+Chapter 34+

Mari really didn’t want to get out of bed. As the day got brighter, her dread for what was to come increased. She remained curled up on her bed until a maid came to rouse her up so she could prepare for breakfast.

She reluctantly dragged herself out of bed and went to the bathroom to clean up, and as usual, the maid had put out clothes for her before she left. Mari took one look at the little sundress and blanched, wondering why she couldn’t just wear her training outfit.

As much as she wanted to wear pretty clothes, she couldn’t get rid of the memories branded in her brain from the first time she was dressed up to have a meeting with royalty. To make things worse, both the King of the North and the King of the South were present, and she had also confirmed that she was a witch. *Just great.*

Mari grimaced at the maid who had come to pick her up for breakfast, too distracted by her own thoughts to notice the awed look that the maid shot her as she led the way to the dining room.

Her low heels clicked on the floors as she walked, her shoulders stiff from anxiety. She still didn’t have an answer for why King Lucien had come down to Wolfden, had they decided to get rid of her after all? Or maybe they would make her fight Shadows right away without any further training.

The maid bowed slightly to her before leaving her in front of the dining hall. Mari didn’t stop to think because she knew that if she did, she would never enter the dining hall. She ended up pushing open the doors harder than she intended to, making them slam open, instantly attracting the attention of both Kings.

Mari wanted the ground to open up so she could fall in, and although her legs shook with each step, she forced herself to walk in. This time she didn’t hesitate to sit a the extreme end, sitting the furthest away.

She lifted her head after a few seconds of trying to calm her heartbeat only to flinch backward at the sight of King Lucien right in front of her.

“It’s going to be tasking to eat if you sit there,” He said with an affable smile, his white-blond hair in a half-up ponytail.

Mari was frozen staring into his cold blue eyes, a minty floral scent swarming her. “I- um…” She trailed off, unable to come up with an excuse as to why she sat so far away. Well, she did have several excuses but she couldn’t exactly say them out loud.

“Right,” She mumbled, rising to her feet again to sit at her usual spot.

King Kade didn’t even react to her moving closer, instead, he focused on eating, the hard lines on his face more pronounced as he glared at the plate in front of him.

King Lucien followed right after her, sitting opposite her on the other side of the table, that unsettling smile on his face never leaving. He seemed to be the only one enjoying the meal.

Mari was so tense, she was certain that her spine would literally snap before breakfast ended. Could she really practice on her powers with the both of them present? They were too intimidating for her to even freely breathe, much more to try to harness her powers.

Fortunately, there was no conversation at breakfast. Mari hardly ate anything, she kept her gaze on her mostly full plate, wondering why she had to eat her meals with them. Rather than bare this tense atmosphere again, she would rather ask to eat alone in her room and risk their anger.

A loud clap of thunder brought her head up, making her look outside one of the windows to see that it had sufficiently gotten darker, thunderclouds rolling in even as lightning momentarily brightened up the sky. That was a loophole for her! She immediately shot to her feet and excused herself, not even paying attention to the words she was saying.

“I- uh- I’m… Please excuse me,” She managed to say out loud, pushing back her chair noisily. “Th-Thank you- for the meal,” She choked out before hurrying off, her face a bright red in the dim room.

Mari wondered why she said that, she had never said that before; *had the tension fried her brain or something?* It didn’t matter anymore though because she was free, she didn’t even wait for a maid to take her back to her room, hurrying back alone.

She could hear the wind outside the palace pick up, it seemed like there was going to be a thunderstorm. Mari hated thunderstorms but that was because she had never lived in a proper house that could withstand thunderstorms. Her foster parents either made her stay in a rundown shack or a room with leaking ceilings and even when she managed to get her own place, she still suffered the same fate.

But now, as she returned to her room to find a maid closing up the windows and drawing the curtains, she didn’t feel as nervous as she usually did during thunderstorms.

The maid welcomed her back with a smile before putting on the electric fireplace and then asking if she needed anything.

Mari felt her eyes prick with tears but she forcefully blinked them away, “Could-Could you get me some hot chocolate?” She asked in a small voice.

The maid beamed, happy to help, “Of course, Miss Mari! I’ll be right back!”