Chapter 17: Ivalyn

Ivalyn was pleased to see the prince take the hint and invited her to meet the day of the festival. "It would be my pleasure, Your Highness," she responded, using as much honey in her voice as possible. "If I may be excused, I think it is time for me to go visit the egg before it hatches in my absence."

Prince Magnus chuckled the second time, unexpectedly. "Of course, my lady," he excused her.

The two men looked intently at her as she stood up and, turning to walk away, she paused and looked back at them. "I heard that Lord Markus will be the one to hold the speech at the upcoming festival," she paused to see if her words had any effect on them, but it seemed to fly over their heads. "I wish you two goodbye."

Without delaying any more, not even waiting for their answer, she left, making her way through the garden, walking on the stone pathway which winded softly as a snake in the grass lake. Her heels touched the hardness of the alley on a fast rhythm, heard above the chirp of the bird or the buzzing of the bees.

She soon left the enchanting floral garden behind to enter the coldness of the castle where the sweet smell of roses was still pugnand. Making her way to the wing of the castle where the egg resited, she could not shake the feeling that the meeting didn't go exactly as she had hoped. Both the prince and Lord Daemon had to be on her side and trust her as they did each other or everything would go very bad for her as she decided to betray her father this time.

Everything had been planned to the finest detail until then and she had to put her life in the prince's hands just so he wouldn't die. If he had responded to at least one of the many letters she sent before the ball, maybe she would have had time to prove her loyalty and not bet on her soul. That night she had no other choice, and she was still looking for a way to break the bond. She might not be strong enough. Yet.

Thinking about the bond between their lives, Ivalyn swore quietly in the silence of the hall broken only by her and her maid's steps. Prince Magnus was known to be as sharp with his mind as he was with the sword and it showed, turning their pact into his advantage. Whatever happened to him will affect her also which did not sit that well with her tries to survive this plot.

"If my lady is so sure about what will happen and as a token of your worry for your liege, is it not right to swear on it with your life?" he asked her that night after she revealed the purpose of her past letters and the desire to help save him.

At first she did not understand. "I am not sure what you mean, Your Highness. Did I not just do that, swore on my life?"

"With more than words, Lady Ivalyn." And he reached his hand out to her, his spirit imbued hand that would mark their pact with their lives. Finally, comprehension washed over her.

She heard of it before, after the war was over, everyone was praising the hero of Thrakia who turned the tides in their favour. Many were whispering about his powerful and terrifying force of spirit to bond the ruler of Meria and force him to respect his words of never going to war against each other.

The same ability was now used on her. She woke up sometimes in the middle of the night, she did that for a long time, usually because of a nightmare where she dies. After that, she woke up to see if she was still alive. Although Prince Magnus was honest with most things and their two meetings convinced her that he was no monster, it still worried her to have her live in the hands of another. Even in the hands of someone who was not unaffected by her charms.

It gladdened her to see the desire in his eyes, although it was well-hidden, almost too well. An unobservant person would have missed the little flicker that subtly appeared at the times when they interacted, but she didn't. She was used to seeing men whose eyes linger on her a little too long, who were mesmerised by her velvety laugh or who awkwardly came to her to ask for a dance or a word, only to be silenced as soon as they heard her voice. That was not what she desired from the two men she just met, but she still enjoyed the little attention she received from Prince Magnus, almost making her turn around to face him again.

But, in the long run, it was better for both parties if both the prince and Lord Daemon were paying attention to the situation they were in then. The latter was definitely not influenced by her charm at all, which was strange for Ivalyn, but welcomed at the same time. If his cousin could not see beneath her appearance, the lord will put him on the right path in time to avoid the worst.

'War? Why would the prince die? Why would there be war?' The words were ringing inside her head, making her heart pound heavily in her chest. She knew how risky everything was, but she also knew the alternative if she chose the original path. And death was not an option, not that time.

As she reached her destination, a group of three men were preparing to meet and instruct her about the rules when entering the room. They had already sent everything to her prior to her appointment and she read it a few times, making sure not to leave space for a mistake. In her plan there should be no mistakes.

One of the men was reading the regulations loudly and how everything was designed the way it was only to protect the egg and the nobles entering the chamber. But Ivy wasn't listening. She was still thinking of the earlier encounter and how the two would react if they knew the truth, would they even consider it being true or would they call her crazy? The word was still there in her head, not leaving her to calm down. 'War?' How did she know it would lead there? The answer was simpler than her father's complicated plans. She remembered her past life.