Milo's POV

The next morning, I wake up early because my chest aches. I sit up and take a few deep breaths, trying to get the pain to go away. The impact of the curse is way more powerful than I initially anticipated.

I feel bad that Amon had to leave the feast because of me, but I do also really appreciate it. It was very sweet of him.

I stare at the wall, waiting for the pain to fade away while Amon is still asleep next to me.

A while later, after breakfast, we decide to talk to Sophia and Philomena. We're sat at a round table, discussing our futures.

"So... You want to get rid of Caspian,?" Philomena asks with her eyebrows raised.

Amon and I exchange a look. "Uhm, basically, yeah," he replies.

"And you don't know how to do that?" Sophia keeps asking.

We nod.

They look at each other and then back at Amon and me.

"You know how difficult that will be, right?" Sophia asks.

"Of course we do," I reply, "but... look, things can't keep going like that. I know Caspian mistreated you too. There are kids here that are going to have to deal with him and his servants and-" I stop because I start to get emotional. This hits a bit close to home.

"I just want them to have a better future," I add quietly.

I look at the two women as they're thinking. I glance at Amon, who smiles at me encouragingly.

"You're right," Philo says, "but... you won't be able to do anything from the inside."

"Yeah, we know," Amon says, "We'll have to figure something out from the outside. We plan to leave for a bit."

"Where are you going?" Sophia asks.

"My apartment, for the moment," Amon replies.

"Oh, right, I keep forgetting that you didn't grow up here," Sophia mumbles, and Amon chuckles.

That's a sweet thing to say. It further proves that Amon is an integrated part of this family now.

"You guys are taking a huge risk if you're going to take on Caspian," Philomena says, "you know he has a lot of loyal followers. He can make your life living hell if he wants to. So be careful."

"I know," I say absently, "but he can't be leading this coven. And someone has to do something. So why not us?"

They nod. "It's good if you have people on the inside, though. So let's make sure we stay in contact", Sophia says.

I look at her surprisedly. "You're gonna help us?"

Both of them chuckle. "Of course," Philomena replies, "you guys are important to us, first of all. And secondly, you're right. Caspian has blood on his hands, and he shouldn't be in this position."

"And also, he hurt you, and I don't want him to get away with it," Sophia adds, and I smile.

They're like big sisters for me, and it means a lot that they support me.

"Thank you. That means a lot."

They smile. "Of course," Sophia says.

It's quiet for a while.

"We'll see what we can do from the inside," Philomena says, "even though I can't promise anything. If Caspian even suspects a thing, he's going to make sure his people don't take their eyes off us. And even if you're outside of the coven, that doesn't mean you're safe, okay? You need to be careful."

We nod. "We will," Amon replies.

The next day, we decide to talk to Caspian and Arran. Of course, we don't want to, but if we want to leave the coven, we have to.

I feel incredibly uneasy as we're walking down the corridor. The last time I walked past here, I ended up getting tortured. I feel my heart racing. Amon looks over at me.

"You alright?"

I take a deep breath. "Yeah, I'm fine."

He looks at me concernedly. "You sure? I can talk to them alone if you want."

"No, no, it's alright, we need to do it together. I'll be okay, I promise."

"Hm, okay."

I knock at the door. "Come in," Caspian says, and I shiver a bit. I hate that this affects me so much. I don't want to be scared of him.

We walk inside, and I avoid making eye contact with Caspian. I eventually look at him, though. I don't want him to know that I'm scared.

"Good evening," I start, trying my best to make my voice sound confident, "Amon and I have a request."

Caspian and Arran both raise their eyebrows. "Go on then," Caspian says condescendingly.

I gulp. "We'd like to take some time off and leave the coven for a bit, Sir," I say.

Caspian chuckles, and it makes me feel very uneasy. "Taking a vacation, are we?" he asks and fakes a smile.

"Kind of, yeah," I reply.

He chuckles again. I exchange a look with Amon.

"Well... Amon is allowed to leave the coven if he pleases, as his duty here is done. You, Milo, on the other hand, have things to do. You stay here. So your request is denied."

I stare back at him. I get mad, but I can hold myself back. Instead, I smile at the two men sitting in front of us.

"I understand, of course. Thank you for your time."

We leave the room and walk through the corridor.

"What now?" Amon asks me, a worried look on his face.

"Wait," I say.

He looks at me confusedly. I walk quickly, and Amon runs after me. "What's happening? Milo, talk to me!"

I look over at him. I think we're far away enough. "We'll get our stuff and get out of here," I say quietly.

Amon looks at me for a few seconds, looking a bit unsure. Then he nods. "Okay. But slow down, we look way too suspicious."

I nod. "You're right."

We walk back to our rooms at a normal pace. I pack all of the stuff I think we'll need. I use a spell to expand my backpack without it being visible from the outside and make it lighter. Amon learned these too, so I'm sure he can use them as well.

Suddenly, there's a knock on the door. I freeze. Shit, I hope it's Amon. Before I can react, Sophia sticks her head through the door. She wants to say something, but then she sees the backpack. She walks inside and closes the door.

"Did Caspian say yes?"

"Nope," I reply, shoving more stuff into the backpack.

"So you're just leaving?"

"Yup."

She looks at me for a few seconds. "Milo, you need to be careful."

I shove some more clothes in my backpack before I zip it up.

"I know. We got this, don't worry."

She hugs me. "We'll stay in contact," she says, "but we'll have to be careful. Caspian knows that we're close."

I nod. "You and Philo take care, too."

She smiles softly. "Keep me posted. I'll see you."

I smile back, and suddenly I feel scared. We're about to take an enormous risk. But I know it's the right decision.

The door opens, and Amon walks inside, his backpack packed as well.

"Oh, hey."

"Hey, Amon."

Sophia hugs him too and tells him to be careful. "Good luck, you two. Take care of each other."

"Of course," I say with a soft smile.

Then she leaves my room. Amon and I look at each other.

"Now we just gotta get out of here without anyone noticing," he says.

I take a deep breath. "Yup. So... How do we do this?"

"I don't know. Let's just walk quickly," he suggests.

I look at him for a few seconds, trying to come up with a better plan. "Yeah, okay. Let's do this."

He pulls me closer and kisses me softly. "We can do this," he says.

"Together," I say, and he smiles.

Then we step out of my room. I take a deep breath.

We step through the corridors as fast as we can without looking too suspicious.

We reach the entrance hall. We're almost outside.

"Hey! Stop!"

Shit.

We turn around. It's August, one of Caspian's loyal followers.

"Milo, where are you going?"

"Just for a stroll," I reply casually. It's not like we're both wearing a full packed backpack.

"Oh, really?"

August steps closer. I glance over at Amon and clench my fists.

August raises his arms, and it looks like he's about to attack me.

Amon stands in front of me.

"Don't even think about it," he says threateningly.

August lowers his hands. Everyone in the coven knows what Amon can do. Everyone knows how strong he is.

"Milo, go. I'll be right there", he says quietly.

"But-"

Suddenly, we hear more steps and see more people walk our way.

Shit, we're screwed.

"Run," I say to Amon.

I throw an energy ball at August, who stumbles to the ground.

And then we run out of the door.

"Let's take a car," Amon says.

"I can't drive!" I respond, trying not to panic.

"But I can!"

I open one of the cars with a spell, and we get inside.

"Shit, we don't have a key," Amon mumbles.

"For god's sake, you're a sorcerer, Amon!"

"Oh, shit, right!"

He uses his magic to turn on the car and then starts driving. I open the window and make a shield around the car.

And that was just in time because right now, there are about five people shooting attacks at us at the same time.

"Drive faster!"

"I'm going as fast as I can!"

I look back and see that the other car is following us.

"Shit, we're being followed," I mumble.

"I don't know where to go," Amon says as he gets closer to a crossroad.

"Go left, we'll see from there," I say, and he does as I say.

I look behind us again. "The car's still there."

"We need to get rid of them somehow," Amon says.

"I have an idea. But I've never done it before", I say.

"Well, might as well try it now," he mutters as we take another turn.

"Guess so."

I stick my head out of the window and raise my arms, putting all of my focus on the one thing I want to do.

A blue energy blast shoots out of my hand and hits the car, and it flips.

"Oh my god." I didn't expect that. I just wanted to make it stop.

"What?"

"Just keep driving!"

He looks into the review mirror. "Holy shit!"

"They'll be... fine, just keep driving. We have no time to lose."

I sit back in my seat properly and exhale deeply. Then it's quiet for a while.

We're in a lot of trouble now.