My Heart is With Me

Aisha bowed her head in response to the presence of Lord Lycano. Though deep inside, she was trembling in fear.

If only those two guards didn't orient her of his character, she would've lifted her chin in defiance.

But because of their forewarning, she already has agitation wrapped in her heart for the Lord of the Manor.

The wolf men bowed to him as well, "We brought you a gift, our Lord."

Aisha rolled her eyes as her head was bowed down. "Not again," she grumbled silently.

"Well, how did a female human end up here?" Lord Lycano drawled with a sly smile on his face as soon as his eyes laid upon her.

"Leave us, please," He ordered the wolf men.

"Yes, our Lord," they immediately dispersed at his command.

They were still at the Main Hall of Lord Lycano's Manor. The sun was already up, cascading the ornamental beauty of the Manor.

But she was not here to admire it. She was here to plead for her freedom or be sentenced to death by this Lord in front of her. Aisha has to remind herself.

Aisha could see that he stopped in front of her, even with her head bowed down.

Her heart pounded within her chest, with his nearness. His voice was so frightening, she felt like it came out of hell.

Her heart raced within her as she thought of what to say. She could give all sorts of excuses and lie in his face.

Or she could tell the truth and ask for his help, so she could go back to her homeland.

However, she could not trust anyone. After every relationship that she entrusted herself betrayed her in return.

Aisha lifted her autumn eyes and gazed at Lord Lycano. To her surprise, he wasn't scary at all.

She was expecting to stare at a man who looked like Beast from the Beauty and the Beast Classic Version. A gigantic hairy beast with a horrible face.

But he was not. He was tall and had a good build, yes. But he looked like a human with a devastatingly handsome face.

There is no trace in him that he is a werewolf. Except maybe for his eyebrows that met in the middle. Or his slightly hairy chest that was visible within his tunic.

"A-are you a werewolf, too?" She thought out loud as her inquisitive eyes stared at him from top to toe.

Lord Lycano made a devilish laugh at her question. Then he answered her with a question too, "What do you think, my lady?"

He lifted her petite chin with his finger, making her feminine face look up to his.

She slightly grimaced as she felt his finger touch the flesh on her chin. His finger looked like a human, but it was rough and ragged. And she could feel it with her soft, smooth skin.

He was smiling at her in a ravishingly seductive manner. As he revealed his teeth, Aisha could see that he had sharp fangs.

Though they were not as long and sharp as the wolf men, as she recalled.

"I think you are," she answered him blatantly, without removing her brassy gaze at him.

Lord Lycano's lips curved up at her brazen attitude. It seemed like he had not encountered a being that could talk to him straightforwardly like what she was doing to him right now.

He removed his finger from her chin and stepped away. Then his eyes raked over her figure.

"What about you, my lady? What are you?" He bounced back the question, befuddling Aisha.

She didn't know if she could just tell him that she is a female human.

Aisha quickly retorted back, "You don't have to concern yourself with trivial matters, my lord. I am just a mere peasant who happens to get lost in your land. I didn't steal or murder anyone. If you grant me your mercy, I'll be off from your eyes even before you blink."

Aisha's eyes quickly darted to the door where they came in. Lord Lycano's guards were securing it.

She wished she could hear other people outside, making it feel more like a house than a prison cell. However, she could hear nothing, but her own beating heart.

"Where exactly is your home, my lady?" He continued to interview her, with an amused expression on his face.

He walked around her as if he was a predator readying himself to eat his prey.

Aisha gulped. "This man was really provoking me to speak up," she muttered under her breath.

"If I say my home is outside this world, I'm doomed. If I say it's in the King's Castle, I will cause conflict between him and the King. But I don't know any location here in Gaea!" she rambled on in her thoughts.

She gazed back at Lord Lycano. As she did so, she noticed something different in him.

Even with his harsh and evil demeanor, there was something in his eyes that seemed to be saying the exact opposite of his actions.

He seems to be lonely. His eyes kind of reflected her own life as well.

She couldn't help but feel nostalgic at that moment and meditate on his question. Where exactly is her home?

Was it with her family? Then why was she always running away from home?

Was it with Jake and her friends? Why does she still jump from one island to another, partying here and there, as if she's looking for a place where she could settle down and really live?

Or, the better question is, does she really have a residence? Or she's just a lost soul traveling the world, looking for where her heart would find, a place she would call home?

"Home is where my heart is, my lord," She stuttered out of the blue.

"Oh my gosh, Aisha Song. That is so cliché. Why are you so clumsy?" She scolded herself.

She thought that the Lord would be mad at her cheesiness. But he continued to interrogate her like he was removing the masks that she was using to conceal her identity, ready to pounce on her with one wrong word.

"And where is your heart?" One of his eyebrows shot up, as if he was assessing not just the reason for her trespassing, but the existence of her life itself.

"My heart is..." She answered, but she stopped mid-sentence.

To be honest, she didn't know where it is. She wanted to give it to her family. But they always reject her.

She tried to give it to her boyfriend and friends. But they tore it apart.

"I guess my heart is with me," Aisha concluded, making a decision to keep it safe and not let it be broken again.

She thought she was winning Lord Lycano's mind games. But Lord Lycano seemed to have an opposite idea.

"Then wherever you are, that will be your home. Am I right? If you're going to stay here with me, you will still be at home," His crimson lips curved up in a devilish smile.

Aisha's face turned pallid white. She felt like they were playing a game of chess, and he has checkmated her.

Her shoulders dropped in defeat. She has escaped entrapment only to find herself in a more suffocating, terrible confinement.

But just then, someone came to her rescue.

"That depends on where she wants to stay, Lord Lycano," he spoke in a strong and unfaltering voice.

Aisha's eyes widened in surprise as she slowly turned back to see who he was.

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"I believe that all of our lives we're looking for a home and if we're really lucky, we find it in someone's loving arms. I think that's what life is-coming home." –Anita Krizzan