The food at the temple, which she was supposed to share with Anastasia, had quickly taken it out of her mouth. She looked back at the princess, who was now grinning sarcastically at her. She wouldn't tolerate that. With every ounce of energy she could muster, she got up and lunged at Anastasia. 

"Oslobanjyne!" Anastasia released her last note of the music in her language. 

And Tamara fell to the floor, her eyes wide, blood oozing out of her ears. She clutched her stomach and curled. Was she about to explode? With an ear-splitting shriek, Tamara's body convulsed and she coughed a large amount of blood, which was mixed with tiny pieces of flesh. She breathed her last and heaped on the floor, a sickening mass of blood and flesh and body. She couldn't even touch the fae princess. 

Anastasia held her hands in tight fists as her breath became shallow and fast, as she stared at the woman who was a powerful witch. 

"Anastasia?" Ileus stood up and walked to her. Shock wasn't the word that fitted when he saw Tamara. It was pure fright. How did she manage to get the dark powers? Was she a part of the group? And how far would they go? His body shuddered at the thought, his mind resolute to find a quick solution. 

He withdrew the spell and suddenly heard the audience cheering,

"Long live the fae princess, Anastasia!" 

"Long live the Crown Prince!" 

It was amazing the way she influenced the people. 

"Anastasia?" he called her again and walked beside her. "That was incredible," he said softly. "I didn't know you had this kind of magic too." He placed his hands on her cheeks to soothe her. He sent tendrils of comfort through their mental connection to calm her. 

Slowly, Anastasia craned her head to see him, the silver speckles in her violet eyes ebbing. "Aly," she breathed out and let her wings drop. 

"Oh, Anastasia!" he said and wrapped his arms around her to press her against his chest. "Are you hurt, love?" He was sure that she must be feeling weak after all the magic that poured out of her. 

"Only emotionally," came a muffled voice. She pressed her face in his chest, her home… That was all she needed now… But he knew that she was feeling physically drained too. 

She could hear the people cheering for her, for their prince and she felt… happy… A while later when her heartbeat settled, when the magic in her throat retreated to coil back in her belly, she felt his fingers beneath her chin. He lifted her face and bent down to kiss her lips. "Did I say that I love you?" he asked with his sexy smile. And Anastasia—she forgot all about the gore that was lying behind them. 

She chuckled and shook her head. "Not in the last one hour."

He let out a soft laugh and said, "I love you, Ana." 

She wrinkled her nose and didn't reply. 

"What?" he said, bewildered. "Don't you love me too?" 

She still didn't reply. She peeked behind him and found that the dancers were all gone and there was no body. She wondered where they all went, but then thought that it wasn't worth her attention. 

When Ileus turned with her to face the audience, they erupted in loud cheer and his chest filled with pride. From what started as hatred turned into sweet acceptance. And it was just the beginning. Both stepped down the dais and as they walked through the center of the floor, the crowd weaved magic to shower flower petals on them. 

Anastasia's gaze traveled to the balconies where the nobility was sitting, and while some of them were joyous, some she felt were experiencing the bitter taste of panic, fear and jealousy. She rustled her wings in a devil-may-care attitude and walked away elegantly with her chin held high, her hands in the crook of her husband's arm. 

On the outside, Aidan was waiting for them along with the rest of the Mozias with a rare smile on his lips. Anastasia didn't want to walk back to the carriage, so he created a portal for the royal couple. With one last look at the people of Draoidh, who were still whooping with joy, she stepped in the portal and stepped right in front of the carriage. Ileus helped her to climb in it and as he followed her inside. As soon as the door was closed, he pulled her into his lap and said, "You were incredible there, Anastasia!" He shackled her wings and pushed her down gently so that now she was leaning on his arms with her legs up on the bench. 

Her eyes gleamed as she basked in the glory of his praise. She took her hands to his face and cupped them. "Thank you for all your support, Aly," she said softly, as she settled in his lap. 

"But Anastasia, did you know that it could turn out into something disastrous. That magic of yours was new, you didn't even know that you had it. What if you couldn't pull that?" His emotions were all over and she felt that he was… conflicted?

"What is wrong, love?' she asked, gazing into those fiery golden eyes, those which had stolen the color from the sun. 

"You used your magic once again, recklessly, if I must say so." 

"Reckless? Why do you say that?" 

"Because you keep pushing yourself over the edge with your magic again and again."

"What else could I do at that time, Ileus?" she said, keeping her hands back on her stomach. "Besides you allowed me."

"I saw those purple tendrils flowing out of your mouth with your song, and I can't imagine the energy it must have taken out of you. I wasn't ready for that," he snapped. 

"That was—" 

"Let me talk, Anastasia!" 

Her head jerked back a little. She had seen him angry on many occasions, but this— He looked so cute in his anger that a semblance of a smile crossed her lips. "I don't want to listen to the lecture, Aly. I really didn't see any other way out of the situation at that moment."

"Lecture? Anastasia that was— what you did was astounding, But I am angry. So, I am unable to decide what to do with you." 

"If I hadn't stopped Tamara, she would have killed you also!"

"So, you would put yourself in the line of danger to save me?" he asked, his eyes stinging with the unshed tears, ones he had saved for her. 

"I will always do it, and—" 

"Fuck, I need you so much!" he said cutting her off and crashed his lips over hers. "I want to feel that magic, that song inside me. It moved my soul to the extent that I am aching for it, Anastasia. What have you done?" 

The next moment, he was again on her lips and this time she didn't know who needed whom more. The kiss was searing, it was like he had kissed her for the first time. He poured his anxiety into her. He slipped his hands beneath her gown and ripped her panties. And Anastasia—she didn't care a damn that she had just killed the High Priestess of the wizard kingdom. 

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