Seducing my King Master

ONE

Thirteen years later

The soft whooshing sounds of the breeze ruffling through a thousand leaves on the surrounding trees blended with the louder sounds of water rushing down the graceful waterfall. The dimming evening sky matched her equally dimmed spirits as she stood staring ahead at the water.

She narrowed her eyes ever so slightly as she tried to focus more, to concentrate more deeply. Her chest rose and fell steadily as she breathed in the fresh breeze; the scent of fresh wood and leaves was prominent on every breath she dragged in. She let her mind find the rhythm of the flow of the water, to sync with the movement of every drop, to find their purpose, to find and feel them.

Convinced that she had harmonized her mind with her surrounding, she raised both hands, willing the water cascading down the waterfall to mirror her movement as her blue eyes glowed a dull silver. However, the water rose abruptly, sharply; it was as though it had a mind of its own, a mind full of hate and anger. It rose to great heights, casting a menacing shadow over the cliff on which she stood.

Shocked by the sudden outburst of the water, she stepped back quickly while trying her best to subdue the raging water. Her futile attempts seemed to enrage it more and it began crashing down quickly.

A gasp left her parted lips and she shut her eyes tightly, dreading the lethal hit that would probably cause her to fall off the cliff. Her heart pounded against her chest erratically, the sound of it rang loud and clear in her ears and she could feel the somewhat ticklish feeling of cold sweat sliding down the back of her neck.

Soon enough, she realized that the predicted blow was taking longer than she had expected, and a shuddering breath left her lips as she pried her eyes open slowly. She found the cliff void of the dark shadow the malicious water had cast upon it, she found the water calmly cascading down the fall as though they hadn’t sought to end her just now.

She swallowed hard. Her heart should have calmed it’s erratic pace by now but it only seemed to pound harder.

What attempt was this? The fifth? Sixth?

Slowly, very slowly, she turned around to face him; she turned around to meet his cold and dark eyes which sent a shuddering chill running down her spine. The look in his eyes could freeze even the wildest of oceans.

She thought about what to do next, considered the options; she could either wait for him to speak first or she could simply start apologizing. She opted for the latter.

She fell to her knees at once, not minding that her pale pink dress would be soiled, not minding that her knees might bruise, not minding anything at all.

“I….I”. She stuttered quietly.

She wasn’t sure what to say.

“You have spent the entire day practicing but yet you fail to get this right”. His deep, icy voice spoke smoothly.

Was he upset? She could never tell if he was upset, he never gave anything away.

“What is your excuse?”. He asked her.

Knowing she had to say something, she spoke up at last.

“I…. I was distracted”. She replied, “I will try harder”.

It was almost impossible to hear his footsteps, thus, the shadow his tall and regal frame suddenly casted over her caused her heart to fall to the pit of her stomach.

“What did I say about distractions?”. He asked her.

She knew. He had warned her about being distracted during their lessons but she couldn’t help it, not when she couldn’t ignore the changes in herself; not when she couldn’t ignore how her body reacted to his proximity.

She didn’t know when or how it all became like this, but it was so now, she couldn’t help how her breath would hitch or falter when he was around her. She couldn’t help how her heart would pound heavily when he spoke to her, how her palms would become clammy and how the pit of her stomach would heat up each time he stood behind her to instruct her on something.

Oh, how she would fantasize about leaning into his chest, about his arms slowly wounding around her to keep her safe and sound. Of course, it was hard to actually focus on the lesson.

What she didn’t understand was why she was suddenly like this. After all, he was not just her master but her king! He was a person who had personally overseen all of her training since she was just a girl. She was highly aware that the feelings she was developing for him were highly inappropriate, but she found herself helpless.

She would go to bed every night with the thought of him on her mind, and she would surprisingly wake up with the exact same thought. At times she dreamed of him even.

“Arya!”.

His stern voice snapped her out of her thoughts at once and she realized she had spaced out once more.

~~

He stared down at her petite figure kneeling before him. He couldn’t help but be slightly irritated by the level of incompetence she had been displaying lately.

“I…I was distracted”. She replied quietly. “I will try harder”.

He narrowed his eyes at her. She always had an excuse to give; she was either unwell or distracted. What he didn’t understand was why she was so distracted, what bothered her so much? He decided to ask.

“What are you distracted by?”.

And she said nothing, in every honesty, she showed no sign of having heard him at all.

“Arya”. He said her name to get her attention.

Still, she didn’t respond. It was clear to see that she had spaced out once more. He couldn’t help but feel even more irritated.

“Arya!”. He said her name again, this time around he sounded harsher than he had intended to.

Her head jerked up at once and stared up at him wide eyed, the panic in her eyes was justified since he had never raised his voice at her before; but it was she who had caused him to.

“On your feet, now”. He ordered.

She got off her knees quickly and stood before him; her fingers fiddled uneasily with the silk fabric of her dress; the distress oozing off her sought to unnerve him more.

Taking a step forward, he spoke.

“What is this incompetence you have been displaying lately?”.

To his surprise, she stepped back quickly, almost as though he scared her. And in doing so, she stumbled on the rocky grounds and lost her balance; a matter he corrected by reaching out and holding her hand to keep her from falling. And for a moment he did nothing, just stood there staring down at her, staring into her eyes, taking in how wide they were with panic. And he shook his head before pulling her up completely.

Arya’s breath had long hitched, her heart had stilled even. She stared up at him a moment longer before averting her gaze.

“I…I apologize”. She begun stuttering incoherently. “I tripped….i didn’t….”

“Arya”. He put an end to her rambling.

She hadn’t quite been herself lately, he had noticed, yes, but he had overlooked it thinking she would snap out of it. But lately it was getting rather excessive.

“Take the rest of the day off”. He told her. “Sort out your thoughts, don’t come back to me like this tomorrow”.

Her gaze flickered back to his and she shook her head quickly.

“Let…let me try again”. She said, she was so desperate to redeem herself, so very desperate to impress him.

He shook his head.

“Master please”. She begged him. “Let me try again, please”.

“Arya”. He said her name once more, the warning was clear.

She fell to her knees at once and his narrowed eyes widened slightly.

“Please”. She pleaded. She felt tears sting the back of her eyes, she blinked quickly to clear them but her attempts were futile.

He let out a breath before lowering himself before her, his frame towered over her petite form though he was merely crouching. He could see that she truly wasn’t herself today, and so his fingers slid underneath her chin and gently nudged her head up so she looked at him.

A shuddering breath left her and the accumulated tears in her eyes danced with uncertainty as she stared at him.

“Please”. She tried once more.

He stared at her a moment longer before nodding consideringly.

“Be careful”. He said to her.

She nodded quickly. The gratitude in her eyes was unmistakable as she rose to her feet quickly and hurried back to the edge of the cliff. She shut her eyes tightly as she tried to clear her mind, to pull herself together and to once again become one with the water.

She had to get it right this time, she had to. Never before had she been more aware of the fact that he was watching her; she felt as though her life depended on it.

She attempted to wield the water once more, but this time there was no warning, no sign, no hint at all; the beastly water rose and crashed down on her and it all went black.