The Werewolf King's Bride

"No, Your Highness. Absolutely not. Your Highness is not okay right now. You will fall down and hurt yourself," Ruby said firmly.

Now I could sit down on my own and hold a glass or a few less heavy things. So, I decided to try to take one or two steps. Since my body did not hurt as much as before, I thought it would be okay to try it now.

But no matter what I said, Ruby remained unchanged. She did not let me even stand. I tried to convince her, but she seemed as firm as Demetrius this time.

"Your Highness, your body is weak. You cannot stand. Please try to understand," she said.

"Just a bit. You can hold... me," I said. "Look..., my throat doesn\'t... hurt much as w-well. I stutter very l-little now...

And my body is w-well as well."

"Still, Your Highness, it\'s not enough recovery," she said. "His Highness told me not to let Your Highness move at all. I will do anything for you. You can ask me. But please, don\'t push yourself."

"Haa...," I sighed. "It\'s really... frustrating to stay like this... all the time. And it\'s been... more than t-two weeks already..."

"When Your Highness will get better, you can be like before again."

"Can I?"

"Of course. Your Highness will surely get better," she said.

I was wondering about this for a while, but she never mentioned that both the child and I would be alright. It was as if she knew that only one of us could be okay. But she hid it almost perfectly. Since I was sick and had nothing to do, I paid extra care while listening to others. Perhaps that was why I caught even the slightest meaning of someone\'s words.

Mother had come to visit me twice even though Dem told her not to. I told him that it was not a problem. But he did not listen to me and there was a quarrel between him and his mother. His mother never argued with him much. She agreed to whatever he said. But yesterday, for a moment, I felt like I saw anger in her eyes.

It was for a moment, but then she smiled again. Perhaps it was just a mistake of my eyes.

If she looked at me with those eyes, I would not be surprised. She could be angry at me because his son behaved like that because of me. But the strange thing was- she was not angry at me. It was like she was angry at Demetrius.

"Do you want to eat something, Your Highness?" Ruby asked.

"No... I\'m not h-hungry..."

"But you haven\'t eaten anything in the morning as well," she said.

"I ate! A slice o-of... bread!" I protested.

"But that\'s not enough. Your Highness is not a kid. So, you need to eat more," she said.

"Don\'t wanna..."

"If Your Highness doesn\'t eat, I will call His Highness," she said.

"I... I will eat..."

Ruby brought me some vegetable soup and kind of forced me to have it. I did not have any appetite, but still, I would rather eat than have her call Dem. If Dem came here, he would feed me more.

"Your Highness, don\'t eat the broccoli only. Eat the carrots too," she said.

"Carrots taste weird..."

"I think it\'s the other way around usually," she muttered.

"Huh..."

I hated carrots. They were very sweet and tasted strange. But I liked broccoli. Perhaps it was because of the bitter taste. It was not like I liked bitter things. Broccolis were the only exception.

After I finished the soup, I felt better than before. I should not have whined not to have it. Ruby looked at me with her eyes clearly saying- \'See? Told you!\'

"Now that I\'m... strong again, h-help me... stand...," I said.

"No, Your Highness."

"Just a bit. I swear I won\'t... do anything e-else..."

"Your Highness..."

"Come on..."

"If Your Highness looks at me like that... it\'s impossible to say no," she mumbled.

"Hehe..."

Ruby helped me stand up though she was reluctant. It was not as hard as I thought it would be. I did not have much of a hardship standing. I had confidence that I would be able to take a few steps. The medicine surely was effective even though the doctor said it was temporary.

"See? I can... stand...," I said.

"Do your legs hurt at all, Your Highness?"

I shook my head. "Not really... though they are... a bit w-weak..."

"Your Highness doesn\'t need to push yourself just because His Highness said that you should get better as soon as possible," she said.

"I am really... better though," I said. "It doesn\'t m-matter what D-Demetrius says... but I can only a-act like... this when I\'m r-really feeling... better.

So, don\'t... worry about m-me."

"Your Highness is so frail. I am afraid that Your Highness is trying too hard..."

I chuckled. "I am really a-alright; at least... better t-than before..."

Ruby did not look fully convinced which I did not expect her to be as well. She was always like that. No matter how many times I said that I was alright, she never believed. Though I lied a few times not to worry Dem or her too much, this time I told the truth.

"Help me... take a f-few steps..."

Ruby held both of my hands and I tried to move my leg slightly. It was not too hard, but I had to go slow.

\'It feels like I\'m learning to walk for the first time...\'

"Gosh, it feels good... to be a-able to... stand...," I said.

"Why isn\'t Lord Luc coming back yet?" she muttered. "He said he is going to look around for a bit. But he isn\'t back yet."

"Do you n-need him... for something?" I asked.

"It\'s not that. If Lord Luc was here, then I would be able to get some flowers for Your Highness."

"Flowers? W-Why?" I asked, surprised.

"Don\'t you remember, Your Highness, that you asked for Iris," she said.

"I did? I... forgot..."

These days I had been forgetting things too. Dem said that the medicine I took at night always got me out of my senses. That was the reason I did not remember anything of the nighttime. But I started to forget things at other times as well.

"Well, you should take... me to D-Dem\'s study... I will stay t-there and you can g-go... to get some flowers," I said.

"But, Your Highness should not walk that long way," she said.

"What long w-way? It\'s just... beside, I mean, almost beside... this room," I said.

"What if His Highness gets angry?"

"Why would... he get a-angry?" I asked. "This room f-feels... suffocating now. I need to... go out."

"Alright," she sighed. "If Your Highness wants..."

Ruby helped me take small steps out of the room. It was hard, but not too much. It was manageable.

I was still in my nightgown. Since it was very not tight at all, I felt comfortable. And besides, my stomach hurt as well. So, the baggier the cloth was, the more comfortable I felt.

"Babe? You\'re... What are you doing here?"

I thought Dem would be in his office. But I met him on the way. It seemed he was coming to our bedroom.

"What\'re you doing here?" he asked and held me carefully by my shoulders.

"Can I get the flowers then, Your Highness?" Ruby asked.

"Yes, s-sure," I nodded.

"What flowers?" Dem asked, looking at me.

"For me."

"Oh... But what are you doing here? You\'re not supposed to leave the bed. You are weak," he said.

"I\'m not... I am better n-now... Look, I can take... a few s-steps as well," I said as I moved my legs to show him that I was not too weak.

"But..."

"I\'m fine..."

"Is that... You carry the dagger everywhere?" he asked, pointing at the side of my nightgown.

There was a pocket there that I told my personal designer to make. I got pockets made in all of my dresses so I could carry some things with me. But in the case of fancy dresses, the pockets were hidden.

"Hmm," I said. "You\'re the o-one who... told me to do... so."

"Well, I didn\'t know you really would," he muttered.

"Well... Dem, look out!"

"What..."