Caspian waited for Douglas to come with Aurora's friends, he could not go himself as that would raise a lot of speculation.

It might also reach his mother and Nadia's ear, he heard the door open as Douglas led them in, when they saw him they all seemed to be frightened.

"You may leave," Caspian said to Douglas as he went out.

"You all don't have to be anxious, I did not call you all to berate nor to punish you. I wanted to ask about Aurora, and you all don't have to keep your heads down, you may look at me."

He could see them lift their heads, and their hands were clasped in front of them,

"I wanted to ask if you knew where Aurora might be?"

They all shook their heads in unison,

"Do you have any idea where she could have gone to?"

"No, My Lord, before she left, she was ordered to not speak nor see us."

"Who ordered you to do so?"

They all were silent at his question and he knew that they were probably afraid if word got out they would get punished.

"You do not have to fear anything," Caspian assured them.

"We are not so sure but it had to be a royalty with much power to be able to send out such a decree."

"Has Aurora ever told you where she might go?"

"No, My Lord, she just like all of us don't dream beyond the palace walls as our lives are dedicated to serving here."

Caspian sighed, he was not getting any information and he pushed down the feeling of being despondent.

"Did she say anything about me?"

"She loved you wholeheartedly My Lord, and the last time we saw her she was heartbroken that you had not made your way back to her."

"I'm sure you all miss her too." Caspian could see the hurt on their faces, and he could see her departure had taken a toll on them too.

"We do My Lord, we miss her dearly."

"I will make sure to bring her back."

"The heavens have answered our prayers, we have been praying for your return so you could bring her back to us."

"I will find her, no matter the cost."

Caspian made his way back and he found himself on the path that he and Aurora had taken so many times before.

Whisps of hair would be going with the wind, her eyes, and then her smile but all that he could not remember.

Her scent was now replaced by the wind, How he wished he could go back to that moment, back in time.

He wanted to come back and hear her tell him she loved him. Caspian felt as if he had not gotten enough time to hear her say those words plenty of times.

"Caspian!"

Caspian stopped and he turned, Rurina was running towards him, she got to him and was breathing heavily.

"You don't have to run."

"I know but I haven't seen you in a while, have you forgotten about your dear concubine."

Caspian chuckled, "Of course not, I have a lot of duties after becoming the king."

"Do you need anything?" Rurina asked.

"No, I have everything and the kingdom under my feet."

"Not in that way, you seem sad, I thought coming back here would make you joyful once more."

"So did I, but my joy is not here."

"I'm not understanding," Rurina replied.

"I know, I have to go search for what will make me joyful once more."

"Could I accompany you, I do not wish to remain here alone."

"As you wish."

"Where are we headed?"

"I'm not sure yet Rurina."

"You don't know where you are going to search for this joy?"

"Not yet, might be a while till I find it."

"The more time together, the better. It is a bit lonely here."

"Did you meet the other concubines?"

"I did but I am not interested in them, I would rather be by your side. You understand me and I, you."

"You should give them a chance, you never know. You might get accustomed to them."

"Am I now a nuisance to you?"

"Of course not Rurina, it is impossible for me to be with you all the time and I don't want you to be alone."

Rurina smiled once more, "You are looking out for me."

"I will always look out for you, I am indebted to you."

"Enough of that, where are you headed?"

"I was taking a casual stroll."

"I can join you?"

"If you want to."

They walked side by side, "What are you thinking about?"

"A bit of this and that."

"You can tell me, I might be able to help and I would not tell a soul."

"I know Rurina, I trust you with my life. You have shown me loyalty and no reason to doubt you. When the time comes I will tell you, I need to find a missing puzzle piece and when I do, all will fall into place."

"I understand you, at the same time I do not, It seems as if you are speaking in riddles."

"How did it go with Nadia's parents? Were they pleased with you?"

"It went much better than I thought it would, everything fell into place and I was able to play my part."

"I wanted to know what do you think of me?"

"In terms of your identity?"

"Yes, what was your first impression of me, and how do you view me now."

"When I first saw you, I thought you were sent by your father to trick me, to gain my trust so I would tell you all the information that I knew and you would be able to use it against me, my people, and kingdom. The more I spoke to you the more I realized you have a kind heart as you always sneak me in food when you manage to. You helped me escape, you were courageous and fierce."

"What of my physical traits?"

Caspian could see that she was a bit insecure when she asked about her physical traits, but he did not know why she was insecure as she was beautiful, "You are beautiful Rurina."

"Do you mean it?"

"Of course I do."

He could see that she was pleased and overjoyed by his response, he could tell that she was not used to such words as she was getting emotional.

Rurina came up to him and he could tell that she was looking for comfort from him, he pulled her and held her.

For an outcast, Rurina was truly brave and never gave up, knowing that he could escape through her gave him hope.

After she had regained her composure, Caspian let her go, "There is no need to cry and any men that will love you would have a treasure."

"We should head back, the weather has become gloomy and we can't afford to fall ill."

Rurina nodded, "I'm in the mood for tea."

"I will tell the servants to prepare some for us."

"Sounds great."

Caspian and Rurina got to the palace and waited for tea to be served,

"You are here."

Caspian and Rurina turned to find Nadia approaching them, "Is it alright if I join you two."

"You may sit," Caspian replied and tea was served.

"Have you two gotten a chance to talk to one another?" Caspian asked as he hoped Rurina could have company when he was not around. He did not want her to feel alone and isolated.

"We haven't, I have not gotten a chance as my parents just recently visited us but now that is over, we can get to know each other Rurina."

"I guess," Rurina replied.

He knew it would take time for Rurina to fit in as in his kingdom everything that was done was much different from where she came from.

She also had an accent and most of the time some words were not articulated properly.

"Is there anything you fancy doing Rurina?" Nadia asked.

"Not really, I'm not fully aware of what is done to pass time." Rurina replied.

"Well, I have a few activities that you would fancy that I can teach you if you want," Nadia replied.

"Alright, I will take you up on that offer soon."

"I'm glad, how are you finding it being a concubine?" Nadia asked.

"It has been alright."

"Have you gotten the chance to meet the other concubines?" Nadia replied.

"I haven't gotten around to it."

"I will have to arrange introductions so that you can meet the other ladies."

"Let me know when that will be."

"I will send you a formal invite as I have to arrange when we should meet and a suitable time for everyone."

"Alright."

"How are you finding the dishes here?"

"I'm enjoying it as there is a wide variety from what Caspian and I were having."

"I need to thank you once more for bringing Caspian home, back to us."

"It is a pleasure."

"I wanted to run it through you Caspian, I was thinking about hosting a celebration for the kingdom as a whole for your return and for becoming king so that our people can know that we do care for them."

"What do you have in mind, Nadia?" Caspian asked, he knew if she was occupied with this, the less time she would seek him out.

"Rain festival, every family member will get food and there would be street parades."

"You may go ahead, and Rurina if you want to be involved you can."

"That would be lovely if you could help me," Nadia added.

"I suppose," Rurina replied.

The tea carried on and when it was done, Caspian excused himself.

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