The Devil's Cursed Witch

"Commander Morpheus," Draven's voice echoed through the hall, "Mind your words. Do not dare hurt my mate."

Draven could feel the sting of Morpheus' words reflected in Ember's eyes.

Morpheus turned to Draven, "Apologies, Your Majesty. I do not intend to hurt your mate. But I must explain why I do not wish to be her mate. If this causes her pain, I cannot help it. I believe Your Majesty would not refrain me from stating my views and thoughts. An argument cannot be one-sided, favoring only Your Majesty's mate."

Draven's gaze moved to Ember, and each of Morpheus' words seemed to wound her deeper, a feeling of betrayal etched on her face, betrayed by her own friend. Draven regretted ever allowing their friendship. If only he had restricted it, she wouldn't be suffering like this. His hands itched to strangle his own friend, even though he had wanted to save him, even if it meant sharing his mate.

The aura around him began to shift, becoming menacing despite his efforts to stay calm. He had been agitated for days, and he was on the edge, hiding his disturbed emotions behind the faced of calmness, a little provocation might lead him to do the unsaid. At this moment, only his mate mattered to him, and he would tolerate nothing that would hurt her.

Evanthe stood up from her place, sensing the tension between her two friends. "We need to calm down here." She turned to Morpheus, "You need to be polite with your words, Commander. The entire kingdom has accepted Ember as part of this kingdom. But your words might suggest otherwise."

"I do not represent the entire kingdom but myself alone, Your Eminence. By not allowing me to express my thoughts, is this council meeting trying to impose a decision on me that I reject?" He turned to the council members, "I stand by what I said. I can accept Ember Aramis as a rightful citizen of this kingdom, as my friend, as the mate of our king, even as the queen of this kingdom.

I would protect her again and again if she is in danger, but I cannot accept her as my mate. I refuse council's decision, even if it means my death."

Evanthe could only shake her head helplessly. She knew Morpheus would listen to no one. He had always been stubborn, resolute in his decisions. It was easier to persuade Draven to change his mind, but Morpheus was unyielding. Realizing there was nothing more she could do, she decided to leave it at that.

"But Lady Ember is not human," Agraleus spoke, "we all know she possesses powers. So, there is no reason for you to reject her."

"She is born of humans. Neither of her parents is supernatural. Though she possesses powers, which is an anomaly itself, she will always be human to me—the race that took my family and friends away from me. His Majesty can be generous enough to accept her as his mate, but I do not have a forgiving heart. I cannot disappoint my parents, who lie in their graves because of those humans."

"If you hate humans, then why did you protect her on the day of mourning by sacrificing your life, Commander Morpheus?" Halifax asked. "I do not see any hate you have towards humans."

Morpheus turned to Halifax and chuckled, "Elder Halifax, you call me by my title—Commander, yet you forget my responsibilities towards this kingdom."

"You mean you did it out of your responsibility as a commander?" Halifax commented.

"Precisely. Everything I did was for the sake of this kingdom," Morpheus declared. "If I had not intervened that day and protected the King's mate, we would have lost our King. The loss of the King would have thrown this kingdom into chaos, and the peace we have maintained for over a century would have been shattered.

As a commander, it is my responsibility to protect the peace of this kingdom and eliminate any threat, even if it means sacrificing my own life."

"We appreciate what you have done for this kingdom, Commander Morpheus. But instead of dying, you were saved. Isn't it wonderful that you can continue to protect this kingdom you value above everything?" Halifax asked, his words thoughtful.

"If I were gone, someone else would replace me, and the peace of this kingdom would remain intact. We do not lack capable warriors," Morpheus countered. "If I had died that day, it would have been a prideful death for me. But being saved only caused me harm and left me to survive on someone else's mercy and sacrifice. I do not intend to live a life that shames my pride.

I, Commander Morpheus, refuse to live off someone's mercy. I would rather choose a prideful death."

Morpheus' argument left everyone speechless and helpless. Ember, rooted to the spot like a statue, felt a turmoil of emotions. Disbelief, betrayal, and hurt painted her face, tears streaming down her cheeks without stopping. She had fought with herself to accept another mate, and just when she had finally readied herself, he rejected all her efforts meant to save his life.

His hatred for humans ran so deep that he chose death over accepting her as his mate.

Draven longed to go to her and comfort her in his arms, feeling everything she was experiencing at this moment. It took all his self-control to hold himself back, hoping it would be over soon.

"I believe everyone understands my position," Morpheus commented. "I will take my leave now. I trust there won't be any further council meetings regarding this issue." With that, he bowed to the King and turned to leave.

"Wait!"

A voice stopped him, but he didn't turn to see who had spoken.

"Even if you hate me for being human, I do not hate you," Ember said. "To me, you will always be my friend. I want to protect you just as you have protected me—not just on the day of mourning but even before that. If you hadn't saved me that night when I jumped from the hill to end my life, and all those other times when you stood by me, I wouldn't be here today. Let me help you now.

Once the bond is established and you are safe, you can continue to hate me."

Silence filled the council hall, everyone waiting for Morpheus' response.

Her words, which seemed like she was begging, caused his throat to tighten with the emotions he was trying to suppress. He inhaled deeply and turned to look at her once more, meeting her hopeful eyes that also showed the pain he had caused her.

"Would I be able to hate you after the bond is formed?" he asked. "Don't you know how the bond works? Even if I wanted to hate you, it wouldn't allow me. I would have no choice but to accept you."

"Am I so hateful that you can't even consider accepting me?" she asked.

If only she knew how much he loved her, she would never ask such a question. Hateful? She could never be. How much he himself was hurting to say such hurtful things to her.

"If I become your mate, would you love me the way you love Draven?" Morpheus asked, looking straight into her eyes.

Ember felt her resolve falter. The only one she loved and would ever love was Draven. She knew she wouldn't be able to love someone else, and she didn't want to lie.