Isabelle reimagined her whole saga with the Pegasus. Was she crazy? Or was something seriously twisted going on. It was late and she wasn't at her suitor's house yet. She suspected they would have found out her little escapade. Of course! It was twelve midnight and she had missed dinner. She was definitely in trouble. Her mother would freak out believing she ran away. The whole thought brought a smile to her face. At last, she got to the doorsteps of Frederick's mansion. The front door was surprisingly opened. Like a foolish character from every movie ever made, she crept in walking on her toes. They were there. Her mother and Frederick.

"Where did you go?" Frederick demanded. Who the hell was he to monitor her movement? Isabelle fumed. Her mother's concern was heard of but his. For all she knew, he was nothing to her until they got wedded.

"I went for a swim." She retorted, twice the venom.

The air was tense. Isabelle's mother could not bear to see their only source of luxury mad even if it was at the expense of her daughter's self-respect. She slapped Isabelle. It was so unexpected that Isabelle lost her footing. Pointing her perfectly manicured finger in Isabelle's face, her mother spoke senses to her.

"Don't you dare argue with your husband."

Isabelle did not deserve this. Her family was broke but she could not bear the life she was about to be forced into. She ran to her room. She clumsily slipped and fell multiple times in a bid to cover her shame. Reaching her room, she banged the doors shut violently just to hold on to her anger. Immediately the doors were locked securely, Isabelle lay on the floor weeping. She had no desire to live anymore. Life had lost its purpose. She stole one look at the drawings on the ceiling. The Pegasus once again caught her attention.

Was she going insane? It could not be a coincidence that she had encountered it twice. She, however, knew no one would believe her. They had done it before and they would do it again. The only person who understood her was Lucia so she made up her mind to write to her, it would take a lot off her chest.

"Dear Lucia," she wrote.

"I've met with the douchebag I'm getting married to and I have to tell you, he is very controlling. He already thinks we're married. I think I saw the Pegasus again. I swear to you, it's the same one that saved me three years ago. I wish I could see it one more time to thank it. I know it's just an animal but you know..."

The letter was perfect. She could hardly wait for Lucia's reply. She would mail it first thing in the morning then visit the river with high hopes that the creature would come for a drink. Isabelle was exhausted and retired on the lonely bed. It was boring and lonely here. Despite the house's largeness, there was no adventure.

"Isabelle!" Her mother called. Isabelle resolved not to answer still remembering her perpetual disgrace downstairs. The knocks and calls got louder and more irritating. Isabelle knew this was just like her mother. She could go any length to get what she wanted. Isabelle sometimes wished she was a little like her. She would have had the guts to refuse the arrangement. Isabelle opened the door and her mother pushed her way inside.

"You were awake the whole time?" Her mother asked. Isabelle refused to talk. She did this when she was mad at someone. Her mother, however, was not interested in her mood.

"I'll be leaving tomorrow by Dawn." She stated.

And leave her alone here. Isabelle could not believe her luck. She was going to be alone with that repulsive man without her mother to keep him in check.

"Great." Isabelle sarcastically said. Her mother moved closer to her, an epitome of motherly love,

"Isabelle," she began.

"You don't have to love him. Think about your father, if he gets this deal and is successful. You can divorce him if you still haven't fallen in love with him."

"What do you mean if I haven't fallen in love with him?" Isabelle queried.

Her mother held her chin and made Isabelle look directly into her eyes,

"When I met your father, I did not love him. I married him to leave my pathetic life. But I learned to love him you will too."

What was her mom saying? Isabelle wondered. That she would ever have a pinch of emotion for Frederick? Maybe when she was blue and cold.

Isabelle's mother kissed her and made her chant the mantra she had been repeating since they got to Astoria,

"For the deal, Nothing else."

before leaving. Isabelle knew she would never set eyes on her again until the deal was set. She wept a bit more. Her mother might have married her father to leave a pathetic life, she had a feeling she was about to go into one. One she could not turn back on.

***

Lucas freely soared the skies watching the city of Astoria from a distance. The strong wind blowing against him reminded him of the girl at the river. He remembered her expression when she saw him. It wasn't fear or surprise. It was fascination. He wondered if she had seen him before. Little had seen him in his pegasus form but when they told their tale, they were mocked for either being drunk or hallucinating. A little flying was enough to clear his head. He descended to the red earth as the sun rose. Soon even the forest would be threading with hunters, smugglers, and women. He had to lay low. Keeping from humans had been considerably easy. Hunters never ventured deep into the forest out of fear of the unknown. He occasionally scared poke-nosing women away with weird noises. Sitting down idle in the grass, he tried to remember the girl from the night before. She looked familiar. The flaming red hair, her round green eyes. There was an allure to her he could hardly resist. He could surely not get her. She looked like a Noble.

"Shut up Lucas!" He sang to his inappropriate thoughts. He did suspect they had met before, he just couldn't remember if he was still human then.

Alone in the forest, time passed and it began to get dark. Lucas spread his gigantic wings and took flight. He was heading to the river before his transformation began.

A sudden rainstorm sent Lucas descending. His wings were soaked and he knew he had to gallop to the stream. Luckily, every villager would have gone home to avoid the storm.

***

Isabelle had gone to mail her letter when the rain began to pour. She was halfway to the carriage when she noticed the coach rider was missing. The horses were also gone.

"Hello?" She called out. The whole scenario seemed odd. Did the rider go for a drink? She was about to call out to him again when a cold metal pierced her skin. It was a knife. Two men came into view. Both looked dangerous and had a weapon on them. She didn't need a seer to tell her what was happening, it was definitely bad.

The three men, one holding her firm to his grip and the other two watching out for Intruders explained why they were taking her. From what they said, she learned that Frederick had betrayed the prince and he was going to pay. To make it clear, they planned to rape her and dispose of her.

What could Frederick had done against the prince? Isabelle didn't even have minutes to ponder on that before her defenses activated. Spending years in Astoria, her father had taught her how to protect herself for harm. She stopped struggling with the man holding her and when he loosened his grip, she elbowed him right in the groin. He released her from his hold and she ran for it before the three could regain her composure. One of her assaulter gifted her with a deep cut to the shoulder. It bled but she did not let it slow her down. She ran into the forest not looking back once. The downpour got heavier drowning all sound from Isabelle's ear. The only audible thing she could make was the male grunts. They were still in pursuit. Isabelle knew if she dared stop, they would do worse to her than they had originally planned so she picked up her pace despite her growing fatigue. When Isabelle noticed the men had still not given up but they were catching up to her and quick. She could only do the sane thought her mind proposed.

"Help!" She screamed.

What was the use? She was deep in the forest and the heavy downpour would make it almost impossible for anyone to hear her cries for help. She was doomed.

***

Lucas waited patiently for the transformation. He heard something. It was a call for help. Ordinarily, he would ignore it but the woman's voice was very convincing. She had to be really in trouble. He could not fly as his feathers were dripping with water but damn he could run. He followed the voice and got there even before the word flash could be said. It was the same redhead. She was being cornered by three miscreants. It was the perfect moment for a romantic rescue. Years of being a Pegasus, Lucas had learned how to protect himself. Hidden in his wings were talons sharper than knives and deadlier than venom. He charged at one, stabbing him right in the chest and ripping his skin clean. The man fell to the ground screaming and in seconds he was dead. The other two witnessed the evil perpetrated by the purple winged horse and tried to run. Lucas did not grant them a fair chance. He wanted them dead or perhaps it was the adrenaline talking. He charged for another that he quickly got up to. Knocking him down with his muscle filled right-wing, he trampled him to death. Suddenly one of Lucas's wings retracted and he lost his balance falling down to the mud. The last miscreant saw this happen and saw it as an opportunity to kill the psychotic Pegasus. Holding a dagger, he stabbed the animal right in the stomach. Lucas let out a wail as his human hands returned. He reached out for the dagger embedded in his stomach and stabbed the man in retaliation. Within seconds, the man fell to the ground. A human Lucas stood up despite the sick feeling he had in his stomach and watched his one-man-slaughter. The girl he had saved looked at him like she had seen a ghost before fainting.