(Author’s POV)

"What if I tell you, I need your help for something really important? Could you lend me a hand?" Elisa whispered, meeting his gaze softly. Her lips were plastered with a sweet, demure smile.

"EL~isa, tell me, what can I do for you?" Aamon was eager, maybe too eager, placing his hands on her shoulders with firmness.

"Umm~ .... I don’t know how I should ask this~ ..." Elis feigned caution, her voice low.

"Why are you being so hesitant with me? Ask away," Aamon insisted.

"Can you~ ... can you prepare a demon circle for me by tomorrow night?" she finally asked.

"Huhh? A demon circle? What for?" Aamon’s expression changed.

"To get those Lycan Alphas," she uttered.

Aamon, who was holding her shoulders, squeezed them a bit too harshly, "Those Lycan brats again. What are you on to? Why are you mentioning them?" His face contorted.

Elisa didn’t flinch or break character. Knowing Aamon, she was expecting this reaction. She started, her hands settled on his chest, as she drew circles with her index finger, her movements feather like, "Tomorrow is a rare occasion. The solstice and the full moon it happens to be on the same day. I want to seize this sparse opportunity and get my powers back. You know it was because of them that I lost my demon core energy ultimately. And those Lycans, on full moon nights, they are the most vulnerable. They will be easy to control. So, I need a demon circle to get them, the bigger the better. I want to finish them, once and for all." Her voice changed as her finger started to travel down, "Aamon~ ... you are the only one I can ask this. You are my only trusted aide. If you make a demon circle with your demonic powers, it will be ten times more potent than what I can make. You are well aware that I have been reduced to being a human, more or less. I don’t have any power. A circle drawn by me can easily be broken, but if it is you, that would be impenetrable. You are the mighty Marquis of Hell, Aamon, after all," At the end, her voice trailed. She sounded emotional.

He didn’t speak for a while, just kept gazing at her with an unreadable expression, as if gauging it. Elisa’s face didn’t change in the slightest, but inwardly she was all jittery and on edge. ’Why isn’t he saying anything? By now, after listening to such an emotional speech, he should have readily agreed. He always did. I even praised him. So, why is he keeping mum now? Has he~ ... has he sensed something? Don’t tell me~ ... he knows the real reason?’ Her brain was getting attacked with question after question.

Composing herself, she batted her eyelashes and lowered her eyes, murmuring in a tender, heartbroken voice, "It’s okay if you don’t want to help. I completely understand."

"Who said I won’t?" Aamon finally decided to open his mouth.

"But I thought you would~ .... reject" Elisa was playing the feigning game again.

"Did I say I won’t?" An amusing smile crept up his lips. He eased his hands and pulled her in his arms, "How can I defy my queen’s request?" His fingers intertwined with her luscious, cherry red locks.

Elisa, whose face was now buried in his chest, couldn’t help but smirk as a well, she mumbled, "Aamon, you are the only one who truly understands me. I love you so much."

He buried his head in the crook of her neck, inhaling her cypriol-like fragrance. He said, "Can’t wait to have you back, all to myself. Once you regain your status in the underworld, we will become the most powerful couple ever." 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

"Yeah, the most powerful. Can’t wait," Elisa repeated his words, already thinking about her victory. She was one night away. A night away to get her powers back. A night away from controlling all of those Lycan Alphas. A night away to claim them all. To make them hers.

________________________

"Will I look good in this one or this one?" Brave asked Raw, while holding two outfits.

’You can wear a sack, a rag, or even go just in your birth suit, and you will look as handsome as ever,’ Raw remarked truthfully. He was teasing him.

"Going in those will be too much. I don’t want to flash myself to others. I prefer to be fully clothed,’ Brave fired back while chuckling at his wolf’s words. "Now help me pick one of these."

’Don’t be so nervous. We are just going to her house for dinner. Others will be there as well. Don’t overdo it and wear something casual, Rave. It would make you look more approachable,’ He advised.

"You are right. Maybe it is because I am nervous, but I~ ... don’t want to be underprepared," Brave answered while pursing his lips.

’Rave, Rave, RAVE~ .... listen to me. Everything will go fine, okay,’ his wolf tried to ease his nerves, though he too was feeling skittish.

’Brother Rave~ ... are you done with your work?’ Nora’s voice echoed in his head.

’Umm~ .... Almost," he replied, looking at himself in the mirror. His upper body was bare, and his lower body was covered with just a towel. The work Nora was asking about was finished half an hour ago. After that, he took a bath to wash off any murky, sweaty smell off him, and now, he was taking time deciding what to wear.

’Hurry up, we’re all waiting for you,’ Nora told him.

"I will be done in another fifteen minutes. You all should go first. I’ll come once done," he responded.

’Ohh~ ... okay. But don’t be too late. See you there then,’ Nora quickly acknowledged and disconnected the link. "Brother Rave said to go first. He will come straight to Myra’s house," she conveyed his message to everyone else.

"Okay, let’s get going then," Dion said and started walking to get the car. Once he came back, Sara and Nora settled in the backseat, while Elio took the passenger seat.

"Brother Dio, did Brother Al tell you anything? What time will this meeting end? Is he really not going to come?" Nora asked. She wanted all of them to go.

"Ora, all of us are away, so there is a lot of work piled up at the headquarters. The redevelopment project for Damona’s suburbs is under his jurisdiction. Though Beta Matthew must be doing an excellent job. He wanted to know about the progress," Dion answered casually.

Nora nodded understandingly while Sara’s face remained tight as she looked out of the window.

To Be Continued . . . . . . . .