The Scepter of Marahuyo

Chapter 040

“Are you ready?” Aaron asks as we stand in front of the Quad’s residence where the farewell party will happen. 

I nod and take Aaron’s outstretched hand. “Does the dress really fit me?”

I am wearing an off-shoulder light blue dress with white leaf trimmings and is as long as my robe. Its shoulder sleeves are a bit loose, but enough to cover parts of my arms. The dress also has trailing white flowers that run all around my chest, back and skirt. To complete the ensemble, Martha lends me a bracelet and necklace in a flower design.

“Perfectly. As if the dress is made for you.”

I scowl. “We are not in a romance novel. There’s no way I could have fit into a dress like that when I just borrowed it.”

Aaron pulls me closer, and I draw breath when our face is just inches apart. He says nothing and holds my stare for a long while. His hand cups the back of my waist, and when he leans in. I close my eyes, only to feel a peck on my cheeks.

I open my eyes. Aaron’s no longer holding my waist, but is still looking at me. Then he touches my hair and brings it to his nose. 

“You smell good.”

My heart thumps as I remember a scene in Olivia’s romance book which she forces me to study, or rather, read. But, by any chance, did he also browse through it? How can he be a blundering fool but glib once in a while?

I look at Aaron from top to bottom, looking for something to praise him for. He’s good to look at as always, but cleaner this time. But that’s not something I praise someone for unless it backfires. More than me, his only formal clothes—as he shared—fit him like a glove. His body is accentuated more than ever, and I’m sure Martha will drool over him if he sees him. 

Maybe I don’t need to return the favour of praising him. I look up, and his expectant face greets me. “Then? What do you think?”

I turn my head away. “You look healthy.”

He laughs. 

“What?!” I ask.

“You still don’t know how to compliment someone,” he says.

“What’s wrong with it? Health is a blessing,” I say while looking daggers at him.

“Yeah, yeah,” he agrees and massages the center of my brows. I relax at his touch, and his hands slide down to my hands. “We should enter before I act on the idea of taking you far away from here.”

“Somehow, I think I’ll like that.”

He lets go of me and says, “You don’t exactly know what I have in mind.”

I smile because I have an inkling of what it is. Instead of voicing it out, we enter the room. Inside is a kind of quiet chaos. Servers are running around. Food is in abundance, with a plethora of choices. Some of which, I know, are Caltra dishes because Aaron had been cooking it for me. There are also a lot of influential people, dignitaries from both Benia and Caltra.

Then someone stands beside me and asks, “Done taking it in?”

I look at him. “Ethan!” I say, and for the first time, I’m actually relieved to see his familiar face.

He answers my enthusiasm with a, “I thought the two of you flirting won’t end.”

My cheeks heat up.

“That’s a better look on you!” He raises his glass to me and says, “Then I should leave you in this feast of networking.”

I watch him as one of the servers ushers us into one of the tables. They might have invited Ethan because of his popularity. As in the previous timeline, he is still the most popular graduating mage in Marahuyo. 

“Here, ma’am,” the server says, and we sit down together with Martha and her friends. Aaron is sitting between us.

“First time you attend. What changed?” one of the men at the same table asks, as if they don’t see me.

“Probably, Master Axel. Even I am excited about this party so I can talk to him.”

“That guy’s too busy. See? Despite being the guest of honour, he’s not yet here.”

“‘That guy’? You should show some respect!”

“Why? He’s almost the same age as us.”

“Same age. Not the same achievement.”

I pull on Aaron’s shirt and point at his friends. He gets what I mean and says, “By the way, guys, this is Holly, a Marahuyo mage.”

“Hi,” I say.

“About to get your designation?” One of the girls asks.

I nod.

“Which one? Their designation as the sluts of the town?”

“Hey!” Martha scolds. “They are my guests.”

“What’s wrong with it? They are really the sluts in town. Sixteen years old and had multiple partners already?”

Aaron reaches for my hand and presses it. I answer in kind. 

I don’t know what should be the correct way to respond to this. It never happened to my previous timeline. Besides, even if it also happened before, I don’t think I will need to use it against them. Rather, I no longer feel as much anger about what happened to me during that Scepter selection when I died. It was a few years ago. My grief for Master Orson’s death might have overpowered it.

“So when are you two coming together?”

I look at the girl. She’s looking over at Aaron, but instead of me, she’s looking at Martha.

“I told you, we’re not like that,” Martha answers, but I can see the apparent reddening in her cheeks.

“Why? You two had been friends for years.”

“And there’s a lot that happened already. What’s only missing is the label.”

“Before someone gets in between,” the girl chips in. 

I frown. Martha likes Aaron. Is that the reason I am invited? To make it seem as if I am stealing Aaron from her? I smile. She’s good. I never thought there was something rotten hidden underneath that pristine look and personality.

“I attend this celebration to tell you I am with Holly,” comes Aaron’s reply.

Everyone at the table keeps silent, and Martha is staring at Aaron’s poker face.

“You’re just saying that. You haven’t been with the girl for a long time. Stop using the mage. Besides, you can’t trust these privileged people.”

I watch Aaron’s expression change into that of anger. My smile widens. These people are looking down on mages. Let’s see who’s using who. I reach up to Aaron’s face, sit down on his lap and wind my arms around his neck. I open my mouth and give him a long kiss. 

After a while, I part our lips, but Aaron looks stunned. I smile as if coming back to the present, but with only the two of us in it, his fingers twirl around my hair, locking me into place.

“You’re not gonna escape me this time,” he says and pulls me in for another round.

The people at our table are silent, and I wonder what’s running into their head? That I am one of those hated sluts? A mage that’s going to steal their friend’s man? But when Aaron’s tongue enters my mouth, I start to not care, save for the feel of him in my arms. And when I feel his pull on my hair as he deepens the kiss, I think about how I shouldn’t have kept my hair loose. 

To be continued…