After the war between the kingdoms of Valor and Dering, Princess Kira of Valor was left parentless. After assassins had somehow made their plans to murder the royal couple a reality, the palace was on alert, and looking for the perfect guard to protect the young, coming of age princess.
And that's where Knight Rosalinde came into the picture. Although she was a woman, which wasn't truly ideal in medieval times for a knight, she was the best in the palace. Having been the head knight for the kingdom's army, the princess's appointer, Castra, felt she was indeed the best person for the job. Someone who was capable of leading an army surely could protect one, important woman. Little did they know along with protecting her, she might steal her heart as well....
{•••}
Ro had been grooming her horse, Braveheart, when two royal guards approached her, their armor clattering as they bowed to her. Even if they were technically of a higher rank than her, they still had respect for the head Knight of the army.
"Miss Rosalinde Garendal, we've come to you from order of Castra the Appointer. She's instructed us to escort you to the throne room as soon as possible," one of the guards, a tall, rough looking man, told to her. Ro nodded, gave her clothes a pat down from the dust they had collected from being in the horse stalls for most of the day, and followed the guards towards the castle, anxious to hear what she had been summoned for.
It wasn't everyday someone was granted the privilege to be in the throne room. That's where the one and only Princess Kira resided. After the war with the Kingdom of Dering, which Ro fought in herself, almost no one but the trusted staff of the palace was allowed to be around Kira. They were afraid of another attack, one that might take the only heir to the throne away from the kingdom. Sure, Castra could always find another princess, but royalty was always obsessed with keeping the royal family blood-related.
After arriving at the castle, Ro couldn't help but feel a bit underdressed around the staff of the palace. Even the maids seemed to have clothes stitched from silk. Ro, however, simply had on a rough-looking, oversized leather tunic, a pair of cotton black pants, with heavy boots that went up to her knees. It wasn't that she couldn't afford nice clothing, it was due to the fact that she had been raised on a farm, and was used to the clothes peasants normally wore when she wasn't in her armor.
"We're here," the other guard, a skinny man in comparison to his companion said, opening the doors to the throne room. The room was large, decorated in reds and golds: the typical colors of royalty in their kingdom. On the walls hung portraits of previous takers of the throne, the very last one of the beautiful redhead that now called the throne her own. Ro wasn't sure why, but she couldn't help but stare at it, in awe that the painting could capture such beauty and magnificence. It was in her starstruck gaze that she almost missed someone calling her name.
"Alas, you're here, Miss Garendal! I was almost suspecting my guards may have lost you on your way to the castle," a woman said as she approached her, a small smile on her face. This woman had short brown hair that didn't quite reach her shoulders, and her figure seemed a bit as if she skipped out on meals. Her brown eyes searched Ro, before she suddenly chuckled, holding a hand out to the knight before her.
"Where have my manners gone? I'm Castra, the Appointer. I help Princess Kira in negotiations and other hastles a princess should not have to worry about. I'm sure you're wondering why you're here, young lady," she said, giving her a wider smile than she had before. "I want to give you an important task...the task of protecting our future queen."
Now, as Ro stood in front of the Appointer, she couldn't deny the scrambled thoughts rushing through her mind. They wanted her, a farm-girl-turned-head knight, to protect their princess? Possibly one of the most important people in the land? She was certainly having self doubts, though she couldn't help but feel a tinge of respect that they thought she was good for the job.
"Well, Rosalinde? What shall it be? Will you take my offer? If money is an issue, I will assure you that you'll get paid more coins that what you do now, so fret not," the woman said, smiling at the girl. Ro looked at her for a moment, before nodding her head, her hands clasped to her sides.
"Of course I'll do it, Miss! I'll protect Milady with my life, or so have my head," she said, bowing to Castra, to show just how serious she was about her new job as the princess' guard. Castra clicked her tongue with a smile, waving a hand to shoo off the guards that had escorted the knight in.
"Have your head I shall. The future queen is indeed a special lady. Her blood on your hands will turn into your blood on mine. Now come," she said, suddenly turning around, the dress she was wearing twirling to cause more emphasis to her sudden movement. "Let's bring you to meet the princess."
{•••}
Even if the Kingdom of Dering was in no means the largest kingdom in the world, it was known for one thing: it's rose garden. The garden had all types of roses, and was by far the largest anyone had ever laid their eyes on. It was maintained by gardeners known all over the world for their expertise in botany, and at times was even the main topic at royal tea parties.
And this is where the beloved Princess Kira spent most of her days, whenever she wasn't fulfilling her duties. At times Kira wondered what her role even was. She always had Castra telling her how to run the kingdom. As she understood it, she was old enough to take place at the throne, but apparently not old enough to rule a kingdom alone. Have you, she was eighteen years of age, but in the eyes of many important people, she was still a young girl in no position to make decisions of her own.
One reason Kira spent so much time in this garden is because it was one if the many things her parents were proud of, when they were still alive. "You'll make such a fantastic queen one day, my dear. You've already grown so beautiful, like my beloved roses," her mother used to tell her, whenever she was worried about playing her part in the kingdom.
Kira gave a soft sigh as she picked a small, pink rose, twirling it in between her fingers before she heard a familiar voice calling out to her. "Kira, Milady! Your new guardian awaits you!" Castra's voice called out, and Kira turned, finding her and a strange woman walking down the row of the garden that Kira was accompanying at the moment.
The princess inspected the girl by Castra's side, noticing how her black hair fell in waves over her shoulders, and her icy blue eyes seemed filled with excitement, even if the woman tried to maintain a composure of maturity. Everything about her seemed rough around the edges, her simpleton clothes helping to portray that look. Kira had also noticed that the woman had a bit of muscle to her, and was trying to figure out why that fact stuck itself into her mind when the woman bowed, her hair falling from her shoulders to hide her face.
"Greetings, Milady. I'm Rosalinde Garendal, head knight of your army. I'm proud to serve and protect you as long as you need me!" The woman said, before looking up at Kira, giving her a bright smile before straightening herself up once again. Before Kira introduced herself, she couldn't help but think that her smile was one of the prettiest ones she had ever seen.