Ferid had never met someone quite like you.

Oh, he had seen plenty of fascinating creatures over the centuries—brilliant minds, cruel hearts, beautiful monsters—but you? You were something else entirely.

You were quiet, so sweetly shy, eyes flickering away whenever he gazed at you for too long. A perfect little thing, so soft, so demure.

And yet…

He had watched you. The way your hands trembled with excitement at the sight of blood. The way you tilted your head, so curious, when someone screamed just a little too sweetly. The way your lips curled, barely concealed, when you broke someone apart.

A darling contradiction.

His contradiction.

Right now, you were sitting across from him at a small, candlelit table, fingers delicately stirring your glass of wine—though neither of you were particularly interested in grapes.

“My, my,” Ferid murmured, resting his chin in his palm as he admired you. “You’re beautiful when you’re thinking, you know. Do say, what’s on your mind, dear?”