The Crown's Obsession

Music Recommendation: Reflections by Eamonn Watt

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Instead of making use of the rooms provided to Calhoun and Theodore, both of them didn't make use of it as neither of them believed the people's intentions to be good. Though their bed right now was made to look as if someone was sleeping in it. It was only a decoy, where the pillows were covered in a blanket.

Calhoun had taken himself to use a tall tree, happily placing both his legs on the branch while leaning against the bark as he slept with his eyes closed. Much better than Morganna, who twisted and turned in her bed out of agitation.

On the other hand, Theodore had decided to use the rooftop while placing both his hands behind his head for support. He had been used to sleeping on the rooftop, and he found it to be much more comfortable and peaceful than sleeping in the bed, where one didn't know when someone would push a dagger into his heart. He did that to avoid the husbands of the women with whom he slept with in the past.

Taking in a deep breath, he had just closed his eyes when he heard the light sound of footsteps moving in one of the nearby corridors. The sound of the footsteps were nothing less to the paws of a cat. It was not the castle guards, nor was it a servant from what he had observed. The servants walked quicker than the others.

Getting up from his position, Theodore looked down at the corridors, his eyes following the sound of the light footsteps until he caught sight of the ghost that stood behind the large and wide pillar.

It was a ghost because he couldn't see who it was. The nightdress gently moved the ghost's dress, letting him see the off white fabric worn by the person who stood hidden behind the pillar. Pulling one leg up, Theodore placed his hand on his knee, and with his other hand, he supported his upper body, watching the person step away from the pillar.

Lucy Hawthrone.

Why wasn't he surprised, thought Theodore to himself. It seemed that the young vampiress enjoyed sneaking out of her room when everyone was asleep.

Theodore saw Lucy raised her hands while her feet stretched, and she stood on her toes. Her hands moving up to hold above her head. Though he wasn't in a place where she could see her entire face, he could tell that she had closed her eyes as if enjoying the quiet night with a faint smile on her lips.

Then he saw her do something that he didn't expect.

Lucy let go of her hand from the top, stretching them wide on either side of her body, and she took one step forward after another while elegantly rotating herself across the floor.

Right now, she didn't care about anything. Not her family or the people in the castle, nor even the world she lived in. Though she could walk normally, it had been a while since she had spun this freely, and it felt liberating to do so.

Lucy felt her heart fasten because of her movements, air slipping in and out of her lips as she spun from one side of the corridor to another before she stepped into a new corridor. Her feet were quick, and so was her body, and she graciously lifted one leg and then another alternatively.

Theodore had switched his position from sitting to stand on the roof, and he jumped down with little to no noise. Lucy wasn't just spinning as it seemed like she was dancing to something. And as she danced, there was a softness of whisper that the air carried as if it was coming from her.

Lucy's voice as she sang was nothing like the one she had sung for the governess to listen to, and instead, it was melodious. Like a kitchen that created the sweetest delicacy, and one could taste it just by the smell of it.

But while the young vampiress was spinning on her bare feet and Theodore followed her, keeping a distance between them, Morganna had woken up and had left her room.

Lucy had closed her eyes and, without realizing it, her body moved in the direction of the pillar. When she opened her eyes, it turned wide and ready to stop. She lost her footing. She was about to hit her head against the pillar when a hand came in between and caught hold of her.

A gasp escaped her lips at the shock that someone was here, and while she was being held from not falling on the ground, Lucy's eyes moved to look at the round frame of glasses that was on the person's face.

"Theodore," whispered Lucy.

Even though she was a vampiress, her heart continued to beat against her chest. Theodore's hand was around her waist, supporting her, and she stared into his eyes whilst he looked back at her. Under the moonless sky, Lucy noticed how his hair looked darker than the night itself, and he looked at her with an inexpressive face.

When she parted her lips to ask him what he was doing here, Theodore pulled her behind the pillar and hid her along with him as he heard a pair of footsteps approaching from the other end of the corridor.

It was Morganna who was walking. Her footsteps weren't as sharp as they were during the time of the day.

Lucy didn't know what happened, but Theodore's hand covered her mouth, and the sudden closeness had her blood rushing up to her face.

Using his other hand, Theodore raised his finger to his lips, indicating her to stay quiet, and Lucy slowly nodded her head. He wondered what Morganna was doing at this hour of the night. It didn't look like she was out of her room to take a casual stroll.

As Morganna walked past the pillar, her footsteps stopped, and she turned back to look at the pillar.