Crimson and Gold

Lysandra led Saria towards an empty room at the end of the hallway that offered them some privacy.

“I’m sorry I didn’t notify you that I would be gone for a while,” she said as the door closed behind her, sensing that there was something off about the way the Princess acted.

“So you know what you did wrong.” Lysandra’s voice was cold, but laced with hurt and worry.

“I had a lead, but it was weak. I was afraid that I would lose it if I were to go back to Aervelis.”

Lysandra didn’t say anything, so Saria took a few hesitant steps closer. “I found Drusus in an old fort. I sensed that he was in a bad condition, so I thought it was worth the risk.”

Lysandra scoffed and shook her head.

"I know that it was a huge risk, but Drusus’ life was in danger and I thought—”

“And you thought I would be glad to trade your life for his?” Lysandra asked while finally turning to face her.

She looked tired. There were dark circles under her eyes, meaning that she probably didn’t sleep well for the past few days.

What hit Saria the most was the hurt and disappointment in them.

“I already asked you once, and you promised me not to do anything reckless. But you still throw yourself in the first line of danger, even though you're barely standing. What would you do if you got overwhelmed?”

“I would have made sure that Drusus gets out fine.”

Lysandra clenched her fists.

“That is exactly my problem. You’re always putting others before yourself, acting as if your life didn’t matter. You don’t have to prove anything. All I care about is that those important to me are safe. That includes you.”

Saria didn’t know what to say.

Lysandra took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down, but the storm in her heart and the ‘what if’ scenarios stubbornly replaying in her head made it nearly impossible.

She put her hands on Saria’s chest, then, driven by the unease she couldn’t stifle, she clenched the collar of her robes.

“What do I have to do for you to finally understand how important you are to me?” she said and bit her lip to distract herself from the pain in her heart. “I’ve lost so many people already. I don’t know what I will do if I lose you, too.”

Seeing how shaken Lysandra was, Saria felt the weight of her guilt pressing on her heart.

“I didn’t think about it this way. I’m sorry,” she said with a softness in her voice that surprised even her.

She covered Lysandra’s hands with hers and caressed the skin with her thumb. “Don’t be angry with me,” she pleaded.

Under the soft warmth of her gaze, Lysandra’s anger naturally melted away without a trace, leaving a different kind of turbulence in her core.

“You can be so dense sometimes,” the Princess sighed and pulled her closer.

Their lips met, desperately looking for the comfort of the other, compelled by the whirlwind of emotions in their hearts.

When they ran out of breath, they pulled away just enough to rest their foreheads together.

“You taste shockingly good for someone who hasn’t seen a bath in three days,” Lysandra teased, feeling much lighter now that her worries didn’t come true.

Saria took a moment to calm her ragged breath. “I refreshed myself a little before you arrived.”

Lysandra raised her eyes. “Were you planning for something to happen?”

“Not planning… well, maybe hoping a little,” she answered with a roughish smile on her face.

“Hoping that I would throw myself at you and show my gratitude in a more ‘tangible’ way?” Lysandra asked. “Instead, I was mad and scolded you.”

Saria’s warm breath brushed against the Princess’ ear. “Who said I didn’t like it?”

Lysandra rolled her eyes. “You’re impossible,” she said, pulling her into another kiss.

When they left the room, the tension between them had noticeably changed. Not exactly disappeared, but it also wasn’t the same suffocating death aura as before.

They seemed more in tune with each other and more relaxed than before, but there was also a spark dancing between them that seemed to come from a different kind of tension.

Drusus watched them intently as they returned to the same spot as before. His gaze jumped between the two women.

He had a sudden hunch, but it wasn’t something he was willing to believe.

The difference in the way Saria and Lysandra acted didn’t escape Mira’s watchful gaze either.

A few stolen glances were enough for her to notice the secretive smiles, flushed ears, and swollen lips.

When she looked at Drusus and their eyes met, she only shrugged and went back to preparing a medicinal tea.

“Did you talk it out?” the man asked, when, still smiling, Lysandra sat by his bed.

“Yes. I’m sorry for leaving you when you just came back. There was something… needing clarification,” she explained.

“I was scolded,” added Saria proudly, leaning against the door frame.

Lysandra cast her one of the ‘don’t push it’ looks, then turned back to Drusus. “Tell me what happened. I want to know everything from the day you were taken.”

His eyes jumped between them one last time, then he took a deep breath and began explaining.

“The last letter Icarus left with you, the one about Doran meeting with some Nivelis official, I think it was a setup. When I got to the place, nobody was there, instead, I was knocked out by a mage nonetheless.”

Hearing a mage being mentioned, Lysandra looked at Saria, then turned back to Drusus. “Do you know who he was or what he looked like?”

Drusus shook his head. “When I was attacked, I only saw a flash of a sigil, and then I lost consciousness. Later, they brought him again, but I never saw his face. Judging by your reaction, you had a run-in with him, too?” he asked Saria.

“I did. When I first started working for Lysandra. He killed one of Loukios’ officials, then tried to kill me. He exploded the whole building. He was also using incantations.”

“The wizards usually don’t run around wreaking havoc like this. It must be the same person. Did you learn anything about him?”

“No. Just like you, I couldn’t see his face.”

“Without knowing what he looks like or at least his name, it will be impossible to find registration data in the Academy. But at least we can confirm that he indeed is working with Loukios.”

“How so?”

“When he came to me in the fort, I overheard him talk with one of the soldiers. They were talking about some prophecy Loukios is apparently obsessed with.”

“What kind of prophecy?”

“I don’t know. But from what they said, it seems that Loukios is determined to find it and is willing to do anything to get it.”

Lysandra didn’t ask more questions, thinking about everything she learned from Drusus.

Saria took the opportunity to ask about something that had puzzled her from the start. “Who’s Doran?”

“Doran is Loukios’ loyal hound. He’s his personal bodyguard and his right hand. Icarus, the friend that I told you about before, left me a note last time I saw him, that apparently Doran was in Aervelis and doing Loukios’ bidding.”

“Speaking of which. There is… something I have to tell you, Your Highness,” Drusus began awkwardly. “It’s about him.”

Hearing this, Lysandra instantly froze. Her voice tightened. “Do you know something about his whereabouts?”

Drusus cast his eyes down, then took a deep breath to prepare himself for what he was about to say.

“When I was held in the fort, they were trying to pry information out of me. Anything they could. With normal methods, I could resist. But eventually, they brought that wizard. He… did something to me. I wasn’t able to lie and couldn’t hold back saying anything either. I… had to give them something…”

Lysandra couldn’t shake the feeling that she knew the direction it was going, but she didn’t dare to interrupt. She needed to hear it.

“I told them about your friend. That he was helping us. Told them everything I knew about him, to distract them from going after you.”

“You had no choice,” Lysandra said, her voice shaken with emotion. “I don’t blame you.”

It was something she expected. Something she knew deep down.

Judging by Drusus’ expression, however, it wasn’t the end of his “confession”.

Looking even more nervous, he shifted in the bed and clenched his fists.

“A few days later, they came to me. Said they found him and that he was dealt with… I’m sorry.”

The pain was written all over Lysandra’s face. She tried to hide it, but her reddening eyes and tight, shaken voice betrayed her.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes to recompose herself. “It’s not your fault. You did what you had to do to protect yourself and me. This was the only way.”

After that, they didn’t stay in the bookstore for much longer. Once Lysandra made sure that Drusus had everything he needed and arranged for someone to provide healing, she and Saria returned to the Palace.