34. Aurelio
“MINA! MINA!” I shriek.
She’s not waking up. The wound in her head looks deep, like she’s been struck with a sword. I rip off my shirt and tie it around her head, but it’s not enough to stem the blood-flow. My white shirt is scarlet within seconds.
“SOMEONE CALL A MEDIC!” I order.
Just then, there’s a horrific scream from the arena. I look over my shoulder, and my heart skips a beat to see Alessia having a mental breakdown beside her sister. Daelia is frozen while Alessia pounds her fists into the ground, screaming bloody murder while she convulses with uncontrollable sobs.
“My King, take Mina!” I shout.
Alessia’s father nods, replacing me at Mina’s side. I fly down the stadium and jump straight over the arena wall, running to Alessia. She’s broken her knuckles from pounding them into the ground by now.
“Alessia, stop! Help is on the way!” I shout.
“GET AWAY FROM ME!”
She swings wildly at me. My heart leaps into my throat as I narrowly avoid being punched in the face. Reacting on pure instinct, I seize her hands, pin them behind her, and hold her to my chest.
“Alessia! Get a hold of yourself!” I command.
“NO! UNHAND ME—!”
“Alessia! You’re in public! Think of your reputation!” I hiss into her ear.
Alessia’s eyes snap open. Her face goes ghostly white as she realizes all eyes are on her. Trembling violently, she bows her head in shame, sobbing hysterically. I pull her into my chest, and she falls into me, losing all strength to hold herself up.
“Alessia—I—” Daelia starts.
I whip around to glare at her. “Don’t touch her! Do you realize what you’ve done? Magic is against tournament rules for a reason!”
Daelia’s eyes fly wide. “But I didn’t—I didn’t mean to—”
“It doesn’t matter what your intentions were. What matters is what you’ve done. And you’ve done enough,” I snarl.
Daelia bows her head solemnly, tears spilling down her face. “I’m sorry. At least let me heal her.”
“DON’T YOU TOUCH—!” Alessia starts.
I clap a hand over her mouth, looking at Daelia. “Go ahead. Correct your mistake the best you can. You know the spell you used, after all.”
Daelia nods and sprints up the stands, tending to Mina as soon as she arrives. I glance down at Alessia, who’s glaring daggers at me.
“Why would you let her anywhere near Mina?” she growls.
“She’s the best chance we have at healing her quickly. There’s no better healer in the kingdom; her magic is renowned.”
Alessia looks away from me. “Fine. You have a point. Take me to Mina, then.”
I pick her up and set her on her feet. Holding out my arm, Alessia takes it as she stumbles to the arena exit and we push our way up the stairs to the royal viewing box. Once we arrive, I notice the green hue of Daelia’s magic shining blindingly bright around Mina’s head. The blood flow has already stopped, but Daelia’s hands are shaking so hard, it’s a wonder she can use magic at all.
“I’m almost finished. Just a few more minutes…”
Daelia nods off. To my surprise, the king smacks her to keep her awake.
“Foolish daughter of mine, don’t you dare quit now!” he thunders. “Stay awake! Stay awake like your life depends on it!”
I stare at the king in surprise. Never before have I seen him care about someone, but here he is now, protesting for Mina’s life like it’s all he has left to care about in the world. He continues to yell at Daelia as she heals, shaking her whenever necessary to keep her awake, keeping the process going as long as possible until Daelia’s eyes roll into the back of her head, and she passes out on the pavement, convulsing violently. My stomach churns at the sight.
Is that what Alessia looked like after rescuing me from the griffin?
I shake my head. Now is not the time to think about that. I return to Mina’s side, allowing Alessia to cradle her personal servant in her lap. She brushes Mina’s hair out of her face, her tears falling onto her cheeks one right after the other.
“Mina,” Alessia pleads, “wake up. Please, Mina.”
“I’m sorry,” the king apologizes. “She jumped in front of me to deflect the spell. She saved my life. I am ashamed.”
So, that’s why he’s so insistent,I note. Mina saved his life.
“Don’t be ashamed. It’s Daelia’s fault,” Alessia reminds him.
I hold Mina’s hand in my own, finding it still warm and full of life. I feel for her pulse, and to my surprise, it’s still holding strong. It’s not so fast that I’m worried, and not so slow as to cause suspicion of her taking a turn for the worst. I sigh with relief.
“Alessia, we should get her back to the palace,” I suggest. “We need to have the royal doctors take a look at her.”
“I understand. Father, please take care of her,” Alessia says, looking at him through teary eyes. “I have something to finish up here first.”
“I’ll take care of her like my own,” King Moonbreaker promises, bowing his head respectfully.
I look on in shock as a team of nurses and the king load Mina up into a stretcher and carry her out of the arena. The whole stadium watches them go in a respectful silence. Then, all eyes turn to Alessia, who stands up to address the crowd.
“People of Celestia,” she begins. “I have an announcement to make.”
I gasp as Alessia suddenly reaches down, grabs her sister by the back of her neck, and holds her up for all to see. Daelia is so pale, she looks on the verge of death.
“This heathen that we have called our Hero for too long has committed the greatest sin. Purposeful or not, she has used her ancient magic, a gift to the line of imperial humans, to harm one of our own. This offense is unforgivable.”
Alessia throws her sister down on the ground unceremoniously. I wince, but then I catch sight of the fire burning in her eyes, and I take a few paces back.
“FROM THIS DAY FORTH, DAELIA MOONbrEAKER IS ETERNALLY BANISHED FROM THE KINGDOM OF CELESTIA!”
The crowd roars in its approval. A chorus of boos cascade through the audience, some even throwing garbage at Daelia. Alessia does not move to stop them; I’m not sure whether to intervene, but from the bottom of my heart, I can’t bring myself to care about Daelia right now, either. Her childish whim almost killed a dear friend.
“As soon as she is able, she will be escorted out of the city. Return to your homes for now.”
With that, Eren escorts fans out of the stadium. Alessia looks at me, averts her eyes, and storms past me, not even bothering to tell me where she’s going.
My heart is cleaved in two.
My mind is overwhelmed. A torrent of emotion tears through me, and an ache starts up in my chest. For a moment, I consider falling to my knees and wailing like a child.
But then, a sudden resolve washes over me, and I rush through the stadium, pushing past all the fans.
“Alessia!” I shout.
She doesn’t respond. My heart pounding in my chest, I push my way through the exit doors, climb down the stairs, and arrive in the entrance hall, where I call for Alessia again. Still, she does not respond. I assume she’s already left the building, so I crash through the exit doors and emerge outside of the building, frantically scanning the area for my wife.
Finally, I spot her, sprinting away from the scene as fast as her legs will carry her, a hood drawn over her head.
“ALESSIA!” I cry.
She glances over her shoulder, and the look on her face almost has me stopping in my tracks.
She looks like shattered glass. Her eyes shimmering, tear stains running down her face, and her lips quivering violently. She looks at me pleadingly.
Then, she turns away and runs even faster.
I’m not letting you run away from me this time, Alessia.
I take off as fast as I can, tearing through the streets at a sprint. I nearly run into shopkeepers and children darting between their parents’ homes, but I avoid them with expert agility and keep running. My eyes are locked on Alessia, who is pulling further and further away from me with that damn imperial human strength of hers. I can’t hope to keep up, but I don’t have to catch her here; I know exactly where she’s going.
When she enters the palace, I don’t feel the need to keep track of her. I head for the east side of the palace, following the same route I followed my first morning here, all those months ago. A lump forms in my throat as I remember that day, the image of Alessia standing in the sunlight tormenting me and warming my heart all in one. My wife hasn’t changed a bit; she’s still running away from her feelings, from me, from a chance at happiness, all for the sake of keeping up a brave face.
Not on my watch.
I follow the tunnels down, down, and down below the palace, noting the silver lining the path. When I reach the dead end, I barge right through the mirage. I run out into the secret garden, shielding my eyes against the harsh sunlight, searching for any signs of my wife.
Then, there she is, crying on her knees in front of the fountain.
“Alessia!” I call.
“Go away!” she shrieks.
She throws a volley of magic fire at me, but I dodge. She tries once more, and again, I dance out of the way, finally arriving at her side. She tries to get up and run away, but this time, I catch her by the wrist, and I hold her there, on the floor of the secret garden beside the fountain.
“Alessia, stop this, please,” I beg.
“I don’t need you! Stop touching me!”
She fights like a wild animal to get away from me. I let her kick me and punch me with her free arm, feeling it sting like hells, but I refuse to budge. That lump in my throat grows harder to swallow as I wait for her to calm down.
“Alessia, how long are you going to fight me? How long are you going to fight yourself?”
“Get away from me!”
She summons fire in her hand, preparing to strike. I don’t wince. I don’t lean away. Instead, I stare right into those beautiful blue eyes, seeing my sad smile reflected back at me.
“Alessia,” I start, “you’re not going to throw that fire at me. I know that because you love me, and I love you with all of my heart, too. We wouldn’t have spent weeks traveling together, learning to love one another, and spending our lives together if we didn’t care about each other.”
“You don’t know that!”
“I do, actually,” I say.
I can’t hold it back anymore. The tears are falling freely down my face, and my voice chokes up as I force the words to keep coming out.
“I love you more than anything in this world. If we weren’t married already, I’d ask you to marry me now. You’ve given me a reason to care after the world proved to me it’s not worth my time. You are the most incredible, strong, brave, and intelligent woman I know. I owe my life to you many times over. You’ve taken a broken, careless boy and made him into a king worthy of your people. You gave me hope when I had none; you reminded me how to dream; you gave me a reason to go on living when I thought my life would amount to nothing. Do you understand how much that means to me?”
Alessia’s lips part. The fire in her hand goes out, and her hand drops to her side. She stares at me, her chest rising and falling rapidly.
Then she tackles me to the ground, slams her lips into mine, and holds me in an iron grip. I can taste the salt of her tears as she kisses me—or maybe those are my tears; I’m not sure anymore. I close my eyes, holding her as tightly as I can. When she finally pulls back, there’s a slight smile on her face.
“I feel so much, and I hate it. I don’t want to feel anything at all. But you give me hope that one day, I can wear my heart on my sleeve without shame. Maybe one day, I can be the queen that cries in front of her people, that cries with her people, and laughs out loud when she’s happy. Can you help me get there, Aurelio?”
“Of course I will. I have the whole rest of my life to make sure your dreams come true.”
Alessia wipes her face. “What about your dreams? Can I not help you with yours?”
I feel another tear run down my face as I reach up to brush my thumb across her cheek. “My dream has already come true. My dream, all along, Alessia, was you. You’re the woman who helped me learn how to love again.”
Alessia’s lip quivers, and she lets out a small laugh, hugging me tight again as she buries her face against my chest.
“I love you, Aurelio. I love you more than anything in this world.”
“I love you too, Alessia.”
Her lips find mine, and I suddenly have the feeling that everything is going to work out just fine. Mina may be injured; Daelia may be banished; the war with Krasta is yet to be waged; and yet, I know, deep down, that it will be alright. No matter the outcome, I’ll still have my Alessia.
And as long as I can keep making her smile, what more can I ask for out of this life?