A man stood in front of me in a complete Royal Knight attire. He wore several medallions indicating his prowess in battle and how high his rank was. He was a handsome man with blondish brown hair and deep brown eyes. He would be truly beautiful if not for one thing, the terrifying aura that surrounded him.
A cold and chill provoking smile stared down at me. Usually I would have run, but something about this man made my entire body freeze.
He bent down, "What are you doing here? Perhaps you know who they call the Black Death is?"
I squeaked, "I don't!"
He paused for a second and studied my face. Then a warm smile crossed his face. He went from cold to warm in a split second. It was a total shift from how he was originally.
His voice changed from cold and sharp, to warm and friendly. "I can't believe it! You're Kane's daughter, aren't you?"
Oh f*ck.
I shook my head, "Nope never heard of him."
He laughed, "Don't pretend. I know you are. Me and Kane are long time friends."
He and my father are friends?! How?! Why do I feel like I'm missing something important?
He continued, "Besides, there's no way I could mistake you. Who else would have hair like that?"
I grabbed my hair unconsciously and froze. "What's wrong with my hair?!"
He bent down to my level and smiled, "I've never seen anyone that had hair which flipped out so aggressively. Don't make that face. I think it's rather cute."
I studied him carefully. Even though he was acting warm and friendly, I could still see the cold and bitterness behind his eyes. It wasn't obvious by any means. In fact, he was so good at pretending, he could give me a run for my money.
Yet, it could not fool me.
I smiled, "Ah. Well, I appreciate the compliment. However, you must be confusing me with someone else."
He shook his head, "I most certainly am not. You are also friends with Prince William and Dante. The Queen has shown me your portrait on many occasions. Lord Kane has as well, although his are a bit outdated."
Wait. How do these people have portraits of me?!
I eyed him suspiciously and didn't know what to say. I couldn't help but remember the worried and scared face of the bookstore owner when he mentioned him.
He chuckled, "I see you're suspicious of me. Don't worry. I won't hurt you. I promise I'm a friend. See this insignia? It is the King's symbol. This shows that I'm one of his Royal Knights."
I glanced at the medallion and my mouth dropped. Whoa. Shiny. That sh*ts solid gold.
His smile faded slightly as if realizing something, "Wait. Why are you here? Shouldn't you be at home asleep at this hour?"
I instantly jumped at this question. Not knowing what to do, and worried that if I said anything he might figure out I was lying, I burst into tears. I sobbed and screamed as if I was terrified to the core.
His face twitched at my response. I could tell he wasn't used to kids. I thought this would mean he would excuse himself because he didn't want to deal with it. However, what happened next surprised me so much I nearly choked on my tongue.
I felt him pick me up and cradle me. He patted my back reassuringly, "There there. It's okay. You must be lost. I will take you back. So stop crying okay?"
From this strange and unpredictable action, I froze not knowing what the hell was going on. I caught myself and wailed some more.
"Big brother! It's so scary here! I just wanted to come out for fresh air!"
This was not necessarily a lie. I do like fresh air. My father can be so stifling, it's nice to get away once in a while.
"Big brother?" I heard him speak in a different tone and I couldn't figure out what it meant.
This made me increasingly nervous. I could feel myself shaking in his arms. He rubbed my back and started acting as if I was some baby in his arms. If anyone saw me now, I would die from embarrassment.
He thought for a moment and started walking, "Hmm. I never have been called that before. Don't you find me terrifying?"
I could feel myself shaking and realized he had thought this meant I was terrified of him. The truth was, I was scared sh*tless!!
I couldn't let him think this so I wrapped my arms around his neck to embrace him. I rested my chin on his shoulder.
I spoke in a baby voice suppressing sobs, "Why would I be? Big brother says he knows my Daddy. And he works for the King."
He chuckled, "Would you believe anyone who would say that?"
"Why? Did you lie to me?"
"I didn't. But I'm worried that you trusted me so easily. I better take you home personally after all."
Sh*t sh*t sh*t! I am so doomed!!!
He walked through the city and we passed Mama O's. I could see one of the lady workers smoking outside and almost choke on her cigarette as we passed. Three other ladies popped their heads out of the doorway.
Behind his back, I held a finger to my lips warning them to keep quiet.
One mouth the words: Are you okay?
I mouth back: Yes.
I heard his voice, "What are you doing?"
I jumped and turned to him, "Big brother, those girls over there are dressed in weird clothes. Why do they dress so differently?"
I asked an awkward question in an attempt to get him to change the subject. No adult would ever answer this directly. They would always say either, "Ask your mother" or "I will tell you when you're older".
He didn't seem fazed by this question, "Hmm. Oh, they are prostitutes."
I closed my eyes. What the hell is wrong with this man. Why would you say that to a child?!
I pushed him, "What's a prostitute?"
"A prostitute is someone who will have sex for money."
I had to refrain from shouting at him. Why is he saying this to a child?! STOP IT! Surely there is something wrong with his head. Maybe this will be as far as he goes...
I pushed again, "What's sex?"
He spoke with indifference, "It's when a man puts his ***** into a woman's ****** and then they *****(Omitted)****"
I nearly fainted. He actually went and explained it to me!!! This man needs to be locked up!!
Not knowing what else to say, I simply said, "Sounds gross."
He responded quickly, "It's not. It's actually quite fun."
I wanted to smack my head against the wall. I felt as though I would die from embarrassment.
I pretended to play clueless instead, "I don't quite understand. But if big brother says so..."
"You don't understand? Here. Let me explain further..."
I interrupted, "Big brother. I never got your name."
"Oh yeah. I forgot to tell you. My name is Simon DeVois."
"DeVois? Is that a name foreign? I don't recognize it."
He chuckled, "It's not. I'm surprised you said that. You're father said you were smart. I guess he wasn't exaggerating after all. Yes, it's not a name from here. My family immigrated here before I was born."
I was surprised to hear this, "Whooa. That's incredible. Foreign and you're some hotshot knight. Not only that, but you're handsome as well. You're like the full package."
Well, except for the personality. That could use some work.
He laughed, "Full package? I guess you can say that."
I blushed slightly realizing I had spoken such an embarrassing thing out loud. I buried my face indicating I didn't wish to speak more.
We finally came to where I saw the Knights waiting at the entrance earlier. They were so shocked to see Simon holding a child, they looked like stones which would crack at any moment.
"G-General! Sir! Is this the person we were looking for?"
He chuckled, "No. It's the child of one of my dearest friends. She seems to be lost so I will be personally taking her home."
They all looked stunned at this response. One muttered unconsciously, "How is this kid not crying and trying to run away from him?"
Another muttered, "Right? Kids are always terrified of him. Not to mention he hates them."
Another Knight elbowed them in their stomach's to shut them up. They realized what they said and forced a smile.
They bowed deeply, "Please forgive us! We didn't mean to say that."
He chuckled, "It's not a lie." He glanced at me and spoke in an affectionate tone, "But this girl is special."
The Knights were surprised to hear Simon say this. They couldn't believe he would ever say something in such an affectionate tone. However, I knew exactly how wrong they were.
He didn't mean that in a loving way as they thought. I knew it meant something much more. Although I didn't know what yet, I could tell there was a dark meaning behind those words.
He walked away and came to a horse, "I hope you are okay riding a horse."
My eyes sparkled as I saw the beautiful steed. It was a shiny black horse with a white mane. It's eyes stared at me, piercing my soul. It too, had a scar that crossed his face.
I held out my hands to the horse still starry eyed. I really desperately wanted to touch that adorable face. The horse snorted and turned it's head away, warning me not to touch it.
I sighed and dropped my hands. It was rare to see an animal turn me down. But, if an animal doesn't want me to touch it, then I won't force it.
As I closed my eyes in sadness, I felt something fuzzy nuzzle me. I opened my eyes and saw the horse in front of me. I giggled and started to pet him.
Simon was surprised by this and chuckled. "Dex. Were you trying to play hard to get?"
The horse snorted in response and threw it's head in the air as if he thought himself too proud to answer.
Simon smiled at me, "Wow. I didn't think you could charm such a horse. He hates children so much he would trample them if I were to let him."
I blinked in surprise, "Really? But he's such an adorable guy. I couldn't imagine him doing that."
Simon burst into laughter, "Wow! You find him adorable? You really are a strange child."
I frowned, "Why am I strange?"
"Well people would either run from the sight of him or they would faint."
I looked at the horse once more. Well. He does seem to resemble his owner a bit too much.