Valerica's room was less a bedchamber and more a sanctum of a future matriarch, a cavern woven from ambition and silken threads. The air itself felt tense, thick with the scent of night-blooming jasmine.
Aurelia, Corvus, and the female guard were standing in front of the door that resembled one a king might have. The guard shifted her weight, her armored plates clinking softly, breaking the silence.
Corvus could feel his heart pounding against his ribs, his small spider visage crawling restlessly along his collar bone. He wasn't sure whether Valerica would be kind or cruel.
"Lady Valerica, I was informed by Corvus that he will be teaching both my Lady and Aurelia."
The guard shot a glance at Corvus.
"I felt it prudent to verify this information myself, given the current circumstances surrounding the Viaticum."
Setting down the pencil with a deliberate click, Valerica removed her glasses, folding them and setting them atop a thick tome on history. Her expression was unreadable, a perfect blank slate.
"Thank you for your diligence, guard. You are dismissed."
She waved her hand and the guard left. She frowned.
"Aury, you know it's disrespectful for your kind to enter the palace during this time."
Aurelia's smile tightened around the edges, a fragile porcelain mask on the verge of cracking.
"I know," she began, "I'm sorry, I'll leave, Val."
She took a small step backward, her eyes flickering with a rehearsed sadness.
"Corvus, perhaps you could walk me out?"
She was good. Kaelith's room was on the way to the exit and she wasn't leaving without trying her absolute best.
He turned to his sister and noticed a sly smirk on her face. She leaned back in her chair.
"That is a good idea, Aury. I have to finish this anyways."
Corvus felt a strange sensation wash over him. Hearing his sister use nicknames and accept being called by one was bizarre. He extended his arm and Aurelia hooked hers into it.
They left the room, walking in silence for a while until they were a safe distance away from Valerica's.
"You and my sister seem quite close," Corvus said.
Aurelia let go of his arm.
"Is that jealousy?" she asked with a playful grin.
"No," he scoffed, "Just, we don't get along well."
A genuine laughter. A melody that seemed to lift the oppressive air of the palace, if only for a moment.
"I wouldn't get along with someone who's going to kill me, either."
Walking further down the hall, Corvus couldn't help but wonder what Aurelia was actually like. She skillfully dodged his questions with jokes yet sometimes she was honest.
Kaelith's room was just a few meters away. They entered and Aurelia immediately began to search the room. She moved like a predator, all grace and precision.
The relaxing walk gave Corvus time to organize his thoughts. He wanted to use this opportunity to try and get information out of her.
"So is your father also involved in the research?"
Aurelia was bent over, searching the drawers in the desk.
"Research? Oh yeah," she paused.
It was the first time he saw her with a stressed out expression. She was more focused on the notes.
"Your father is an ambassador, couldn't he demand for Inquisitors to look into it?"
She slammed the drawer closed and turned to him.
"He is in charge of the welfare of Oleanders and Nightshades. This poison only affects Black Widows."
Finally, after an exhaustive search that left dust dancing in the sunlight through the window, she ducked under the bed. The chest was placed on the bed faster than he could blink.
"Ah, found it!"
She opened the chest and started reading the notes. After confirming it, she closed the chest.
Corvus had a slow smile building up. The note on the poison sigil was still in his pocket. The reason for the smile was that he felt in control. She was being playful, manipulative but he was winning.
"Will that save a lot of people?" he asked.
Aurelia nodded enthusiastically, "Yes, it will. I have to bring it to my father as soon as possible."
She grabbed his arm and started dragging him towards the palace entrance. She didn't want to waste any time.
At the entrance, she was facing him.
"Thank you Corvus," she said and with a deep breath she hugged him tightly.
He could feel her breasts against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her. Then she kissed him on the cheek.
"I'll repay you for this someday."
Waving goodbye, he could feel the guards eyeing him. Lyssandra made sure that every guard knew that he was grounded.
The route back to Valerica was short. He noticed something odd. Valerica's door was slightly open. He peeked inside.
Valerica was sitting at her desk as before, a pencil in hand, but her posture was different. She was slumped and tense.
"Come on. It can't be this hard."
Her focus was sucked into the ancient text that Corvus could read but she couldn't. Her spatial awareness became nonexistent.
She didn't feel the eyes staring at the paper behind her.
A small smile grew on his face as he watched her. She was twirling her hair, chewing her fingernails. All the nervous tics that she probably never let anyone see.
"Need help?" he said.
Valerica flinched hard, her spider eyes glowed and a sigil was cast.
Silk vines wrapped around Corvus' throat and he was left dangling in mid-air. He started gasping for air.
"What the hell Corvus! How can you sneak up on me?" she said.
The web loosened. He fell to his knees, rubbing his sore throat.
"Sorry. The door was open," he gasped.
He made a mental note to never do that again. It hurt. Sitting down on the ground, he noticed that she was staring at him with a raised eyebrow.
"What's wrong with your spider?"
He looked at his visage and saw the pink hue. It disappeared quickly.
"Nothing."
She squinted her eyes.
"That looked like magic. Mind magic," she said.
Corvus had to think quickly.
"Are you that tired already? It was probably just the sun hitting its eyes at a weird angle."
Valerica stared at him for a few seconds then sighed.
"I suppose I am tired."
She turned back around and sat down, gesturing for Corvus to sit next to her.
"There are no chairs left," he said.
His gaze drifted to the bed.
"You're not sitting on my bed."
With a heavy sigh, she stood back up and pointed to the chair. Corvus sat down.
"Where are you going to sit?" he asked.
"I'm standing," she paused, "Now if you could get on with the lesson."
He shook his head.
"Can't you just make a temporary chair with your web?" he said.
Valerica rolled her eyes.
"It's too exhausting," she said.
Corvus chuckled. He smacked his left thigh.
"Then sit on my lap."
The temperature in the room dropped. Her eyes twitched. He could tell she wanted to stab him.
"Just kidding," he cleared his throat.
Then she did something he didn't expect. She sat on his lap.
He was blinking rapidly. His thoughts were frozen and his body was stiff as a board.
"Are you going to teach me or act like a fool all day?" she said.
Regaining his composure, he spent the next two hours teaching her English. Then he headed to bed. He fell asleep thinking about Kaelith, Valerica, and Aurelia.