The King's Spitfire

When all she did was dumbly stare at him while shaking with the fear of the eyes she would recognize anywhere.

He was here to kill her! He must be.

“Won't you say it?” he insisted. She just stared back in horror.

“Why don't you take a seat, my dear fiance.” the King raised a brow at her unresponsiveness.

Her mind went through all the terrors she had seen that unfortunate night and shook her head. "Ple-Please excuse my intrusion, Sire. I'll leave you to enjoy your evening."

"I was expecting a more gutsy introduction." Despite his jab, she hurriedly performs a courtesy and side-stepped to leave. He knew she was a witch. He was here to end her!

"Tsk." With a swish of wind, he was in front of her. She stumbled back frantically in her attempt to escape. He was quick to hold her by her jaw and throw her on the divan. "Weird. I remember telling you to sit, Laylin."

Is he here to execute her because her cover as a witch was blown? Or was it because she had harmed his body that night?

“Please, that's enough! I didn’t want to either, I had no choice. I want to go back to my room!” She spoke with an air of finality despite her compromised position. The King only stared at the woman.

He could hear her heart drumming in her chest, but her poker face was resolute. There was something about her that was pulling him in. Unconsciously his eyes shifted to her plum lips.

“I wonder where your confidence is coming from.” the King asked with disbelief, before chuckling. The woman's face reddened and she tries to pry his hand away, “What makes you think, I won't end you right now?”

Nothing.

Nothing gave her this delusion. She wondered why he was dragging it, why wouldn't he kill the witch who had attacked him? Was he a psychopath and was enjoying her struggles? Silence reigned between them once more, before Laylin finally replied.

“I... I ask you to excuse this subject's inability to recognize Your Majesty. I was just out for a stroll as I couldn't sleep.” She admitted, her first priority was getting away from him. She then moved and tried to pry his hands away, this time just tapping his hand as she stared directly at him. 

She was scared. The King was a devilishly handsome man but his smiles and wiles wouldn't ever make her overlook the monster she knew was right under his skin.

When he didn't move, she bit her lip and pitifully stared up at him. 

“Please... I beg you to have mercy! I'm not ready to greet you just yet. I wish... to appear fomally before you for judgement in court...” Laylin urged out desperately, but he just observed her.

He just furrowed his brows sexily. "How did you do it?" 

His words seized her eratic movements, "Huh? What?"

She had a hunch he was talking about that night. Shouldn't he know better than any other person how she did it?

"I'm afraid, I don't follow, Sire." She hesitantly asked, testing the waters.

He looked irked but climbed a top of her. She squealed, but his grip was strong. "Your Majesty!"

"How are you even alive? What did you do?" Sweeping his hair away from his face, he slightly tightened his hold on her jaw, "When I woke up on the forest ground, my back had bruises and cuts. With how you are squirming here, you obviously didn't do it. Who accompanied you that night?"

'Oh...'

Everything clicked in place for her at that moment. So this was why every courtier was interested in questioning her instead of waiting for the King! The King didn't remember a thing of that night! Maybe he can't remember what he did once his beast takes over...

“You spared me, My Lord!” she exclaimed, a strategy forming in her head “I don't remember much, but I swear to only tell you the truth. My journey here was arduous with no rest for days so everything I know must be hazy but I swear on my life and Ehan that you were the only person there except me that night.” she finished in a calmer voice.

She breathed in his alluring fragrance. She didn’t want to spew out filtered truth, but she had to do this for her survival. 

"Uh...Ha." He exclaimed lightly as if he was just probing her, "And then?"

She pursed her lips as her heart thundered in her chest. She had never considered herself brave enough to fool a monarch but the situation asked for it. If she told him the truth, she would be as good as dead. “Can-Can I sit up, please? I'm feeling dizzy-"

"Speak before my patience for you runs out." With his eyes narrowed, he scared her witlessly. His closeness was overtaking her mind.

Clenching her lips, she spewed her first lie, "I was dizzy and exhausted when the be- Your Highness entered." She winced. There was no way to say it without making him sound like an unhinged animal.

Scoffing, the King shook his head. He was distracted by her deep eyes and sweet whispers. "Speak comfortably. I'll excuse your language today."

With a careful nod, she set her eyes on his sharp jawline, "...I ran for my life and somehow landed in the narrow passage and you banged it when you couldn't reach me. The walls and ceiling there broke, I'm guessing that's where Your Majesty got injured. Then-”

"And you had no major fracture when the ceiling fell on you?"

Her heart rate spiked and he knew something was amiss: "I must have been lucky, Sire. I don't remember much but I remember you choking me and slamming me against a wall nearby after that. More of the ceiling might have fallen on you." she finally said, “And I... I'm not really sure as I have no wounds but... Sire, you bit me here.” She pointed to lower neck.

He, who was apathetic throughout her whole story, was startled, "I bit you there?" He looked so incredulous that she had trouble nodding.

'It wouldn't be easy knowing your alter ego is into cannibalism,' she sympathized with him.

Every word was like a hammer to his already aching head but now the woman even claimed she was marked. Laylin, unaware, just kept adding to it.

Now that he knew, he felt it vividly. The strange mercy he was feeling for her and how she seemed particularly pretty to him. He must have hidden the mark, that is why even he couldn't sense it right away.

She patted the junction between her neck and shoulder, "I passed out after that. I wasn't even found out until the next morning-"

He was off of her, running his hand through his hair. "Leave." 

"Ah... Sire, I-"

"I said, leave! Damn it!" Startled by Ambrose's outburst, she scrambled off of the couch. "Shift back to the King's Palace next morning."

"Sire... I'm good here-"

"Shift on your own before I drag you kicking and screaming." She heard him say when she was almost out of the door.