In a steady journey Tiana's fingers gripped the collar of my dress shirt as she violently trembled into my hand, cradled gently and rocked. "I've got you." I whispered, "I won't go anywhere, I'm right here, you're right here with me."

Over every dip, every clop and sound, I reassured her a thousand times. And I'll say a million times over if she wanted me to. The adrenaline that rushed through her veins left a shivering mess over the sounds of tweeting birds, I peeked to the dissipating sun that was halfway dipped at the line of the mighty sea, the palace isn't far, but I won't push the horse any further than this.

"We're going to get you cleaned up, were going to fix your hands and I'll get you to bed."

A whimper slipped her lips, and she clenched my shirt tighter. At the grass of the palace, many individuals had gathered to witness the scene, malice rims my pupils, and I looked right through the worried masks with detest. Javier was gone, and at the very center of it all my eyes found Adonai. His glasses coolly resting at the bridge of his nose, perched on Khan.

Flames of hell burn my eyes gazing at his face, the heat combusting in me could set this place on fire, burning it all down and let the ocean swallow this forsaken place, and they'd wait for me in hell where I'd kill them a million times over for daring to hurt my Queen. The burning fire to this hollow body, and the reason to my existence.

"Ah," he exhales thrillingly as we approached the line of the field, trainers immediately rushing to Tiana along with a medical team. Flocked like birds, she is feeble, and they all try to speak at once, my eyes sparring a deadly gaze to Adonai, who's cowardice eyes hide behind his sunglasses, and the ghost of a teasing grin that tilted his lips grinds my jaw.

Javier was gone, any remnants of him was only the pool of his blood and dark footprints, that vanished in three steps, as if he hopped towards help and just disappeared, pivoting towards the grass.

"My Queen are yo-"

"Fuck off, and don't touch her." I interjected, tugging the horse from the doctor's proximity.

He turned to gaze at Adonai, who kept sole focus on me, a roguish grin across his face. "We must check on the Queen's wounds Nasir," he purrs, not a care within his tone, almost unbothered.

"I'll handle her injuries sir." I forced, "But I fear the same might not said for Javier."

At the mention of Javier, a nerve was wrongfully prodded, and the ghost of his grin descended. A few guards aside him adjusted their back discreetly, my dark impulses twitching the ends of my fingers, a heated tension arose, and the gun in straps burning hot as I arched a brow expectantly.

In the end Adonai only sighs, the sinister look eases as he leans his head back, and with a nod from his head, all stood down and parted in two, a clean pathway towards the castle. I neither acknowledge anyone, it is us now vs them, this moment birthed a new relationship, any pack that were due now burned to ashes. And I clicked my teeth, and trudged forwards. The eyes of guards sharpening as we passed beside them, but a deep tug awoken as I passed aside Adonai, and as our gazes met closely now, I can now see the red ink of his eyes.

***

She flinched when I lightly tugged, frequently swallowing the urge to let out her cry. My hand lightly encloses around hers to keep her steady, minding the red irritation that colored around her palm. A cool jar of raw honey is carefully trickled over her hand, molten gold dripping lazily over the wound, using it to smear around her hand until the winces come to a slow stop.

Ruffled hair, red eyes and sniffles, she was still cold and still very frightened, reeling in from today's episode, tattered pieces of a wise queen.

I've faced death, faced my father, grew up in horrid trenches, lived camp, escaped man eating crocodiles, dodged bullets, and deep knife wounds. But this ... watching her tremble like this, watching her evident fear, was far more terrifying. The idea I'd one day I'd have too late frightened me more than I could ever imagine. I want to pull her close and never let go. The bullet was meant for Javier, but it could have grazed her, or she could have fallen off Serena and hit herself on the ground hard, my selfless urges left me mindless to the surroundings and I almost lost her again.

Fuck. Just Fuck.

Our hands a sticky mess of raw sweetness, "Forgive me." I breathed, over the low peeling sounds of the smearing gelatin glaze, on the verge of my own self-deprecation, tormented by the pointed ends of spears over the endless possibilities that might have happened if I didn't reach her in time.

Through her labored breaths, her shoulders drew with the wiggling lines of her lips, the pain of my finger was excruciating steadily becoming unbearable to bend, and now the knotted nerves of my back begun to ache.

"I should have been careful," I rasped tightly, "I should have told you to stop, I shou-"

"Please, Nasir." She inserted, occasionally jerking from my touch. I stilled, her voice again, that thrill and excitement. Siren shaped eyes dragged from the mahogany table, and they met mine. "D-don't blame yourself."

I pull her in closer, the pain of my ring finger shoots high, "Tiana, I'm to blame for this, I should have taken caution to-"

"We knew coming here wouldn't be like New Orleans," she says. "King Adonai is one of my father's greatest companions. I knew for a long time, how twisted this island truly was in the beginning."

Footprints stomp out the door, any words I wanted to say freezes at the tip of my tongue and her voice steadies, the sun had dissipated, and the obsidian sky now speckled with blinking stars.

"Javier is gone?" She finally says a loud for clarity.

A part of her already knowing the conclusion, as I nodded slowly. Our hands a sticky mess. A dim glow of three sparking candles set aside the single bed of my room.

I took a small glance towards the wide mattress and shook any impish thoughts. And she follows, catching on by the sudden shift of my body, dragging a glare from the bed and back at me. The silence between us probes me deeply, inviting the wrong ides to speak loudly in my mind.

"Speak to me." I croaked.

Her voice low, flowing so shyly, "What?"

I gesture for her other hand, "Speak to me please, stop this silent treatment between us I can't take this anymore."

Bits of guilt swirls in her orbs, swallowing what she intends to say. I won't have it, not this time, and not tonight. Underneath the stool of the chair my fingers curl and she is pulled to me with a slight scuff, a gush of hot breath releases and those big innocent eyes shimmer by the candle. Our lips nearing, and I adjusted a curl that ruffled forwards by the harsh tug.

"Say what you want." I beckoned. Her lips parting on cue as I spoke. She attempts to pull away but I mindlessly tightened my hold so she wouldn't get the chance, completely forgetting my own injury, a bone popped at the knuckle, and I deeply winced, retracting my arm quickly.

"Your hurt." she ushers, looking down to my cradled hand.

I don't get the time to properly cradle myself, when she gripped my wrist and lifted my hand to carefully observe the wobbling finger. "A dislocation." she says.

I chuckled, a bead of sweat dripped down to the bridge of my nose and my eyes suddenly begun to haze, watching her worried eyes through a blur.

She is on me in seconds, holding me by the shoulders, the firm grip on me turns iron, keeping me steady, "Your burning up Nasir." She stated.

I thought those mild burning waves were how much toxins my brain released, the mix of pleasure and a rapid beating heart. "I feel fine." I lied, stupid by the mixed signals my body was sending.

"No you're not." she huffs aligning me, "You're not. Because of me again. I couldn't be strong, I couldn't even pull the reins."

I hinted where this was going and weakly forced to speak, "Tiana-"

"I sat there and let Serena run off and pathetically clung onto her back, despite using the reins."

"Tiana-"

"And now, your hurt because of me, I can never forgive mys-"

I lunged forwards, her remaining words stolen by the fear, woodened chair fell back. Fever or not I will never be too sick when she needs me.

Her small back pinned onto the wall, ample breasts wiggle by the low impact, a gush of wind threatened the life of the small burning flame, and it flicks off before restoring.

"Enough." I growled, "I don't want to hear you speak about yourself this way, I never want to hear you call yourself less than and never tell yourself you're not strong."

She sniffled, brown eyes drowning with tears that have yet to fall, "But-

My hand moved up, and gently curled around her neck, no threat held but to only limit her words, an act that was out of pure instinct when I wanted to have my way with other women and assert a form of dominance. And it even worked on a high lady such as Tiana, who instantly parted those enticing lips, I caught a glimpse of our dancing shadows aside the wall and noted the proximity

"You exceed one of the greatest women I have ever met in my life, my Tiana. Every day I stand beside you and watch your growth, how quick you can fix a mistake, and the way you never bow and cower before no one. Would a weak link have survived half the things you went through? and still have those that envy her bow to her every whim?"

A large ball is dragged down her throat, warm beads of tears fall onto my hand as I rummaged back to the earlier days. The very beginning of it all, being the first to witness her practicing her role in advanced.

"Don't say such things, for me. You never knew it but, little do you know just how many times I witnessed you stare death in the eyes and send him away." I exhale thrillingly, ever so proud and the beads of tears flung from her eyes. "Many, would have declined, many would have fled, but not you." My tensed shoulders easing, words now synch in with emotions and blindly spew what chews at me.

"I owe you, my life. If you were the so-called weak queen, I would have never lived to see this day. To be here in this moment and live. Though I live the life of a useless prisoner, I get to be with you. Every breath that fills my lungs, every pound of my heart and the taste of food is because you have saved me more times than I could ever count. A debt no amount of money could ever be enough to repay you. I'm nothing but an empty shell when you're not near, a lost boy with no direction, but I proudly live as your shield."

"Nasir, Ple-" she choked.

"You knew Gunter could have done this himself, you knew the dark abyss you'd need to swim with heavy currents, but for your people and Nation, you endured it, and didn't think twice."

"I-I only agreed, because I knew you would be coming with me." she sniffled. Pulling me from the past. And my hand loosens. Teary eyes watching my every moves as the tears trail down her cheeks. "I knew you would be with me and protect me."

An unbearable heat simmers within my blood, and I took a step closer, hovering above her lips as I whispered, "And I will always be." A great fatigue overcomes me and her face begun to blur. My counted minutes reached its end, and body succumbs to an immense fatigue. "I - I have no soul ... without you." Blurring lights soon darkens around and color was little to none.

"Nasir!" I hear a distorted urgency, yet, far away, small fingers wrap around my wrist, cold palms shiver me. "You're on fire." The figure took a step forward and I almost tumbled back, a sharp throbbing pain shooting up my arm and my lungs felt like they were being clenched.

A scent of peach-strawberry fruit restoring the momentary faded colors and I see the eyes of Tiana, a flicking candle dancing in the reflection, my hand still around her throat and the drizzles of tears. So beautiful. Innocent. It doesn't scare me knowing how far I'd go and the deep trenches I'd plunge myself into, if it meant a chance I could call her mine, showing her off proudly to the world, and ripping apart any man that lingers their glare for more than three seconds. With little to no strength, my arm lazily falls, and it falls black as I dove forwards, with her calling my name fearfully in the distance.

***

"Tiana!" I roared, jerking myself upwards, from a swirling abyss. Complete and quiet darkness without her face, a horrid nightmare. With no regard as to where I was, trembles unleashed throughout my bones.

"Nasir, please clam down." Someone beckons frantically, "I'm right here, I'm here." She ushers. That voice, the soft caress, and that peach scent.

Light and color restores, and I stare up to the ceiling of vintage depictions of fallen angles, and thin a thin silk curtain breezing into the light breeze of the vent. Candled burned out, but the lights are dimmed deeply, mimicking the same ambience as if there were a dozen opened candles. Propped on my elbows before small slender hands lightly touch my shoulder and I am gently being nudged down.

"You're still weak, the fever is broken but these injuries are deep." Her voice says and it follows by the trickle of water, then a hot rag is placed over my temple.

"Tiana." I hoarse, my mouth ever so dry and my tongue numb.

"I'm right here."

I turned, and there she was, in full vision, right aside me. "What happened?"

"You passed out." she smiles.

I jumped in full alert to her; the hot towel falls between me as I crossed my legs to face her on the bed. "How long? were you hurt? were you scared? we-"

"Calm down," she giggles, but cleared a gravel, her eyes stern avoiding looking anywhere but mine, and cleared her throat. "Y-Your body works quick when it comes to attacking an infection." she says. Aside her is a jar of honey and a bowl of steaming water.

"I've become immune I guess." I shrugged.

Silence only immerses between us; I watch her every move dazedly and her eyes occasionally finding mine. Sounds of clopping horses is picked up on the outside and I turn to the window in question.

"I think they are searching for Javier." she whispers, "He hasn't shown back into the castle from what I've heard."

"He disappeared into the woods; he knows he'll be in trouble so he's hiding out."

Steadily she plunged the towel into the blue bowl, our gazes found each other again and a sharp line pull between us. Her skin radiant in the dim, a glowing moist of beauty shimmering under the ambience. But something was amiss, the eyes soar of glittering green.

"Where is your crown?" I questioned.

Her eyes slit open for only a second and it softened as fast as it came, "Probably fell when Serena trudged away."

I arched brow and uncrossed a leg, "I'll have someone retriev-"

"No." she stops me, hands of purity touching the tatted forearm. "I-I don't need it. At least not right now."

My neck crooked, "Are you sure, that crown is a big part of your identity." I try and tease.

"Yes. It'll find its way back to me. But right now, stay beside me, so I can heal you."

She had me at, stay beside me. I return to my seated position, Criss crossing my legs on the bed as she was kneeling aside me, the fabric of my navy shirt was still clutched in her hand, and I gazed down.

"I-I'm going to have to ... take this off." her voice a whisper, shyly fighting to be heard. But I heard it, I have always heard her when she called and as I lifted my free hand cautiously to work the first button, her hand flung up. "No. Any move can be detrimental right now. You're still weak from the injuries ... I'll do it."

Mild waves of shock dragged down my body, and my lips involuntarily parted. "Tiana-"

"Just please, lie down."

I don't even gather the time to retaliate, and she was already nudging my shoulders down. Keen eye contact and heavy breathing, a heated tension birthed between us until I am on my back. Delicate fingers found the top button as she leaned over, the weight of her breasts spilling over the dress and I licked my lips.

"I'm going to start." she whispers, a way of taming the flames sparking between us.

My head rests over the plush pillows as I nodded with consent. And at the first flick of the button becoming undone, our gaze met again, stars dazzling our orbs, a cloud mist cocooning us and I gripped the sheets to stabilize the urges.

Her eyes found the move, and paused to summon a deep breath, and worked her way down quivering along the entirety until nearing the belt, "Oh- Uh, slowly move your arms."

I comply, grunting to the sudden throbs in my nerves as I adjusted my arm, our chest brushed together as I leaned upwards, she gasped in alert at the proximity of our lips, but tore away to finish removing the dress shirt, until my chest was completely bare, her eyes took a quick sweep of my muscled torso and linger around the dark designs of the tattoos, dragging in awe around the two headed python that split on my sternum, large body coiling at my torso and the single pointed end dipped down the waistline of my slacks. And now the Encryptions and biblical beasts down my arms, those adorned at the back of my hands and fingers, some hidden under rings, and across my neck.

I'm taken back to the time she saw me in the shower, and now up close I was a new sight to behold, never before seen, to display such designs to Royalty was forbidden, but then again I finger fucked her on a horse and spilled in her mouth behind a curtain.

I lost myself within her glare and watched her tongue drag over her lips before capturing the flesh between her teeth.

"You like what you see?" I whispered lowly.

She startles, focusing those eyes back to mine, seeing the swirl of desire that swims in my pupils and parted those fleshy lips when they dragged to mine. Multiple harsh footsteps dash down the hall, and she jumped to the stomps.

"Don't look at that. Look at me. I won't let anything touch you."

A soft smile tugs her lips as she looked back at me and says, "I know. I know you will, I have always known how far you'll go to protect me. That's why when I saw you on the horse right behind me, I knew it would all be alright."

Loud drums beat away, nearly a deafening beat in my canal. "I'm nothing without you."

"And I'm whole with you."

I captured her hand mid-way as she reached outwards, eliciting a small squeak by the sudden act, my fingers burn, I burn inside, and I accidentally gripped over her own injury with a firm clasp. "I'm sorry." I released moving down to her wrist instead.

Her face crinkled in pain, "Its ok."

"Let me heal you." I pull the jar of honey.

"No, we still need to get your injuries healed an-"

"How is a provider supposed to help, when she herself needed healing?"

Liquid nectar pools over her hand, raw gold drizzling down like syrup over the bucket of steaming liquid and I massage the inflammation. Calloused hands gentle but firm as I deeply rub, minding the slight winces and jerk of her palm.

"Why did you do that?" I heard. And looked up.

I slow my pace, "What?"

"What you did on the horse. Why did you that?"

Hinting her words, the rubs gradually slowed. Eventually this conversation would come to play, and I would not stray. "Because I wanted to."

Her face hardens, "What?"

I scooted in, aligning my back. "Because I wanted to."

"Adonai could have seen you or anyone else for that matter an-"

"It doesn't matter, nothing ever matters when I am close to you, nothing makes sense when you're nearby. All I can think of when your close to me is how I can make you feel good, or how I can take the stress off your shoulders since the world we live in forbids us from being together."

"Nasi-"

"Let me finish it. Let me speak these out loud, I can't bottle them in anymore Tiana, it hurts inside not being able to tell you how I feel."

"How do you feel?"

"Like I am suffocating. Stuffed in a box with no holes to breath when I go another day and can't hold your hand." Our hands entangle with the stick of the honey, raw and warm. "I want you Tiana, I can't hide the feelings anymore," Mindlessly I lifted our hands together until it comes to both our view.

The glaze of honey trickle down her forearm, and my breathing accelerated. She tenses at my touch.

"What are you doing?" she whispers.

But it was already too late, I saw only desire, and my tongue slips from my lips and dragged up the forearm, gathering the raw honey on my tastebuds.

"Nasir" she whines, my lip on her skin rumbles the back of my throat. "Please."

I moaned, her skin covered with viscous richness, a similarity of the one that drips between her legs, and I closed my eyes absorbing every taste and feel within, working up to the palm where my tongue glides across the palm. Her rapid pulse deepening when I inserted her whole small finger into my mouth.

"Nas-Nasir." She says again in an airy breath. "St-stop." her breathing labored and faint sniffles as she tries to tug away.

Two fingers licked clean, and now I dragged towards the quivering middle, the raw taste exquisite, my way of healing and to scratch only the surface of this longing and dip my lip down to the knuckle.

"STOP!"

I'm shook awake, a bead of honey trickles down the corner of my lip as I peer up to an addled Tiana. Flickering tear duct glands slip down her cheeks as she sobbed. "Let me go."

"Tiana-" I released her hand, just as she jerked it away from my grasp, cradling the back. "Forgive me, I don' know what got into me I-"

"Goodnight Nasir." she sniffles. Rounding off the bed until both feet touch the ground. Stoically I keep my eyes at the dent of the sheets of where she once kneeled, the ghost of her knees still evident as I listened to her pattering feet until she is out the door.