Her hand clutched the banister tightly, wobbling down the stairs. Even one step at a time, she felt like she was going to collapse. She tried to pay attention to her shallow breaths, but all she could think about was how the world around her was spinning. Staying upstairs was not an option anymore – she had to get out of that prison. She was okay, she would be fine, she thought as she aimed for the last step. Cold sweat was pouring down her. After all, Leon had gotten over this stomach bug days ago. If he could get over it, so could she.

When she got to the landing, lingering towards two distinct voices in the sitting room, she saw a servant twitch towards her, as if to help her, but the cold look on Selene's face shooed the servant away rapidly. It was no secret that she had been ill – Tobias had made a grand deal about it after she forbid him from going into her room. The last thing she needed was for Tobias to get this stomach bug too. But, to her delight, he sounded full. Fresh, as his voice boomed. Even feet away, she could hear the power in his voice.

"You're going to form an alliance? Have you lost your bloody mind?" The voice came from Leon. Despite it ringing loudly, it was still casual.

"It's either that or invade," Tobias responded, just as casual. "And truthfully, I don't feel like going through a war. It sounds tedious."

"Whatever they want will put us in extreme debt-"

"And increase the economy twenty-fold."

"Yeah, fifty years in the future, after they exploit and exhaust half of the working class."

"So what is your grand idea then?"

"Just like Selene said, let it alone," Leon responded. When Selene finally saw them, she registered the stone-like look on Tobias's face. He was analyzing Leon, confused for a moment. But then when she took a step into the room, Tobias's face softened with light. Though he didn't move, it seemed like his whole body changed when he met eyes with her.

"I thought you were sick," Tobias said, not without casting Leon a pointed look, "Why are you up?" Though her body was nearly unmovable and her head was pounding, she mustered a smile.

"I feel better," she said half-heartedly, nearly sitting on Tobias as she landed on the couch. "Why is there…" She peered out the window behind her, her eyebrows knitted down. "Are those bonfires outside?" They were at a distance, flickering between the thick trees. And past that, there were a range of people going in and out of the cold forest hurriedly. Tobias's lips pressed together firmly.

"Because I thought you were going to go see Yvonne, I didn't tell you that we were having a small holiday," Tobias informed her in a bored tone, though she knew he felt tense by the way he avoided her gaze.

"You thought I'd go all the way to Yvonne's village? For a stomach bug?"

"Hoping," Leon added lightly, "He was hoping." But neither Selene nor Tobias paid him any attention.

"Well, you won't let any of the healers in the estate touch you."

"It's a stomach bug! Of course they shouldn't touch me."

"Yvonne won't touch you," Tobias responded to her snarkily. Her eyes narrowed on him.

"Because she'll be too busy conducting an exorcism," Selene snarled back. She glanced at the drink cart next to the couch longingly. Quickly, before Tobias could notice her shaking hands, she poured herself a cup of citrus-infused water. Hopefully, it would calm the nausea.

"To be fair, throwing up for four days isn't normal. Leon was only throwing up for two," Tobias said, in the same exact tone. But Selene was done with this conversation. She wasn't going to justify her sickness – not to him, anyway.

"So what are you two trying to hide from me?" Selene asked. Leon didn't look bothered at the least, as if he had no objection in telling her, but Tobias's body tightened at her words.

"It's just a stupid holiday, you don't have to participate. It doesn't even-"

"Leon, what is this holiday?" Selene asked Leon sharply. Leon sat up stiffly.

"I shouldn't-"

"Leon," Selene said, emphasizing his name sharply. "Tell me." Without looking at Tobias, who was giving him a deathly glare, he leaned closer to her.

"Calanmai," he said uneasily, almost as if it was question. Tobias, though looking suddenly bored, glanced at her quickly.

"Calanmai?" Selene repeated, the word lingering in the air for a moment. "That's the harvest ritual right?" In her head, she began counting back the days. Truthfully, she didn't attend the ceremony last year but…has it really been a year since the last Calanmai? But when she looked up at the two men, both Leon and Tobias blinked at her in surprise. When she registered the look of shock on their faces, she put her drink down, her face hardening.

"I'm not stupid, I know what the harvest ritual is!" Selene shrilled. Tobias's eyebrows went up in disbelief but Leon chortled.

"Coming from the same woman who didn't believe in mates," Leon mumbled under his breath with a smirk. "Anyways, the issue isn't what it is, but how it works." Selene shot him an impatient look, rolling her eyes as she did so.

"Of course I know how it works," Selene said matter-of-factly. "You burn a virgin. Duh." But the answer was clearly incorrect as the whole room jolted. The apple in Tobias's fell to the ground as he sat up and Leon's face flickered with shock. Even the servants buzzing through the room silently couldn't help but twitch at her words. Selene suddenly shrunk back.

"What? That's that we always did in my village." Tobias and Leon exchanged looks before landing their eyes back on Selene. Both of them look exasperated.

"I really should have killed Petyr," Tobias sighed. Selene's eyebrows furrowed down. She looked towards Leon, who was in laughable shock. Tobias groaned loudly.

"Once a year the inner spirits of the High Lord, witnessed by the the spirit of the moon, are unleashed to fulfill a ritual," Tobias explained dully. "And every court does it differently. For instance, the High Lord of Dawn will cut his forearms six times and allow the drops of blood to spill in their heavenly fountains that his people drink out of. Afterword, he'll linger to whoever he has the deepest cravings for and indulge in them at the highest tower until morning." Selene's eyes widened.

"Indulge? Like have-" Leon waved at her dismissively.

"You should hear what the Autumn Court does," Leon snorted. "Because the High Lord of Autumn is immune to fire, he burns himself alive on a pyre and when the fire burns out, he makes love on top of the last burning embers. Trust me – it doesn't always end well for the lady he chooses." Tobias rolled his eyes dramatically.

"Show offs," Tobias muttered as he grabbed a new apple and bit into it. "But yes, all the rituals end in sex of some sort. Some sort of evolutionary thing." Leon stifled a laugh.

"The most amusing part is who the High Lord chooses. Because they aren't consciously aware of what's going on and are basically possessed by their inner powers, they don't always go towards their normal lover. They go to whoever attracts them most biolo-"

"Leon." Tobias snarled his name sharply. Immediately, Leon's face dropped. Tobias's lips were curled upward angrily and Leon let out a nervous laugh as he registered the sudden horror on Selene's face.

"Of course, since you are mates, there is no chance he can ever pick someone else," Leon said, but when her concern didn't waver he added seriously, "Literally, it's impossible. Your mating bond is the most primitive bond to exist. If you think about it, the raw spirits inside the two of you are what made you connect. The beasts." A relief washed over her, calming her body. But something had made Tobias twitch at his words, looking at Leon with a more focused gaze.

"So what about the Night Court, then?" Selene asked. "What do you do?" And this time she was talking to Tobias directly.

"We find the ring," Tobias said. Selene blinked at him.

"The ring?" She repeated, blinking as it was the stupidest thing she had ever heard. "You find a ring?" Tobias smirked at this.

"The best jeweler in the court is honored to donate a ring for their mighty High Lord to find," Tobias said. "Their best ring available. They will then hide it somewhere on the mountain for the High Lord to find and bring it back to their lover in one of the caves." Selene's eyebrows went up slowly, tempted to laugh at the ridiculous ordeal.

"They just hide it somewhere on the mountain?" Selene repeated, stifling a laugh. "Who says the High Lord will even find it?" Tobias's smile widened.

"Because, lovely Selene, when the High Lord's spirits come out, their power is electrified," Tobias said proudly. "Which makes us fucking invincible." Leon snorted at this.

"And you use all your mighty invincibility to find a petty ring?" Selene giggled. "That's just plain lame." Tobias stuck his tongue at her playfully.

"Forget him. The real fun is for people like me," Leon interrupted joyfully. Selene's eyebrows furrowed down.

"People of Higher Fae, like Leon, feel the same beastly mentality as I do because of their blood," Tobias said, rolling his eyes. "Except they don't have to do the hard work. They just get to let their beast out and have fun." But as Tobias laughed at his comment, something flickered in his eyes. Something only Selene could catch.

"No, but we do get to have more fun," Leon said back. "As do you, Selene." And then the three of them quietened as the blood rushed to her face suddenly. She looked between them.

"Do…people watch us?" She asked, her voice quieter than she expected. The smile on Tobias's face had dropped.

"Well, not specifically," Tobias answered dryly. "But it's not exactly a secret." It wasn't, Selene agreed. So she showed them both a smile. Her stomach though, as her lips turned up, clenched. Feeling like she was going to puke, she sat up jerkily.

"I…I have to go," Selene breathed, trying her best to seem alright. "I'm going to go put on some clean clothes." And then she stumbled away dizzily, not even watching as Tobias's eyes went to the window, glaring at the burning bonfires.

~*~ Discidium ~*~

She barely made it to Tobias's bedroom. It was toasty, with the fireplaces burning. As soon as she curled into the bed, like a small child, her stomach calmed down. Clearly, she just needed to lay down for a bit longer. She closed her eyes, letting herself daze, but then the wide doors opened. She jolted up, eyeing Tobias as he strutted through the bedroom doors. He looked furious.

"Are you okay?" She asked, watching as he stomped towards his wardrobe. He opened the door swiftly, eyeing each tunic as if it was a weapon.

"Leon is being…" But then he shook his head. "I just want to skip this whole Calanmai thing." Her eyebrows knitted down.

"Why?" Selene asked. "I think it'll be fun. There will be many different types of people, there will be refreshments, dancing, mingl-"

"I don't want you to go." The words felt like a slap in the face when Tobias let them out. Harsh, blunt. Like a sharp dagger. And maybe it was meant to hurt her feelings but she gave him a face of protest.

"Why?" She demanded. He then turned towards her with one swift movement, making her lips close.

"Because I'd rather fuck some girl I don't know and will never see again then do it with someone I actually care about," he spat honestly. "Because if you weren't my mate, and I was sure that I wouldn't try hunting you down during Calanmai, I would have already locked you in some unknown tower until daylight." She didn't even know how to reply to that. She sat up quickly.

"But I am your mate," she protested. "I have to perform the ceremony." He gave out a mirthless chuckle under his breath as he turned towards his wardrobe again.

"Great deductions, beautiful Selene."

"Don't be so defensive, Tobias. I mean it. I want to know why me going is such a hassle." She saw him swallow, closing his eyes for a second.

"I will know you through the bond but I won't know you, Selene. I will sense you, I will smell our connection, but your state of being is no concern once I go under," Tobias warned her. "You may be in control of your surroundings, but my consciousness…I might as well be in hibernation. It won't be me. Just what I want. And I don't know if you can handle that." And for a moment she was curious what the not-me version of Tobias would be. He was cold at nature, passive to say the least. Sure, he shared some emotions with her, but how much worse could he get? Sometimes, she wondered if he felt anything other than passion and pure angst.

"What are you saying?" She asked quietly. And when he held her gaze, a shiver ran down her spine. He was so sharp, so cold.

"Run," he told her simply. "If your instincts tell you run, you run. You don't fight, you don't waste your time saying no, you run. And you don't stop running until…" And he paused for a moment. Something was passing through his mind as his voice stopped. "Until you reach the estate and then, after that, you lock every door behind you." And she was quiet, analyzing the color that had washed from his face. How horrible could he be during the ceremony?

"That's the rule," he told her. "If you want to go, if you want to perform the ceremony with me, then that's the rule. If not, I'll get Leon to winnow you far enough away that it would be impossible for me to reach you by morning." Her lips pursed as she watched him go towards the doorway. But before he could walk away, she stopped him.

"I want to perform the ceremony with you," Selene said highly. "I'm not just interested in it, or amused by it, I want to. I am your wife, your lady. Your mate. Shouldn't I be allowed to take some pride in that?" And this time, he was the one who was quiet. He rose his chin, looking her over.

"Okay," he said, his voice soft. Though, there was still some uncertainty in his voice. "I won't stop you."

~*~ discidium ~*~

She didn't feel like she was wearing clothes. And when she had brought this concern to Rosalie, Rosalie had snickered at her and said trust me, you don't want to. But she was wearing something, at least. It was a jet-black robe that was as thin as paper. Though it was long-sleeved and went to her knees, she felt like everything showed – her legs, her breasts, even the goosebumps that ran over her body because of the cold. She was forbidden to wear any underwear or a bra, so when she was escorted from the castle many turned and stared at her body. Tobias didn't even flicker as they did so. She had guessed, as the ceremony was based upon sex in front of whoever dared to watch, it was the one day that he couldn't say a word to those who decided to stare. If anything, it was the one day out of the year that they were allowed to.

Tobias looked like, on the other hand, he was wearing too much clothing. A long-sleeved ebony tunic, brocaded with blood-red and silver. He was wearing pants so black that nothing reflected off them, not even the light from the full moon. His boots went up to his knees and had silver spikes around the opening of the boot – all of them sharp as a knife. Leon was less noticeable. He was wearing a pure black tunic and pants, both non reflective, and boots that stopped at the heel. Rosalie had caught almost as many eyes as Selene – she wearing a red velvet robe, with flowy long sleeves and stopped mid-thigh, but was far thicker than Selene's robe and far less revealing.

When they had made it to the mountainous areas, facing the number of caves, people were already mingling around. There were refreshments, a pink drink that Tobias had nodded towards. Rosalie didn't step near them nor did Leon.

"Alcohol?" She guessed. His eyes were zooming elsewhere, looking around at the number of high fae forming. He was beginning to look tenser. Stiffer. Like something was beginning to rise inside of him.

"More or less," he muttered under his breath. "It'll keep you conscious but…fuzzy. It makes things easier for some of the women who are dragged here." And when she looked at him, she couldn't tell if he was encouraging her to drink it or forbidding her. On one hand, she saw the lingering worry in his eyes. Maybe even pity that he truly believed this would end badly and at least, if she drank it, she wouldn't have to remember it. But she remembered their deal – she remained conscious enough that she could run if need be.

"I'll think about it," she whispered. He looked at her again, his eyes piercing. But then his head turned sharply towards Leon. Leon was already chatting with a brunette girl at the refreshments table, giving her a tilted smile as she drank a cup. Clearly, Leon was already feeling the sexual vibes.

"I'll see you later," Tobias said, his voice nearly inaudible as he walked away stiffly. Though nobody explicitly stared, people glanced at him excitedly. A number of girls hovering at the edge of the clearing lingered towards him but he didn't so much as turn his head towards them.

She was left there for only a few seconds, her eyes lingering where Tobias had disappeared as if waiting for him to come back, before thin fingers clasped her arm. She spun around quickly, meeting eyes with Rosalie. A long, red smile sprawled across her face, a happiness that Selene couldn't quite reflect. Her green eyes were glittering. Selene saw how multiple men were looking at the both of them, thinking cauldron-knows-what.

"Are you ready?" Rosalie asked Selene, nearly bursting in giggles. Selene's lips pursed.

"Yes," Selene lied. "Where will I…?" But then Rosalie eyed the large, looming mountain that hovered over them. It wasn't huge compared to most mountains that Selene was used to climbing but even as Rosalie began to pull her towards it, her heart wasn't in the claim. But as Selene walked away from the party, going through a dark trail that would lead to a different side of the mountain, somewhere more secluded, she noticed that it wasn't as terrifying as it seemed. There were a winding path that would lead them up the mountain and from where Selene stood, between a mountain and a dark forest that went on for forever, Selene could see the caves. There were many of them hiding inside the mountain, side by side only about twenty feet away from each other.

"What will happen?" Selene asked quietly, as they began up the mountain. It wasn't too far away, Selene noticed. Rosalie's smile broke, a look that Selene couldn't quite place in her eyes.

"Personally, I've never been chosen," Rosalie said, and Selene could hear a hint of relief in her voice. "Usually Tobias would go through multiple girls a night but because you're his mate, and you're what his body craves naturally, you'll probably be here for a while." And then they both heard the echoes of giggles coming from one of the caves. They both looked at each other quickly but then shrugged it off.

"They say that the moon is watching," Rosalie went on. "They say that the moon is the judge of the High Lord's ceremony and will be keeping it's eyes on the both of you closely. I…" But then they made it to the cave that the giggling had come from. Unfortunately, they had to surpass it to get to the other caves.

Inside was Leon. The brunette who he had been flirting with was pressed against the wall, with him half naked and kissing her neck. But when he saw them in the entry way, he stopped suddenly. His eyes glittered at the both of them, his smile breaking for a moment. Almost a sense of sadness filling his face as the girl's laughs ceased as well. But then, before either of them could say anything to them, Rosalie pulled her away towards the next cave. The next cave wasn't far different than the other, just twice as large. But bonfire sticks were on the sides of the cave, making it brighten with fire light. Selene could tell that this was clearly a cave specifically made for the High Lord.

Selene's eyes shot towards Rosalie's. Whether Rosalie could see it or not, Selene was desperate. Desperate for her to wait for just a few minutes. But Selene knew better than that.

"I should probably leave," Rosalie said aloud, not without grasping her arm softly and saying, "It won't be different than any other time." But even as Rosalie said it, Selene knew she was lying. Still, Selene nodded quietly.

"If you need anything, Leon is right next door," Rosalie continued, a small smirk on her face. "Though, he's a bit preoccupied." As Rosalie walked away, looking back at her once more, Selene didn't share her smile. But when Rosalie's shadow vanished, and she found herself alone, she crouched down against the wall.

As she closed her eyes, listening to the wind and the crowd below her, she felt a pain in her stomach. The thread, pulsing. Pulling. At first, she found the feeling to be amusing, as if he was talking to her at a distance, but then she truly began to think about the meaning of the ceremony. He was trying to find her. To hunt her down. In a way, as she began to think about the ceremony at a different angle, it seemed a bit terrifying. Rosalie never bothered to tell her about the past girls that Tobias had shared Calanmai with. Was there a specific reason?

But then she heard a scream. At first Selene thought it was in her head, but the screeching – it echoed against the cave. She jolted up on her feet. There was a crack. She drew in a breath. Quickly, she went to the edge of the cave, looking at Leon's cave at a distance. There was no one else in the other caves, not that she heard at least. She, hesitantly, took small steps out of the cave. As she grew closer into the trail that led to the next cave, her heartbeat was beating fast. Leon's cave was farther away then she had remembered, she thought. Yet, she knew it came from there. She just knew.

As she grew closer, she began to hear heavy breathing. Panting. Her mouth dried up as she walked into the light of Leon's cave.

"Leon." He was on his knees. There was blood doused all over him – on his hands, on his chest, on his legs. He was entirely nude, but that wasn't what bothered her. What bothered her was the girl lying next to him. She must have been beautiful – brown curls, dark eyes, red lips. Yet, she laid limp. Her head was tilted at an unnatural angle and there were scratches all over her. Bleeding, leaking of red liquid. The blood was hers. And it wasn't just on Leon – it was everywhere. It was on the floor, on the wall, even splatters on the ceiling.

And she was dead. The girl was dead.

Selene dared herself to inch closer, to reach for the girl, but she only made it a few feet. Leon was abnormally still as he hovered over the body, his eyes wide. But then he looked in her direction. At first she shrunk back, thinking that he was looking at her, but then she realized he wasn't.

"Someone else did this. Tobias, I didn't do it." And then, just as she was about to look around, a force pulled her backwards, nearly flinging her on the side of the cave. Her head collided with the wall painfully, making her let out a screech.

"Get out!" A new voice snarled, what felt like a thousand miles away as she staggered up. "Go." She felt two hands push her father back towards the opening, making her stumble, but all she could see was the blood on the walls. The shadow of a body. She gripped the entryway of the cave, her nails clawing at the stone. Her eyes were wide. She couldn't look away – she couldn't unsee the dead girl. But then she felt someone jerk her chin roughly, making her look away from the scene. Two deep black eyes found her, devilish. Beastly. She could tell he was struggling to push down the rising spirit inside of him, wincing painfully.

"You saw nothing," Tobias growled at her, actually growled. His face was inches from hers. She inhaled raggedly. "You will not say a word to anyone about this, you hear me? You will go back to the cave and wait for me. And if anyone says anything to you, tell them to fuck off." She was silent, her body shaking. He gripped her harder, and while he looked maddening, she saw a flicker of fear in his eyes as well. "Do you hear me, Selene?" At first she was silent, her eyes wide with terror but then she nodded. He didn't let go for a moment, just held her gaze. Almost like he was fighting two different sides of himself, grasping for a single identity. But before he could choose, she stumbled away from him, not looking back as she ran into the darkness.

~*~ discidium ~*~

Tobias found her in the trees. She was going home, she decided, as she ran off in the opposite direction. She had never gone in this direction, but she didn't care. All she knew was that she saw the estate at the distance. She was going home and she was going to lock all the doors and she was going to hide. Hide from what? She didn't know. But terror had taken over her body and she couldn't do it. She couldn't do it, she thought as she bolted between the trees. She couldn't do it.

But then, minutes later, she felt a hand grab her, making her slide against the dirt. She let out a screech before facing the handler. Her body had nailed against an old oak tree and the impact was so sudden that it took a moment to open her eyes. She let out a breath. It was Tobias…but it wasn't Tobias. It was his face, his hands, his body. Yet, something was different. Something else shadowed in his eyes. And his heartbeat, she realized as he pressed his body against hers, was faster.

And for a moment, it was so entirely quiet. She realized she ran so far out into the woods that she could no longer hear the people in the distance and the trees were so old and large that the two of them were practically hidden in the shadows. She could see the moon though – the bright, white moon that was shining down on her. Watching her. Watching them. And she wondered if it was truly listening to the each High Lord like the harvest ritual claimed. That the moon was watching them closely, listening to their every breath that they inhaled between themselves. It was the only thing in the world listening to her, she realized. Because Tobias was too far gone.

"There you are," he said softly – so very softly. "I was looking for you." It was at that moment that she realized her feet weren't even touching the ground anymore. He held her closely, pinning her to the tree like she was a rag doll. One of his large hands were laid out on top of hers above her head and the other was at her waist. Though it wasn't his doing, she felt the robe untie itself when a gust of wind blew through. She sucked in a breath.

"Did you drink it?" He whispered. Her face tightened.

"Drink what?" She demanded, but her voice was rasp. He didn't seem to notice at all. His hand had left her waist, touching her skin. Stroking her cheek.

"The drink," He said, his lips so close to hers that she felt his breath go into her mouth. "I wanted you to drink it. But you didn't." Though minutes ago she would've thought it was irrelevant, but the obsession in his eyes, the madness, made her curious. So curious she was almost fearful.

"Why?" She heard herself ask.

"I thought it was because I didn't want you to remember what's about to happen," he replied, his voice as thin as a feather. "But really, it's because I'm selfish. I want to get away with it. I don't want to remember you fighting me." Goosebumps were going up and down her body rapidly, and not because of the cold. Her throat felt dry.

"And what do you want to get away with?" And when her words came out, they were sharp as a broken piece of glass. Though her robe had already unraveled, Tobias was peeling it off her shoulders as he shook his head humorously. She watched as he let it go in the air, letting it fly away into the night.

"None of the other girls I've performed Calanmai with ever had the nerve to not take a drink," he breathed, and she felt something harden at her waist. "Nobody has ever done this sober." And she couldn't tell if it was pure shock in his voice or admiration or both.

"You'll still be good?" He crooned, and she felt one of his sharp nails go down the side of her body, piercing her. She couldn't tell if it was a question or a demand. "Of course you'll be good. You're always good aren't you? Truly, purely good." She swallowed. He noticed the wince she reflected back at him, and something about it made him humored.

"They say Calanmai is when our true selves come out," he mused with a mirthless chuckle that made her shiver. His claw was tracing around her nipple now, causing her to wince. Like he was carving into her, piece by piece. "The monsters inside us. Who we truly are. But look at you. You're so young, so innocent. There's no monster inside you." Though she couldn't see due to the musty darkness, she heard him unbuckle his pants with one hand. It fell to the ground with heavy clatter, the sound of knives and daggers crashing against fallen branches.

"When I was trying to find you, I still hadn't decided what I wanted to do with you," he purred, a ghost of a smile on his face. "I couldn't decide if I wanted to make love to you like in that carriage or fuck you like I did during our first time or force you to suck every part of me until the sun came up. But I know what I want you to do now."

She tried to pull away from him, kicking him, but he didn't even twitch.

"I want you to scream," he growled at her. "When I do this, when I leave scars on you that'll stay there forever, I want you to scream. And I want you to know that nobody is going to hear you because you are mine."

~*~ discidium ~*~
She had drank fire. There was no other explanation on why her throat hurt so horribly, the lasting feeling of her throat in charred shreds. Like she had swallowed coals or inhaled a mouthful of embers. Simply taking a single breath made her wince, her fingers clutching her throat. Slowly, she felt her body, heavy and achy, sit up.

"You're awake!" The sharp words made her eyes open suddenly. A bundle of dark red curls bounced across her face, along with a risqué view of two bobbling breasts shaking together as the figure leaned over her. It took a moment for Selene to even register that it was Rosalie who was hovering over her, her ashen face filling with color. She was wearing a cotton bed gown, with smeared make up from the previous day still on her face.

"Where…" Selene croaked, looking at her surroundings, "where am I?" When she let out the words, Rosalie's smile dropped.

"A safehouse," Rosalie said. Selene blinked at her stupidly, shaking her head in confusion. She was in a circular room with a beautiful canopy bed that had purple-black sheets dangling off the bedposts. The small window next to her was open, letting in a nice breeze. Carefully, Selene looked out, taking in a sharp inhale. It was beautiful. The sky was a bright blue with speckles of faraway stars, and below her were countless towers and buildings of many different colors. She could see, even from where she was, the delicate cobble streets and the jingles from various food stands. It was dream-like. But she had never been there, never in her wildest dreams. She couldn't even tell if she was still in the Night Court, everything looked so foreign and bizarre.

"Why?" Selene bleated. "Why am I in a safehouse? Where's…?" She didn't want to say his name. Last night…it was clear as day until the moment he had told her to scream. After that, all she could remember was blackness. Yet, her throat was aching and her body felt heavy. Rosalie bit her lip.

"He's not here right now. There was…" Rosalie began but then she shook her head. "He'll be back soon and he'll explain, but we have more important matters." Selene's eyebrows knitted down curiously.

"Selene," Rosalie said carefully, "A healer has been going in and out of here for…obvious reasons." Selene felt herself flush with redness, though she knew there was no reason. Still, it was embarrassing. Because if Tobias was telling the truth, and he had done as he planned, she probably looked mortifying.

"I don't need one," Selene said sharply, attempting to prove her point by shifting in the bed. "Tell the healer to leave." Rosalie smirked.

"You do now," Rosalie argued, her body scrunching together giddily. Selene's eyes narrowed on her.

"And why is that, Rosalie?" Selene let out flatly, tiredly. And this time, when Rosalie's smile widened, Selene got a bad feeling in her stomach. Something, instinctual at least, told her something was wrong. Something was extremely wrong.

"You're pregnant," Rosalie let out, giggling. "You're pregnant with the next heir of the Night Court." And then Selene puked.

~*~ Discidium ~*~

Tomorrow is school. Ugh. Can you give me some reviews and send me some love? Also, I wrote a new story that I believe kinda reflects the same type of writing. It's called Red & Gold. It starts off a bit dry but essentially, it's post-ACOWAR and is a in-progress story about Eris and his mother being forced to flee to the Day Court. There, Eris has to come terms with past sins and his mother is forced to learn how to love again. If you're bored, give it a try? It not, just at least leave review on this story giving your thoughts. Thank you and sorry for the errors!