The Dragon King's Heart

"How are you going to break the news to Laina?" Marius asked as they were flying. 

They had spent a wonderful time in the Prism Sanctuary. But as the sun began to set on the horizon, it was time for Margaret to return to Kinshearth. Marius's question made her think. 

While not much has changed, she was quite certain some of the more magic inclined members of the court, and Laina would notice something different about her. How was she going to break the news to Laina?

"I don't know…" 

"I might have something that can help," Marius suggested. 

They landed in a secluded part of the palace gardens. Carefully remaining hidden, Margaret and Marius stayed hidden between the hedges and the wall of the palace. 

They both took to their human forms. Marius asked for Margaret's hand. She held it out as Marius traced a simple rune on the palm of her hand. 

The rune emitted a soft glow of light before disappearing completely. 

"What did you do?" Margaret asked.

Since her magic had been taken away, she was not even able to sense any form of spells. While she was still able to interact with magical items, her ability to sense them was gone. 

"I placed a protection spell over you. When you're in danger, I will know," he replied absentmindedly. 

"Where did you learn that from? Wait, how is this going to help me keep my identity hidden from Laina?" Margaret asked as she folded her arms. 

"I learned it from Dante. He cast it on Laina, I think. Oh, I also cast a permanent spell upon you. Most people will assume your aura is simply that of a regular person," he replied. 

Marius also placed a bracelet on her wrist. It was an opal bracelet with a simple gold chain that linked each piece of opal to each other. 

"What's this for?" Margaret asked as she looked at it. 

It was an enchanted opal bracelet. Margaret no longer had the magic capacity within her, which meant she had no magic energy source to tap on. Marius knew that would hinder her as she serves Laina as her handmaiden. 

The bracelet was the perfect solution. 

"When you wish to do anything that involves magic, all you need to do is to command the bracelet to do so. It will tap into the magic energy stored in the bracelet." Marius explained. 

After hearing his explanation, she immediately knew what item this was. The bracelet even had the ability to replenish magic energy over time. This was no common magic opal bracelet either. 

The opals that had been set in place were uniform in shape and color, meaning they were of high grade. It could not have been easy to gather them together and have them set into the bracelet. 

"Are you sure you want to give me such an expensive gift? I… don't think I can accept this," she said hesitantly. 

Marius chuckled. He did not expect her to become so shy about it. 

"Oh but I insist you accept it. If you don't I'll make sure to cast a spell so that it stays on your wrist forever," he teased, knowing if he did so Margaret would not be able to take it off. 

"Okay okay, I accept," she surrendered with a smile, "Thank you. I'll find a way to repay you."

Marius wrapped his arms around Margaret's waist and brought her closer to him. Margaret blushed beet red. Her head rested against his chest, and she could hear his heart palpitating. 

"If you truly want to repay me, then repay me with your body!" He declared with a cheeky evil grin. 

Margaret's eyebrow twitched as she let out a sigh. She playfully pushed him back until his back was against the wall. Margaret placed her hands around his neck. 

Their faces were merely an inch apart. 

She leaned forward as she whispered seductively into his ear, "You might just regret you ever asked for that, my dragon." 

Margaret gave him a quick peck on the cheek before releasing him. She quickly hurried off towards the hallway leading to Laina's room before Marius realized what had just happened. 

"See you soon, Marius," she bid him farewell with a playful wink before disappearing from his line of view. 

Marius stood there, dazed for a while. He subconsciously brought his hand up to his cheek and touched where Margaret had kissed him. The scene replayed in his mind. His lips twitched, as he curled upwards forming a grin. 

He thought he had the upper hand in their relationship, but it would seem like he was gravely mistaken. Remembering what she whispered to him in his ear, he could not stop himself from smiling. 

"She finally said yes," he muttered to himself. 

Internally, Marius was jumping with glee. Though the time he had spent with Margaret was not long, he had been observing from the sidelines for a long time. He still could not believe she had accepted his declaration of love. 

Now, he was one step closer to fully win her over. 

"Now that you're mine, my little dove. I will protect you with my life!"

Margaret made it safely through the palace hallways. On her way to Laina's quarters, she passed by multiple members of the court. As she greeted them, sweat trickled down her forehead. 

She wondered if they were able to sense something different about her. When they greeted her as per usual, Margaret sighed in relief internally. She touched the opal bracelet on her wrist. 

"Ah, Margaret, you've returned," Laina called out to her from behind. 

She quickly turned around and curtsied, "Indeed I have, your Highness."

Margaret kept her eyes on the ground as she greeted Laina. In her mind, she was tense. Would Laina notice something different about her? She waited to hear what Laina had to say. 

"Did you enjoy your time with Marius? Did he bring you somewhere fun?" Laina asked with a smile. 

She heaved a sigh of relief, Laina did not seem to have noticed anything different about her. Margaret straightened herself and was about to reply to Laina when she realized Kol was looking straight at her. 

His eyebrows were knitted together as he scanned Margaret from top to bottom. 

A single drop of sweat trickled down Margaret's forehead. 

Did Kol notice?