A couple of stairs down and a guard ran up to Eli, delivering a message about a Witch's attack on Nakunriver.
"She set everywhere ablaze!" The guard had declared breathlessly. "Almost killed the Village Heads!"
The message had put Eli on edge a little and Belladonna had expected to take an excuse to attend to the report, believing that he would assume it was the One with the White Aura as he always did.
Belladonna was in for a surprise though.
Eli had dismissed the guard with an errand instead, waving aside the report as if it was nothing.
That was strange.
It was also strange that the message had gotten to Eli so quickly, he must have gone ahead with his plan of putting his messengers in each village.
An unsettling feeling ran through Belladonna's veins.
As if she didn't have enough on her mind about the Blood Moon and how the timing might not be in her favour, this strange attitude just had to add to it.
Where was Eli leading her to next?
This didn't feel good.
What was going on?
"Where are we going, Eli?"
"You will see, My Donna."
____
____
It was the dragon's dungeon.
Belladonna couldn't fathom why he would bring her here.
Everything was like how it had been the day she had ran here to save Lytio's life.
The bars, the sound of the rattling chains as the dragon moved, the smell of death within the walls, and the aura of terror that seem to suffocate the place.
Everything was the same, except the beast.
It was docile, as Eli had said.
Her reptilian eyes fixed on her from within the darkness.
Deep blue pupils with red lines stretching out of them like lightning.
Observing and trapping her in.
Those eyes reminded her of Alaris, and the feelings that clashed within her made her clench her fists by her sides and dig her nails inside her palms to distract her.
She couldn't help but think about what Alaris had said, about the dragon being Eli's brother, but she discarded the thought.
It would be stupid to let Alaris' manipulation get to her, she had to fight it as much as she was fighting the foreign feeling he was trying to web into her heart.
Once the pain made its way to her brain, she pulled her gaze away and turned to Eli, who was standing behind her, his gaze fixed on the dragon.
"That is mine. To control, to possess.."
There was a pause, as he raised his left hand, where the ring with the magical red gem, was worn around his middle finger, as always, in the direction of the dragon.
"...and to kill at will."
There was a low growl from the dragon at that moment. Belladonna's gaze snapped to the beast, their gaze locked again, till the glowing reptilian eyes of the dragon disappeared slowly into the darkness of the dungeon it was in, the sound of the rattling chains becoming distant, the deeper the beast went.
Belladonna frowned.
Something wasn't right.
"Eli."
"My Queen," his response was immediate.
A smile played on her lips instinctively.
Eli had always been so futuristic with her.
It was something that always made her happy... but something seemed off right now, and that sucked the happiness out of his words. Instead, they filled her with more worry.
"Is everything alright?"
"It should be."
There was a pause, a certain distance in his eyes. It faded away before she could even question it.
She felt an urge to pull his mask off, but he turned away from her before she could put that thought into action.
"There is one last place we may need to see." His voice was low and laced with a void smile. "Hopefully, we do not have to."
Before she could blink, he was ushering her out of the dragon's dungeon and up the stairs.
Belladonna looked around, feeling uneasy.
By Ignas, what was going on?!
Another person had ran to the King on their way up the stairs, she had said something in hushed tones, probably a word or two.
Eli's grip tightened around Belladonna's wrist slightly and he dismissed the maid.
"There is somewhere we must go."
He was leading them up the stairs again.
Hopefully, they were going to their chambers.
Going up and down the stairs after a meal really wasn't something Belladonna needed right now.
She needed rest and care for her injuries, she needed to regain strength to prepare herself for whatever she must do to get the Thanatou's Sunflower tonight.
She would worry about the Blood Moon after.
Maybe Alaris could help.
She would ask him.
"What was that about?"
"I asked her to help me confirm something, to see if you deserve your next surprise."
Next surprise?!
"You are scaring me, Eli." She said in a low voice.
He stopped and turned to her squarely.
"Scared?" His grip around her wrist tightened a little and the air felt heavy. "Why should you be, when you know you are always safe with me? Or do you have a reason to think otherwise?"
Silence.
Her heart raced as his gaze bored into hers. The more he looked at her, the more fear raised in her.
Did he know that she had been dreaming of the Bride Thief?
That was impossible. She had been very careful and she had to remain careful.
He could be suspicious of her though, that was something she couldn't rule out.
She had to find a way to destroy that suspicion.
Why was this happening now?
By Ignas, why?!
Or maybe she was just overthinking.
Ah.
She had to remain calm.
The corners of her lips lifted in a smile.
"Don't be silly."
He chuckled.
"Hurry up, then. The clock is ticking."
This time when he lead her up the stairs, it was without questions or any other interruptions.
___
___
They went to the top floor and the memories of being here made Belladonna uneasy.
This was the floor where the coffins were.
Why did Eli bring her here? Did he bring her here to kill her? Toss her in a coffin?
Eli would never do that.
By Ignas, Alaris' manipulation was slowly getting to her.
Eli loved her and that was it!
He lead her to a door and despite her affirmation to herself, Belladonna held her breath in a mixture of fear and anticipation.
It wasn't a coffin at the other side though, which brought her relief, but the room was strange nevertheless.
There were no furnitures and it was dimly lit, she could barely see. There must be a window in here somewhere, but it was too dark to figure out where that was.
The dim light was really limiting.
"You still have that leap," Eli said as he turned the key in the lock, his voice seemed to echo slightly.
How empty exactly was this room?
"My ankle is getting better."
Eli hummed and leaned against the wall opposite her.
The room was average-sized. At least, that made it feel a little less suffocating.
"Where is my surprise?" Belladonna asked, trying to lighten the mood, as she ran her hands over the long sleeves of her gray dress to smoothen out the non-existent creases.
Eli stood like a statute against the wall, the dim light of the two candles on either side of the walls, making his golden mask glow slightly. It was as if she was seeing him for the first time today. It seemed rigid beneath his blood-red robes, his high collars and long leather gloves, standing out, the short golden staff in his hand, a foreign thing.
Red.
It had been a long time since she had seen him in red.
"You must have read overnight," he said casually, approaching her, while he toss his mask aside on the floor. The clank rang through the room, startling her.
"I fixed the library's ladder." He was close enough now.
"Thank you," Belladonna replied, surprising herself with how firm she sounded.
She became tense beneath his leathery touch, as he trailed a line around her neck.
Her gaze fixed with his overwhelming one, the closeness between them a hair's breadth.
"You are welcome."
Suddenly, his touch was replaced by the sharpness of his claws as his hand went around her neck, pinching her skin, as he choked her and pinned her against the wall.
Fear rushed in her lungs, her hands dashed up in a blind struggle, as she fought for air and freedom, her feet fighting to touch the ground.
By Ignas, what was he doing?!
Eli's eyes were no longer welcoming but cold and feral, like the day he had confronted her about her dreams in the dragon's dungeon.
In a second, he became that same stranger, his next words like embers being forced into her heart.
"How many more lies do you intend to keep telling me, Belladonna?"