Rin glanced over. Guiltily, she'd only just now realized Kixig had been missing during the conflict. "Oh, hello, Kixig," she said in an attempt to brighten things up. "I don't believe you've met Kilian, my, um . . ." She could feel her cheeks growing warm, to her dismay; these feelings that had started to manifest in her were strange, almost a little unsettling. And the lack of words . . . "Well, you see--"
Seemingly better, Kilian glanced at her with amusement and lifted their joined hands. "We are in love," he said bluntly. "Since we are all going to be extremely honest here." He glanced briefly at Kellach. "I suppose I'll say I'm sorry for earlier. Trust and lies are touchy subjects for me."
"And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7
Kixig's eyes flickered between both Rin and Kilian as they explained and introduced themselves. Upon explaining that they were in love, Kixig's mouth spread into a pointy-toothed smile and he nodded.
"Well I wasn't here for all that, but it's nice to meet you! I'm Kixig."
He tapped Kixig on the shoulder to get his attention as they approached the library. He didn't want to create more tension by addressing the reason for going there again, but they couldn't keep Kixig in the dark about it. When he saw that there was enough distance between them and the others, he leaned over and whispered to him, "I think Killian lied to Kellach about his name, or something like that. They almost got into a fight earlier, and Killian was going to start yelling about his past in the street. I suggested that we talk about it in the library instead. So, uh, that's the reason for any tensions you might have noticed."
As Kilian and Rin walked into the library, Rin leaned in close to Kilian's ear.
"We're going to have a serious heart-to-heart when this is all over." She gave him a pointed look. "It isn't every day when the person who has been wearing the most disguised mask suddenly decides to start a fight and spill out his life story to the whole world."
"Yes, Your Majesty," replied Kilian in a solemn voice. But Rin was glad to see the glint of laughter in his eyes again, rather than the anger from before.
Kilian felt that it was much easier to remain calm and cool-headed if he focused on Rin, on anyone else other than Kellach.
"I'm holding you to that," said Rin. She spied a nook with a large table, and headed over there, motioning to the others.
"And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7
It was a decent-sized library. When the group pushed open the doors and shuffled inside, Kellach could see bookcases stretching in all directions. More long than wide, the building contained what appeared to be hundreds, or perhaps thousands, of books (Kellach was never good at large numbers). Several tables stretched out in front of them, some covered in opened books or papers. There didn't appear to be anyone else, but he saw plenty of places where a person could slip behind and be unnoticed. He thought of making his escape, since the group was already moving towards one of the tables, but he could see a sideways glance or two from Killian. Kellach figured it would be better to stay for the time being. At least he was regaining his wits and good humor.
S'io credesse che mia risposta fosse a persona che mai tornasse al mondo, questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse. Ma per ciò che giammai di questo fondo non tornò vivo alcun, s'i' odo il vero, senza tema d'infamia ti rispondo.
The library seems mostly vacant - most are at work at this time of day - but there's a woman at one of the tables, skimming through a large tome. She's got bright orange hair tied back in a ponytail, her eyes blue and pale as ice. A few scars dot her arms here and there, but the most prominent one is on her face, running from her left temple all the way down to her upper lip. An eyepatch covers what would be her right eye - this one has seen battle. A sword is at her hip, and she appears to be alone and not take notice of them, though a perceptive individual might notice she's watching them out of her peripheral vision.
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
Kilian spied the woman and watched her out of the corner of his eye. Having been trained to watch for everyone's every move for risk of a threat, he noticed her surreptitiously watching them enter the library, but chose not to bring anyone's attention to his observations, especially the other stranger. Instead, he pulled out a chair at a table for Rin, then seated himself beside her. All the while glancing at Kellach occasionally, he kept watching the woman nearby, who looked to be a battle-hardened warrior--or killer--carefully.
"And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7
Her right hand rests near her blade, but not on it, clearly wary of the newcomers and ready to spring into action at a moment's notice. The movement is subtle, however, and not attention-drawing.
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
Kixig took a seat with Kilian and Rin, and looked over to the red-haired woman with the eye patch. He casually sent her a friendly smile, and waited for the group to begin talking about stuff.
Kellach sat the edge, as far away from Killian as possible. He wanted to say something, some story to justify himself and his hatred of lying. But, somehow, any story he thought of felt too personal and too demeaning. Those days were long past him; he didn't want to wake them up again. He breathed a sigh of relief when Rin offered her story.
Spoiler! :
Schoolwork's busy this week, so that's why it takes me so long to respond. Sorry about that, everyone!
S'io credesse che mia risposta fosse a persona che mai tornasse al mondo, questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse. Ma per ciò che giammai di questo fondo non tornò vivo alcun, s'i' odo il vero, senza tema d'infamia ti rispondo.
Rin inhaled and exhaled slowly, then straightened and lifted her chin, her expression serene. "My name is Dorinnia Alastrina Maeve Arlene Vel, and I am the queen of the kingdom of Cynbel, on the continent of Ardal.
"My parents were once the well-beloved rulers of our kingdom, until the neighboring, more militant kingdom, Aeronwen, invaded our lands. They managed to wreak a path of destruction all the way to our capital city. Our defeat was imminent. Mother and Father sacrificed themselves so I could flee and would not be caught by the enemy. They were dragged to Aeronwen and publicly executed. I was there in the crowd as they were killed before my eyes. I was--I was twelve years old."
Rin paused, clenching her fists to stop her hands from trembling and desperately holding onto her composure. Kilian reached over and slipped his hand into hers, all the while staring down at the table, undoubtedly thinking of what he should say.
"Luckily for me, I suppose, my parents had lied and said I had died of the Red Plague, so Aeronwen never thought to look for me. I was the queen of a conquered nation, and my parents had been killed, but I was not an orphan. A kind man who had lost his wife and little girl in the war took me in, and I became his daughter under the name of Rin, since that was what my dead parents used to call me sometimes. We lived a quiet life like that for a few years.
"But the Aeronwen officials administering over my country oppressed the people. Many died of starvation, or of cruel treatment and harsh working conditions in Aeronwen labor camps. Some valiant souls refused to bow and they rose up in rebellion, sometimes in my name. My people had never believed that I'd died.
"I was so afraid, but everywhere I went, I heard whispered hopes that 'Princess Dorinnia will return to save us'. I admit, I would not be where I am today without their faith in just a girl whose only worth was in her family name. So, my adopted father and I started gathering people. We formed a rebel group, which kept growing as more and more Cynbellians--even a few from other nations--joined our cause. That's how I met Kilian." Rin glanced at the man next to her with a small, bittersweet smile. "We fought back against Aeronwen for six years, and we eventually won."
There was more to it than that, but Rin did not want to go into the details. She sat back again. "Now, Cynbel is rebuilding, we've made peace with Aeronwen, and the people made me their queen. That's really it. I only came traveling because some of my friends urged me to take a rest. But it seems like someone decided to follow me here, for some reason."
Kilian ignored her comment.
"And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7
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