Part 1 - Return to Mithir

A Knight came running to hold his horse and Elian took a deep breath as he dismounted.

“Your Highness! It’s good to see you! We were beginning to worry!”

“Yes, I know. And I’m sorry. Please pass word that all refugees that arrive at our doors should be admitted inside the city walls and their needs looked after,” he instructed and the Knight nodded, signaling some of the younger boys to attend their horses.

Selina was the first to dismount, her eyes widening and glowing in amazement and excitement as she looked all around. Allana halted her horse beside Denar’s.

“I’ll hold her …” she offered but Elipson frowned in protest.

“There’s no need! It’s my shoulder that’s hurt, not my legs!” she contested dryly, which probably meant she was feeling much better, but Denar didn’t want to hear any of that.

“Not this time! You’ll do as I tell you, if only this once!” he told her and only let go of her when he was sure Allana held her firmly on top of his horse. Elipson still tried to protest but, as soon as he released her and she lost the firm support of his body, the world around her spun dangerously and she found herself thankful for Allana’s small arms that helped her maintain the notions of top and bottom.

After dismounting he reached up for her, slowly lowering down as her face twisted into a silent expression of pain, and held her firmly in his arms once again.

“I can walk …” she managed to rebuke, although in truth she wasn’t at all sure of her own words, and he sighed, ignoring her ill temper as he carried her towards the White Knights’s quarters.

Allana dismounted and approached Selina that looked curiously towards the closest training ground where two Knights sparred.

“It was really nice to be one of them …” she told the other girl and Selina faced her with a smile.

“Afterwords you’ll have to show me everything! But for now it’s probably best to follow His Highness,” she added, mentioning Elian who was crossing the atrium in a fast stride, nodding and waving to all the greetings he received along the way, and they practically had to run to catch up with him, Allana making sure she held her hood over her head so that no one could recognize her.

Elian guided them into the palace through one of the service doors and then guided them straight to his personal quarters, where he knew he’d have some privacy so that he’d be able to keep things under control.

Dana and Heric followed him as he opened one door offering them passage.

“Please wait here. I’ll be back in a second,” he told Allana, who nodded, and closed the door behind him, disappearing down the corridor.

“Really! Receiving a Lady in a … in a …”

“Bedroom,” Selina completed for her, amused with Dana’s outraged expression, who looked around as if they had all been thrown into some dark dungeon like Heric had predicted.

Allana looked around. She was in his room, she thought, deliberately paying attention to all the small details that offered her all sorts of information about Elian’s true personality. Walking around she couldn’t help but smile when she noticed some papers left on top of a desk where he’d made some drawings and sketches of new buildings, probably for the Orders.

“I wonder how Elipson is doing …” Selina mused and Allana couldn’t help but share her concern.

“She’s alive! In case you haven’t noticed,” Heric answered, crossing his arms, his back against a wall, and Selina gave him a look of contempt.

“You’re so dumb! You keep talking like that and that other Knight will to cut your throat!” she told him and Heric frowned threateningly.

“Who do you think you’re talking to?” he asked in his scary, strong voice, but Allana had long lost her fear of him, and all she had to do was stand in front of him for his face to grow immediately pale and small pearls of sweat form on his forehead.

“Shouldn’t I ask you the same?” she demanded, facing him, her golden eyes threatening to devour him, and he swallowed dry unable to answer. “I’ll only say this once, so listen very carefully. You will never, and I say never, threaten or hurt any of us again! You will be respectful in every possible way, and if you find yourself unable to do so you will remain silent! And you will never talk bad of any of the Knights of Mithir! Because there’s not one of them that isn’t worth at least ten of you! At least none of them would ever leave a fellow man in arms behind and run away like a coward, like you did! Understood?” she told him, all in one breath, and Heric nodded unable to do otherwise, wanting for nothing else but to keep his distance from her. “Good.”

And after that no one dared talk again.

Thankfully Elian returned not long after, closing the door behind him and strangely lighting up the mood a little.

“Okay. Now everyone knows that I brought back with me some of Everlyn’s representatives,” he announced. “As expected, my father wishes to meet you, and you should take this opportunity to ask him to shelter all those that arrive at our borders in search of aid. He won’t refuse you,” Allana nodded and he turned to her. “However, I don’t think it will be wise to introduce you for who you really are. There’s no real need to stir up old conflicts. And so it will probably be best if I take Heric and Dana with me as representatives of the Royal Family. After all, Heric has been the Queen’s Regent for quite some time now.”

Allana nodded in agreement and turned back to Dana.

“Elian is probably right. If mother was expelled because of me my sudden and uninvited return might be seen as an offense. And we really need His Majesty help in order to make sure our people are well received and cared for.”

“Don’t worry, dear. We’ll take care of everything,” Dana assured her, surprisingly helpful, and Allana nodded as Elian explained how things would proceed from then on.