To His Hell and Back
Chapter 35: Weight Of Interest

Chapter 35: Weight Of Interest

Behind her closed eyelids, Arabella saw a vision. It was of a tall man with jet-black hair and piercing crimson eyes, their intensity both bloody and magnetic. He stood before a forest, its shadows shifting as if it spoke to him. For a fleeting moment, she noticed his crimson gaze falter, a subtle quiver betraying him. The flawless mask he wore, so carefully crafted to hide his emotions, revealed its first crack.

"...a peasant... no manners, that’s why they could sleep on the floor. Doesn’t she look like a used rag?" The sharp, mocking voice pierced through the haze of Arabella’s sleep, dragging her back into wakefulness.

Slowly, her senses sharpened, and she realized she was curled up on the cold, unforgiving marble floor. Her knees were hugged tightly to her chest for warmth as she lay there, exactly as Princess Marissa had instructed, waiting outside Queen Morgana’s room until she came out.

Arabella’s green eyes peered over the maids who were wearing different uniforms than the rest of the maids in the castle.

Arabella quickly realized the maids were Princess Marissa’s handmaidens, their eyes filled with condescension. She found it unexpected how Princess Marissa’s maids were mostly human, yet their disdain was no different from that of the vampires living behind the castle’s door.

At that moment, she a sense of disappointment settling within her. Long ago, she had stopped expecting kindness from anyone in this castle. Humans, it seemed, were just as cruel, if not worse, than the vampires.

When their eyes locked onto hers, Arabella’s lips curled into a deceptively sweet smile. "Have you heard that old saying?" she mused. "Something about how crows caw the loudest right before their deaths? You should be careful."

The maids’ eyes widened in shock, one even letting out an audible gasp.

Bella pressed her lips together, frustration bubbling inside her. Why couldn’t I just hold my tongue for once? she scolded herself. She had grown too accustomed to the bluntness of the lower class, where disdain could be freely expressed. But here, in this world of veiled insults and silent rivalries, every word she spoke only seemed to invite more enemies.

Bella clenched her fists, resisting the urge to smack her own mouth for speaking out.

"She’s just a pet, isn’t she?" one handmaiden sneered. "By the look of her, she must be. Let’s teach her a lesson so she knows not to bark up the wrong tree."

"Don’t bother, Hannah," another chimed in with a smug grin. "I’ll handle it."

Bella’s eyes fluttered open just in time to see a hand shooting toward her. Instinctively, she turned her face away, her breath hitching as she braced for the strike.

"Hannah, Tania," a commanding voice sliced through the air like a blade. Princess Marissa and her jet-black hair gleaming like the royal crown, stepped into view, her lips pressed into a sharp line. Her piercing gaze pinned her handmaidens in place. "You’re putting me to shame. Do you have any idea whose pet this one belongs to?"

The handmaidens froze, their heads dropping instantly as fear flickered in their eyes. Bella watched as Marissa’s frown deepened. For a moment, it seemed she might lash out, but instead, she sighed, a stark contrast to Queen Morgana’s ruthlessness. Without another word, the princess turned and began striding down the hall.

She halted briefly, her sharp eyes flicking back to Bella, who remained rooted to the spot. With a slight tilt of her chin, Marissa said coolly, "What are you waiting for? Come. Didn’t I tell you we have business to attend to?"

Bella pushed herself up slowly, brushing off the dust from her skirt before quickening her steps to catch up with Princess Marissa.

From the side, Bella noted that Marissa did bear a faint resemblance to Cassius, sharp cheekbones, those burning crimson eyes, and the same regal air. Yet, they weren’t too alike. One thing was certain: neither looked anything like Queen Morgana. Perhaps they both inherited their features from the King instead?

Her thoughts were interrupted by Marissa’s cool voice, cutting through the silence. "Do you know that if a commoner dares to stare at a royal’s face and eyes for more than a minute, they’ll be tied to a stake and left for the crows to feast on their eyes and nibble their flesh?"

Bella’s throat tightened, unsure if it was a warning or a test.

She immediately lowered her eyes, "My apologies."

"So obedient, but that’s not the real you, is it?" Princess Marissa said, her voice light yet pointed as she continued walking. Bella hesitated, wondering if the Princess had overheard her sharp remarks to the handmaidens earlier.

"I’m not always rude," Bella replied carefully. "I only am to people who are rude to me first."

Marissa chuckled softly, though the sound lacked warmth. Stopping abruptly, she turned to face Bella, crossing her arms over her waist. The movement made her skirts fan out.

"You’re a human," she said, her tone dropping an octave, firm and cutting. "Weak. Fragile. What exactly do you think allows you to live here?"

Bella opened her mouth to respond, but no words came.

"My brother," Marissa snapped, her eyes narrowing. "He’s the only reason you’re still breathing. Don’t forget that. The Queen doesn’t feel safety with his presence and yet you entered her room. Do you know what I mean?"

Bella curiously watched Princess Marissa, keeping her eyes trained on her for a couple of second not to surpass the minute mark.

"I am aware that it is thanks to His Highness that I can remain alive," was Princess Marissa worried that she was going to agree to their mother and then harm Cassius? She wasn’t foolish. Even when she was so angry at him the moment she left the maze, she didn’t think of killing him as she knew it’s impossible.

But Cassius’s remark about his sister disliking him seems to be quite the opposite.

"You do?" Princess Marissa arched an eyebrow, her tone half amused, half incredulous. Without waiting for an answer, she turned and resumed her measured pace down the corridor.

"He isn’t fond of humans," she continued, her voice cool and deliberate. "Never was. He doesn’t drink human blood, either. And he’s even less interested in keeping humans as pets."

Bella listened in silence, unsure of how to respond. She had heard this so many times. It seems the castle was entirely surprised when finding out he had taken her as a pet, something he had never done before.

"Don’t mistake this for kindness," Marissa added sharply, glancing at Bella from the corner of her eye. "It’s not compassion. He simply doesn’t find it interesting, or intriguing."

She stopped again, this time her gaze locking onto Bella’s with something close to pity, though her tone remained distant.

"Cassius is someone who can only exist alongside what fascinates him. Anything else? It’s disposable. But what he despise the most is betrayal. Poor you for being chosen by him; However keep this in mind. Interest can fade."

Was Marissa warning her to protect her brother? Or was it out of pity and to warn her to be careful while being around Cassius?

Bella didn’t understand the sibling, in fact, she could not bring herself to understand this entire castle and those who lived here. She was interested in knowing more, after all she had always been a curious one. But she doesn’t want to do it with her life as its cost and she felt that she shouldn’t get too attached to this castle, especially Cassius, when she would be leaving as soon as she had seen the chance.

"Pardon me for asking," Bella said after a while of hesitation whether to poke this informations or to leave it be.

Princess Marissa glanced over her shoulder, her chin tilting upward. "Go on."

Bella hesitated before finally saying, "Why am I different?" She frowned, her confusion apparent. "His Highness, he doesn’t like pets or humans, so why me?".

"I wonder about that too," Marissa murmured, her lips curving faintly, though it wasn’t a smile of kindness.

Bella blinked, surprised at the response. "You don’t know?"

Marissa’s expression shifted, a fleeting hint of annoyance crossing her face before vanishing behind her usual composure. "My brother," she began, her voice soft yet cold, "is not the kind of man whose motives anyone can fully grasp. He keeps his secrets close, even from me. He was sixteen when my father first brought him to war. He always emerged in triumph and even though we are siblings from the same mother, I have never once seen him cry. It’s as if he’s empty in his heart. The only thing that kept him going was war and now that our kingdom had grown far too wide, there’s nothing for him to kill, I wonder how he could ever fulfill his emptiness. But no matter how much water you pour to a glass with a fracture, it will never be full, right?"

There was a clear mockery behind Marissa’s words, the princess’s face was always unreadable but now it’s solemn, bearing a sense of resentment.

She turned slightly, her gaze now fixed ahead as she resumed walking. "But I will tell you this, human. Cassius is not drawn to weakness, nor is he driven by mercy. If he has kept you, it’s because you hold his attention, for now."

"For now?" Bella echoed, her steps faltering.

Marissa halted abruptly, her back still to Bella, "He craves what challenges him, what defies him. Perhaps you amuse him, or perhaps there’s something in you he hasn’t decided whether to destroy or preserve. Perhaps it was out of will that he had chosen you, perhaps he saw something that I can’t even see. I have always wondered what goes on in his head, you’re now the nearest person beside him so you might be able to figure it out."

Bella’s thoughts lingered on the strange dynamic between Princess Marissa and Cassius. It was odd to her, unfamiliar. In her world, family was a constant, bound by shared experiences, love, or at the very least, mutual respect. But here? It seemed the very essence of family had become distant, almost foreign.

She wondered how Cassius could live like this, surrounded by people who barely knew him, his own sister, a mere acquaintance at best, his mother who wanted a human to harm him.

What was it like to grow up in such coldness, where even your blood didn’t feel like family?

It was a thought that made her ache a little inside, though she quickly shook it off. He is still the man who had captured her, she wasn’t going to feel pity for him.

So she should stop putting her heart on her sleeve while listening about Cassius. But why is it that it feels difficult to do so?

This wasn’t her place to question. She wasn’t even meant to be here. But as she walked quietly behind Princess Marissa, she couldn’t help but feel the weight of the loneliness that seemed to settle over the castle like a heavy fog.

Family, who lived like strangers. Was this how it was supposed to be? It made her heart ache, just a little.

"Are you worried for him, Your Highness?" Bella asked finally, regretting the words after it left her mouth but was still curious of the answer that she might hear.

"Him?" Princess Marissa leaned forward and let out a laugh, "Him? HIM? Oh dear, you have to know, even if he goes against a demon, I will be worried for the angel instead of him. I merely warn you so I don’t have to deal with the aftermath. I seem to have spoken far too much and unnecessarily. So consider this my mercy. The next time we meet, I might not be so merciful."

Arabella watched as the Princess walked away from the place, holding to her skirt. Before the Princess could leave she raised her voice slightly in the empty halls, "Thank you."

Princess Marissa flinched and turned to look at her. She smiled and repeated, "For stopping those maids earlier, I should thank you for it, Your Highness."

"It is not for your sake but for them," Marissa answered sharply, "You don’t know how possesive my brother could be. If he knew someone was harming and teasing his pet, they’ll be the one who face the death not you."

Bella could only nod, her words caught in her throat. The cold, detached tone of Princess Marissa sent a chill down her spine. But unlike Queen Morgana, she didn’t feel so unbearable or evil.

She slowly recalled Cassius’s words regarding his sister, how once she had loved a human. Was that why the people that surrounds her were mostly humans?

It left her wondering if the Princess had came so far as to castle to check on her... or maybe Cassius who she pretended to not care for?

Such complicated family, Bella sighed in her head.

She then decided to turn back to Cassius’s room when she realized that she had entered a different hall. This hall had all portraits hung around the place. One that immediately cuaght her eyes were of a gorgeous lady with the cold and unfeeling red eyes that seemed to stare at the painter’s soul in a vice.

Arabella’s steps slowed as she approached the portrait, her gaze fixed on the woman with the piercing red eyes. The woman in the painting seemed to emanate an aura of authority, of power, and yet there was something deeply unsettling about the way her eyes seemed to follow Arabella. It was as if the woman was watching, judging, even from beyond the canvas.

She leaned in closer, studying the brushstrokes that brought the woman’s features to life, the sharp cheekbones, a delicate nose, and lips that barely hinted at a smile. The elegance of the portrait was undeniable, but the intensity in her gaze made Arabella’s skin crawl.

"Is she someone important?" Arabella muttered to herself, her voice almost lost in the emptiness of the hall.

As she pulled back, a shiver ran down her spine, and she caught the faintest glimmer of movement in her peripheral vision. Her heart skipped a beat, but when she turned, the hall was still, silent, save for the distant echo of her own footsteps.

Her gaze flickered back to the portrait, and it struck her, this woman, with those unyielding red eyes, looked almost... familiar. Could she be a relative of Cassius? Maybe his mother? The resemblance, if not by blood, was striking, particularly in the sharpness of the features. The same fiery red eyes.

Arabella’s thoughts were interrupted by a sudden voice, cool and commanding. "You’ve found her, haven’t you?"

She turned to see a figure emerging from the shadows, the same unsettling intensity in their gaze.

"Oh my birdie, I didn’t clip your wings so you run around, so eager to escape me yet?"