I do not own Odin Sphere or any of the characters depicted in this story (with few exceptions). That should be self-explanatory.

Chapter 5: Velvet's Awakening

Day after day, Cornelius put every personal event he had planned on hold. He spent every waking moment at Velvet's bedside, keeping his word that he would see to it that she recovered. It had become almost a ritual that Cornelius would squeeze Velvet's hand tightly as he watched her sleep, always hoping that she would squeeze back.

Now that she was safely within the Titania palace, Cornelius was able to more closely observe Velvet's beauty. Her hood was pulled back, her blonde hair draping over the pillow like a shimmering curtain of gold. He admired the way the bedroom's lighting reflected off her creamy flawless skin, attributing to her lovely radiance. Cornelius's eyes followed the naturally perfect curves of Velvet's delicate body, right down to her small feet, which, since her arrival, had been released from the suffocating confines of her tight high heel shoes. Velvet's chest rose and fell with each relaxing breath, and the subtle movements of her fingertips were a constant reminder to Cornelius that she was indeed healing.

He had let his mind wander for some time until he was brought back to earth by a gentle squeeze from Velvet's hand. Cornelius looked down at the beautiful girl and remained silent as her eyes slowly opened, those pools of violet that took the Titanian prince's breath away. Velvet's head swayed against the pillow briefly before she finally got a glimpse of her rescuer.

"Mmm…" she sighed sleepily, blinking a couple of times. Cornelius realized he was still holding onto Velvet's hand, and reluctantly released it. The Valentinian princess started to sit up after noticing the change in environment, but Cornelius was quick to attend to her.

"Please, Princess Velvet, you mustn't move around much," he urged her. "The doctors don't know yet how much of the poison has been neutralized."

Feeling a bit light-headed, Velvet took the advice and rested her head back down on the pillow, finding it very comfortable. She still did not know where she was, or who was watching over her so passionately. A part of her, however, did not care, as at this very moment, she hadn't felt safer in her life.

"You're the one from Elrit Forest," she spoke softly, her head now tilted toward Cornelius, her eyes aimed right at his. "If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have…"

Velvet's voice trailed off, but Cornelius got the point.

"Please, don't worry about it," the prince responded humbly. "I'm just glad that you're safe. The serpents inside Elrit Forest are quite vicious during the rainy season…"

The two of them were silent for a brief moment until Cornelius came to a realization that made him feel embarrassingly foolish.

"Oh! Forgive me," he exclaimed, "my name is Cornelius… I'm the prince of Titania."

"Cornelius," Velvet repeated, drawing a smile from the prince that had saved her life. "You have quite a strong grip."

Cornelius looked down to see that he was again tightly holding onto Velvet's hand. He let go again, wondering to himself why he seems to momentarily lose control of his actions around this girl. His thoughts were brought to an abrupt end when he noticed Velvet taking his hand again.

"It's alright," she assured. "It makes me happy to know that someone cares for me."

Cornelius swallowed hard, his heart threatening to beat through his chest.

"What do you mean?" he asked, his fingers intertwining with Velvet's. "I'm sure that your family back home in Valentine would…"

He stopped talking. The moment the mention of Valentine passed his lips, he could see the tears coming from Velvet's eyes. Cornelius could only assume that he had treaded upon a sensitive subject.

"…I suppose I don't quite know the full story," he conceded, looking down at the floor. "If you wish not to talk about it…"

Velvet interjected, her grip on Cornelius's hand tightening slightly.

"My grandfather had me exiled from the country," she explained. "He feared a prophecy made by the dragon Hindel… He sentenced my mother to execution for being seduced by the enemy, and I don't even know where my brother is… As of now I have no home, and very little family left."

Cornelius was unable to speak after hearing those words. What could he possibly say? The girl that laid before him had her family and home stripped away in an instant, expelled into the unforgiving world with nowhere to go. Her grandfather was mad with paranoia, her mother was to be killed, and her brother was missing. Silence followed, until Cornelius provided the only words of sympathy he could muster.

"I promise you, Velvet," he whispered confidently, "I'll go with you back to Valentine to stop your mother's execution. Even if all does not go well… then… should you ever be in need, Titania will always be a home to you."

Velvet released his hand at last, only to immediately throw her arms around him in an appreciative embrace. Cornelius sat there unmoving for a moment in shock, before encircling the grateful girl with his own arms. He could have sworn that he felt Velvet's heart beat just as quickly as his own.

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The dwarven head blacksmith of Valentine ascended the spiral staircase that guided him to Virgil's chambers. King Valentine had sent him to call the prince down to the war room for battle plans, as after all, despite the chaos that had wreaked havoc on their family, a fierce war with Ragnanival was still approaching a crescendo.

Tapping on the door, the dwarf heard Virgil grant him permission to enter. He pushed open the heavy iron door and timidly stepped into the chambers to see the prince busily flipping through the pages of the same book he had been studying the past couple of weeks.

"Lord Virgil," the blacksmith commented, "did Master Krois really insist you study this much? You'll wear yourself out one of these days…"

Virgil did not care. He was gaining more knowledge with each leaf of paper his fingers graced, and that was all that mattered to him at the present time.

"I enjoy the material, Korel," he answered, addressing the blacksmith by name and quietly shutting the blue book. "Did Grandfather send you?"

"He did," Korel confirmed with a nod. "He is meeting with the warlords just downstairs, and he wished for you to join the meeting if you could."

Virgil would rather have declined, but he knew better than to say no to his maniacal grandfather. He rose from his leather chair and slipped the book back into its place on the ebony-covered shelf mounted on the wall.

"You may tell him that I'll be right down," the prince stated, dismissing Korel from his chambers. The dwarf nodded again and bowed before exiting the room and shutting the door behind him with a quiet click. Virgil gazed out the window; he could almost taste the stench of blood that would be coming in the approaching battle.

He took his royal cloak off the clasp it was hung on, wrapped it around himself, and departed for the Valentinian war room.