Ivelis gasped. She closed her eyes and flung out her magic.

One breath. Two breaths.

Her eyes opened slightly to see Thael soaking wet and choking, within his grasp was a quill. For whatever reason, she thought it was going to be a dagger. However, much to her surprise it was just a quill. Decorated yes but, a simple quill.

Oh.

She naturally drew her magic back and began stuttering her apology. He was still seated in the wet chair gasping for air, eyes wide and startled. Her legs started to move towards him.

She had tried to drown him. Hell she-

"Oh gods, I- I- I am terri-"

But then she caught herself. He was a human. If anything, he deserved it.

Surveying the man shivering like a child in a blizzard, a small amount of satisfaction filled the corners of her mind. Yet, in the end common sense seemed to prevail which resulted in deep thoughts of the matter at hand. Then, she realised that deep down she knew he also deserved mercy.

She hesitated.

For a short second, there was a light blush on her fine cheekbones and then the cold expression returned once more. She crossed her hands while muttering for him to sit on another chair. Thael moved to a stool near the fireplace, shaking as he sat down.

"A warning would have been great," started Ivelis.

"I didn't know that feathers scared you. My mistake."

Scared of feathers? She fumed.

"You bastard-"

All of a sudden, Thael's hand shot out. He shoved the feather into her face and told her to press its tip against the piece of parchment.

She snatched it just as quick.

Ivelis was suspicious but made no further attempt to verbally brawl with the man. Doing what she was told, the quill glimmered in her hand as she pressed it against the letter. There were traces of black swirls gently moving on the silver feather. The movement was slow and loose like oil on water, and all the while pulsing with a gentle glow that captivated her eyes.

The nebulous light seemed to radiate brighter every passing second, it filled the room with warmth so alluring and soothing, Ivelis almost fell asleep.

He however, was too busy trying to keep warm to notice.

"I take it that you know the silver envelope itself is already a critical message. It is in my knowledge that everything inside the letter is confidential and should only be read by you."

The silent moment she offered was evidently of admiration.

He took it as a sign for him to continue. Thael leaned closer to the crackling fire and took a deep breath. "That type of quill is rarely crafted and they have given one to you as an offering. Furthermore, this is the only way of making the text appear."

"It's called a Nuru," he added.

"Nuru," she absentmindedly repeated. Too amazed to not agree.

The Nuru continued to glow brighter as she held it firmly against the paper, then just as he said, letters began to appear. As letter after letter floated to life, words began taking form followed by sentences.

Magnificent. Truly magnificent.

The light slowly died down after lines of bold scrawlings could be seen on the paper. Ivelis scanned it with efficient speed, the trained face yielded no clue of what was written to her. The man remained seated near the fireplace, enjoying the delicious warmth and all the while she read the letter over and over again.

She sighed through her nose.

"This is some real shi- I mean, trouble they have here. And an insult as a gift? Great welcoming from a court of pricks. I hope the other gifts are better." She averted her eyes to him. Offended but impressed. Amused even.

"How they got you to send this letter is a puzzle I cannot solve."

A regaled gaze was reflected in her eyes like moonlight on the sea. At that moment, she expected him to start begging for his life or something worse.

But his reaction was rather... Dull.

Thael's eyebrows knotted. His face was scrunched up in a visible state of confusion. Not groveling.

"Surely, you must know. Were you not granted with any details of this supposedly important mission they sent you on?" she asked.

"The Grand Court asked for you assistance, did they not?"

Ivelis was now just as confused as he was.

"Yes, in some way they did. But do you know of the 6 offerings that they planned to compensate me with?" she inquired further.

"I do. The feather is the first one, isn't it? I was not informed of other objects. Why?"

She blinked. Once. Twice.

Utterly astounded.

"What?" he asked again.

Cunts. Unfair son of-

"Thael, you are the second offering. Did you know that?"

There was a sense of disbelief that hung heavily in the air.

A human. As an offering. Both had blanched faces, sitting utterly still.

She was sure that her usual rose bique skin was a shade lighter, there was a sick feeling that clung to her stomach. She hated humans, yes. But for them to send one as an offering? It was outrageous and utterly sadistic. Even if her opinion of human beings were gloom-ridden, there are standards that she had lived up to. She was not a beast that satisfies hunger using humans.

What a mockery. Not only to her but the way the court functioned.

"I am not a sex slave."

Her eyes almost bulged out. "What?"

"I came here as an envoy not an object. A person for negotiation, not for fu-"

Ivelis held up her hand.

"That's not the intention, Thael."

As awareness dawned on him, embarrassment stained his cheeks a deep red. He clamped his mouth shut almost immediately and beckoned her to go on. She would have laughed had the situation not been so grave.

"Like an offering for a ritual, you are a sacrifice. They sent you here as a sacrfice so that I would sign their agreement. Not sex slave. Sacrifice."

"Why?"

"You don't know anything, do you, Thael?"

His face looked addled and eager to know the truth. There was a very tiny part of her that felt a slither of pity for the man. He did not ask for any of this nor did he seem to be warned prior to their meeting. Ivelis perfectly understood why a creature she hated so much was one of the gifts. A human as a sacrificial being would be threatening her outright, and The Grand Court it seemed understood it just as well as she did.

Damn them. Damn her.

"Thael, I hate humans. My last encounter with humans... It did not go well. And obviously The Grand Council knows that. There's a line here that says they thought- No, scratch that. They knew you were the best candidate," she continued.

Whether he noticed her trembling fingers or not, she didn't know.

He blanched.

"But don't worry, I'll make yours quick and easy. Not the painful drowning," she added.

He started to reach for his sword and then Ivelis laughed.

"Fool."

"What?"

"An utter fool you are, Thael."

Oh, she was having fun.

Staring at the man before her, she took it upon herself to thoroughly study his features. Ivelis leaned slightly forward and set her piercing gaze on him.

"Let's see how much of a human you really are," she mumbled.

Thick ebony black curls fell just above his eyebrows, one nearly touching a faint scar near the edge of his left eye. It was almost impossible to see but she could tell it was not new. And whoever gave it to him, unintentionally missed.

The air in the room shifted and he gulped.

Ivelis was like a predator stalking her prey. Focused. Observant. Those wine coloured eyes were ever so accurate and keen, like an arrow seeking it's target.

Tilting her head to the side, the smoky platinum hair she tied into a braid followed suit as she continued the voiceless interrogation. Her sight traced the light freckles showered across prominent cheekbones, few of which were stuck to his upturned nose.

As Thael's cool golden skin gleamed like honey near the fire, his abyss like eyes attracted hers, which she found to have reflected her own. In them, she could distinctively make out the azure and pale silver rings she had since birth. There was no doubt she had beautiful eyes but looking at his, she felt that her eyes would pale in comparison.

Thael owned an onyx pair which glistened like polished marble, and the colours that circled it... Shades of copper and emerald green so fine, it nearly had her jaw dropping to the floor.

He might be human but his eyes-

To her, those eyes were otherworldly. Like a stolen masterpiece from a different realm.

They were so mesmerical she wanted to ask where he got them. Almost at least.

Oh, she was not doing that.

Absolutely not.

She tugged at the leash of self-control knotted around her heart and mind. The woman reigned in emotions that threatened to spill. It was just colours, why was she being so dramatic?

Her plump lips scowled but curved into a smirk when Ivelis registered his uneasiness.

He squirmed under her stare.

"I will not kill you, Thael Edver. Though you can take this warning as a token of mercy. Should you return to whatever place it is you come from, you have my absolute word that they will fulfill what they wanted me to themselves."

"How do you know that?"

She was getting tired of his questions but answered anyway.

"Because to make yourself a hero, is to paint your enemies as monsters. They need me as an ally but know that they aren't exactly in my favour. Hence, they will force me to walk to their side," she breathed.

Experience sure brought wisdom.

There was a haunting that seemed to fog up her eyes so much, they started to tear up. She could have sworn she heard those tears whisper something, begging to be let out. Suddenly, it was her turn to find interest in the bookshelves.

She looked away.

"Enemy? Why are yo-"

"Can you stop asking so many questions? Hell, you're worse than normal people. At least they only scream," she snapped.

Thael gave a deadpanned look.

"Calm down. It was a joke," she said, grinning slightly.

A sigh was his only response. Although she was having fun, her heavy heart knew that Ivelis could only wish it was a joke.

She could hear Gianne entering the library when he blurted out something that left her flabbergasted.

"Can I stay here?”