Ria
I followed Arsheus with a frown as he led me through corridors I had never seen. I didn't know where we were going as we met up with Allea and Rin and continued walking towards a place I couldn't name. Arsheus didn't even seem faced by the fact that I wasn't speaking to him anymore. He just faked a smile and held my hand.
The closer we got to wherever we were going the more stiff Arsheus and the rest went. I also stiffened and looked at the front. What was Arsheus planning?
When my eyes landed on him he smiled at me and stopped on his tracks, pulling me into what would seem like an embrace from outside, but really was just him whispering into my ear.
" From now on pretend you're my girlfriend"
I stared at him. Why the fuck did he want me to pretend I was his girlfriend?
" What were we doing again?"
Arsheus faked a smile and grabbed my hand, his eyes faking love as he eyed me.
" I'm going to show you the amazing views from the top of the castle"
I stared at him. Was that it? I thought his master plan would be something more impressive.
I didn't want to go see some stupid views I could get by gaslighting him into doing what I wanted.
I was about to ask just that when Arsheus leaned in and gave me a kiss. I was so stunned by the sudden action that I couldn't even remind him I was pissed at him and push him away. All I did was open my mouth and wait for his tongue, not dissatisfied if he were to kiss me longer at all.
Instead of kissing me more and mixing our tongues he made my lips tickle when he whispered into my mouth.
" We need to go because I have a plan. Now be a good girl and don't complain "
When our lips parted the servants that had been taking care of their own business cheered and clapped, as if our kiss was some kind of grand romantic gesture and not just Arsheus using it to tell me something.
I smiled and pretended I liked it. I nuzzled against him and laid my head on his chest, looking up at him with love.
That smug smile I hated bloomed on his lips as he rested his arm over my shoulder and looked at me with care.
" Let's go, sweetheart"
I didn't complain as he dragged me to a dark hallway along with Allea and Rin, who were already pretending to be in love, although if I was being honest I knew they weren't pretending.
The awkwardness that had been present since they had met, like a barrier neither of them wanted nor did they know why was there, had disappeared over night. Now they were perfectly fine as they smiled and laughed, looking like a real couple, because they were one.
Meanwhile Arsheus and I looked like two strangers you could pick off the street. We weren't acting all lovely, but Arsheus didn't push for more. I didn't know what he was planning nor what exactly I had to do and that pissed me off even more.
It wasn't just the fact that he couldn't communicate and tell me his plans. Now he wouldn't even tell me what I had to do even when I was the one doing it. It was amazing. All the information I had was that I should pretend to be his lover. That was it. I didn't know what we'd face nor what we were doing, but apparently that was enough for Arsheus.
I sighed and put on my best smile, making my eyes gleam as I looked up at him with all the love I was capable of mustering right now that I was still pissed at him. If I thought about him tonight or when he braided my hair it wasn't so hard to pretend I liked him and didn't hate him.
Arsheus smiled with his hands in my shoulder as he led me into the dark corridor, smiling at the guards at the back.
The two of them weren't as scary as the other ones I'd met, but their weapons were shining and sharp by their sides, waiting for the moment when they'd be unsheathed and end up in our guts.
Arsheus didn't seem to be afraid of them. He seemed to be sure that they weren't going to kill him. I found out why when I walked closer and the guards recognized Arsheus and Rin. They smiled as they waved them over, happy to see them.
When they were all close the guards rested their hands on Arsheus's shoulder and he let them, a smile on his lips.
" How are you?"
Arsheus smiled and patted the guard on his shoulder.
" I'm great. You see my girl right here?" He pointed at me, pride in his voice and eyes. I couldn't tell if it was fake pride or real pride. All I could see was that he seemed to like me, the love in his eyes as real as possible as it was.
The guards whistled and looked me all over, checking me out.
I stared at Arsheus, waiting for him to do something. He gritted his teeth and clenched his hands into firsts, but all he did was chuckle. He smiled at the guards and also looked at me.
What the fuck?
He wasn't going to protect me. I had already guessed it, but it still hurt seeing him unwilling to protect me just because he wanted them on board for his master plan, which I still knew nothing about.
When their eyes stopped staring at me I glared at Arsheus. He didn't look me in the eyes as he rested his hands over my shoulder, fake smile on his lips.
I wanted nothing more than to push him off and tell him to go fuck himself. To tell him that I didn't want him going anywhere near me, but the guards were here, so I smiled and faked that what Arsheus had done hadn't broken me a little inside.
The guards were now focused on Allea. They checked her out the same way as they had done to me, but Rin didn't stay still. He placed his arms over her protectively, hiding her from their view.
" How about you let us go up now?" Rin's voice was dark and had an edge to it as he all but told them to get lost.
I wished Arsheus had done the same for me. I wished he had thought that I was more important that whatever was on the other side.
I clenched my teeth and faked a smile.
" Yes, I want to go see" I looked up at Arsheus lovingly, as if he meant everything in the world to me. " You promised me you would take me there and show me everything"
Arsheus smiled and nodded.
" You'll have your views"
I nodded and smiled like the stupid woman they thought I was.
The guards chuckled and let us pass them through, whistling when we passed.
I felt Arsheus going taunt besides me, his body tense and not wanting to let go of the insult. Despite how I knew he felt from his face he smiled and turned to make one last joke.
" See you later, if I can still see after she says thanks"
The guards laughed and let us through with a smile.
I glared at him. Motherfucker.
As soon as the guards were out of our view I pushed Arsheus away and walked over to where Allea was, holding onto her and abandoning the douchebag that thought I was nothing more than an accessory he could not tell anything and that would do as he wanted no matter what.
" Are you okay?" Allea's voice was soft as she asked, as if she knew I wasn't in the best of places right now.
I faked the smile I gave her, pretending that what Arsheus had said and the jokes and the way he had let them look at me as if I was a piece of meat up for sale hadn't broken my heart to pieces.
" I'm fine" I steadied my heart. I was doing this. I would try to kill him later. " Let's get this over with"
Arsheus called for us from further away and I walked up to where he was, finally looking at my surroundings. This side of the castle was just like the rest, only that now guards were everywhere. Since the point where Arsheus was waiting for us behind a corner the real challenge begun. Guards were everywhere. They patrolled the halls as if they were guarding something precious, their eyes focusing on the faintest sound. I looked at them and their pointy, deadly weapons and then at Arsheus. How were we going to do this?
" From now on we pretend we should be here" Arsheus's words carried all the confidence in the world as he said them, but when I looked at us the plan begun to fall apart. Our clothes were those of servants, that was for sure, but we weren't carrying hampers nor any other kind of device that would tell the guards that we were part of the staff. We didn't even have any credentials that told them we could be here. I saw the whole plan beginning to fail in a second.
" Are you sure?"
Arsheus nodded.
I sighed and followed him. We walked straight in front of the guards. They didn't even bat an eyelash as we walked past them, not even checking our credentials. They trusted the guards guarding the entrance a little bit too much in my opinion.
We continued walking, following whatever unseen path Arsheus was following. I didn't even know what we were doing. I just knew I had to follow him.
I shut up and pretended to look busy as we passed more and more guards by. This part of the castle seemed more refined than the one downstairs.
Back there there hadn't been any portraits. At most there were some paintings of beautiful sceneries, but up here? There were tons of portraits, filling every single corner.
Most of them were of the elders in different positions and with different backgrounds, but they were the same. The elder showing their ego as they defeated the demons. There was even a painting where the demons were being slain by the angels. The whole thing screamed they had a confidence problem.
Only people who didn't trust themselves and had low self-esteem would make this tacky display that was clearly meant to remind others of how great they'd been and how much they should fear them.
The deeper we walked into the castle the more portraits appeared.
It didn't take me long to notice a common theme on all the paintings in the deepest part of the castle. The paintings featuring different elders had slowly made way for ones that just featured the eldest and the most recognized elder in the whole world. His pantings kept showing up.
Just where were we going?
Arsheus looked at the paintings hung on the wall and smiled that crooked smile of his that gave me the creeps.
He didn't dare to whisper as he lowered his head. This part of the castle had even more guards all around. Fortunately all of them let us pass through without asking a single question.
It didn't take us long to reach a door as big as the main gate, or maybe somewhat smaller. No one stopped us as Arsheus pushed the door open, the guards guarding it thinking we were part of the staff.
What were we doing here?
Only when I saw Arsheus's grin did I know this was his final destination.
What the fuck had I gotten myself into?
I swallowed and gathered all my courage as I entered, not looking at the guards and their weapons. I hoped this wouldn't end like I thought it would.