Nilo’s eyelids fluttered as a familiar voice graced his ears. The prince groaned loudly, wrapping his arms around his bare torso, suddenly aware of how cold the room was. He shifted in the chair, his muscles contracting uncomfortably. One leg was draped over the armrest, while the other dangled freely. His head lolled backwards, his neck stretched in what looked like a painful manner to support his hanging head. The man's head throbbed, the grisly agony in his cranium no doubt from his alcohol consumption.

Nilo narrowed his eyes, squinting against the glare of the sun from the window. His gaze landed on the figure in the bed. “Gennadius?” He questioned, blinking confusedly. The prince swung his head, pushing himself into a sitting position. The infirmary? Why would they be there? He furrowed his brow, but as soon as the guard spoke again, the memories of the night previous returned, and much to forcefully for his throbbing head at that. With another groan and a reproachful glance, he gave his response. “You didn’t even know who I was.” Nilo pointed out, stretching his arms above his head, “And you were bleeding all over the tile, was I just supposed to stand by and watch you defile antiques?” A smile graced his lips, casting the toothy grin her way.

He finally got to his feet, using the wall to support him as the room gave a delicate sway, reminding him of his awful hangover. An annoyed moan escaped him and he shook his head. Ugh, yet another bad decision I’ve made. “Plus, I was rather inebriated, if you don’t remember. My drunken head determined that you were in fact, going to die. That, and you’re worth it to me.” Nilo shrugged and looked around, searching for his shirt. Where did I lose it? After scanning the room several times, he gave up. Nilo had forgotten that he had wrapped around Gennadius last night and it had a rather nice bloodstain at the rib area. He wouldn’t want it back anyways.

“And sure, I’ll find another guard.” Nilo spoke, before quickly adding, “Not that I want to.” It was a hasty addition, guilt flashing in his blue orbs. He ran a hand through his messy hair, the fiery locks even more dishevelled than usual, “But it’d be better for you and your reputation, more freedom too.” His tone was a flat monotone, not betraying how he truly felt about the situation.

Nilo didn’t want a new guard. He liked this one, even with her bristly exterior. She had seen him at one of his lowest times and had done her best to pick him up. What if the same thing happened with another guard? Surely they would report the incident to his father, when Gennadius had kept it discreet.

But keeping her was beyond selfish. Nilo should have dismissed her yesterday. She would have been reassigned, given the chance to rebuild her reputation and cease the rumors he knew flew about the two of them. The prince gritted his teeth. He could at least give her back a slice of her freedom.

Her inquiry dragged him back to the present tense, and he cocked his head slightly. “Sure, I can grab something for you to read.” Nilo responded, moving for the door, but pausing at the handle, “Try not to die while I’m gone.” Another grin ghosted his lips as he exited, heading for the woman's quarters.

When Nilo reached their rooms, he first stepped into his own, changing his clothes. They were dirty with spilled alcohol, sweat from stress, and a few droplets of blood here and there. Satisfied, he strode through the door that connected their rooms, and his eyes widened at hers. Every inch seemed to be covered in items of wealth. There were statues, vases, and everything in between. It was suffocating. Nilo remembered when his room had looked like that, covered in items that boasted materialism. Perhaps the decorations were there to fill the lonely void that came with the empty castle. They didn’t work. The filled room felt just as lonely as Nilo’s nearly empty one.

His eyes landed on a sheet in a corner, as if it had been used. Puzzled, he approached it, fingering the fine fabric. The prince cocked a brow. Had she not used the bed? He pivoted, glancing at the four poster bed, with its lavish canopy and was shocked to find it looked left alone. Nilo shook his head. Just find a book.

Nilo moved about the room, looking for some place where a stash of books may be hiding. He peered within the ornate wardrobe, but all that greeted him was dust and a few articles of clothing. Opened a nightstand, it was empty. Finally he looked beneath the bed, a neat pile of books greeted him, as if they were treasures. Nilo pulled them out, hoping to find one she’d like. He ran his fingers across each of their spines, recognizing a few as he went, but he froze over one. It was one of the smaller one. It bore a silver cover, with its page edges trimmed delicately in gold. No way... Nilo furrowed his brow, then pulled it from the stack.

Sure enough, it was. He remembered this book, for it was one of a kind. The queen had wrote it herself, a story for her children. It was a story about a red wolf and a white lion, her young princes depicted as animals. The story was about the two creatures saving a kingdom that represented their own. It had adorable little illustrations, hand drawn by the matriarch. Nilo flipped through the pages, his shock growing. The book had been lost for so, so long. He remembered his mother's sadness when she told her boys she had lost it. Had Gennadius really been the one who had stolen it? Why would she do such a thing? It was just a book, but there were so many questions.

The story clutched within his soft hands, he went back to the infirmary, inquiries flying through his head. On his way there, he ran into Darius, the two exchanging brief greetings, but his presence had Nilo confused. Why had he come all the way up to astle for Gennadius? The prince was too focused on the book he held to pursue his curiosity further.

Nilo didn’t bother knocking, he simply stepped into the room, his face blank as he faced his guard. No, his former guard. For a moment, he was wordless, blue eyes staring, analyzing as they always did. Nilo’s cool gaze picked her apart as they stood a few feet away from each other. The man held the book in front of him, flipping through its old pages as he stood, looking like some chiselled statue before her. “I’m rather confused as to why you have a one-of-the-kind children's book, which has hitherto been lost, stashed under your bed.” His voice was flat and he sat the book down on the end table next to chair he had spent his night in. “I would have just assumed you’d purchased it unknowingly, but after yesterday in that alley, I’m not so sure it was acquired by the most kosher means.”

(Misunderstood how old she was when she stole the book. Edited the part about Castor out, he wouldn’t have been six, he would’ve been fourteen.)

Nilo simply nodded at her explanation, making no response. The prince did not help her as she swayed, feeling she would react badly in her tense mood. Although her unashamed attitude towards her past was shocking, the prince did not judge. All he did was listen and give a slight nod, eyes still focused on her.

A thief with a lust for risk. Somehow, he found it incredibly fitting. She loved the thrill of the fight, the look of liberty, and the surges of adrenaline. The behavior made sense. She had a taste of adventure, even though it had its evident downfalls, and now found her new life utterly restricting. No wonder she had known the back alleys of the town and made such connections. Her life had been much harder than most.

But something else was wrong. Nilo could feel it. The way she spoke so openly, so simply of her past. Just yesterday she had hid it from him, but now Gennadius revealed it to a man whom she had just met, and whom she often struggled to tolerate. Nilo’s eyes narrowed, not at the stolen book, but at her odd behavior. “I’m sorry about your father, Gennadius.”

Darius. It had to have been the man he had passed on his way there. The stone-faced guard had seemed tense himself, his eyes hard and unfeeling as he uttered a terse greeting to the royal. Something had been off about Darius, and something was off about Gennadius. She seemed bitter, brash. There was something freshly cold about her, a difference that was concerning. Maybe it was because he had come into the room in an unfeeling, closed off manner, but Nilo suspected otherwise.

So he dropped the subject of the book. Nilo had received his answer, and was satisfied. The woman had stolen it at a different time in her life, and although he suspected she would still do it again, the prince lost his will to be irritated about it. There was no point. Instead, he turned his attention to the other question that formed in his mind.

“Are you… okay?” It was a question spoke with hesitance, as if he were afraid of the answer, “I mean, I know you have those injuries, but you seem… I don’t know. Maybe I’m just overthinking.” Nilo ran a hand through his hair, fidgeting under the very tension he had helped create. It was dumb, pitiful even. Why could he not remain firm with this woman? She had stolen from his family, yet he felt nothing. Nilo didn’t require forgiveness because he wasn’t even angry. If anything, he just wanted the smile he had cause to fade to return.

Nilo cocked a brow at the look she gave at his response, as if she was disappointed in it. Yes, it had been lackluster, but it had also been four years since the incident. Although his mother had been distraught over losing the little book, she had long gotten over it, and there was no need to make it bigger than it needed to be. “I’m not going to get angry over something you did so long ago, not when I’ve done terrible things myself.” Nilo kept a dry tone, still unaware of how to proceed. Gennadius was a difficult human to process, to communicate with. If only he was able to understand her.

Nilo watched as she moved about the room, pain evident with every step she took. He watched her quietly, not knowing what to do. His concern grew as her slender hands wrapped around her sword, attaching the weapon to her waist. How was she to even return to her duties when every movement was a struggle?

His brow raised at her next comment. "Darius will have another guard assigned to you by nightfall”. Why so soon? Nilo hadn’t even spoken with his father yet and Gennadius hadn’t even had her condition assessed. How was she already being dismissed, when Nilo had not yet even asked for her reassignment? So many questions, yet little did he know his time was limited.

“You’re not fine.” Nilo turned and faced her, gaze landing on the back of her golden-topped head as she leaned against a wall, barely able to support herself. “Gennadius, what the Hell happened when I went for that book? You were resting fine, now Darius is suddenly assigning me another guard, and you’re telling me things I know damn well you don’t think I deserve to know.” Nilo responded, his exasperated voice filling the air around them. He reached out a hand to place on her shoulder, to turn her towards him, but it was quickly retracted.

“I get that I’m just some ignorant, pompous prince who couldn’t possibly ever comprehend you or your life, but it doesn’t mean that I don’t want to. It doesn’t mean I don’t care, I do.” Nilo watched as her body seemed to shudder with each breath, as he hand’s seemed to instinctively fly to several places on her body at once, as if unable to decide which pained area they wanted to grab onto to. The female guard shouldn’t even be up, yet there she was, moving with a sense of urgency. Just what was happening?

“How could I ever forget you!?” Nilo’s voice was a pained fury as his pale eyes flashed, “You seem to forget that you saved me from doing the unimaginable Gennadius! If you hadn’t been there, I wouldn’t even be alive!” He exclaimed, hands clenched into fists at his side. When she began to move away, Nilo followed. He shouldn’t care? Quick to form emotional attachments? How dare she accuse him of doing something so shallow.

“And don’t you dare tell me you were just doing your job.” Nilo growled through gritted teeth, lowering his voice, yet remaining persistent. If he was to cause a scene, it could worsen an already bad situation. “Because we both know damn well you weren’t obligated to comfort me, to sit there and distract me from what a mess I was. We both know you didn’t have to take me to the market the next day to just get me out of the castle.” Nilo pointed out, burying a hand in his unruly hair, tugging lightly on the russet lockes. He bit his lip. “Gods…” Nilo snorted, letting out a bitter laugh. He titled his head back, glaring at the ceiling with such ferocity he thought it would explode.

Nilo’s eyes flickered to the way of his guard when she slumped, and he stepped toward her, the click of his boots echoing off the walls. The silence between them was deafening, it seemed to spark with the tension, laced with their heavy emotions. He slid his hand from her it sat intertwined in his hair, and kneeled a couple feet in front of her. Nilo’s gaze raked up and down her form, blazing a path across her crumbled body.

He made no move to reach out. Nilo just stared, eyes swirling with indescribable emotions. His lips were pressed into a hard line, cupids bow tilted slightly downwards in the beginnings of a scowl. The prince’s whole body seemed tensed, shoulders elevated slightly as he clenched them almost painfully.

Nilo’s mind shouted at him to argue, to not let up, to defend himself with an even sharper tongue. But how could he do so when it was becoming increasingly evident that she was fighting a battle larger than him? How could this man, who had been reduced to a shell of himself a little over a day ago, sit there and kick this woman while she was down?

Finally, Nilo met her eyes, and he scooted ever so slightly closer. He sank down onto his rear as well, sitting criss-cross before his wounded guard. “The world has been unkind to you, Gennadius. It made it its mission to hurt you... Whenever you tried to kiss freedom your teeth got in the way. Normalcy took one look at you and tossed you aside. You think the stars that once lived in your eyes have long disappeared…” He trailed, leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees, and his head atop his interlaced fingers, “But lucky for you, the stars aren’t gone, my dear guard, because if you look hard enough, they’re still there, and they are incredible” Nilo paused again, as if contemplating, but he didn’t break her gaze, he chewed on the inside of his cheek, a thoughtful look crossing his face.

“You can spit your anger at me Gennadius. You can shout pestilence at me all day long,” He cocked his head in his hands, and his tongue darted out to lick his dry lips, “But you didn’t turn away from me, and I won’t be turning away from you either.”