Lukai was back on her doorstep.

  Why?

  He was certain he recognized her—and the music. Lukai had a memory from training when once, some time ago, he visited her. They were then casually talking. It happened just after her grandmother’s death. It was the fourth time he met her.

  Tara died during the battle, the one that was fought in 166 ACD. They won, but many died. Luna held the farewell ceremony.

  Thereafter, two or three days later, Lukai had a thought—he should check on Tara’s granddaughter. Tara helped the OFF; she allowed them to use her family’s materials. The OFF, at least, should ask her descendant if any help was needed.

  Lukai decided he needed to go. He also planned to act nicer to her after the situation with her Crystal.

  He remembered he had gone to visit her, wanting to meet and greet her officially.

  Luna changed the house.

  There was previously a sitting place that Tara often used to welcome guests, a big space in the middle of the house, surrounded by a staircase on the right to the rooms upstairs and the kitchen downstairs. On the left, there was the energy-protected two-floor library of the Alena family.

  Luna emptied the whole space and turned it into a dance floor—and here she was: dancing.

  Lukai’s first thought was that it was a useless dance. But after a few minutes, he noticed it. It was training.

  She moved slowly but very fluidly. These weren’t bouncy movements; her body was in sync with the rhythm of her breathing. As if she were surrounded by something that was slowing her down. Lukai knew how tiring it was to force the body to move in such a way while maintaining a calm balance.

  It piqued his interest.

  She had her hair tied tightly and pulled back so that nothing would get in her way. Dressed in some loose clothes, nothing special. Overall, Lukai had noticed earlier that her body was already that of a fully mature woman. She had a narrow waist but big hips. She was round, in the sense that she looked soft.

  Luna was making flowing movements with one hand toward the other, making a circle with her whole body, from the ground to above her head. The movement was very slow, very calm; it looked as if she was transferring something from one hand to the other, in a way that she would definitely not drop it.

  He knew this one—a way of learning how to switch hands holding something in them. To be used during the fight.

  Then Luna noticed him. She asked how it was and if it was not too bad. She even smiled.

  Lukai remembered; he said it was interesting, and he added that he could train with her.

  What then surprised him? She agreed, looked a bit scared, but thought for a second and agreed.

  It started then.

  He was visiting occasionally to train. They didn’t talk a lot. Once only, he said that if she had energy, she would be powerful. She was so laughing.

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  He remembered that he smiled. Lukai again was surprised—he didn’t smile a lot; it was for him a thing to remember.

  They started using their names in such a way that when she saw him, she said ‘Lu,’ and he finished with ‘Na.’ When he first saw her, he started with ‘Lu,’ and she finished with ‘Kai.’

  She came up with this idea. She acted naive, but it made her smile, and he didn’t mind.

  After one training session, after months of this strange relationship they had, they were in the kitchen. She was drinking water like crazy. Lukai also drank, but not like this. She was sprayed with water on her face, a bit tired after training, and her hair was moist. He looked at her and, again, noticed she was already a mature woman. She was fragile, but not fragile, always looking scared, but trying to fight. Lukai had previously thought about it, analyzed this combination. He felt something spark in him. He approached her; she was close, emanating warmth; she turned to him, and he kissed her.

  Whenever Lukai thought about their relationship in the months that followed… when they were together, when he was visiting her, he felt various emotions.

  He wasn’t tender, but he tried; he made her feel emotions she didn’t know she could. He was always observing her reactions. She looked scared, but it was fascinating. She was waiting for him to come, to visit. Then, she was waiting for him to decide. He always liked looking. Liked to take her clothes off and look.

  Lukai made her feel good, and that was it.

  They didn’t promise anything to each other.

  She said she wanted to experience it. She said that.

  It fit him. He didn’t want anything more. He then already decided his personal feelings should be suppressed as he had other goals.

  Lukai never told her his identity. And his goals—he told her some details about his goals as the OFF General. But he didn’t talk about his personal goals.

  If she wanted to keep it unofficial and only meet sporadically, it was great.

  Then he started to feel attachment. He decided he needed to act on it.

  Before he did anything, though, the alliance happened. Alena’s last descendant was chosen by Unio families. Nobody asked her for consent—they decided.

  Lukai visited her before it was announced; she didn’t know then. But he knew already about these plans; who as if not him?

  He asked her if she would marry him and have his children; he was very official.

  Luna said ‘no.’

  He was angry; it took him time to prepare and offer it to her. She, he thought then, was not the best wife for him, weak, scared, and he was the OFF General, fighting, and involved in politics.

  Lukai was, after all, the son of his father, and his plans were, to say the least, big.

  … Would children be weak also? He had these thoughts.

  His goals were bigger.

  Lukai worked hard to achieve his current position. He wanted to collapse Unio. He would rather not just be the son of Domini, inherit his position. He wanted to collapse it and build it from scratch.

  She said ‘no’ and added that she never wanted to have kids.

  Lukai was angry. And, not sure why, disappointed.

  He left her alone. He thought that this alliance marriage would be perfect for her and felt more angry.

  Two days later, she got to know officially about the alliance contract. She agreed to be a puppet wife. No children allowed. Caged—living in Shadows places.

  Lukai was more and more disappointed.

  He never replied to any of her messages.

  She asked first if he knew. Then she asked if it would be like this—the end of their relationship? After some time, after a few more messages, she stopped asking.

  Lukai didn’t reply to any of her questions.

  It was easy for him to stop the meetings because there was the alliance contract.

  Later, he spotted her a few times. Luna was coming to the OFF camps to work. There were some fights in the camps; there were panicked warriors from the OFF and from Unio. Once, one of them was behaving nastily, and she had to get him under control. She did. It was visible; she was composed; she treated this fighter properly, calmly; she gave him treatment.

  She matured.

  Lukai observed. He didn’t talk to her.

  Their camps’ tough conditions were not something Unio ladies would accept. Lukai always thought that Luna was fragile; she always looked scared.

  Now he had a thought. Someone scared wouldn’t go there at all. Why was she going there?

  She changed. She fought off her fears. In fact, he could say, she could be a good wife for him. A person who could overcome fears was brave. How did he miss it back then?

  Lukai was back on her doorstep.