"Then at least put on some protective gear." Mikyle refuted, pretty much annoyed, grabbing my attention back to the topic. To him, I'm the stupidest, stubbornest, and reckless patient he has ever treated. I couldn't argue with that because everything didn't matter to me when something caught my interest. Everything faded behind me. But then, he continued, sighing, "You're still a wolf, and silver or wolfsbane still had their effect on your kind."
"Damn, I missed seeing how frantic and furious Mikyle was while nagging you." Almira Keith Knightrose sat beside me, commenting teasingly, which earned a death glare from her brother, Mikyle.
Almira was another good-looking vampire lady with a charming, playful aura, but a little intimidating because of how she strongly carried herself. I could feel she was one of the strongest fighters among the knights, which reminded me of Talia.
"Not helping." Mikyle groaned annoyingly.
They kept laughing and teasing about the incident I'd caused, but I'm bothered. I suddenly rolled a question directly addressed to Lady Alysia, wondering innocently, "Mama, where is she? My fiancée?"
Everything stopped when that question was dropped. There was a sudden silence, and breaths were held; the fun, warm vibe died down. I noticed how deafening the silence felt, and I frowned as they stared at me in disbelief.
They're making me anxious by the way they stared at me as if they were stabbed with a stake or something. "What did I do now?" I thought, slightly panicking, fidgeting before asking, "Did I ask something wrong? You're making me anxious."
"Oh no, kiddo. You didn't ask anything wrong." Lord Michael answered gently, smiling genuinely at me, but I'm not buying it.
"You just surprised us by looking for her," Mikyle added, making my frown deepen. I don't get what he meant there.
"Mirxalyn is always busy managing the entire property of the Knighrose as the family head, and being a queen, she needs to tend to her people's needs too. That's why you'll see her often around here." Lady Alysia clarified before grinning teasingly, "Why are you looking for her? Do you miss her?"
Heat crept over my cheeks, but I masked it by shrugging my shoulders, replying, "No, I'm just wondering when to meet her." Then I took another bite, thinking, "So, I'm marrying a workaholic person…"
"Next week on your wedding day." Lady Alysia answered with a knowing smile, making me shiver. But I caught her knowing voice softly saying, "Or perhaps you already did."
I almost stop eating mid-way, wondering what the lady meant there, "Does she know about my saviour and me late-night meet up?" However, I didn't voice it out; instead, I shrugged it off and pretended her last words didn't bother me at all, and finished my meal with them.
***
For anyone who was getting married, they were all glowing and excited, but I'm different. The sound of it was surreal. I was not in a rush, upset, or excited about it; I'm only doing this for my health and recovery. That's how I decided this marriage would be. However, somewhere inside me was hoping for something in my marriage, but could not dare to name it.
Anyway, if I'm not talking about marriage preparation, surrounded by maids in the kitchen, mingling with nurses in the clinic, or locking myself either in my bedroom or the library, I snuck out to the garden, which was not far from the training ground.
"The coast is clear," I muttered, peeking my head at the fence dividing the garden and the training ground before tiptoeing. I was careful not to get caught, but Reaper did by popping beside me. "SHIT REAPER! Don't do that." I yelped and almost slapped my bat if I didn't notice it was him before groaning, "Give me at least some warning. You're giving me a heart attack."
Reaper just gave me a 'I don't care' look while flapping his bat wings beside me, making me sigh before composing myself. I checked the coast again before roaming around the training area. I tried some workout equipment right beside the lockers. I tried them all in a few counts, and honestly, I didn't last for five counts. I got tired easily. After a few warm-ups with the equipment, I went to the wooden weaponry and tried to use some. I tried the wooden mace and the thick, long wooden sword, which was definitely not for me - I couldn't lift it. Then I went to try carrying a wooden shield, but again, I barely lifted it.
My heavy sigh might have caught my bat's interest because he strangely gave a snickering sound like he was mocking me. I frowned, deadpanning annoyingly, "Stop laughing. I'm trying okay. I'm still not good with it."
Reaper seemed to sense my eagerness to try something because he flew around the wooden blades, such as spears, daggers, swords, and a whip with an edge. I went to the section and tried them, but not all because some weigh differently from each other. Some were heavy, but some were light, which I think would be good for me. I tried swinging some, but I couldn't seem to get it to work. I mean, random swing, yes, but it doesn't sit right with me. I'm not a fighter, but somehow I could tell if it was right swings or not.
Then I heard her. I heard my saviour's gentle whispering voice.
'Close your eyes. Take a deep breath and be calm. Feel your surroundings. Let it pass through your body and swing.'
I did what I was instructed. I didn't move according to what she whispered; I moved through muscle memories based on what I've seen before. I remembered how my old pack did their training. I remembered how Talia stood calmly, but with a defined precision, and each stance had sharp edges; I reflected it. Yet, somehow, my moves felt different. There was something else.
I was lost in the rhythm. I didn't realise I was moving with something else if the air hadn't touched my skin. The air was thick and hot, and the rush of my blood burned my veins with such adrenaline. It made my movements faster and much flexible with tension.
I don't know where it came from, but I like it. I kept going, keeping the same pace as I used different light wooden weapons. Surprisingly, it released sparks at each swing. I know I haven't been doing much physical training until I got here, but during those moments of watching, I didn't realise that it stuck, engraved into my body.
"This is fun," I muttered, enjoying myself to the thrill of my secret training, but there was something odd.
There was a sudden presence that stepped onto the training ground, forcing the air to drop below zero, and with each cautious step it made, I became guarded. Then it vanished, blending into my surroundings, but I haven't stopped on my swing until it appeared behind me. It was trying to sneak a surprise, but I swung my wooden weapons; first, my wooden sword made contact with another wooden sword, creating a very strong wave and vibration throughout the training ground. There was intense energy coming from the person standing still before me. Familiar.
My eyes widen in surprise, whispering, "What the…"
By the time I looked at the woman, I was surprised to see her clearly, not with the faint light. She was an undeniable beautiful goddess with short, messy, dark crimson blood hair and a well-toned figure. She has alluring poise, the way she carried herself with intimidation and commanding aura that even I got absorbed into, particularly with her bloody mauve eyes, confirming it's truly her.
Instead of whispering what I called her, I said something that I'm not ready to say while wide awake and in front of her for the third time. "Mate…"
Yes, this is my saviour, the same person I met during my healing process. But the way she was standing in front of me, like she was a different person, distant, unreadable and cold. And whispering that word, her stern face twitched, arching her neatly trimmed brow, giving me a questioning look, snapping me from staring too much.
"Oh, sorry…I...didn't mean…to…ahm…stare…your gorgeous…shit! Why did I say that?!" I stuttered, stammering, panicking because she was acting differently, and the saviour I knew. She stood intimidatingly, holding a stoic expression that I could not phantom, although I'm sensitive to my surroundings and with people's intentions around me. "Of all beings, why is she the only one I barely read?"
I truly want the earth to swallow me to avoid embarrassing myself on the spot. I did what I had to do and pulled away, but my adrenaline from my secret train was still on. She made an advancing step, and my body reacted. I swung the second wooden weapon on my left, a scorpion whip, surprising her in the process, but she remained in her stance. She might have dodged it, but the whip was already wrapped around us, pulling us closer. Only her wooden sword kept us from stealing a kiss.
"I don't know what just happened," I said defensively. It was true, though. I had no idea how this wooden scorpion whip draped around us, causing panic in my voice, "I swear. I didn't know."
But she seems not fazed by my defence. Instead, she held her unphantomable gaze, fixated on me, studying me, making me fidget. I felt I was nude, and my soul was seen under her stern gaze, which later became soft. There, I saw my soft and caring saviour, but footsteps happened. It cut the electrifying air around us, and the saviour I knew is gone. It was only a second, and now, she's back to being unreadable and pulled away.
I might miss the contact, but I felt it. I feel what she was intending to do and pretend that this moment was our first meeting. If my gut was right, then so be it. I could pretend as well.
"Ahm, I'll excuse myself…" I excused myself to pretend, and to prevent embarrassing myself even more, because my saviour was so god-damn beautiful. She's very attractive to me, luring me deeply. "Dammit, she's even more radiant than a faint light." I thought, feeling my heartbeat on my throat, but then I looked at myself, noticing my sweat and dirt on my clothes, yeah, definitely not a pleasant one, "And compared to her, I look messy. It's embarrassing."
"Don't. No need to excuse yourself." She stopped me with her cold voice, yet there was something else beneath it, amusement? But she was good at masking; she narrowed her eyes before demanding firmly, "State your name."
There it goes.
"You've got to be kidding me? You know me, saviour!" I screamed in my thought; hurt, whining, but in reality, I stood my ground and introduced myself while looking down, cowering over her intimidating facade. "Right…I'm Bernila Daquila, the weakling omega from Moon's Gypsys pack." But the truth is, I could not meet her eyes without feeling naked and little under her heated gaze. But when her presence got near, a cold finger lifted my chin to meet her enchanting reddish violet eyes. Those eyes that never fail to lure me in. "Damn, those eyes reminded me of those nights with her…"
"When you dare to talk back at me, look at me. When you dare to claim me, face me like when you swing that wooden sword. Do you understand?" With no remorse, only coldness, she said directly, but her eyes held something I couldn't phantom, and I just nodded, cowering in her presence. However, she clicked her tongue, making me flinch before she spoke again. "Don't you cower before me. Respect, I might need and demand, but when you're mine, never bow to me. Understood?" I'm certainly confused, speechless, but I managed to nod, and faintly, I saw her lips curve a little. Teasing, "Good, see you around, little mate."
My jaw dropped. I was dumbfounded, and even if I tried to ask, I definitely wouldn't be able to question her about anything anyway, as I was already left alone. There was no sign of my saviour aside from the wooden sword with a little crack pierced on the ground where she had stood a while ago.
I sighed, tirelessly. "I can't believe they're the same person." Another sigh escaped as I put the wooden weapons back on their racks, muttering, "She's intimidatingly beautiful but unpredictable." I retired from the training ground, sneaking but bothered by how her saviour acted differently between daylight and nighttime. "What made her act like that, like she had a split personality?"