Chapter 18 A Conversation With Jasmine
Liliana Roslyn's POV.
Being in a mall like this was equivalent to a cruel punishment. Having many beautiful clothes to choose, and in the end, I couldn't pick any choice but the bender assure that they would chose one for me and it'll be sent to the kingdom by tomorrow dawn. Throughout the whole period, they seems nice and carefree. Even his race feared him to the stage that they respect his emit.
The attendants start to pack the cloths into the luggage while a masculine guard with red eye walks in and commands me to follow him. I almost reject until I remember what king Adrian warn me about. This must be the guards he's informing me about. Eventually, the guard leads me outside and we walk to where the car is packed, then a female amber-eyed bender opens the door for me. Wow! He's decisively not a air bender because if he is then he'd have run me outside. I guess, all the air benders are impatient. Ugh!
The drive back to the paradise built as a castle is in silence but unlike the last time which happens to be when the referendarius was destroyed, this time I feel free. The view of the road through the tinted windows is dim and my eyes flare when we pass the referendarius building. Its built with no flaws just like it once was before the attacks occurred even the roads are clean without any traces of catastrophe. In minutes, we are back to the kingdom.
My hands could stretch to reach the car door, but the female bender already opens it paranormally as the air swirl over the door handle. What the f**k is happening? Aren't I a slave anymore? My expression didn't hold any sort of appreciation since I already guess that its all based on king Adrian's order.
The two benders keep me in the middle when we start to walk but I didn't care. If any of them tries anything stupid then they'll know what I'm capable of.
Once again, the beauty of the exterior designs of the castle entices me. Its like a dream house. So eclectically stunning. From the variousness of the flowers spreading through and near the downside of the walls. The fountain at the middle also serving as the roundabout, where lies on it is a statue of the four elements. The green trees by the sideways of the marble-tiled asphalt ground. Most of all is the series of the need-for-speed cars packed and lined, filling up the garage.
We enter the building at last and soon pass through doors, hallways, corridors, and finally reaching the last path that leads to king Adrian's room. We are in his wing already. The stone face of the masculine bender beside me makes me laugh out loud.
"Have you ever looked at yourself in the mirror with that face?" Boringness is killing me, so I decided to have some fun. He doesn't answer nor hold any emotions to the abuse I just gave him. His stony, meany face remains intact. "If you really have checked that horrific face then you'd have locked yourself up in a dungeon where no one will see you." I say again but still he doesn't answer and the sidekick besides me at the right didn't say anything too.
"Are you guys robots?" I ask. At least one of these words should have get under their skin. Now I'm getting angry instead of laughing.
I fasten my pace, getting ahead of them and face them both as I walk backwardly. I wave my hands at them.
"Hello.. Hello. How are you, Mr meany face and Miss sidekick? Don't you guys talk?" Ugh! Aren't they going to answer. My stomach growl. I'm hungry.
"Oh! I get it. King Adrian must have cut off your tongues because you probably offended him." They still didn't reply. Okay enough of this. Now I know the saying is true. Silence is the best answer for a fool, and right now, I'm the fool. Well that's what they're turning me into.
"Stop. I'm hungry!" I half-yell.
They both stop on their track and look over at me. At last they pay attention to me. They look over at each other just for seconds while their eye glow throughout the period. The sidekick walks towards me and her lips turn at the edge. She's probably teasing me. Bitch! Oh, since when have I used that word. I'm sure I'd use a lot of it during the meeting tomorrow, probably at one of the commanders or all of them, depends.
"You.."
"The slaves will bring your food to king Adrian's room." Mr meany face says, stopping me from abusing his bitchy sidekick.
"No. I want to prepare my own food." They both haven't know what they've gotten themselves into. I'll make sure I torment them in my own way of tormenting. Ha!
My hands fold against my chest, my eyes flicker from Mr meany to Miss sidekick and I smile. Mr meany jaw tenses and I manage my best not to freak out. He already looks scary just by his normal face, I wonder how he'd look when he's angry. His eyes glow scarlet once again for a short period of time before he faces me again.
"Let's go." He says. Let's go?! What the hell?! I could interpret that into many meanings. Like, let's go and kill you. Let's go and strangle your throat so you wouldn't abuse me- Mr meany again.
"Let's go?" I almost brittlely whisper.
".. To the private kitchen."
*****
We finally get to the private kitchen after many talking which of course came from the talkative me. None of their stony face changes it security look. They both are boring themselves. The kitchen looks pleasantly luxurious as expected, just more than my imaginations. My legs take me inside the building and Mr meany and his sidekick follow behind me.
Footsteps of an anonymous taps continuously as it's coming towards my direction. Its a she and not an ordinary she but an highborn she. My brain immediately start to invite in the description of her beauty frame. Her mahogany shoulder-length hair is made in vintage curls aligning with her fairly caramel skin. Her dark skin looks flawless as a newborn. She's wearing a light make-up while her purple lipstick align with her arm-length gown dress that has silver ribbon at the waist line.
Really, I should have called her a bender but the facial appearance doesn't tally. She looks more of a human. A middle-aged woman who probably will be in her thirties, is the perfect description as I look at her closely.
"Liliana, right?" She ask in a well-bred voice. Wait?! I think she's a bender. How did she know my name?
She stretch forth her manicured hands for shaking but I reject, well more like not stretch forth mine. She baffle me in a mysterious way.
Out of nowhere, she take few pace towards me and pull me into a tight hug. Surprising me completely. She extract from the acquaintance hug and
her warm smile shows her white teeth.
"Okay, I know I may seem somehow unclear to you but I'm human, so I guess you've got to voice out whatever you want to say or.." She tilt her head to the left and smile. ".. ask. I can't read mind."
Her brown eyes narrow at me and again she smile cosily. "Oh, we are gonna have to do a lot of work to get you to feel free around me." She turn to the stony creatures standing like a deadly guard behind me and say some language that I don't understand, and resembling the same accent that the other bender at the mall used. Oh, yeah I remember. Fulgencio, that's the bender's name.
"Uobis relinquant. Nos autem aliquid simile habere secretum. (The two of you should leave. We will like to have some privacy.)" She says and Meany reply in the same foreign tone while I just breach my eyes from the woman to Mr meany.
"Facere non possumus, custodiens ordine ad eam rex ab Adriano (we cannot, the order of guarding her is from king Adrian)
"Bene ergo tu sede hic per ostium relinquere in illa amplius, et youd 'volo me rationem nisi telephono Adrian. Hinc ergo dicemus?(Okay then, you stay here by the door while she leave and no more argument unless you'd want me to phone Adrian. Are we clear?)" She finally finish and Mr meany nod and then face his sidekick who nod likewise and leave the room. Mr meany walks to the door frame and stand beside it. Even with guards outside the premises, did he think I would be able to escape? Or are they protecting me? If so, It can't possibly be because of Mrs Rogue, right?
How can they be wasting their time protecting me from that bitch? When all the benders in this building would love to see my head on a bloody spike, even mysterious creatures like that of the beast woman would want the same. Speaking of which, I can't seem to remember what happened after I follow that her owl. As far as I could recollect, it all end when I got to the staircase. What if.. Maybe I fell from the stair and faint. Maybe that's why king Adrian ask me how I'm feeling. Why didn't he tell me? Seriously, I hate him.
Okay, that's a lie. I half-hate, half-like him. Okay, ah! I like him, well subconsciously. Jeez!
The woman looks back at me, still smiling. Does her lips not pain her?
"Come, sit darling." She offer. Seriously?
"What was all that about? Who are you? Why are you not a slave? How on earth are you able to send them away?"
"Oh, that's loaded." She says, obviously getting shock by my many questions.
"Is this some trick because if it is, then its an irritating and disgusting one. Now, who are you?!" I'm already getting irritated by this stunt she's pulling. Just some hours ago, I was trick by king Adrian into a deadly stunt that I could have died from. What if I had fall truly? I know, all I've wanted is death, but not a nasty death. I will not let them trick me again. I suppress my hunger and turn back to the door direction. Its even better to be with Mr meany and his sidekick and continue to tease them, than let someone tease or trick me. Nope, I've got to leave.
In less than me taking two paces, the woman say. "My name is Jasmine." I stop on my track."If I remember correctly, I haven't properly introduce myself."
Better!
I walk over to the kitchen counter and she follow behind me. "I suppose, you came here to prepare some food. How about we make some cupcakes. I'm an expert cook." She says and I smile. Yeah! Let's do that.
"Okay, but I don't get it. About you..." My voice trail off.
"I'll tell you everything." She moves to the other side of the counter and put on an apron, then she fix her curls into a pony tail. She offers me another apron and I happily collect it from her. Like I once said, cupcakes can make me forget anything. I just hope it doesn't lure me to death! A voice says in my head.
While we prepare my worry-wiper cup-shaped food, Jasmine start to talk.
"I'm a family to Lucas." She says and I instantly forget all about the cupcakes just for a second. She's joking. Oh, she can't possibly think I'd believe that.
"I am." She pause and look at me. "You may not believe but I'm an in-law to him. I'm a sister to his beloved." She explain. I wanted to ask about his beloved but I decide to leave it. Something tells me that the beloved is far away. Perhaps.. dead.
I almost want to ask another question when my gaze meet the back of Mr meany. Jasmine notice my inconvenience and flash another smile. "He's a fire bender. There's no way he'd hear us." Oh! "Wait, you didn't know that. I thought there was a school for training our creatures." She says and her eyes hold pity but her smiley face clears them out quickly.
"Well, not all of us wanna learn about benders society."
"That's right, count me in." She says and we both laugh. "Only, air benders can hear from far away." She adds. That adds to my learning.
We continue to prepare the cake when Jasmine talk again. "She died centuries ago." Her voice is low.
"I'm sorry."
"Oh, don't be."
If her sister who's Lucas beloved died centuries ago, then how's she still alive. Let's catch her lies at this point. My subconscious says.
"How are you still alive?" I ask while facing my part of preparing the food.
"I knew you'd ask?" Like, you knew I'd ask so you already prepare a lie. Uh?! "Lucas kept healing me with his powers and somehow it makes me look young again every time he does it. Back to the age of twenty-three which is the first time he'd heal me. I'm thirty-seven now and that's why I had come here..."
"... To let him heal you again." I complete the statement.
"He used to say that he doesn't want to lose me too." She further explain.
"Why did he say that? Doesn't he want you dead, I mean we grow old." Hope that's polite enough.
"No, its because I'm the only reminder of his mate. Humans hated my descendant then." She exhale heavily and continue. "I've lived series of life's event and they are terrifying in terms of benders and humans cause. These benders have lived series of life more than anyone, so I'd suggest that you stop hating them. They've lived horrific past that can change any creature into a beast. Can you believe that humans, out of their rage killed his mate?" She ask and I'm out of words.
"Why..." She suddenly stop me, recomposing herself.
"Enough of me." She say and I decide to leave the matter. "You are truly fearless well, until Adrian broke it." She snicker. What?
"What?"
"I heard the trick he did on you. Dropping you off the ceiling and all." She say as we leave the cupcakes in the oven, waiting for it to be ready. "Adrian's told me some things about you." She looks over at me, winking.
"I'm sorry that I take you for a.. Bad person." I apologize.
"No need, dear." She smile again.
*********
You know, woman and their chatting. Conversation leads to another, and another, then another's another, helping us kill time. Minutes after we finish the former conversation, the cupcakes came ready and I.. I eat most, devouring all of it. I'm silently sure that Lucas must have told Jasmine that cupcakes are my favorite and how I'm definitely sure is when she brought in a cappuccino.
Later, after we finish our girls time. A female bender walks into the room, whom Jasmine introduced as an acies or so, I guess the names kind of hard to remember. The bender took Jasmine with her, saying that Lucas' expecting Jasmine's presence. Then, Mr meany and his sidekick walks me back to king Adrian's wing. I arrive back to his room around dusk and king Adrian's not around. My feet takes me to the balcony and mindlessly, I find myself laughing pretty hard at the stupid death trick that he did. Until finally, I walk back inside, change my clothing into one of king Adrian's shirt. To be frank, I seriously don't know why I did that but it feels amazing to have his scent close. At last, I drift off. Unworried about tomorrow's royal meeting.
**********
Pls vote and comment.
#muah
#stay safe
#see ya
What do you think will happen to Liliana during the meeting?
Just explain, maybe briefly. Please, I want to know your guess on the happenings of the next chapter.
❤❤❤❤❤❤
