12. AURELIA

Chapter twelve

AURELIA

F ire was coursing through my veins. I looked down to see my hands illuminating themselves with small fiery sparks. Using my powers, I dulled them quickly so as not to be seen by anyone else. Tobias? Was he a part of this? Of course, the first man I spoke to about the map was the one who told me that searching for it would result in my death.

I looked up at the large, ticking clock above everyone in the ballroom. The gilded border was adorned with creamy white pearls scattered throughout it, the hands ticking past each small mark, reminding me that the charm was close to being up. I had ten minutes left until midnight. The time had flown by, and I had no idea it was so close to diminishing the tint from my eyes.

Whether it be the alcohol or the dances, I now had less time than I planned.

I didn't see any bumps on his clothing and didn't suspect that he had the map on him. That left the jet-black-haired man, his crimson suit a distinct contrast, and Tobias. I darted my eyes along the floor to see if I could find Tobias or the other man. I saw his maroon suit as he approached the washroom on the other side of the hall. If I ran, I could make it to him, maybe even in the hallway nestled between the washroom and the ballroom, so as not to be noticed by anyone else.

I held up my silver dress with both hands as I quickly made my way to the end of the ballroom, following after him. "Excuse me!" I shouted as people made disappointed hums and grunts as I accidentally brushed against them quickly. I could feel my pink hair whipping behind me, falling out of my put-together bun as I hurried to meet him before he entered the room.

I had no idea what to say to him, but I just had to do something. I quickly turned the sharp corner.

BAM.

My body thudded as I ran into something hard, falling to the floor. The man that I must've run into fell as well, both of our masks falling off in the process. I must only have eight minutes at this point.

Being on top of him, my mind went blank. My eyes widened, my hands unsure of how to work. The map flooded my mind.

Red blurred my vision. It was the man.

Drunkenly, he was struggling to get up, unable to get his balance or his grip to pull himself up. I took my chance to search for him from his slow and weak movements. The blood ran back through my fingers, allowing me to pat around his body in search of the map or any size of parchment, playing it off as if I was trying to find a grip to stand.

Nothing.

Bending my elbows, working to stand up, I attempted to help him, grabbing my mask in the process. "Oh, my scales! I didn't mean to bump into you!" I said, as we both rose. He scoffed at me with colorful language and returned to the ballroom, staggering with each step.

As I placed the lace of the mask over my ears, a bell chimed, echoing through the emptiness of the hall in which I stood.

Five minutes left.

Turning the opposite way, I rushed back through the ballroom. I had five minutes to not only find Tobias, but to get the map before my eyes went back to their glittering gold state.

Where was he? The crowd had almost doubled since I spoke to the man at the bar, making it even more challenging to find Tobias. He surely would be busy talking to many people, as this celebration was for him.

Nothing.

My eyes caught a glimpse of purple hair. She must've seen me, too, as she shook her head. Cora hadn't found anything, either.

Finding the clock, I watched as the hand ticked closer and closer to midnight.

Two minutes left.

My eyes started to burn. They were going to return to their golden color any minute now. I couldn't risk it. Cursing, I ran toward the glass panels that led to the gardens. My heels clicked on the marble floor as I maneuvered through the crowded space, brushing past bodies in my haste to reach the back of the ballroom.

I would be killed if anyone recognized me or saw my golden eyes.

The clock's ticks echoed through the large room, ringing in my ears, reminding me that the spell had vanished.

After pushing through all the people in the way, I finally reached the back glass door. I descended the cemented steps leading through the grassy garden, the night air conjuring an icy breeze that brushed past my face. Lifting my dress as I started to cross the greenery, thinking about the disappointment that lined my heart from not finding the map, I heard my name.

"Miss Laneux 1 ?" I stopped in my tracks. The spell had worn off. Now I was vulnerable to anyone who could see my eyes. There were hundreds of people inside, and if any of them were to step foot outside, it might be the end of me.

I slowly pivoted with curiosity at who said my name.

Tobias.

He was sitting by the grand silver fountain, ice blue water pouring profusely down into the flow of the pool beneath it, trickling as it joined the basin of clear water, reflecting the moon off its surface—the Celestials in a similar duplicate. Small jade frogs hopped from one end to the other, speckled in various shades of yellow and purple.

Swiveling his hand with fluid precision in the reservoir, the shimmering reflections scattered in different directions, creating small ripples distorting the world seen from above.

I scanned the garden, observing the slightly worn rust outlining the silver water fountain, the perfectly trimmed bushes surveying the area, and the patches of florals weeping with dew drops. The quiet garden was imbued with a subtle hum from the conversations within the palace.

"Aurelia?! What are you doing here? You're going to get yourself killed!" he pronounced as he looked up from his dipped fingertips.

I was about to make a snarky comment, but realized that he probably had the map, and I had to play it safe.

"I am looking for you," I lied. I started to walk closer to him, my vision sharpening from the dark light of the night sky.

"I didn't even recognize you inside!" He looked me up and down, realizing he talked to me, but didn't know who I was.

"You weren't expecting me to be here." Now, that wasn't a lie. The relief made my shoulders ease, as he would notice the familiar quiver in my lip if I were to lie.

"No. I wasn't."

"I remember what you said, ya know?" I said, getting closer to him. I would only get the map if I were close to his body. Even then, I did not know how to grab it without him noticing.

We used to be close to each other. When we dated, he would come up to my tower every night. We would stay up all night telling scary stories and myths from the Old Religion. I hated the turn of events in our relationship.

This would've been normal if he wasn't so power-hungry. If he didn't only think of himself all the time. We wouldn't have had to break up; we could still be together, and this wouldn't be the case.

I remembered our first kiss when we ran into each other in the gardens, where he was new to being a knight in our court. He had just been elected from his city, Leveland, to represent them inside the kingdom. He didn't know of me, but he was kind, sweet, and willing to have feelings for someone that wasn't normal–wasn't human. He told me he loved the fierceness of my golden eyes, pink hair, and the flames that could immediately jump from my hands.

Only four years ago, we met. We were sixteen, vulnerable, and dumb.

Approaching him, I settled on the dirt next to his feet as he sat perched on the edge of the water fountain. Laying on my hip, my legs gently placed behind me, I moved my dress to sit comfortably, not caring if it soiled. I desired to give him my full attention, to draw him into my golden eyes like I used to be able to, and to make the world stand still while I formed a plan to search his body for the map.

The need to find the map surged through me, resulting in my fingers trailing his body, aware of any indication that the map was hidden from him. His brocade suit beneath my fingertips was textured and smooth beneath the touch. The depths of the woven designs tickled my fingertips as I swirled circles on his thighs and stared up at him with vulnerable eyes.

The familiarity of this touch scared the scales out of me.

"Yeah?" he said, trying to play it cool, even though I could feel his heart running a thousand miles per minute. "I also have to tell you something," he said, his eyes darting from side to side. "But I can't tell you here. Your tower would be perfect."

"Yeah…" I said, my fingers further trailing up his body, not acknowledging in the moment that he needed to tell me something. "I remember that you said you would marry me." He shivered as I raised my fingers and grabbed his face, leaning in to whisper in his ear. "I think we should get out of here," I said, nipping his ear lobe.

Desperation started to take over because I would never have done this otherwise, but it felt easy and normal. A reminder of our past relationship reverberated through the blood in my veins.

"I think we should," he said with shallow breaths, wanting more of my touch. I knew he would.

"Hurry. No one should see us."

He then started to repeat me as if in a daze. "Yeah, no one should see us." I could see the lust in his eyes. Perfect, he's falling for my plan. Grabbing his hand, I ushered him toward my tower, the thud in his veins pumping loudly.

He blindly followed me, wanting to pick up the pace. We crossed the gardens and passed the bushes, where we went through the small gap leading to my hidden tower. He had been there several times and knew exactly where we were going.

We started to pass the cobalt-stoned wall, and I found my chance. I could fight him for it, resulting in me being injured, or I could end the fight right now. When else was I going to get the map? I had little time left. It was now or never.

I quickly went behind him, grabbed his head, and slammed it into the wall. He fell limp to the ground, not expecting my brash aggressiveness.

The rush of adrenaline heightened my senses, electricity pulsing through my body. My chest heaved up and down silently as I tried to catch my breath.

Oh, my scales. Did I kill him? I had never done anything like this.

Oh, my scales.

Oh, my scales.

I gasped for a moment, thinking that this was all a dream. I would never do this to anyone in real life.

But I did.

Flipping his body over with effort, there was a massive gash on his head, crimson silently trickling down his forehead.

I couldn't believe I just did that.

My hands lifted to his neck, scared to know the damage I had done, scared to see if he didn't have a pulse.

As I touched his cold, wind-stricken skin, I felt small beats like a rhythmic tune beneath his skin. I sighed, the tension in my shoulders rolling down. At least I didn't kill him. My hands were shaking from the shock of doing something physically aggressive, and the feel of his hair was still attached to the senses in my fingers. I was still able to feel his weight.

It was so outside of my nature. I would've never done it unless the situation was dire. I couldn't risk losing the map tonight. It was my only chance to get it in my possession.

Scraping across his luxurious, heavy-weighted jacket, I scrounged for any sign of the map, hoping I didn't hurt him in vain. Checking one of his side pockets on the inside of his coat, I felt a folded parchment. Plucking it out, I studied it, looking at each of the inked designs on the face.

There were exact trails on where I should go to find the hidden dragon relic. The dotted lines led to the island on the outside shore of a small town near the Sardan Castle grounds' borders. Bubbly trees on the map showed the perimeter of the Forbidden Forest, as well as the other cities and the outcast areas.

Folding the map up, I knew where I had to go, and I had to leave before he woke up. I had already packed a bag in my tower, ready for me. I just had to grab it, and then I could make my way toward the island that held the dragon relic.

I was about to run to my tower when I heard a shrill cry echo throughout the ballroom.

1. Laneux (Law-neh-ooh)