We traveled steadily until nightfall, when I returned to my carriage to rest. I do not know when I fell asleep, but I awoke in a panic. Someone was in the carriage. I opened my mouth to scream, but a hand over my mouth stifled the sound.

"Quiet, Eona. It's me." Ido! I slowly nodded my understanding, taking a deep breath of air as he released me.

"What are you doing?" I demanded, rubbing my face.

"I wanted to see you."

I froze. My heart was racing again, but this time, it was not from fear. I took another deep breath to still myself. "You see me every day, Ido. What do you really want?"

"I was telling the truth. I always want to see you, Eona. But I also wanted to talk to you without everything we say or do being reported back to a certain emperor."

I was thankful that the darkness of the carriage concealed the flush of my body. I sat up, wincing at the pain of my stiff muscles. "What did you want to talk about?" I asked when I finally found a position that did not hurt too much.

Ido sat back. In the small slivers of pale moonlight that slipped through the curtains of the carriage, I could make out his wide shoulders and broad chest. I licked my lips, urging my heart to calm down.

"I wanted to talk about our plans."

"We have just spent three days planning every detail. What more do you want to discuss that you have to sneak into my carriage in the middle of the night?"

"Our escape."

"We have gone over that."

"We have gone over how to escape from Zhang. We have not gone over how to escape from the emperor," his body shifted in the dark. He was feeling restless. I waited. "You should know that Kygo would never let me live if I returned without the peace treaty."

"What do you mean?" I asked, but I knew the answer.

"This was a death sentence for me from the start, Eona," he said, his voice held a tone of exasperation. "If we return without the peace treaty, he would use it as an excuse to kill me. Perhaps you may be safe, but you are here now because Kygo could not convince his council otherwise."

Ido was right. I remembered Lord Seno's gleeful expression when I had volunteered to go on the mission. The council hated us. They hated Ido for his position despite all his treachery and wrongdoings. They hated me for my position despite my unworthiness. They would never learn to see beyond their hate. Even if Kygo did not do it, the men of the council would find a reason way to send Ido and me to our death. Perhaps they would condemn us for ruining all chances of a peace treaty, or perhaps they would accuse us of treason, for conspiring with the enemy to overthrow the king. How else would we be able to explain our escape when the others have failed to do so?

"Then we can only succeed," I said, drawing up my knees to my chest.

"Or we can run." Ido's voice was barely a whisper.

Run. Run away from pain and fear and death. This was not the first time someone has told me to run to save my own life. Ido knew I would do it if it meant a chance at life. He knew my true nature. The dragons' unease returned. Still, I could not run now, not while there's still a chance of success. Nikos' face crossed my mind. There were also other lives at stake.

"I know what you are thinking, Eona," Ido said. "I am not asking you to run away now. We are alike, you and I. If there is a chance at success, I do not wish to run from it either. But if it means death, I want to survive, and to do that, we need to plan for every possibility. Tell me you will consider it."

Slowly, I nodded. I already knew my answer, but if I were to run, I want Nikos and the others to live also. Time will allow me a way to arrange that.

"Good," he said. He began to move towards the entrance, but stopped abruptly and asked, "What did Sua want with you earlier?"

I felt my face burn with embarrassment as I remembered my conversation with Lord Sua and at the realization of my heart's truth. I had not realized Ido had been watching me at that time. The thought pleased me. "…He told me that the emperor is searching for his empress," I answered. I could feel the heavy gaze of Ido's scrutiny.

"You don't seem to be too upset. Could it be you've finally realized your true feelings?" He said it mockingly, but my heart skipped a beat.

"…I have," I replied. I did not want to hide my heart's truth.

Ido did not move, nor did he speak. I began to panic. Quickly, I reached for something to distract Ido's mind. "And what about you and L-"

I don't know what startled me more: the touch of his lips on mines or finding out just how much I had wanted it.

It was like a dam had broken against the flooded gate and I realized my heart held another truth. The truth behind why my thoughts always turned to Ido. The truth behind why I had felt the urge to help him, why I had sent myself on this mission. The truth behind why his every touch filled me with fire.

"You did it for me."

His words echoed in my mind as it cleared of any other thought. He was right. He was always right. How long had I felt this way? I knew that there had always been desire in our relationship, but it was filled with hate and need, not love. When had that changed?

I closed my eyes, allowing his taste to fill me. Although Ido no longer had his dragon's power, there was still underlying scent of sweet vanilla orange. I wondered if I had a taste of cinnamon on his tongue.

I could feel his desire raging with his touch, so rough and urgent. He had one hand on my waist, the other hand slid around my back, pulling me in closer. As our kiss deepened, I drew up my legs around him, feeling the need to close the distance between us.

The hand on my waist began to slide upwards, his touch making my skin tingle despite the layers of clothing. Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain, my body flinched. Ido's hand had found one of my many bruises. We fell apart, both knowing that the moment had passed.

He sighed heavily, and brushed a finger against my lips. Ido moved towards the entrance of the carriage, pulling apart the curtains. His body was now just a shadow against the moonlight, as if he were a fleeting dream in my sleep.

"Good night, Eona," he said. With the rustling sounds of the curtains returning me to my world of darkness, he was gone.