Outside the castle, the scene was different. Because Silas had gone to look for Draven, the other four Aleric, Torin, Ronald, and Seraphina had all split up to search for him too.
The ten Saints, including Lysandra, also came out of the castle and rejoined the ceremony.
Lysandra told them everything that had happened inside the Hall of Prophecy... and their belief became even firmer, Draven was definitely the perfect person for the position of Ancient Knight.
They had already approved his relationship with Silas too... except for Cassian, everyone had accepted it.
Inside the castle, Torin was still searching for Draven when he stumbled into something unexpected . A vast, open playground built within the castle walls.
There was no roof. Only the endless blue sky stretched above him.
The air was sweet with ancient flowers and herbs, their roots deep and old. Vines curled around white stone pillars, and soft grass spread like a carpet under his boots.
As a beastman, Torin felt it instantly. The pulse of nature, wild and pure. He breathed in, and for a moment, he forgot why he had come here... He forgot to stay alert. He just... stared in front .
At the center of the garden stood two statues, carved from pale starstone...
Two children, caught mid-play. One taller, chasing. One smaller, running ahead with a laugh frozen on his lips.
Torin walked closer . The craftsmanship was impossibly lifelike. He reached out without thinking and brushed his fingers against the bigger boy's cheek.
'Cute' he thought in his head. Both of them are cute but the older one... there was something familiar in the set of his brow, his eyes and the expression on his face...as if he saw it somewhere before.
Before he could remember it...
The statues shivered.
Then, in a silent rush, they crumbled into dust.
Torin jerked back. He was horrified. What did I do? How could I destroy a beautiful statue like this... "Wait!" he screamed.
The dust didn't fall on the ground. It rose, swirling around him like a galaxy of silver stars, warm and humming with every pulse in his body. It wrapped around his shoulders, his wrists, his chest, until the garden vanished...
He appeared before a beautiful garden slightly different from this one...and in front of him two children were sitting beside each other in the grass...
And then he heared voices. Clear as if they were right beside him.
"Brother! Let me have this sweet!"
A bright, stubborn little voice came out of the little child's mouth...
"No. You've had enough. That sweet is mine. Don't even dare touch it."
The older boy, warned the little boy but with a beautiful smile on his face...
The little one pouted, then suddenly he saw the child grinned looked at his brother mischievously, and stuck his tongue out.
"Beh! As if I'd listen to your orders... hehe!"
The little boy stood up from his place, then suddenly snatched the sweet from the platter, and with the light patter of his small feet, he bolted toward the garden...
"Silas! Stop...the family physician said you can't have too many sweets, it's bad for your health..."
Silas laughed, he was weak from childhood , so he breathed heavily while running only a few seconds....but his laugh never faded from his lips....
"Beh! I don't care! Even after all those bitter medicines, I'm still sick anyway!"
"Hahahaha...." He laughed more and more while running.
Their laughter echoed through the star-dust, pure and untouched by time. The scene played out around Torin like a memory made of light.
The older boy chased him, the younger one darting away while the sweet was still clutched in his hand...
Torin found himself smiling, his chest filled with a strange warmth.
"Is that big child... Lord Aleric?" he whispered to himself.
"Yes," a voice said right behind him, low and close. "It's me."
Torin spun around so fast that his little tiger ears flattened...
Aleric was there, staring at him. Not angry, exactly but something colder, more intense, his eyes were fixed on Torin's face.
"I...I am really sorry, Aleric!" Torin blurted, hands up. "Let me explain... I didn't know the statue would disappear when I touched it! I... I'll take responsibility, I swear..."
Aleric took a step forward. Torin took a step back, his heart started hammering in his chest loudly...
Aleric didn't stop. He closed the distance in two strides and at this moment ,Torin's back hit a tree. Now he had nowhere to go...
Then, without warning, Aleric's hand slid around his waist, firm and possessive, pulling him in.
"Aleric! My...my Lord..."
Aleric leaned down, his voice dropping to a deep murmur that vibrated through Torin's ribs.
"You touched my cheek just now, didn't you..."
Torin's tail bristled. "N-no! No, I touched the statue's..."
Aleric's thumb brushed the exact spot on Torin's face, that he had touched on the statue.
"Same thing."
Torin's breath almost stopped. His ears started twitching. His tail tucked itself tight behind him, restrained without him even realizing it.
He could feel the heat radiating from Aleric's warm breath. He could hear his own heart hammering against his chest.
"You... you are too close, my Lord," he whispered, trying to sound stern but he failed miserably.
Aleric tilted his head, his eyes dropping to Torin's lips, then back up. "Am I? We were much closer than this before, weren't we?"
Torin remembered the night he had spent with Aleric... and his heart nearly leapt out of his ribcage. Even Aleric could hear it.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
"It... it was because you—" Torin wanted to say, it was because you forced me to stay there...
But before he could finish, Aleric placed his hand over Torin's chest. "Your heart," he said quietly. "It's beating like crazy..."
Torin gulped. The moment he felt that touch, a shiver ran down his entire body.
He immediately tried to slip away, but Aleric placed his other hand against the bark of the tree, blocking his escape completely.
He looked into Torin's eyes and grinned. "Where are you going?"
Aleric leaned in even closer, his nose almost brushing Torin's. His voice was low, and Torin's knees already felt weak just hearing that slow, deep tone.
"That statue was made the year Silas turned five. He was sick. Always sick. The physicians said he wouldn't see his tenth winter." His thumb stroked a slow circle on Torin's hip through his tunic.
"I would sit with him for hours and tell him stories just to convince him to take his medicine, and try to stop him from eating too many sweets... That memory is the only time he truly laughed that whole year."
Torin froze immediately. What the hell did I just do? He'd destroyed something truly important. His face turned grim.
"No one has ever seen that memory except our own family," Aleric murmured. "The statues only awaken for blood... or for a soulmate."
Torin became dumbfounded, his eyes wide. "W-what?"
"No... it can't be... I... I'm a beast. And on top of that... I'm a commoner!"
"How could I... deserve to be... No!"
"My Lord... you're teasing me, aren't you..." His eyes grew teary, as if he might cry at any moment.
Aleric finally smiled . It was not his usual cold, princely smile, but a small, real one that reached his eyes. "You destroyed a priceless relic of the royal family, Torin. The punishment for that is severe."
Torin gulped.
"...unless," Aleric continued, his lips whispering over Torin's ear, making him shiver violently, "you take responsibility. As you said you would."
"How... how do I take responsibility?" Torin breathed.
Aleric pulled back just enough to look him in the eye. The starlight reflected in his gaze.
"By letting me touch you back... as you touched that statue."
And before Torin could answer, Aleric cupped his jaw with a gentleness that contradicted his strength, his thumb brushing the high curve of his cheekbone, the exact spot Torin had touched on the statue.
Torin gasped, his hands instinctively clutching at Aleric's robes.
In that position, Aleric felt something inside him shift. The feelings he'd suppressed for so many days started awakening again. He felt himself harden at that moment. He looked at Torin's innocent face, then at his rosy lips... and swallowed.
He leaned near Torin's ear and said slowly, "Torin... I'm going to do something bad , really bad . If you don't like it... then push me away."
He looked at Torin's lips then he kissed him.
Torin froze. He tried to say something, but Aleric's fierce kiss didn't let him speak at all.
"Mmmph..."
Torin gently pushed at his chest. Aleric pulled back, frustrated, but he forced himself to stop. He didn't want to take more than Torin would give. He looked at Torin's face.
He wanted him ! gods, he wanted him so much that he can't explain. But he didn't want Torin to hate him for it.
He sighed and stepped back a little.
Torin was breathing hard. "You... what does this mean...? Why... why did you suddenly kiss me?"
Aleric didn't answer. He turned his face away, trying to calm his mind, trying to calm his heart. He didn't know what to say. What if Torin didn't accept his feelings?
Torin lowered his gaze. His eyes filled, and tears started to fall, quiet, onto the grass.
tip. tip. tip.
"Aleric," he said softly, his voice shaking. "I don't know why you did that... but I want to say something to you."