Semua Bab Velvet and vengeance: stripped by the enemy : Bab 141 - Bab 150

“The Academy” (Past) Maraleona’s POVAt the highly esteemed Bianchi academy, Dimitri excels, practically soaring above everyone else. But his isolation is more rampant than ever. I often found him in the school library, surrounded by towers of books and not a soul in sight. The times I wasn’t accompanying him down the halls, he walked alone with his chin held up with pride. Those were the times he was within my line of sight; I knew not of his whereabouts outside that.Often times I wondered if the isolation was his doing or if it had something to do with his origins. It was well into the afternoon and most students had left the premises, but I knew Dimitri was still holed up in the library. When I peeked my head into his usual corner, I instantly noticed the solemn look on his face once. It wasn’t blank, like always, but a deep frown I could only guess came from being deep in thought. He looked to be writing something down, constantly erasing what little progress he made, his desi

“The Night He Broke” (Past)Maraleona’s POVBefore I know it, time moves on, and I am forced to move with it. I become immune to Dimitri’s behaviour, or at least, that was what I told myself. I ignored the way my heart twisted every time the silence dragged between us, and the ball of words that rose to my throat every time we spoke. And so far, so good, we lived in peace. A rather strained form of peace, but peace nonetheless. It would seem I spoke too soon and with too much joy that the heavens had to change the trajectory of our lives. It was the middle of the night and my thoughts kept me awake. It was a normal occurrence at that point, and I spent my time wandering around the manor. It was like every other night, until it wasn’t. I faintly heard a crash, but after which nothing for a while. I walked around for a while before a shrill shriek broke through the silence of the night. The majority of the night was a blur. People rushed from all direction, women and men towards the

“Letters Never Sent” (Past) Maraleona’s POV Things had changed ever since Dimitri’s father passed away. For the better or worse? I couldn’t quite say. The halls were no longer quiet, a constant whisper of baseless gossip and rumours always travelled the corners. I’d heard a lot more about Dimitri and his brother more than I had used my own eyes to see them. It felt odd. We went from being stuck to the hip to barely seeing each other at all. “Who do you think will take over the estate?” A maid whispered to another; her tone rather excited than I had expected. The other rushed to press a hand to her mouth, while simultaneously placing a finger on her own mouth. “Be careful, that’s such a sensitive topic right now.” She whispered, glancing around to make sure no one heard them. I quickly hid myself. “The two of them have been moving quick. Contacting allies, trying to build separately. “She continued to whisper. “Wouldn’t it be better if they worked together?”“Those two?” The firs

"The Last Winter" (Past)Maraleona's POV There was a shift in Dimitri after his father's death. He started off as aloof as he'd always been, but soon I noticed subtle differences. I caught his eyes lingering on me for longer than I was used to. His words no longer seemed overly formal, instead he talked to me like how he used to, it reminded me of our younger days. He talked to me gently, holding my hand like I was something precious. I wondered what had changed, what reality had dawned on him that he no longer pushed me away. Though it came suddenly, I couldn't deny it brought me joy. Having him act like this had initially been like whiplash and I worried his affection would stop the next day. But as we settled back into a calm routine, I embraced it wholeheartedly. I remember the day everything started to change. It was subtle but it made my heart skip over a dozen beats. It was during breakfast it has started. We sat in silence, as always, and just as we were about to started

"The Awakening"Dimitri's POVThe fact my head was still somewhat working was beyond phenomenal. My mind was mostly blank with a constant ringing that would infuriate the normal person. But I didn't exactly feel normal. Heck, I barely felt anything at all. My eyes were closed and I was drifting in nothingness. I couldn't feel my body but I somehow knew I was whole. What had happened? Where was I and how did I get here? I had no clue. I tried to rack my brain, but to no avail. I couldn't see past the void of black. It was like I was both lying and flying at the same time. It felt kind of relaxing, actually. But I couldn't shake the uneasiness that bubbled inside of me. It was cold, quite cold. I was about to close my eyes and let myself continue to drift when I heard a woman's voice. It was faint but clear. "You'll live, even if it kills me." What did she mean? Was I dead? And if I was, how was that even possible. Lucian... who was that? Somehow the name felt important and it co