, I have," I admitted honestly.

"Are you the reason the Prince has changed his mind about her sentencing?"

"Yes, I was," I answered softly. It felt as though I was being admonished for my actions and I didn't understand why.

The King made a noise in his throat as though he'd known all along it had to be me.

"I have been doing my own investigations on the attacks against a Royal member," The King said to me dangerously. I was looking at him fully now, trying to understand his statement. Had he found something on Lady Aurora that the Prince never did? "After all, attacks on the Prince will not be taken lightly."

I paused for a moment.

"The Prince?" I asked, hoping the King would correct his own mistake. The attacks had been on me, not on Prince Nikolas. When the King didn't say anything further, I felt further confused. Was it just a slip of his tongue.

"My investigation clearly pointed to Lady Aurora, but she clearly isn't the brain behind the attacks," The King continued, ignoring me as though bored. "Do you have anything to say, Lady Corrine?" I'd listened to his words with apt attention, but even now I couldn't understand what words he was looking to come from my mouth.

"I-I believe Lady Aurora didn't participate in any of the attacks. I also believe Prince Nikolas wasn't-," I began, but the King raised his hand sharply to interrupt me. I moved to clasp my hands together in front of me, feeling nervous under such scrutiny. "I'd like to call for the Prince."

The King stood then and took a couple of angry steps towards me.

"You will not speak when I've demanded silence," The King snapped furiously. I took a step back despite the distance between us and nodded quietly. King Cyril seemed to calm after my agreeable attitude and stood less intensely.

"I already know you've enthralled the Prince. That's why he's not here. It will take some time, but he will learn to get over you," The King stated simply, lifting his hand up towards the guards around us. I looked from him to the guards as they began to pull weapons from the air around us dangerously.

"W-why?" It was the only question I could manage from my lips at the sight.

"For the instigations of attacks on a Royal and for the affiliations with House Dior who are known traitors to the crown, I sentence Lady Corrine Adara to execution effective immediately," King Cyril announced loudly so everyone in the room could clearly hear him. I felt myself pale at his words, knowing them to be completely false, but also knowing my word would be nothing against a King's.

King Cyril lowered his hand and suddenly the guards were moving towards me. I had an image of Gio running the same way, his blade rising, and I fell to the ground in response before they'd reached me. Just as I did, a large shadow of a beast appeared, diving over me and attacking the guards coming towards me.

I looked up to see bloodshed. Daemons screamed at a single bite and Prince was large enough to tower over them. Heads and limbs were torn from bodies and their blows were glancing off Prince fur as he slid through shadow between them. I wanted to stand up, to run away, but I couldn't move and if I could I wouldn't be able to leave Prince behind.

Suddenly, a powerful wave roared in the distance as King Cyril swiped his own shadow blade into the air towards the fight. I dove to the ground, wincing as I heard it meet the body's of remaining guards. And then I heard a high pitched cry as Prince was hit with the attack painfully.

"Prince!" I cried out, lifting myself at last from the ground. Prince was collapsed on the floor, breathing, but whimpering as a large gash was left torn in his flesh from his shoulder down to his back leg. I fell to the floor next to him, sobbing as I threw myself over his body as though I could protect him from further attacks.

What was happening? Why was King Cyril so intent on my sudden execution? I couldn't understand what was going on and now Prince was extremely hurt. Would he die? I could... I could try transference onto a guard, couldn't I? Was there any left alive? I sobbed further against Prince body.

"So that's the shadow daemon I've heard so much about. Such a shame he only will listen to you," King Cyril stated from above me. I felt fear pulsing through me dangerously, a terror that would slip my concentration no matter how hard I tried to keep it. I closed my eyes tightly as I clung onto Prince and then I yelped when the King grasped my hair and pulled me to my feet mercilessly.

"It's nothing personal, my Lady," The King said, no doubt preparing to strike me with his shadow blade. Without truly meaning to, my eyes flung open to see my death coming, and were caught by the sight of his large blade just over my throat. The King froze mid-strike, staring those crimson eyes into my own now glowing gold. For a moment, he didn't say or do anything. And then he laughed.

"A fucking Seraphim," King Cyril said before releasing me promptly. He turned away and then back to me before turning away and laughing loudly. "I can't believe it. There's been a Seraph in my castle this entire time." He continued laughing as though someone had told him the greatest joke of his lifetime.

I, meanwhile, was growing an unfamiliar feeling within me. As the King stepped over dead guards, his feet trekking blood around his humorous dance, and as Prince led behind me, struggling to live through his own wounds, I felt myself grow angry. How can he laugh after what he'd done? How can he laugh when he now had more reason to kill me and probably would do so any moment? It made me livid against this cruel man.

I felt something forming in my hand as though it were a part of me. I didn't need to look to know what it was. I'd already been told a Seraph could summon a seraph blade, only I hadn't known it took complete and utter anger to do so. I gritted my teeth together.

My only chance to survive would be to kill the King. It wasn't much of a chance, but I took it. Without taking a step, I gripped the blade with both hands and swiped at the air in King Cyril's direction. A burst of power erupted from me, bright like the sun, and it stormed towards King Cyril at an impossibly quick pace.

The King seemed to sense it at the last minute, turning to try to avoid it, but getting caught by the tail end all the way from his shoulder down his back. He cried out in a roar of pain, the attack like the burn of the sun on his back, and he no longer looking so entertained by my presence. I stood with my hand gripping the blade, uncertain of how to wield it myself, and then I moved to try to attack him a second time.

In a single breath, King Cyril appeared before me, using his shadow blade to knock the seraph blade from my hands. I would've tried to pick it up, but suddenly the King had a grip on my hair and pulled me to him roughly.