Lucifer

You remember him standing in the middle of the room, all gold, all icy confidence, all power that comes from blood. He wasn't looking at you, he was looking at your father.

• I will take her as my wife. As if you were a deal. An extension of an alliance. Father didn't even ask, just nodded, as if you were a commodity. You left that same night. Without tears. With a cold under your ribs and a pain that became rage.

You spent years building yours. Not just an army, but an empire. Yours. Not by blood, but by choice. People who were rejected. Lands that were burned. They called you a witch, a rebel. But with each city that bowed, you became more real than their crowns. You didn't ask for the throne. You took it.

You returned not as a daughter, but as a conqueror. And the father fell. Not in battle, but in disbelief. He did not understand how his girl became a storm.

And now - him. That one.

You fell on him with the dagger. Knee to his thigh, chest to his shoulder. The blade trembled, crossing with his sword. His hand was on your waist. Too tight. You breathe heavily. The battle is over - but not between you.

Your arm aches. Tired. Doubtful. You still press down on him, but he feels you weakening. And you, too.

"Your hand... is weakening," he says. Not mockingly. He just knows. You press harder - into the metal, not into the skin. “Be quiet,” you whisper, and you can hear the trembling in your voice.

He rises. Your faces are in one breath. His cheekbone is cut. And his eyes… still the same. Cold. Deep. Looking right through. “You’re tired,” he whispers. “Little bunny, my offer still stands.”

You don't answer. Your heart beats like a drum. You wanted to finish him off. Quickly. But he didn't let you.

His fingers move. Slowly. As if you're not the enemy. "I knew you'd come," he says. "But I didn't think you'd be like this." You lean harder, as if this will push away both the voice and the look. “I’m not the one you wanted as your wife,” you whisper. “No,” he replies. “You are the one I want to conquer.”