I sat quietly, my gaze cast out the window as Judar dressed my wounds. Once he was finished, he watched me with wary eyes. I pressed my lips together, careful not to return his stare. Finally, he sighed heavily, breaking the silence.

"I'll have someone bring you some new clothes. But for now, just wear these," he said, tossing me a bundle of clothing. I pulled the articles apart and saw that they were the same pants Judar normally wore.

"Are these yours?" I asked with wide eyes as I looked them over.

"Does it really matter? Just put them on unless you wanna walk around naked," he replied.

My stomach fluttered at the thought of wearing Judar's clothes. I hesitantly slid them on before pulling off my tattered dress. Once dressed, I got to my feet and briskly headed for the door.

Judar caught me by the arm just as I passed him, pulling me into his chest. His lip curved up at one side as he teased, "You look pretty cute in my stuff, Princess."

"Stop it," I hissed, pulling my wrist our of his grasp and turning away from him.

He scowled at my actions, "Hey, now. What's your deal?"

I gritted my teeth to keep from overreacting.

(How can he be so alluring to me after the things he said about me this morning? Surely he can't feel that way and act so carelessly towards me, can he?)

My hands clenched into fists as I replied in a low voice, "I'm quite alright. I'm going back out."
I ventured towards the door again until Judar's arm slipped around my waist, pulling my body close to his.

"Like Hell you are. I don't know how many idiots Al Tharmen has sent after us so you're not going anywhere," he said, his chest rumbled with each word against my back and he pulled me closer. "Not without me, anyways," he continued, his voice quieter now.

In their own way, his words were sweet and my heart ached to believe that he really cared about me. But the sharp pang of his words from this morning sent my nerves back into submission and I tore my body away from his.

"I don't need your help this time around! Just stay away from me," I shouted at him.

Judar was taken aback at my sudden outburst but he quickly collected himself, his brow furrowing as he spoke, "What's with you all of a sudden, huh? Is this normally what happens after people get intimate for the first time?"

My cheeks reddened at his statement and I felt flustered. "And what would you know about intimacy, Judar?" I refuted sharply. I stamped across the room towards him, my head boiling with anger. He stood his ground as I brought myself to stand before him. My eyes met his and I growled, "You're manipulative and sadistic and I'm not having it."

Judar met my gaze head on with his own just as a taunting smile sprawled across his lips. He leaned down until his eyes were level with mine. "Not having it?" he asked, his tone tauntingly sweet as he ran his fingers along my neck.

At his warm touch, I unsheathed my sword, sticking the point of the blade to his throat. "Don't you dare touch me," I snarled. My entire body was hot with mixed feelings. Half of me longed for more of his touch while the other half was torn between pain and anger.

Judar's scarlet eyes widened slightly at my ferocity and he chuckled, pushing my sword away with his hand. "Come now, Princess. Tell me what it is that's really bothering you then," he said, pulling his wand out and twirling it nonchalantly between his fingers.

His calm demeanor was starting to make my skin crawl and I felt a familiar rush of anxiety flooding through me. I readied my blade, gripping the handle tightly as I set my sights on Judar.

(This feels wrong but... I can't find it in me to stop. He just has a certain way of really pissing me off sometimes.)

My skin was burning now with rage that had collected up over the hours. The very thought of how close we were the night before tore my heart to shreds and the fact that it meant next to nothing to Judar set my core on fire.

I lunged forward, smashing my blade into the yellow sphere that had formed around the Magi.

(Damned protection of the Rukh! I'll smash through it! And when I do-!)

I struck the sphere twice more and the surface shattered under my blade. Judar's brow furrowed, his wand glowing as he pointed it right at me.

To my disdain, I received no warning for his attack. I was sent backwards at a high speed, landing heavily against the wall. I pulled myself up, brushing myself off and catching my breath before crossing the room slowly towards Judar. He watched me with cautious eyes as I stammered closer and closer until I was standing only a foot or so in front of him. With tear-filled eyes, I met his gaze. "I overheard you talking with Hakuryuu earlier today," I said as calmly as I could manage. Judar's expression faltered as he recalled what was said. His eyes widened for a moment as if he had finally realized exactly why I was upset. He glanced down at me again, at a loss for words. I placed a gentle hand along his cheek and smiled through my quiet crying. "So that's why," I started silently. The ring on my finger began to glow and an intense heat radiated through my hand, burning into Judar's skin. "Kenna," I whispered the Djinn's name.

He looked panicked as he tried to step away but I followed suit, keeping my hand pressed to his cheek until fire exploded from my palm.

Judar, having narrowly escaped my attack, was stumbling backwards and rubbing the char from his face. "Are you insane?!" he yelled at me, stumbling out of the bedroom and into the corridor.

I'd only just begun to unleash the bottled up fury I'd been storing since I'd heard him call me nothing more than "a prize weapon."

(If a prize weapon is what you wanted, then that's exactly what you'll get!)

I rushed out of the room after him with my metal vessel in hand. By then, Judar was halfway down the corridor. "Judar! Where are you going?" I asked sweetly, pointing my sword towards him. "Aleia!" I shouted, expending an enormous amount of magoi. Water gushed from the blade and flooded the entire hallway.

Judar had just glanced back in time to be swept under the current of my tidal wave. I waded through the hall until I found Judar and pulled him up out of the water by his hair. He stammered backwards and I reached for his throat until I was pulled backwards in a strong embrace. The Magi slipped through my fingers and I struggled towards him but to no avail.

"Damn you, you lying bastard!" I screamed angrily, struggling to break free of whatever restraint had pulled me away from him.

"Princess Mei, as much as I'd also like to see Judar meet his death, I'm afraid I can't let him die just yet," a warm voice sounded in my ear. I glanced back at the person holding me back and my face flushed pink as my eyes met Sinbad's. "You're also making quite a mess out of my palace," he said in a cheery voice.

I stared at him in shock and my entire body tensed up with embarrassment. "King Sinbad," I muttered, suddenly feeling a wave of dizziness wash over me. My body collapsed but Sinbad cradled me in his arms, lifting me up with ease.

"Just rest for now," his voice echoed in my ears as my vision faded to black.

---

"Ahh, nothing like the fury of a woman," King Sinbad said, his voice ringing with amusement as he tossed a towel over to Judar.

Judar remained silent, still dripping wet from when Mei had tried to drown him just moments prior.

"So what is it that you did to get her so worked up, Judar?" Sinbad asked.

Judar merely scowled before plopping down on the sofa and pulling his towel over his eyes.

Sinbad's smile only grew as he cast his eyes towards Mei's sleeping figure in the bedroom a few feet away.

(She's powerful. And I never would have thought I'd see her emotions spiral like that...) Sinbad thought to himself, suddenly rethinking his plan of taking her as his queen of Sindria.

"On a more serious note," Sinbad continued, his voice strained with concern now. "It's been brought to my attention that you and Mei are both wanted criminals back in Kou," Sinbad said.

Judar peeked out from under his towel, meeting Sinbad's serious gaze with his own. He sat up, pulling the towel away from his face and leaning forward as if truly interested in what Sinbad had to report.

Sinbad sighed before continuing, "Al Tharmen has made it clear that both of you pose a high threat and are to be taken in immediately. They've gone as far as giving out Dark Metal Vessels to anyone who is serious about tracking the two of you down and bringing you both back to Kou."

"Al Tharmen wouldn't be that reckless," Judar said, suddenly doubting himself as he recalled the two thugs that had assaulted Mei during the festival.

"They seem desperate enough. The weapons that they're handing out, however, aren't as powerful as the weapons we've had to face in the past," Sinbad said, a flicker of relief gracing his features for only a brief moment. "They're weaker and only cause temporary damage like nerve loss, dizziness, unconsciousness, and loss of magoi. But in Mei's case, those things could all be considered quite fatal," he said in a concerned tone, his gaze drifting to the sleeping girl in the next room.

Judar was silent as he contemplated the situation until Sinbad spoke again. "I understand full and well that Hakuryuu is planning to go against The Organization and fight Al Tharmen. He's even asked me to back him in doing so. I've already agreed to his terms but another problem has arisen," Sinbad said, his voice wavering slightly. "I'll offer any help I can in getting rid of Al Tharmen for good but... Providing shelter to you and Princess Mei are causing a great deal of problems for the people of Sindria..." Sinbad said, casting his gaze elsewhere.

Judar only nodded. "Yeah, I get it. I'll take her elsewhere for now until we have an actual plan," Judar said in a low tone.

"Sin!" Jafar called out as the door to the room flung open. "Sin, it's bad! There are throngs of what seem to be thugs and mercenaries gathered at the festival!" Jafar spoke hurriedly. "They're all wielding odd weapons as well," he continued.

"Don't tell me they're here already. They've got to be from Kou," Sinbad said, an edge of worry resonating in his words. He rushed for the door, giving stern orders to gather his generals and any troops that were readily available.

Judar wasn't sure what to do. He glanced back at Mei, still sleeping peacefully and not stirring a bit at the noise outside. He grunted quietly as he trudged through the room and knelt low next to the bed. He stroked the hair from her face as he spoke quietly, "Will you try and kill me again if I wake you, Princess?"

She twitched in her sleep and Judar's palm smacked against his temple. "Dammit," he hissed as the clamor outside began to escalate. He quickly scooped Mei up in his arms and headed for the door.

Okay, so things are definitely about to pick up again and I've already gotten an outline for the ending plotted out! Stay with me folks, this story is coming to a close sooner or later! And maybe I'll get around to writing a better lemon than the last one too. We'll see. c: