The Blind Witch
Chapter 2

Pride makes men weak. They think they can control the darkness, control the depths of the unknown. But when they sleep at night, they fear the darkest corners of their rooms.

Aiden effortlessly carried Clarissa through the King's Woods. She was thin, too thin. He could feel the sharpness of her bones as he held her. He wondered when she last had any food or water. He looked at her face. Her eyes were closed as she rested against him. She was exhausted. Cyrus growled from within his soul.

We need to remain calm, Aiden said to Cyrus within his thoughts. I do not wish to frighten her.

If it was that fat slaver, I will kill him! Cyrus snapped in reply. He paced within Aiden. Carrying Clarissa and trying to keep his wolf calm was starting to weigh heavily on the prince.

I need you to remain calm, please, he pleaded with Cyrus.

I will calm down if you promise to let me loose tonight. Cyrus bargained. Aiden slowed his steps as he thought about it.

No, he responded. If we were to kill him, whether or not he did anything to Clarissa, they would know it was us. You and I do not have the luxury to do what we want.

Cyrus growled, but he began to relax within Aiden. He was the prince, the heir to the throne. He could not afford to tarnish his reputation when some would seek to overthrow him and his uncle. For now, he would need to put aside his anger.

As Aiden exited the woods, he was greeted by the slaver and his men. Several of them approached, reaching out for Clarissa. Aiden held her close and growled, warning them to stay back. This angered the slaver. He ran, trying to catch up to Aiden as he entered the palace.

"That is my slave, your highness! Give me back my property!" He yelled out. Aiden ignored him. He walked straight to the throne room but realized his uncle was not there. He looked at a nearby guard.

"Tell His Majesty that I require an audience, quickly," he commanded. The guard bowed and ran off. Aiden walked to the end of the throne room and set Clarissa down on his seat. She sat back, clutching her dress apprehensively.

"Your Highness!" the man continued to call out.

Several guards had to run up and stop him. It was not to keep him from reaching Clarissa but to keep him safe from Aiden. They could tell the prince was red with anger.

"She is not your property!" Aiden bellowed. He wanted to grab the man by his throat, but he did not want to leave Clarissa's side. She was his mate; she belonged to no one else.

"I bought her! That makes her mine!" The man argued.

"If you keep speaking, I shall have your tongue removed!" Aiden threatened.

"Prince Aiden!" A voice echoed across the room.

Aiden looked over and saw Azrael, his uncle. The slaver bowed while Aiden was too angry to think about etiquette.

"Why are you threatening this man? He is a guest in my home!" Azrael questioned in a loud, commanding voice. This caused Clarissa to tremble. She reached over, searching for Aiden. When he felt her hand, he turned to her. He could see the fear on her face. He knelt down to gently stroke her hand.

"The prince has stolen my most valuable slave!" The slaver chimed in while Aiden was preoccupied.

"Aiden!" Azrael roared. This only caused Clarissa to jump, startled at how loud Azrael's voice was. Aiden held back a growl as he looked at the king.

"She is my mate," he replied, trying his best to keep his tone at a respectable level. "I do not care what the slaver claims. She does not belong to him."

"I paid for her!" The slaver insisted.

"Then prove it! Where is her documentation?" Aiden questioned.

"I have already told His Majesty that many of my documents have been lost. But she is mine! I was going to sell her for a lot of money at the market today!"

"He wasn't going to sell me," Clarissa uttered. Her voice was soft, but she did not stutter nor waver in her words.

"Speak up, child," Azrael instructed. Clarissa bit her cracked lips, but Aiden's hand on hers soothed her nervousness.

"He wasn't going to sell me," she repeated, speaking louder so all could hear.

"Liar!" The slaver shouted angrily as he pushed against the guards that held him back.

"You touched me!" She cried out as she looked in his direction. "You said you were going to make me your personal toy! A pet!"

Aiden growled and pulled away from Clarissa. He stormed towards the slaver, but several more guards ran up and held him back. He steamed as Cyrus threatened to come out. The slaver fell back as he tried to escape Aiden's grasp.

"You dare touch my mate?!" Aiden yelled.

"It was that witch that set my camp on fire!" the man countered as he crawled further from the prince.

"Because you kept trying to put your hands under my dress!" Clarissa asserted as she tried to stand. She wobbled before falling back into the chair. "You kidnapped me from my home only to try to force me into your bed!"

"Enough!" Azrael bellowed. He took Aiden's arm and separated him from both Clarissa and the Slaver. "Calm yourself! This is unbecoming!"

"Uncle," Aiden sighed as he tried to calm his rage. "I'm sorry. But you must understand that I found my mate out there, not even a mile from here. The Goddess Bil has brought her to me; I am sure of it."

"I know, I believe you," Azrael assured his nephew. "But I need you to calm down. When you wear my crown, you cannot have outbursts like this. You must remain calm and stoic to everything that happens to you."

Aiden dropped his head, defeated. Azrael patted Aiden's cheek and turned to look at the girl in his chair. He walked over to her, looking at her curiously. He tilted his head. Azrael noticed her black eyes. They stood out against her pale skin.

"How much were you going to sell her for?" Azrael asked the slaver.

"I-it was going to b-be more of an auction." The slaver stutters. His gaze remained on the prince, scared that his life was still in danger.

"Give me a price." The king commanded.

"One thousand gold pieces!" The slaver replied quickly.

"That is steep for a slave," Azrael countered. "She is thin and young. And, by the way it sounds, she is dangerous since she set a whole camp on fire."

"It is my price," the man affirmed.

Azrael looked at Aiden. "Go fetch it from the master of the treasury. I shall remain here with the girl."

Azrael watched as Aiden hurried out. He turned his attention back to the girl on his nephew's throne.

"Your name is Clarissa, yes?" Azrael asked her as he leaned in closer. She nodded her head, choosing to remain silent in her response. "Tell me, Clarissa, did you set fire to the man's camp?"

"Yes, sir," she answered softly. She clasped her hands together tightly, trembling under his gaze. She could see dark orange orbs circling him. It was not as many as Aiden had, but she was able to see he was close to her.

"Did you mean to?"

"No, sir," she mumbled.

"What coven are you from? Your parents must be worried." He said gently.

"I'm not from a coven," she replied as she looked up. "I was raised by humans."

"Oh," he nodded with a smile. He assumed she was not a pure witch, meaning she was not born to two witches. That meant her powers would not be significant. It was probably a spark that she produced that set the camp on fire. "Do you know where you are from?"

She shook her head slowly. Her parents had sheltered her, keeping her inside for most of her life. She knew very few people from her hometown. She could not even say how far she had traveled or how many days she had been gone.

"Where did you buy her from?" Azrael asked the slaver.

"I bought her from the borders of Rovia," the man answered.

Rovia was a human kingdom to the south. To Azrael's knowledge, they were currently at war with another human kingdom, the Imoudour Empire. Though Azrael ruled over the human kings and emperors, he would not step in to settle their petty disputes. Land disputes were not a concern to the overall well-being of the world. But now that his nephew's mate came from one of the feuding kingdoms, perhaps he would intervene.

Not long after, Aiden returned with a large pouch filled with coins. He looked first to his uncle before tossing the bag to the slaver.

"You have your money; now leave," Aiden hissed to the man.

"Wait!" Clarissa gasped as her head perked up. "Can you buy Nana, please?"

"Who is Nana, child?" Azrael inquired.

"She was a neighbor from my village," Clarissa responded. "She ran with me through the woods. She tried to distract the hunters that were looking for me."

Azrael looked to the slaver with a smirk. He walked away from Clarissa, allowing Aiden to return to her side.

"Slaver," he started, placing his hands behind his back. "How about you give the old woman to me? See it as a gift for keeping my nephew from tearing you limb from limb?"

"Of course!" The man nodded. "I shall leave to go fetch her. Excuse this lowly servant."

The slaver took his pouch of spilled coins off the floor and quickly backed out. Azrael gave a heavy sigh as he rubbed his forehead. His hands were shaking, but he tried to hide it by putting them in his pockets.

"So, a witch with some fire powers," Azrael chuckled softly as he turned to Aiden. "It is fitting since you have fire magic yourself."

"Some?" Aiden repeated, confused by the statement.

"She is not a pure witch," Azrael explained as he walked over. "I'm sure she can do some sparks, generate some flames, just like you."

"Clarissa? Can you create that wall again?" Aiden asked as he pulled his uncle to the side.

Clarissa watched their orbs as they walked away. Now that they were side by side, she could see Aiden's orbs centered higher on him than Azrael's. She turned her attention in front of her. A wall? She could do a wall. But she had no frame of reference for what was around her. She only knew she sat in a chair.

She closed her eyes, imagining herself being protected by a wall of fire. Aiden and Azrael watched as flames began to swirl around the chair, and then it grew, surrounding her, blocking her from view. Azrael looked at Aiden in amazement. To produce this much fire without an incantation meant she had a strong, natural ability.

He walked up and touched the fire before recoiling. The fire was hot to the touch, but it did not scorch the ground below. Aiden stepped beside him. He was able to cover his fingers in his own flames and reach into the wall of fire. He was able to penetrate Clarissa's defenses. Perhaps it was because he was her mate. Or perhaps his fire magic was similar to hers.

"Someone find Lady Ophelia," Azrael commanded the nearby guards.

Clarissa dropped her wall when she heard the king speak. She looked in Aiden's direction. It caused him to scrunch his face. He wanted to know what she could see. She looked as if she should be blind, but she wasn't. Or, was it just pure luck she always looked towards him? Lady Ophelia would be able to answer that question for him. He reached down and took her hand, wanting to feel the sparks again. She was a mystery to him, but it only excited him. He wanted to unravel her past and her abilities, like a puzzle. He wanted to know everything about her: her every thought, her every dream, everything.

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