Chasing Back His Beloved Beast Husbands

"Sheana," Aenyra held her up. "Hey, you’re not your sister’s mistakes," she tried to comfort the poor phoenix.

Princess Sheana tried to let her mind process the accusation on her sister, the clear evidence before her and the fact that she could no longer feel the connection to Samahita.

That kind of action was something beasts would expect from her not Samahita. Her sister was the better sister and the better phoenix. Her sister always had her heart in the right place, believing the best in beast hearts unlike her who saw the world in her own clouded perspective.

Sheana barely felt Aenyra holding her and leading her inside the house. Her heart and mind were torn between the version of Samahita sher known since young and the one she saw in the memory orb.

The two shared the same face but not the same heart. It took strength to compare the two version and the comparisons broke that very strength in her.

She shook her head. She refused to believe that her kind sister would stoop so low.

Sheana couldn’t name one reason Samahita would join hands with the others to launch a sneak attack with a murderous technique on Sseraphis.

She tried to understand. The harder she thought, the more the cuts in her heart deepened.

"Sit down," Aenyra helped her get seated. "Do you need anything? Water, food or a hug?"

She received no response from princess Sheana. The fire phoenix felt like her world was turned upside down. Just the previous night she had visited Nadelyra Zhen and requested permission for Samahita to visit the Zhen family home.

She wanted her sister to have a taste of the fire rice porridge and also heal in the ways that she did. She had hoped that it would be a new beginning for both of them. They could put the past behind them and move on, free of the past wounds and their father’s cruelty.

They could forge their own path. Free of expectations of a noble title of princesses. Not that they’ve ever enjoyed any privileges that came with the title so letting go wouldn’t cost them anything.

Nadelyra had agreed to make a bowl for Samahita after listening to her reasons. So when Aenyra said they were leaving for Aeltharion’s new home, she wrote a letter to invite her sister over.

She didn’t expect that her sister would ruin everything with her choices. Choices that made no sense to her.

"Why don’t you say something? Don’t wallow alone, it’s not good for your health," Aenyra kept urging her. "Your sister made that mistake. It has nothing to do with you..."

"Will you stop it!" Sheana snapped.

Aenyra froze. She stopped talking and looked up at the phoenix with widened eyes. "I am merely trying to comfort you..."

"Comfort me..." Sheana’s voice cracked.

She glanced at Aenyra and saw everything she didn’t have reflected back at her. The complete family, the supportive friendships and relationships and the normal household.

She saw Aenyra’s clear eyes and felt like crying instead, a dry laugh came out of her mouth.

Sheana recalled the day Aenyra got poisoned by Hadrian. How quickly Sseraphis had come for her, the way Aeltharion and Nytherael had stood outside the room in worry for her. The sacrifices that they were willing to make for her.

The memories of her stay at Aenyra’s house came flooding her brain. The warm mother who cooks meals for her and her visitors, her aunt, who although younger had sharper senses and knew something was wrong and appeared with a solution before they names a problem.

The luxury of living without worry of her food being poisoned. The freedom of doing whatever she wanted knowing fully well that her family and friends would understand. It mocked her miserable life.

All her life she only had her sister. They might not have seen eye to eye on everything but at least they had each other and now...even that was taken away from her.

"Stop fooling yourself. A beast like you can never comfort me," she spat out bitterly.

Aenyra blinked. Her hands gripped her dress as her eyes carried confusion.

She couldn’t understand why Sheana was getting angry at her when all she was trying to do was help. She took a deep breath and steadied her heart and spoke up, "I understand that you are hurt but..."

"You..." Sheana stood up like she’d heard the biggest joke of the century. "You... Understand?" She laughed.

The laugh was croaky and hard. It made the hairs on Aenyra’s skin stand straight. She also stood up but didn’t let herself retaliate at the sarcasm from Sheana.

"What could you possibly understand?"

Aenyra went silent.

Princess Sheana stepped forward, eyes wet and anger brewing inside them. She shoved Aenyra shoulder. "Answer me!" She demanded. "What can you possibly understand about what I am feeling Aenyra Zhen?"

She kept pushing, Aenyra stumbled back. The sympathy in her eyes slowly fading with every shove.

Sheana didn’t back down, she couldn’t. The fire in her was growing out of control and needed an outlet and Aenyra was the only beast around.

"You’re just rubbing salt in my wounds. I’m sure that you must be enjoying seeing me hurt," she accused. "You’re just..." She raised her hand to push Aenyra again but Aenyra caught her hand.

Aenyra’s eyes grew cold. The warmth and understanding that were there before had vanished. The coldness in those eyes made Sheana shiver, she recalled the first time they met, when they were strangers and felt that word "strangers" crawling up her skin as she looked into those eyes.

"Just because I am here for you doesn’t mean that you can turn me into the outlet of your feelings," Aenyra said, every word was cold and came with a firm stance. "I can understand that you’ve lost your sister but it wasn’t to a mistake or fate but choice and I won’t let you take that out on me!"

Sheana calmed down, not fully, but enough for the cloud in her mind to clear.

Aenyra maintained her ground and continued. "The beast that fell to that technique is a friend to me. We weren’t close... But I cared for him," a trace of grief crossed her eyes.

Sheana blinked.

"And he’s gone because of your sister. Samahita isn’t a victim so don’t you dare!" She spoke through gritted teeth. "I can be there for you and sympathize with your loss but I won’t let you vent your frustrations of losing a murderer onto me. Got it!" She shoved Sheana’s hand back.

The two remained standing, eyes locked on each other. One full of grief and fury and the other full of loss and rage. In the confrontation, Sheana realized she was standing on the losing end.

"Murderer?" The word completely finished Sheana.