Leon had handed over a pair of his clothes to Shiera earlier—a simple combination of jeans and a T-shirt. Nothing special. In fact, they were among the cheapest things he owned.
But the moment he saw her wearing them, he started seriously reconsidering whether taking her outside was a good idea.
Somehow she made those cheap clothes look like they came straight off a luxury runway. Prada, maybe even something higher. The way the fabric sat on her, the way she carried herself—it completely changed how the clothes looked.
People were definitely going to stare.
Actually, not just stare. They'd probably look, whisper, maybe even pull out their phones and start filming.
Mostly because of Shiera.
And if that wasn't enough, Leon himself wasn't exactly blending into the crowd either. His half-brown, half-silver-gold hair already attracted enough attention on its own.
Together?
Yeah. They'd look like the weirdest duo walking down the street.
He sighed and quickly rummaged through his dresser.
After a moment of digging through piles of clothes, he pulled out two caps.
He placed one on his own head first, adjusting it carefully over his hair until most of the odd colors were hidden. Then he handed the other one to Shiera.
She watched how he wore it.
Then she casually placed the cap on her head… more like it was an ornament than something meant to actually cover anything.
Leon stared at her for a moment.
"…That's not how you wear it."
Instead of explaining further, he walked behind her.
Her hair fell down her back like a waterfall—thick, impossibly long, and honestly ridiculous. It reached far past her waist, almost down to places hair really had no business reaching.
He looked around his room and found an elastic band—the kind usually used to tie half-opened pockets or bundles of stuff.
Good enough.
He grabbed her hair and tried gathering it together.
It was like wrestling with silk ropes.
"How the hell are you managing this much hair?" he asked, irritation slipping into his voice as he failed for the third time to get it under control.
"I don't," Shiera said calmly.
Leon paused.
"You don't… what?"
"I don't manage it."
He frowned.
"You don't wash them?"
"Sometimes," she replied.
Leon blinked.
Yet somehow she smelled… good.
Suspiciously good.
How the hell does someone with hair like this wash it *sometimes* and still smell like that?
He shook the thought away and tried tying the hair again.
The elastic stretched.
More.
More.
And then—
Snap.
The band broke and whipped against his fingers.
"Ah—!"
A sharp sting shot through his hand.
Leon stared at the broken elastic in disbelief.
"…Fuck this."
He stepped away in frustration.
His eyes landed on his desk.
His phone.
Right.
He'd need it anyway.
He reached for it—
And froze.
The desk was empty.
Leon's eyes widened slowly.
"My damn phone…"
A horrible realization hit him.
It must have fallen into the river.
When he jumped.
"Oh god…"
He dragged a hand down his face.
First his computer.
Now his phone.
Both gone within two damn days.
He honestly didn't know if he should cry or laugh.
Behind him, Shiera spoke.
"Should I cut them?"
Leon looked up at her.
"…What?"
She looked completely serious.
Was she actually offering to cut off all that hair?
He stared at it for a moment.
The absurd amount of it.
Then he shook his head.
"No."
He stood up again.
"Just wear this for now."
He grabbed the cap from her head, fixed it properly this time, and pulled it down low—so low it almost blocked part of her vision.
But at least it hid most of her face.
"…Oh wait."
Leon turned back to his belongings and rummaged around again.
After a moment he pulled out a bag.
Another bag.
This one was filled with books.
He opened it.
Inside were the A Song of Ice and Fire books he'd been collecting.
He pulled them out and stacked them on the table, emptying the bag completely.
Then he turned to Shiera.
"Raise your arms."
She obeyed without question.
He quickly slipped the bag straps over her shoulders.
The bag rested against her back.
Leon stepped behind her again to inspect the result.
Her hair still flowed down past the bag.
Of course it did.
But at least some of it was hidden now.
Less noticeable.
Hopefully.
He'd just buy her new clothes later anyway.
Problem solved.
More or less.
Leon grabbed the cash he'd stolen from the dead's room and stuffed it into his pocket.
"Let's go."
He stepped out of the apartment with Shiera quietly following behind him.
Leon pulled the door closed.
Then paused.
Right.
The lock was broken.
He stared at it for a second… then shrugged.
Whatever.
He ignored it and started walking.
Soon he'd take back the house from that useless old man who called himself his grandfather anyway.
The apartment was temporary.
Just like everything else lately.
Leon walked toward the elevator with Shiera following close behind.
They stepped inside.
The elevator hummed quietly as it descended.
When the doors opened at the ground floor, they walked out slowly and left the building.
The hallway was quiet.
The streets too.
No police.
No commotion.
Nobody seemed to know that someone had died here.
Or maybe—
Nobody cared about anything happening in this apartment building anymore.
"First, we're getting you clothes," Leon said seriously as they walked.
Shiera tilted her head slightly. "Your clothes seemed to be fitting me."
She looked down at the T-shirt she was wearing and lightly tugged at the fabric between her fingers, almost like she was testing the texture.
Leon grimaced immediately.
"Don't do that…" he muttered.
She paused and looked at him.
"You're not wearing a bra," he added. "So try… not to move too much like that. I'll just buy you a bunch of dresses and other things."
Shiera stared at him again with those strange heterochromia eyes—one color different from the other, both fixed on him with an intensity that made Leon instantly uncomfortable.
Leon quickly turned his head away and resumed walking.
"Not today, Satan," he muttered under his breath.
He knew very well what kind of woman she was.
The last thing he wanted was to end up like Bloodraven—or any of the countless fools who had become slaves to her beauty.
Leon had no intention of joining that list.
Since he actually had money now—well, some*money at least—he raised a hand and called for a cab.
A few minutes later they were sitting in the back seat while the car moved through the streets toward the shopping district Leon had in mind.
The driver was an older man.
And his eyes kept wandering to the back seat.
Not toward Leon.
Toward Shiera.
She sat beside Leon looking quietly fascinated, watching the streets pass by through the window of that vehicle she had never ride.
Meanwhile the driver kept sneaking glances through the rear-view mirror.
"You got yourself a princess there, didn't you?" the man finally said, still staring like he was trying to confirm she was real.
"You have no idea."
A Targaryen psycho princess who practices blood magic, he added silently in his mind.
Then Leon leaned forward slightly and gave the driver a cold stare through the mirror.
"Look ahead and don't get us killed," he said.
He had already died once.
He really wasn't interested in repeating the experience.
The old man grumbled under his breath but returned his eyes to the road.
When they finally reached the busy commercial street Leon had been aiming for, the cab slowed and stopped.
Leon stepped out first, then helped Shiera out after him.
He paid the driver.
The man took the money—but before leaving he gave Shiera one last long look.
Then the cab drove away.
Shiera watched it disappear down the street.
"He was looking a lot at me," she said calmly.
"You think?" Leon replied dryly.
Then he grabbed her arm.
"Follow me closely. And quietly," he whispered.
The street was crowded as usual—people everywhere, moving in every direction, voices blending together into a constant buzz.
If Shiera's face became fully visible in a place like this…
Leon didn't even want to imagine the chaos.
There would be crowds instantly.
Phones everywhere.
Videos online within minutes.
And then they'd end up on the news.
If Shiera hadn't caused a disaster yesterday night, she'd definitely cause one today.
As for Visenya and Rhaenys… they were probably already all over social media by now for the little they had been seen and filmed.
Without his phone, Leon had no way of checking.
Which was honestly terrifying.
Shiera suddenly stopped walking.
Leon felt the resistance and turned around, slightly annoyed.
She looked mildly displeased at how he was dragging her through the crowd.
Leon frowned.
"Do you want to get surrounded by people?" he asked.
"I am following," she replied with a small smile.
Leon stared at her for a moment.
Then he released her arm.
Instead, he grabbed her hand.
"Just stay close."
He pulled her forward again through the crowd.
Shiera seemed noticeably more comfortable this time.
Holding hands felt much better than being dragged around by the arm roughly.
So she said nothing and quietly followed him through the busy street.