"Lady Eveline! Your going to be late! Your guide has been pounding at your door for ten minutes!"
I groaned sitting up rubbing the sleep from my eyes. I felt as if I hadn't slept at all with unsettling events from last night.
I quickly had her help me get dressed before letting Alistor in.
"Did you even sleep?" he asked. "Fill me in on the way. We're going to have to run to get you there on time."
He sprinted off and I struggled to keep up. He slowed his pace a bit and I soon fell in stride beside him.
"What has you looking so tired, Eveline?" he asked.
I yawned losing a few steps before catching back up with him.
"Eve," I said. "Call me Eve."
"Alright, Eve, what has you looking so tired?"
"It's a lot to think over. I'll tell you over breakfast."
He opened the door to the dungeon and I grabbed a torch and headed down the stairs to be there barely before second bell.
We interrogated the same girl again- I just observed my mind racing from the events last night. Who was that man? Why did Sasha believed thugs protected them? Who were they seeking protection from?
"Lady Eveline," called Silverwing. "A word?"
His voice brought me muddled back to the present. The others were whispering to each other. I felt my stomach growl. The class left up the stairs and he watched them until he found us alone.
"Everything alright? I could tell you weren't mentally here today."
I bit my lip. I couldn't tell him I was in the lower city after curfew, but I needed to tell someone of the opportunity the Halfling's exchange could bring. Would they expel me from the program for this or would they see it as a chance? It could mark me as a blood traitor which was close to treason. They were allowed the same rights as us, but on a very low scale. Helping her and possibly the Blood Moon mercenaries which was treason.
"Lady Eveline?" he asked again.
"Can I speak frankly, sire?"
He nodded looking curious.
"I... I sneaked into the Lower City last night to see my friend and to learn anything she may know on the Blood Moon Mercenaries. While I was there, an older gentleman, that had greeted them when they first arrived, asked for Aslan, the lioness back as a sign of good faith for him to tell me more as an ally and that the ban isn't the true threat."
Silverwing was quiet and I half expected him to ask for my immediate removal from the Guardian program. Every second was nerve racking.
"What did this man look like? Give me the most detailed description you can."
I did as he asked making it clear I had never seen the bleeding star tattoo on him anywhere. He nodded throughout his eyes closed forming the mental picture I was painting for him.
"What you did was strictly forbidden, however... this may save us months of interrogation. Let me speak to the king about this. Did he give you a time line to free her?"
I hung my head. " I know sire, and I'm sorry for breaking the rules, but I had to make sure she and her brother were safe and settling correctly. As for the lioness, he never said how long I had to free her."
"Sometimes even the right intentions come with consequences, but I will have a answer for you soon. Dismissed."
I ran up the stairs fleeing from his presence trying to make sense of all of this. I felt my heart beating irregularly fast thrumming against my chest. What would the King make of all of this? Was it possible I'd be thrown out of the program after all- forced to become a wife tending to babes, a manor and servants?
I grabbed two tarts with a fresh glass of milk before joining Alistor.
"Where have you been?" he asked worriedly. "All the other Nephilium got here at least ten minutes ago."
"Guardian Rook asked to speak to me."
I crammed a tart in my mouth.
"Did it have to do with your lack of sleep?"
I nodded taking a sip of milk before dropping my voice. "I may have helped them get a lead on the Blood Moon ban."
His eyes widened. "How?"
"I slipped into the lower city last night to visit a friend and possibly ran into a member of the ban. Silverwing is going to talk to the king on rather to see if my information was right or not."
"And you haven't go in trouble?"
I ate the other small tart shaking my head. "Not yet."
Alistor glanced back at the clock.
"We should head to class."
We dropped off our clay dishes before heading to our next class together. I felt more comfortable around Alistor than the other Nephilium and maybe it was because I could relax and not be so uptight.
The rest of the day dragged on. I focused hard on my classes and gave my all in combat, but my thoughts were ever lingering on the King's decision.