The moment I reached them, Celeste grinned.
"You're blushing," she observed. "Again."
"Shut up," I muttered.
"He gave you a black rose hidden under an illusion," Elara said, her eyes wide. "That's incredible."
"Yes," I said. "He did."
"That's... that's incredibly romantic," Elara said. "And strategic. He's showing you that he has skills. That he's worth your attention."
My little pet understands strategy.
I'm so PROUD.
"I KNOW," I said. "I'm not an idiot."
"No," Celeste agreed. "But you ARE smitten. And that makes you vulnerable."
Vulnerable.
I'm not VULNERABLE.
I'm just... strategically interested.
There's a DIFFERENCE.
"He's dangerous," Celeste said, her tone more serious. "More dangerous than Aldric. Aldric is predictable. Riku is... not. He's playing a game, and I don't think we know all the rules yet."
"If you want," Celeste added, her voice dropping lower, "I know some techniques. Protective ones. The kind that work particularly well against foreign princes who think they can seduce their way into your secrets."
Is she offering to—
"Are you offering to teach me curses?" I asked.
"Only if you're interested," Celeste said. "Though I prefer to call them 'insurance policies.'"
She's right.
She's absolutely right.
Riku is DANGEROUS.
But that's what makes him INTERESTING.
That's what makes him WORTH pursuing.
"I can handle him," I said.
"Can you?" Celeste asked. "Because from where I'm standing, he's handling YOU pretty well."
I hate her.
I hate her SO MUCH.
Elara looked between us, then said softly, "I think it's romantic. A black rose hidden under an illusion. It's like... a secret. Something only certain people can see."
The princess is defending me.
My little pet is DEFENDING me.
This is both touching and humiliating.
"Exactly," I said. "Some things are worth hiding. Some things are worth revealing only to those who can truly appreciate them."
"Like dark magic," Elara said.
"Like dark magic," I agreed.
We stood together, the three of us, watching the crowd.
This is what I needed.
Allies. Friends. People who UNDERSTAND.
People who won't betray me for being what I am.
And my brilliant little pet learning how to navigate this world.
Across the room, I saw Aldric still watching us, his expression cold and calculating.
Keep watching, Prince.
Keep seeing your sister choose us.
Keep realizing that you're LOSING.
And near the far wall, I saw Riku, his amber eyes fixed on me, that slight smile on his lips.
He's watching too.
He's ALWAYS watching.
This is getting complicated.
This is getting dangerous.
And I fucking LOVE it.
Later that night, back in my room, I placed the black rose in a vase on my windowsill.
One black rose.
One deliberate move.
One opening move in a game I didn't know I was playing.
Nyx watched me from the bed, his tongue flicking out thoughtfully.
"You're keeping it," he observed.
"It's a beautiful rose," I said. "Why wouldn't I keep it?"
"Because it's a GIFT," Nyx said. "From a foreign prince who's clearly interested in you. And you're keeping it like it MEANS something."
It DOES mean something.
It means he sees me.
It means he UNDERSTANDS me.
It means he's not afraid of what I am.
"It's just a rose," I said.
"It's a BLACK rose hidden under an ILLUSION," Nyx corrected. "It's a demonstration of power. It's a MESSAGE. And you're keeping it."
Fine.
FINE.
I'm keeping it because it means something.
Because HE means something.
Because for the first time since I reincarnated, someone is looking at me and seeing EXACTLY what I am.
And they're not running away.
"He's dangerous," I said.
"So are you," Nyx replied. "That's probably why he's interested."
Probably.
I looked at the black rose on my windowsill, at the way it seemed to absorb the moonlight rather than reflect it.
This is going to be LEGENDARY.
Or a complete DISASTER.
Probably both.
But mostly legendary.
Later that night, back in my room, I placed the black rose in a vase on my windowsill.
One black rose.
One deliberate move.
One opening move in a game I didn't know I was playing.
Nyx watched me from the bed, his tongue flicking out thoughtfully.
"You're keeping it," he observed.
"Because they're a GIFT," Nyx said. "From a foreign prince who's clearly interested in you. And you're keeping them like they MEAN something."
"They're a beautiful rose," I said. "Why wouldn't I keep it?"
They DO mean something.
They mean he sees me.
They mean he UNDERSTANDS me.
They mean he's not afraid of what I am.
"They're just roses," I said.
"They're BLACK roses hidden under ILLUSIONS," Nyx corrected. "They're demonstrations of power. They're MESSAGES. And you're keeping them."
Fine.
FINE.
I'm keeping it because it means something.
Because HE means something.
Because for the first time since I reincarnated, someone is looking at me and seeing EXACTLY what I am.
And they're not running away.
"He's dangerous," I said.
"So are you," Nyx pointed out. "Maybe that's why you like him."
Maybe.
Maybe that's exactly why.
I looked at the black rose, at its perfect dark petals, at the way it seemed to absorb the light around it.
Hidden depths.
Dangerous beauty.
The kind of thing most people are too afraid to appreciate.
That's what he said.
That's what he sees in me.
And then the room tilted.
Wait.
What?
I blinked, trying to focus, but everything was suddenly... blurry. The edges of my vision were going dark.
What the FUCK?
What's happening?
My hand reached out to steady myself against the vanity, but my fingers felt numb. Distant. Like they belonged to someone else.
No.
No no no NO.
The rose slipped from my other hand, falling to the floor in slow motion.
POISON.
It was POISONED.
The rose was POISONED and I touched it and—
"Isabel?" Nyx's voice sounded far away. "Isabel, what's wrong?"
Everything's spinning.
The room is SPINNING.
I can't—I can't focus—
I tried to take a step toward the bed, but my legs weren't working right. My knees buckled.
FUCK.
FUCK FUCK FUCK.
I'm going to DIE.
Again.
I survived Truck-kun just to get POISONED by a fucking FLOWER?
I swayed, my hand grasping at empty air, trying to catch myself on something—anything—but there was nothing there.
Riku.
Did Riku poison me?
Was this a trap?
Was he—
My vision went completely black at the edges, tunneling down to a single point of light.
No.
Not like this.
I was supposed to be LEGENDARY.
I was supposed to—
The floor rushed up to meet me.
And then there was nothing.
Nothing at all.