THE RISING OF THE WICCA

Light

"I think His Highness prefers your hair down, that is all." Helena tried to ease Evanora.

"Why would he even care about my hair! He is just messing with me." Evanora complained like a child before throwing herself on a chair. Helena approached her and carefully brushed her hair. She pulled on her radiant locks and then helped her change into her nightgown.

"You must be tired, I will leave you to rest," Helena said while heading for the door.

After Helena left, Evanora tossed around in her bed and felt rage burning inside her as she remembered how close he held her and how he sneakily messed her hair. She shot up from bed and walked to the window staring at his chamber. It looked deserted, maybe he still had work to do, she thought then quickly shook her head violently, chasing away her thought of him.

Desperate to clear her mind, she pulled on a thick shawl and walked out to the garden.

She walked around slowly, her eyes cast in front of her on the ground while she breathed in the smell of the plants surrounding her. The garden was one of her favorite places in the palace, after the library. She enjoyed the smell of grass in the early morning, it reminded her of her house deep in the forest. That cabin was at first a reminder of her banishment but slowly she grew fond of it.

Her steps came to a stop as she saw a figure leaning on a tree in the darkness. An armor was the only thing shining in the dark.

"Sir Akare?" She said and the man's head shot up.

"Evanora! What are you doing out here at this time?" He was surprised to see her.

"I could ask you the same question, I came for some fresh air."

"Same goes for me. We just ended a meeting with his highness and I wanted to clear my mind before heading back home." His face seemed pale and he sounded troubled.

"Is everything alright? Anything serious happened during the meeting?" Evanora wondered.

"Not sure, but nothing to be worried about.." He looked at her and smiled reassuringly, "Actually I have been wanting to talk to you Evanora." He posed and she nodded, encouraging him to keep going. "I never apologized for the way I acted towards you when we first met or for letting that man hurt you at the market."

She was surprised that her mouth formed an O.

"I'm ashamed of myself, I believed all the rumors I heard about you and judged you without knowing who you truly were as a person. My prejudice let me have my guard down that day. Now that I know you a bit more, I know that I have been very rude to you. I'm sorry, please accept my apology."

Evanora was speechless for a moment, she had never imagined that the day when a knight ranked as high as Sir Akare, would apologize to her for being rude. She blushed and felt her eyes burning.

"Apology accepted, please don't trouble yourself with trivial matters of the past, it is long forgotten. We are rather friends now, aren't we? " She smiled brightly.

"Yes, we are. Thank you." Akare took a step closer to her and reached for her hand then he placed a small kiss on her hand. "I will be leaving then, my lady." He smiled mischievously.

"Stop calling me that." she chuckled. "Good night."

She watched as he walked away and wondered when she came to become friends with the people of Kassi.

"I see you took my advice,"

A voice pulled her from her trance and a chill ran through her body. She looked around and saw a tall man standing in the shadows, he was wearing a light tunic and left the two top buttons loose, with his usual pair of pants and boots.