Two weeks.

It's been two weeks since Clara had stopped training with the rest of the knights to protect the prince from any harm that may come his way.

She was changing the prince's sheets when he barged in his room, startling her.

"Cleo, grab my hunting attire."

"We're going hunting?" she perked up, getting a chance to get out of the castle and roam the woods.

The prince stared at her for a moment, studying her expression. She was beaming. He then rolled his eyes, mumbling under his breath.

"I suppose you might as well come along." Not that he had a choice.

Clara's grin widened as she hurried with making his bed, to move onto packing his things. She knew exactly what he would need since she had always helped Edwin gather his things for when he accompanied the king.

He only took her with him once, and that was two years ago, so she was beyond excited to join this hunting party.

Of course she wasn't excited for the hunting itself, rather the journey in the woods. The thought of taking a life scared her to...ironically, death.

But she knew that day would come soon, as much as she wished it wouldn't.

Much faster than what the prince had expected, Clara had gathered all the essentials and stood before him, grinning. He couldn't help the small tug at his lips, but he quickly hid it with a cough.

"Let's get you a horse then, shall we?"

That was the first time he saw a twinkle in her eyes directly.

He stared for a moment longer and then made his way out the door without another word, Clara following behind him with two bags on her shoulders, trying to keep up with him without tripping on the hem of her dress. Soon enough they arrived at the stables, where the accompanying knights were waiting and preparing.

"Clara?"

Both the prince and his maidservant turned to the voice, seeing Julian checking the saddle of his horse. With a wide smile, Clara waved at him excitedly, making the prince roll his eyes and put an arm over her shoulder to grab her attention.

"Go on then, choose a horse."

Both men watched as her face brightened up even more, and they wondered how it was even possible to do so. She walked closer to the horses, petting them; and as if the horses had seen her a million times, they leaned into her touch, showing no fear, only trust.

Clara stopped in front of a pitch black horse, so dark it seemed as if the light did not reflect off it.

Victor's chest tightened and his breath hitched in his throat as he watched the interaction. He knew that horse very well, as he had many fond memories riding him.

But never alone, for he rode him as a child, with his mother.

She called him Shadow, not because of his color, but because he's been with her so much, as if he was her shadow. She was the one who took care of him as a foul. Victor's father had told him many stories of how protective shadow was of his mother, especially when she was pregnant with him. And when he was born, he had been incredibly gentle with him, even as he grew up, Shadow was always watching out for him, like a guardian angel.

Ever since the queen had passed away, her son avoided Shadow like the plague, the memories haunting his still healing heart.

And now he was watching another woman interact with the same horse. Tears welled up in his eyes; the blur making it look like his mom was standing there once again.

They were alike in so many ways, but the prince had yet to discover that just as the king had.

He quickly wiped away the tears before they dared to fall down his cheeks, and cleared his throat. He then walked over to Clara and the horse, almost apologetically, because he regretted abandoning Shadow out of nowhere.

He offered a smile to the horse when they met eyes. Shadow let out a joyful neigh, nudging Victor with his nose, making him laugh, and part of the weight he'd been carrying was lifted.

"Hey, buddy." he smiled, petting Shadow's soft hair. "I missed you."

Clara watched with curiosity, but her smile never faltered. It was a pleasant view to see the prince smile so widely at something other than her being annoyed at him. She had always believed that animals can sense a person's true self; whether they're good people or not, so seeing this horse neigh so happily around him made her see him in a new light.

"He likes you I see." Clara mused. Victor glanced at her with a soft smile, muttering a soft 'yeah'. "That makes one of us at least."

Clara laughed lightly when he rolled his eyes, and Shadow neighed, as if he was laughing too.

"This is Shadow." Victor stated.

"He's beautiful." Clara joined in on petting him.

"He was my mother's horse." Victor was lost in thought, his voice soft and barely heard. Clara's eyes widened and she stepped back slightly.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"It's okay." he looked at her, the corner of his mouth turned upwards. "You can ride, he likes you."

"Oh no, I can't possibly-" he cut her off once again.

"Clara." he shut her up. "I want you to take him with you today, and every other time we go riding."

Clara wore a soft smile, looking back at Shadow, who was looking at her. She was so fascinated that the late queen's horse would accompany her on this journey -and future ones too as the prince had just said- that she didn't notice how he called her by her name.

Victor let his eyes trail over the horse for a moment longer, lost in an ocean of memories. Suddenly he stood straighter, clearing his throat, his face back to stone.

"Right, well I'll go fetch my own horse now."

Clara furrowed her eyebrows at his sudden change of behavior, then shrugged and turned her attention to Shadow.

"Has he always been like this?" Shadow huffed, shaking his head, slightly shocking Clara.

After that, Clara began prepping Shadow for the ride, fastening his saddle and brushing his hair once more. Now it was time for her to get on; which she soon realized would be harder than she expected.

Every time she hooked her foot through the stirrup, she struggled to put her other leg on the other side, due to the dress she was wearing. She hopped down once again, letting out a frustrated huff, looking over everything and thinking of a way to get on.

Shadow let out a neigh similar to a laugh.

"Don't laugh at me!" Clara gaped playfully, a small laugh escaping her own lips.

"Need some help?" she heard a familiar voice say into her ear. She quickly spun around, her eyes meeting the blonde knight's.

"My knight in shining armor." she grinned at him. "And yes, I have no idea how to ride with this ridiculous attire."

"Why did you start wearing these anyways?"

"To stay undercover, blend in." she shrugged. "So what do I do?"

"Just relax." Julian smiled at her, and she furrowed her eyebrows, about to speak, but got cut off when Julian put his hands on her waist and lifted her up easily, putting her on Shadow's back.

Clara was a blushing mess after that, especially when she saw the handsome smile on Julian's face.

"That's one way to do it." she laughed. "I have to give it to the high ladies of the court, I doubt riding one sided will be easy."

"It's time for you to learn then, my lady." he winked at her playfully, making them both laugh.

"It's so strange hearing that."

"What? Lady Clara?" he chuckled when she nodded. "Even if it wasn't an official title, you will always be my lady."

He had her hand in his as he rubbed his thumb over her knuckles, looking at her in admiration. Clara was speechless, her heart beating loudly in her chest. She smiled softly at him, squeezing his hand, the red tint on her face not fading. He then lifted her hand to his lips to place a gentle kiss upon it.

Their moment was cut short when Julian was called to mount his own horse so they get on with the hunting party. Clara watched him walk away, the same smile present on her face before she shook her head and patted her horse.

"Let's go, shall we?"

The group of knights, along with the prince and his maidservant strolled through the woods, awaiting any indication of an animal nearby.

Clara spotted a deer not so far from them, and the group had noticed it too, so in a panic, she faked a loud sneeze which scared off the beautiful animal.

"Cleo!" The prince all but growled at her with a glare, to which she smiled sheepishly and apologized.

Victor grew even grumpier and more frustrated with her. It didn't help his ego that she and Julian were talking quietly among themselves as they rode in the back.

"So what was earlier about?" Julian asked. "You and the prince actually laughing, never thought I'd live to see that."

Clara laughed before she replied, oblivious to the slight edge to his voice.

"He was telling me about Shadow; he was the queen's horse."

"Oh, that's...wow!"

"I know." She smiled.

Suddenly there was a commotion, and multiple animals ran across from them, getting further and further away. Loud rustling came from bushes a bit farther from them, as well as the trees.

"It's an ambush." Clara spoke in a tone of authority which would have surprised the prince had he not been instantly surrounded by other knights to protect him.

Julian met her gaze and he nodded, silently telling her that he had her back. Seventeen men jumped out of the greens, accompanied by yells to plant fear in their hearts. However, due to their great observation skills, the knights were prepared, each having had drawn out their swords in anticipation.

Clara felt useless without her trusty blade, but she'd be damned if she didn't try to fight back. She quickly jumped off of Shadow, ignoring his protesting neighs. The other knights were too focused to notice her, except for Julian, who called her name in a panic.

They were surrounded. Five knights circled around the prince, making sure no harm came to him, as four other knights fought freely.

Clara spotted a fairly big log of wood behind some of the bandits, and recklessly made her way over. A man was running towards her with a dagger in his hand, but Shadow was much faster and stronger as he blocked his way and kicked him away from his rider. Another man came from behind and wrapped his arms around her, locking her arms to her side. Using his hold to her own advantage, she jumped, kicking away one of the men fighting with one of the knights, then she bowed her head before she sent it back with full force. Satisfied with the crack she heard from the man, she pulled away from him. Quickly regaining her balance, she took ahold of the large log, struggling a little at first but soon getting accustomed to its weight.

Despite being greatly outnumbered, the knights of Avelyn fought valiantly, and easily had the upper hand in this fight. Most of them had jumped off their horses to make sure the animals didn't get hurt in the process.

Clara went around, the weight of the log slowing her down, hitting as many bandits as she could with it. Unfortunately the log fell out of her hands and one of the bandits placed his leg over it before she could lift it again, and smiled menacingly at her.

Julian rushed to her, standing protectively in front of her as he pushed the bandit back with the tip of his sword.

"Clara, get to the prince, now." he ordered in a deep voice, sending chills down her spine. Deciding it was best to listen to him, she began to run towards the knights huddled around the prince. Mere seconds later, her foot got caught in the hem of her dress, sending her tumbling down, her knee hitting a sharp rock, and the beige fabric turned deep red.

Victor heard her yelp in pain, but he couldn't see anything. Despite everything, he was still worried for his maidservant's well being.

One of the knights quickly came over to her and pulled her to her feet. She thanked him quickly before supporting her weight on Shadow, who had approached her. Without the adrenaline of fighting, the pain was excruciating.

Soon after that, almost all the bandits had been taken care of.

Clara then spotted one sneaking behind Julian, and she called out his name as she limped over, gritting her teeth to not scream out in pain, and tackled the bandit on the ground, giving Julian time to finish off the other bandit before he quickly turned to her, seeing her now under the man, a knife to her throat. He pulled him off her and punched him so hard he fell limp to the ground.

Julian helped Clara up and she put her arms around his neck to support herself as he wrapped an arm around her waist, holding her up.

"What were you thinking?" he fumed. "That was so reckless and stupid! You could've hurt yourself!"

"Well I was already hurt, so what was a little bit more?" her smile vanished when she saw Julian's frown. "I'm sorry, but if I hadn't done this, you could've gotten hurt, and I can't bear to see that."

"And you think I can bear to see you hurt?" he asked her softly, shaking his head. He proceeded to lift her up completely and walked over to Shadow, placing her on his back gently.

"Is everyone alright?" he called out.

There were small injuries here and there, but everyone was mainly fine. Most importantly, the prince was safe and hadn't had a single scratch.

"Let's go back, you all need medical attention and much needed rest." Victor spoke.

This time, Julian was in the lead, and they had the prince and Clara ride in the middle.

Clara winced every now and then when her knee moved, and the prince was quick to notice it, as well as her frazzled hair and dirty dress.

"Are you alright?"

She glanced over at him, at first thinking he was talking to someone else, but when she found him looking at her she was quick to respond.

"Yes, I'm alright." she forced a smile. "Just a small cut, it's nothing much."

She stiffened under his gaze, and was glad that her bloodied knee was on the other side of Shadow, away from the prince's eyes.

"Why do I find that hard to believe?"

"Honestly, I'm okay." she was quick to reply. "Thank you for your concern."

The prince nodded lightly, but made a mental note to make sure of it once they arrived at the castle. He saw how she clenched her jaw more now, in attempt to hold back winces. She took deep breaths every now and then, but other than that was ultimately fine.

After all, it was just a cut, so she said.

Once they arrived, they all got off their horses, except for Clara who had a hard time doing so. Julian helped her down and was about to take her inside, when he was instructed to report to Edwin. He left reluctantly with a frown when Clara smiled reassuringly at him, silently telling him she's fine.

Clara sighed, looking at the castle, wondering how she was going to walk all the way there. If it were a few steps, she could manage, but it was quite far, with a fair amount of stairs. She patted Shadow and smiled at him before she departed from him and limped a few steps away.

"Cleo." she turned at the mention of her 'name'.

"Yes your majesty?"

"Why are you limping?" he furrowed his eyebrows, looking down to where Clara tried to cover the bloody fabric. "Is that blood?"

"Is it?" she faked shock, looking down at her dress. "I'm sure it's nothing."

He gave her an unamused look, letting out a sigh. "Go home; take care of your wound."

"I'm fine, I can still work." she shook her head. "Still have loads of work to do."

"I said go home." he said sternly.

"But I'm completely okay!" she exclaimed, running out of patience. "It's just a cut, nothing more."

"Don't lie to me." she huffed in defeat, and said nothing. Instead, she took another step towards the castle, her knee giving out momentarily. Thankfully, Victor had caught her in time.

"I thought you said you were fine?" he smirked at her and she rolled her eyes before thanking him quietly. Just as she was about to let go, he pulled her back into him before he put his other arm under her knee and lifted her up bridal style.

"What are you doing?" she panicked. "Put me down!"

"You clearly can't walk." he chuckled.

"Yes, I can!" she exclaimed.

"Sure," he rolled his eyes. "even so, you were going back to the castle, when I specifically told you to go home."

She didn't deny that.

"Where do you live?" he asked her.

"I'm not saying."

"Oh for god's sake, Cleo." he rolled his eyes. "You're hurt, stop being so stubborn and take the day off."

"But-"

"That's an order." she huffed again and looked away from him. Victor rolled his eyes once more before he made his way to the castle kitchens, completely ignoring all her protests and attempts for him to put her down.

He pushed the doors open with his shoulder, and walked in, emitting many loud gasps from the women inside. Hazel's eyes were about to pop out of her head, and the other young maidens' jaws were dropped in shock. However, the scowl on Clara's face made Hazel want to burst out laughing.

"Does anyone know where she lives?"

A girl accidentally burned her finger when he asked that, and whispers arose. It was no mystery what thoughts made their way into the maidens' minds. And if it wasn't for the dirt and blood on her dress, gossip would have spread like wildfire.

Molly nodded at Hazel and she quickly made her way over to the pair.

"I know where she lives, your highness." he nodded and told her to lead the way.

"Hazel, can you please convince him that I'm fine so I can get back to work?" Clara asked.

Hazel turned to her with raised eyebrows.

"Absolutely not!" she exclaimed, glancing at the smirking prince. "What even happened?"

"We got attacked." Victor replied before Clara could. "And somehow, she hurt herself, I couldn't see though."

"It's just a small cut." she groaned.

"Oh please, you never have small cuts." Hazel huffed, and the prince laughed. "How did you even hurt yourself?"

"This stupid dress." she glared at it, mentally cursing society for making her wear one. "My foot got caught and I fell."

"Is that why you prefer trousers?" Victor asked her and she nodded.

Hazel crossed her arms, looking at her best friend. She wasn't mad, it was only the fact that she knew how reckless that girl is, and feared losing her one day.

"You have to be more careful, Clara." she said softly, walking faster so she doesn't see her frown or glossy eyes.

Clara bit her lower lip, guilt overwhelming her. She reached out her hand, managing to get ahold of her arm.

"I truly am sorry, El." she said sincerely. "I promise I'll take more care from now on."

The two best friends smiled at each other, forgetting about Victor for a moment. He watched them intently, wishing he had such a friendship, unfortunately all his friends were too busy taking care of their own kingdoms. He soon snapped out of it and returned the smirk onto his lips.

"Never a quiet day with this one." he chuckled and Hazel laughed.

"Oh you have no idea."

Before he could ask Hazel more about Clara's rather interesting adventures, they reached her home and they walked in. She instructed him to her room and he put her on one of the two beds that were there. His eyebrows furrowed at the smaller bed on the side, which also had a few dolls on it, but didn't ask anything.

"Thank you, your majesty." Hazel had spoken first, followed by another thanks from Clara, along with a shy smile. He nodded with the smallest of smiles on his lips before he left.

"Shoot!" Clara's eyes widened. "I shouldn't be leaving him alone!"

"Clara, sit down or I swear to god I will sit on your back and refuse to move until you grow grey hair."

Reluctantly Clara sat back down with a huff and a heavy heart. If anything happened to him during the short time she'd be here, it would all be her fault and she would disappoint both Edwin and the king.

Hazel brought the things she needed to attend to Clara's wound. She pulled up her skirt and gasped at the sight.

"Just a small cut..." Hazel muttered in a mocking voice under her breath, just loud enough for Clara to hear and laugh. Her laughter died as soon as Hazel applied the disinfectant to her wound, making her hiss in pain as the other girl cleaned up her wound.

"So how did it feel to be in the prince's arms?" she grinned. Clara groaned jokingly and fell back onto her bed, lightly shoving Hazel, making her grin grow wider.

"Shut up..."

"Seriously though," she calmed her laughter. "I know you said he's annoying and heartless but he did carry you all the way here and give you the day off. That doesn't exactly scream heartless."

"I know I know..." she muttered. "He's not the worst, we just clash I guess. He's still very arrogant; I mean have you seen his smirk?"

"Oh believe me, I have." she nodded. "It's fascinating."

Clara faked a gag and laughed, telling her it was only because she didn't spend more time with him. They spoke more as Hazel worked on her knee, both silently thanking Hazel's mother who had taught her all her nursing skills.

Once it was cleaned up, it didn't look as bad, but it was still much more than a small cut. Hazel carefully wrapped it up and stood up.

"There, good as new."

"What would I do without you?" Clara grinned at her.

"Probably get thrown in the dungeons or die." she laughed and Clara shrugged, unable to deny her statement.

"Hey, can you please make sure you're the one who makes the prince's food and takes it to him?" she asked quietly. "I trust you more than anyone."

"Of course." she nodded with a smile. "I'll send him your love."

"Hazel don't you dare!" the girl ran out of the house, laughing loudly. Clara chuckled to herself and laid back on her bed, deciding to take a nap now that she couldn't do much.

And so she drifted off to sleep, not waking up until Edwin came home with little Lila, whom had both been very worried and hugged the young woman tightly in relief. Lila even gathered some daisies with the help of Hazel and tied them with a ribbon before giving it to her with a proud grin.

Clara couldn't be more thankful for the incredible family she had found in this town. Despite the pain in her knee, she was truly happy with life at that moment.