Eero faltered, nearly tripping over himself. It wasn’t major, luckily not enough to make him fall, but it was significant enough to be noticed. He wasn’t one to lose his composure over something that is deemed so simple to others. It came off quite obvious that this was least expected out of her. His legs staggered as he easily caught himself, swaying for a second, before finding steady ground. His fingers combed through his hair, finding a curious smile pull on his lips. He wouldn’t lie when he found her words exciting him, that rush of wild animal blood coursing through his veins. Her pretty face was just as exciting as the words that littered her mouth. Her spirit was sloppy, making it clear that she didn’t have any proper morals to speak to him in private. But her spirit was stronger than his. Eero had never met another being with vitality close to touching his, yet here he was in a situation where someone’s spirit easily exceeded his. His eyes gleamed towards nearby guards whom she had caught the attention of. They stood firm on the ground, but their eyes did wander between the two. She was sure of herself if she planned to not only challenge a king but to do so in front of the palace workers. It impressed him. Yet, he couldn’t help but feel compelled to make sure that her intentions were true, as challenging wasn’t a thing to toss around. “A woman in your state isn’t in a place to challenge a king. Are you s-sure?” He couldn’t believe that he stuttered on the last word the moment he twisted his step to turn back towards her. It wasn’t the way he moved that slurred his tongue but rather of what persisted before him. She had such determination in her eyes that it startled him. She was thin and malnourished with little meat on her bones, yet she continued to hold her own in front of a royal. To be honest, he was surprised she hadn’t collapsed yet from mere emotional exhaustion. Eero persisted there, eyes wide. His head lowered, his hair flopping over his orange hues, but it was clear that he didn’t plan to submit to her. His thumb grazed over his lips before he gained the courage to lift his head. Eero’s eyes snared at the gazes of the nearby guards before locking onto her. “I accept your request,” His voice was shallow, not lustful with intention of defeating her.

“If I win, then I will take your hand in marriage. But know that The Order won’t take long until they desire an heir to secure the throne,” Eero specifically spoke such vile words to work up her nerves. Though, he managed to keep a subtle yet challenging tone, not daring to raise a voice. The Order consisted of the Duke, along with other high-level nobles. The Order originated well before Eero came into the picture in order to sustain the kingdom and the decisions made for the kingdom’s wellbeing. They, of course, didn’t have higher control than the king himself but they still held leverage over him. Not in power but in strategy. They were the ones who assisted in the finishing reign over the last king, finding it pleasurable to kick him off the throne by working the people against him. It was the last king’s fault for not securing the throne with an heir in time. They were given the nickname ‘The Order’ for that main reason. But that meant that even if he were a shapeshifter, he still had to gain enough power to secure the throne. That meant he had to produce an heir. Having an heir made it clear that the imperial family will continue to pass on their legacy and knowledge. But It wasn’t like he could impregnate any lady. His mistress must be one of the same breed as him. Though, he wasn’t one to fondle a mistress for his own pleasure. He desired a wife, proving that he was a serious king and not one to mess around with many ladies. But he didn’t want any wife. He wanted that wife to be Varya.

Blinking a hard time, his lips slimmed in reassurance. He cleared his throat as he continued. “But, of course, if you win…” His voice grew hesitant, obvious that that conclusion wasn’t what he wanted. He knew that he would need to win this fight in order to get what he wanted. Eero wasn’t one to easily get nervous, but Varya could have tricks up her sleeves, making her a tough opponent. “..then I will fund all of your travel expenses without hesitation. You will be set free,” He concluded, his eyes sitting heavy in seriousness. He wasn’t one to kid around with someone’s freedom. If she won fair and square then he would belatedly grant her wish without hesitation. Eero was a man of his word. “Though you must know the competition will take days to set up. I’m sure you can be patient for a few more days if it is to win over your freedom,” His eyebrow lifted before he cracked a smile. Eero was attempting to lighten the situation, hoping that he would come off warm-hearted. Yet, it was hard to perceive his ‘warm-heartedness’ with his devilish orange eyes piercing into her. “In the meantime, as I had originally explained, it would be a pleasure to have dinner with you for the next few days, starting tomorrow. I expect you there,” By now he was closer to her so he didn’t have to holler across the corridor, but he wasn’t towering over her this time. His eyes grew warmer than before, as he gave a pleasurable look. “The least you can do is show up since I am offering to host a huge competition for you. All I want is dinner, nothing more out of you,” His lips pursed for half a second before he fondled out a chuckle.

“Well, there is one more thing. You have never properly introduced yourself. I would love to know your name,” He finally expressed. It almost seemed as though he had no control over his personality. He awkwardly but easily transferred to different emotions at extreme speeds. From devilish manners to pleasurable manners. He truly was an odd case, yet he continued to pull each expression off so well.

Varya could not help but feel some pride, as the man in front of her was obviously caught off guard. Pure adrenaline was the only thing keeping her fatigued body steadied, silver eyes focused on his movements. The look was almost predatory, full of fire but overzealous given her predicament. The small woman’s actions were like that of a cornered animal, flighty and uncertain but dangerous nonetheless. Varya was naturally intelligent but years of trauma and captivity left her with a nearly feral demeanor. She ran off of instinct. Varya paid no attention to the palace guards, while she had not meant to secure an audience, they were not really her concern. There was no realization that confronting the king in front of his own workers made a difference. “I do not take this lightly... Not at all. If I am in no place to compete against a man of your stature, then you have no reason to worry,” she cooed, the first even-tempered words she had uttered in a while. Relief flooded the woman’s senses when Eero accepted her challenge. Truly, she was not completely confident in her ability to be victorious against him. However, just a chance at her freedom was good enough for now. She was a fighter and would not go down easily.

Varya did have some assurance in her ability to fight. While of course she did not know what beast he possessed, she knew her form could do some damage. Her family had always been highly respected due to their strength. Varya closely resembled her mother in looks and had her delicate frame but had been the only one of her siblings to inherit her father’s jaguar. Her human and animal form being so vastly different surprised most. She did not remember much about her childhood. What did remain was the respect and pinch of fear she held for her father; he had been a formidable fighter and an intimidating man. With her jaguar Varya could prove to be a formidable opponent, even with her poor health.

Her face sterned again at his words, it was clear he was trying to rile her up. This time, she kept herself in check and did not bother to retort. Varya was tired and could not argue or fight much more. When Eero claimed he would pay her travel expenses in the case of her victory, she was a little surprised. However, she trusted him to keep his promise. The king seemed too proud of an individual to cross her if he were to fail. Truly, she hadn't even thought about how she would return home. Her dream of getting back had clouded judgement. In all honesty, she hadn’t come up with any plan on getting home. Varya did not even actually know where she was in reference to her home region. She had absolutely nothing to her name and no connections. If let go on her own, she would be in trouble for sure. Varya was not sure why he felt the need to add to their wager in her benefit. Was Eero that certain he would be victorious? She couldn’t be sure, Varya had trouble reading the man.

She had settled again, her strong demeanor slipping away as the exhaustion settled onto her abused body. Previously determined eyes had eased, slipping to look at the floor. “Of course, though I may not show it, I do have some patience…” she murmured, looking up once he approached again. Varya was surprised to see a smile on the man’s face. It was quite odd given the tense conversation and she had not been expecting it. The way he flipped from emotion to emotion was puzzling and almost startling. Varya never knew how to react or adjust to his sudden changes. She had been rendered silent and motionless as he shifted to a more “cheerful” persona, hands clenched tightly at her side. The chuckle he let loose made her nervous but she still went along with it and nodded, “I’ll attend… I can’t promise I will be good company…”she murmured, a little more hushed now that he was before her. Did he expect her to put this behind them and them and fake some sort of friendship over dinner? When he asked for her name Varya suddenly let a giggle let loose, a light sound that turned into a more pronounced laugh. Along with the sudden burst of emotion, her pale skin tinted pink along the bridge of her nose and cheeks. The absurdity of it all left her nearly a wreck. It was too much for her fragile mind and body to handle. After practically threatening her minutes ago, he was now charmingly asking for her name. Once she calmed again, Varya answered home, figuring there was no reason to hold it from him. She would be here at least a short while, “Varya Deveraux. If there was a middle name… I don’t remember it…” she finished, cautiously taking a step away from him. At that, she began to slowly retreat. Energy was dangerously low and Varya really wanted to just go and cool down. She remembered the way back to the room. “I suppose I will see you at dinner…” With that, she turned and made her way back down the hall, confident that he would not make a move to follow her. It had been made clear an escape attempt was not a possibility.

Varya did not bother to turn around and she slinked down the grand halls. Her vision was beginning to get a little blurry. She paid no attention to the palace workers or guards, eventually finding her way back to the room. Wordlessly, she slipped inside and rapidly shut the heavy wooden door. Varya let herself heave, taking a second before half-hazardly pulling a side table to block the doorway. She did not want anyone bothering her. The movement had taken the rest of her strength and the woman practically fainted into bed, not having time to change clothing or even get under the covers.

There was something about her laugh that continuously caught him off guard, more so than what he already was. It was swelled with sheer delight yet came off fatigued, though he found it to be miraculous. He didn’t anticipate a woman who went through such hostile abuse to have the aptitude to giggle. Varya’s cheeks even gained vibrant color. He couldn’t determine whether it was out of surety or distress though. His eyes squinted in curiosity before he snickered to himself. “Varya Deveraux,” He composedly murmured under his breath, taking in her name with pleasure. Her name slurred off of his tongue like a saint’s name. Though, it didn’t persist long, as she started to move away from him. The way she backed up, and her body language at that, seemed to become uncomfortable. Here he presumed she was coming around. But what can he ask of her? She was a defectively treated lady who hasn’t even encountered what life could truly be. He should expect her to be introverted, particularly now that she knows he wants to marry her. Eero’s charming smile withered away, as his orange hues retired to their noble peculiarities. His pessimistic orange eyes narrowed making it troublesome to determine if his features eternally stayed like that or if it was just the moment. His eyes surveyed her movements as she precisely turned and walked off. He patrolled her like prey for half of a second, not in hostility, but to make sure she would make it to her room safely in the state she was in. “I will see you at dinner, tomorrow. My Varya Deveraux,” He breathed under his lips, the uplifting words far from reaching her ears by now. In a definitive resort, he turned and escorted himself in the opposite direction of where she was heading.

His shoes unsteadily clicked on the ground but he halted punctually after a few reluctant steps. His hair lolling messily in front of his eyes simultaneously with the unique way he dipped his head in the guard’s direction made his demeanor mysterious. His eyes snarled at the guards who particularly had eyed his and Varya’s conversation. His clasped fingers crunched into a fist, obtaining a position behind his back to show that he had to use some strength to hold himself back. “There will be no next time…” Eero utterly referred to the guards who were eavesdropping. His tone slurred like venom seeping into a wound. He was fortunate his eyes didn’t ignite in an intense lustrous gleam. In response, their eyes slimmed in indecision and nervousness, exactly what Eero desired. They practically trembled in their expected palace apparel. A modestly sly comment from a shapeshifter was sure to send shivers down their spines. His orange eyes flashed before he stalked away. He expected a response like that from them. They were mere humans anyway.

--

After deliberately taking his time making his way to the king’s quarters, to make sure nothing happened to his precious destined queen, he arrived. His door jarred open making his orbs grow stale in disgust when he detected that he wasn’t alone. His teeth gritted in agitation, which was common when people overran his space without properly informing him. “Atlas, what are you doing in my chambers at this time?” Eero’s irritated tone didn’t seem to phase Atlas. His gracious honey-glazed locks swirled as he turned towards Eero. It was an explicit movement like he intended to challenge him. Eero raised his eyebrows in awareness. The thing about Atlas is he wasn’t a human. He was a shapeshifter like Eero and Varya, emanating from Geotic. Eero wouldn’t be astounded if Varya didn’t notice that Atlas was one of them. Atlas had a discrete way about him that came off secretive and he didn’t have distinct Geotic features as Eero did. Atlas could effortlessly be overlooked as human, many people disregarding him at times. That is respectively why he chose Atlas to be his personal guard and one of eminent authority. “I apologize, my sire, but I was given an important letter,” His wrist flicked a creme-colored envelope with a rich red seal over the closing flap. Eero instantly dismissed the aroused feeling of his space being trespassed and plucked the envelope from Atlas. That was more pertinent at this time. He peeled open the envelope in a ravenous but king-like manner. He dubiously unfolded the sheets of paper, contemplating over the distinct curvature of the hand-written letter and the seal on the last page of the letter. It wasn’t a personal letter, necessarily, it was inscribed and sealed from The Order. “Word gets around oddly quick within these kingdom walls,” Eero grumbled under his lips while his eyebrows narrowed in concern. He hadn’t even made the unavoidable announcements on the upcoming events. How could the order already know? The letter didn’t consist of the depicted events but they did know about Varya now and how she was a potential queen for the kingdom. Written in The Order’s letter was a memorandum of demands that Eero already acknowledged they would make. They desired Varya no matter what to become the queen since without an heir he would soon be in an inferior place in the kingdom walls. Eero’s fingers shivered for half a second in utter frustration but he was able to effortlessly fold the sheets of paper back up, tucking it back into the envelope. “Thank you, Atlas. I propose that you set this in my office.” He returned the envelope to Atlas. Before Atlas could stride off, Eero postponed him by placing a hand on his shoulder. Without even gazing at him, he declaimed stinging words for Atlas to precisely hear. “Do me a favor. Find whoever spread the word to The Order. I’d relish having a distinct discussion with them, especially since they made the current situation with Varya ten times harder for me.” The bitter tone of his voice was sure to stick in Atlas’s mind as he removed his hand off of his shoulder.

The moment Atlas left was the moment Eero let out a dull sigh. If Varya did win that competition he queried how he would explain that to The Order. It was apparent to say that they weren’t the ones to take imprudence from a king and a young one at that. Even though he knew he was physically stronger than her, he was assured she had something up her sleeve, particularly with her eagerness to challenge him in the current state she was in. He couldn’t determine whether that challenge was out of genuine fear or a technique to throw him off guard. But the last thing he should distinctly focus on is that. The most he can do is keep it in the back of his mind. He will be having dinner with Varya tomorrow, so that was what he needed to focus on.

While there was certainly much to think about, exhaustion had been victorious. Varya, despite her emotional distress, ended up sleeping rather late into the next afternoon. The comfort of the bed was by far the most lavish experience of her life and had allowed time to steadily slip away. Afterall, she had years worth of rest to catch up on…

When Varya did finally wake, she could not bring herself to rise. Her body felt as if it were melting into the expensive sheets. Besides, she had nothing to look forward to anyways. The only safety she felt was holed up in this room alone. It felt familiar and that in itself calmed her some and resembled how she spent the last few years, sitting with her own thoughts in a quiet room. Truly, she had no idea how to tell time. It became irrelevant when your only destination was a cage away from the rest of the world. The sun could just be rising or about to set and it made no difference. Her eyes were about to drift close again when sounds outside caught her attention. With an almost child-like curiosity, Varya carefully pulled herself from bed and moved to the window. Just barely, she could see guards moving about. It was simply fascinating.

Once her legs began to ache, body overrode with soreness from the sudden exertion, she settled down to the floor. She was content to sit and watch the people move about while she thought about her next move. If she wished to return home, there was a large task at hand. Varya had to defeat a king within his own walls. While it was perhaps foolish to propose such a thing, it was possibly her only chance. Becoming a king’s lap dog had not been in her foresight. As of now, she held mostly disadvantages. Eeros had at least an idea of her form, thanks to the stolen tooth. He also held a clear physical advantage over the malnourished woman. Even in top health, taking down a man who stood almost a foot taller would be quite the feat. Varya let out a steady sigh, leaning her back against the wall. At least, in her mind, she had a more compelling reason to win. She was fighting for her freedom, something not worth giving up.

Varya needed to return home. Now that she was a step closer, the ache in her chest only further bloomed. This is all she wanted and desired. After all the pain she endured, the shifter just wanted to return to her birthplace and find sanctuary in the lands. So much plagued her mind, how bad must her luck be? Rescued to only be immediately shoved back into a box. She could not be queen.

In order to win, Varya knew she needed more info on the illusive man who wished to take her hand in marriage. Even scarce information on his form would be helpful. Was there possibly any way she could coax him into taking it? Perhaps running… but it would likely lead to a chase by guards, not the king himself. Maybe jumping out a window would force him to take form and save her. Varya smirked a little in amusement at the idea. She couldn’t risk injury before the competition, maybe prying for information would prove the most beneficial in this instance. Varya was in a daze, delicate fingers absentmindedly tapping as she ran through scenarios. She did not notice the steady knocks on her door the first time and still barely caught them the second. While the woman stood and brushed off her skirts, she made no move to answer the door. Maybe they were just checking to see if she had run off.