Chapter 82: The Place That Would Always Wait For Him

A wisp of heat stirred a heart. As cold as ice it was before had now turned into a burning inferno. Heat in a sea of fire. However, it wasn't painful. There was no bitter pain but a tearful passion.

His golden irises held the youth within. Tenderness and fanatic devotion surging in those sun-like irises. An electric emotion gathering deep beneath.

Hadrian was speechless. He could not contain the tremble of his fingers around the young man in front of him.

Moulin bit back a laugh. His playful eyes stared at Hadrian as his fragile fingers tapped on the Lord's jaw. "Did you really not expect it? The look on your face is quite... a sight." Moulin then chuckled. The sweet sound echoed throughout the cave of ice. His eyes narrowed with amusement. Fingertips lingering under Hadrian's brow, tracing the fine shape of the Lord's eyes. "Your reactions are adorable..."

"You..." Hadrian forced out. His eyes growing unfocused on Moulin's lips that had silenced him. Delectably soft, he had remembered. He wanted it again. "... are playing with fire."

"Dangerous yet fun..." Moulin smirked. "If you like, I'll play with you a bit more..."

Hadrian smiled. "You will make me do things I'm sure you wouldn't like..." His tone was deep and heavy. Threatening to pounce.

Moulin raised an eyebrow. "And you believe I wouldn't have the strength to stop you? You are over your head." He rolled his eyes. Silver irises beaming with confidence in his ability and skill.

Hadrian only nodded his head in agreement. He didn't doubt Moulin's skill but he did doubt the youth's power to escape from his clutches. Although he wanted to tease Moulin about it he reckoned it would only anger Moulin. Still, if he did, the youth's furious side is quite endearing.

They talked while in each other's arms. Their bond was so clear at the moment. As though they were stuck in their own world, unbothered about the turmoil of the world.

When Hadrian suddenly dipped his head to connect their lips, Moulin instantly pressed a finger on the Lord's lips. Moulin raised an eyebrow at the Lord as he leaned closer. "The day won't be long soon. Best we retire..." He whispered and added, "One night, one kiss. I will freeze you if you dare go further than this..." As he spoke, there was a slight blush on his cheeks. Moulin was aware of it but it didn't bother him.

As he hopelessly nodded, Hadrian's gaze noticed the tremble of Moulin's knees as well as the slight drowsiness in his silver eyes. "Perhaps, it's time to return..."

"Return? No. Come sit with me. We'll spend a bit more time here before we go..." Moulin hastily pulled Hadrian to a wall. The youth sat first before tugging the Archnoble to sit beside him.

Of course, Hadrian knew what Moulin means to do with the refusal to return but he didn't resist. They sat on their cloaks, eyes roaming around the flickering glow within the walls of the cave. There was something unusual inside the cave. It was as if it had life within. It welcomes Moulin's arrival when they first stepped into the cave, glowing fine lights to brighten the dim area.

"When I first awoke here, it felt like home..." Moulin began as he gazed into the bright ethereal colors within thick walls of ice. The lights twinkled in the reflection of Moulin's silver irises.

Hadrian listened silently. His hand holding Moulin's hand warmly.

"I love the feel of the soft snow beneath my bare feet. The freedom of the woods given to me was blissfully satisfying. Like my soul had merged with the cold wind, faking me far and far away..." Moulin pleasantly sighed. He leaned on Hadrian's shoulder as his back pressed on the wall behind them. "There was life in my mana and a thrill in my heart. The snow around me had done well with my ability. I could manipulate everything where the snow touches. It felt great being able to call it my territory..."

"So you are saying that you mean for us to come here so you could trap me?" Hadrian concluded with a smile. His amusing smile directly sent vexing heat into Moulin's chest.

"Well..." Moulin looked up at Hadrian, thoughtfully. "That was part of it..."

"Recklessly clever..." Hadrian peered down, meeting Moulin's frisky eyes. Helplessly, Hadrian softened his eyes as he gazed into those dazzling orbs. Truly, he was drowning in them and he compelled himself never to resurface.

"I know you want to sleep here for the night..." Hadrian said. His words plucked the truth out from Moulin's mind.

Moulin flinched. He only frowned shortly before throwing Hadrian an embarrassed expression. Although he already knew Hadrian would figure it out he didn't expect it to be so soon. He really can't hide anything from this man...

Moulin stopped. Except for the truth of who he really was...

"If that is what you want... then I shall accompany you..." Hadrian placed a hand on Moulin's shoulder and pulled him closer. Although they wore their cloaks, their closeness was warmer.

"Thank you..." Moulin whispered with closed eyes.

pleasant. The feeling was beautiful. Being loved like this felt so precious Moulin felt like he was in a dream, as exaggerated as it sounds, he somehow felt light. Unlike the one-sided chase he did in his previous life, this was more true and genuine. Even though Moulin didn't know If it was truly real, he wanted to savor the moment and imprint it n his mind.

Currently, his mind was empty and tucked in a comfortable place. He felt the lazy strokes of his shoulder as if it was lulling him to sleep. At this moment he felt drowsiness wash him away. The comfort was exceptionally pleasing. For a moment, Moulin wanted it to stay forever.

Hadrian smiled once he noticed the calming silence of the youth leaning on him. The quiet and soft breathes made Hadrian smile. Moulin had torn down the walls of his heart to him. Letting Hadrian crave for more.

The Lord carefully closed the white-furred cloak around Moulin's body. Although Hadrian knew that the youth wasn't affected by the cold because of his ability, Hadrian only wanted to do something gentle to the little lover sleeping by his side. There was so much more that he wanted to do but he knew all would have to wait. Slowly, slowly he will do all of it.

He closed his eyes. The soft breathing of the youth by his side aiding to calm his beating heart. He dipped his head to land a kiss on Moulin's forehead. "Good night..."

Resting within the faint light of the walls, their breaths steadied. Melding their bodies together in an embrace.

The night went as they slept.

...................

Dawn.

A splash of orange signaled the welcome of the rising sun to every person in the Leonile manorial.

Walking on the narrow halls of the Sentinal quarters, the floorboards creaked under Jagra's footsteps. With enthusiasm, he raised his hand to knock on Moulin's door.

Knock!

Knock!

"Moulin?" He called. A few seconds passed but he heard no response. Jagra furrowed his brows.

Moulin was going to be late for his morning training. Jagra knew Moulin had never missed a jog. Confusion etched Jagra's face as he moved to knock on the door once again.

Out of the blue, a hand inserted itself between Jagra and the door making him stop his attempt. Varick's friendly face entered the recruit's sight.

"Moulin already awoke. He was summoned by Fhorg earlier." Varick smiled. There seemed to be no lie in his smile as he spoke in a friendly manner.

Jagra furrowed his brows before lowering his hand. Oh, so he was already awake? Jagra bowed his head, "Thank you for the... information, Sir."

He waved farewell before he went on his way to join Ghana for training. He wasn't the least suspicious about the fact that Varick had hastily stopped him from knocking on Moulin's door.

Watching Jagra's departing back, Varick secretly released a sigh. He raised his communicating band to his mouth and muttered. "What's the situation?"

"What do you think?!" Tyve yelled from behind Moulin's door.

Varick looked at the door once he heard a loud thud. He only felt pity for his little friend who sacrificed himself to appease the beast inside.

"This thing won't calm down!" A sweaty Varick shouted as he held a pillow in front of him. The front surface of the large pillow had deep scratches, it bled out feathers, fluttering down the floor. The man held the pillow with great strength to shield himself from the tiny fox prowling on the floor before him.

Tiny Snow growled dangerously, threatening to pounce at Tyve with a pillow shield.

Tyve mentally shed tears as he stepped back, afraid of triggering the fox's anger to shift into it's Mystic beast form.

It was early before dawn when their Guild Lord, Hadrian Hercullio, contacted them to watch the little beast in Moulin's room. Varick, Tyve, and Troid worked together to confront the little fox. When Snow turned rampant to know that Lord Hadrian had taken his master, he was beyond furious. Varick had to make excuses for Moulin's absence and the noise in Moulin's room, Troid ran back and forth to his study to look for anything to calm the little beast, and sadly for Tyve, the man was left the responsibility to calm the fox's temper. Since they were only ones who knew about Moulin and Hadrian's relationship, Hadrian had mercilessly ordered them to take care of his little lover's beast.

The moment Tyve and Troid processed the words of their Lord, they shuddered. The fear was real.

As Tyve tried to calm himself down, he gently spoke to the fox, "Easy there, little Snow. Easy..."

Snow growled and his small silver eyes glowed brightly. Indicating the Fox's will to shift into its Mystic form. Tyve's heart nearly stopped beating as he attempted to shout for Troid at the top of his lungs.

"I'm here! I'm here!" Troid slammed the door open with a bang.

The loud sound only startled Snow even more. His furred body started glowing bright and Tyve ran to his brother's side with the pillow. Leaving a trail of feathers fluttering in the air. Varick's head peeked from behind the door frame, leaving the work to his friends as he stood behind ready to run. How can such a vicious thing be owned by an aphrodite maeruthan?!

Luckily the Sentinel quarters were currently empty or the three would have to answer to Lord Hadrian about the commotion spreading around the manorial.

A delicious scent finally entered Snow's nose. The transformation abruptly stopped and tiny small immediately turned towards the direction of the sweet fruity smell. His snout twitched as he started at the fruit in Troid's hand.

After painfully searching, Troid finally found the fruit which had always captured every Mystic beast's attention. Palan was a fruit from one of the strange fruitful trees in Meian. There was an extreme demand for it from nobles and beast tamers, it is quite costly as well. The fruit was green, round, and plump. The skin was soft and the inside was juicy. Only, it would cause harm to any creature who would dare to eat it except for the mighty Mystic beasts.

"F-feed it! Feed it now!" Tyve hid behind his brother.

"Shut your mouth hole!" Troid hissed at him before taking a careful step towards Snow. "Here, little beast... Come..."

This time, without breaking anything, Snow walked slowly towards Troid. His beady eyes never left the round fruit hanging from Troid's grip. Tyve finally let out a sigh of relief as his twin crouched to feed the demonic beast. For a moment, Tyve's soul almost left his body when he saw the vicious-looking eyes staring at him.

Varick sighed as he watched Snow happily eat the fruit that was as large as its body. He only hoped Moulin would come back quickly before they run out of Palan fruits. The three sentinels watched the fox intently, as they prepared the next Palan fruit to feed the fox. Exactly how did Moulin tame this

adorable yet evil thing?!

...................

The sun had risen. An ethereal hue of orange and blue cast on the pure white snow around the lake. It was breathtakingly magnificent.

A tall man stood before the vast frozen lake. The golden strands of his hair appeared to become messy from the whistling wind of the north, greeting the Lord with the coldness that it brought. He looked particularly eye-catching. There was a deep contrast of colors of the Lord's black-furred cloak and the pure white snow that surrounded him.

He stood there alone, staring at the view which Moulin had always witnessed in his life here in the northern mountains. The scene was indeed beautiful. Too beautiful that it brought bitterness to the golden-eyed man. He wondered why such a scene would catch Moulin's attention greatly.

Realizing his thoughts, Hadrian laughed darkly. He had completely become mad for love...

"Why didn't you wake me?" Moulin's soft voice sounded behind him. Hadrian pulled back his shoulder to look at Moulin's sluggish form. His long silver hair was messy and tangled and his silver eyes were moist and watery creating a beautiful gloss over those dazzling silver eyes. Indeed, the youth was an enticement to both men and women. Hadrian secretly hid the darkness in his eyes as he walked towards Moulin.

"Sunrise..." Moulin gazed at the lake. The beautiful reflection of the sky on the lake was overwhelming.

Hadrian stood in front of him as he pushed away the stray strands on Moulin's forehead. "You should've slept a bit more..."

Moulin shook his head, "I cannot risk my reputation as the most punctual sentinel in the manorial for this. Tessley would become disappointed in me."

"She won't dare..." Hadrian lifted a corner of his lips.

Moulin cocked an eyebrow at Hadrian's words. "If you want me to favor you, don't meddle with my work. Don't bring anyone down because of some little mistake I might make. Unless I want you too..." Moulin told the last sentence carefully.

"As you wish..." Hadrian smiled as he brought their hands together.

With a soft laugh, Moulin stepped closer towards Hadrian. The snow beneath him reached his ankles. He leaned closer to Hadrian as he spoke in an unhurried manner. "You're being so obedient today, Milord..." He teased. "Makes me want to use you for my own amusement..."

"If that is what my young master wishes..." Lord Hadrian's eyes deepened as he spoke. "... Let me be your dog."

"Hmm... Tempting..." Moulin tapped the man's chin with a finger twice. "But we best return..." He pulled away abruptly, leaving Hadrian to stiffen.

"I sense a little brat is making trouble while I'm away... Let us hurry."

Hadrian stared at him for a few seconds before sighing helplessly. The little doll's attention wasn't always at him. Hadrian could not help but become greedy and envious. He sealed the darkening in his eyes before he pulled Moulin to him.

"Very well..."

Moulin glanced at the sight of the lake one last time. He quickly absorbed the magnificence of it before he disappeared.

One day he will come back and he'll take Snow with him. It would be a long time before that happens but Moulin promised himself. This place was always here waiting for him.