Klaude stands in awe as he watches Arwen's enthralling performance but has his thoughts interrupted as he feels someone brush past him. Annoyed he turns towards the culprit only to see Ebony Raduron who stands beside him, her face emotionless and blank as she stares ahead.

He glances at her in question and Ebony's eyes dart to his for a moment before she inclines her head slightly and starts walking away from the beach, through the grass.

Sighing, Klaude receives the message and follows her, no one noticing them both leave as they are too preoccupied with Arwen's performance on the beach.

Luckily for Ebony, Klaude had been sitting at the edge of the dais, so his absence will not be noticed anyway.

Eventually he catches up to her and Ebony wastes no time once they reach the valley as she drags Klaude into her private tents, her surprisingly sharp nails digging into Klaude's wrists making him wince slightly.

He nearly trips over as she drags him in and then keeps pulls him along to her small table in the centre of the tent and sits him down in one chair while she takes the other.

As soon as they are both seated Ebony gets straight to the point.

"How have you been getting on, in regards to breaking your father and my sister's alliance?" Ebony asks, obviously impatient to get an answer as she practically leans across the table in her anticipation for an answer as if she could rip the answer from his vocal cords. Klaude has no doubts that she isn't capable of it.

Klaude shuffles around uncomfortably before scratching his head, "I haven't got around to it I'm afraid," he says, a feeble excuse at best, "I've been too busy trying to make Arwen fall for me like you and Cierra instructed."

Ebony's nails dig into the table as she leans over it further almost on his side, almost growling like a wolf as she replies, "That is the minor part of my plan," She seethes in frustration, standing up from her chair, "I needed you to do this Klaude."

"My father has been away mostly on business, spending most of his time with Cierra and conversing with my uncle, the king, if you wanted my full attention then you should keep your sisters paws off of my father," Klaude snaps, feeling anger at the Radurons for a moment. He doesn't not know why his father goes to Cierra's chambers so often. But even a fool can guess. What about his mother on the mainland? Has his father forgotten her already?

His mother, who sacrificed her own political power and her friendship with Queen Halia and left her home all because she made the mistake of falling for a wild Valostran prince. He does think Grayson still loves Klaude's mother but he is foolish, easy to give in to lust.

"Oh you stupid boy," Ebony mutters more to herself than him, her fury increasing by the second.

Before he can reply, she starts pacing and muttering, running her hands through her silver hair repeatedly before she slams her hands down on her table,

"I should've known better then to entrust a child with such an important task," she snarls, not bothering to contain her anger at Klaude. But he finds that ironic. A child? He's nineteen and Arwen is eighteen.

Before he can protest or defend himself she is on him again, persecuting him mercilessly with her cutting words,

"I'm not about to have my plan break apart lose everything just because of one foolish teenage love story," she hisses, looking more like an aggressive snake than a calm, collected noble shadow woman, "I've got a sister to kill and an empire to inherit, a queendom to eventually run, I don't have time for this."

This is the side of Ebony that she lets no one see, the unravelling slightly unhinged side that is like a ravenous beast let free of its cage.

Honestly, Klaude is slightly scared now as he sees the traces of madness dancing around in her rage filled eyes but then he himself stands up so he can face her, taking a step towards her. She would have been beautiful, he thinks for a moment, with her long silver locks and pretty regal face. Would've have been beautiful - if that venom and hatred wasn't evident in her eyes.

He then clenches his teeth in determination - he refuses to stay silent or play a pawn any longer,

"It is not foolish and it's not a game," He says with anger, hesitating before he sighs, "not anymore."

Ebony rolls her eyes and Klaude's temper begins to rise as he faces her again,

"We love each other!" He shouts at her, defending his love for her. That is now genuine. It has been for a while. But perhaps he had been afraid to admit it. He didn't at first, of course he didn't but he had liked her initially and deal or no deal he would've still been intrigued and attracted to her.

Her expression moulds into an unreadable riddle before it softens with sympathy, "You truly believe the lie I forced you to tell, I know you have told me that you loved her before but I didn't think you were being serious," she says, pity evident in her tone as she wears him down, "I see now that this pressure has caused you to become deluded."

He admits at first that it was game and that was the initial reason he singled her out. He could've easily spent his time with Carina or her equally beautiful younger sister Nalani. But his father and the King of Valostra had made him go to Umbra, a part of the island that had never been privy to any foreign trade deals and to woo a queen of great power that hadn't been seen in eons.

There he and Ebony had struck a deal. That is why he had stayed but now ... well everything is different now. It's not a game not anymore. It never really was, he loved her the first time he saw her.

But his love is no longer a lie of any kind and it is precious to him so he will defend it, he will defend her and protect her from these Raduron wolves at all costs. They are not to be trusted with Arwen's well being, either of the sisters. He knows that now. He must protect her so that is what he will do.

"I am not deluded!" Klaude insists, becoming angrier by the second, "I am in love with her and am no longer your ally."

Her expression of sympathy snaps to a dangerous rage in a split second, "Choose your next words carefully," she warns, her voice low and dangerous.

This foolish boy could cost her greatly because of his stupid love story. Love makes you weak and only foolish people like this boy and the young queen believe in it.

"I have already chosen them and I will not be a part of your schemes any longer and I am breaking our deal," he says, growing in confidence as he his tone turns cold and deadly, "and if you do anything to Arwen in retaliation of this then I will destroy you, I won't let you or anyone else hurt her."

Ebony's whole domenour becomes icy as a cold rage seeps into her, "There will be consequences for this," Ebony promises, done with idle threats and warnings, taking a seat once again.

She doesn't have the time to coax this boy into doing her bidding. He is a pawn but now it is time for him to be swept off the board and to put new pawns in place. He is important yes but not irreplaceable. No one is apart from herself of course. Cierra believes she is but her older sister is stupid. She has no idea what's in store for her. It is what Cierra deserves. It is what her monstrous older sister has deserved ever since Ebony discovered her secret - what Cierra did to her all those years ago.

Klaude lets out a low laugh in response to Ebony as he smiles and replies,

"I will repeat the words that Arwen said to me once," he says fondly, picturing the young shadow girl in his mind, "damn the consequences."

"You love with your eyes silly boy," Ebony says, cackling like a witch for a moment, "it is easy to think you love a beautiful queen, but you must see past this foolish fantasy."

Arwen is a beautiful girl - the most beautiful creature he's ever seen - but she is so much more and no one understands what it truly between them. He barely understands it himself. She makes him want to question anything and everything he was once certain of. She changes him, his very perception of the world. She is his light and love, that's the only thing he is certain of.

Klaude remembers when he and Arwen went to the Breccia Domain except she wasn't Arwen then, she was the Goddess but he is still skeptical. He is still not sure he truly believes. But deep down he knows exactly what he saw - he just isn't sure what it means. It is the unknown that makes him a little afraid. Not for himself but for her.

He needs to get her away from this place.

"I love her," Klaude says, feeling elated as the truth falls from his tongue with ease, "not because she is a queen, not because of her beauty or power. I love her for her. She is kind, honest and good; she wears her heart on her sleeve, she's certainly stubborn at times that it would frustrate me if it didn't make me love her more." He says softly, smiling without realising as he thinks of her but then he turns his attention back to Ebony as he scowls. "So this liaison of lies and deceit between us is over."

Her long nails start digging into the table as she raises a finger and points it at Klaude in a revenge promise but her face becomes unnervingly cold and blank as the anger seeps out of her and the more dangerous rage seeps in.

"You will regret this," she promises quietly, leaning back in her chair, "you may think you love her but you weren't born and raised on Fennbirn, you are a mainlander and much like the foreign fools before you, you forget. You forget that she is not just a girl, she is something more, something more wicked and sinister prowls beneath her skin and you have no understanding of it at all."

Ebony tilts her head in mock sympathy and looks similar to a snake as she does so, "You are the son of a man and woman but Arwen is not. Not truly. She is the daughter and sacred vessel of the Goddess and the Goddess is no mortal man or woman. I tell you this but still you won't believe, you will forget and it will cost you in the end little Vale."

Klaude has the good sense to look a little unnerved at Ebony's subtle smile but he feels anger at her threats. How dare she threaten him.

"No Ebony, it will cost you," Klaude says and Ebony laughs.

"I'll give you time to come to your senses, otherwise I will go after what you care about," Ebony says and Klaude's mind instantly goes to Arwen but as if she read it, she gives him a serpentine smile and shakes her head knowingly, "not Arwen, she is much too valuable to me personally. No, there are other ways to hurt you. Others you care about. But I'll start with your mother back home, the foolish one who left Fennbirn for your worthless father."

She practically cackles at his fallen expression, insanity bubbling in her smile and lilac eyes.

"My mother is a princess of Valostra, you won't be able to get near her," Klaude snarls, moving closer to Ebony as if he is contemplating how much effort it would be to strangle the shadow.

Ebony looks unfazed at his rage though. She instead just sits there quietly with a small smile.

"I don't want to hurt you Klaude," Ebony says softly, tilting her head at him, "but I will if you don't comply with me, my reach is far and I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty to get my point across."

He blanches at that.

"If you lay a hand of any of my family I'll expose your plots to Cierra, she'll have you killed," Klaude threatens which makes Ebony's eyebrow tilt up in faint amusement.

"And who is she going to believe? A foolish suitor or her loving loyal little sister," Ebony says, with a false look of innocence dancing around in her eyes as she looks at him mockingly, "it's your word against mine, you're not in Valostra anymore boy, a woman's words carry far more weight here, especially one of my standing."

Refusing to say anything as he turns to get up and leave, not knowing how to react.

"I'll give you a few weeks to clear your head and come to your senses as I'm sure you will," her soft voice calls as he storms out.

So many games and plots to be played on the island and so many deaths and triumphs that have yet to come.