Red went back to her tent with a lifted expression on her face. She was not exactly smiling, though, but her positive aura was so easily distinguished by her servant girls.
Matilda and Laarni welcomed her with equally happy dispositions. "You are in a much better mood, Princess!"
"Aye!" Laarni seconded, "Did something good happen?"
They remembered when she left for the brook, she was pretty much downcast. Now that she returned from the short trip, she not only looked rejuvenated but had grown optimistic too.
"Has the brook freshened you up?" Laarni's head popped from her point of view. She smiled and continued traversing her tent until she plopped on a chair.
"Has it untangled your sore muscles? Washed your sorrows away?" Matilda had become curious too.
"Hmmm…" Red stood up from her chair and tugged Matilda and Laarni's wrists. She gathered them in a corner. "I met someone today! I gained a friend and a sparring partner!" She paused for girly giggles. "Remember the boy who bumped into me when we were going to Torrine Town? That's him." She put both hands on her hips, akimbo. Her pride of being able to make a new friendship in a foreign land adorned her face in a smug expression.
"Uhm…" The servant girls exchanged apprehensive looks.
"Can he be trusted, Princess? Isn't he a thief?" Matilda asked, full of concern on her mature face.
"I confronted him about it and he explained that point already. He said he got it from trees growing on free land. Technically it's not stealing. I should talk to Sir Karyk tomorrow about it to confirm and maybe we can do something about it like, implement stricter rules in managing resources that should be free for all. A princess can do that, right?" She felt the weight of her armor grow lesser and lesser.
One by one, her rubber armor dropped to the ground. Matilda and Laarni went on their way in dismantling her reeking armor while they chatted about her new adventure. Red was simply pumped up, to state the obvious.
"I guess so, Princess. Sir Karyk will be able to help you." Matilda advised without putting too much hope on her ladyship.
Laarni, on the other hand, had more pressing concerns, "So, the lad from the other day, how is he? How does he look, how does he… smell…" She giggled at her own silliness. "Is it alright if you share the details, Princess?"
"Uhm… He's… just him. How can I describe him?" She scratched her chin lost in full thought.
"Do you like him, Princess?" More giggles came from Laarni. This time, Matilda joined in. Their laughter turned into pixie's giggles.
"I don't like him! I just met him today! Oh my God. How can you, girls, be so hopeless romantics!" She rolled her eyes at them.
"You can put it that way, Princess! We just meant if you like him as a person." More giggles came.
"Aha! You're joking with me now, huh?" Red bantered back. She's glad that at least she and her girls had reached into a relationship that has become relaxed and which resembled more like a friendship of some sort rather than a master-servant thing.
Completely naked now, she hopped onto the lukewarm water for her bath. 'Why do we always think and talk about guys during bath time? When I'm naked, of all the timings!' She shook her head but her lips stretched into an indulging smile which the two servant girls could not even see since they were left at the other side of the curtain.
Laarni's voice came over, "But isn't there love at first sight?" She pressed. She seemed not finished yet about the matter regarding the lad.
"That's not true, Laarni. It only happens in novels. In real life, nuh-uhh. Sorry to burst your bubbles, honey." She called over with a much more mellow voice.
"So how would you describe him, Princess?" Matilda returned the question.
"Hmm… He's accommodating. Does that description suffice? He knows the art of swords too so we went on sparring. I learned some tips and tricks from him."
"At least with him, I think I stand a chance, though slim it may be. With Sir Karyk…" She sighed deeply and decided to just indulge in the joys of her precious bath. "There's a reason why he's assigned to be my mentor. Bynarr, on the other hand, can become my comrade."
"So that's his name." The servant girls giggled some more from the other side of the curtains. It was evident in their voices that they were already floating on clouds in imagining things that have not happened yet.
She ended the bath after an indulging session. Standing up, her servant girls dried her body and pampered her with soothing massages using essential oils. Some blissful moans left her lips unintentionally. She's so set for a good night's sleep.
The next day, she went straight in front of Sir Karyk's tent at dawn. She only had at least four hours of sleep but the massage that her girls gave her enabled her to soothe her muscles and make the most out of her sleeping hours.
She found Sir Karyk already on his toes, and ready for the day's events. First in her agenda was to discuss the matter of the free land, and second about the deadline of the task that Sir Karyk gave her.
As her guard, mentor, and personal knight, Sir Karyk insisted on the whole story of her new friend and how their encounter came about. It was inevitable because Bynarr was part of the whole apple stealing incident which was related to her first agenda for discussion.
"Remember the lad who appeared out of nowhere and ended up slamming into me the other day?" With a deep breath, she retold the story. At least, this time around, her listener was not giggling. Well, she did not know if it was either good or bad that Sir Karyk kept a semi-permanent scowl on as she went on with her tale.
"Go on, Princess. I'm listening." He urged with his arms crossed at his chest, attentive at her words.