258 What Is Going On?

"Be a bad girl and… I am afraid you know the end."

Avery neither trembled nor showed any form of emotion at her mother's words. Noticing that, Aelinor turned her head to the side and spoke.

"This is an order from the queen. Ensure that the princess do not leave the four walls of her room."

"Yes your majesty."

"Good." She returned her gaze back to Avery and a mischievous smile broke out on her lips. "Have a splendid time dear."

Without looking back, she made her way to the door and lightly tapped on it. Immediately it pushed open and a guard bowed before her, then stepped aside for her to pass.

Click! Click!

Avery could hear the sound of her mother's shoes as she made her way down the passage way till they faded.

By the time she was sure her mother was gone, her lips curved upwards into a side mischievous smile. "Oh, I will, mother."

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~OUTLAWS VILLAGE~

At the end of another day, Jareth was still as cold as before and as much as Astrid was tired of it, there was not much she could do to change it.

She only wished whatever it was that made him so would come to an end soon as she was tired of the deafening silence.

The next day came swiftly and he still did not sleep in the house, only to return when it was daybreak and people were coming out of their houses.

As soon as he entered, she asked him where he was all night and his reply was still the same. He needed to clear his head.

Like a patient wife, Astrid swallowed it all and said nothing.

While Jareth went about assisting the men at work, Astrid did join the ladies and helped cook.

Since Jareth and herself hadn't gotten many things needed for cooking and to start up a life there in the village, Katrina and Sabrina were more than happy to share their things with her while Elena thought her some things she about medicine.

By the time she was done assisting the three friendly ladies, Cari would always show up and talk with her.

Together they would take a stroll in the village and just talk about things, getting to know each other and assist in getting the things needed for the building f another house.

All these while the guards watching Cari never stopped. Rather Clive agreed to give him some space. They wouldn't be at his back the whole day but would watch him from afar.

Even though she felt sad being apart from Jareth every time, she had the company of the enchanting merman.

At first, she barely said much when he came to talk to her, scared of angering Jareth even more but after the third day and Jareth was still the same, she began to open up more to him.

It was no longer he that did the asking most times, instead Astrid bombarded him about the marine world and life there.

At the end of the fourth day, Astrid had passed the point of caring too much and decided to let him be. When he felt like it and the time was right, he would come back to his cheerful self so she thought.

It hurt him so much to see her with another man, talking playing and watch her smile because of him. What hurts more was that the smile would always disappear when their eyes locked.

Many a time he would want to go over and take her from his side but looking at how cheerful she was, he did not have the heart to do so.

Apparently, he gave up on the idea as well and focused his mind on other things like how to get them out of there.

Snow who had been watching the newfound friendship bloom was already getting scared for its master.

Soon everyone in the village noticed the change going on and they began to wonder if the couple had a fight or something.

On the sixth day, Sabrina was forced to ask what was happening. This had gone too far and needed an intervention.

She liked the couple very much and was not happy that a third wheel would put a wedge between them.

All through her stay in the village, never had she once seen any couple like them nor the love Jareth displayed for Astrid on their first day there.

"Astrid," Sabrina called out, breaking her concentration from what she was doing.

"Yes?"

"Come and sit, dear." Sabrina gestured with her hand on the bench she sat down on. She noticed the movement in Astrid's eyes as the young girl's chest stop moving, indicating her breathing stopped before it resumed slowly.

Irrespective of this, Astrid's face did not give off any emotion as she stood up and walked over to where Sabrina sat and to her seat as well.

"I am concerned about something, so I won't beat around the bush."

"Okay," Astrid replied calmly.

Elena and Katrina who were busy working also stopped what they were doing to look at the pair. They looked like a mother and daughter duo from their mannerism.

Out of all of them, Astrid grew closer to Sabrina the most and would always listen to her.

"I know none of us has the right to come into your problems but we are all concerned. The only time you smile nowadays is when you are with Cari. Every other time, it is either your mind has drifted away in thoughts or you are looking towards his direction. What is going on between you and Jareth?"

Astrid did not know how she was going to respond to her question. Up until now, she did not notice she was such a sad case because of him.

She had thought ignoring him would make him feel jealous and make him talk to her but no… not even that worked.

Left with no other choice, since Cari always came around, she decided to get to know about her father's people from him, in hopes that that would lighten her mood and spirit.

Even that was found out and they could pinpoint that the lovers had a fight.