"Well then..." Cinere spun on her heel to face a large portrait situated in a blank section of the wall. No tables or trinkets were set out in front of it, and the gold frame had no plaque. The painting depicted a middle-aged man, cloaked in deep red and gold. A simple crown was placed on his head; the emblem of the sun was carved into the flat surface of the front of it. He stood in the painting, staring calmly ahead. Unlike Aiko, his skin was pale and his hair was raven black.

A different family, Felix told himself. Another family ruled before Aiko's.

Cinere slipped her ring from her pointer finger. Her hand slid along the rim of the frame, her lips pursed in a frown. She stopped at the bottom right-hand corner and inserted the ring into a round dip in the frame. The round, flat top of the ring slid in perfectly with a click. Cinere turned the ring until a lock clicked behind the frame.

The portrait swung open like a door, revealing yet another secret staircase, only this one led down, deeper into the castle. Felix chuckled a little to himself as he turned to Cinere.

"How many secret stairways do you have in this palace?" he asked. It was partially personal curiosity, and partially his assassin's intuition. Furvus's castle had many hidden passageways and an entire underground collection of tunnels, designed to protect the royal family as they attempted to escape from the palace should it fall under attack.

Slipping her ring back on her finger, Cinere shrugged. A slight smile curled the corners of her lips. "This is the last one you'll be forced to see, I promise."

"I hope so. I have a fear of stairs, you know."

"If that were true, why would you invite me to dance with you in the place of your fear?" Her hazel eyes glittered with laughter, furthering that childlike innocence of her blank.

His heart fluttered at the memory. It was only a few minutes ago, and yet it felt like an eternity had passed. The warmth of her hand in his, the lightness in his steps as he spun around her, the feeling of being momentarily free when he was with her. His gaze fell on her bracelet clinging tightly to his wrist, and his breath hitched. "I don't know. Perhaps I... let myself slip a little bit."

Cinere glanced away, twisting her ring. Once again, the slight flush had crept into her cheeks. "Well... let's get back on track. To the Core?"

"To the Core."

Taking in a deep breath, she descended the stairs first. The shadows quickly swallowed her figure as she stepped down into the darkness; the familiar tap of her shoes against the stone returned once again to guide him. He waited a handful of seconds before venturing in after her.

A steady flow of warmth greeted him the moment he stepped into the passage; it was reminiscent of the heat that radiated off the fire in the hearth. In the winter, his master would sit beside the fire while he wrote. Felix would kneel by the fire, staring into the flames, entranced by the flickering dance. The warmth that lingered in the passageway, growing thicker the farther down he went, carried the same nostalgic feeling as his memories. It was pleasant and safe.

Yet he found himself shrinking back from it. Each step became more of a chore. His legs grew heavy, and his chest ached painfully. When he stared down the length of the stairs, past Cinere toward the exit, the air shimmered with the haze of magic.

It wasn't long before the staircase opened up in a large, stone room. As if it was left unfinished, the floor was made of packed dirt and sand. It scraped the soles of his shoes as he stepped down from the last stone step. The walls rose up high enough that the ceiling was concealed in shadows.

At the center of the room, a massive egg-like structure sat, held up by black vines that crisscrossed over the glowing, amber surface. It pulsed with the faint hum of a heartbeat, sending out waves of that dizzying, nostalgic heat. So much like the comfort of the hearth, yet so alien at the same time.

"Is this... the Core?" He stepped toward it cautiously. The closer he got to it, the more his chest tightened, pulled painfully toward the Core even though something in the back of his mind was telling him to stay away.

"Yes," Cinere said. "This is the Ember Core."

As he took another step, her hand closed around his cuffed wrist and tugged him back. His gaze landed on hers and she shook her head firmly, pointing to the ground around the Core. Following her gesture, he finally took in the scorch marks that blackened the dirt near the Core. They left no sharp scent, but the dark stain was still glaringly obvious.

"Remember that the Core will reject anyone it doesn't deem worthy. You got in by chance last time, but I don't know that it will allow repeated visits."

"Right." Felix lifted his wrist, tracing the patterns on the cuff with his gaze. Confusion twisted his gut. "If I have clearance to be here, why didn't you walk me through the front door?"

Cinere straightened, her fingers curling into fists at her sides. "Regent Ameris doesn't like you," she said. "Also it was... marginally faster to take this route."

Frowning, Felix reached for the red book she had given him and pulled it out. Its gold embellishments sparkled in the faint, amber light, and the red of the cover seemed to have deepened. He leafed through its pages, scanning the illustrations and foreign words again. "What did you want to show me?"

"It's more that there's something I wanted to tell you." She stepped forward, brushing her fingers across the backs of his hands. He jolted and lowered the book to meet her gaze. Sliding her fingers between his, she guided him closer to the Core. The book fell out of his hands, forgotten as he followed her without hesitation.

Dirt scuffed the bottom of his boot as he came to a stop, facing her with both hands laced with hers. She stood close enough that he caught the faint scent of her perfume, and he could feel the warmth of her body.

"Cinere—"

"Actually I..." She paused for a moment, turning her gaze to the ground. Her shoulders drooped as she sighed. Her hands slipped from his as she wrapped her arms around herself. It took a moment before she lifted her face to meet his eye again, but when she did, there was no evidence of her blank. Only raw, honest emotion swirling in the depths of her eyes.

"I'm Princess Aiko," she said.

Time seemed to stop. Felix's body tensed and his fingers went cold. Something clicked in his mind, flooding him with a sudden sense of urgency. Nothing else mattered. The world blurred around him as he focused solely on Cinere—no, Aiko—in front of him. Slowly, he reached for the dagger he kept at his side.

"Is that so?"

Ice froze over the swirling mix of confusion and betrayal in his mind. His fingers closed around the hilt of the dagger. He didn't have time to puzzle things out. It didn't matter. She was right there. He had a job to do.

He would kill her right now, stain the ground and the Core with her blood, and finally be free. That was what he came to do. That was what he was ordered to do.

Nodding, she smiled ever so slightly—forcing that innocence to the forefront of her blank again. "I figured... you should know. Also, after seeing the portrait, it was only a matter of time before you put the pieces together. I would rather be the one to tell you." Her gaze searched his face, the flame burning strong in the depths of her hazel eyes. "I think I like you, Kou."

Felix desperately scrounged for the right words, struggling to keep up with the moment. If he played his cards right, this could work to his advantage. The only problem was that he wasn't entirely sure what cards he had. He moved a little closer, forcing a light chuckle. "That came out of nowhere."

"You're... not upset?"

"No, of course not. I mean, I did come here to meet Aiko, right?" With one hand, he tipped her head back ever so slightly, moving closer to meet her. "Maybe I like you, too."

A soft gasp left her lips, and the fire in her eyes flickered slightly. She leaned in expectantly, her eyes fluttering shut. Rather than fight her lead, he simply followed it. His mind was reeling, struggling to grasp the shifting sands of the moment. It was easier to follow her. Let her do what she wanted until the time was right.

And when the moment came for him to strike, he would not hesitate.

Cinere is Aiko. Aiko is Cinere. The scarred portrait had a face now, and the face was Cinere's.

Cinere is Aiko.

His free hand grabbed the hilt of his knife, slowly drawing it free from the sheath. It was nearly silent—or perhaps he simply couldn't hear it over the roaring in his ears.

His heart thudded wildly in his chest. Maybe it was from the heat that radiated off the Core, or maybe it was the fact that her lips were mere inches from his own, but his entire body prickled unease. He barely even dared to breathe, simply guiding her closer as the knife left the comfort of his sheath. Her breath tickled his face. Her hand slid around his shoulders.

The blade slipped free easily, and he raised it high, poised for a perfect strike right through her back. It was so simple. All he had to do was plunge it straight through her flesh. Aiko would be dead, and he would be free.

And yet, his hand remained frozen. Cinere was never supposed to be anything more than a tool, and Aiko was never supposed to be more than a figure in the distance.

So why were they the same person, and why could he not see past that memory of how fragile she was beneath her blank? What he saw that day in the forest was the true Aiko—it was her soul, and it was beautiful.

"I want to do what's right and set that person free."

His body stiffened, his fingers curling so tightly around the hilt that he could feel the leather straps biting into his palms.

I... can't do it.

His hold on the knife slackened and he pulled away slightly. At the slight movement from him, Aiko's eyes opened again, searching his face in bewilderment. Concern laced through her gaze, but it quickly fell away as she glanced up and caught sight of the knife in his hands. The moment she put the pieces together, she shoved him away with a gasp.

"Mae!" she called out, her voice echoing in the open room.

"No, wait—"

Before he could get the argument out, Mae appeared in a flash of light at Aiko's side. With a roar, he lunged for Felix. His shape changed midair, turning him from a harmless house cat to a large, white, tiger-like cat. Two massive paws landed on Felix's shoulders, throwing him against the dirt and pinning him there. The impact knocked the wind from his lungs, and the knife slipped from his grasp. Mae snarled down at him, baring his massive fangs. His blue eyes glowed in the dim light; they almost seemed to pierce through Felix's soul.

Gritting his teeth, he fumbled for the knife, stretching his arm as far as he could with Mae's weight crushing his shoulders. His fingers scraped the dirt, their tips just barely brushing the hilt.

Aiko kicked the knife away and planted her foot firmly down on his wrist. Pain shot through his arm and drew out a sharp gasp.

"Cin—Aiko, please," he begged, wincing at the way his voice scraped the back of his throat, pitiful and dry as the words tumbled from his lips. Desperately, he searched for some kind of excuse. The heat of the Core was dizzying, and Mae's snarling in his ear didn't help.

But what twisted his heart the most was the fiery anger burning in her dark eyes. She glared daggers down at him, pressing down harder on his wrist until he feared the bone might snap beneath her boot. He bit down on the cry that built up in his throat.

"Please," he whispered. "Let me explain."

Rather than the hurt he expected to see, a twisted smile found its way to her face. She laughed bitterly, standing up straighter and tipping her head to the side. "Ameris was right," she said. "You really did come here to kill me."

Nothing relieves exam stress like an almost kiss scene and a questionable confession. At this point, AtA has hit 33k words and I've wandered a bit from my outline because this scene was way better than the original plan. I'm relishing the first draft-iness but also making notes for myself for the next draft... but when am I not doing that?

Mae: *turns into a big cat to try to kill Felix*

Felix: Okay but what is Aiko thinking right now :(

See you in the next update!