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I think it's important to appreciate Aro's story. So...here is more!
"There is a charm about the forbidden that makes it unspeakably desirable."
― Mark Twain
Aro POV
A blast to the past...the night of the garden...
Lying on the soft grass, I gazed up at the midnight stars and pondered whether she would appear. Her decision to marry the king had been shaken by our last conversation, which was precisely my intention. I couldn't fathom why such a beautiful, young woman would choose to be with a man twice her age—a mystery to me.
While I was unaware of her exact age, I was well-acquainted with the king's advanced years, and they showed. His quest for longevity was infamous; he desperately sought to trade with the Omna for the Novis, a rare flower rumored to significantly extend human lifespans—a claim supported by several studies.
Humans and Omna aged at different rates, a fact known to all. As it happened, I was significantly older than the future queen. I smirked. However, according to the standards of my people I was still considered to be in the prime of my life.
As the night stretched on, I sighed. Perhaps the queen-to-be truly meant her words. Maybe her loyalty to the king outweighed her curiosity after all. I was just about to rise and leave when the quiet, measured sound of footsteps reached my ears.
Brightness flooded my gaze as I caught sight of nervous green eyes scanning the garden. Her long brown hair cascaded down her back as she gracefully lifted her deep blue velvet dress off the ground with both hands. I could hear the rapid pounding of her heart. What kind of bravery had driven her to defy expectations and meet me here in the solitude of the garden? Although she professed to be a matron bound by wedlock, here she was before me, defying societal norms with unapologetic poise.
She was truly stunning.
"Looking for me?" I said, a grin spreading across my face. She jumped, caught off guard, as if the idea of finding me waiting for her hadn't truly crossed her mind. Her eyes widened as I rose to my feet. "I didn't expect you to come. I thought you might back out."
Her gaze hardened as it settled on me. "I didn't come for your sake."
I furrowed my brow in confusion. "Then why?"
"I wanted to confirm if you were actually going to go through with your earlier claims."
"If you deemed it foolish, then what brings you here, future queen?"
"I was curious to know if you were actually imprudent enough to show up."
A smile tugged at my lips as I closed the distance between us. "Well, here I am. And, it seems, here you are as well. What shall we do, now that we are all alone?"
She scoffed, her voice dripping with disdain. "You possess a particularly vulgar tongue, Sir."
"Oh? Pondering the uses of my mouth, are we?" The words left my lips with a wry smirk, taunting the division between us.
Visibly exasperated, she shook her head, a second scoff parting from her lips like a curse. "Good night." She turned on her heel, her exit swift — a retreat from the battlefield of our banter — but before she could retreat into the night, my hand shot out, clasping her arm. The contact sent a jolt through me; her skin was warm, velvety soft—flawless in its human fragility.
"Stay," the word was a command softly spoken, laden with a desperate need I hadn't known was there.
"Your thoughts are monstrously perverse. And I'll have no more words with you. My sole purpose tonight was to witness with my own eyes whether the rumors of your brazenness were true. You think I don't know who you are? I know you are the prince of Novis. That you are the heir to the throne. But you are no king. And now, gaze met and madness confirmed, I want no part of your insanity."
"Stay," I implored yet again, an undercurrent of urgency thrumming in my voice.
She shot back with a fiery retort, "Why? Your crude suggestions offend me. You talk as though I'm an easy prize, someone who would eagerly fall into your embrace. I assure you, I am neither."
"In that, you are correct. I can see it in the set of your jaw, the resolve in your stance. And I apologize if my words have caused you offense; that was never my goal. I asked you here, tonight, for a vital reason—"
"Release me," she demanded, a storm brewing in her emerald eyes, a tempest that threatened to break free.
"Just a few answers," I bartered with quiet intensity, "and I promise, I will vanish from your life like an unsettling dream at the break of day." Her eyes flashed with anger at my grip on her arm, compelling me to let go. To which I did.
"You may ask two questions. After that, you must leave."
A wry smile crept onto my lips. She was indeed no easy prize. "Very well. Two questions it shall be." With her arms folded and chin lifted, she waited with an air of expectancy.
"Do you desire to marry the king?" I inquired.
A frown creased her brow. "While that question borders on impertinence, yes, I do wish to marry him."
"Out of affection or obligation?"
"Both," she replied succinctly.
"Do you hold affection for the king?" I pressed further.
"That is more than one question."
"It's part of the second one." I grinned.
Silence enveloped her as she diverted her gaze from mine. Speaking in a hushed tone, she confessed, "Affection harbors various interpretations. My love for my people is unwavering. In assuming the crown, I shall honor my responsibilities as queen."
"What about your own desires?"
"Surely, you as the prince of Novis, understand the weight of duty. You are the next in line for the throne. Your personal desires are irrelevant. You were born to assume a role, and with that role come obligations you cannot simply abandon."
"My name is Aro. I have no desire to become king of Novis. Not now, not ever. In fact, the thought of ruling at all repels me. I yearn for a life that belongs solely to me, one that isn't predefined by birthright."
"Then you are thinking only of yourself. Destiny has marked you to be the king of Novis. To turn your back on such a duty is an act of cowardice."
"You speak of duty. But what about the duty to oneself? To one's own heart? Isn't that also important?"
"Sometimes, our personal freedoms must be sacrificed so that others might enjoy theirs."
"But you don't love the king. Are you willing to condemn yourself to a loveless marriage out of a sense of duty?"
"I love my people. It is for them that I will marry the king. It is for them that I will ensure the continuation of his lineage and fulfill my responsibilities as queen. You, as the prince of Novis, should also take your kingly duties seriously."
"If it's your command for me to take my role as heir to the throne more seriously, then consider it done, my queen."
"I am not your queen," she replied with a terse nod. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I must depart."
"Wait, what's your name?" I inquired.
"That, prince of Novis, is another question," she retorted. "And it's irrelevant to you, as our paths will never cross again. As you promised. You'll have no use for my name."
I chuckled and kept pace with her, insisting, "I told you my name is Aro. And should anyone ask if I've met the queen, I want to be able to say 'yes' and speak your name."
"Surely you'll find another means to learn it," she said dismissively. "Had you been attentive to your duties as heir, you would know it already. But it seems you're here solely for revelry."
I couldn't help but laugh. "I do relish a good celebration."
She let out a sigh, saying softly, "Clearly."
"Fine, then at least seize the very thing that lured you here." She halted, her gaze anchoring to mine with a piercing intensity.
"Excuse me?"
"Seize it—the very thing you sought."
"I have retrieved what I journeyed here for."
"No. No, you have not. You ventured here driven by a tantalizing urge, yearning for the intoxicating thrill of our lips entangling. It's that idea that sparked a flame within you. You sought my presence out of a desire that now makes your cheeks bloom with color under my intense scrutiny. I vowed to bestow upon you a kiss of raw passion, a fervor that eclipses anything your future husband might offer."
Her voice was ice, her posture erect. "You're mistaken."
I smiled. "I don't think so. You're thinking of it now. My lips against yours. One indulgence, before you don the crown and the confines of matrimony. Admit that there's a fire in you, yearning for the caress of someone who sees you — not as the queen, but as a woman. Desire the passion. Allow yourself one kiss."
"I cannot. My duty is to my people and our kingdom. A moment of passion would only lead to regret. My marriage was arranged to secure an alliance, as is so often the way for royalty, but I have come to care for my betrothed. My people depend on the stability this union will provide."
A wicked grin sliced across my face, sharp as a blade. "You do not love him. I understand the weight of your duty," I whispered, my voice a tender caress against the gravity of the moment. "Yet it is precisely for this reason—one must clutch at fleeting moments of joy with fervor. Can one truly govern with an iron fist yet neglect the golden threads of their own spirit? An alliance forged in the cold clasp of matrimony may settle the chessboard of politics, but what of the pulsing matters of the heart?"
She looked away, her heart starting to rapidly beat again.
"Casting aside your own quest for happiness is no trifling matter," I continued. "Only a leader of true insight knows the art of balancing the scales of duty with desire, of melding the wisdom of the head with the yearnings of the heart."
With her eyes smoldering, she whispered fiercely, "Do you even know what you are asking? It reeks of treason, of betrayal so deep it could drown us both in its consequences — it's a dance with death itself."
I held her gaze, my voice steady yet soft, "But the chains of a conjugal vow do not yet bind you. You remain unshackled, with the precious freedom to choose still cradled in your hands."
Her fingers clenched, as if trying to grasp that freedom, her words tumbling out with desperate finality, "It matters little. The agreement is signed, the promise made. In the eyes of the world, it's as good as binding."
Leaning closer, I let a whisper of hope lace my words, an attempt to pry open the bars of her gilded cage, "In the eyes of the world, perhaps, but we live and breathe in the space between heartbeats, between the lines of law and duty. Until you speak your vows, you are not bound — not yet. And in that sliver of 'not yet,' there lies a world of possibility."
I clasped her fragile form with an unyielding grip, yanking her into the inferno of our closeness. Her cheeks flared into a feverish warmth while her emerald eyes, shimmering with an eager panic, grew impossibly wide. A shiver rippled across her, betraying her nervous excitement. With lips parting in anticipation, she moistened them – a silent siren's call. Her gaze, a tumultuous sea crashing into mine, screamed a plea for retreat. Yet, there was more than fear there—there was raw, unchained desire, a tumult of doubt, and the smoldering embers of rebellion.
I leaned in toward her, captivated by the glistening of her plush, moistened lips under the light. Their smooth surface reflected a subtle sheen, accentuating the delicate shade of pink that seemed to cast a captivating allure. The irresistible softness of her lips drew my gaze, pulling me into their tender embrace.
Gently, my fingers encircled her frail and slender neck, a tangible whisper of vulnerability under my tender grasp. With an impassioned gesture, I drew her closer until the rose petal softness of her lips brushed against mine. The exquisite sensation was more intoxicating than the sweetest of fantasies I had conjured in my restless daydreams, surpassing every expectation with their warm, pliant press. Her lips were both tender and inviting. With an overwhelming desire coursing through my veins, I eagerly pressed my tongue into her mouth, yearning to delve deeper into the intoxicating depths of her being. Every taste, every touch, was a passionate exploration of the fiery connection that bound us together.
Her passionate moans reverberated through the garden as she pressed her luscious breasts firmly against my chest. I felt the heat of her longing amplifying with every heartbeat we shared, and yet just as the flames of passion reached their peak, suddenly, she severed the connection of our lips, her breaths arriving in thunderous gasps, ragged and rich with unspoken yearnings.
Her emerald eyes locked with mine, holding a universe of unspoken words. I watched, immobile, as a lone tear—a liquid diamond—escaped the fortress of her lashes, carving an exquisite trail of sorrow across her ghostly alabaster skin.
She watched, spellbound, as I ensnared her falling tear with the pad of my thumb, capturing the burning essence of her passion, too overwhelming to bear. There was a fear flickering in her gaze — a fear of yearning too deeply for the passionate inferno that raged between us. She backed away slowly, withdrawing from my unyielding hold, her head shaking with an intensity that betrayed her inner turmoil.
"You must never do that again," she breathed, her words a desperate whisper against the charged silence.
My grin was predatory, a silent vow that I was far from finished with this intoxicating game. "I can't promise that. And deep down, where your desires lie dormant, you can't promise that either."
Frustration flashed within her eyes, igniting like wildfire as she grasped her dark blue dress in a defiant gesture and fled through the lush garden. Her sudden escape was freighted with the crushing burden of a silent, desperate plea. The terror of acknowledging her burgeoning emotions haunted her every move.
Could it be that my lips were the first to ever claim hers? She surrendered to our kiss with a passion she was too stubborn to confess. But make no mistake, I was under no illusion of restraint; those lips would be mine again.
Yes, in that breathless moment, I was convinced—her first true kiss belonged to me. The next enigma lay hidden in the syllables of her name, a secret she would whisper only when she could no longer resist the gravity between us.
And I was determined—it would be her who would unveil herself to me, willingly.
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